China
How my view of China has changed
I used to admire America for its democratic values and practices and to consider the Peoples' Republic of China as being oppressive and dictatorial to its people.
I was very much influenced by the narratives presented by the western media.
My views changed in the past year. It occurred after I obtained access to information from the state media in China, such as CCTV and CGTN. They are presented in English or with English translation.
I am aware that being funded by the state, the information will be presented with a narrative that is favorable to China. I use my reasoning to judge the credibility of the information.
Generally, I find that the information presented from these sources to be objective and credible.
I get to know China better and to understand more about what is happening in the country, and the factors behind their rapid progress in recent years.
I also searched Google for more information about how China is governed.
I also hear the views of foreign experts who explained the governance process in China. These experts are mostly invited by the China state media, so I need to be wary. I conclude that they are giving factual and reliable information.
From these sources, I form the opinion that China is the "most democratic country" in the world. This is based on the definition that democracy is government "by the people and for the people".
I identified three outstanding examples of the practice of democracy:
1. The people are able to freely elect the deputies to the local peoples' congress. These deputies elect the leaders at the higher congresses.
2. The national policies and laws are formulated in a consultative manner that reflect the needs of the people and get their support
3. There is an effective mechanism for ordinary people to give their feedback or grievances and for the authority to deal with these issues satisfactorily.
The practice of democracy in China is different from the western countries, but it is clear to me that the democracy in China is more effective and meaningful or the people.
A regular survey by Harvard University on trust in government shows a considerably higher score in China compared to western countries. Over 90% of the respondents in China trusted their government.
I consider this indicator to be the best measure of democracy.
I am aware that the PRC government takes a strong stand against public protests and demonstrations and other activities that could create social unrest and disorder. The western media portray the actions as being oppressive and inimical to freedom of expression.
I support the action of the PRC government in this regard. I do not consider it proper for the ordinary people to carry out activities that can undermine public order and security.
These activities could be funded by foreign powers to understand the stability of the country.
More importantly, there are channels for the people to bring up their grievances. They can use the law courts or submit their grievances through the administrative channels.
Some people may suspect that the law courts are biased in favor of the people in power. This suspicion applies to the western countries as well.
The system in China is not perfect. But in the practice of democracy, I consider it to be among the best.
In contrast, my view about the practice of democracy in America had diminished considerably. I will write about this subject in a separate post.
I wish to share my positive view about China because many people in Singapore still hold the view that I held previously - that China is not a democratic country and that it is oppressive to the people.
I urge them to do the research and to form a more objective opinion.
Tan Kin Lian
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You are truly misled by the CCP and a communist.
07 Dec 2021