by Bernardo Cervellera
At the end of the National People’s Congress, China’s premier meets the press and reassures the public about the government’s commitment to development, schools, health care and defence. As expected the right to private property is now guaranteed in law. However, some critical voices point out that China still lags behind in terms of health care and education spending.
He stressed that the main headache for the government will be balanced development and the reduction of the gap between cities and rural areas and between the richer coastal regions and the poor interior.
However, some NPC delegates from Jiangsu pointed to contradictions in government policy which instead of reducing the gap tended to accentuate it like higher prices for fertilisers and pesticides without raises in what farmers get for the food they produce. The net result is greater rural poverty.
Premier Wen Jiabao promised never the less that justice and equity will top the government’s priority list as it builds the socialist system.
As for a possible transition to democracy, Wen said that China lacked experience in the area but was still willing to learn from other countries how to build democracy “Chinese-style.”
The bigger problem is not the form of government, but rather the size of what is being governed. China needs to let go of the desire for an empire, and all that comes with it: centralization, homogenization, the imposition of an "official" language and the destruction of local culture.
Civilization = the State?
According to official historians. Article by Robert Klassen.
I don't know if I agree with all of the counter-arguments presented by Mr. Klassen, but it certainly provides food for thought. What sort of evidence would he marshal against the anarcho-primitivists regarding farming cultures?
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