Thanks to the far-sightedness of Deng Xiaoping, from a nation of extreme poverty, China has become one of the biggest global economic powers. Political reform must give way to the economy and stability. Farmers and migrants left out of development.

Beijing (AsiaNews) – Chinese President Hu Jintao says China must continue with the outward looking reforms first began 30 years ago, which transformed the nation from an impoverished land into one of the world’s biggest economies.

In a meeting at the Great Hall of the People in Tiananmen square before a crowd of 6 thousand party members and military personnel, Hu marked the 30th anniversary of the holding of the 3rd plenary session of the 11th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China, which spearheaded the reform and opening-up drive in 1978.

Mao’s dictatorship had left China on its knees with a dying economy.  Hu underlined that thanks to Deng Xiaoping, the Plenum marked a turning point in the history of the party and of the entire nation.

Over the past few decades china has seen an average annual growth of 9.8%, three times that of the global average.  Gross domestic product soared from a mere 360 billion Yuan (about 52 billion U.S. dollars at current rates) in 1978 to 24.95 trillion Yuan in 2007, making China the world's fourth-largest economy.  “We cannot turn back”, said Hu, “The future development of China depends on reform and openness”.

While reaffirming this policy, Hu noted that political progress must give way to economic progress and therefore all reforms must take place in “stability” and under party direction.

 “We have understood that progress is the basic logic and stability the main aim.  Without stability we will be unable to realise anything and we will loose all that we have gained so far”.

Hu also underlined that many problems still need to be resolved: a weak agricultural system, rural zones languishing in extreme poverty, lack of creativity and innovation.

Celebrations for the 30th anniversary of Chinese reforms come at a difficult moment for the nation in the grips of the global economic crises.  Tens of thousands of factories dependent on export markets have been closed and unemployment is growing.  At the same time millions of migrants and farmers – exploited for cheap labour – live in poverty without any social benefits.

 

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