China

N

Transport

The railway is the most important mode of transport in China, moving some two thirds of the passenger traffic and half the freight traffic. Since 1949 the total length of railways has doubled, and it now exceeds 62,200 km (38,649 mi). Most of the network uses diesel or steam locomotives. Newly constructed lines have extended the two major north-south routes (Guangzhou-Beijing and Shanghai-Beijing) into the north-east, Mongolia and Russia, and the south-east. The major east-west line, from Lianyungang to Lanzhou, has been linked to Ürümqi in the far north-west. The new lines have provided a dense network in the heavily populated and economically important regions of north-eastern, central, and south-western China. The Lanzhou-Lhasa (Tibet) line, the world’s highest railway, has made all provinces and autonomous regions of China accessible by rail. In October 2000 the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) approved plans for the Trans-Asia Railway Project, a 5,513-km (3,420-mi) rail link, costing US$2.5 billion. The link, which is scheduled for completion in 2006, will connect six ASEAN countries (Cambodia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam) with Kunming, in Yunnan Province.

Chinese roads and highways have grown from a pre-1949 length of about 80,000 km (49,710 mi), which only provided connections between the coastal treaty ports and the immediate hinterlands, to a system of about 1,930,543 km (1,199,584 mi). Roads now connect Beijing to the capitals of all provinces and autonomous regions, as well as to major ports and railway centres. The network also extends into rural areas, making most localities accessible by roads. Motorized public transport is well developed in urban centres, and the bicycle is widely used for travelling short distances. The 1.5 million motor vehicles produced annually in China, however, do not meet the needs of an increasingly mobile population, and in 1994 the government announced plans to raise production to 3 million units annually by the year 2000. There were in 1995 around 3.5 million cars and 5.6 million larger vehicles in China, or 1 vehicle per 131 people.

China has more than 110,000 km (68,350 mi) of navigable inland waterways. Inland navigation accounts for one-fifth of the goods shipped within China, and its potential for increased development is great. The major inland waterway is the Yangzi River, the fourth-largest river in the world. Some 18,000 km (11,000 mi) of the Yangzi River and its tributaries can be travelled by steamers; Chongqing, Yichang, and Wuhan are its major ports. The busiest inland waterway, however, is the Grand Canal, which extends from Beijing to Hangzhou. The southern portion of the canal is integrated into the local systems of canals and lakes, making such cities as Suzhou, Wuxi, and Changzhou important inland ports. In parts of rural China irrigation and drainage canals are used by peasants as inland waterways.

China’s long coastline and the location of some of the most important industrial cities on the coast have long made coastal shipping an important mode of transport. The increased scale of international shipping is a more recent phenomenon, peaking before World War II and again becoming important in the 1970s. China has a merchant fleet of about 1,800 larger ships that visit ports in more than 100 countries. Most of these ships were built in China.

Air transport in China received a boost with the purchase of three jumbo airliners in 1979 and the opening of a new international airport in Beijing in 1980; since then, air travel between China and the rest of the world has intensified. The national airline is Air China, and there are numerous smaller carriers, mostly regional. Internal flights now link more than 90 cities, many of which are in western China.

O

Communications

China’s Communist government placed great emphasis on radio when it began gathering support for its new policies in the early 1950s. Loudspeakers were placed in commune fields and workplaces from the 1950s to the 1970s, and the people gradually became accustomed to continual media presence in their lives; by 1997 more than 417 million radio receivers were in use. Between 1977 and 1981 the number of privately owned television sets in China grew from 630,000 to 7 million; overall, an estimated 380 million television receivers were in use in 2000. In Beijing, two sets for every three households is the urban average. A symbol of the freer economic climate of the 1980s was the inauguration of commercial radio broadcasting in 1986, in southern China. Though officially banned in 1993, satellite television receivers are widespread, serving to disseminate outside news and popular culture.

The Central People’s Television Station was established in Beijing in 1958; in the same year the first Chinese television sets were manufactured in the Tianjin State Radio Plant. Beijing has augmented the standard programming of the Central People’s Television Station with two additional channels, and many cities or provinces have their own local stations. The average composition of programming is 20 per cent news; 25 per cent sports, service, science, and programmes for children and specialized audiences; and 55 per cent entertainment.

China’s earliest international broadcasting station was established in 1950 with programmes in seven languages and was named Radio Beijing. In 1978 the name was changed to the International Radio of the People’s Republic of China, and its broadcast schedule was expanded to 38 foreign languages. More than 200 daily newspapers have a combined circulation exceeding 50 million. The most significant newspaper is the Renmin Ribao (People’s Daily), published in Beijing. It is under the direct control of the Communist Party’s Central Committee. Its daily circulation is about five million. Most of the news comes from Xinhua (New China News Agency). Foreign observers consider this a primary source for news of China. Other major newspapers and periodicals include Guangming Ribao (Kuangming Daily), Jiefang Ribao (Liberation Daily), Renmin Huabao (People’s Pictorial), and Tiyu Kexue (Sports Science), and China Daily, an English-language newspaper with a circulation of around 370,000.

China has an active publishing industry. The government’s drive for universal education has resulted in heightened public interest in both fiction and non-fiction, as well as in the translated works of foreign authors. Publishing is controlled through fixed allocations of ISBN numbers for approved titles; though in practice the allocations are often sold by state-approved publishers to black-market houses for less approved and more popular works, such as pornography.

In September 2000 China had 16.9 million Internet users, and the availability and accessibility of the Internet is increasing rapidly. In November 2000 the China Internet Network Information Centre announced the introduction of a facility that enabled Chinese characters to be used in Web site addresses. Previously Web site addresses had only been written in Roman letters and numbers, which had restricted access for users who were not familiar with the Roman alphabet. Analysts predicted that the change would mean that China would have more Internet subscribers than any other country by 2004. The Internet and content of Web sites in China is subject to strict government regulations. Companies operating Web sites are required to obtain government approval before news bulletins are posted, and to only use news reports generated by state controlled newspapers such as the People's Daily.

Postal and telecommunications services are controlled by the government. Telephone service extends to virtually all localities, but few households have their own telephones. In 1995 about 58 million telephones were in use.

V

Government

China has had an organized government since the establishment of the Shang dynasty about 1726 bc, making it one of the oldest nations on Earth. Historically, the political control of the large Chinese population was administered by a series of strong local governments and by a central capital and court of varying political significance. Since the Chinese Communists came to power on October 1, 1949, a steady shift towards a centralized national government, based in Beijing, took place. This unity was achieved in large part through the personal authority and leadership of Mao and the governmental structure established by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). This modern structure was initially given shape in China’s first constitution, promulgated in 1954, and revised in the constitution of 1975. A third constitution was issued in 1978 (becoming effective January 1, 1980); this constitution reflected the changes in government policies following Mao’s death. A new constitution was adopted in 1982.

This constitutional structure, however, is combined with a Communist Party apparatus effectively beyond constitutional or legal control, and a leadership style which operates through informal and hidden contacts and clientage rather than open and accountable channels. The bloody suppression of the Tiananmen Square protest in 1989 was in breach of the Chinese constitution, while Deng Xiaoping was for long the most powerful figure in the Chinese government without holding any official post.

A

Executive and Legislature

By the 1982 constitution, the president is elected to a five-year term by the National People’s Congress. The office of the president is largely ceremonial, though the current General Secretary of the CCP is also the president. Executive powers rest with the State Council, which is headed by the premier and is charged with administering various areas of state business. The command of the national military belongs to the Central Military Commission. Generally, the positions of greatest authority in the Chinese government are those of premier and general secretary of the Communist Party; authority relates very much to the individual personalities in such positions. However, Deng Xiaoping, who latterly did not hold any official post, was long the most powerful figure in the Chinese government.

The National People’s Congress is the highest organ of state power in China. Its members are chosen for five-year terms by a series of indirect elections; each province elects one representative (or deputy) to the congress for each 400,000 people, with at least ten deputies representing each province. All candidates are either members of the Chinese Communist Party or approved by it. The Fifth National People’s Congress, elected in 1978, consisted of 3,497 deputies, with workers and peasants accounting for nearly half the membership. The Sixth National People’s Congress, which convened in June 1983, had 2,978 delegates. The seventh Congress convened in March 1988, the eighth in March 1993, the ninth in March 1998, and the tenth in March 2003. In 2003, the Congress had 2,946 delegates.

The National People’s Congress is empowered to pass laws, amend the constitution, and to approve the national budget and economic plans. It also has the power to appoint and remove members of the State Council (Cabinet), which is the highest component in the structure of the Chinese government.

In practice, however, the National People’s Congress has little real power. Because of its unwieldy size, the congress meets only irregularly to conduct required business. While the congress is not in session, a Standing Committee, elected from its membership, acts in its place. The Standing Committee also represents the congress in a variety of government functions, including receiving foreign envoys and ratifying or nullifying treaties with foreign governments.

The State Council is the central governmental body of the National People’s Congress. It is led by the Chinese premier and vice-premiers. Various ministries, commissions, and agencies are responsible to the Council.

B

Political Parties

According to the constitution of 1982, China is a socialist dictatorship of the proletariat led by the Communist Party and based on a united front that includes other democratic parties. In practice, the Communist Party fully orchestrates national political activity. The vast majority of significant governmental offices are filled by party members.

The Chinese Communist Party has more than 40 million members (1995, although this represents only about 4.5 per cent of the total population) and is the world’s largest Communist Party. The Party held its first National Party Congress in 1921, when it had only 57 members; its membership had grown to 10 million by 1956. The organization and functions of the Communist Party are set forth in the party constitution; the sixth party constitution was approved in 1982 at the 12th Congress. It is notable for de-emphasizing the authority of the party leader, whose title was changed from chairman to general secretary. The National Party Congress is the highest party organ. The Central Committee, elected by the National Party Congress, elects the Politburo and its Standing Committee, as well as the party general secretary. Functional authority over the party machinery resides with the Politburo and the Standing Committee.

Several minor political parties and mass organizations are active in China. Among these are the China Democratic League, the All-China Athletic Federation, and the All-China Woman’s Federation, but the only one with any potential for political influence is the Communist Youth League, with about 50 million members in the early 1990s. This organization plays a major role in recruiting youth who wish to prepare for membership in the Communist Party after the age of 18.