The mainland's top legislator has ruled out political reform and warned of the dire consequences of Western-style political pluralism as rising calls for democracy unnerve Beijing in the wake of upheavals in the Arab world.
In the most severe warning issued by the leadership since uprisings in north Africa and the Middle East, the chairman of the National People's Congress, Wu Bangguo, said relaxing the Communist Party's grip on power could undermine stability and risk domestic strife. 'We must maintain the correct political orientation and never waver on key issues of principle such as the fundamental system of the state,' Wu told nearly 3,000 NPC deputies in his annual parliamentary address yesterday.
'If we waver, not only will there be no socialist modernisation to speak of, but the achievements of development will also be lost, and it is possible that the state could sink into the abyss of internal disorder.'
His warning followed repeated anonymous online calls for pro-democracy rallies in big mainland cities over the past three weeks. Although no protests or mass gatherings were reported, jittery authorities have been on high alert, with tens of thousands of uniformed and plain-clothes police deployed in shopping districts and thoroughfares in Beijing, Shanghai and a dozen other cities on the past three Sundays.
Wu also categorically rejected the notion of separation of powers or any moves to copy Western-style democracy, dashing hopes for political reform following renewed discussion in recent months. Intriguingly, in a departure from past practice, Wu criticised not just calls for ideological pluralism, but also further privatisation, which he added to the list of threats to one-party rule.
'We have made a solemn declaration that we will not employ a system of multiple parties holding office in rotation; diversify our guiding thought; separate executive, legislative and judicial powers; use a bicameral or federal system; or carry out privatisation,' he said.