Political System in China and Politburo Standing Committee - Essay Example

The paper identifies how the Chinese communist party functions, and its major decision-making authority, referred to as the politburo standing committee. This is a committee of seven powerful individuals who have the responsibility of developing the Chinese policies.

China’s Political System:
China is a socialist state, led by a single-party rule, normally referred to as the communist party. This party is recognized by the constitution of China, and the same constitution has provisions on how this party should be led. This includes the establishment of powerful committees such as the politburo and the politburo standing committee (BBC, 4, 2013). The constitution also recognizes four vital institutions whose main role is to help the party in the governance of the country. These institutions are the people’s liberation army, the people's national congress, the state council, and the political consultative conference (Lawrence and Martins, 7, 2013). These are the four pillars in which the communist party of China controls all the affairs of the Chinese. The institution of the state is responsible for implementing the various policies of the communist party. The state is therefore headed by the state council, which includes ministries and various commissions (Lawrence and Martins, 8, 2013).

Under the Chinese constitution, the National People Congress (NPC) is responsible for overseeing all the affairs of the state council. The NPC is also responsible for supervising other political institutions such as the Supreme Court, the Presidency, the Prosecutors office, and the military. However, the NPC is under the communist party, and it is, therefore, unable to carry out its own policies (Military of China, 9, 2013). The political consultative conference on the other hand provides an avenue where the state and the party can consult on various policy issues. The military on the other hand has the responsibility of protecting the Chinese (Security Service, 11, 2013). However, critics argue that the Chinese military is only loyal to the communist party, and not the people of China. Other political institutions in China are the minor parties that were formed before the emergence of the communist party. These parties are eight, and they pledged their loyalty to the communist party, accepting its leadership. This allows for the description of the Chinese political system as one of political consultation and multi-party cooperation but under the Communist Party (Lawrence and Martin, 14, 2013).

The Politburo Standing Committee:
The communist party has four important organs representing its leadership. The highest decision-making body is the politburo standing committee, followed by the politburo. The next in rank is the central committee, which is thereafter followed by the congress. The politburo standing committee (PSC) is responsible for the enactment and the development of policies. This organ consists of seven people, and each of them has various roles (Lunn, 13, 2013). The members of this committee are also members of the politburo, and they meet once every week to deliberate on the policies that the government should follow. This is the institution that actually rules China since their decisions are always the law. In arriving at a decision, members of the PSC try to achieve consensus, and if it fails, they take a vote. The simple majority carry’s the day (McGregor, 34, 2012).
It is important to denote that the seven members of the PSC are ranked on the scale of one to seven.

Each of them has specific functions, and it can either be in security, propaganda or foreign relations. For example, the highest-ranked member of the PSC is the secretary-general of the communist party. He also serves as the chair of the central military command (Military of China, 8, 2013). The secretary-general of the party is also the head of the state. The second-ranked member of the PSC serves as his deputy amongst other roles. It is important to denote that despite their respective roles, they only implement decisions that are deliberated and passed by the politburo standing committee. The different portfolios that the seven members of this committee are in charge of include; the military and foreign affairs, economy and government administration, relations with noncommunists, party affairs, fighting corruption and enhancing discipline within the party, and economic development and assisting the premier.

The reasons why members of the PSC serve as heads of other institutions of governance are to ensure that the party is controlled, and it also controls the government. The members of the politburo standing committee are also responsible for heading the leading small groups. These are groups formed within the policy area of a member to deliberate on a policy and on how to implement the policy under consideration. These bodies also facilitate and coordinate the implementation of the decisions of the PSC across the various agencies in China. On this basis, the politburo standing committee does not only formulate policies but also oversees the implementation of the policy under consideration (McGregor, 22, 2012).


In conclusion, this paper manages to the political governance style of China is socialist, and under one-party rule. However, it is important to denote that power is concentrated in the hands of a few individuals. That is the seven members of the politburo standing committee. It is these seven members who initiate policies, and whatever decision they make is the law. On this basis, China still has to initiate vigorous changes in order to transform the country into a democracy.