Hu Jintao and China's Domestic Policy

Hu Jintao, the president of China, is distinguishing himself from previous Chinese leaders in domestic policy. He has advocated political reform within the Communist party, diversified China's ring of political alliances, and started a morality campaign to try to resolve some of the social problems in China. Three of his slogans can pretty much sum up his politics: a "Harmonious Society" on the domestic front, a "Peaceful Development" internationally, and a "Scientific Development Perspective."

Under Hu's predecessors, Deng Xiaoping and Jiang Zemin, the Communist party changed from a revolutionary party into an established, ruling party. Hu has continued to call for "Advancement" of the Party as well as increasing the transparency of the government. His stance on political and media control has remained hard-line. Hu's "China Model" calls for dynamic economic growth, a free market fueled by the private sector, a concern for the wellbeing of all citizens, cultural enlightenment, and the use of the Scientific Development Perspective to solve social problems. This model stands as an alternative to the U.S.'s democratic model for developing countries.

As a pragmatist, Hu's two main values are the maintenance of social stability to facilitate economic development and the encouragement of Chinese culture to support its national sovereignty. Although there are criticisms of Hu, especially from the West in response to human rights issues, the Chinese public in general seems to be behind Hu in this pragmatic stance, geared towards making China the world's economic leader in the twenty-first century.

Hu's stance on the Party has been one of reform and improvement of open governance. Recently, many meeting details from the Politburo Standing Committee were published by China's news agency. He has also canceled some traditional Party events that are seen as extravagant, such as the lavish send-offs and greetings for Chinese leaders when they travel abroad. In 2004, Hu ordered the Party to abandon the tradition of holding the annual summer meeting at the Beidaihe seaside retreat, which was seen as a waste of funds and smoke-filled-room type dealing.

The Chinese government under Hu has also focused on social problems such as the gap between the rich and poor and between the coast and interior of the country.

Hu has been hard-line in his attitude toward the media. Although the media has been given greater leeway in reporting some topics, such as the 2008 Sichuan earthquake, politically sensitive material on the Internet is still strictly censored, to a greater degree than under Jiang.

In a recent speech, Hu called for "increased democracy" in the country. While, Hu certainly wasn't talking about democracy in the Western sense, it showed an emphasis on political reform that was absent from the Jiang administration.

Source: "Balance vs. Harmony"