China, under Xi Jinping, embarks on a quest to win the trust of its people
Robert Lawrence Kuhn says the public uproar over two recent, unrelated incidents – alleged child abuse at a kindergarten and the eviction of migrant workers in Beijing – highlights how the Chinese leader was right in diagnosing society’s fundamental problem today
Even the Chinese state media criticised the local government, saying more “warmth” was needed in moving migrant workers. Sensitivities are so high that the Chinese media can no longer use the pejorative phrase “low-end population”.
Beijing’s cruel eviction of its migrant workers is a stain on China’s urbanisation drive
Some Chinese scholars warn that the government is at risk of falling into the so-called “Tacitus trap”. The Roman historian Tacitus had observed that once a ruler became an object of hatred, the good and bad things he did only aroused people’s dislike of him. The Chinese scholars draw the analogy: “When a government department or an organisation loses its credibility, whether it tells truth or lies, does good or bad, the public believes them to be lies and bad.”
It may surprise Westerners that these two isolated incidents can trigger such heated emotions, even vitriol, towards the government. After all, such tragic or scandalous events are not uncommon in all countries. Why then have these caused such a stir in China, whereas in the US, for example, public interest would barely budge?
At the risk of oversimplifying, I suggest two interlocking reasons. First, people in China have unrealistic expectations that the government can do everything, and second, they believe that the media reports only that which the government approves. The result is that for every problem, the government is blamed, and no matter what the media says, people assume the truth is worse.
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Recall the 2003 severe acute respiratory syndrome (Sars) epidemic. When the government tried to hide the actual facts to avoid panic, the cover-up engendered wild rumours that were far worse than the actual facts. People believed the wild rumours, causing greater panic. Only when the truth was told did the public relax. It was a good lesson.
How to improve public trust? The party, I believe, has taken a decisive step by redefining the principal contradiction in society.
“Contradiction” is a Marxist term describing a kind of political analysis – “dialectical materialism” – which identifies “dynamic opposing forces” in society, and seeks to resolve tensions by applying “correct” political theories.
As Xi said: “The needs to be met for the people to live a better life are increasingly broad. Not only have their material and cultural needs grown; their demand for democracy, rule of law, fairness and justice, security, and a better environment are increasing.”
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This “new-era contradiction”, replacing quantitative gross domestic product growth with qualitative quality-of-life improvement, is what will now drive policy. For example, it is not that people cannot afford medical care, it’s that they must wait for hours at overcrowded hospitals and, even then, have only five minutes with a doctor. It’s not that people do not have good homes; it’s that they do not have clean air. Success will be measured more by the satisfaction of the people than by the growth rates of the economy.
Will “satisfaction” be harder to judge? Chinese people are not shy.
Implementing ways of thinking consistent with the new principal contradiction would mean trusting the people more. Here, the media plays a crucial role.
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As with Sars, when truth about unpleasant events is censored, the cover-up engenders false rumours and fuels conspiracy theories. The media should be an ally, not an adversary, in the government’s quest for public trust.
This need not mean adapting the Western media model. China needs to find its own media model for its own stage of development – which should encourage, in cases like child abuse or tenement fires, truth to be told.
I can appreciate the opposite view. China’s leaders want the best for the Chinese people, of that I am sure, and there can be a perceived tension between, on the one hand, reporting bad news that could upset the public, and, on the other hand, restricting the reporting that could erode public trust. Given China’s social disparities and stage of development, such decisions are challenging.
When Xi first announced the new principal contradiction, some dismissed it as arcane party-speak. Public reaction to the child abuse and to the fire, albeit “minor” incidents among many, reveal its prescient and perspicacious wisdom.
Robert Lawrence Kuhn is a public intellectual, political/economics commentator, and an international corporate strategist. He is the host of Closer to China with R. L. Kuhn, a weekly show on CGTN, and the author of How China’s Leaders Think