Is the pro-China M-L position that the CPC leadership is merely an independent vanguard class benevolently working for the good of the proletariat to transition the state to a socialist mode of production, or is it that the CPC themselves form a dictatorship of the proletariat?
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If the former, what material motivation does the CPC have to side with the proletariat when classes come into conflict? Does their socialist movement ultimately just hinge on the good will of those selected by the party to lead the party? Is this system simply benevolent class collaboration with a disempowered bourgeoisie, thus distinguishing it from past class collaboration failures?
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Otherwise, if the latter, what makes the CPC's dictatorship 'of the proletariat'?
- Does this imply the CPC must be a democratic organization? In most provinces, direct voting by the masses exists only at the local level, but only between candidates pre-approved by the CPC. The proletariat is therefore not in control of these local candidates, and therefore not in control of the subsequent levels of elections. Surely, this would make it as much of a democracy of the proletariat as a liberal democracy is.
- What power does the proletariat itself hold over the party's rule? If the proletariat truly does not approve of their representation, do they have the power to reject it?
The results speak for themselves, but is the PRC at this point in time ultimately a victory over capitalism, without the proletarian dictatorship that Marx assumed necessary, instead forming a stable non-bourgeois state?
The CPC as a vanguard party directly constitutes a dictatorship of the proletariat.
1.) The CPC is democratic. Officials within the CPC are elected through democratic systems that ensures that the needs and wants of the people are represented. Direct elections result in issues, is the average person educated enough of every issue for that to be a sensible system? Democracy means that the people lead and the CPC is run by the people through these indirect democratic systems and institutions. The government controls the means of production through direct control and indirect control of companies (as was said in a recent thread, a private owner may own a ball factory but they have no power if the state owns the rubber factory). Secondly, we see the government able to exert control over private business through systems of CPC officials in company boards for example.
2.) The social contract theory explains what power the people have. The people are not lead by a government they reject in democratic systems. If the people are unsatisfied then change can occur within the CPC to fix these issues.
Here are three articles to read on the issue for deeper understanding: https://news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2020/07/long-term-survey-reveals-chinese-government-satisfaction/
https://news.cgtn.com/news/2024-11-13/China-a-unique-model-of-democracy-for-the-world-1yuLXjKGnyU/p.html
https://www.globaltimes.cn/page/202503/1329436.shtml
Thanks, for also providing those articles. I've only read one of them before.
Can you give examples of how the CPC is run by the proletariat through these institutions? I've only had time to look at the second and third article, so I'm guessing this is referring to both the electoral and consultative methods. Unfortunately the two articles skim over this and make assertions or give a very high-level outline, so I'll have to look into this more to see how (and which) people are represented in consultation and how electoral candidates are selected - are they selected by the people and filtered by the party to ensure competence or overall ideological alignment, or are they selected by the party?
I believe the social contract theory is liberalist idealism; the assumption of consent and the threats used to enforce it are illegitimate. I believe it parallels the capitalist argument of "don't like your job, just find another one", suggesting that the theory empowers and liberates you with choice, but ignoring the material conditions which make this supposed freedom an unreal ideal.