This undated file photo shows Colin Mackerras, Australian sinologist and emeritus professor at Griffith University. (PROVIDED TO CHINA DAILY)
The Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) is highly participative and contributes hugely to consultations between the government and people, resulting in the effectiveness of China’s democracy and governance, an Australian Sinologist said.
Colin Mackerras, emeritus professor at Griffith University, noted that CPPCC‘s composition includes representatives of parties other than the Communist Party of China (CPC) and that the members comprise people from various walks of society, including workers, intellectuals, diplomats, health workers and so on.
“Over the years the members have included some very distinguished people, who certainly have plenty to offer in the way of advice and views” to deliver for scientific decision making, he said.
Mackerras said the ongoing annual meetings of the National People’s Congress (NPC) and the National Committee of the CPPCC are important events in exercising China’s whole-process people’s democracy which is yet to be understood and embraced by the outside world.
Good results for whole-process people’s democracy are evident from the strategic decision and decades of national endeavour to achieve final elimination of absolute poverty in 2021, decreases in social and economic inequality, and the stability of life in China, despite the damage caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, said Colin Mackerras, emeritus professor at Griffith University
“This year marks the 75th anniversary of the People’s Republic of China, and (the meetings) will be more important than ever,” he said.
The Sinologist spoke about how China’s democracy works, noting the public’s participation, consultative decision-making and people-focused mechanisms.
Both the NPC and CPPCC National Committee and their local branches have promoted Chinese style democracy everywhere.
Whole-process people’s democracy greatly promotes consultation with the people at all levels. It puts the emphasis not on “one person, one vote” but on consultation at all levels and on effective and stable governance, helping improve the lives of people.
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Good results for whole-process people’s democracy are evident from the strategic decision and decades of national endeavour to achieve final elimination of absolute poverty in 2021, decreases in social and economic inequality, and the stability of life in China, despite the damage caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, Mackerras said.
“I should add that this improvement has taken place at a time of increasing food shortages, inequality and instability in many other parts of the world, including the United States,” he said.
The popular impression in the West is that China is a one-party state, in which only the CPC has any involvement in government, but this is not the case, Mackerras said.
While it is true that the CPC exercises leadership in the country, there are eight other parties, including the China Democratic League and even the Revolutionary Committee of the Chinese Kuomintang, which have representatives in government bodies. Therefore, China is not a one-party state, Mackerras pointed out.
The label “autocracy”, which so many in the West place on China’s system of government, is not fair, he said. Though China’s system of government does not include multi-party nationwide elections, it does include “local elections that are often keenly contested”, Mackerras said.
This photo shows the Great Hall of People in Tian'anmen Square in Beijing, capital of China, Sept 30, 2023. (PHOTO / XINHUA)
Moreover, since the days when the Communist Party of China ran bases during the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression, “the Party has developed a system of democracy featuring consultations between the Party and the masses of ordinary people,” he said.
Mackerras noted that whole-process people’s democracy has gained traction, a process in which the leaders consult with ordinary people through various ways, including direct discussions and social media.
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Mackerras noted that whole-process people’s democracy has gained traction, a process in which the leaders consult with ordinary people through various ways, including direct discussions and social media
He cited a Xinhua report which said that at the end of June 2022, Chinese cadres and leaders gathered 8.54 million online opinions on China's then forthcoming CPC National Congress. The report had noted that people had submitted numerous constructive ideas and suggestions.
China’s system of government is a form of democracy, and this is a democracy that we need to take seriously, because popular confidence in government is high, Mackerras said.
The Edelman Trust Barometer 2022 survey, based on feedback of over 36,000 respondents from 28 countries, found China at top of the list for people’s trust in government.
Mackerras said that confidence in the future, including the economic future, is far better in China than in the Western democracies, and in particular better than the levels in the US and Britain.
In political and social terms, the US is currently more divided than ever, the expert said. Violent assault on the US Capitol, which houses the nation’s legislature, on Jan 6, 2021 by the supporters of Donald Trump who refused to accept the outcome of the 2020 presidential election, has exposed the deep political divisions in society.
The US is beset is many other problems, Mackerras said. Violence in American society seems to be getting worse, with a gun culture that has far too few controls; racism is still extremely widespread, despite attempts to control it; and class divisions are still acute, he noted.
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America is no longer the “beacon of democracy” it proclaims itself to be, while China’s form of democracy has a lot going for it, Mackerras said.
