An Analysis about Communist China’s 75th anniversary
(Dr Pentapati Pullarao)
On October 1, 1949, Communist leader Mao Tse Tung formed the Communist Government of China. Many in India will question why we should bother about Communist China on its 75th anniversary of power. It was an important event for India, since after that day, India had constant hostility in the Himalayas.
In October 1951, Communist China officially annexed Tibet. Till October 1951, Tibet was ruled for hundreds of years by the religious leaders Dalai lamas. For thousands of years, India had only peaceful Tibet as it’s Himalayan neighbor over 3500 kilometers. Suddenly, all that changed and China became India’s neighbor in October 1951 and since then China is a deadly and tireless enemy.
Impact on India of China taking over Tibet
- Tibet, when ruled by Dalai Lamas had never had a war with India. But after China invaded Tibet in 1951, we have China suddenly as our greedy neighbor over 3500 kilometers border.
- China historically bullies neighbors into giving it land. China started demanding more land from India. These demands led to the 1962 War and there has been hostility since then between China and India.
- Since 1962, China finances and diplomatically encourages Pakistan. to go to war with India. Since 1962, China incited Naxalites, armed rebels in the Northeast and generally created trouble where possible.
- Though India and China have great economic relations, there is constant hostility and in April 2020, China nearly started a full-scale war with India. China was totally surprised when the Modi government was ready for war.
- China is the only member of UN security Council, which is stopping India from getting membership of the Security Council.
China’s 75 anniversary of Communist government
Though China is celebrating its 75th anniversary, it is extremely worried that China will collapse like Communist Russia did on its 75th Anniversary. The present Chinese President Xi Jinping is trying all methods to avoid a repeat of the Communist Russia collapse in 1989.
- Xi Jinping feels Russia collapsed because it gave up its strict Communist ideology. So, Xi Jinping reduced democratic freedoms in China and also brought control over the rich Chinese businessmen, who were responsible for China’s economic growth.
- But reducing freedom and controlling business has slowed down the Chinese economy. This has led to un-happiness among Chinese people.
- China also had taken aggressive steps against all its neighbors for land and sea. This made USA and Europe frightened, and they started reducing their investments in China. Europe and USA are moving their factories out of China, thereby creating economic problems for China.
- There is a big irony here. China wants to be prosperous and also strictly Communist, with no democratic freedoms. But when you reduce democratic freedoms, the economy suffers. But Xi Jinping does not want to give more freedom to people. So, China is caught between such a dilemma.
Impact of a weakening China on India
Naturally, as India is an enemy of China, it will help if China weakens. If China weakens, then it cannot help India’s enemies. At one time, China was funding all our neighbors to get them away from Indian influence. But now, China really only supports Pakistan, with token aid for others.
China and India’s border problem
Most Indians think that the China border issues are far away. Most Indians only think of demanding more money and freebees from government. But if China attacks India, then our economy will collapse badly. China will not attack India as long as India is ready for war. Hence people must support government’s effort to prepare for war with China.
India cannot by itself make China weak. China is making itself weak by bad and aggressive policies. When Europe and USA started their relations with China in 1972, they thought that China will become moderate through economic prosperity. But the opposite happened, as China has become more aggressive with economic success.
USA, Europe, Japan, Korea, Australia and others have now joined India to form alliances against China. This has surprised China very much. China is now seeking friendship with India. Of course, when China is strong again, it will again harass India. That is its historical nature.
China arrogance was summarized by foreign media as “From 2023, China’s leadership has grown increasingly bold in challenging the U.S.-led, international order. Attacking the United States and its allies as defending an unfair system, it asserts that the Chinese Communist Party has the power to remake the world system, with China at the centre.“ Such ambitions have angered the USA and Europe.
China throughout history likes to get land without fighting. China will display huge armies and tries to frighten other nations. But these tactics may not work now.
However, India will not have peace as long as Communist China is strong. USA, Europe and Japan and other nations are trying to weaken the Chinese economy. But we cannot predict when China will become weak. Xiu Jinping is worried that China may decline like Russia. That is why a big debate is going on the 75th. Anniversary of Communist China.
China knows that things are difficult. The greatest danger for China is that its strong economy cannot live with a strong Communist ideology.
Xi Jinping is trying many things on how to preserve China as it is. But so far, Xi Jinping has not found the formula.
The past big Chinese leaders in the last 40 years have cautioned China that it should never show its strength. But the present Chinese leader Xi Jinping has become a big boaster of Chinese strength and how he wants to lead the world.
For India, China has been a horrible neighbor. Time will tell whether China will collapse like Russia or manage to survive with strength. But right now, the developed world is as worried about China as India is.
(The Author is a Political and Economic Analyst based in New Delhi)
