CHINA Let China sleep For when China wakes

CHINA “Let China sleep. For when China wakes, it will shake the world” Napoleon Bonaparte

BEIJING 2008 OLYMPICS • China in the 21 st century…Napoleon’s sleeping giant, a great civilization now on the rise again… • Is this the year China wakes or is this merely it’s debutante party? • How will the world receive a strong China?

Ancient China • One of the strongest, richest empires in existence • Strong and large enough it was selfsufficient • Insularity--rulers saw little value in contacting anyone else in the world

China and the West • Historically, Western countries have tended to either ignore or exploit China in world politics • Chinese presence is deeply felt: either promising riches & cooperation or threatening competitions and destruction • China now LDC and emerging world power • China no longer sleeps nor do her leaders ignore the world. Members of WTO, travel, UN, and now exercising a very independent diplomacy in Africa, Asia and even the Americas.

Sovereignty, Authority & Power • Until 20 th century--> “Dynastic cycles” (long periods of rule by a family punctuated by times of “chaos”) • Mandate of heaven--> determined power, right to rule, collective ancestral wisdom that guided the empire from the heavens • Authority in hands of emperor and elaborate bureaucracy, highly centralized power • How much did this really change under Mao?

LEGITIMACY • Dynastic rule: citizens were subjects of emperor, legitimacy through mandate of heaven, power passes through hereditary connections • Popular rebellions and rural unrest didn’t determine legitimacy, but served as signs empire is failing

LEGITIMACY • Chinese Republic (Revolution of 1911 with Sun Yat-sen) • Democratic, legitimacy rested on popular government • Regional warlords challenged government • Mao Zedong emerged with his own version of authority, an ideology that was a version of communism: MAOISM • People’s Republic of China (1949) Communist Party was new source of power until 1976 when he died

LEGITIMACY • Maoism: idealistic and egalitarian, but centralized power through top party leaders, stayed connected to peasants through MASS LINE (process that required leaders to listen to and communicate with ordinary folks, without which the legitimacy of the rulers was questionable).

LEGITIMACY (After Mao) • Politburo of the CP is still legitimate source of power, but lots of criticism of Party as corrupt and irrelevant, holding authoritarian power over an increasingly market-based economy, worsens after Tienanmen in 1989. • Currently citizens are more critical of capacity and governance (food safety scandal, etc. ) • Military in PRC is important source of power, represented by Central Military Commission (Deng Xiaoping was never general secretary of the party, he headed the CMC).

HISTORICAL TRADITIONS • The last dynasty, the Qing, fell in the early 20 th century • But many dynastic era traditions continue to influence the modern political system.

Centralized, authoritarian power • China`s borders have changed over the years, but it has always been a huge, land-based empire ruled from a central place by either an emperor or a small group of people • Chinese citizens have traditionally been subjects of, not participants in, their political system

CONFUCIANISM • Confucian philosophy shaped Chinese political system since the 6 th cent BCE • Importance of order and harmony, encouraged citizens to submit to emperor`s power, reinforced the emperor`s responsibility to fulfill his duties conscientiously • Similar to `democratic centralism` • Still a major influence on Chinese society today even though it contradicts egalitarian ideology of communism with its central belief in unequal relationships and mutual respect among people of different statuses

Bureaucratic hierarchy based on scholarship • Emperors had highly organized bureaucracies that formed an elite, based on Confucian scholarship (technocrats) • Government jobs were highly coveted, very competitive, precious few mastered the examination system (knowledge based exams on Confucianism and other philosophies) • Ancient China divided between large peasant population and bureaucratic elite

The Middle Kingdom • Chinese refer to China as zhongguo, means Middle Kingdom, the place that is the center of civilization (cosmological ethnocentrism) • Foreigners seen as barbarians with inferior civilizations (in power, ethics and quality of life) had little to offer. Led to many Asians under Chinese control, and long-standing tensions between Han Chinese and other groups (Ex. Tibet) • 19 th century Chinese empire was weak and exploited by imperialist powers, led to nationalism secured by Boxer Rebellion and Revolution of 1911, hatred of the `foreign devils` and continued caution and suspicion dealing with capitalist countries

Maoism • Mao adapted communism for China, while allowing party vanguard to lead, he focused his revolution on the strength of the peasant and centered his philosophy around these central values. • `Right-Thinking` and moralism of Confucianism • Contradicted the hierarchical nature of the old regime by insisting on egalitarianism • Collectivism • Mass line • Struggle and Activism • Self reliance

Deng Xiaoping Theory • practical mix of authoritarian political control and economic privatization • `It doesn`t matter whether a cat is white or black, as long as it catches mice` (doesn`t matter whether policy was capitalist or socialist as long as it improved the economy) • Turnaround Chinese economy with socialist planning and capitalist free market, but political and social views remained authoritarian and communist