Unirule Institute of Economics     MAO Yushi

China is said to have risen again, and this is not a groundless rumor. China’s economic accomplishment in the past thirty years is second to none around the globe. Also, China has completely changed its image of poverty and starvation, and will not be bullied by anyone anymore. The label on old China, "sick man of East Asia," has long been consigned to the dustbin of history. It’s quite a rare case in world history for such rapid changes to happen in such a big country as China. In particular, China has transformed itself from a country under dictatorship with its doors all locked against the world in Mao Tse-Tung 's era into the one implementing all-round opening up and granting its people much freedom. China’s achievement in economy is enviable to all the other developed or developing countries. We did better than Russia, Japan, East Europe, and Latin America, not to speak of African countries. No one could match us in terms of improvement of living standards, political progress, and advancement of international status. However, I’m not saying that we are doing well enough and that China is already an advanced country. What I mean to say is that our pace of progress is really incredible. Thirty years ago, no one would ever dream about what has happened today at all.

However, what is equally depressing is the enormous resentments and conflicts existing in current society. In common people’s conversations and on-line comments, lots of complaints rather than satisfactions are expressed, and it seems as if Chinese society is about to collapse soon. Street quarrels are frequently seen, as many people now get angry easily and are ready to quarrel at the drop of a hat. Leaders of the government seem to share similar feelings, all worrying about social instability and considering stability as an overriding goal at present. Beijing will become a city of policemen whenever there are ceremonies, such as, China National Day Parade, Opening Ceremony of Olympic Games, NPC Conferences, etc. Policemen will be everywhere, and even old women will be motivated to come out on patrol. Moreover, kitchen knifes are even forbidden to be sold in stores. This reminds us of similar regulations in Yuan Dynasty when the country was under foreign rule, which we know from our middle school textbooks. Our government’s great fear is probably also second to none all over the world. On one hand, people’s living standards are improved. On the other hand, people feel lots of grievances. What is the root cause? The foreigners find no explanations, and even we ourselves find it hard to explain it clearly.

A prevalent explanation is that the gap between the rich and poor results in social grievances. This saying is not groundless. Disparity in wealth now can be seen everywhere, exciting people’s eyes and nerves greatly. Intensification of social resentments comes along with economic growth and is one of the results of enlarging income disparity. People’s sense of income inequality and the consequent dissatisfaction are also intensified along with economic development. At present, the whole country is making immense efforts to narrow the gap between the rich and the poor, considering the settlement of the problem of income disparity as a major aspect of dissolving social grievances. [Page]

However, we will find this conclusion can not bear examination when objective comparisons are carried out. Certainly, unfair income distribution might cause resentments, yet this is not inevitable and depends on a series of other factors. With the same tradition and Chinese residents, Hong Kong makes a good comparison with Mainland China. Hong Kong is less than one hundred kilometers away from Mainland, and tens of thousands of people go in and out of the city to mainland everyday. Its Gini coefficient is even higher than that of Mainland China, rising from 0.45 in 2002 to present 0.5. The Gini coefficient of Mainland China at present is 0.45, indicating that its income distribution is fairer than that of Hong Kong. The comparatively high Gini coefficient of Mainland China is mainly caused by urban-rural disparity. When viewed separately, the respective Gini coefficients of both urban areas and rural areas are smaller than 0.4. However, when viewed together, the inequality between urban areas and rural areas turns out to be rather dramatic. Hong Kong is an urban area and has no countryside, thus, it has no urban-rural disparity. However, its income disparity is even larger than that of Mainland China which has great urban-rural disparity. Also, since its area is very small, it has no regional disparity. In comparison, natural conditions in the east differ greatly from that in the west in Mainland China. The above indicates that income disparity in Hong Kong is created by men, while the unfair distribution of Mainland China can be partially attributed to natural causes, and its big Gini coefficient is to certain extent understandable. Huge income disparity exists among people who are actually so much near to one another in Hong Kong. Compared with similar disparity existing among people who are several thousand kilometers away from one another, people’s feelings in Hong Kong can be extremely different. However, income disparity in Hong Kong did not cause social instability or many social grievances. Surely, Hong Kong has it own problems, and many protest marches and sit-ins of hundreds of thousands people once happened in it. However, the major cause is not income disparity but political reasons. Meanwhile, several serious social conflict incidents happened in Mainland China were not caused by disparity in wealth, either, such as, the case of Yang Jia killing six policemen, the Weng'an Mass Incident, as well as abundant petition cases and demolition cases.

The other explanation for social resentments is corruption. Wide social grievances are caused by government officials’ acts of appropriating public property for private use and trading power for money. However, when compared internationally, China is far from being the most corrupt country. Governmental corruption is actually a common problem with developing countries, and the most corrupt countries in the world center in Africa, secondly in South America. Southeast Asia is comparatively better. Let’s take our neighbors for example. Among such countries as India, Malaysia, Philippine, Indonesia, Nepal, Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam and Russia, all did worse than China except Malaysia in Transparency International Corruption List. China’s ranking is around No.70; India and Thailand are around No.80; Indonesia, Philippine, Vietnam, Nepal, Cambodia, Russia are all behind No.100 (Data of 2009). As for whether there are social resentments in these countries, I have no idea, and this is very difficult to investigate. However, according to most of observations on Chinese society by international scholars, China is indeed one of the countries with the most problems. Though with a promising economy, China’s prospect is rather uncertain. The problem does not lie in economy, but in society. [Page]

Where does China’s social resentments stem from? By intuition, I think it is the absence of social justice. What does absence of social justice mean? In short, it means being unreasonable. The old saying goes: “With justice on your side, you can go anywhere.” However, reason is not talked or listened to in China, therefore, reason is of no use, while force is truly useful. The government has the most and the strongest force; the underworld has force; people with strength also has force. Then it’s very hard for the weak to survive. Though unreasonable people exist in every society, China is characterized by the government’s being unreasonable and upholding no justice. That’s how being unreasonable is transformed into social resentments.

Society needs justice. We all should talk reason instead of using force. If reason has its way, we will all listen to reason rather than force. This is what a normal society should be like. If reason can not have its way while force has to be used, the society is then in great danger. Where does justice stem from? The government plays an irreplaceable role. The government has many functions, among which the most important one is to supply service of justice. The government should take the lead to talk reason itself, and should also help others to talk reason. This is what service of justice means. The Communist Party defeated Kuomin-tang mainly because the people believed that the Communist Party talked reason, while Kuoming-tang’s troop of several millions failed mainly because it did worse in reason than the Communist Party. One who holds the heart of men, gets the world of men. This is absolutely true. However, the Communist Party does not talk much reason at present. That’s why our society has fallen into crisis again.

From the disclosure process of the case of Sun Zhigang, we can see clearly the ugly behaviors of bureaucrats shielding one another by sacrificing justice. A series of other cases then followed, such as the case of Zhou Zhengyi, the case of Zheng Enchong, and the Yunnan hide-and-seek incident, showing that our government is not upholding justice properly. Each year, there are tens of thousands of lawsuits of common people suing governmental officials, less than ten percents of which were won. The courts often side with the government in an obvious way, and no judicial justice can be guaranteed. The courts and procuratorial organs also have the right of dismissing suits or accusations of common people. Worse still, the government even arrests, imprisons and beats those who lodge appeals with the central authorities for help and justice. The government also suppresses, picks on, fines, and even arrests and condemns lawyers who help common people to defend their rights. The way for common people to appeal for justice remains arduous and prolonged, with rather slim opportunity of success. At present, justice is hopeless in society, while evil and darkness are having their way. As a result, social grievances accumulate and common people do not trust the government any more. Whenever there are conflicts between the government and common people, the common people will put all blames on the government even without making any distinction between right and wrong beforehand. The government, on the other hand, has to tell lies and suppresses those who tell the truth, so as to defend its own interests. [Page]

To tell the truth means taking risks. Presently, social order is maintained by lies. When false is taken for true, true then becomes false. Since the government has formed the habit of telling lies, even when it suddenly tells the truth, the common people will not believe it despite all the explanations of the government. There’s no distinction between right and wrong in society. Also, since the government can not convince the common people by reason, it has to muzzle public opinions and arrest and condemn those telling the truth. Consequently, society falls into darkness further, and social resentments go up step by step. The common people have no force and wish the government to be reasonable. They even express this wish by the extreme form of setting themselves on fire. However, the government pays no attention. Since things have turned out like this, common people have to oppose violence by force. That’s why common people will knock over police cars, and even set fire to police cars, police stations, and county governments whenever there are mass incidents. The Chinese people are increasingly inclined to use violence, which is not their nature at all. The common people have no force and wish to reason things out. It is when faced with such an unreasonable government, that they have set their feet on the way of violence. When both sides have formed the rule of being unreasonable and using force, it becomes even harder to rule the country. The root cause is that the government is being unreasonable by dependence on force. Such society will not last long. We have to find out solutions quickly and make a change to present situation.

Income disparity and corruption are two important aspects attributing to social conflicts, yet they are not root causes of social grievances. Treatment will not work if the root cause is mistaken. I believe the root of problems lies in the government’s being unreasonable. The convention of talking reason must be rebuilt in our whole society. The government, in particular, must take the lead to reason things out. It should be said that our government also wants to talk reason, which can be seen in its powerful and magical propaganda department. Everyday, from television to radio, from schools to governmental organs, policies of the Party are being promoted round the clock. This sort of propaganda does play an important role in adjusting and conforming Chinese people’s thinking pattern to that of the Central Committee of the Party. However, flaws begin to emerge once the interest of the Party contradicts with that of the people. That’s why a government official incautiously asked a reporter whether he was speaking for the Party or for the people. This also proves the different stands of the Party and the people, which stem from conflict of interest. The Party has its own special interests which is different from that of the people. If we want to help the Party to resume being reasonable, we have to go back to the Party Constitution which says, the Party has no private gains but the interests of the people. To give up private interests and resume being reasonable is the only way for the government to solve the problem of social resentments. [Page]

However, a series of things happened recently show that the authority does not think so at all. The government is further limiting the people’s channel of reasoning things out, and hindering the functioning of justice, with the attempt of hiding the truth from the masses and controlling the direction and pace of social development with force. However, things will finally come back to justice even though force might work for a time, as the people believe in justice and are unwilling to surrender themselves to force. Currently, North Korean might ranks the first among countries believing in force, with its supreme national goal being armed forces. However, this country is also widely considered as the most unstable country in the world. So do not worship force any more.

China claims itself to be “ the People's Republic of China.” The word “republic” is interpreted in Chinese as universal peace, that is to say, everybody cares about peace and gives up force. The Chinese translation of “republic” is very appropriate. Everybody talks sense, and conflicts are solved through reason. This is a basic symbol of advanced countries. In contrast, a backward society is an unreasonable society in which force is used to solve problems. Mao Tse-Tung asserts that “Political power grows out of the barrel of a gun,” which actually promotes talking no reason and using force to solve problems. In fact, Mao Tse-Tung is not the only one worshiping force blindly. China has a long tradition of worshiping force. The state of “republic” or “universal peace” had never been realized in the history of China, which was marked by wars and the belief that losers are always in the wrong. When a scholar argues with a soldier, to all arguments blind is the latter. Even by now, the General Secretary of the Communist Party must also hold the title of Chairman of the Central Military Commission and put armies under his control. This is because problems are solved ultimately by force rather than by reason in China. When comparing development status of different countries, we can easily make a sound judgment by merely looking at what role force plays in activities of the country. In the most developed countries, armed forces are merely used in police and national defence, and will never intervene in domestic politics. Administration of national arms requires professional knowledge and should be conducted only by professionals, while state leaders rarely rise from the ranks as different knowledge is required. The more underdeveloped a country is, the more heavily its leaders depend on armed forces. In such countries, even civil officials must always be on guard against coups. Reason does not work at all in the most underdeveloped countries since things are all determined by force. In comparison, in the most developed countries, only through reason are all things determined

Since the Chinese government can not convince its people by reason and has force in hand, it is inclined to use force to handle problems. This tendency then gradually becomes a habit which is also applied in foreign relations. With a huge foreign exchange reserve of over US$ 2 trillion in its deep pockets, our government now even dares to say rude words. In the international society, such universal values as human rights, equality, freedom, democracy, and rule of law, are use as the standard of reason. This is because though different countries have different cultures, histories, traditions, scripts, and languages, they do have something in common, that is, universal values. However, we Chinese do not accept this standard. Instead, we use our own standard, or explain these concepts by logic established by ourselves. China then gradually becomes an alien foreign to the international world, who clashes with other countries almost everywhere. Use of dictatorship force is indeed invincible domestically, with almost all problems being solved almost at once. However, it’s really worrying what will happen in the end if all things keep going on like this globally.        [Page]

The people are usually unarmed (In some countries, the people are allowed to keep and bear arms, for example, in the U.S., the people can hold guns to cope with the government), and they have to rely on reason for survival. If their survival is threatened and reason does not work, it would be impossible for the country to remain stable. Since state leaders or the government also wish for stability, they have to reason with the people. Then why it has been so difficult to change from use of force to use of reason? This is mainly because the party with force (or the government) believes in the capability of force in solving problems. When agreement is unlikely to be reached, dictatorship organs are used by the government to arrest and condemn people, and shooting is even used as the last resort. From the above we can see that certain basic conditions are indispensable to the establishment of a reasonable society. Firstly, the party with the most force realizes the necessity of reason, and is willing to give up force, advocate reason and lead society towards good governance. This is the first step in changing from use of force to use of reason, and also the most difficult step. Secondly, a set of rules should be drawn up so as to ensure the capability of reason in solving problems and that we will never go back to the state of using force. This requires that both sides get into the habit of respecting each other, be mentally prepared for compromise and have law-abiding consciousness. At this moment, it will become the key whether the people are reasonable, willing to make compromise and reach agreements. We now only feel that the government is being unreasonable, while actually the people also have the possibility of being unreasonable. For example, in some democratic countries, though there is the rule of national referendum, the defeated party might refuse to admit its failure and continue to riot in the street, and finally force has to be used to stop the chaos. In this way, the country is brought further away from being “republic,” and society goes back to its starting point again.

Indeed, negotiations between two parties do not always come to agreements. So we need a final non-violent solution, that is, national referendum. For instance, in selection of state leaders, when neither side would give in, we can resort to voting for help. With such a set of rules, ultimately we will bring our society to reason and stability, and social grievances will then naturally disappear.