Deng Xiaoping's legacy<\/p>\n
The eulogies from various world leaders, including President
\nSoeharto, for China's paramount leader Deng Xiaoping, say it all.
\nHis demise Wednesday did not invoke as much grief and emotion in
\nChina as the death of his predecessor Mao Zedong 20 years ago,
\nbut for many people outside China, Deng will go down in history
\nas the greater leader of the two. He may not have enjoyed the
\nsame stature as a statesman, but Deng leaves a far greater,
\nlasting, and more positive legacy for the Chinese and most people
\nin the region and the world.<\/p>\n
Comparison between Deng and Mao may be unfair, but the praises
\nand expressions of great loss from various capitals of the world
\nwere undoubtedly made, at least subconsciously, in the context of
\nthe contrasting styles of the two men in leading the world's most
\npopulous nation.<\/p>\n
Their differences could not have been greater. Deng's reforms
\ntransformed China from a Stalinist state to an economic
\npowerhouse. His focus on the domestic economy, rather than
\nindulging in revolutions and exporting the communist ideology
\nthat preoccupied much of Mao's time, brought stability and
\nprosperity to China.<\/p>\n
The benefits of Deng's reforms went far beyond China's
\nborders. The prosperity that the Asia-Pacific region -- including
\nIndonesia -- has enjoyed these last 20 years could be attributed,
\nindirectly but not insignificantly, to China's political
\nstability and a rapidly growing economy under Deng. It was no
\ncoincidence that the greatest wars and turmoils in Asia occurred
\nbetween the 1950s and mid-1970s when China was under Mao. An
\nunstable China was a sure recipe for an unstable Asia, and it
\nstill is.<\/p>\n
As much as Deng's demise represents a great loss to people
\noutside China, one can take comfort that his legacy --
\nparticularly the economic reforms he initiated -- will continue.
\nIn the last three years, the paramount leader has become a mere
\nfigurehead in Beijing because of his ailing health. Nevertheless,
\nthe country has remained on the path of market-based economic
\nreforms. Even as he disappears from the scene, it is hard to
\nenvisage any successor departing from a path that has benefited
\nthe billion or so Chinese people.<\/p>\n
Whoever takes over the helm of Chinese leadership -- all
\nindications point to President Jiang Zemin as a likely successor
\n-- will inherit a China that is economically much more powerful
\nthan it was 20 years ago. With economic power comes political and
\nmilitary might. This is particularly true for a country as big as
\nChina. How the Chinese leadership intends to use its newly gained
\npolitical and military power is something the rest of the region
\nand the world will be closely watching. But most analysts agree
\nthat as long as China continues on the path of sustainable
\neconomic growth, there is no reason for any Chinese leader to
\nembark on a military adventure against any of its neighbors, not
\neven against Taiwan, the "renegade province". On the contrary,
\nmarket reform programs have also helped to integrate China's huge
\neconomy with the rest of the world, which in turn, brought more
\nbenefits for the Chinese people.<\/p>\n
Deng's legacy has been chiefly on the economic front. Other
\nthan stability -- which is of paramount importance -- his
\npolitical legacy has been less impressive.<\/p>\n
His economic reforms have not been accompanied by a
\ndemocratization process that many experts feel is imperative to
\nensure sustainable development. But democratization, as in many
\nAsian countries, is an inevitable process. In China, it is taking
\na little longer because of the sheer size of its population. But
\nthe pressures from within China are already building up.<\/p>\n
If every great leader in China is expected to be a legacy of
\nhis own, then this is probably an area where the post-Deng
\nleadership in Beijing can make the greatest contribution.<\/p>",
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