China: Threat or Hope: The Pragmatic Revolution

By Javier García

China has undergone a colossal transformation in the last thirty years. A gigantic change for which, however, there is hardly any space in the Western media. A state that is close to overtaking the US as the world' s leading economic power, has lifted more than 800 million people out of extreme poverty, has increased its renewable energy production fivefold in ten years and is now prioritising reducing the social differences created by the market economy. The Western press tries to tarnish these achievements, as China' s pragmatic approach risks setting an example for countries trapped in the deadlock of underdevelopment and inequality. It also whips up fears of China' s resurgence, willfully ignoring the fact that the millennia-old Middle Kingdom has never shown any expansionist will and has only rarely waged war. Only with an accurate understanding of what China is today can we tackle the task of ensuring that its unstoppable rise becomes a fundamental pillar of a new, more just and peaceful world order.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Royal Collins Publishing Company
• Release date: Mar 1, 2023
• ISBN: 9781487810856

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China: Threat or Hope

The Pragmatic Revolution

By Javier García

Translated by Elizabeth Medina

First published in 2023 by Royal Collins Publishing Group Inc.

Groupe Publication Royal Collins Inc.

BKM Royalcollins Publishers Private Limited

Headquarters: 550-555 boul. René-Lévesque O Montréal (Québec) H2Z1B1 Canada

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Copyright © Javier García, 2022

This English edition is authorized by Center for International Cultural Communication, China International Communications Group.

All rights reserved. Without limiting the rights under copyright reserved above, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise), without the prior written permission of both the copyright owner and the above publisher of this book.

ISBN: 978-1-4878-1085-6

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To my brother Gustavo, who devoted much of his life to fighting for a better world.

And to my daughter Mariña, for the hours of our play time that this book absorbed. With the hope she can grow up on a different planet.

Contents

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Foreword

INTRODUCTION

Chapter I

THE ELIMINATION OF EXTREME POVERTY

Chapter II

THE ECOLOGICAL CIVILIZATION

Chapter III

THE STRUGGLE AGAINST INEQUALITY

Chapter IV

THE PRAGMATIC REVOLUTION

Chapter V

THE CAMPAIGN AGAINST CHINA

Chapter VI

XINJIANG: THE LAST GRENADE LOBBED AT CHINA

Chapter VII

THE CHINA THREAT

Chapter VIII

A MULTIPOLAR WORLD IS POSSIBLE

Bibliography

Foreword

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It is a cliché to say that China is different world. And yet, to a large extent, as the oldest civilization that has survived to the present day, China indeed is. In certain aspects of China, cultural and historical constants abound. Knowing and understanding them is key to arriving at an unbiased characterization of China’s policy objectives. This is not to say that there is necessarily a causal relationship. In fact, for many years (in the Mao Zedong years and much of the Deng Xiaoping years, but also for reformers of the 19th century), China’s culture, seen as unique, was long vilified as a source of backwardness and decline. Fortunately, this is not the case today. Without a doubt, one of the biggest ideological shifts of the Communist Party of China, as it grows in influence, is the characterization of the Chinese culture as a universal legacy.

Generally speaking, the West knows little about China. Westerners’ diatribes about China are often full of stereotypes, sometimes out of ignorance and sometimes out of convenience. We can accept that the color red, which is a sign of danger in the West, symbolizes good luck in Chinese culture; and that the dragon, which in western myths must be slain to save the princess, is a beloved mascot of the Chinese. Nevertheless, when we talk about politics and argue, for example, that China is not yearning for world domination because it rejects hegemonic aspirations and has always placed more faith in the virtues of cooperation, we are met with skepticism.

There are, however, undeniable and fundamental differences between the Western and Chinese concepts of the individual and the individual’s relationship with society. These differences go far beyond contemporary political systems and are deeply rooted in the consciousness of each civilization. In China, the individual remains subordinate to society, and self-actualization is achieved through integration into the collective. For thousands of years, China emphasized the innate and positive virtues of the individual, who displays them through interactions with the community, highlighting balance, harmony, and decorum, which are the cultural basis that could logically be extrapolated to different political structures, with ample room for the exercise of an aristocratic authoritarianism that remained in power for several hundred years more than the liberal democratic system. Different values and cultural foundations must have led to different political systems.This does not mean that Chinese society should remain tied to its traditions forever. Modernizing the Chinese society, however, requires instigating changes through adaptation and adopting different perspectives. While Western and Eastern societies have many common problems, this does not mean that identical solutions are required, despite the similarities.

Back in the day, when China was much poorer, the predominant sentiment of many Westerners towards China might have been pity and a certain condescension. Some would even joke, out of sarcasm, that given China’s immense population, if everyone in China jumped at the same time, the Earth would be tilted out of its orbit. In recent decades, however, the nature of this dynamic has never ceased to change, and it has in fact become one of the biggest problems for major Western powers. There is no shortage of people who see the rise of China as a challenge to the prevailing Western hegemony and consequently, they believe in the risk of a major conflict as a last resort to prevent China from regaining the status it held for hundreds of years until the 19th Century, a status that to some extent is only natural given its size. In the 21st century, China is not seen as a burden because of instability and poverty, but rather as a new source of momentum for creating a more just and balanced global community. This is a new and profound shift.

Until 2012, during the first three decades of the reform and opening up period, China’s foray onto the international stage benefited from a welcoming trade environment given its interactions with the major developed economies of the West. The geopolitical environment was also favorable, as did the general direction of China’s domestic policies under the reform and opening up. A combination of curiosity and mutual interests (economic but also geopolitical) led to a boom in China’s bilateral relations and its growing influence in the world. Yet, this also stoked misinterpretations that led to so-called disillusionment, as some core countries try to justify their current course of containment and even confrontation. But the truth is that if we stick to the empirical evidence, i.e., the statements, testimonies, and the official literature itself, Chinese authorities have never given up on shaping a society and a system of their own, consistent with the uniqueness of their civilization and culture.

Is it, then, a euphemism, a subterfuge, or an alibi, to justify the unjustifiable? While that may be the case, the sheer size of China (beyond the domestic justification of the inalterability of the current system of power as one of the indisputable maxims of the modernization process led by the Communist Party) means that it is unfeasible to exert pressure from the outside, which can only backfire, and in the meantime, create distrust. One should also admit, that in its relationship with other civilizations, China—in its historical and cultural journey—aims at hybridization, which showcases China’s capacity to incorporate other ideas and knowledge into its own as it evolves. This eludes any dogmatism. Let us not forget, for example, that the Jesuits were successful in China due in part to this approach that incorporates local practices, which the Vatican later prohibited, calling it a violation of the purity of Catholic dogma. These lessons should also be taken into account today when we propose—or try to impose—radical changes to China’s fundamental aspects: in response to the prohibition by Benedict XIV, Emperor Qianlong ordered the repression of Christians in China.

Therefore, to avoid conflicts, it is necessary to bear in mind China’s uniqueness, which is reflected in China’s claim to the right to follow its own path in development and in politics based on its own national interests, while keeping open the possibility of changes that can bring China closer to (or further away from) the West.

We should not jump to the conclusion that China represents a challenge, even though many have done this in the past. After the Jesuit episode, Britain’s Lord McCartney snubbed Emperor Qianlong in late 18th century, setting in motion a process that led to a radical change in the image of a monarchy that until then had been described not so much as dangerous but rather as quasi-mythological in the testimonies of travelers dating back to Marco Polo. This marked the beginning of the well-meaning efforts of Westerners (which China saw as barbarians) to transform, sometimes by force, a backward autocracy into a country connected to the Western world, which held China’s uniqueness in contempt, regarding it as synonymous with obsolescence.

And yet, according to Joseph Needham, twenty centuries before Napoleon, the early Han people created the bureaucratic and prefectural system of mandarins, officials recruited through examination who were given resources and assigned official posts by the emperor and who were subject to dismissal if they underperformed. It was also at this time that the Han Chinese observed Halley’s comet, invented the crossbow and the stern rudder, discovered steelmaking, porcelain production, general anesthesia, gunpowder, papermaking, and, among other things, silk. Around the 11th century, during the Song Dynasty, more than three centuries before Gutenberg, wooden moveable type printing was invented in China.

The trampling of Chinese sovereignty, along with many other humiliations, underlies the CPC’s modernization project and is the reason behind a nationalist identification that functions as a powerful galvanizing force in society. Through this historical perspective, what China sees as Western arrogance, it responds with a renewed sense of national pride by virtue of the changes and transformations that have taken place in a country that displays economic and scientific prowess, much like in the past.

Even if it hinders China’s ability to lead the world—at least leading in the sense that the approach would be similar to that of the hegemonic West—the uniqueness of culture provides the CPC with an important roadmap to creating an alternative to the Western liberal order, which is summarized as socialism with Chinese characteristics.

As China implements its own model, it is worth recognizing the achievement in transforming the country. Certainly, gaps of varying degrees remain in this daunting transformation, especially in this last stretch to putting an end to the cycle of decline. The standard of living of the Chinese people today is on average 30% lower than the average of the 50 richest countries in the world. Yet, life expectancy in China is now 78.2 years, up from 35 years in 1949 and longer than that of the US. We could cite numerous indicators that showcase the positive effects of the transformation of China, one essentially supported by the society itself, making enormous sacrifices to get to where it is now.

This transformation is based on one compelling reason: the CPC has understood that its political actions must focus on expanding development opportunities, as development is not only essential to improving the standard of living and quality of life of the population, but also a source of legitimacy for an entity whose revolutionary momentum is fading with time. The CPC is modernizing its rule through law-based governance, fully aware that the times of astounding economic growth have come to an end.

Amidst the complex current landscape, China has demonstrated a remarkable capacity for response: on the one hand, by continuing to implement its core strategy, which aims to achieve full modernization of the country; on the other hand, by making the necessary tactical adjustments to weather occasional storms; and finally, by defending not only China’s model but also the flexibility to make the necessary adjustments to promote fair competition and progress in cooperation, in which developing countries are usually at a disadvantage—a fact that is often underappreciated. This combination of resolve and flexibility has contributed greatly to China’s adequate response to daunting challenges, albeit not without hardships and struggles.

Among the most relevant structural drivers of the transformation of China’s development model is innovation, the leapfrogging in technology, the new environmental consciousness, and the social transformation that came with the eradication of extreme poverty and the pursuit of common prosperity. New pillars of a systematic governance that is more in tune with the needs of the new century have also been clearly defined, with emphasis on anticorruption, top-level design, and the growing role of the law as citizens seek to exercise their rights more broadly and to strengthen the democratic foundation.

All this progress, especially in the past four decades, is a product of systemic hybridization; that is, the CPC’s ability to accomplish the impossible and to modernize their political thinking, which for decades was plagued by Soviet (and Western)-style ideological dogmatism. China’s uniqueness is an expression of heterodoxy in which China has been able to integrate Western experiences with those of its own, taking into account foreign approaches without blindly relinquishing its own or mindlessly obeying the recommendations of third parties. And this is sovereignty, a concept that is hollowed out in the West (with the de facto exception of the American hegemony), whereas in China, sovereignty represents a basic and vital source of strength for breaking the shackles of dependence that globalization can sometimes entail while supporting integration.

Therefore, when we look at China’s political system and the reality of the country as a whole, we must recognize the complexity and avoid jumping to simplistic conclusions. We must apply some perspective and take into context all the variables in the current situation.

In the current international landscape, there is the risk that an atmosphere of confrontation may take over and put a stop to the ongoing process of hybridization. The buttresses, (whether ideological or economic in the form of decoupling), which are now laid bare, seen as self-preservation in good times and protection against greater evils in the event of confrontation, are the biggest enemies of hybridization. If the West still fails to learn from the Chinese experience due to its own hubris, China should nevertheless persevere in its transformation.

Today, most countries in the world recognize the enormous potential of China’s experience and cooperates with China in many areas, from economic and social realms to technological and environmental issues. Other countries, however, are wary whenever China is held up as an example. Skeptical of China’s growing presence and influence in the world, they are ready to hinder China’s progress in an attempt to mitigate the threats to their own privileged status.

We see three main competing trends. The first is the recognition of China as a relevant international actor, whose views and positions are increasingly influential and important in regional and global affairs. In this sense, one can say that China has responded positively to international appeals for it to shoulder greater responsibility given its new global status. The world can ill afford to do without China. China’s contribution and commitment are paramount; attempting to contain China because it falls short of our standards is an exercise in futility, and may have tragic consequences.

The second trend is that China has been singled out as an actor with a different discourse and a different way of doing things, which has attracted positive attention