Balkinization: Democracy with Chinese Characteristics

Democracy with Chinese Characteristics

Lauren Hilgers

I want to start off by thanking Jack for giving me the opportunity to post here on law and politics from where I sit in Shanghai, China.

Much of the talk in China this week is on the Communist Party's 17th National Congress. The congress brings together 2,200 delegates from around the country every five years to decide the future leadership of China's Politburo and to set the tone for the next five years -- it opened today with a song composed to a poem by China's Prime Minister Wen Jiabao.

"I gaze up at the starry sky," the song goes. "It's deep and wide, infinite truth; I seek, pursue and painfully try."

Wen's song is a good opening for what amounts to a lot of pomp and circumstance – a majority of the most important decisions have already been made in the meetings of the party elite leading up to the actual congress. There is certainly a lot going on behind the scenes, but the congress itself will inevitably present a unified front.

The most important event during the congress will be the announcement of the lineup of new party leaders -- China's Politburo, the members of which are formally selected by the congress, wields the powers we would associate with all three branches of government. Responsible for leadership decisions, nation-wide policy and changes to the constitution, it also trumps the Supreme People’s Court.

It’s the behind the scenes action that is most interesting, however, and it's hard not to rush to interpret the trickles of information that come down. This year, it's increased competition between two main factions that has caught everyone's attention and has some advocates hopeful that conflict could lead to a version of the long-discussed "intra-party democracy".

Intra-party democracy is a sketchy term that has been tossed around Chinese politics for years. In the traditional method of selecting a successor, a candidate is simply handed down from the party's leaders. Intra-party democracy, on the other hand, would see a group of candidates competing and subject to a more transparent vote – determined by the Standing Committee of the Politburo, the entire Politburo or the even the entire congress.

Some see signs that intra-party democracy is on the rise: for example, the party now introduces more candidates than there are posts for party elections (In the politburo this year – 10% more!). Additionally, lack of a clear successor for the presidency may provide an opportunity for this brand of democracy to grow.

Last week, two candidates, one a favorite of President Hu Jiantao and a member of the "populist" faction of the party, the other closer to Jiang Zemin's "Shanghai Gang" (A group of powerful party members with ties to the city and to Jiang himself – being located in Shanghai I’m particularly fond of them) and the son of a former senior party member, were unofficially elevated to the congress' Standing Committee, a group of nine members who lead the overall congress, making them both eligible for replacing Hu when the time comes. (A recent New York Times article on the subject discusses how the selections may weaken Hu's grip on the politburo overall.)

While some argue that at least a version of a democratic process could legitimize China's leadership – some top government officials have made reference to intra-party democracy as a "key to improvement of the party's creativity and integrity" – an actual vote may be dangerous to the perceived stability of the government. Factionalism can come hand in hand with democracy, and there is fear that such open competition could ultimately undermine the appearance of a unified governing body and open up challenges to the legitimacy of the party's leadership. There are also signs that democracy is not on its way – leading up to this year’s congress a rash of arrests and detentions were reported in Beijing. Lawyers, activists and potential protesters were taken down. There are also chances that one side or the other could consolidate power in the coming five years. With the Olympics coming, anything could happen.

Posted 10:33 AM by Lauren Hilgers [link]