continuously updated blog about China & India
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Beware the Waking Dragon
Let us hope that the various calls for reform are genuine and sincere and not an attempt to ‘out’ pro-democrats in the manner of Chairman Mao’s “Let a hundred flowers bloom” call in the 50s that led to the anti-rightist movement and major purges that followed.
See also:
BBC News: “Voting is under way in India to elect a new president.
The front-runner is the country’s former finance minister Pranab Mukherjee. He is being challenged by opposition candidate, Purno Sangma.
The position is largely ceremonial, but the new president could play a decisive role in determining who forms the next government when national elections are held in 2014.
The results of the poll are expected to be announced on 22 July.
The winner will replace Pratibha Patil, who was India’s first woman president.
PRANAB MUKHERJEE
The veteran Congress party leader Pranab Mukherjee was born in 1935 in West Bengal.
He was a teacher, a journalist and a lawyer before being elected in 1969 to the upper house of parliament. He has served as finance, foreign and defence minister, and has held other influential positions in the government.
He fell out with the Congress leaders in 1986 and started his own party, but returned to the party fold two years later. He has served on the boards of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank.
Indian presidents are not elected directly by the people but by an electoral college made up of members of parliament and state assemblies.”
via BBC News – Pranab Mukherjee tipped to win India presidential poll.
See also: Federal versus centralist rule
Extract from Xinhua: “Premier Wen Jiabao said Wednesday that China needs not only economic reform but also political structural reform, especially the reform of the leadership system of the Party and the government.
Wen warned at a press conference after the conclusion of the annual parliamentary session that historical tragedies like the Cultural 
Revolution may happen in China again should the country fail to push forward political reform to uproot problems occurring in the society. …
He noted although after the crackdown on the Gang of Four, the Party adopted resolutions on many historical matters, and decided to conduct reforms and opening-up, the mistake of the Cultural Revolution and feudalism have yet to be fully eliminated. …
As the economy continues to develop, Wen said, such problems as income disparity, lack of credibility and corruption, have occurred.
“I’m fully aware that to resolve these problems, we must press ahead with both economic structural reforms and political structural reforms , in particular reforms on the leadership system of the Party and the country,” he said. …”
Over the past year or two Premier Wen has become very outspoken (for a senior Chinese politician) about issues normally not aired in public. For instance, the Cultural Revolution seldom features in speeches and if it does, it is not usually put in clearly negative terms.
In some ways this reminds me of the (in-)famous speech by Chairman Mao when he launched the ‘let the 100 flowers bloom‘ campaign in 1957. This was soon followed by the dreadful ‘anti-right’ campaign when too many intellectuals and party members took Mao’s ‘let 1000 thoughts contend’ exhortation at face value.
But, this time, the whole circumstances and environment are very different. So, hopefully, the next step will not be another anti-right campaign, but genuine discourse and debate with a (relatively) open mind.
Related page: https://chindia-alert.org/prognosis/chinese-challenges/
Xinhua: “Thousands of people in south China’s village of Wukan went to polls Saturday to elect a new village committee, several months after staging massive protests over illegal land sales and other issues. The villagers cast their ballots at a voting center set up on a village school campus from 9 a.m. through 3 p.m. Saturday. The results are due late Saturday night. Twenty-two candidates delivered public speeches on Wednesday to woo votes. The village committee includes at most seven members, including a chief and two deputy chiefs. A 50-percent turnout is required to validate the election results, and winning candidates are required to take at least half of the votes. An additional election would be held Sunday if fewer than three people obtain the required number of votes. Saturday’s voting marked the last phase of a three-phase election that has resulted in the selection of an 11-member election committee and 109 village representatives thus far. Voters are required to show identification and obtain written authorization before they can cast their votes. The voter turnout was 81.4 percent Saturday, sustaining the high levels seen during the last two elections and indicating the villagers’ enthusiasm for more open and transparent direct elections. (Xinhua/Liang Xu)”
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/photo/2012-03/03/c_131444377.htm
Last year, Wukan defied authorities and there was a major stand-off with security forces surrounding the village as it protested against illegal land grabs by the local authority and the mysterious death of a protester in custody. Surprisingly, instead of a violent end, the authorities backed off.
This year it held it elections as usual, but with one major difference. It could choose who to vote for and not only those pre-selected by the Party. This may seem like a small thing. But, perhaps it could also be the opening of Pandora’s box and local elections may never be the same again in China. And, who knows, maybe there will be free elections for district and county level in due course. And, one day, free elections at national level. BUT, if you are a pro-democracy person, I do not recommend you holding your breath for such a day soon.
continuously updated blog about China & India
continuously updated blog about China & India
continuously updated blog about China & India
CHINDIA ALERT: You'll be living in their world, very soon 