Will Democracy Help or Hinder China's Development - Article Example

Will Democracy Help or Hinder Chinas Development Democracy literally means free and equal representation of people. Therefore, a general perception has firmly taken shape over the years that human rights are better served under a democratic form of government. If we take a look at the human rights record of China, particularly the incidents reported in mainstream media the world over, it can argued for sure that China’s reputation took a deep dent. But at the same time it also needs to be emphasised that China has done exceptionally well on many other fronts. China is a country with a population of 1.3 billion people, which is roughly about 21% of the world’s population. Since the beginning of the far-reaching economic reforms of 1978, China’s economy has been growing at a breakneck pace of 9.5 percent a year1. If it were now to grow at 8 percent per year, doubling every nine years, income per person in 2031 for China’s projected population of 1.45 billion would reach $38,000. (At a more conservative 6 percent annual growth rate, the economy would double every 12 years, overtaking the current U.S. income per person in 2040). Hoguet, (2004) also figures out that Chinese economy has shown a growth rate of 9.3% per annum, with a per capita income that is growing at about 10% per annum. Today China is gradually yet firmly integrating into the global economy. If we take a look at the manner in which Chinese governments have functioned, it becomes very clear that till the globalisation regime came into force, Chinese governments were not willing to open up to the outside world, but now things have changed a lot. This is an indication towards the willingness of Chinese rulers to go for better forms of governance. America the only superpower, per se, takes pride in its democratic institutions and the rich democratic heritage. The manner in which the country has progressed over the years certainly points towards the effectiveness of its successive governments. The other superpower named USSR, on the other hand did not believe in democratic form of government. But in the year 1990, when USSR fragmented into a number of smaller states, Russia adopted the democratic set up. Waldron (2004) points out that in the initial years after the end of communism, Russia seemed to become a problematic state with problems like rise in poverty, collapse of Rouble, problems of governance etc. But subsequently, things started moving in right direction with respectable developments in the economy, swelling of the foreign exchange reserves, freedom of the Russian media etc. These developments are perhaps an indication for countries like China, which have immense potential to play a leading role in world affairs. With countries like India and Japan in its neighbourhood, where the democratic forms of governments have proved to be immensely successful for their people, China too can very well think about having a brush with democracy in order to gain more acceptance around the world. For long China remained a subject of curiosity for the world in general, with promises of economic reforms from the government backed with equal force from the anti liberalization voices from country’s prominent communist leadership. But it is worthwhile here to mention that the country was able to invite a host of multinational enterprises in the country, a number of IT companies and BPO jobs. This raises a question as to the need for democratic form of government in China when the country can very well work towards the prosperity of its citizens. Perhaps the May 4th movement of early 20th century could provide an answer. During those days, development and democracy were considered as twin themes for the progress of a nation. Scientific development and democratic forms of government was considered a prerequisite for modernisation. But, things started appearing different when PRC was founded. Though China kept progressing, the calls for democracy took a backseat. The importance of democracy is once again being felt in the modern China. Chinese Premier, Wen Jiabao gave a call for strengthening democracy in the country2. While calling upon all the concerned about a need to keep pace with the economic reforms the Jiabao has also underlined the importance of democratic reforms as well. The Chinese Communist Party also discussed a white paper which outlined the basic theme as ‘democracy with Chinese characteristics’. The subject is being discussed at many platforms ever since, both political as well as non-political. Aberrations in human rights record are not exclusive for China, such incidents do occur in traditional democracies like India and America as well, but when such incidents happen in China, there are pointers towards the non-implementation of democratic policies in the country. It is indeed credit-worthy that China has been able to enforce discipline in economic reforms, which have brought rich dividends for the country by way of exceptional growth rates, but it also needs to be equally emphasised that India, a neighbouring democratic country, though not as rich in resources as China is, has also been able to showcase exemplary growth figures. India has also been able to attract a number of MNCs and ITES to many different cities within the country. Democracy (translated into Chinese as "minzhu," or "people-as-masters") doesn’t appear to be a concept totally in line with the traditionally held Confucian ideology in the country3. But, things appear to be moving towards a change in beliefs and ideologies. The calls for democracy in the Hong Kong SAR are an indication towards the strengthening of the roots of democracy in the country (Waldron, 2004). When democratic process of elections was held in the year 2007 to elect a new party secretary of Fuxinqiao province, people at grass root levels were very happy to take part in the process (Xinhua, 2007). This must have forced the government to take note and move towards more people’s involvement in the government. The middle class is considered a big asset for sustaining economy of a country, as this segment drives the demand in the market. Despite having more than a billion population, economists speculate that the middle class does not exist in China (Winslow, 2009). This effectively implies that China may not be able to sustain the impressive growth figures, if it is not able to generate demand for its production and manufacturing sectors. The lack of democratic principles is also said to be affecting the foreign policies of the Chinese government. Waldron (2004) argues that, the kind of foreign policy that successive governments in China displayed in the recent past, appeared inconsistent and self defeating at many a times. The direct or indirect role in proliferation of nuclear arsenal in the neighbourhood, particularly in India and Pakistan is termed as one of the biggest failures of the country in the last 50 years. Now, with the fears that the Pakistani nuclear arsenal might slip into the hands of some terrorist outfits active on Pakistani soil, the decision of Chinese government appears a bad judgement on the part of a non-democratic government. Had there been a democratic government in the country, things might have been discussed threadbare, before committing the country for such a cause. The huge Chinese market has been a subject of study for many experts around the world, as investors and business leaders try to understand how to correlate the Chinese economy with other national economies and to try and take advantage of the requirements of the Chinese domestic market. The present Chinese government is certainly extending a friendly hand towards the demands of market, but there are certain issues which make the overseas investor little apprehensive about freely functioning in China. Had it been a democratic set up such fears would certainly not be there. Although China has excelled at producing cheap manufactured goods, it is not possible to produce every component of such goods in China. China, therefore, also needs to learn from the expertise and experiences of others. This calls for more people to people contact and better market driven economy, instead of a regulated one. Thus, the Chinese market not only offers opportunities, but it also presents challenges, with interactions between China and the rest of the world continuing to bring about new understandings that dynamically shape the business situation in China. References: 1. Hoguet, George R. (2004). How Best to Benefit from China. State Street Global Advisors, Boston 2004. 2. OECD (2005). Economic Survey of China-2005. Available online at http://www.oecd.org/document/7/0,2340,en_2649_201185_35343687_1_1_1_1,00.html (March 1, 2009) 3. Petersen Institute (2007). Democracy with Chinese Characteristics? Political Reforms and the future of Chinese Communist Party. Available online at http://www.petersoninstitute.org/publications/chapters_preview/4174/03iie4174.pdf (March 1, 2009) 4. Themes (n.d.). Chinese Democracy. Available online at http://tsquare.tv/themes/essay.html (March 1, 2009) 5. Waldron, Arthur (2004). Democratization and Greater China-How Would Democracy Change China? Published by Elsevier Limited on behalf of Foreign Policy Research Institute. 6. Winslow, Lance (2009). ‘Is China Really Moving Towards Democracy? EzineArticles.com. available online at http://ezinearticles.com/?Is-China-Really-Moving-Towards-Democracy?&id=1653906 (March 1, 2009) 7. Xinhua (2007). ‘Step by step toward democracy’. Available online at http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2007-10/19/content_6189607.htm (March 1, 2009) Read More