WASHINGTON, D.C. - during the State visit to the USA Chinese President Hu Jintao, President Barack Obama Hu on pressed human rights. Probably should be more about the spread of democracy in China, he surprised because he could have asked was by what he heard.
In September 2010 he called Hu a speech in Hong Kong, where new thinking about Chinese democracy. He said: "There must be a To…hold elections law;" have democratic decision-making, democratic management and accountability; "Protecting people right to know to participate, express, and monitoring."
His remarks, compiled Wen Jiabao on previous comments Chinese Premier, delivered in Shenzhen, coastal zones free enterprise where China's economic revolution began. Who said that political reform, including opportunities for citizens to criticize the Government, China's breakneck economic growth to support requires monitoring. Otherwise, he argued, would be the country lost the economic gains.
Wen's remarks led to speculation that Shenzhen the pace for economic development in China, is a "special political zone." could soon become China experts pointed out that next economic zone's six districts could direct elections for the chiefs of special.
The most non-Chinese would be surprised to learn that it already has more options than anyone else in the world. Every three years all China keep about one million villages - home of approximately 600 million voters - under the organic law of village committees local elections.
Critics mock that local officials of the Communist Party and manipulate these elections. But, according to a study by Robert Benewick, Professor at the University of Sussex, England, village elections growing more competitive, with a larger number of independent candidates and increasing use of the secret ballot. Researchers claim evidence of positive effects found in these elections that have been really competitive.
For example in one study, which saw 16 years in 40 villages Economist Yao Yang found that introducing elections had led to increased funding for public services by 20%, while reducing spending on "Administrative costs" - Bureaucratese for corruption - by 18%. And Wen has indicated that elections be village until the next Government high - Township administrations, in the coming years could extended.
China's modest experiments with local elections were supplemented by exercises in "deliberative democracy." These take the form of high-tech town hall meetings. Chinese officials hired Stanford University Professor James Fishkin, draft a representative sample of citizens from Zeguo for an Assembly keyboard polling devices and handheld computers to decide as the city a $6 million civil works budget should spend. The Zeguo exercise was hugely successful and elsewhere have been replicated in China.
Professor Yu Keping, an official influential Communist and author of a prominent book called democracy, is a good thing the President should have Hu's ear. Professor Yu and others have been democracy within the Communist Party itself nudge forward. Competitive elections for lower level party posts have already taken place with view votes for the provincial and national party congresses electoral slate with 15-30% more candidates than positions.
Since the Communist Party has a membership of 73 million people, such a "democratic Vanguard" holds great potential. If internal elections widely become the could lines of ideological disagreement within elite circles become more clearly drawn that could further spur calls for some kind of representative institutional structure. Rapid changes in China already led a fight of ideas ranging shores and cities against the landscape and inland provinces and against the poor pitting.
Of course, because Chinese democracy, it is unlikely that the Western model to replicate. Confucian inspired by intellectuals like Jiang Qing, for example an innovative proposal for a tricameral legislator did. Legislators in a Chamber would be selected on the basis of merit and competence, and other on the basis of any type of elections. An elected Chamber can only for members of the Communist party be allocated other representatives elected for the ordinary Chinese.
Such a tricameral legislature, its advocates believe, would better ensure that political decisions more educated and enlightened representative, and the rank avoids populism of Western-style factions.
It is fascinating, China embracing some kind of innovative democratic experiment combining Tricameralism with deliberative democracy methods, a new separation of powers - and hence to look at a new kind of political accountability mold.
Former Chinese leader Deng Xiaoping in 1987 was quoted as saying that in 50 years it would national elections. China's Democratic trajectory generated little fanfare, but really provide Deng's promise before schedule.
Steven Hill of latest book is Europe's promise: why the European way is the best hope in an uncertain age Copyright: project syndicate, 2011.
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