Based on an analysis of remarks by top Chinese party and government leaders and intellectuals on democracy, this study tries to analyze if the Chinese?style democracy marks the emergence of a new model of democracy that is different from the republica...
Based on an analysis of remarks by top Chinese party and government leaders and intellectuals on democracy, this study tries to analyze if the Chinese?style democracy marks the emergence of a new model of democracy that is different from the republican democracy introduced after the Xinhai Revolution and the existing people’s democracy model. Based on our analysis, the theory of Chinese?style democracy is a call for effecting change in the ruling governance structure, while maintaining the traditional model of the people’s democracy, instead of presenting a new model of democracy. It appears clear that China will promote political reforms in a gradual and stable way under CPC leadership, while maintaining the party’s leadership status. Therefore, the theory of Chinese?style democracy seems to involve the CPC’s intention to seek a new method of ruling by perfecting political structures and rationalizing its method of governing in response to current pressure for political reform, without any clear blueprint for the future direction of China’s political reform.