"Western liberal democracy would be wrong for China" was a motion debate in London on 9 November 2012 sponsored by Intelligence Squared, a premier forum for debate and intelligent discussion.Click here
The debate was timely. A slowing and increasingly protest-prone China with a dwindling labour pool was at a crossroads pending a new leadership, notwithstanding impressive economic rise within three and a half decades. Nevertheless, according to successive PEW survey findings, despite a plethora of ills, the majority of the Chinese people remain generally satisfied with the way the country is progressing. Few demand regime change. This contrasts with sputtering economies in the West with political gridlock and rising social discontent, liberal democracy notwithstanding.
The debate managed to thrash out most of the issues, that freedom and democracy are universal values, that much of China’s growth is inequitable, and that behind the façade of impressive growth lies a host of ugly repression, corruption, widening inequalities, vested interests, and ecological degradation.
The outcome of the debate was not unexpected, considering how informed the audience really was about the pros and cons of China’s development model. It implied that a one-party system must be universally bad and the sooner it is given up, the better.
However, the following arguments beg to be answered -
(a) Would multi-party liberal democracy have delivered for China at least similar outcomes in terms of economic and social development, lifting as many people out of poverty in as short a time? The example of India may be instructive.
(b) Would elections have succeeded in maintaining national unity for a country as vast and diverse as China? Recent cases of Egypt, Thailand, and yes, even the United States, do not seem to inspire confidence.The Economist (The United States of Ameoba, 7 December, 2013) graphically shows here how America's politics have become morbidly polarised. Elsewhere, there seem to be signs of fatigue, if not failure, of multi-party democracy.
(c) Multi-party or single-party systems all end up in one government. The proof of the system must be its ability to deliver the goods for most of the people. History seems to suggest that a one-party state does not necessarily do worse. If anything, an enlightened one-party system seems to be better equipped to achieve results as it doesn't have to worry about the next election. It is not without reason that Thomas Friedman, influential author and New York Times columnist, laments in his popular book, Hot, Flat and Crowded (Penguin Books, 2009) that America should become "China for a day (but not for two)" (Part V, Chapter 18).
(d) While western liberal democracies reward successful politicians, the current Chinese party system seems to select more able leaders through competitive meritocracy built over an entire career, political infighting notwithstanding. See here how the Communist Party now works.
(e) According to United Nations Human Development Indices, China's model outperformed many democratic developing countries in virtually all indicators including life expectancy, economic well-being, law and order, health, and education, except, by definition, civil and political rights (China Modernizes, Randall Peerenboom, Oxford University Press, 2007). There is no lack of examples to show that, for certain developing countries, democracies have failed where benign authoritarianism has succeeded.
(f) The Intelligence Squared debate seems to be fixated at Tiananmen Square 1989. However, a lot of water has past under the bridge. To maintain stability, the Party must now continually earn the trust and support of the people. Their aspirations are becoming more diverse and liberal with a rapidly rising and better-educated middle-class. This means that the Party has to keep breast with the times to stay relevant. One can see why such bold reforms as unveiled at the Party’s latest Third Plenum are now necessary. Click here If only gradually, such reforms embrace certain norms of human dignity, rule of law, judiciary independence, and civil society. These norms are not the prerogatives of liberal democracy. Provided a one-party state is able to respond to people’s rising aspirations, co-option of liberal norms may enhance its legitimacy without multi-party politics.
(g) China’s ancient dynasties offer plenty of lessons in governance. The “mandate of heaven” was forfeited where a ruler failed to connect with the people, where the dynasty became short-lived. On the other hand, certain dynasties prospered and proved long-lasting, such as the glorious Tang dynasty (618-907 A.D.), when the ruler and the ruled enjoyed long periods of stability, prosperity and national strength. Naturally, we are way past dynastic times. But the analogy of the legitimacy of ability to connect with the people remains valid.
(h) This is not to say that China's model is without faults and serious drawbacks. Previous Premier Wan Jiabao famously said that China's development is ""unstable, unbalanced, un-coordinated and unsustainable" Nor is this to say that China's model is the ideal solution. China refuses to tout her development as any model for anyone, as each country's circumstances are different and each stage of development demands different approaches. Above all, China does not believe in any one-size-fits-all model that suits all countries at all times, including China herself.
I was conscious of the risk of my article being accused of political propaganda. The Western mind can hardly accept that a one-party state has anything positive to commend itself at any time. I hope to raise the possibility, if only for unbiased debate, whether and how an enlightened One-Party state may well suit a stage of development of a vast country like China better than multi-party democracy, at least for now. Indeed, provided the Party continues to change with the times, as it has vowed to do, it begs the question whether China may not need to abandon one-party rule any time soon.
***************************************************************************
For reference, an insightful analysis by The Economist (1st March, 2014) on "What's gone wrong with Democracy?" is instructive.
For me it is all summed up in a new twist on the wonderful old jokes about Capitalism & Socialism. I'm sure I saw this somewhere. Anyway, the Big Difference is that under Socialism the government owns the banks, ... .
Posted by: Jerome Ravetz | March 03, 2014 at 10:50 PM