Political rights? Vast improvement with elected Congresses, advisory groups and parties, and emerging democratic action in the villages. At the helm, with a guiding hand and standing tall as China's leader? President Hu Jintao. China has made tremendous progress over the years. Let's reword the less informed author's use of negative phrases like, "unusually repressive regime" and a more positive and realistic identity of China: "an unusually progressive regime," respected by the international community and supported by its people.
He is a president who serves his people with dedication and effectiveness, in leading them toward an ever-improving way of life. I suggest a new category: World's Best Leaders. My nomination for an entry into the new category? President Hu Jintao of China. Continue reading your article with a WSJ membership. Resume Subscription We are delighted that you'd like to resume your subscription. Please click confirm to resume now.
Sponsored Offers. Most Popular News. Alas, the circumstances between the two couldn't be more different. The bombastic, telegenic Chavez had long been ill, but his death still came as a shock to the country he had so energetically transformed. Meanwhile, Hu Jintao's exit is as composed, orderly, and dull as the man himself.
These are just three examples, and it wouldn't be difficult to come up with several more. But the overall sense is this: if Hu is a failure, it's because of things he didn't do, not things he did. When he entered office, China suffered from corruption, repression, inequality, and an unsustainable trajectory.
These problems are not only still there, but they've gotten far worse. In fairness to Hu, he isn't entirely to blame: like their American counterparts, Chinese presidents must manage quarreling factions and interest groups in the government and cannot simply do what they want. But Hu's lackluster performance in office is symptomatic not of his personal foibles but rather the system in which he operates.
Hu ascended the ranks of the Chinese Communist Party not because he was charismatic and innovative, but for precisely the opposite reason: he put his head down, did what he was told, and was unquestionably loyal to the Party's grip on power.
Without question, Hu Jintao managed to achieve one of his primary goals as president: "not rocking the boat". On the contrary, when Deng sent his countrymen into Vietnam, it was a disaster that cost China twenty thousand dead, wounded, or missing troops, and forced a hasty retreat. The perils of unimpeded power became clear once again a decade later, when Deng sent in the military to crush Chinese student demonstrations in But in the intervening years, he also demonstrated the ability to make bold, difficult choices: He led China down the path of reform, righted the state system after the disaster of the Cultural Revolution, fended off hardliners who sought to derail economic and social opening up, and succeeded in keeping the military in the barracks and out of power.
These days, Beijing is ruled by committees, and it can be difficult to know which committees. Banking and commerce bureaucracies openly differ over the need for currency appreciation. Even when the Obama Administration believes it has won commitments from President Hu on matters of trade and diplomacy, action has been slow to follow.
0コメント