China not the monolith projected

IN 2012, the Chinese government will undergo renewal.
Premier Wen Jiabao and president Hu Jintao will make way for new blood, most probably in the form of Li Keqiang and Xi Jinping, respectively.
With Xi’s recent elevation to the vice-chairman position in China’s powerful central military commission, his position is assured.
Few in the west are aware that Hu and Wen represent a more liberal side of Chinese politics.
During the recent furore over the awarding of the Nobel Peace Prize to Chinese dissident Liu Xiaobo, many western commentators were quick to point out that on Oct 3, Wen went on record to state: “I believe freedom of speech is indispensable to any country”.
On the face of it, this would appear to be quite hypocritical but, in reality, it is no more 
hypocritical than an American democrat or republican outlining different ideals.
China is not the monolith it is made out to be.
Within the vast sprawling arms of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), many factions exist.
Since the awarding of the Nobel Prize, Wen has made a number of somewhat risky comments, stating that he will never give up advocating a reform to the Chinese system, and that the will of the people cannot be resisted.
These comments have been reported in some more liberal Chinese newspapers, and were blacked out in others.
To understand the reasons why, one must consider the fact that the Hu-Wen alliance is just one faction within the CCP.
There remains a significant number of senior figures within the party who were closely aligned with former president Jiang Zemin.
Jiang first arose to power in the wake of the Tiananmen Square protests, because he was seen as having a harder edge.
He was, simply put, a strongman. However, he was the one who presided over a great deal of China’s transformation into a capitalist economy.
This gives a fair description of the Shanghai faction’s tendencies – more enthusiasm for allowing market forces free reign, albeit significantly less devotion to increasing human rights in China.
Insofar as such limited terms can be applied to China, one can imagine the Shanghai faction as being more “right wing”.
They are the “hawks” of China, and you can see their hand in the draw-no-quarter reactions to recent international disputes.
However, the idea of “market forces” in China remains quite different to the west.
Those who envision that the Shanghai faction would embrace the economic reforms the west desires (such as revaluing the renminbi) would most probably be disappointed.
This will happen, but not at the pace the west desires and you can be sure that China will only do so when it is in its best interests.
That time may come soon, but not as soon as Obama would like.
That however, remains academic, as Li and Xi are more likely to follow in the footsteps of the Hu-Wen faction.
It may well be that Wen’s recent comments have been made in the knowledge that
his successors share similar views, which would explain his unusually strident commentary. – onlineopinion

*Lao Zi is a semi-mythical Chinese philosopher who lived sometime between the 4th and 6th century BC. He is widely regarded as a counterweight to Confucian ideals and his work has been embraced by libertarian and anti-authoritarian movements worldwide. It is also the non-de-plume of a former Australian journalist, currently residing in China.