The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) is now 100 years old and celebrating it. That’s great news for the Party. However it’s not so great for the West who had been waiting for its demise since its birth. Worse, conventional wisdom about how socialism and capitalism behaves and that it can co-exist of sorts is seen in China as well. It makes Western meta analysis of governance systems very uneasy. They are not supposed to. One remembers with some embarrassment the words of the US academic giant late Milton Friedman who got China’s capitalism run by the CP so deadly wrong.
Friedman thought that capitalism would force China to become a replica of Western “democracies”. He famously said in 2003, “I predict that China will move increasingly toward political freedom if it continues its successful move to economic freedom.”
As events show, not only has capitalism in China been rather successful, it has become the loudest voice in the global trade war against the West. And China shows no sign of becoming a photocopy of Western political systems internally.
President Xi Jinping makes no secret of China’s success and ambitions. It not only wants to become a global power, it wants to become the top global power. And it seems China has no intention of letting Western concern about how China is run internally distract it from its course.
“Nobody should underestimate the staunch determination, firm will and powerful capacity of the Chinese people to defend national sovereignty and territorial integrity. The Chinese people, will never allow foreign forces to bully, oppress or enslave us. Whoever nurses delusions of doing that will crack their heads and spill blood on the Great Wall of steel built from the flesh and blood of 1.4 billion Chinese people?”
It’s a very no holds barred speech meant for the West’s ears. And it seems the West has listened. As far as the rest of the world is concerned, their focus remains on a leg up the economy ladder as market shares dominate all other concerns. It’s money that matters the most.
The World: The West and the rest
The battle between the “ Beijing Consensus” and “Washington Consensus” is now on. Beijing focuses on international trade while Washington mixes it with political agenda. US thinks that Asia will prefer the US model as they offer HR and democracy etc.
The problem is the US is not an Asian power and doesn’t understand Asians. It thinks what activists tell them are what ordinary people want. But there is no evidence that it’s so. HR is mostly seen as elitist in nature and the economic condition is what draws most attention. Maybe someday, people will want all those “freedom” stuff but “Not tonight Josephine”. This is where the crunch lies on global control efforts.
Wherever China hopes to make a land fall in the not- so -well off world, they find eager soil for their anchors. It’s because most want to be at least a middle prosperous life and very quickly. And the Chinese model of growth at any cost capitalism seems attractive. The world prefers to run for a heavier pocket than human rights or democracy.
The US dominated century was more about applying Western ideals of governance rather than Eastern ideals of prosperity. That difference is noted in the two “Consensus” as well. The issue is that, the market belongs to the vendor selling a vision which the rest want to buy not the “healthy” vision which the West wants to sell.
Of governance and other issues
Why China continues to be popular despite having many HR and democracy issues is important to understand. China has been very tough on dissidence and protest not only inland but in its semi-colony like Hong Kong and its ‘internal” part like Taiwan. China considers them both as part of itself and will not hesitate to take them over but only when it suits them. Right now it doesn’t but it helps the world focus on these issues as China manages its economy.
China knows that in the world its now trying to influence, such issues have low impact. People have battled West at various levels of history and historical demonization of the West continues. So mobilizing global public opinion around the heavy fisted handling by China of its opponents doesn’t push anyone to side with the West.
It’s not that crisis is over or that China itself will have a smooth sailing. Over time, a more participatory government may be demanded by the Chinese people because that is probably more efficient but … That will be an internal issue and not caused by marketing of Western examples.
Similarly, Asian countries in general will continue to look for prosperity at all costs and even if that means giving up the Western model. They too may change their mind but vision selling market monopoly which the West had for long is over.
Afsan Chowdhury is a journalist, columnist and liberation war researcher. He received Bangla Academy Award in the year 2018 for his contribution to the liberation war literature.
