Solidarity with China
The resilience of the Chinese nation is amazing, the depth in its leadership even more so. About a 100 odd days since the unfortunate events of Tienanmen Square, China is for all purposes back on the rails of progressive reform, normalcy of sorts having returned to Beijing within weeks of the worst cataclysm to effect China, at least in full media view, since the inception of the Peoples Republic. To those of China’s friends who have been understandably nervous about the events leading upto June 1989, the fact that business as usual has returned to the affairs of the State is exceedingly welcome. The video footage of happenings in May and June 1989 — and the fantastic speculation by the foreign media, had dismayed China’s true friends.
The Chinese nation has been through an amazing metamorphosis, as we approach the 40th Anniversary of the success of the Chinese Revolution the changes over the past four decades in this vast nation defies adequate description. The first decade after 1949 was a period of clearing the residual cesspool of centuries of corruption. Inordinate wealth and power had been concentrated in the hands of a few people, feudal warlords held sway over vast expanse of territory and a small depraved clique of people ensconsed in Beijing and having no affinity with the masses callously ruled over the destinies of many hundreds of millions.
The Soviet economic role model may have been appropriate in the circumstances but over the long term it acted as a severe retardation on economic progress. While upheaval and centralized control was necessary to rid the body economic of the accumulated ills of society, the needs of a vast diverse populace can only be served through the inherent dynamics of a free economy. Despite the excesses of the Cultural Revolution and the Red Guards, the 60s and early 70s was a period of consolidation. In the mid-70s, Mao Tse Tung, the undisputed leader of China, passed away, followed soon thereafter by Zhou En Lai, the man who kept the system in China working through a prolonged insular period of internal turmoil, preparing the ground for the great awakening externally in the true spirit of the great Mandarins of China, setting the silent but sure pace for the era to follow. Self-effacing and shunning the cult of personality, Zhou En Lai’s work is vividly apparent when you take stock of the results in China today and the apparatchik he put in place. His was a subtle change of direction, the acceptance of existing economic realities which were then brought into startling effect by Deng Tsao Peng, the man who has reversed the direction of China from a strait-jacketed socialist economy to one of measured freedom.
China is a vast country, its populace is both the source of strength and despair. To deal with the problems of an overwhelming population with diverse needs requires a special acumen in leadership, deliberate compromises have to be made to keep the momentum of economic emancipation going. The first decade since 1949 was spent in eradicating the ills of centuries of deep-rooted corruption that resulted in deprivation in a vast majority of the masses, on a pro-rata basis the purges never became outright excesses. The Soviet role model for centralized planning brought the country to continued economic imbalance for over three decades, the after-effects still being felt today.
The most fundamental change in China came three decades after the founding of the Peoples Republic in 1949 as Deng Tsao Peng, a close associate of Zhou En Lai, force-led China into the international economic arena. The great economic reforms carried out over the last decade have been unbelievable, the hundred flowers have now symbolically bloomed, even the Soviets have turned themselves to the emerging Chinese model, indeed it is being emulated in all the COMECON countries. The entire coastal belt has seen a radical change in direction as regional managers have benefited by economic devolution. Small farm-unit ownerships has shown astounding results, given due incentives the agricultural production has multiplied manifold, lessening the burden on imported foodgrains. The change manifest in the entire agricultural spectrum has been nothing short of spectacular. Parallel to this the pace of industrialisation has also picked up as small entrepreneurs have emerged on the scene to complement the state-owned medium and heavy industries being run now by professional management, motivated by incentives based on performance. The rapid economic growth has created an economic imbalance in some areas, resulting in a Catch-22 situation where success has become a national problem when stark comparisons are made with the less affluent. One of the benefits of a controlled economy is that growth is slow but uniform across a wide spectrum, however orderly progress fails miserably in catering for the expanding needs of a vast population. China’s answer is to have a balanced economic mix of control and freedom.
During the last decade, Deng Tsao Peng has had to carry out a policy of compromise between the old Guard conservatives and the reformists. Keeping pace with economic liberalism, the peoples aspiration expected much more political freedom than was envisaged. At the same time, as the old Guard from the Long March faded away the vast nation turned to new torch-bearers, some of whom have not lasted the political course. Needless to say this has been a period of trial and tribulation where compromise rather than the full dictates of normal logic has been the rule. The impatience of the new emerging leadership to take China pell mell into the 21st century has clashed with the caution of the conservatives. Deng Tsao Peng, faced with possible turmoil, has wisely opted for caution. Both the sides agree about change, it is the pace and style that they differ on. The perceptions are similar about the need for wide-ranging reforms in all the facets of society, the extremists on either side pull Deng Tsao Peng in his twilight years in either direction, his problem being to carry out worthwhile reform using a carrot and stick policy.
The chain of events that led to the finale in Tiananmen Square is therefore unfortunate insofar as it almost upset the apple-cart of reform, tending to destabilize the tremendous progress made in the last decade. The western media, by flighty reporting, did much to damage perceptions, giving rise to unwarranted (and unimaginable) rebelliousness among the youth, creating unprecedented alarm among the leadership about the ultimate direction of the protest which occupied centre-stage in China in full media view. The Chinese Government was embarrassed, but more dangerously, the organs of the state were coming to a standstill, almost paralysed with creeping anarchy in the offing. When civilian authority disintegrates, martial law cannot be far around the corner, the surprise is that even after the announcement of Martial Law, the PLA troops waited patiently for over a week before taking action, on the other hand they tried by various peaceful means to persuade the students to vacate their protest and listen to reason. The gradual realisation was setting in that the aim of the students (and various opportunists) was not reform in isolation but the overthrow of the central government. The essence of what happened in Tiananmen Square can be understood when you box someone into a corner. The quantum of violence is a matter of some speculation based on the surmise that movement of army columns in putting down an insurrection causes casualties among civilians. That the Peoples Liberation Army (PLA) units suffered quite a few losses of men and material is clear indication of the fact that the protest were neither peaceful nor their perpetrators unarmed. Putting down anarchy by force of arms is hardly conducive, sometimes it is a necessary bitter pill, it is an option that must be available as a deterrent to any established government. Like the western media, or to put it correctly because of the western media, the student protestors had grievously miscalculated the reaction of the PLA, being led to believe by widespread reports on various international media that the PLA was riven with self-doubt and would not obey established authority, that civil war conditions were imminent as various units and formations from different military regions took different sides. In these circumstances this credence to rumours had tragic overtones for China, giving media exposure to a society that is in process of transit from an era of blanket secrecy to those standards of freedom of media and expression obtaining in the western world. When order is threatened in this manner, is there any government in the world that will roll over and accept the dictates of a small band of vociferous youth in the streets? Whatever the ideology of the government, no one will accept anarchy. Can you imagine the widespread death and destruction if civil war had erupted in China last June? The repercussions would not have been contained within the territorial limits of China alone.
As China opened up in the late 70s, western entrepreneurs flooded into the nation, annual foreign investment reached a peak of almost US$8 billion in the year 1988. While China has remained a friend of Pakistan through thick and thin, one is pained to note that Pakistan (and Pakistanis) were overwhelmed in the economic stampede, Pakistan’s economic relations with China have remained stagnant for some time, not consonant with our deep friendship. There is an old saying in China about a friend in need being a friend indeed. While Pakistan has been the grateful recipient of generous Chinese aid in all its travails, it is perhaps for the first time we have an opportunity to show solidarity with this good and trusted friend. Two Superpowers, US of A and China, are Pakistan’s well-wishers. At this moment there is a chasm of sorts between US and China, luckily for geo-political nuances not so large because of the cool sagacity of President Bush who handled the situation with finesse and grace. This may even have acted as a restraint on various excesses. Realities of this region demand that both US of A and China remain the guarantors of peace in the area, India’s hegemonistic ambitions are likely to get short shrift from the developed offensive capabilities of the Pakistan Armed Forces, no one expects India not to try anyway, particularly if it feels that there are differences between USA and China or their perceptions about the geo-political realities of this region. It therefore logically becomes imperative to remain the “bridge” between our two friends, very much like Zhou En Lai once stated.
While the world held its breath about the events in Beijing, mostly as uninterested observers, Pakistanis on the other hand viewed the situation devolving rapidly into total disintegration of law and order as a direct threat to their own security. Over the years, Pakistan has grown to depend upon China in an increasingly hostile environment, while there is definite identity of views on the geo-political perceptions, universal and regional, Chinese support to Pakistan on all issues confronting Pakistan is a cardinal point governing the thrust of our foreign policy. While this rapport has been based on fundamental principles, it has been so total that one can confidently say that China has been giving us blind support.
For China, this has been a time of great trial and tribulation, it is at times like these that one discovers the worth of one’s friends, whether fair-weather or really true. Besides genuine entrepreneurs, China has been a great attraction for economic adventurers and rank opportunists, many of them took a fast boat into China, and when the situation warranted, a fast boat out. Both with nations and individuals, China will probably agonize over developing future relations on an even keel. With its vast population, China represents great economic opportunity, this opportunity must be the prerogative of those that have stood by China during this crisis. China’s perceptions in this regard will be analysed with interest.
For Pakistan the favourable proximity of China and the continuing friendship is greatly reassuring. Both in 1965 and 1971, China’s support has been unstinting and outstanding, both morally and materially. While this support has been founded on genuine principles, the depth of the relationship is such that we cannot doubt for an instant that even if we were in the wrong, China’s support for us would be unswerving. For Pakistan therefore there can be no other choice, we have to support China, right or wrong!
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