China seen as setting good example for developing countries to set own path for development

Delegates attend the closing session of the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, capital of China, Oct 22, 2022. (LI MING / XINHUA)

The new leadership team of the Communist Party of China has been hailed by analysts for providing an “enlightened vision” for the future of China and the world with the CPC’s National Congress seen as reflecting a collective and consultative democracy.

Also, global experts point out that China is setting a good example for developing countries to set their own path for national development, and that China’s success will be good for the world.

China’s determination to press forward to national rejuvenation through a Chinese path to modernization could be an inspiration to other countries, according to some of those observers.

The Communist Party of China’s leadership has shown the importance of paying attention to “passing the people’s exams” and strengthening its governance while building a modern nation on the basis of history and cultures, they said.

The newly elected Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee was unveiled on Oct 23 at the first plenum of the 20th CPC Central Committee following the Party’s twice-a-decade National Congress.

Addressing the media on Oct 23 in Beijing, Xi Jinping, as general secretary, said, “We should always press forward with self-imposed reforms.”

A political party “can only become invincible if it remains committed to self-reform even though it has had a glorious past”, Xi said. “We must remain on high alert and stay sober-minded and prudent, like a student sitting for a never-ending exam.”

Henry Lim Bon Liong, president of the Federation of Filipino Chinese Chambers of Commerce and Industry Inc in the Philippines, said “this courageous, humble and realistic policy” of Xi ensures the long-term stability and sustainability of China’s socioeconomic reforms and modernization.

“Self-reform is an important key to the enduring success and continuing relevance of the Party in the destiny of China in today’s fast-changing, complex and often uncertain global environment,” Lim said.

He said that as the world is now “suffering from so many tragic conflicts, complex misunderstandings and discord”, his federation “commends this enlightened vision for the future path of China and the world”. He described the vision as “reassuring”.

Kamaruzaman Bin Yusoff, a Middle East analyst and former dean of Universiti Teknologi Malaysia’s Faculty of Islamic Civilization, said that at a time when Western civilizations have been “degrading due to their way of thinking”, China can impart its good habits and way of life that will bring the nation closer to other civilizations.

“They will be able to bring about so many positive ways of thinking to the world,” he said.

Yusoff said he believes China will be able to not only bring about prosperity to the Chinese people but will also be able to bring about peace and harmony to the world.

Sujoko Efferin, a professor at the University of Surabaya’s Faculty of Business and Economics in Indonesia, noted that the leadership of China has eradicated absolute poverty in the country, which has a population of 1.4 billion, and hailed the achievement as “extraordinary”.

“The key is the unity of all ethnic groups in China to work together harmoniously under the sound development planning and strategies of the government,” Efferin said.

China’s leadership has demonstrated the importance of building a modern nation without abandoning its history and cultures, Efferin added.

On Oct 16, in a report to the 20th National Congress’ opening session, delivered on behalf of the 19th CPC Central Committee, Xi emphasized that the central task of the CPC was to lead the country in building China into a great socialist country through a Chinese path to modernization.

Alexey Maslov, dean of the Institute of Asian and African Studies at Moscow State University, said the development of China is critical to global development and that many countries can learn from China’s experience of success.

Dennis Munene, executive director of the China-Africa Center at the Africa Policy Institute, said the 20th National Congress is a true reflection of China’s collective and consultative democracy.

The CPC has shown the world the ethos of what a progressive political party does by taking China on a new journey toward building a modern socialist country in all respects, he said.

The sustainable development plans endorsed in Xi’s report “will be the silver bullet that the world needs to jump-start its economy”, Munene said.

Muhammad Asif Noor, founder of the Friends of BRI Forum, said Xi’s report explained the path to Chinese epic economic development, modernization and governance achievements through whole-process people’s democracy.

Viewing the Congress from Pakistan provided a fascinating insight into how the event in Beijing had been organized to symbolize the sense of inclusiveness through the Chinese way and model of democracy, he said.

The country’s leadership has built this system keeping in mind the domestic cultural, ethnic, and local norms and values, he said.

Adhere Cavince, a Kenyan scholar of international relations with a focus on China-Africa collaboration, said Xi’s report had set the pace and priority areas for China’s domestic and international engagements.

Putting people first is a key point in the report that has been emblematic of China’s historic socioeconomic transformation, Cavince said. 

“China is setting a good example for other developing countries to muster their own path to national regeneration and development,” he said.

Colin Mackerras, professor emeritus at Griffith University in Brisbane, Queensland, and one of Australia’s leading Sinologists, said Xi had put his agenda to the Party’s 20th Congress and “got it accepted”. 

He said Xi’s vision was spelled out in his address to the Congress where he not only emphasized development but also talked of common prosperity, reducing inequalities that still exist, and the importance of the environment.

“Xi put a lot of emphasis on human life and winning the war against the pandemic. I think the zero-COVID policy will continue for a while, I suspect into next year,” Mackerras said.

“On foreign policy, I think he’s not optimistic about the intentions of the Americans, which he suspects (in my opinion, rightly) to be outright hostile to China.”

In his speech, Xi reiterated China’s opposition to the growing “Cold War mentality” in international diplomacy.

Xi said: “China resolutely opposes all forms of hegemony and power politics, opposes the Cold War mentality, opposes interfering in other countries’ domestic politics, opposes double standards.”

Mackerras said China does not seek hegemony and will never engage in expansion. 

“China’s approach is peaceful, but the Americans’ is not. It seems to me to be downright warlike,” Mackerras said.

He said that on the question of Taiwan, China’s position has not changed.

“It wants peaceful reunification but is not prepared to rule out the use of force. Unfortunately, the US is moving more and more toward wanting an independent Taiwan. 

Washington “does not hesitate to go back on its word in dealings with other countries, and regards its version of democracy in Taiwan (region) as more important than China’s national unity,” Mackerras said. 

The US “wants to keep control over Taiwan (region). China has been very cautious up to now and I expect that to continue,” he added. The risk comes from “the irresponsible posture adopted by the US and others”.

James Laurenceson, director of the Australia-China Relations Institute at the University of Technology Sydney, said the next five years will be “interesting”.

He told China Daily that the economy will be crucial going forward.

“In the medium to long term, if China gets the policy settings right, it could really kickstart economic growth again without too much trouble,” he said.

“I don’t just mean by the way it deals with COVID … I mean with how it responds to the broader, structural challenges.”

Hans Hendrischke, professor of Chinese Business and Management at the University of Sydney, said: “Putting it into context, this Congress laid the ideological foundations for the Party’s rule until 2049,” when the nation will mark the 100th anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China.

“Priority was the long-term ideological agenda, poverty reduction, more international engagement, particularly with developing countries.”

He said short- and medium-term policies will come from the National People’s Congress next March, which will also nominate the new government.

Hendrischke said “the best indication for future policies is the new members of the Politburo Standing Committee”. 

Xi has strengthened the role of people with deep experience in the developed provinces, such as Li Qiang, with experience in Fujian, Zhejiang and Jiangsu, said Hendrischke. 

“(And) Li Xi with experience in northwestern China, Liaoning and Shanghai, currently in Guangdong.

“All of these new people come from the market-oriented coastal economies which fund the central government,” Hendrischke said.

Contact the writers at karlwilson@chinadailyapac.com