China's Development

In regards to political systems, individual governing styles, and guiding ideologies it is very easy to compare both China and Russia. With the fairly recent political turmoil in Russia and the apparent shift in communist ideology in China, this comparison has become an increasingly interesting way to analyze the transition from strict ideological communism to capitalism, or, as Beth put it in today’s lecture, “post-communist communism.” In his article Ian Buruma, claims that the difference between the two countries is the relative political stability and economic success which accompanied the transitions. Obviously Buruma felt that China was able to manage the transition much more effectively; both allowing for the expansion of the Chinese economy into the global sphere and maintaining strict communist oversight of key national industries.
Buruma then goes on to explain that China no longer derives it political legitimacy from communist ideologies, but rather from its ability to facilitate economic growth. As he states, “One-party rule is justified, not by political dogma, but by economic efficiency and progress, precisely what many Western businessmen admire about China and often compare favorably with the Russian mess.” (Pg.393 O’Neil and Rogowski Reader) Thus, operating off of this assumption, it becomes quite apparent that it is much to early to judge the effectiveness or success of China’s incorporation of some capitalistic principles. Indeed, this transition is still not complete, as the evolution of China’s economic policies will certainly depend upon two defining and upcoming problems.
The first of these problems deals with the impending global financial crisis. China has enjoyed remarkable economic success since its departure from pure economic principles. In fact the country has consistently reported steady growth of an incredible 10% to 12%. If the government, as Bururma suggests, no longer depends upon communist ideologies to define its legitimacy it could have an extremely difficult time maintaining popular support with an inevitably slowing economy.
Continuing with the theme of the economy and stability, the government will also soon have to answer to the effects of the one-child policy. Since the policy was enacted in 1979, there will soon be a much larger group of retired men and women than there are working-age men and women. Not only will this put an incredible strain upon the individual firms who must pay for the individual retirement, it will also be one of the first economic hardships which can be directly blamed upon the policies of the Chinese government.
All off these development will be very interesting to follow. While these two situations do not preclude China from having a stable transition to a more capitalistic economy, they do demonstrate that China is still in the process of transitioning. Thus, before any more comparisons are made between the two countries, it is necessary to wait and observe how China will respond to the two largest threats to its legitimacy in the past two decades.