[Salon] China-U.S. Debate on Democracy

[Chas Freeman <cwfresidence@gmail.com>]

https://mailchi.mp/cusef/the-exchange-29-october-5683833?e=c05cda21b0

SPECIAL REPORT
CHINA-U.S. DEBATE ON DEMOCRACY

• The Summit for Democracy last week has evoked the latest battle of narratives on "democracy" between China and the U.S. Days before the summit, Beijing released a whitepaper defending China's Democracy and a report highlighting the dysfunction of democracy in the United States. Aside from the governmental efforts, the Chongyang Institute for Financial Studies, Renmin University of China (RDCY) published a report on ten questions for American democracy, in which the think tank urges Washington to "ask itself" when organizing the event.
• The Summit, which aims to "set forth an affirmative agenda for democratic renewal and to tackle the greatest threats faced by democracies today through collective action", was attended by leaders from government, the private sector, and civil society that are seen as ideological allies of the U.S. Audrey Tang, the top digital official in Taiwan gave a speech on the last day of the event while Beijing politicians were not invited. The Chinese government has issued harsh criticism against the event.
• In this issue, we would like to briefly introduce the main arguments of both sides on democracy and try to explore a way for more constructive communication over the issue. 

What we found

• For both the U.S. and China, "democracy" is an evolving concept that is defined by various sources from different angles. "Democracy" is seen as a collective and complex idea in both countries.
• There is little constructive dialogue between the two countries regarding democracy. Both sides are criticizing each other's political system with their own standard of democracy. At the same time, they are most likely to be attacked over the same issues that they attack the other.
• However, we think that having a common ground of communication is possible. Because there are similarities in their philosophy of democracy — that democracy is for the well-being of the people, that both process and performance matter for democracy, that democracy needs to develop over time, and that democracy is to come together with different opinions and work out consent with respect.

Democracy from the U.S. Perspective

Core values of democracy

• "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness." states the Declaration of Independence. Although the word "democracy" does not appear in the document that defines the American spirit, the ideas of "liberty" and "equality" later became the core values of the U.S. democracy.
• "Basic to our democratic civilization are the principles and convictions that have bound us together as a nation. Among these are personal liberty, human rights, and the dignity of man." — Dwight D. Eisenhower, 1958

Democracy and the people

• "Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed..." — Declaration of Independence, 1776
• "Democracy is the government of the people, by the people, for the people." — Abraham Lincoln, 1863

Manifestations of democracy

(According to a Pew survey on American democratic values)

• The rights and freedoms of all people are respected
• Everyone has an equal opportunity to succeed
• Independence of and balance between government branches
• Independence of news organizations from government and parties
• Government power is under scrutiny and people are free to peacefully protest
• Views of both the majority and those not in the majority are respected
• People holding different views are able to come together in a civil manner and agree to disagree

Democracy needs to develop

• "Remember, democracy never lasts long. It soon wastes, exhausts, and murders itself. There never was a democracy yet that did not commit suicide." — John Adams, 1814
• "Democracy — government of the people, by the people, for the people — can at times be fragile, but it also is inherently resilient.  It’s capable of self-correction and it’s capable of self-improvement." — Joe Biden, 2021

Democracy from China's Perspective

At the heart of democracy

• Democracy is "an instrument addressing the issues that concern the people."

People's democracy

• The democracy of China is defined as "people's democracy" (人民民主, ren min min zhu), the essence of which is that the people are masters of the country (人民當家做主, ren min dang jia zuo zhu).
• The latest model of China's democracy is "whole-process people's democracy" (全過程人民民主, quan guo cheng ren min min zhu), which was first mentioned by Chinese President Xi Jinping in November 2019. This model "integrates process-oriented democracy with results-oriented democracy, procedural democracy with substantive democracy, direct democracy with indirect democracy, and people's democracy with the will of the state." It also brings together electoral and consultative democracy.

Manifestations of good democracy
(According to the recent white paper "China: Democracy That Works")

• Extensive political participation by the people
• Promises made by political leaders are fulfilled
• Democratic political procedures and rules are effectively enforced
• The exercise of power is genuinely subject to public scrutiny and checks

Democracy is not one-size-fits-all

• Different countries have different types of democracy that suit themselves
• The democracy of a country evolves over time

Criticisms of U.S.'s Democracy

Most criticisms of the U.S.'s democracy are about the performance of its political system.

U.S. people think their democracy is in trouble

• According to a recent survey by Harvard Kennedy School, 52% of American youths think the U.S. democracy is either "failing" or "in trouble" and only 7% of these young people see their country as a “healthy democracy”.
• Pew's surveys in 2018 and 2020 indicate that most Americans are critical of the country's performance in democracy. 
• Another survey by Pew shows that public trust in the U.S. government is near historic lows.

"Democracy" for the minority

• "[O]ur analyses suggest that majorities of the American public actually have little influence over the policies our government adopts." — Martin Gilens and Benjamin I. Page (2014-09-18)
• "[W]e have ample evidence that the wealthy, more often than not, do call the shots, but that the degree to which this disproportionate party responsiveness produces less representative policies depends on the party in power and the policy dimension being considered." — Gerald C. Wright and Elizabeth Rigby (2020-04-08)
• "America is less of a democracy and more of an oligarchy than we like to think." — Paul Krugman (2020-07-01)
• "The U.S. is not functioning as a democracy; it is functioning as a plutocracy." — Kishore Mahbubani (2021-12-07)

Abuse of power is on the rise

• The increasing filibuster in the Senate and the unlimited use of "magic minute" in the House of Representatives have caused legislative dysfunction.
• The emergency powers entitled by the National Emergencies Act can easily be abused, as President Donald Trump has shown.
• The spike of "shadow docket" in the Supreme Court's decisions "highlights a deficit of transparency and accountability" in the U.S. judiciary.

Freedom of speech is abused

• Flooding disinformation has caused a crisis in the U.S. The First Amendment on freedom of speech essentially precludes legal barriers to the delivery of information.
• Social media platforms like Facebook can manipulate information delivery and even the information ecosystem. A survey in 2020 shows that 64% of Americans believe that social media have a "mostly negative effect" impact on the U.S.
• Conventional media are not immune. The latest Edelman Trust Barometer shows that most people see news organizations as biased.

Party politics divides people and causes waste of resources

• Both the Democratic and Republican parties respond mainly to the concerns of the rich and have divided people along the wealth spectrum. The Social Progress Index published in 2020 shows that the U.S. is one of only four countries in the world that have a lower quality of life than in 2011.
• The U.S. party politics divides, rather than unites people with different beliefs, races, and ethnic backgrounds.
• Party politics and the blind faith in "democratic participation and transparency" have led to political dysfunction.

Human rights are diminished

• Wars in Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria, and Yemen, which are launched by the U.S., have caused at least 1 million deaths and displaced 37 million.
• The "colossal failure of leadership" in the U.S. has resulted in high-rising numbers of infections and deaths from COVID-19.
• The long-existing racism and the spike of hate crimes and violent threats in recent years disprove that the U.S. democracy can ensure sufficient protection of human rights.

Criticisms of China's Democracy

The criticisms of China's democracy are mainly about whether its political system is democratic.

One-party monopoly

• Without party competition, China is a one-party monopoly dominated by the Communist Party of China (CPC).

No separation of powers

• China doesn't adopt the trias politica model, in which the political power is separated into legislative, executive, and judicial branches like the U.S. does.
• In China, the CPC essentially leads the legislature, the executive, and the judiciary.

Media in China are not independent and information is heavily censored

• China cracks down on press freedom, censors social media, and blocks foreign websites, although "many of its citizens hunger for a free flow of information".

Human rights are undermined

• People can be "silenced" or "disappeared" for their views.
• Critics say that people's will in Hong Kong, Xinjiang, and Tibet is not respected, although the Chinese government has countered this argument by providing evidence in many official white papers.

Defending U.S.'s Democracy

The U.S. is proud of the democratic idea it upholds while admitting that democracy "can at times be fragile".

The purpose of the U.S. government is democratic

• The Constitution of the United States expresses the purpose of the government as "to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity."

The democracy of the U.S. has the merits that lie in its origin

• As Francis Newton Thorpe wrote in 1983, "[d]emocracy in America is the resultant of Roman, Celtic, and Teutonic ideas. It is a civil composite."

The U.S. is govern by people

• The U.S. is democratic because "the people govern themselves and have
  the means to control the government".
• U.S. citizens have the right to vote for their political leaders including the President and make contributions in the nomination and election of their preferred public officials.
• Legislators represent their constituents by operating as either "delegates" or "trustees".
• Individuals can also influence the government through interest groups and political actions committees.

Liberty is intrinsic to American values

• The democracy in the U.S. is not perfect, but people are free to criticize.
• The Bill of Rights states that "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances."

Democracy is a universal value and spreading it will make the world better

• A typical argument of this is that the U.S. should "foster the growth of civil society, basic freedoms, the rule of law, and democratic culture wherever they have a reasonable chance of taking hold" because building democratic institutions and culture worldwide will bring "the long-term rewards-increased stability, prosperity, and enrichment of the human spirit-make." 

Defending China's Democracy

In China's eyes, its political system is democratic although it doesn't follow the western democratic models.

The democratic nature of China is defined by its Constitution

• "All power in the People’s Republic of China belongs to the people," as stated at the beginning of the Consitution of China.
• The Constitution of China stipulates that people exercise state power through the National People’s Congress and the local people’s congresses.
• According to China's Constitution, the National People’s Congress and the local people’s congresses are "constituted through democratic elections" and are "responsible to the people and subject to their supervision."

Broad representation and participation are ensured

• As the organs of state power, people's congresses are constituted by people who are from "all regions, ethnic groups, sectors, and social groups" at national, provincial, city, county, and township levels.
• China's political system is not "one-party rule", although there is no opposition party. Instead of adjusting its governance by the transition of power between parties, China adopts a political system of "multiparty cooperation and political consultation" under the leadership of the Communist Party of China. Such a system prevents rifts in society created by Western-style party politics.
• China's multiparty cooperation and political consultation system includes not only political parties but also non-affiliates, ethnic minority groups, and participants in different industries, as well as people from Hong Kong, Macao, and Taiwan.
• Direct election is applied to people's congresses at the township and county levels. The current participation rates of these elections are around 90%.
• The system of "community-level self-governance" (基層群眾自治, ji ceng qun zhong zi zhi) allows more political participation of the general public.

Powers are under scrutiny and check

• Instead of changes of ruling parties or separation of powers, China prevents abuse of power by "sound and effective democratic oversight". Such a practice "enables the people to continue to exercise their democratic rights after elections".
• China has a thorough supervisory network that consists of top-down supervision within different departments and public supervision.

Efficient national governance is the testimony to good democracy

• China's model of democracy "provides sound governance and boosts national development" and is "a true democracy that works." The country's speedy recovery from the COVID-19 and its fast all-around development in the past 40 years are usually cited as examples.
• The Chinese government is also proud of its ability to serve the people. According to research by Harvard Ash Center, Chinese citizens' overall satisfaction of government performance is over 70% at all levels of government and the satisfaction of central government is as high as 93%. 

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