Cnsr SIUDY: CHINA

China is an important case study for students-of AP CornparatiYe Government and Politics because it provides an example of a functioning communist system. While China maintains a communist political'system, students will find paradoxes among its government policies. In order to compete in a global economy, China has moved away from communist orthodoxy in its approach to the economy. China no longer has a command economy: it now allows privatization, ftee trade, and other policies more commonly associated with a capitalist systeni. At the same time, China still follows a communist political system: only one party (the Chinese Communist Party) rules " the country and little dissent is. tolerated. Perhaps the most well-knor,v,n example of the party intolerance of dissent is the 1989 Tiananmen Squqe incident in which pro-democracy students demonstrated in Tiananmen Square only to be harshly repressed by the People's Liberation Army (PLA). This incident was viewed on television around the world, and while much time has passed, the government in China Iargely still does not tolerate political dissent such as public protests.

Krv Tenus
Chinese Communist Party (CCP)

Hundred Flowers Campaigrn iron rice-bowl Long March

mass line
,

Cultural Revolution

extraterritoriality
factions Falun Gong

one-child policy
special economic zones (SEZs)

four modernizations
Gang of Four Great Leap Forward

township and village enterprises

ITVEs)

wanxl
Han Chinese

warlords

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Kry Coruceprs
China's population is very large and fairly homogeneous. China maintains Communist party rule. e# china was once ruled by dynasties, but eventually the chinese Communist Party (CCp) came to rule in 1g49. ffi Mao Zedong led the Communist party. In the 1g50s, he lpunched the Great Leap Forward, which was a disastrous plan for economic modernization. In the 1960s, he launched the Cultural Revolution, an antiwestern campaigrn and an attempt to reawaken revolutionary feryor that caused turmoil in the country. ffi After Mao's death, Deng Xiaoping led the country and launched economic reformi. ffi The communist Party still rules china, but economic reforms have led it to functionmore like a market economy w Limited political reforms have taken place, including elections held at the village level, but the communist party still controls the press and limits speech. one party continues to run the government

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THe Bnsrcs
china is the world's most populous country, with more than 1.3 billion people. unlike Russia, china has a fairly homogeneous population .-with 90 percent belonging to the Han chinese ethriic grroup. Hbwever, because china's population is so large, even relatively small minority groups make up large numbers of peopie and can have an impact on government and politics in the country. one such group is the Muslm Uyghur people, who live predominantly in the north and have launched protests against alleged discrimination. The government has attempted to quell dissatisfaction by allowing exemptions from the one-child policy, for example. The one-child policy has traditionally limited families who are Han chinese to one child. Another example of population diversity are Trbetans, who are ethnically, Iinguistically,
iautonomous region. china is a developing country with big differences in standards of living; the contrast between urban and rural standards of living is especially great. Ufe expectancy is fairly high (72) as is the litericy rate. china has the largest military in the world and one of the largesi economies.
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and culturally different from the Han chinese and live in

EvoluloN or rue cHtr.lese srnrr

For millennia, china was governed by an imperial system that created a successful government bureaucracy and foright oti toreigm irrr"a".r. The Qin Dynasty was knonm for implementin[ a successful and wellorganized bureaucracy, and elements of this have carried over to the political. system today. However, by the end of ttre eighteenth century, the bureaucracy was stretched over a growing population increasingiy composed of impoverished peasants. British imperialism soon reached

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China, and China was defeated in the Opium Wars (1839-1842). The British began to impose the principle of extraterritodulity- applying British law to British subjects who committed offenses in China. This intensifled a long tradition of distrust and dislike of the West since the British did not have the interests of the Chinese in mind. To make matters worse, the sino-Japanese war escalated tensions with foreigners, and many chinese began to realize that they were not keeping gp politically and economically with the outside world. This realization sowed the seeds of a revolution that consisted of many
factions (small organized groups). Sun Yat-sen was a revolutionary who favored Western traditions and organized a coup. He was exiled. \Mhite abroad, he continued to plan a takeovpr and organized the KMT (Kuomintang) or Nationalist Party, which formed one faction .in the revolution. Sun's group weakened the regime, which gave way to warlords, or tribal leaders, who would rule the country briefly. Later, the government was ruled by the KMT. During this tumultuous period, many chinese turned to Marxism, a faction already in control in Russia and a belief system that appealed to the oppressed. The Soviets supported the KMT and Chiang Kaishek, who took over after Sun',s death. Tension between Marxists and Nationalists mounted and flnally came to a head in a Nationalist attack on the Marxists in shanghai. Mao zedong, a communist peasant leader, began to organize a following. Mao believed in peasant-based guerilla wirfare to overthrow the Nationalists. After initial defeats, Mao and his followers withdrew to regroup their forces in the Long March, which lasted over a year. The Long March was a tir,ne in which Mao led peasants on a foot journey and engaged in communist organization and guerilla warfare along the way. During world war II, both the communists and the Nationalists fought the Japanese, who had begun encroachingj on chinese territory. After the defeat of Japan in 1945, the Nationalists and communists turned on each other. In 1949, the Communists drove the Nationalists from the mainland. The Communists broke up large estates, gave land to peasants, provided them with food and clothing, and allowed women to play a role in politics. The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) offlcially took control and still rules China today. The party is based on the principles of

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Mao was elected chairman of the politburo, and a communist state was established. Under Maoism, value was placed on conflict and disorder, the human spirit, and rural values. Specialization and intellectualism were seen as negative influences, and the people were encouraged to learn greater self-reliance and not become too dependent on the state. Internal inflghting and factionalism continued, however. There were plots to kilI Mao, and Nationalist forces led by Chiang Kai-shek remained in power on the island of Taiwan..Although Mao was able to mobilize the peasants, support for the regime was far from universal. Peasant-based rebellions had to be suppressed by

totif;o

and his supporters launched a new economic plan called the Great Leap Forward. Under lhe'command e'conomy and central planning model central au.thorities set plans. for agricuiture and industrial production. Peasants were forced into collective farms or made to work in large factories to comply with the plan. Dissent was

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not tolerated, except for brief periods orchestrated by the government. one such time,was kno'orn as the Hundred Flowers c-ampaign in which the government briefly. encouraged dissent, to appease the people. The idea promoted was, "Let a hundred flowers bloom and a hundred points of view be heard." However, when the government did not like the criticism, it harshly cracked dor,rrn on the speech. Perhaps the most important struggle during Mao's leadership was a campaign he organized called the cultural Revolution. This campaign took place 20 years after the communists had come to power and was designed to rid the country of traditional ways, to curb western influence, and tq reaffirm communist ideals. The campaign involved. a massive use of propaganda, and the Red Guards violently attacked western products and ideas. Tlne Red Guardswere the poliiq/soldiers Ed nv Mao Zedong to carry out the physical labor of the goals of the cultural Revolution. They also punished anyone who was believed to sympathize with the west, sometimes with imprisonmenf exile, or even death. Books were burned, museums were rarisacked, and western products were destroyed. In order to get the country's support, Mao mobilized a propaganda rnachine. Individuals were forced to study Mao Zedong's thoughts in small study groups and to rally behind Mao. Mao's Little Red Book was memorizea in schools. Any hesitation in supporting Mao would result in abrupt and harsh punishments, such as being paraded about in public witha dunce cap. Posters of Mao appeared gvsrJrwhere, and television images portrayed him as a hero. Mao was elevated to godlike status; the Mao's cult of personality intensifl ed. upon Mao's death, uncertainty arose. over who would succeed him. The Gang of Four, who were supporters of the cuttural Revolution, briefly ruled china. They emphasized the four modernizations (science, agriculture, industry, and military), which China would concentrate on for years. A faction within the ccp soon arrested the Ging of Four. Deng Xiaoping took over, and he ended the excesses of the cultural Revolution.

Srruce Mno's DrRrH

P"-"g Xiaoping's leadership ushered in a period of change for china. Believing in the slogan lto get rich is glorious," Deng began a .:ampal_gn to open up the chinese economy. Economic change has been slow, one-party rule is still in place, and political freedoms continue to be limited.' Hu Jintao succeeded Deng Xiaoping as president and current party leader. He has been committed to continuing Deng's policies of free marke! while at the same time; has pledged to pay more attention to poverty and pollution.

Ecottoulc Reronrras
Deng launched several important changes in his attempt to open up the chinese economy. First, he created special economic zones tsgzsi. sEZs were contained areas, such as Hainan, in which free trade was allowed. western companies such as Kodak were allowed to operate

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in these areas, and foreigmers _were p'ermitted to visit. As these areas flourished economically, the government gradually opened up more areas of China to free trade., Today, few areas remain in which free
trade is not allowed. Deng made the revival of the rural economy one of his top priorities, abolishing collective farming and establishing a system in which farmland is contracted out by the villages that own the land. Township and village eiterprises ffvEs) sprang up in the countryside. These were rural factories that varied in size. TVEs were the fastestgrrowing sector of the economy. Entrepreneurial farms were also allowed by Deng, and privatization of farms was phased in. The state began a privatization campaigm by selling off some major industries to private buyers. Privatization is not universal but competition between private and pu-blic industries exists in China today as a result of Deng's reforms. Deng also broke up collective - farms. Farms today are largely private and qot run by the state. Last of all, private entrepreneurship is allowed, and much state economic planning has been abandoned. While these reforms have been gradual they have transitioned China to a market-based economy. As in any market-based economy, employment is no longer guaranteed, there is a disparity of income, and the state no longer provides universal health care. These economic changes are ironic considering the communist/Marxist goal of egalitarianism. rvVhile economic reforms stimulated the econorny, the beneflts of the programs did not reach all citizens. No longer, for example, does the state guarantee employrnent or health care for its citizens. In other words, the iron rice bowl (gnrarantee of basic needs being met) was dismantled by these market reforms. Morever, it is commonly believed that the gwanxi'(people with connections) benefit the most from the reforms. With the changes, there were winners as well as losers.

CHrruese Conluuutsr Pnnrv Rurc

Toonv

China's governing system today is based on the principle of one-party rule. The Chinese Communist Party allows some minor parties and independents to run as long as they do not contradict its goals, which' essentially prevents them from being true opposition parties. (In effect, t\ese minor parties serve as interest groups.) The Communist Party's general secretary is selected internally and serves as the country's head of state. This person's real power comes from the fact that'he is also chairman of the Communist Party. Power is concentrated in the politburo, which is cornposed of a handful of senior party leaders. The secretariat or executive branch car:ries out the politburo's orders. Village leaders oversee rural areas. A National People's Congress has more than 2,000 members that vote on the dire.ctives,gf th" politburo. Not once,. however, has this body voted

poriticar control over the country. rhe press is state owned, and the CCP heavily monitors Internet sites. Dissent against public policies is not tolerated. For exampld, the Falun Gong, a Buddhist exercise and religious,group, has been banned. Private religious giroups may only organize with permission from the

"'?T:t;*Tfflll1?,,r",rtains

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Chapter 12 government. The same is true for any orghnized group. Additionally, the ccP continues to lack the transparency of democratic countries. Instead" Ieadership selection and policy directives take place in secret. Information normally accessible in a democratic country, such as census informatibn, is not provided by the CCp.

capitalism and communism are not compatible ideologies. Chha's judicial system has also undergone change. During the cuitural Revolution, any communist party member coua serve as a judge and impose penalties under china's iode of laws. precedents did not determine punishments, so punishments varied and were arbitrary. Typical punishments during Mao's leadership included public humiliation, sentencing to a work camp, exile to the countryside, or the death penalty. The ccp is beginning to reguire judges to receive legal training. china maintains some of its punishments from the cultural Revolution era and still has a death penalty for a variety of offenses. Many chinese citizens remain unaware of how to flle a lawsuit. Many questions linger about the nature of reform in china. The ccP continually attempts to - maintain legitimacy, but challenges continue.

The CCP has instituted a few political reforms. perhaps the most sigrnificant is allowing for local elections. The government monitors but allows villages to choose between candidates b}z a democratic vote. one must be'a communist Party member or an approved candidate in order to run (opposition candidates are not aliowed), and a CCp member stricW regnrlates the campaigrns. However, the villagers do have a choice. In a process knovrn as the mass line, the ccp miintains frequent communication with the common people in order to access and integrrate public opinion into the poticy-making process. The ccp has also set up avenues for citizens to complain atrout party officials through government-spgnsored anonymous hotlines. Finaly, the onechild policy has been relaxed; those choosing to have an additional child must pay higher taxes. Some minority groups are exempt from the one-child policy. At the'same time, however, there are.punishments if a couple cannot afford an additional child. The CCP has also begrun to allow capitalists to become party members. once strictly based on the principle .of'nomenklatura and. limited membership, the ccP began losing members during the economic reforms of Deng Xiaoping. Since membership in trre chinese communist Party was no longer the only way to get ahead, chinese citizens could achieve economic success as businesspeople and were no longer lining up to become members of the ccp. Therefore, the ccP began to accept capitalist members in an effort to keep party merhbership strong. This is an obvious irony, since