China: Democracy Won't Come Here

I want to share another article reporting the same CCP thinking that there will not be democracy in China. You may also want to read my 2009-01-18 posting: China must resist multiparty systems, separation of powers & erroneous democracy.

China: Democracy Won't Come Here

Vivian Wai-yin Kwok
2009/03/09 Forbes

A top Communist Party official insists China will never have Western-style Democracy.

A Chinese Communist Party leader said China won't follow a western political system, insisting that multi-party democracy will never happen in China.

Wu Bangguo, chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress (NPC), addressed about 3,000 Chinese lawmakers on Monday, and declared, "The Western model of a legal system cannot be copied mechanically." He said that China would establish its own style of democracy.

Wu said China would not introduce a system of "multiple parties holding office in rotation," nor would it allow a separation of powers among the legislative, executive and judicial branches of government, or a legislature made up of lower and upper houses. China aimed to establish a "legal system of socialism with Chinese characteristics" by next year, achieved through enacting and revising legislation rather than making structural adjustments, Wu told the political elite gathered in Beijing for the annual nine-day meeting of the NPC, which is China's legislature.

This year is full of sentimental political anniversaries. Chinese Communists will celebrate the 60th year of Communist rule, beginning with Mao's victory in 1949. Meanwhile, democrats will commemorate the 50th anniversary of the bloody Tibetan uprising which prompted the Dalai Lama to flee to India, as well as the 20th anniversary of the Tiananmen Square massacre, in which hundreds of students and workers were killed during peaceful protests.

The speech by Wu, the top leader under President Hu Jintao and Premier Wen Jiabao, suggested Beijing would try to avoid political unrest in this sensitive year, particularly while China is caught in the global economic downdraft. Top legislative work this year will focus on drawing up laws covering social programs such as health care, pensions and education.

The National People's Congress, the country's rubber-stamp or ceremonial legislative body, began its annual fall session last Thursday. In an opening address, Wen Jiabao vowed to use a record-high budget deficit as a tool to help the Chinese economy achieve its 8% economic expansion goal this year, and set an ambitious target of 5 trillion yuan ($730.5 billion) in new lending this year.

The premier also pledged to adopt more vigorous and effective measures to try to stabilize market confidence and investment in China's real estate market. The government will strive to solve the housing problems of 7.5 million low-income urban families and 2.4 million families living in shantytowns in forests, on reclaimed land and around coal mines within three years, the official Xinhua News reported Wen as saying.