Communist Partys monopoly on power

By Frank Ching

The Chinese Communist Party, which celebrated its 90th anniversary July 1, has been in power since 1949 and President Hu Jintao, who is also the party leader, made it clear that the party has no intention of ever giving up the reins of power.

Ten years from now, he said in a major speech, there will be a “moderately prosperous society of a higher level.’’

And, by 2049, when the People’s Republic of China marks its centennial, the country would be a “prosperous, strong, democratic, culturally advanced and harmonious modern socialist country.’’

All this, of course, would happen under the leadership of the Communist Party. There will be no multiparty elections.

This is because, in the view of the party, the Chinese people have already made their choice. As President Hu asserted, “History and the people have chosen the Communist Party of China, Marxism, the socialist road and the reform and opening up policy.’’

While it may be argued that the Chinese people chose the Communist Party in the 1940s, when the Communists defeated the Kuomintang in a three-year civil war, since then the Chinese people have not been allowed to make any other choice.

Once the Communist Party gained power, it made sure that it would remain in power. Opposition parties are illegal. Anyone who tries to found a new party is thrown in prison.

At a press briefing last week, party officials announced that there was no need for any new political party. They said the current system, under which there are eight ostensibly non-Communist parties ― all of which support the Communist Party and are in turn financially supported by the Communists ― was adequate.

The official Xinhua news agency went even further, saying in a report that Western political systems do not suit China’s “national conditions.’’

In fact, the Communist Party is now challenging the very concept of democracy, not only in China but in the West as well. The Xinhua article cited political turmoil, economic difficulties and social disorder in some countries as evidence that democracy does not work.

This much was said openly. In secret, China’s propaganda officials last week sent a directive to commentators telling them not to challenge democracy directly but rather to frame the argument in terms of “what kind of system can truly implement democracy?’’

It urged that examples of “violence and unreasonable circumstances’’ in the West be used to show that democracy “is not well-suited to capitalism.’’

China’s Communist Party, it seems, is turning from defensive to offensive tactics. It sees democratic countries as a threat and is seeking to undermine them by, ironically, arguing that authoritarian countries are more suitable to capitalism than democratic ones.

President Hu, in his speech, depicted the past 90 years as a period in which the Communist Party, step by step, led China to its current position of global eminence.

Little credit is given to the Kuomintang (KMT), or Nationalist Party, which was in power until its defeat in 1949.

But the KMT successfully led the resistance against Japan’s invasion in the 1930s and 1940s.

While President Hu did acknowledge the 1911 revolution led by Dr. Sun Yat-sen which overthrew China’s last imperial dynasty and led to the creation of a Chinese republic, he said that it did not change China’s status as a semi-colonial and semi-feudal society “or end the misery of the Chinese people.’’

Instead, he said, looking back over the last 90 years, “we have naturally come to this basic conclusion: Success in China hinges on the party.’’

While in theory the people are the masters of the country, Communists also insist on the leadership of the party. This presents a conundrum: who leads whom?

The party is looking for an answer. Part of the solution, it seems, is to begin indoctrination of the people at an early age.

To ensure children love the Communist Party, all primary school students are now required to salute not only the national flag but the flag of the Communist Party, the Communist Youth League and the Young Pioneers.

Clearly, the party hopes that by indoctrinating children, they will support the Communist Party’s monopoly on power. From the party’s viewpoint, this is entirely justifiable because, after all, it is in the interests of the Chinese people for the party to continue to rule over them.

Frank Ching is a journalist and commentator based in Hong Kong. E-mail the writer at Frank.ching@gmail.com. Follow him on Twitter: @FrankChing1.