OPINION: The meeting of the Two Sessions once again demonstrates a different kind of democracy with a different nuance on human rights. Yet it is a model of governance that has paid off for the Chinese people and one that certainly continues to pay off.
By Wesley Seale
Arriving at Tiananmen Square for the first time in October 2017 was one of the most elating experiences of my life. It is a sight to behold. It is true, a visit to Beijing is not complete if you have not visited Tiananmen.
Anyone who knows the architecture of the northern capital would know that the city has at its heart Tiananmen. The six ring roads, major highways, in the capital encircle the square. To the north of the square lies the Forbidden City and the famous portrait of Chairman Mao. Tiananmen means ‘gate of heavenly palace’. Straight across from the portrait, in the south of the square, is the Mausoleum of Chairman Mao.
The centre of the square hosts the Monument to the People’s Heroes and to the east is the National Museum of China. Yet it is to the west of the square that a great hive of activity has been happening in the past two weeks. The Great Hall of the People has been hosting the ‘two sessions’, or ‘lianghui’, of the National People’s Congress and the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC).
Dubbed the largest parliament in the world, with nearly 5 000 representatives, the representatives of the Chinese people are meeting to plan the way forward for their country. Strictly speaking, the National People’s Congress has nearly 3 000 members while the CPPCC is an advisory political body. The two bodies meet simultaneously for two weeks annually.
Not many people are familiar with the fact that the Chinese democracy is a multiparty one. Even though it is led by the Communist Party of China, eight parties, excluding the CPC and independents, form this United Front represented in the National People’s Congress. The China Association for Promoting Democracy and China Democratic League are just two examples of parties that belong to this coalition of political movements that form China’s United Front.
While the Two Sessions this year will celebrate China’s centenary goal of building a moderately prosperous society in all respects, it will also strategise the way forward in achieving the second centenary goal of becoming a modern socialist country by the middle of this century.
This year, the deputies of the Two Sessions are also seized with the concerns of Chinese people. People’s Daily Online reports, for example, that through an online survey which they commissioned, Chinese people are concerned with the rule of law, full and strict governance over the CPC and social security. Yet deputies will also pay attention to economic and social development, innovation and international co-operation including the Belt and Road Initiative.
Nonetheless, the representatives of the Chinese people also have reason to celebrate. Their nation has just completed hosting one of history’s most successful Winter Olympic Games despite the murmurings of one country. In the aftermath of a successful defeat of Covid-19, China can predict a 5.5% growth in GDP this year while having enjoyed an 8.1% growth rate in 2021.
Disposal income per capita in China grew by 8.1% in real terms in 2021 while the GDP clocked record growth of RMB114 trillion which is about R228 trillion.
China plans to create more than 11 million new urban jobs while CPI is left at around 3% percent with the debt-to-GDP ratio being approximately 2.8% percent.
The meeting of the Two Sessions once again demonstrates a different kind of democracy with a different nuance on human rights. Yet it is a model of governance that has paid off for the Chinese people and one that certainly continues to pay off. While we may not promote a copying and pasting of this model, which is the modus operandi for the Bretton Woods Institutions, the question must remain whether this is not the model of democracy that Africa can learn from.
* Seale completed his PhD in international relations in Beijing
** The views expressed here may not necessarily be that of IOL.