Report Calls Communist Party Rule Essential to Democracy in China - New York Times

Report Calls Communist Party Rule Essential to Democracy in China

By JIM YARDLEY
Published: October 20, 2005
BEIJING, Oct. 19 - China issued its first white paper on democracy on Wednesday, but included no initiatives for political change and left little doubt of the Communist Party's determination to maintain its grip on power.

The report, "Building of Political Democracy in China," emphasizes the importance of economic development and social stability in establishing a democracy. It says the continued rule of the Communist Party is "the most important and fundamental principle for developing socialist political democracy in China."

The timing of the report coincides with growing protests in the countryside and recent calls by American officials for more openness and political change in China. Last month, Robert B. Zoellick, deputy secretary of state, used a major address on China to urge the Communist Party to expand the use of direct elections and pursue further political change.

This week, World Bank President Paul D. Wolfowitz visited China and, while offering praise, urged the government to grant more political rights to China's 1.3 billion citizens. Mr. Wolfowitz, the former American deputy secretary of defense, said in a speech during his visit that allowing more public participation in governance helped reduce corruption. But the new report offers little to suggest that China plans immediate or significant changes. President Hu Jintao, who also leads the Communist Party, has disappointed those who had hoped his rise to power would bring greater political liberalization. Instead, he has tightened controls on the media and emphasized the predominance of the party.

Even as the economy continues to grow at almost double-digit rates, tensions are rippling through Chinese society. Rural protests are rising over corruption, pollution and land seizures, while recall petitions in different villages have taken aim at corrupt local officials. Often, such petition movements are met with brute force by local government. Mr. Wolfowitz also noted that roughly 150 million people in China still live in "acute poverty." Other studies have shown that more than 500 million people live on less than $2 a day.

The white paper, issued by the government's State Council, or cabinet, alludes to China's problems without delving deeply into the specifics. "The democratic system is not yet perfect," the report conceded. Later, it added, "there is still a long way to go in China's building of political democracy."

But, mostly, the tone is self-congratulatory. The report proclaimed that the country's current political system had allowed the Chinese people "to become masters of their own country and society, and enjoy extensive democratic rights."

Richard Baum, a China specialist and political science professor at the University of California, Los Angeles, said the report illustrated the leadership's unwillingness to embrace political change. "There are simply no new ideas here," he said.

He said Chinese leaders appeared unwilling to expand political freedoms partly because they feared unleashing social upheaval before the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing.

"They are coming up against a number of uncomfortable facts," Mr. Baum said. "There is a great deal of repressed demand out there for political expression." Of the government, he added, "there is a fear that if you give an inch, they will take a mile."

Recently, Prime Minister Wen Jiabao raised hopes when he said China was planning to expand direct, competitive elections for local officials to the township level. But the report mentions no new township elections.

It makes clear that the Communist Party has no plans to relinquish power and deems its grip on power essential to China's development.