Showing 1199 results

7 especially emphasised, 'Ours is an entirely new endeavour, one that was never mentioned by Marx, never undertaken by our predecessors and never attempted by any other socialist country. So there are no precedents for us to learn from. We can only learn from practice, feeling our way as we go.' That is to say, if we really want to build socialism in China, we should proceed in everything we do only from the actual situation of the primary stage of socialism, and not from our subjective desires, nor from this or that kind of foreign models, nor from the dogmatic interpretations of some theses in Marxist works, nor from certain erroneous viewpoints imposed on Marxism." It is fair to say, however, that certain of the specific types of economic policy currently practiced in China were envisaged by Lenin as he grappled with the question of how to take the vast landmass of the former Tsarist Empire towards socialism, not only in the New Economic Policy but also in, for example, his 'Letter to American Workers', in which he envisaged the possibility of large scale collaboration with foreign, particularly US, capital to help unleash and harness the vast natural resources and mineral wealth of the Soviet Union. More specifically, the theory of the primary stage of socialism and its conception of mobilising all the forces of the nation, at home and abroad, along with numerous, and often related, international factors, can be traced to the fact that the Chinese revolution is first and foremost an anti- imperialist revolution, one that has entered the period of building socialism via the national democratic revolution. Therefore, although Comrade Mao Zedong, when he proclaimed the founding of the People's Republic of China in 1949, stressed that the new China would "lean to one side", that is to the Soviet Union and the camp of socialism and people's democracy, he also hoped to leave the door open to friendly and cooperative relations, based on equality, with the United States and other developed capitalist countries. Particularly, as outlined in some of his key writings, for example, 'On New Democracy' and 'On Coalition Government', he explained the importance of enabling the national bourgeoisie and all patriots to play their part in the building of a new society. In his book, 'China, Britain and Businessmen', based on his Oxford University DPhil thesis, Chinese scholar Wenguang Shao notes:

8 "There is no evidence to suggest that nationalisation of foreign enterprises was actually being planned prior to the CCP takeover in 1948-9. Subsequent CCP documentation suggests that the Party contemplated that an independent China would welcome foreign investment. In the course of the civil war, the CCP once again emphasised that the policy for foreign residents and their interests would not be one of expulsion or expropriation, no matter whether or not they were of an imperialist nature." The Soviet Union was prevented from following the kind of economic policies once envisaged by Lenin by the civil war and the war of intervention, the policy of blockade and embargo by the US and other imperialist powers, the rise of fascism, the forced march to heavy industrialisation necessitated by the fascist threat, the grim trial of the Great Patriotic War, and the Cold War, which through its combination of a destructive arms race, and ideological pressure from within and without, did so much to bring down the once mighty and glorious Soviet Union. In the case of China, the crisis in the Taiwan Straits and, particularly, the Korean War, led the United States and most other western powers to slap a total trade embargo on the newly-born People's Republic, dashing the early hopes of the Chinese revolutionaries for their new society. However, in terms of domestic policy, alongside the extensive assistance from the Soviet Union and the East European people's democracies, the policy of building a new China through the support of all her people was basically followed for the first decade. But, following mistakes and excessive zeal in the anti-rightist campaign of 1957, there followed the misconceived policies of the Great Leap Forward and the formation of the people's communes, ushering in a lengthy period of ultra-leftist mistakes, whose fundamental correction was not initiated until the end of 1978, when the party central committee asserted the primacy of Comrade Deng Xiaoping's line of 'seeking truth from facts'. Of course, in this period, China faced not only the unrelenting hostility of US imperialism, but also the hegemonistic designs and arrogant big power bullying of the modern revisionists. And despite this, China did preserve its socialist system, developed its national economy, to a greater degree than is presently admitted, and rendered very considerable assistance to the oppressed peoples of the world in their anti-imperialist struggles. Whatever the mistakes, it is also the case that China's successes today

9 cannot be separated from the ground laid and the positions defended in those years. What can be initially summed up from that period is that it is not sufficient to fight revisionism with dogmatism, and that this itself will also lead to potentially disastrous consequences in both internal and external policies. It cannot be stressed strongly enough that China's ability to conduct its present policies fundamentally reflects, not a success of imperialism in undermining China, but China's own successes, which enable it to deal with foreign powers and capital on the basis of increasing equality and self-confidence, to mobilise every possible positive factor to build the strength of the socialist state and the quality of life of its people, and to turn the old imperialist weapon of divide-and-rule against the imperialists themselves. It is in accord with Lenin's reputed remark that the capitalists will sell us the very guns with which we will shoot them. It is not on account of political preference that foreign capital flocks to People's China rather than bourgeois-landlord India or Yeltsin's bonapartist Russia, but rather on account of the success and vitality of China's present road of development, which rests on socialist foundations. The international bourgeoisie tries to attribute China's development to a supposed embrace of capitalism because it does not want the workers and oppressed to see that socialism is not just some abstract ideal, but a real, living and practical alternative. In the period since 1989-91, its main propaganda focus in its unremitting war against socialism has therefore centred on distorting, denying or concealing the realities of People's China. This campaign falls on two counts. First, if China really has returned to capitalism, why is it still the concentrated target of attack by the international reactionary forces, from the jingoist media campaign at the time of the Hong Kong handover to last week's provocative and outrageous nuclear tests by the extreme reactionary government currently in power in New Delhi? Second, if China's achievements are based on capitalism, why have such catastrophes befallen the peoples of the former Soviet Union and other former socialist countries? And why have China's achievements eluded the peoples of India or Brazil, or for that matter such erstwhile 'tiger' economies as Indonesia?

10 Rather, China shows to the people of countries such as India that there is a route out of their exploitation, oppression and misery. And to the peoples of the former Soviet Union that the catastrophe that has descended upon them was utterly unnecessary and avoidable, and therefore criminal. That it has been caused by the renegades and traitors to socialism rather than by any essential or intrinsic failure of the socialist system itself, which is fully capable of reforming, refining and gradually perfecting itself over a period of time. China's economic growth has been an unprecedented event in human history. Quite simply, never before have so many people seen their standard and quality of life increase so dramatically in such a short period of time. Between 1980-1993, China's economic growth averaged 9.4 per cent per annum, moving into double figures in the early 90s. Even today, with the impact of the regional crisis on both inward investment and export competitiveness, growth is being maintained in the region of 7-8 per cent. The Chinese people saw a three-fold increase in their average consumption of meat and eggs between 1978-91. By 1993, 83 per cent of city households had a washing machine. In Shanghai, 98 per cent had a fridge, 92 per cent a colour TV, and 45 per cent a video recorder. In contrast, in the former Soviet Union, by the mid-1990s, total output was less than half of the figure prior to capitalist restoration. In 1992 alone, Russian productivity decreased by 22 per cent. And living standards fell by 50 per cent. The People's Republic of China was founded in 1949, and India achieved independence from British colonialism a little earlier, in 1947. In that year, the two countries had roughly the same per capita income. Indeed, India could be said to have had certain advantages in terms of industrial and social infrastructure. Today, China's per capita income is twice that of India's. According to the 'World Bank Development Report 1997', 52.5 per cent of the Indian population live on less than a dollar a day. The Chinese figure is 29.4. Life expectancy in India is 62. In China it is 69. India's adult illiteracy rate is 48 per cent, while the Chinese figure stands at 19 per cent. The Indian percentage of children under five years suffering from malnutrition is 63. The Chinese figure is 17. India's infant mortality rate per 1,000 births is 68. The Chinese figure is 34.

11 In his statement following the murder of Rev. Martin Luther King, Chairman Mao said: “The evil system of colonialism and imperialism arose and throve with the enslavement of negroes and the trade in negroes and it will surely come to its complete end with the thorough emancipation of black people.” And the example of the Chinese revolution has long exercised a particular and positive influence on progressive forces in Africa, as well as in the diaspora, as highlighted in the feature film ‘Panther’. Today, the leaders of many African countries had their political ideas shaped and developed by both the Chinese revolution against imperialism and its example in national construction. One foremost example is that of the President of the Democratic Republic of Congo, Comrade Laurent Desire Kabila, who came to power a year ago this week, after his own epic Long March across his continental sized country. Kabila’s links with China date back to the early 1960s, when, in a famous correspondence, Premier Zhou Enlai advised him to eschew adventurism, lay solid roots among the peasantry, understanding and helping them, and to ultimately come to power through a protracted people’s war, surrounding the cities from the countryside to achieve nationwide liberation. Last December, Kabila made his first visit as head of state outside Africa to China, where he concentrated, as Cuba’s Raul Castro had done just a few short weeks previously, more on studying industry and agriculture than on the nuances of protocol. During his visit, Congolese Radio, ‘Voice of the People’, announced Chinese assistance to the value of 150 million dollars, in addition to aid already pledged. Subsequently, China has initiated a substantial aid programme in Democratic Congo, including the construction of roads to link all the country’s 11 provincial capitals, a considerable feat; building assembly plants for light motorcycles, sewing machines and refrigerators, eminently practical needs of the people; assisting in the development of the country’s boundless mineral wealth; and mechanising and modernising its agriculture. Kabila declared, during his visit, that he would ensure Congolese people had the opportunity to themselves study at first hand China’s experience in building a new and prosperous countryside.

12 While China's aid is still inevitably limited in scale, President Kabila realises, and has not hesitated to point out, that not only is it offered without strings, and in ways suitable to the country's development, it also gives Democratic Congo a concrete alternative, enabling it to resist bullying, interference and destabilisation, both from the old French and Belgian oppressors, as well as from their sanctimonious would-be replacements, the Anglo-American imperialists. When the President of Namibia, Sam Nujoma, recently opened a major Chinese-built irrigation project, he said that China had been his country's greatest supporter in the struggle for national liberation and was today its greatest supporter in the work to build a new society. From the beginning of January to mid-May this year, the following are among the African leaders who have visited China: President Mathieu Kerekou of Benin, President Benjamin Mkapa of Tanzania, and President Joaquim Chissano of Mozambique; Thabo Mbeki, President of the ANC and Vice President of South Africa, and James Michel, Vice President of the Seychelles; also, the Information Minister of Malawi, the Foreign Minister of Botswana, the Foreign Minister of Mozambique, the Foreign Minister of Guinea, the Chief of Staff of the Tanzanian Armed Forces, the South African Minister of Trade and Industry, the General Secretary of SWAPO of Namibia, a politbureau member of the Rwanda Patriotic Front, the Deputy Prime Minister of Ethiopia, the First Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister of Uganda, the Defence Minister of Namibia, the Foreign Minister of Namibia, the Foreign Minister of Guinea Bissau, the Minister of Social Communications of Angola, the Deputy Foreign Minister of Libya, the Health Minister of Eritrea, the Local Government Minister of Eritrea, the ANC Secretary General, and the ANC Treasurer General, the latter being a comrade who many of you might know, namely Mendi Msimang, who was successively ANC Chief Representative in London and until very recently his country's High Commissioner here. China's own three top leaders, Jiang Zemin, Li Peng and Zhu Rongji, have all paid extensive visits to Africa in the last two years. Receiving the credentials of the Chinese Ambassador in Pretoria on February 3, Nelson Mandela praised the Chinese leaders, Mao Zedong, Zhou Enlai, Zhu De and Liu Shaoqi, stressing that they had made important contributions to the liberation struggle waged by the South African black people. He looked forward to his own forthcoming second visit to China later this year.

13 Earlier, speaking at a press conference in late December, during the visit of the Chinese Vice Premier and Foreign Minister, South African Foreign Minister, Alfred Nzo, said that the leaders of China had been an inspiration during the long and bitter years of struggle against apartheid and China "today provides once again an example for Africa, this time for economic liberation and the renaissance of Africa." I could cite countless similar statements from other contemporary African leaders, in Uganda, Rwanda, Ethiopia, Eritrea, Madagascar, Benin, Zimbabwe, Mozambique, Angola, Lesotho, Seychelles, Tanzania, Congo Brazzaville, Ghana, and so on. Or from the leaders of socialist Cuba and Vietnam, whose relations with China are becoming steadily closer; of nationalist and progressive Libya, Syria and Yemen, whose President Ali Abdullah Saleh visited Beijing earlier this year, pointing out that most of the roads in his country had been built by China; of the liberation movements in Palestine, El Salvador and Guatemala, who have all recently had senior delegations in China; or the communist parties leading the fightback in the former socialist countries; and the communist parties, with a long history of intimate collaboration with their Chinese counterpart, struggling to lift their peoples from misery and super-exploitation, from India and Nepal to Brazil and Peru. This genuine and deep-seated inspiration that China provides to the oppressed of the world is the lesson of the Chinese revolution yesterday, today and tomorrow. It is the lesson we should take to working people, youth and students, women, national minorities and progressive intellectuals in this country too. Before concluding, and this is a very relevant and timely example of China's lessons for us here, I would like to return to the December press conference given jointly by the foreign ministers of China and South Africa, both veteran revolutionaries. Comrade Qian Qichen said on that occasion: "Indeed, South Africa attaches great importance to the issue of human rights and this is quite understandable as the South African people suffered from the deprivation of various types of human rights as a result of the apartheid policy...During a meeting with me yesterday, President Mandela spoke on many issues, for example the problems occurring in Northern Ireland. He said we do not interfere in the internal affairs of other

14 countries, we are in favour of human rights, and we tell others about our experiences and our struggle. I think this attitude is very good." About six weeks later, speaking to the 'Irish Times' correspondent in Beijing, just prior to the visit to China by the Irish Foreign Minister, David Andrews, Comrade Qian said: "To enjoy human rights is the common aspiration of all humanity...The Chinese people, who were subject to foreign aggression many times, know full well that state sovereignty and territorial integrity are the fundamental guarantee of human rights. "The one billion and more Chinese people who have basic needs for food, clothing, housing, travelling and education are deeply aware of the vital importance of the rights to subsistence and development. "I think if either Britain or Ireland or both could concern themselves more about the settlement of the Northern Ireland issue, that would be a major contribution to the development of human rights, a matter of universal concern." Comrades who read the report in the 'New Worker', and, of course, the far more extensive reports in 'An Phoblacht / Republican News', on the first session of the recent Sinn Fein Ard Fheis (Annual Conference) will know how important this strategy of 'telling others about our experiences and our struggle' was in terms of the contribution of ANC Deputy General Secretary Thenjiwe Mtintso. As a result, four of the ANC's top leaders, Mac Maharaj, Valli Moosa, Cyril Ramaphosa and Matthew Phosa, travelled across Ireland, including visiting 120 republican prisoners in Long Kesh, to enable the broad Irish Republican family to assess and absorb the experiences and lessons of the South African freedom struggle for their own situation. Importantly, the ANC delegation's other appointments also included a meeting with the Progressive Unionist Party. Here, in a vivid way, we can see the effectiveness of the new types of internationalism that China has played a key role in formulating and developing, on the basis of its own struggles and experiences, including with regard to the old tendency of domination, once prevalent in the international communist movement; that it applies in its own dealings with fraternal parties and friendly countries; and which will acquire greater force in the 21st century.

28 Article Juche Idea and Western Europe Keith Bennett Political Editor of Newspaper "Asian Times", Britain At a recent conference in Paris, the capital of France, academics and other progressive people from the majority of West European countries came together to form the European Regional Society for the Study of the Juche Idea. It there- fore joints other regional bodies-as well as the International Institute of the Juche Idea-in organising that growing number of people around the world who are taking an interest in the Juche idea, and indeed see it as a weapon they can wield to both understand and change the world in which they find themselves. For progressive people around the world the DPRK has long been a source of inspiration and encouragement. It is the pride and honour of the Korean peo- ple to have scored the first major mili- tary victory in history against US imperi- alism. The Korean War (1950-1953) was exceptionally severe in its nature. More bombs were dropped in Korea than dur- ing the entire pacific conflict of World War II. Pyongyang and all the other cities of north Korea were reduced to rubble. Worse still, the United States- taking over the "research" of the Japa- nese militarists-employed chemical and bacteriological warfare in an attempt to extricate itself from defeat. The victory scored by the Korean people in that war not only saved the DPRK from extinction but marked the beginning of the process of decline of US imperialism. In its wake the anti-imperi- alist struggle grew stronger throughout the world, and it opened the way for the Vietnamese people and others to score their own victories in the struggle. But although they won a great victory in the war, the trials of the Korean peo- ple were by no means over. country remained divided with the south under foreign military occupation. The danger of a new war-a nuclear war-has never receded. The north of the country lay in ruins. Although it had lost the war, the United States was able to smugly claim that Korea would not rise again, even in 100 years. Yet, Korea did indeed rise again, within the space of just a few short years. Today the DPRK is increas- ingly regarded as a model of develop- ment by other third world countries, many of whom-particularly in Africa- are also benefiting from its concrete material assistance. The DPRK is a country which knows no unemployment,

29 inflation, hunger, drug addiction, pover- ty or prostitution. Whilst a great deal re- mains to be done in the realm of econo- mic construction, its economy is one of the few in the world that is advancing free from crisis. In particular, the ten long-range goals of socialist economic construction which are expected to be realized by the end of the 1980s will take the Korean people's standard of liv- ing to a level of the developed countries in the world. It is only natural that as the achieve- ments of the DPRK become more widely known there should also develop a great- er interest in the ideology that has inspir- ed and moulded all those achievement. This ideology-the Juche idea-is a new philosophical thought which centres on man. Comrade Kim Jong Il explained: "As the leader said, the Juche idea is based on the philosophical principle that man is the master of everything and de- cides everything. The Juche idea raised the fundamental question of philosophy by regarding man as the main factor, and elucidated the philosophical principle that man is the master of everything and decides every thing. "That man is the master of everything means that he is the master of the world and of his own destiny; that man decides everything means that he plays the deci- sive role in transforming the world and in shaping his destiny." (Study of the Juche Idea, Vol.V, No.4, p.5) In this way, the Juche idea raises the position and role of man in the world as the fundamental question of philosophy, placed man in the position of dominator and transformer of the world and gave answers to all the philosophical ques- tions by regarding him as the main factor. Whilst the Juche idea represents a very profound philosophical thought it can never be forgotten that it was created not amidst a sedate academic atmos- phere but in the crucible of a difficult re- volutionary struggle. Internationally, as Comrade Kim Jong Il has explained, it was created after socialism had won its first victory and the contradiction bet- ween imperialism and the people had be- come particularly acute. As Comrade Kim Jong Il had clearly stated a new age was approaching in which the revolution- ary movement made progress in a broad and diversified way on a worldwide scale. In this new situation it was particular- ly important that each people explored the road to revolution in an independent way-a way that accorded both with the concrete conditions of the country and the traditions and sentiments of its peo- ple. Comrade Kim Jong Il pointed out. "In our country, this was a particular- ly important matter because of the pecu- liarities of historical development and the complexity and arduousness of the revolution. The Korean revolution de- manded more urgently that the popular masses hew out the path of revolution in an independent and creative manner. "The Juche idea was created on the basis of such a practical requirement of the Korean revolution." (Ibid. p.3) From this starting point of the neces- sity to wage the Korean revolution in an independent and creative way the Juche idea has developed into an all-round ideological system in which independ- ence occupies the central place the in- dependence of the country, of its revo- lutionary movement, and the independ- ence of man as a social being. In particu- lar, it has established the concept of Chajusong. Whilst this is generally trans- lated as independence it has a somewhat richer meaning than this, encompassing man's desire and need to live as a social being and as master of the world. Chajusong is an essential attribute of