This Editorial is from the China Post: “Mainland China’s purged party head Zhao Ziyang, who had been under house arrest for the last 15 years since the army crushed the 1989 Tiananmen pro-democracy protests, died on Monday. But Beijing has remained adamant in its refusal to reassess the wrong judgment it gave on the student demonstrations and Zhao’s role in the event.”
” Beijing could be pressured to make a re-valuation only when the demand for political reform on the mainland has evolved into a mainstream opinion and a compelling social force, something not in sight yet. There indeed has been rampant discontent in China with central and local governments, and calls for changes are widespread, but such dissatisfaction and demands have failed to develop into a forceful national movement in part because of tight political control by Beijing. Over the years, Beijing has been focusing on stability and development in the hope that a success in maintaining high growth and raising living standards would enhance the legitimacy of its monopoly on power.
But the thing is that economic activity often follows a cyclical pattern and it is impossible for the mainland economy to always maintain high growth. A major economic slowdown would add to already serious unemployment problems and fuel labor unrest. ”
