Opinion: To understand China’s politics, you must understand Marx and Confucius

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The Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC) undoubtedly worked overtime to select the Politburo Standing Committee. They will also find themselves extremely busy tackling domestic and international policy; cultural and political symbolism, over the next year as China, and the world come to terms with the profound implications of the recent Party Congress.

The CPC Central Committee played a pivotal role in interpreting the statements on policy, and strategy delivered by General Secretary Xi Jinping at the 19th Party Congress. It will also prepare supporting reports that will have direct application to the myriad challenges and opportunities that China faces today.

Xi Jinping, General Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC), speaks when meeting the press at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, capital of China, Oct. 25, 2017. /Xinhua Photo

Last week's discussions revealed a significant alignment of the ideological mix that exists beneath the surface of the CPC. General Secretary Xi Jinping’s opening speech suggests Mao Zedong’s original concern with socialist imperatives and the task of confronting social contradictions were taken from the Marxist tradition.

But Xi’s expression “unbalanced and inadequate development” is strikingly different from the stress on “class” that we find in Mao’s writings. Xi seems to be drawing on the potential of the socialist tradition while also invoking the great Confucian tradition, particularly Confucius’ suggestion “do not worry about not having enough but rather worry about imbalance.” (不患寡而患不均)

Xi Jinping, General Secretary of the CPC Central Committee, speaks at the press conference in the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, Oct. 25, 2017. /Xinhua Photo

The most substantial task for the CPC Central Committee was to grapple with the shifting signification of the term “socialism with Chinese characteristics.” Since Deng Xiaoping promoted this term, it had been interpreted to suggest that the socialist legacy of Mao can be maintained while introducing a market economy and accepting massive foreign capital.

However, these policies also lead to growing social inequity and degrading environment. The CPC Central Committee will have to consider the degree to which “ecological civilization” – a vision for a sustainable and harmonious society, that also includes the vast potential of the Chinese culture, from art and literature to universal governance – will become part of those “Chinese characteristics.”

The ongoing process of interpretation and policy formulation will have an unprecedented global impact. The CPC Central Committee will have to think about China’s immense influence. China has regained the top position in the global economy that it had before the Opium War. It is also spreading its dominance in culture and science as well. It means that Chinese precedents for diplomacy, economic policy, security, and education will be increasingly benchmarked around the world.

Xi Jinping(C), General Secretary of the CPC Central Committee, and the other newly-elected members of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the 19th CPC Central Committee, including Li Keqiang (3rd R), Li Zhanshu (3rd L), Wang Yang (2nd R), Wang Huning (2nd L), Zhao Leji (1st R) and Han Zheng (1st L), meet the press at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, Oct. 25, 2017. /Xinhua Photo

Equally important is the significance of the Chinese socialist legacy has changed profoundly. Fifteen years ago, Marxist research centers at Chinese universities were seen as curious relics from a forgotten age. But today, with the entire world confronting massive corruption in the Western financial system, and horrified by the far right governments in the United States, Japan, and Europe, the appeal of a socialist perspective on governance and economics is now China’s secret strength.

Not only has Russia lost most of that tradition, the Marxist critics of economics and politics, which were once dominant voices in Japan, Europe, and even the United States, had been almost replaced with neo-liberal acolytes. One does not need to be a loyal Marxist to hear the poverty narrative in economic debates in the West.

It would be critical to watch, how the Chinese socialist tradition weaved with new “ecological civilization" will present viable alternatives to the Washington Consensus.

Xi Jinping, General Secretary of the CPC Central Committee, and the other newly-elected members of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the 19th CPC Central Committee, meet the press at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, Oct. 25, 2017. /Xinhua Photo

The date for the first test is very near. The far-right populist president of the United States, Donald Trump will visit Beijing for a summit. He will meet Xi Jinping that will require China to make some serious decisions as to how to articulate its new positions.

Nobody wants to create an unnecessary dispute with the Trump administration, but at the same time, there will be great expectation around the world for China to stand up for the overwhelming majority of nations. A majority of citizens in the United States believe that they must respond to climate change, prevent war as mandated by the United Nations Charter, and follow the necessary protocols of international law while abstaining from secret diplomacy.

Today, China is also equipped with a new mandate for promoting international cooperation as it faces a leader who is single-mindedly bent on punishing the DPRK and refusing any dialogue.

In early November, Donald Trump will visit Asia for the first time since assuming the presidency. As he heads to take part in the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum, he will also be visiting Japan, South Korea, China, and the Philippines at a time of increasing regional uncertainty. While the DPRK will undoubtedly be at the top of the agenda, there are long-term issues at stake, such as managing powerful China that has been further invigorated after the CPC Central Committt, as well as setting the course to sustain the long-term stability and prosperity of the world’s most populous region. Join us to discuss the issues at play and how it will affect US national interests.

(The author is director of the Asia Institute, Seoul, South Korea. The article reflects the author's opinion, and not necessarily the views of CGTN.)