History Of China

The history of China dates back to ancient civilization; that flourished in the fertile basin of the Yellow River. For thousands of years China’s political system was ruled by dynasties, starting with the Xia of the Yellow River (c. 2000 BC) and ending with the Qing dynasty in 1912. The Republic of China (ROC) ruled the Chinese mainland until 1949 when the ROC, and nationalist Kuomintang (KMT), were overthrown by the Communist Party. Since then, the Communist Party has remained in control of most of Mainland China, with the ROC taking control of Taiwan and other surrounding islands. Communist Party Chairman Mao Zedong proclaimed the establishment of the People’s Republic of China on October 1, 1949. Mao initiated several large-scale economic and social reform projects, his “Great Leap Forward”, that nearly doubled the countries’ population, but also resulted in the death of almost forty-five million due to starvation. Since the late twentieth century China has carried out major economic reforms, including the de-collectivization of agriculture, the privatization of state-owned industry, state monopolies and the start of foreign investment for the country. Since then, China has experienced unprecedented growth, now being one of the largest economies in the world. China’s rise can be attributed to the success of the Chinese communist revolution. The communist revolution has forged the modern Chinese state, allowing the Chinese people to recover their pride and national dignity. With China’s rapid rise has come extreme levels of corruption. Corruption takes many forms in China, from officials using their office for private gain to state-owned ventures manipulating the system to their advantage. While it’s obvious that cor...

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...sentment of how power and wealth continuously coincide in Chinese politics. In another Transparency International study, the public chose Chinese “Business and Private Sector” to be most affected by corruption, with “Political Parties” and “Public Officials” following close behind.

China’s public perception isn’t exceptional, with most of its population, and the world, losing faith in the Party. Yan Sun, a professor of political science in New York, believes corruption lies at the root of social dissatisfaction within China. For the state to seriously eradicate corruption, the government will need to introduce reforms that allow for transparency, checks and balances, and public scrutiny. Corruption will continue to undermine the authority of the Chinese Communist Party, add to severe economic inequality and provoke social unrest until major reforms are made.