WARNING: i was a but confused about the prompt and this may not seem specific enough. i feel like i made up some stuff, but i tried to be creative and thoughtful!
Before Deng took power in 1978, China was not playing a large role in the global economy. By 2004, however, China was the third largest trading nation in the world, exporting 75% of the world’s toys. Foreign investment has skyrocketed in China—everyone wants to be a part of the country with the unstoppable economy. However, while one aspect of China is transforming remarkably, others are left in the dust. The fact that social and political change are constant and still laced with socialism and egalitarianism (even if Deng lessened it) remains a problem in China, and has led to several demonstrations of the peoples anger (i.e. the events at Tiananmen Square). The country’s leadership has unfailingly agreed that, while the economy can change, the political side of things should stay constant. Deng explains that China should “never dispense with leadership by the party.” To this effect, while a constitution has been drawn up defining roles in government, leadership positions change, but the communist party never does. The government, the executive branch primarily, is made in a way so that personal connections and individual powers are more important that formal, governmental arrangements. To this effect, leaders of China often never occupy government offices in the communist party (Deng never did in his 20 years in office). This may be the source of China’s enormous capacity; Deng was not funneled or blockaded by any restrictions of a government job. He was able to design the economy that China flourishes under today without having to comply with requirements of his position in the government, while still maintaining legitimacy and control. Maybe this is coincidental, that the leaders stay far from constraining positions so as not to limit their power over their country and influence over the economy, or maybe China’s governmental policy was designed to aid in this process. The set up of the country’s government as a whole, too, lends to its recent economic successes. Several bodies and layers of government, including the National Party Congress and the Central Committee, are set up with different jobs and responsibilities. This makes fluid, yet secure, two attributes that come to mind when considering China’s economy. However, it also allows for the country’s main leadership to have primary areas of concentration, and not have to consider ever policy (i.e. Deng decided to completely restructure the economy and could focus on that instead of every other bit of policy, which could be left to lower councils, even if they aren’t always effective). Economic reforms since Deng’s leadership also seem to foster the sense of secrecy that the Chinese government is riddled with. As we discussed, under Mao’s leadership prior to 1978, economic reforms like the Great Leap Forward and collectivization were decided on the government level and seemed to be thrust upon the people without their understanding of the state of their country. While Mao’s reforms didn’t prove effective, Deng followed in his path of secrecy and government supremacy by deciding economic policy for the people without explaining his actions. His efforts, however, proved useful and efficient, and the people accepted a continuation of his hidden plots. The legitimacy of policy making and the government, too, has been heightened from Deng’s control. Deng created a booming economy and brought China into the global community while simultaneously maintaining the influence and control of the communist party. In fact, he raised its legitimacy by demonstrating that it is the party that can lead the country through its first economic boom. The most basic change in policy making when Deng came into power was the change from a one leader “’Mao-in-command’” system to “’fragmented authoritarianism’”, where there is one person in power, but several levels of government to approach policy making. The new system is a more relaxed one that recognizes that, due to changes in the country, especially economic ones, China has become increasingly fragmented and that therefore local governments need more say in the policy process.
Grace, this is a very astute reading of the information presented in the chapter. As you point out, Deng, Jianto and Hu shared a common goal; maintain the power and legitimacy of the CCP in the face of change. The goal of the party has remained constant but the strategies it uses to maintain its power have changed dramatically since Mao. Today the party uses economic development to stay in power.
While this means that the CCP has indeed retained its iron grip on policy making, the process of that policy making has shifted a bit over time. Today, there are more voices involved in the process: the CCP includes capitalists as well as workers and farmers. There are more interest groups involved–nowhere like in the US–but still, interest groups are a sign–no matter how small–of some civil society getting going in China. And the shift of power to local levels is important. These local govt.s have much more control over their own affairs than they did prior to 1978. The shift in the makeup of the bureaucracy is also important. A diminished role of the state in the economy has led to a shrinking of the bureaucracy and an effort to put this bureaucracy on a different footing by introducing civil service exams. How do you think this might affect policy making?
Your focus on fragmented authoritarianism is good and I appreciate what Kesselman had to say about that: there is more politics involved within the CCP than before and more voices to be heard with different perspectives.