China’s 200 Democratic Claims (A Resource for Australian Constitutional Reform) (中国的200个民主诉主张 (澳大利亚宪法改革的资源)

Abstract

English Abstract: Accepting at face value…that China does exercise some form of democracy within its political system I reviewed the official English version of the White Paper issued by China’s State Council in December 2021 titled: ‘China: Democracy That Works ’, and also the original Chinese White Paper titled ‘中国的民主’ (Chinese Democracy). At nearly 20,000 Chinese characters in length, China’s Democracy White Paper is not easily condensed and summarized. What can be identified however are the claims the Communist Party of China (CPC) is making in relation to the topic: Democracy. This paper is a compilation of claims China makes to support its primary contention that what China has in terms of its political architecture and daily operations is in effect a vibrant democracy worthy of emulation.

The Australian Law Reform Commission (ALRC) issued a paper on the 15 May 2019 titled: “The Constitution of Australia: Revisiting Reform”. At that time the ALRC identified the Australian Constitution itself as a potential topic for law reform and invited proposals for an inquiry. This brief research paper is underpinned by a rebuttable presumption; that is, China is an expansionist power and seeks to dominate and ultimately exercise governance throughout the Asia-Pacific region over the course of this century. It is therefore incumbent on Australia to undertake a thorough constitutional review in order to adapt to a rapidly changing geo-political world, particularly since there is likely to be a significant clash of ideologies in terms of what it means to be a viable 21st century democracy.


Chinese Abstract: 从表面上接受……中国确实在其政治体制内行使了某种形式的民主. 我复习查阅了中国国务院于 2021 年 12 月发布的题为“中国：民主有效”的英文官方白皮书，以及中文原文《中国的民主》白皮书. 近2万汉字的《中国民主白皮书》不容易浓缩和概括. 然而，可以确定的是中国共产党（CPC）就该主题提出的主张：民主。本文汇集了中国为支持其主要论点而提出的主张，即中国在政治架构和日常运作方面实际上是一个值得效仿的充满活力的民主.

澳大利亚法律改革委员会 (ALRC) 于 2019 年 5 月 15 日发布了一份题为“澳大利亚宪法: 重新审视改革”的论文. 当时 ALRC 将澳大利亚宪法本身确定为法律改革的潜在主题, 并邀请进行调查的提案. 这篇简短的研究论文以一个可反驳的假设为基础; 也就是说, 中国是一个扩张主义大国, 在本世纪的过程中寻求主导并最终在整个亚太地区实施治理.因此, 澳大利亚有责任进行彻底的宪法审查, 以适应迅速变化的地缘政治世界, 特别是因为在成为可行的 21 世纪民主意味着什么方面可能存在意识形态的重大冲突.

Note: Downloadable document is in English and Chinese.

Keywords: Chinese Democracy, Australian Democracy, China Democratic Reform, Australian Democratic Reform, Australian Constitutional Reform

JEL Classification: K40, K30, K20, K10