China has no use for democracy

[Randy W]

An interesting article, both historically and politically. From the SCMP. Includes an interactive info-graphic, showing the layout of China's government

 

Chi Wang

China has no use for democracy. It needs a strong leader like Xi Jinping right now

• Chi Wang says China has no ideological basis for the development of a system that prizes personal freedom, nor any history with the rule of law
• The reality is, for the People’s Republic, strong leadership makes better sense

 

 

In China, however, Xi’s rise is just as big a question mark to Chinese citizens as it is to foreign observers.

 

Throughout my life, I have had the opportunity to meet nearly every Chinese leader since the 1930s (with the exception of Mao Zedong), including Chiang Kai-shek, Wang Jingwei, and more contemporary figures such as Hu Jintao, Jiang Zemin and Xi. As individuals, they frequently came off as kind, caring and intelligent. From afar, as I watched them govern, I would view them in a different light, as dictators. This is the reality of leadership in China.

 

. . .

 

Under Xi’s leadership, China has adopted a more aggressive stance internationally, imprisoned thousands of party members on corruption charges, and removed constitutional limitations on presidential term limits. Amid these developments, the question of how Xi was chosen again comes to mind. The short answer is, we can only guess.

 

. . .

 

Does it have to be this way? Could China elect its leaders democratically like we in the US do, where even those who oppose Trump largely concede that he was elected by the people’s will?

Putting aside the question of whether China even has the institutional capacity to support a democracy, or any indications of a democratic reform mindset, at either the grass-roots or government levels, it doesn’t seem that the nation could support a democracy. China lacks the ideological framework under which democracy could spontaneously develop or be fostered. Confucianism is inherently undemocratic; it encourages obedience, not freedom or personal liberty.

 

Most strikingly, China lacks any history with democracy or true representative government and the rule of law. Prior to the establishment of the Republic of China, China was ruled for thousands of years by successive dynasties. Even the Republic of China could not be categorised as democratic, as the people had no say in choosing its leadership. Further, it did not establish definitive control over vast swathes of Chinese territory.

 

. . .

 

Chi Wang, a former head of the Chinese section of the US Library of Congress and former university librarian at the Chinese University of Hong Kong, is president of the US-China Policy Foundation

 

 

[Greg.D.]

https://nb.sinocism.com/p/engineers-of-the-soul-ideology-in

 

Somewhat similarly, this author (very good read) makes two points:

 

1) the current political system (from Mao to now) is structured like the feudal, Confucian systems of old - no accident from Mao'S or Xi's perspective). Includes patriarchy, rank, patronage, bribes, de-emphasis of the individual

 

2) Xi isn't so much interested in power for himself so much as he is motivated to execute an obligation to continue the revolution; he sees failure in all Russian leaders from Kruschev to Gorbachev and, though his family was devastated by Mao's policies, he feels all CCP leaders should act as he is. Note: by resurrecting the revolution, the West is, once again, alll things evil and the enemy of China (therefore, any hostile action against other countries is justified)

 

Though Randy's writer is saying China and Chinese can't sustain a participatory democracy with independent rule of law, I'm not sure the CCP command economy, neo-Confucian system is sustainable either. Of course, I hope for a peaceful future for them.

[Randy W]

Well, the CCP has the advantage of NOT being mired in the decision making by political forces that we are stuck with for the foreseeable future. That is, they are free to make intelligent, rather than political, decisions. But Communist, and, in particular, Chinese, thought has its own politics behind it.

 

I'd be interested in coming back in around 1 to 5 hundred years to see how it all has played out.

[Randy W]

Don't forget to download your Xi Jinping Thought app - for IoS only

 

China’s most popular app is a propaganda tool teaching Xi Jinping Thought

• The Xuexi Qiangguo app is now the most downloaded item on Apple’s App Store in China
• Released by China’s Communist Party, the app is helping cadres learn more about its political doctrine

 

 

Xuexi Qiangguo, which translates to “Study powerful country”, is now the most downloaded item on Apple’s domestic App Store, surpassing in demand social media apps such as WeChat and TikTok – known as Weixin and Douyin, respectively, in mainland China.

 

[Allon]

This is a debate that has been going on for a long time outside of China and in every civics and political science class in higher education. Even a benevolent dictatorship has one major issue: what happens when he dies? I don't think China really learned from the days when Mao died and the Gang of Four tried to run the country. And the death of Lin Biao (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lin_Biao) is still a mystery but not to the cadre who took over eventually, taking the China to a level of stability that seems to have remained for a while anyway.

 

Now we have another cult of leadership/personality building with Xi Jinping. I hope it does not lead to the same sad conclusion as Mao.There seems to be a stronger middle class to offset some of the disparity between government (and now business) class and still rampant poverty. But not enough I think for something stable and prosperous.

 

Xi is getting old, it's a simple fact. There don't seem to be any signs of him setting up a means of succession. He is still fighting for complete control of the Central Military District which by law is his domain anyway but Hu Jintao had to work to retain that control -- which is control of China. (Witness Venezuela now.) And the economic problems led by his premier face some difficulty -- slower growth in recent metrics.

 

It's time for heroes.