The Triumph of Capitalism in China

As China holds its parades and celebration for the 70^th anniversary of the establishment of the Peoples Republic, government military in Hong Kong had more than doubled in size, 10,000-12,000, up from 3,000 -5,000. Beijing has now assembled its largest-ever active force of People’s Liberation Army (PLA) troops and other anti-riot personnel and equipment in Hong Kong. Significantly, the build-up includes elements of the People’s Armed Police (PAP), a mainland paramilitary anti-riot and internal security force which would likely spearhead any intervention. 

Many of the celebratory events will take place in Tiananmen Square, the scene of the 1989 bloody and brutal suppression of dissent.

In 1949, Mao was careful to point out that the new society would not be socialist. His inaugural speech said:

“To counter imperialist oppression and raise her backward economy to a higher level, China must utilize all the factors of urban and rural capitalism that are beneficial and not harmful to the national economy and people’s livelihood...Our present policy is to regulate capitalism, not to destroy it.” 

There would be “several decades of hardship” before the change to “socialism” could be achieved, he cautioned. 

The Chinese workers are still waiting for the fruits of all their sacrifices. 

Historically, the oppressors of the Chinese people were the Emperor and his bureaucracy. Little has changed. The Chairman of the Communist Party has become the new imperial despot and the State's bureaucrats continue to carry out his directives. 

Although there is a pretence of still having socialist aspirations, a newly-ascendant clique are now intent to “take the capitalist road,” taking on tall he features of Western capitalism. Trying to run capitalism — whether state or private or a mixture of the two — without encountering ups and downs is just impossible. But it should not be forgotten that the real victims of the vicissitudes of Chinese state capitalism are the working people.