notes

little late. sorry! but here they are before the test


3.4.2009
a. 1978-1979
b. place near govt headquarters in Beijing where ppl had the oppurtunity to express their views on greater political freedoms (posting essays, graffiti, posters)
c. invitation to call for greater freedoms, not just economic
d. young political activist, Xu Wenli goes and collects the essays at Democracy Wall and assembles them into a political journal
e. as the calls got louder, Deng had enough, and he moved to smash the Democracy Wall movement
i. in return Xu got arrested, brought on trial, and sentenced to 15 years in prison.
f. This illustrates the Commie party willing to loosen economic things but jealously retracting their political power
vi. 1989, College Students take to Tianemen Square demonstrating for more political reform
1. tension between the Communist Party and the citizens came to a head again.
2. brought out due to death in Hu Yaobeng, who had been ousted by Commie hardliners
a. hero to the reformist wing of the Communist Party
3. students in the Square are criticized in editorial in the official newspaper, People’s Daily
a. Communist party mixed, some think enough is enough students need to be in school, and some think that it’s alright, they should look into it
b. The secretary of the party, Zhao Ziyang, disagreed with the criticism
4. The demands continued, ignored calls from the govt, and they initiate a hunger strike as the govt. doesn’t meet their demands
i. This puts compromise out of reach
5. Deng goes to crush the march, and Zhao resigns
a. The military converges in Tianemen Square, and the demonstration is brutally ended
vii. Foreign Investment continued to be encouraged
viii. Deng is force behind government but heavily influencing decision making even though he is essentially retired
1. He doesn’t hold any position within the Party, but they wont move on with decisions with out him
a. Regarded as an elder
2. By 1995, Deng’s health is failing
a. They realize they have to find a new leader, the premier Li Peing announces that China’s President Jiang Zemin, an advocate of edonomic reform had been confirmed of the third generation leader
b. 3rd person in high government positin as vice premier, Zhou Roujin
i. in charge of ecnomic reform of Chines government
c. they said they would be a ruling 3-some
3. this leads to more stability as they don’t have to worry about choosing a leader
4. Deng dies at 92, in 1997
5. Leadership goes to Jiang Zemin, who is 72
t. Jiang is President, Secretary of the Party, and head of the Government
i. Jiang Zemin is able tto strengthen his political position at the Communist Party congress in Fall, 1998
1. Held every five years
ii. Two critics who were members of the politburo were forced to retire at this meeting
iii. Li Peing comes up against term limits and canot continue as Premier, and takes the #3 position, the head of the legislature (National People’s congress)
1. Zhou Rongji takes the Premier position
u. 1998- the Communist party agrees to large scale privatization to government owned industries which were lagging behind privatized industries
i. don’t call it privatization though – don’t want to be like soviets
1. call it shift to public ownership
ii. the gvoernment planned to hold on to some 3,000 companies, and some 10,000 other firms were going to sell shares to public or workers, but with the government maintaining sizeaable stakes within the companies
iii. other medium sized and smaller firms were given considerable latitutude to get off government life support (whatever they had to do)
iv. privatizing presented major challenges
1. Chinese companies had traditionally provided craddle to grave benefits to its workers, but now its tough to sll offf companies that also own and operate a whole raft of social services
a. Ex: 1997, China’s sixth largest steel company owned 11 kindergartens, 15 primary schools, and 15 high schools with 1500 staff members, owned a hospital with 1900 beds and 1200 members, more that 16,000 subsidized apartments for workers, and in addition businesses supported their own retirees
b. Thus private China had no social security system or safety net
2. By 2006, this privatization moved combined with no SS prgram has meant that elderly Chinese are dependent on their children
3. The one child program meant that one person found themselves supporting 2 elderly parents (difficult)
4. The move away from gov ownership to mix of market ecnomy presents additional difficulties
a. Chinese citz appreciated less control over economy and want less control of private lives
b. In rural areas (passed over by boom) people protesting gov corruption
i. Been problem since Mao’s days and continues today
c. National health care is problem
i. Gov has problem financing system with indiviudual responsibilites
ii. Includes new taxes
5. In Spring 1998, growing # awareness within the Party’s senior ranks that they couldn’t dictate economy or lives, they could also no longer represent everybody equally
a. Intelletuals began to say the time was right for the public to debate on the future of China
b. July 1998, 10 dissidents (critics) of the government arrested after the attempted to register anew political party called the China Democratic Party
i. Challenge to dominance
ii. All of them were released and none were charged
c. September
i. Dissidents attempt to register same party in 2 additional cities, they were told the aplications would be considered and no arrests were made
d. December
i. Authorites arrrest 5 members of the china Democratic party including Zhou Wenli and when that happesn Li Peing speaks out and pronounces that the opposition party would lead to unexpected turmoil and would not b allowed to exist
ii. 3 dissidents were tried and sentence, Zhou Wenli gets 13 years for plotting to overthrow state power, one gets 12 years, and the other gets 11 years
e. the week after the sentences, newspapers run new rules that threaten diretors, popular singers, and software engineers with life in prison for threating to overthrow power
6. Late 90’s (mostly 99) commie party leadership faced another party
a. Sect known as Falun Gong
i. Millions of members that grew very quietly with no stated political goals
ii. Each morining and evening these members would go to public parks and do exercises and go off on their way
iii. Most of them were unemployed, retired, poor, or other wise disaffected demonstrating that the reforms had passed them by
b. April 99, gov surprised whne more that 10,000 members surrounded the HQ of the party and sat down in a peaceful sitting
i. They demanded legal status for the movement
ii. Government banned the Gong, and members would be pursued and sent to labor camp, all 28,000 sites were to cease
iii. Ban not effective, thousands went to Tianemen Square and held protests
iv. More than 3,000 arrested
v. Afte 20 years of reform, Chinese people by turn of century are not as easily pacified by the government
vi. Also because of widespread corruption, the Partys simply didn’t seem as effective when smashing movements
c. Oct 99, the 114 exec committee of national people’s congress rules that leaders of religious cults may be prosecuted for murder and endangering national security opening way for death sentences for Falun Gong leaders
i. Day after, 4 leaders were arrested and charged with organizing cult
ii. Crack down spreads nationwide, and in nov 99, 589 people had been sent to labor camps, more than 3000 were held for protesting, at least half a dozen had died in police custody, and 4 held for serious crimes
iii. Falun Gong still operates thoug
1. Managed to break into gov tv stations and took over broadcasitng studio and put their own messages on the air
v. March 2000, Zhu Rongji makes ending corruption a major issue for 2000
i. He lashed out at frivolous spending
ii. Focused on need for China’s factories to produce better products
1. Including crackdown on bogus goods and fake medicine
iii. When calle dfor better SS, called for crackdown on officials who stole from pension fund investment plans
iv. Reform state owned assets
v. Colect more taxes
vi. Warned of more fees, major unrest in rural areas
vii. March 2000, leaders crackdown hard, deputy leader sentenced to deat for taking 658,000 dollars in bribe
viii. One convicted and sentened to death for 5 million dollar for bribery scandal
ix. Four major party fiures fired for corrruption
x. Head of Beijing’s powerful food and drug agency executed for accepting bribes (2007)
w. March 2002, in meeting of NPC, one new thing happened to China.
i. They gained membership to the World Trade Organization
1. This involved China lowering barriers to forrieng competition
ii. Rongji said must faithfully abide by terms of membership, which was going to be difficult
iii. Allowed collapse of nearly 2000 gov owned businesses from 1998-2002
1. Rongji expected pace of business failures to accelerate once they faced foreign competition
iv. Millions of workers in China lose their jobs
v. Leads to unrest, 10000-50000 workers protested as a result of layoffs due to inefficient gov owned enterprises
1. Yet while millions were losing jobs, some of China’s rich were trying to become "big rich".
2. Pursuing the wealthy dream in China is easier than in the U.S.
x. November 2002, 16th Commie party Congress
i. Chinese demonstrate that they are thinking ahead
1. They introduce/announce the 4th generation of leadership
a. With Jiang Zemin still there, they announce the VP, Hu Jintao was to replace him as the Commie Party chairman
b. First orderly handover of power since communists achieve control in 1949
ii. In March 2003, when the legislatrure meets
1. Replaced Jiang Zemin as president with Hu Jintao, and at the same time replace Zhu Rongji with the Vprimeir with Wen Jiabao
iii. Expected that Zemin would wield influence cuz he had contorl of militarly and a lot of proteges in the politburo
1. In 2004, he resigned as head of military (surprising) and gives it to Jintao
a. Jintao was head of gov, military, and party,
b. Zemin became an elder
y. Zemins legacy
i. Keeps minimm political tension which brought party to brink of destruction
ii. Gov stepped out of people’s lives
iii. The Communisst Party abandoned the downtrodden and sided those who emerged as winners in the economic boom
1. Allowed capitalists to become members of the Chinese communist party
iv. As a result the Chinese are able to find jobs, work whereever, and live almost wherever they please
v. While civil righs guarantees fall short of western world, citizens enjoy freedoms
1. Evolved from totalitarian under Mao to authoritarian state that has allowed unparalleled expnsion in economy but hold strangle hold in personal life
vi. Communist Party realased suppport of its original base of supporters (poor, workers)
1. Became party of economic, intellectual, and political elite
z. In their first years, Jintao and Jiabao were cautious managers of the Commie bureaucracy
i. Purused reforms which were started by their predecessors but were determined to to give up grip on power
ii. August 2003, after several months of permitting intellectuals to criticize (even suggesting revisions to Constitutions) for months, the communist party orders a halt, and security personnel began harrassing leading leaders in industry
iii. December 2003, 2 amendments to constitution
1. 1st est right to private property in constitution and broadened focus of pearty to party which represented private businesses along with gov businesses
a. confirms reality that existed for decades
i. the real estate market had been full of curruption as gov officials sought land to use for own enterprises
ii. attempt to boost commerce and limit oppurtunities for corruption
2. 2nd amend
a. est Jiang’s theory as official Communist Doctrine
b. Jiang Zemin’s contirbution to comm thinking = 3 represents
i. Argues Commie party in China should rep interests in China, not just proletariat
1. Wants to look out for elites
2. opened party ranks to entrepeneurs
a. former gov officials
aa. 2004, the Communist party central committee warns party that things in China are tense and that there is likelihood of outburst of discontent that could burst in violence
i. comes against background of 58,000 incidents of social unrest in China in 2003
1. Commie party scared
ii. Nov 2004, 10’s thousands protset damn
iii. Textile strike crushed, retirees came out and demanded pension payments
iv. Thousands protested outside department store
v. Unrest continues today
vi. Gov becomes concerned, late 2004, campaign launched that could reinvigorate socialist ideology
1. Comes at a time when President Hu Jintao and Premier Wen Jintao expressed concerns of bad effects of ccorrruption and need to closegap between city dwellers and the 60% who had been bypassed
2. This shows the hesitancy takes the form of study and self criticism in gov ministries, bureaucracys, chools, and factories
3. At these study meetings the theoriesof Shaopeng who declared market economies integral part of China socialism, and the 3 represents were studied
4. They also said study sessin should also look out how to marry China comminism and capitalism in ventrues between china’s businesses and foreign ventures
bb. July 2005, step taken to market economy
i. Increase value of currency, Yaun
ii. Got rid of 10yr old fixed exchange rate between them and USD, in favor of link into group of world currrency
iii. U.S. pushed China to do this
cc. 2006-07 concerns reflect focus of reigning in econom growth and shifted to solving social tensions wihtin society
i. speech to central committee calling for harmonious society
ii. China’s leaders are conerned bout problems tied to the rapid economic growth and its inpamct of the people hwo miss out
a. Growing gap between rich and poor, inadequate social security system
iii. Retirees increasingly cant live on pensions
iv. Crime/divorce rates higher
v. Wen wne public with gov emphasis on a new socialist countryside
1. Would lift rural economy and shrink some cleavage between rural and urban
dd. 2007 national party congress appoints Hu Jintao to second 5 year term as chairman/secretary
i. and 2nd 5 year term to president
ii. appoints Wen Jibao as Premier to 2nd term
iii. introduce 4 new members of politburo standing committee
1. in China, the politburo of Commie party is the place where policy is made (highest levels of Commie party)
a. extra layer of elietes in China’s
i. stanidng committee, and the real decision makers
iv. also at the same meeting they let on that the intent is to replace Jintao and Jiabao in 2012
1. moving into 2 term rotation
v. 3 of the 4 committee members who are pushed out were supporters of Zemin
1. Hu strengthening grip on leadership in 2nd 5 year term
vi. Recognized Hu’s political innovation
1. Scientific Development
a. They are talking about his emphasis on tempering economic devvelopment and focusing of social concern like environment and guarantees for the poor
i. Likely to joing Mao, Deng, and Jiang as elders
2. He and Jiabao have set temselves apart from predecessors since they are focusing on social issues
ee. March 2008, NPC meeting for a week
i. Concerned about summer olympics In Beijing
1. More degrees of oppennes
2. Such a big issue that both the NPC congress with 2,987 members and the Chinese Peoples Political Consultative Congress with 2200 people met
ii. Because there was a lot of press here, the published proposals for public comment
1. More news conferences, referred to this process as "Consultative Democracy"’
2. Refered to democracy as people being able to comment on proposals
ff. June 2008, Taiwan and China agree to set up permanent offices in each others territory for first time in nearly 60 years (since Commie revolution)
i. Perform Consular duties (not full blown embassy)
gg. September 2008
i. China passed Japan to become U.S. governments largest foreign creditor
ii. Owns 1 dollar out of 10 dollars in U.S. debt
1. U.S. being increasingly forced to rely on China for money
a. 2 risks
i. cant afford to offend China
ii. if they cant lend us money then we are fucked
hh. like the U.S. Britain and Russia they are hurting
i. announce 586 billion dollar stimulus package in November
1. eased credit restrictions, expanded social welfar servics, infrastructure spending program
a. but only º of stimulus coming from central govt
i. another º coming from local govs
ii. remaing _ coing from enterprises, banks, etc
ii. unrest more than rural protests
1. those continue but now more educated chinese behind strikes disrupting strikes in city
2. workers unable to pay for ed