Given China's dramatic comeback over the past four decades, there is no better time than now to objectively assess the PRC not only for China, but also for the world.
The life of the PRC can be simply divided into three periods:
1949 - 1976: Mao's era.
1978 - 2011: Deng's era.
2012 - present: Xi's era.
Let me elaborate on each ...
1. Mao's era
Mao Zedong unified China in 1949, thus ending China's Century of humiliation. For that alone, Mao should be highly regarded in history. In other words, without Mao, there would have been no PRC!
Unfortunately for China, Mao, like many great military leaders in history, was great at grabbing power [by force], but totally inadequate at governing. As a result, the PRC under him (1949-1976) was nearly a total disaster.
Specifically, Mao made three huge mistakes:
He totally destroyed capitalism in China. As a result, China became dirt poor, so poor that a young man like me (born in 1959) thought of nothing but "getting the hell out of here". I did, in 1982. As did many who could! For more, read: My American Dream Has Come True!
He blindly embraced the Mother Heroine campaign by the USSR after WWII, which encouraged women to have many children. As a result, the Chinese population ballooned, growing from 540 million in 1949 to 953 million in 1976, on the way to explode to two billion by year 2000, which would be similar to being a poor family with 10 kids in Africa today - You will never see the light of the day!
He severely damaged China with several campaigns, such as the Great Leap Forward, which led to the Great Chinese Famine, and the Cultural Revolution, which led to the greatest destruction of a nation's culture and morality in human history!
However, China under Mao did have some significant achievements. Two examples:
Literacy: read: 1949 The Education Revolution Begins in China.
Life expectancy: See chart below.
The part on literacy played a significant role in China's comeback: China had a reasonably well-educated workforce before Deng's era began.
2. Deng's era
Mao died in 1976. China changed fundamentally and in a big way, thanks to one wise man: Deng Xiaoping.
Deng was a dictator. But not all dictators are bad for their countries! Deng used his power wisely for the good of his country: He laid the monumental groundwork for China, not only economically (i.e. capitalism), but also politically (i.e. "state capitalism"), which has led to China's overwhelming success over the past four decades. According to the IMF, China is already the largest economy in the world in terms of the PPP (Purchasing Power Parity), and will be in the GDP by 2030.
What is the secret behind China's success? Aside from embracing capitalism, China did two extraordinary things:
Focused on the economy, without blindly embracing democracy like Russia did after the disintegration of the USSR. Any doubt about the benefits of not rushing to democracy blindly? Compare Russia with China today - They are decades apart in economic development! For more, read: Mikhail Gorbachev vs. Deng Xiaoping.
Adopted a one-child policy. Otherwise, China's population today would likely be double her present 1.3 billion. Any doubt about the benefits of population control? Compare India with China today - They are decades apart in economic development! For more, read: China vs. India: Uniformity vs. Diversity.
Both were highly controversial not only at home, but also abroad, especially in the West. However, they proved to be the right things to do for China at the time for one simple reason: survival, idealistic human rights notwithstanding!
The image below is worth more than 1,000 words. For more, read: What is China's State Capitalism, Anyway?
Deng did pursue political reforms. Two informative readings:
The "10 years" thing, however, was recently changed by President Xi Jinping.
3. Xi's era
Xi became the CPC's General Secretary on November 15, 2012. Below is the cover of my first book (published on December 1, 2012), highlighting Xi's importance, ranking him at the same level as Deng and Mao.
Below is an excerpt from the book (page 42).
As China changed its leadership in November 2012, its new leaders now face a huge challenge: how to further transform China's political system into a form that is progressively more and more truly of/by/for the people? ... Leadership matters! The smooth ride set out by Deng will be over soon. A new greatness must appear for the next China!
How has Xi been doing over the past seven years? Very well, overall! Specifically, two highlights:
In contrast to his predecessor Hu Jintao, who fashioned a loose-loose management style, Xi has proven to be a strong man. For example, his anti-corruption campaign has been widely popular inside China, although it is sometimes questionable whether he has overdone it as a tool to crush his political opponents.
He has also proven to be a skilled statesman internationally.
Nevertheless, he might have been overly ambitious, especially in his apparent effort to theorize China’s modern-day governance in terms of both Marxism and [American] democracy ...
Finally, let me touch upon a big issue: the removal of the term limit on the Chinese Presidency from the Chinese constitution ... Is it a big deal?
No and yes!
No, it is not a big deal, if you understand China's history. For more, read: Understanding China and President Xi, Truly!
Yes, it is a big deal, because the Chinese are very worried that Xi may become the next [bad] Mao. This worry is valid, but overly pessimistic – It is highly unlikely Xi can possibly become the bad Mao! For more, read: Will Xi Become Mao?
4. Discussion
With its dramatic comeback, China is arguably the greatest country in human history. Two facts:
China has the longest continuous civilization in human history.
Throughout human history, great civilizations have come and gone, with one major exception: China - come, almost gone, and come again.
This "come again" or "comeback" happened with the PRC governed by the CPC (Communist Party of China)!
Three profound questions:
Can China possibly be as good as it is today, without the CPC?
Were Mao's mistakes inevitable?
Does China have a bright future under the CPC's one-party rule?
Let me answer them one by one ...
4.1 Can China possibly be as good as it is today, without the CPC?
No, or highly unlikely!
Two informative readings:
4.2 Were Mao's mistakes inevitable?
No!
However, given the way the CPC won the Chinese Civil War and Mao as an individual, it's understandable why Mao made so many big mistakes from 1949 to 1976.
How, then, did the CPC win the Chinese Civil War? It fought for the poor (i.e. the proletarians). Chen Cheng, a leader of the Nationalist Government, said it the best: "We fought for an ideal, but they fought for the people".
What was Mao as an individual? A brilliant military strategist, who knew little about capitalism and governing!
Two notes:
The CPC-led revolution was almost totally opposite to the American Revolution. The former was led by the poor and fought for the poor (aka “a proletarian revolution”), while the latter was led by the rich and fought for the rich (aka “a bourgeois revolution”)! For more, read: American History 2.0 (Version 2).
The key difference between the two countries remains the same today, as highlighted by the image below.
4.3 Does China have a bright future under the CPC's one-party rule?
Yes!
Two main reasons:
The Chinese system has proven to be the best available in the world today. For more, read:
The CPC has proven to be highly adaptable, which is the key to success, be it for individuals or political systems.
4.4 Summary
Governance is hard.
China is facing enormous challenges, from environmental pollution, to demographics, and to the growing inequality between the super-rich and the average citizens. On top of that, add a big new one: hostility from the U.S. (The U.S. vs. China: From the Trade War to Commercial Sabotage!)!
As a Chinese-American, I am caught between a rock and a hard place. On one hand, I wish China, my native country, well – She suffered severely over the past 200 years. On the other hand, I wish America, my adopted country, well – She must stop her precipitous decline, if she ever hopes to restore her status as the shining city upon a hill. Most importantly, there must be no war, trade or otherwise, between the two largest economies in the world!
So, what do I do?
Write!
This post is just yet another attempt of mine to help my fellow Americans understand China. The image below highlights the key difference between the U.S. and China, in terms of governance.
America, reform our failing political system, as I have suggested (American Democracy – Why is it failing & how to fix it?), or become a fiddle, second to China!
5. Closing
Once again, China is arguably the greatest country in human history. It's time for the world to better understand her. This post has helped a little bit, hopefully.
Do not underestimate China’s comeback! It’s time to re-write the history, as you know it! For more, read: History 2.0.
Now, please sit back and enjoy the long video below, which represents the latest and perhaps the best thinking out of China.