CCP’s legitimacy

Eudemonic legitimacy still relevant

 Seen from World Value Survey
 As seen in response to a World Value Survey (WVS) question asking people to
cite “the most important goal for the country”, economic growth accounted for
73 percent of Chinese’s responses in 2007

China, thanks to CCP’s leadership, had maintained sound finances and would not
fall prey to global crisis. CCP’s ability to breeze through the Global financial crisis
by swiftly stabilizing China’s economy with a rescue package justified its rule.

Rich-poor divide
According to The New York Times, the richest 10 percent of Chinese is at 65
times richer than the poorest 10 percent rural households.
 This is worse than Columbia’s richest-poorest 10 percent gap at 60.4 times
 According to a recent survey by the National Bureau of Statistics, China’s
poorest 10 percent had only 1.4 percent of the national’s wealth

Union Rights in China

 China has trade union in nearly 4 million enterprises and public institution by
last year
 However, an ACFTU director-general pointed out that the unionists are
usually human resource staff appointed by the companies and these labour
leaders usually side with the employers during disputes between management
and workers.
 CASE: Nanhai Honda strike in May. Workers there were toiling for very close
to the local minimum wage, and some below it, despite working in highly
automated and highly productive factories. The unionists tried to violently break
up the strike and force workers to go back to their jobs.
 Chinese governments wants to give its state-run unions a makeover, stating
that unionists are not supposed to be paid by the same companies whose
workers they are supposed to represent. They should be elected democratically
instead of being appointed by the management. Also collective bargaining of
wages will kick in by 2012.

NGOS in China
 A flowering of activism poses problems and solutions for China
 CASE: A citizen-activist group is challenging China’s powerful Ministry of
Foreign affairs over its plans for a historic residence the government owns. It
managed to make the ministry agree on conserving and restoring the property.
 Increasing assertiveness of advocacy groups in pushing China’s government to
follow its own rules and account to the public for its action.
 No longer has monopoly of power
 Used to be an all-powerful state, now even the government must obey
the law
 China is seeking to expand its cooperation with NGO in alleviating
poverty, stemming the spread of AIDS and halting environmental degradation
(unable to get the job done themselves as critics taken note of). However, such
NGOs might threaten CCP’s legitimacy as critics had mentioned that they will
eventually push for democratic changes.

How CCP is indispensible

The party takes on dominant roles and coordinates all sectors. Part members and
party organisations in government departments are brought into full play so as
to realise the party’s leadership over state affairs
 seen from their monopoly over key industries such as telecommunications
and steel industry and State-owned companies.

Corruption
 smuggling, embezzlement, theft, swindling, bribery
 Corruption arises in the first place from unchallengeable power of communist
official and the lack of any reliable, independent system of accountability and
scrutiny.
 media, a potential watchdog to correct the situation of corruption, is crippled.
All 2000 newspapers, 2000 television channels, 9000 magazines and 450 radio
stations are all under the watchful eye of the part in Beijing or provincial
propaganda departments
 authorities issue daily instructions on what may and may not be reported;
journalists who digress will be suspended from working or even imprisoned. 42
journalists imprisoned – highest in the world.
 many judges still have no formal legal training.
critics says that almost no private company, however well run, wants to leave
the opaque, informal world of guanxi personal relationships in which the main
aim is to hide revenue, cash and profits from potential political directions.
 counterfeiting is estimated to represent 8% of GDP – eloquent testimony to
the ineffectiveness of the legal system in China. 2/3 of imports confiscated by
customs as fakes were mad in China.