This week the Chinese Communist Party unveiled its new leadership like the a collection of new cars. Corruption amongst the political elite was high on the agenda, as might be fuel economy for the latest car models. The new premier warned that if corruption were not checked it could undermine the stability of the Communist Party. I should hope so. According to the BBC report I watched, over 600,000 government officials are implicated, involving bribes amounting to over of 3.5 billion Euros. Could this sudden concern about corruption at the top be a case of political naivety? I can't imagine how a politician could exist without the perks and kickbacks, whatever the prevailing ideology. It's a good thing that corruption should be targeted at the outset of a new political regime. I hope that their efforts will be more successful than the western hemisphere's war on drugs. Whether or not such a campaign against corruption will suffice to assuage the burgeoning desire for increased democratic participation and other essential liberties remains to be seen. Big promises do not always lead to big actions. A case in point, we have a lot of big bankers that haven't gotten room and board in the Big House, yet.
I have just watched an article on the last USC China newsletter about the Chinese government’s current plan to introduce an official government approved history curriculum into Hong Kong schools. Students and parents are protesting vociferously. They are concerned about preserving the right for future generations to have an objective view of historical events, freedom of speech, freedom to dissent. Hong Kong was a British controlled trading outpost for the better part of a century. It was returned to China in 1997 with the stipulation that there would be two systems of government and one country. China would benefit by restoring a part of its territorial integrity while the 7 million people of the islands would retain some element of autonomy to conduct affairs and preserve its economic structures and other liberties. Now that trade and communications with the mainland have become significantly intertwined there has been increasing pressure to impose Chinese identity and institutions on the population. The recent decision to introduce an official history curriculum is perceived as a propaganda threat that will undermine children’s access to a more truthful appraisal of historical events. The people of Hong Kong are familiar with how schools on the mainland overtly favor recounting the successes of the communist government while conveniently omitting great mistakes and incidents of repression. Will the behemoth of state machinery prevail in overriding those protections that were conditionally established in 1997?
This is certainly not a unique situation. All great imperial powers, past and present, attempt to do the same. Perhaps someday there will exist a branch of the United Nations that will monitor the information that the governments of its member states chooses to divulge to their citizens, subjects or other elements of the population.
Its interesting to note that corruption exist everywhere doesn't matter if its democracy or dictatorship. It makes me very sad to think that we the everyday person has no power to change the situation. I can be honest but theres nothing i can do about my neighbor.
The issue of Hong Kong and China has been a complicated one that involves a troubled history and different approaches to nation-building. There are some parallels, however, between the relationship between China and Hong Kong and that between the US and Puerto Rico or the US and most of Latin America. . If you're interested in learning more about this topic I recommend reading "Beneath the United States."