Reflection on the thirty years' reform and opening up in China

Last year was the 30th anniversary of reform and opening up in China. In the past thirty years, extreme socialism, once a dominated ideology in China has faded out and given way to market-led economy,unleashing enormous productivity that has fueled astonishing economic growth. The success of Beijing Olympic Games and 'space walking' by astronauts have elevated Chinese national pride to a new level. Despite the achievements made in the last thirty years, we should not simply assume the same success in the future without giving much thought.

Economic success in the past was based on cheap land price and labour.We are losing our edges on these comparative advantages as they are not irreplaceable. Expanding our domestic markets is deemed necessary to get through the bottle neck of economic growth. However, the lag-behind social welfare systems, such as health care and education have forced people to save most of their incomes for a rainy day. Boosting domestic consumption in a society in which people are reluctant to spend is a target beyond reach.

Skyrocketing economic growth in the past thirty years has successfully lifted millions from poverty. Despite this amazing achievement,high income disparity still plagues society.Collusion between private sectors and government officials further aggravates the problem. Narrowing the wealth gap and allowing more people to reap the fruit of economic growth are vital to the growth of domestic consumption which is believed to be the next growth engine of China's economy.

Economic growth should not be taken as the only indicator to gauge the achievements of China's reform and opening up in the past thirty years. In the past three decades, the pace of political reform fell far behind economic growth. There is still plenty of room for improvement in the arenas of political participation, freedom of speech and press. Emergence of the middle class can be translated into a greater demand for rights and better social justice. Using suppressive means to resolve social conflicts,as done by most authoritarian regimes, only brings more social unrests. A just legal system, culture of rule of law, a lax restriction on NGOs and more open media all help vent the public grievance. Frequent incidents of appeal to the higher authorities and regional mass movement recently have signaled unpopularity of the administration.

China must launch political reforms, which invite more democracy in order to keep pace with the economic development. Otherwise, the 'one-leg' economic reform in China will no longer be viable and sustainable.