Witness to Profound Changes

By PABLO ROVETTA DUBINSKY

THIS year marks the 40th anniversary of one of the most important events in the history of contemporary China — the Third Plenary Session of the 11th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China， which was held from December 18 to 22， 1978 in Beijing with significant repercussions in the country and the world. The event is hailed as the starting point of Chinas policy of reform and opening-up.

Since I arrived in Beijing in mid-1975， I think I could well be considered as a witness to that process. It has been known to almost all that innumerable achievements have been made during the past four decades in China. According to historians， there hasnt been a country with such a large population in human history that has made such profound changes and improvements within such a short span of time.

During the past four decades， China has developed into the second largest economy in the world， and forecasts show that it will take the first place in the near future. China is already excelling globally in foreign trade， poverty alleviation， infrastructure construction， industrial capacity， spending on R&D;， development of advanced technologies， and global influence. Todays China， in many respects， is “another country” compared to the one that I saw 43 years ago.

As Ive experienced a lot in person of what happened since 1978， Id like to share three aspects of what I saw and thought.

First， China has overcome many difficulties. All the negative forecasts about China have been scotched. Over the last 40 years， I have kept hearing pessimistic forecasts and accounts from the West on the difficulties and dangers threatening China， such as during the 1997 Asian financial crisis， at the fall of the USSR， and the collapse of the so-called socialist camp in Eastern Europe， the bird flu crisis， or SARS in 2002 happened. These pessimistic forecasts emerged with a great clamor. Ive even read about some saying that China was going to disintegrate as a nation， or that a civil war was going to take place.

It is true that the road traveled by China in the past four decades has not been easy， and it has had to face numerous difficulties both at home and abroad. However， China has managed to overcome them every year and none of the naysayers have proved to be true. In spite of this， many Western countries are still preaching the negative aspects instead of acknowledging the positive influence of Chinas development.

Before and After the Reform and Opening-up

Second， I would like to make a comparison between what China and its people were when the reform and opening-up began and what they are today. In 1978， most of the food （grains， meat， oil， etc.）， fabric for making clothes， and the main industrial products （such as bicycles） were rationed. As a foreigner， we also needed ration cards to buy food and fabric. The average Chinese worked eight hours per day from Monday to Saturday， resting on Sundays and they only had seven days public holidays which fell on January 1， May 1， October 1， and the Spring Festival.

Restricted by poor infrastructure， it could take days to go to another place. Married couples who worked in different cities only got to unite during the Spring Festival holiday. The greatest luxuries used to be bicycles， watches， radios， and sewing machines. Friends and families would not go eating at restaurants unless on very special occasions. Traveling within the country was a nearly impossible dream， let alone around the world.

In 1976， the Montreal Olympic Games was ongoing when I was in Beijing. However， the Peoples Republic of China， boasting the largest population in the world， could not participate. Not until in 1979 was it allowed to join the International Olympic Committee. Diplomatic relations were not established between the PRC and many countries such as the whole of Central America， Bolivia， Colombia， Ecuador， and Uruguay of South America. Besides， Hong Kong was still a British colony and Macao a Portuguese one.

While today， China is just like a “new” country. Dramatic changes have taken place in both the cities and the countryside. The general standard of living has been improved a lot. Rationing has already become a thing of the past as restaurants and shops are crammed with customers. In the past four decades， the life of hundreds of millions of Chinese people has been largely improved. Of course， poverty still lingers in remote rural areas. President Xi Jinping has admitted it and has prioritized poverty alleviation.

Today， people work five days a week. As people have more holidays， they spend more time traveling in their own cars or through other rapid， modern， and convenient transportation options. The number of outbound tourists increases year by year， and in some countries and regions， changes have been made in order to accommodate Chinese tourists. In the fields of industry， technology， and science， China is already standing at the forefront. Chinese companies such as Huawei have won global fame in the rat race.

Does this mean that everything prior to the reform was bad？ I dont think so. After more than a century of civil war and foreign invasions and humiliations， China began to establish its own industry （something almost non-existent before 1949， except in the textile sector） and to guarantee its immense population a series of services and minimum rights. Besides， it built large-scale infrastructure projects to control floods， which had caused hunger and made millions to relocate every year.

As to the scientific and industrial development， China has been developing its aerospace industry since the 1970s and has put into orbit many artificial satellites. In 1959， the discovery of the Daqing oilfield largely boosted its petrochemical industry， and the same happened in the iron and steel industry. With the construction of large building complexes， the iron and steel industry developed fast.

Characteristics of the Reform and Opening-up

The third aspect I would like to pay attention to is that the reform and opening-up was a gradual process. It was not a policy made rashly. It remains so till today. The meeting was held at the end of 1978， and concrete measures did not follow up until the following year. In fact， words such as reform and opening-up did not appear in the official documents released after the meeting； they were in use in the 1980s.

The historical significance of the session lies in the fact that it shifted the main task of the Party from the so-called “class struggle” that prevailed until then to economic development and expressed Chinas willingness to actively launch economic cooperation with all countries， as well as to introduce advanced technologies and equipment from abroad. Those are the highlights of the meeting.

As to the reform， the first and most important step was taken in the countryside. While in the process of opening to the outside world， one of the main policies was the establishment of the first four Special Economic Zones in the south.

Instead of implementing measures across the country， the government established small pilot zones to test new policies. If the results were positive， then those policies would be extended to other parts of the country. This allowed the government to correct errors， to accumulate experience， and to timely adjust concrete measures to be taken， a process described in a Chinese phrase “crossing the river by feeling the stones”by Deng Xiaoping， the renowned architect of the reform and opening-up policy.

Thus， reforms were adopted first in specific places， and then extended to the whole country. In the last 40 years， reform measures were adopted in this gradual way， which continues to be applied today.

In spite of the numerous difficulties it faced and the pessimistic forecasts of some Western countries， China keeps moving forward. The country has become a brand new one thanks to the reform and openingup policy. Changes have occurred in every aspect of peoples lives， the image of the country， the industrial and scientific development， and the position of China in the global arena.

One key to the success of the reform and opening-up policy is that it has been gradual， which gives it the ability to rectify issues when they turn out to be unexpected. However， theres inevitably a negative side： corruption， environmental pollution， and the gap between the rich and the poor. Fortunately， the Chinese government has never denied them and has expressed its determination to resolve them with both words and actions.