Reason Number 5 - There are no Bill Clintons in China

‘Fault Lines On The Face Of China: 50 Reasons Why China May Never Be Great’ - Excerpt 9

“Politicians who have to appeal to the electorate need to develop star power. Think of Bill Clinton. Think of Tony Blair. Think of Nicolas Sarkozy, or Junichiro Koizumi. Think of up and coming Democratic presidential hopeful Barack Obama. Politicians from democracies are sexy.

These leaders sought power by taking their case to the people – by showing the people they had a vision and understood the needs of the country. These leaders earned power. Some of them became mired in scandal, yet they never quite lost their star quality. Their sexiness.

But China’s politicians have never earned power in this fashion. They have never had to answer to the people they ostensibly serve. Ever since 1949, when ‘New China’ was founded, the Communist Party has used violence, fear and intimidation to keep its grip on power, rather than take its case to the citizens of the nation. There’s no point in being sexy if you’re a Chinese politician.

China does not have any sexy or charismatic political figures like JFK or Churchill in its recent past. While both these magnetic politicians had flaws, they also had many powerful qualities which enabled them to shape their nations for the better. But even the powerful leader of ‘New China,’ Mao Zedong, could only bring misery and suffering, balanced by few positive characteristics. There are no Lincolns or Washingtons in Chinese history, no Benjamin Disraelis or Horatio Nelsons. Even regally, there is no Queen Elizabeth the First or Queen Victoria. There is no Uncle Sam, or John Bull. No St. Nicholas. No Harry Potter and certainly no Mickey Mouse.”

“`Having a nubile, young mistress is not only fashionable for China’s middle-aged officials partial to a spot of corruption but also a perfect cloak for taking a bribe’ explained Chinese media in summer 2007, announcing a new regulation to tackle bribery. Many corrupt officials kept ‘clean hands’ by funneling bribes through family members or lovers. The new rules meant that “for the first time prosecutors will no longer need to provide evidence of the involvement of a mistress in order to convict an official charged with accepting bribes.” Under the new guidelines, Zhao Zhanqi, a transport chief in eastern Zhejiang Province, was sentenced to life in prison. He had taken a bribe of 550,000 yuan through his mistress, Wang Peiying, to award an airport construction contract. As well as this sum, Zhao took a further 5.6 million yuan (US$737,000) via his son.

But mistresses only get reported when the leader in question falls from power. This ensures that most politicians in China are never associated with a ‘human’ side, but remain remote and unknowable figures. There is no way for the population of China to feel any connection with their leaders, and nor are their leaders individual enough to inspire affection or emulation.”