China Celebrates On Hundred Years of the Communist Party

The month of July in China is devoted to celebrating the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Chinese Communist Party. Of course, the system of “socialism with Chinese characteristics” is very different from western systems, but it is terribly short-sighted to arrogantly dismiss its accomplishments, and terribly stupid to try and force it into the Anglo-American “rules-based order”.

The achievements of the past one hundred years, but particularly since the “reform and opening up” under Deng Xiaoping, have been nothing short of amazing. The launching of three astronauts this month to the core module of the Chinese space station confirms, for example, China’s entry into the realm of the space-faring nations.

At the end of the 19th century, largely due to the depredations of the British Empire, which started the Opium Wars in 1840, China was an impoverished country. Its transformation to the present condition of a world power and the veritable engine of global growth, has been largely due to its philosophical tradition of Confucianism, which has prevailed since 1978, following the dark period of the “Cultural Revolution”.

From the beginning, the Chinese Communist Party had to face extensive poverty in the countryside with a population that was overwhelmingly rural and agricultural. The right policies were not always adopted, but the emphasis today is on increasing productivity through mechanization and innovation. To this day, the first report the party issues is on the conditions of agriculture. And those conditions have improved considerably over the past few decades, with China announcing this anniversary year that they had eliminated extreme poverty in the entire nation, a feat that stands alone in history.

And as China developed into a major country, the Chinese did not forget their commitment to the rest of the world, particularly to the developing world, of which they still consider themselves very much a representative. The launch of the Belt and Road Initiative has changed the nature of life and the perspectives for many developing countries, providing high-speed rail and other infrastructure as the basis for their economic development. Creating a new grid of high-speed transport has also benefited the developed countries of the West by the subsequent increase of trade and communication between East and West. And for Africa and Latin America, Chinese infrastructure investment has been a lifeline out of a continually deteriorating economic situation due to the international financial crisis in the West.

China has much to celebrate in this anniversary year. And so do all those who are independent-minded enough to recognize what has been accomplished for the benefit of China and for the the world.

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