“China: On the paths of Marx for the new era” by Stefanos Stefanou, member of the Political Bureau of AKEL

 

Sunday 10 June 2018, «HARAVGI» newspaper

 

The two hundred years since the birth of Marx was the pretext for the Communist Party of China to organize a major international meeting of Communist and left parties in the country. The subject of the International Meeting was “Marxism in the 21st Century and the Future of World Socialism”. Marxism represents the theoretical and ideological basis of the Manifesto of the Communist Party of China for the construction of socialism with Chinese characteristics.

The International Meeting of the Communist and Left Parties also functioned as a mission to get to know modern China, which is changing at a rapid pace.

AKEL was invited and participated in the International Meeting of the Communist and Left Parties, represented by the member of the Central Secretariat and the Political Bureau of the C.C. of AKEL, Stefanos Stefanou. AKEL made interventions on two thematic sessions of the Meeting. One was on the timeliness of Marxism in contemporary times, and the other was on global economic relations and the need for their reform.

International attention is increasingly focusing on China. The country is enormous and any changes taking place within it cannot but have global ramifications. This significance is becoming all the more important from the moment that China decided to step out of its shell and play a role in global geopolitical, economic and trade developments.

Many analysts argue, not arbitrarily, that China is a key player as regards the course humanity will take in the coming decades. China has decided to play this role within the context of the development of socialism with Chinese characteristics. As the Chinese President Xi Jinping said in his address to the International Meeting of Communist and Left Parties, “guided by Marxism and the concept of socialism with Chinese characteristics, the Communist Party of China is struggling to unite the Chinese people and build a society with happiness and progress for all.”

The “Financial Times” expressed China’s outlook in a different way, but always in the same optimistic spirit: “The big story is that the Chinese are making a serious attempt to take over control of developing Marxism for the 21st century. People are starting to rethink because they know the West has problems and so the Chinese message has resonance.”

China, therefore, is changing and global interest is centred on it. Ten days in China may not be many in relation to the size of the country, but they were enough to give us a satisfactory sample of what is going on in the country. Below we shall try to draw some conclusions from the experiences we have gained from China.

1. China is changing and indeed changing at a rapid pace. Growth rates over the past several years have in any case confirmed this fact (a growth rate ranging from 6% to 7%). These changes aren’t just reflected at the level of figures and statistics, but also at the level of Chinese society. The increase in imports in the country by 18% in 2017 is an indication of growing consumption as a result of rising incomes in Chinese society. Exports during the previous year registered a dynamic increase of 15.5%.
2. Due to the growth recorded many cities are changing and being modernized. Entire neighborhoods are being demolished, new large and towering apartment buildings are being built to house the people, new and wide streets are being opened up, the urban environment is being designed with parks, green spaces and flowers. It is worth noting that the Chinese are now paying great attention to preserving the environment and the proper shaping urban and town planning space.
3. China is investing a great deal in the renewable energy sector and indeed holds the leading position globally with regards the use of solar energy. According to data released by the United Nations Environmental Service, last year out of the $ 160 billion invested all over the world in the solar energy sector, China alone invested $ 86.5 billion!
4. Big changes are also taking place in the countryside. Since the agrarian reform began in 1978, the progress that has been registered has been enormous, and this is contributing towards combatting poverty, which – as the Chinese themselves admit – continues to be a wound for society which they want to heal.
5. The country’s leadership considers that poverty and social inequality can be addressed through the strong growth of the economy, of which a significant part of its results are invested in raising the standard of living of the Chinese people.
6. China is no longer the country of mass production of low-quality cheap imitations or of the manufacturing of products for third parties. For many years, China has attached great importance to the development of innovation and to new technologies. One expression of this is that now Chinese companies are also on the global market, next to large multinational companies.
7. China has long abandoned its inward-looking approach and is now opening up with great self-confidence on the international arena. And this is happening in the economic, commercial, but also in the diplomatic and military sphere. The main thrust of its policy to strengthen its presence in the international economic arena is the further development of the BRICS, that is to say the cooperation between Russia, China, India, Brazil and South Africa. At the same time, China is a privileged economic and trade partner with the US and the EU. Furthermore, China is also developing intensely regional cooperation and partnerships. The US, the EU and the East Asia countries are its main trading partners.
8. An example of China’s drive to conquer global markets is the Plan that it has initiated for investments throughout the world. The Plan bears the name “One Belt. One Road” and the funds expected to be allocated in the long run amount to the astronomical sum of $ 3 trillion! It is estimated that over the next ten years, China will make investments of $100 billion.
9. The penetration of foreign and the development of Chinese capital has created new given facts both in the economy, as well as in the class structure of Chinese society. The share of private capital in the country now stands at 65% and state capital at 35%. The state retains under its control over the strategic sectors of the economy and development, such as energy, research, new technologies and innovation. Of course, the areas of education, health and housing are also under the control of the state, which are a fundamental social good.
10. The changes underway in the class structure, and more specifically the creation of a large-scale middle class, have also brought about changes in lifestyle. White-collar and younger generations dress up in Western styles, while commercial malls, expensive fashion houses and fast food chains are now making their presence felt in cities in China. Even the famous Silk Market in Beijing has changed, since the Chinese character has given way to a Western-style concept and now looks more like a shopping mall.

Socialism with Chinese characteristics

“Socialism with Chinese characteristics for a new era” represents the basic political-ideological manifesto of the Communist Party of China, which was approved at the 19th Party Congress in 2017. On the basis of this manifesto, the CPC declared that its vision for China over the next few decades has as its central goal “making China a great modern socialist country”.

The fulfillment of this goal incorporates two levels: the first level has a time frame until 2035, which is the phase of socialist modernization. The second level includes the goal of developing an advanced and modern socialist country that is “prosperous, strong, democratic and culturally advanced”. A society that will “provide dignity, justice and happiness” to all its citizens.

The realization of this goal has three interrelated aspects: a powerful economic foundation, an abundance of material and intellectual products for society and citizens, the development and deepening of the system of governance so as to strengthen the role of society in the management of the state.

At the level of society, the country’s leadership is focusing on combating the poverty and inequalities created by the uneven growth and development between the various regions of this vast country (the eastern coastal side of China is much more developed than the hinterland).

At the level of state administration, a strong effort is being made to tackle the corruption that exists both in the state, as well as in the Party. In recent years there have been specific concerted campaigns that have led to the removal from power and the dismissal of a large number of state and Party officials.

The targets set by the leadership of the Communist Party of China for the country are indeed very ambitious. Will China manage to fulfill these goals? The answer to this question will be given by practice itself. However, it is a fact that China is working intensively and purposefully to create the preconditions that will lead to the fulfillment of the goals it has set. What is certain is that in the coming years, more and more people will be focusing their attention towards the country of the Great Wall.