Although China is called People's Republic of China, there are several essential structural differences between Western republican political systems and the China’s republican political system. Western countries’ republican systems are a kind of agent polity, because parties are supported by respective people for common interests, thus the professional agents always tend to confront other parties for Legislative and executive power. But in China, the situations are very different.

As a statutory ruling entity, the Chinese government’s possession of legislative and executive power does not depend on election. According to an article, a number of issues about electoral system, from Academic Forum, there is no neutral, independent electoral agency or organization to protect or organize elections of the National People’s Congress, the main legislative organ of the Chinese state. As a result, the elections are often manipulated in the hands of party and government organs at all levels. Thus officials have little necessity and less incentive to oppose their fellow officials or fight for the rights of their constituents. Consequently, China’s officials had developed into a complex and widespread bureaucracy by about 20 years’ time after reform and opening up.

Co-operation among officials lead to a crony politics in China and gift-giving has become the sufficient condition of political, economic and cultural operations. Every year, Chinese people spend billions of RMB on relationship investment—the exchange of material goods for political favor—which causes serious corruption and has become a subculture in the whole China. Moon Cake, a kind of Chinese confection traditionally eaten during the Mid-Autumn Festival, is just a typical example. Lu Wenbo, General Manager of Beiguo Supermarket Tianhe Store, told Zhaoyan City News that 90 percent of high-end Moon Cakes are purchased for gifts. Most gift Moon Cakes’ prices are from 200 to 1000 Yuan around, while the cost of a pack of Moon Cakes is 15 Yuan around, according a report from People.com. In some more extreme examples, one pack of gold gift Moon Cakes sells for 99999 RMB. Moreover, the prevalent co-operation among Chinese officials causes many economic crimes. It is reported that Chen Liangyu, Member of the Political Bureau of CPC Central Committee and Council Secretary of Shanghai City, who embezzled Shanghai’s Social Insurance Funds worth of 3.2 billion Yuan, had been arrested. According to an article of Caijing Magazine, more than 14 senior officials and state-owned enterprises executives who were closely linked with the case had been sued.

As for other entities, the officials’ unity emboldens them to ignore Beijing’s decree and oppress Chinese people. Chinese officials tend to hinder central government’s command and submit mendacious data to Beijing, thereby providing the very foundations for local protectionism. Since the beginning of 2007, China’s central government has decided to cool overheated economy, but those state-owned commercial banks just ignored these orders and continued to grant loans. According to a report released by National Bureau of Statistics of China, by November, 2007 the China’s CPI had increased 6.9 percent since the beginning of 2007 and there are accelerated signs of economic growth. In addition, Chinese government set economic indicators every year, so the local officials are inclined to submit figures that reach these standards, regardless of their veracity. According to a report of Agricultural Department of Shandong Province, some local officials fabricate farmers’ income, in order to extract maximum Manpower Charges, a kind of local tax, and not to exceed 5% of the limits.

On the other hand, the tight connections between officials also indicate the alienation between officials and people. The people who are ignored or abused by local governments can only seek help in Beijing and some of them permanently inhabit so-called “complaint villages”—makeshift shantytowns of aggrieved citizens awaiting restitution--such as Dongzhuang, located on the outskirts of Beijing. According to a survey conducted by Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, there are about 2000 complaint people staying permanently in the vicinity of Yongdingmen. This figure is expected to increase by five times when National People's Congress is convoked and will reach peak number during the 2008 Olympic Games.

After the reformer Deng Xiaoping left political arena, China’s political reform has been at a standstill. While the Chinese economics is becoming more and more hospitable to investment, the political rigidity is producing some subtle and not-so-subtle conflicts which are lurking in China’s unprecedented prosperity.

Thanks for that informative summary. I know little about the Chinese political system. Do you have any idea why the Chinese put so much of their surplus money back into the U.S. when they could/should spend more on the Chinese rural economy and on infrastructure and health care? Why aren't they using more of their wealth to promote a non-petroleum based infrastructure? I realize that they are forced to prop up the U.S. financial system but shouldn't they want to gradually phase out of this arrangement of mutually assured financial destruction?

As you mentioned, China's welfare is one of the worst in the world. I have a party today. Our spring festival is coming. Later I will give some details of China's surplus money and more information.

email me if you have any questions about China. taidas03@gmail.com

Why don’t they put their money on their own welfare?
1 No election
Chinese officials are not elected, but appointed by their superior officials. So they are not so desperate to win people’s support but their superiors’ special attentions.

2 Something more important
The political and economic policies of China are determined by several VIOs( Very-Important-official). They tend to focus on some remarkable issues, such as the China-US relationship or the gasoline in Africa. The welfare are not so urgent for them.

3 harmony
If Chinese people worry about their life, they will have no time to worry about politics or their civil rights. To make a harmonious society, you need so humble people, not some critics.

4 the Chinese rural people
If you went to the rural areas of China, you would understand they will not rebel unless they are starving and have to pillage.
To improve 1 billion people’s welfare is expensive and unnecessary.

Why are they propping up the U.S. financial system?

1 China exports billions of goods to US, so it is very important to keep a good relationship with your most-frequent customer.

2 Taiwan Dongtu
If the Chinese government want to do anything on these issues, they need the support, agreement or at least acquiescence of White House.

3 The Chinese government have 1500 billion dollars of Foreign exchange reserves( which are collected from the Chinese people), and the China-US relationship is really good. One wants to do some investments, the other needs money to finance its war.