Xi: No one dictates to China

BEIJING - President Xi Jinping warned that no one can “dictate” China’s economic development path as the Communist Party marked 40 years of its historic “reform and opening up” policy amid a stern challenge from the United States.

In a speech at the grandiose Great Hall of the People, Xi vowed to press ahead with economic reforms but made clear that Beijing will not deviate from its one-party system or take orders from any other country.

“The leadership of the Communist Party is the most essential feature of socialism with Chinese characteristics and the greatest advantage of the socialist system with Chinese characteristics,” he said.

The commemoration of the reforms enacted under late paramount leader Deng Xiaoping on Dec 18, 1978, came as China is locked in diplomatic spats and a trade war with the US.

The rivals have agreed to a 90-day truce as they seek to negotiate a solution, with the US seeking a reduction in its massive trade deficit as well as deeper reforms in China to stop the alleged theft of intellectual property.

Without referring to the US, Xi said China “poses no threat” to any country but warned it would not be pushed around.

“No one is in a position to dictate to the Chinese people what should or should not be done,” Xi said.

“We must resolutely reform what should and can be changed, we must resolutely not reform what shouldn’t and can’t be changed.”

While Xi promised more reforms, he did not offer any specifics.

The US and Europe have long complained of lingering obstacles to fully entering China’s massive market while Chinese companies enjoy the benefits of open Western economies abroad.

The reforms pulled hundreds of millions of people out of poverty and turned China into the world’s second biggest economy.

But it is currently facing a debt mountain and a slowing economy, which grew by 6.9% last year and is expected by the government to slow to around 6.5% this year.

Deng’s reforms broke with the chaotic policies of his predecessor, Chairman Mao Zedong.

China now boasts the most dollar billionaires in the world with 620.

But the economic transformation has not brought changes to the Communist Party-controlled political system, with authorities harshly cracking down on the Tiananmen protests in 1989 and activists complaining of a deterioration of human rights in recent years.

“Reforms let the Communist Party maintain its dictatorship and let it keep its rule from collapsing after the Cold War and survive,” political analyst Wu Qiang said.

“I think China now is state capitalism under a one-party dictatorship, or party-run capitalism.” — AFP