Article by Dr. Luong Van Ke, lecturer at the Faculty of International Studies - University of Social Sciences and Humanities, published in the Journal of Chinese Studies, No. 3(91)/2009, pp. 69-74.
Article by Dr. Luong Van Ke, lecturer at the Faculty of International Studies - University of Social Sciences and Humanities, published in the Journal of Chinese Studies, No. 3(91)/2009, pp. 69-74.
The socio-economic reform in China as well as Vietnam is essentially a comprehensive, systematic and fundamental transformation according to Western values. This reform process has been quite successful so far. This is a great contribution to the national development of these two neighboring socialist countries. The entire life of a nation state like China or Vietnam is always greatly influenced by politics or state policies. Therefore, the study of the Western political value system and its impact on the development of East Asian societies like China and Vietnam is necessary, will bring many benefits in international research as well as contribute to policy recommendations for high-ranking politicians in Vietnam.
The scope of the article covers three basic aspects:
I. What are Western political values?
The political value system is the deepest layer of the entire political system. One can visualize its position as follows:
When talking about the values of Western politics, people often refer to the following core aspects:1
The entire system of values mentioned above is not only imbued into politics, but in fact they are the standards of the whole democratic society that the history of development of many centuries soaked in blood and tears of European and American peoples has achieved. In fact, those values are imbued in every behavior and way of thinking of each individual, even the political, economic and magnificent cultural castles of European and American countries. However, that is absolutely not a system of values that only exists in the West and is only suitable for Western society, but as Nobel Prize-winning economist Amatya Sen has pointed out, it is the result of objective historical movements, universal to all humanity, and is the goal that all peoples should strive for. “The leaders of East Asian history not only stressed the importance of freedom and tolerance, but they also had clear theories of why it was appropriate to do so,” he writes.2 That great system of values has, in one way or another, through peace and war, trade and propaganda, sometimes even gunboats and atomic bombs, been and will continue to be transmitted to other peoples around the world, especially to East Asian peoples. And East Asians have responded very differently to this spread.
II. Some characteristics in the reception of Western values in East Asia
Here the article wants to analyze the case of Taiwan and mainland China. This choice is useful for us because these are two different territories, with different developments, but have a homogeneous racial and cultural foundation throughout the 5000-year history of the Chinese nation.
Amatya Sen in a recent article recalled that, At the 1997 World Conference on Human Rights in Vienna, government delegations emphasized the cultural and value differences between Asia and the West. The Singaporean foreign minister considered that “universal acceptance of the human rights ideal could be harmful.” The Chinese delegation specifically emphasized the different characteristics of the regions. The Chinese foreign minister also noted in the document that “individuals must put the interests of the nation before their own.”3 Sen argues that “the justification of authoritarianism in Asia based on the unique nature of Asian values needs to be examined in historical detail.”4 On the methodological issue of the relationship between democracy and development, Sen calls for not only attention to statistical relationships but also an analysis of the causes of growth and development. Studies largely agree on a list of “policies that are conducive to economic growth.” These policies are all associated with greater democratic openness.
In the case of successful adoption of Western democratic values in Taiwan, the following characteristics are seen:
China case:
The influence of the European-American value system on China has gradually changed from one-way coercion and force to exchange, integration and transformation. The influence of the Western value system has brought about positive results in some aspects, but negative results in others, but in general it is positive. The negative side is reflected in certain disturbances and instability from the population who are either disadvantaged or too radical in the process of building a new China, especially in the period of reform and opening up from 1979 to the present. The value of the Western value system can be viewed by China from many different perspectives, of which the most basic are from two perspectives: from the ruling party (the Communist Party and the State they control) and from the people. Here, the article focuses on analyzing the behavior of accepting the Western value system by Chinese leaders and elites in the period of reform and opening up.
The reform and opening up in China is a creative absorption of progressive political ideas in the early 20th century with the "New Books", the "Reform of Mau Tuat" movement, and the "Three Principles of the People". The experiences of accepting and transforming Western ideas, forms, and values into the reform and opening up to build China today are worth our reference.
First of all, to succeed in the reform and opening up process, it is necessary to have a theory of reform and opening up. That is the system of Western political economic theories, drawn from the successful lessons of Western economists. In the treasure trove of Western economic reform theoretical bases, there are many doctrines and theories, but China has chosen reform theories that are both advanced and suitable to the country's characteristics. According to some researchers, that is the development economics theory of the "Neoclassical" school of John Maynard Keynes (British economist, 1889-1946). At the same time, China also adopted the view of the 5 development cycles of the American economist Rostow. The 5-stage theory of the development process has presented the history of economic development from traditional society (feudal, semi-feudal) to a high-level consumer society of the masses. Those modern ideas have been absorbed, transformed and creatively applied by China in the current reform and opening-up process in China, and have been effective, bringing about great achievements, recognized and highly appreciated by the world. Specifically, we see:
- China builds an economic reform model: both reforming to revitalize the domestic economy and strongly opening up to actively integrate with the world economy. Domestic reform, prioritizing agricultural, rural, and farmer reform first; then urban reform with product contracting, equitization of state-owned enterprises, building a modern enterprise system, reforming the market system: production market, labor market, financial market; reforming the price system: state prices, market prices, regulated prices; reforming the wage system; reforming the employment system; administrative reform, etc.
- Regarding foreign economic relations: building special economic zones, opening up and building a coastal strategy, opening up the riverside economy, opening up the border economy, opening up the economy and building the economy in the West. Reforming and building a socialist market economy, both following the laws of market development and having strict state regulation, maintaining a stable growth rhythm, ensuring the ultimate improvement of people's lives... Absorbing Western reform theories, selectively applying them, and modifying them to achieve the highest efficiency for the country, that is China's ultimate goal in handling well the dialectical relationship between the outside and the inside.
- The reform method has changed, from the initial period of economic growth at all costs to the requirement of harmonious and scientific development. This is a big issue, meaningful not only for China, but also for other countries in promoting sustainable national development.
- Absorb and creatively apply Marxist-Leninist doctrine: The theory of "socialism with Chinese characteristics", the theory of "three representatives" (the Communist Party of China represents the most advanced productive forces, represents the most advanced culture, represents the broad masses of the people), or the theory of building a harmonious and scientific socialism...
III. China's experience in absorbing Western political values
First experience: In receiving and exchanging with European and American cultures, Chinese culture only absorbs certain values or transforms them to suit its own cultural traditions.
Second experience: In dealing with European and American culture, sometimes China accepts the whole system, but China rearranges it according to different value scales. For example, China accepts Marxism-Leninism, but not dogmatically, only absorbing the spirit, rearranging it to suit Chinese conditions.
Third experience: China absorbs and transforms the form of Western political institutions to express the content of the unique values of Chinese culture. Here, people see the phenomenon of homonymy. For example, it is also a National Assembly, but the Chinese National Assembly is elected by the Party and meets only once a year to approve the Party's policies. It is also a direct election but there is no contest. It is also a multi-party system but all parties acknowledge (by constitution) the exclusive leadership of the Chinese Communist Party and are their allies...
In short, it can be said that the Western political value system has had a strong and profound impact on East Asian societies, including China and Vietnam. The experiences of absorbing and applying them in China are worth our reference in the process of policy making and organizing the political apparatus as well as implementing policies. The basic principle that needs to be prioritized in today's politics when applying this value system is to respect democratic values, protect and bring freedom to people as individuals. Only then can we achieve the goal of a rich people, a strong country, a fair, democratic and civilized society in a not too long time.
Author:i333
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