【中文标题】一条漫长而又陌生的道路：中国共产党既不是一本恐怖小说，也并非一则童话
【原文标题】What a Long, Strange March It's Been – 10 ways China’s communist party is neither horror story nor fairy tale
【登载媒体】外交政策
【原文作者】JEFFREY WASSERSTROM
【原文链接】http://www.foreignpolicy.com/articles/2011/06/30/what_a_long_strange_march_it_s_been?page=0,0
中国共产党在90周岁之际，其余威仍然让它的批评者和支持者困惑不解。
从长征到2008年辉煌的北京奥运会开幕式，中国共产党（CCP）走过了一条多么漫长而又陌生的道路啊。7月1日，党将迎来90岁生日，迎接这个重要日子的既有一部明星云集、引人注目的向早期共产党献礼的影片，也有一个由这个国家官方认可的两个基督教组织主办的“主旋律音乐会”。
生存了整整90年的党为批评者和支持者提供了同样多的事实，供他们在共产党遗产问题上争论。一方面，Jung Chang和Jon Halliday的哗众取宠畅销书籍《毛不为人知的故事》把党的创立者描绘成一个恶魔，他残暴的统治是中国的灾难。用作者的话来说，毛独揽大权，给“全中国”带来“史无前例的痛苦”。
另一个极端是，当下正在进行的对党史的自我吹嘘把领导人说成完美的典范。中共的纪念性影视作品（其中的毛是一个陷入爱情、有理想的爱国主义者）和报纸中理想化的报道都传达出这样的概念。这些文章说党是一股“强大的精神力量”，永不止步地为国家“赢取新的胜利。”
真相既不是Chang和Halliday令人脊背发麻的恐怖小说，也不是党亲自批准的童话故事，而是介于两者之间。在这个理论的基础上，我们来看一看中国共产党5项成败交织的历程。这些内容并非试图对党生存90年的现实给予最终裁决，而是提醒我们，尽管它的失败的确令人扼腕，但它的成就能让我们了解，为什么一些中国人会衷心祝党生日快乐。
成功故事：共产党帮助中国击退外国威胁。
早期的共产党在反帝国主义的斗争中发挥了重要作用，并以此激励了中国人民。例如，1925年3月30日的运动中，它号召数千人上街行走，抗议日本工厂虐待中国工人的行为。30年代日本军事入侵中国北方时，它充当了抵制日本商品的先锋。
后来，红军在1945年赶走日本侵略者的战争中贡献了很大力量，赢得了坚定、无私的游击队战士的称号，最终结束了党所谓的中国“屈辱百年”。
共产党有时会夸大自己在与帝国主义斗争中的角色，同时淡化其它集团相互支持的行动。但即使如此，它的爱国主义和民族主义表现仍然让很多中国人引以为荣。
但是别忘了：共产党会散布外国威胁的恐怖情绪。
党一次又一次地捏造国际阴谋和外国邪恶势力来为其国内残酷的镇压行动正名。在50年代和60年代，人们因为有西方亲戚而被戴上“资本主义路线”的帽子，并遭到迫害。当共产党领导人邓小平试图为中国血腥镇压1989×××事件辩护时，他也召唤出“西方邪恶影响力”的魔宠。
中国政治家这种多疑的紧张心态依旧让他们坐立不安，当官方总是把国内的不满冠以外国阴谋和国际势力的作用时，这种心态表露无遗。比如，一名中国官员把新疆暴乱归因于“敌对的国内外势力”在穆斯林中激起矛盾。
成功故事：共产党延长了人们的平均寿命，提高了生活标准。
即使毛在50年代和60年代的社会改造政策以失败告终，他掌权时的平均寿命也有大幅度上升。在经济蓬勃发展的近几十年中，平均寿命依然照人们预期的那样继续上升。今天，上海出生的一个婴儿的寿命要长过在纽约出生的婴儿。尽管在远离上海和其它东部沿海经济极为发达的城市的内陆地区，生活标准和平均寿命并没有显著的改善，但全国已有上百万人脱离了贫穷。
但是别忘了：大跃进造成的灾难性饥荒。
毛时代最大的悲剧是大量人类生命的逝去——预计数量达数千万——原因是“大跃进”造成的饥荒。这项计划经济的尝试包括呼吁农民集中在家庭后院的炉子中炼钢，而不是关注农作物的种植（因为毛执迷于迅速赶上西方经济），这项举措应当是巨大灾难的主要原因。
成功故事：共产党一手策划了中国向国际经济超级势力的转型。
中国的经济增长让数百万人脱离了贫困，这是我们这个时代最伟大的故事之一。饥饿还是上个世纪中国的标志，而今天，它发现自己已经有能力向遭受自然灾害的国家出口粮食。
党可以胸有成竹地宣称帮助中国重新回到了世界强者队伍中。它主办了全球性的盛会，比如2008年奥运会和去年的世博会。它在非洲和拉丁美洲的影响力与日俱增，它修建的机场和高速列车令发展中国家羡慕不已。中国再次成为了亚洲的主导力量，在赢得邻国们尊重的同时，也当然引起了他们的警惕。
但是别忘了：党让新形式的腐败遍地横行。
共产党因其领导人中饱私囊的行为而遭到鄙视。共产党的腐败和裙带关系尤其具有削弱法制的效应，因为这与毛和他的战友们在40年代不共戴天的蒋介石国民党的腐败行为如出一辙。例如，1989×××刚开始的时候并不是以“民主”为目标，而是对党内高层的裙带关系和不道德行为不满。
党宣称有决心彻底清除腐败，它的确也偶尔以受贿等罪名惩罚一些高官。然而对这种行为却存在着广泛的怀疑态度。被公众认为必然存在腐败问题的高官依然被免予起诉，最近，有关中国官员在海外账户中有多达数十亿美元存款的报道激起了众怒。
成功故事：共产党的政策大幅削减的文盲比率。
1949年掌权之后，党花大力气普及基础的阅读能力。他们开设公立学校、发行识字课本，还特别针对成年人进行扫盲，其中包括在年轻时没有受过任何正规教育的农村妇女。
因此，文化普及率迅速上升。官方的统计数字显示，识字人口的比率从1950年的20％上升到今天的85％——在这个数据方面，官方的统计似乎还算准确。人们似乎忽视了后毛泽东时代促进经济发展的一个因素，那就是伟大舵手的继任者继承的劳动力大军，要比其它发展中国家有更好的物质基础和教育背景。
但是别忘了：党同时扼杀了言论自由。
不幸的是，识字和阅读表达不同意见的作品是完全两回事。共产党不断给媒体报道和出版范围设置界限。
近几十年中，党稍稍放松了对此的管控，但监察制度依然是一个主要的问题。不但涉及到热门政治问题的书籍——例如《达赖喇嘛》——屡屡遭禁，而且那些触及敏感历史问题的作品也会给相关人员带来麻烦。例如在去年，一本有关50年代修建大坝而导致人民被迫迁移的书，让作者和出版商被捕。
党还相当热衷于迫害那些过分批评和嘲弄政府的人。仅在去年，共产党就严厉打击了一批知名的知识分子，包括诺贝尔和平奖得主小波波——他目前还在狱中——和中国艺术家艾未未，后者最近已被保释，条件是不再接触政治话题。党在数字时代的监控手段愈加严厉，刘和艾都提到过，他们遭遇这些麻烦的主要原因是在网络空间中写的东西。
成功故事：共产党推进了中国的性别平等。
在他最著名的一本著作中，毛着重提到了女性的权力，这让中国女性必须争取比男性曾经霸占过的更加主导的地位——家庭中的权力。
党在掌权后不久就通过了1950年的婚姻法，其中最主要的内容是官方对性别平等的认可。法律推崇女性在结婚和离婚问题上享有与男性平等的权力。这是中国的重大进步，传统文化更加倾向于男性，而女性通常被看作是她嫁入的家庭的临时成员。实际上，在那个年代，这条法律在世界上都是颠覆性的，甚至在今天的很多国家，它依然是一条激进的法律。
但是别忘了：党一直难以贯彻法律的执行。
共产党从未完整执行性别平等政策，其核心决策机构政治局一直是男性俱乐部。近些年，它甚至放弃了在这方面的努力。中国目前在保护女性在工作场所免受歧视方面已经逐渐落后，例如，它阻止雇主具体说明一个理想的女服务员和女性空乘员的身体素质要求。
这其中蕴含着更深层次的问题：共产党在执行法律的保护使命时，往往集体失语。这个国家缺少独立的司法机构来确保法律的统一和透明，法律条文与现实中的执行差距越来越大。那些改革律师，比如帮助请愿者维权的许志勇，依然在遭受政府的迫害。
鉴于中国悠久的历史和前方漫长的道路，列出这些重要的历史时刻总是激动人心的，就像谚语所说“千里之行，始于足下”。但是当代中国在前进的同时也在倒退。党最伟大的功绩或许就是有能力证实很多预测其即将灭亡的言论是错误的，领导人当然会为此举杯相庆，但对中国人民来说，这顶多是一个悲喜参半的消息。
原文：
From the Long March to the massive, glittering spectacle of the Beijing Summer Olympics' opening ceremony in 2008, what a long, strange journey it has been for the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). On July 1, the party will celebrate its 90th birthday, marking the occasion with everything from a splashy, star-studded cinematic tribute to the party's early years to a "praise concert" staged by two of the country's officially sanctioned Christian groups.
The party's nine-decade existence has provided plenty of grist for both critics and apologists to debate its legacy. On the one hand, Jung Chang and Jon Halliday's sensationalistic bestseller Mao: The Unknown Story, paints the party's founding father as a demonic figure whose rule was brutal and disastrous for China. In the words of the authors, Mao's sole accomplishment was bringing "unprecedented misery" to "the whole of China."
On the opposite extreme, the self-aggrandizing accounts of the party's history that are being promulgated in China right now portray its leaders as unstinting paragons of virtue. This is the impression given not only by the CCP's commemorative film -- which presents Mao as an idealistic young patriot in love -- but also by the hagiographic accounts offered in the country's newspapers. These articles refer to the party as a "powerful spiritual force" that has never stopped "achieving new victories" for the nation.
The truth is somewhere between Chang and Halliday's spine-tingling horror story and the fairy tale endorsed by the party. With that in mind, what follows are five pairs of the Chinese Communist Party's interrelated triumphs and tragedies. This list is not intended to deliver a final verdict on the party's 90 years of existence, but to remind us that, while its failures have been very bad indeed, its accomplishments illustrate why some in China will sincerely wish the party a happy birthday.
Success story: The Communist Party helped China repel foreign threats.
Early in its history, the CCP played an important role in anti-imperialist mass struggles that galvanized the Chinese population. During the May 30 Movement of 1925, for example, it helped to bring thousands of protesters to the streets to decry the mistreatment of Chinese workers in Japanese mills, and it spearheaded major boycotts of Japanese goods when that country began making military incursions into north China in the 1930s.
Later, the Red Army contributed greatly to the 1945 rout of Japanese invaders, earning a reputation as determined and selfless guerrilla fighters and beginning the process of finally ending what the party refers to as China's "century of humiliation."
The CCP sometimes exaggerates its role in defeating imperialism and downplays the complementary activities of other groups, but it still has a patriotic and nationalistic record that is a source of pride for many Chinese.
But don't forget: The CCP's fear-mongering over foreign threats.
Time and time again, the party has used the bogeymen of international conspiracies and foreign influence to justify harsh acts of repression. In the 1950s and 1960s, people were persecuted as "capitalist roaders" due to having relatives in the West. When CCP leader Deng Xiaoping tried to defend China's violent crackdown that curtailed the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests, he invoked the specter of "bad influences from the West."
This paranoid strain of Chinese politics remains alive and well. It shows through in official references to foreign machinations and international ties as the cause of expressions of domestic discontent, such as when a Chinese official attributed unrest in Xinjiang to "hostile forces at home and abroad" that had stirred up trouble among local Muslims.
Success story: The CCP increased life expectancy and standards of living.
Even despite Mao's failed social-engineering policies in the late 1950s and 1960s, life expectancy rates rose sharply during his years in power -- and have, much less surprisingly, continued rising in recent decades during the economic boom. A baby born in Shanghai can now expect to live longer than one born in New York City. And though areas inland from Shanghai and other unusually prosperous cities of the eastern seaboard have not seen living standards and life expectancy rise as swiftly, millions have been lifted out of poverty throughout the country.
But don't forget: The Great Leap Forward's disastrous famine.
The biggest tragedy of the Mao years was the enormous loss of life -- estimated in the tens of millions -- caused by starvation due to his "Great Leap Forward." This attempt at central economic planning, which included a call for farmers to concentrate on making steel in backyard furnaces rather than focus on their crops (due to Mao's obsession with having China catch up rapidly with the West), deserves the lion's share of the blame for this disaster.
Success story: The CCP oversaw China's transformation into an international economic superpower.
China's economic rise, which has lifted millions out of poverty, is one of the most important stories of our time. A country that was a poster child for starvation in the last century now finds itself able to export food to foreign lands hit by natural disasters.
The party can also boast of overseeing China's return to international prominence. It has hosted global mega-events such as the 2008 Olympics and last year's World's Fair, enjoys increasing influence in Africa and Latin America, and has built trains and airports that are the envy of the developing world. China is once again the dominant regional power in Asia, earning the respect of its neighbors while also inspiring justifiable wariness.
But don't forget: The party has allowed new forms of corruption to flourish.
The Communist Party has also earned scorn for its leaders' tendency to line their own pockets. The CCP's corruption and nepotism have an especially delegitimizing effect because they so directly mirror the aspects of Chiang Kai-shek's Nationalist Party that Mao and his followers railed against in the 1940s. The upheaval of 1989, for example, began with posters that focused not on "democracy" but on nepotism and immorality within the CCP's top echelons.
The party claims to be determined to stamp out corruption within its ranks, and it periodically punishes high-profile figures for bribe-taking and other related crimes. However, there is widespread skepticism on this front. High-level officials who are widely believed to be corrupt remain immune from prosecution, and popular anger has also been heightened by persistent reports that officials have squirreled away billions of dollars in overseas accounts.
Success story: The CCP's policies have resulted in soaring literacy rates.
The party made dramatic moves to bring basic reading skills to broad swaths of the population after taking power in 1949. They did so by expanding public schooling, while also issuing primers and launching a learn-to-read publicity effort that specifically targeted adult groups, including rural women, who had missed out on formal education in their youth.
As a result, literacy rates rose rapidly. Official statistics report that literacy jumped from 20 percent in 1950 to more than 85 percent today -- and this is one instance in which the government's numbers seem roughly accurate. One often overlooked factor that made the post-Mao economic boom possible was that the Great Helmsman's successors inherited a labor force that was better fed and better educated than its counterparts in many other parts of the developing world.
But don't forget: The party has also stifled freedom of expression.
Unfortunately, being able to read and being able to read works that express a wide range of opinions are very different things. The CCP has continually placed limits on what can be published and how the media can cover stories.
In recent decades, the party has relaxed its restrictions slightly, but censorship is still a major issue. Not only are books about hot-button political topics, such as the Dalai Lama, routinely banned, but works that deal with sensitive historical issues can cause trouble for those involved. Last year, for example, a book about forced relocations caused by the construction of a dam in the 1950s led to the arrest of the work's author and also the publication's printer.
The party has also been all too willing to persecute those whom it sees as going too far in criticizing or mocking the government. In the past year alone, the CCP has cracked down on high-profile intellectuals such as Nobel Peace Prize laureate Liu Xiaobo, who remains in prison, and Chinese artist Ai Weiwei, who was recently released on bail under the condition that he eschews writing about politics. And the party has also taken censorship into the digital age: Both Liu and Ai have mentioned that they got in trouble in large part due to what they have written in cyberspace.
Success story: The CCP has pioneered gender equality in China.
Mao focused on women's rights in one of his most famous tracts, which made the case that Chinese women had to contend with a form of domination that went above and beyond that experienced by males -- the power that husbands had over wives.
Shortly after taking power, the party passed the 1950 Marriage Law, which stands out as a major achievement in official championing of gender equality. The law promoted the idea that women should have exactly the same rights as men in marriage and divorce. This was a radical move for China, in light of cultural traditions that favored men and often treated women as merely temporary members of the family into which they married. Indeed, it would have been a radical document in many parts of the world at the time, and it still would be a radical one in quite a few countries.
But don't forget: The party has consistently failed to introduce the rule of law.
The Communist Party has never been able to introduce full gender equality, and its central decision-making body, the Politburo, has remained a mostly or all-male club. In recent years, it has even retreated from actively promoting this goal. China has now fallen behind when it comes to laws that protect women from workplace discrimination or, for example, prevent employers from specifying the physical attributes that a prospective waitress or female flight attendant must have.
This is symptomatic of a much larger problem: The CCP has fallen short across the board when it comes to carrying through on legal protections. The country still lacks an independent judiciary that imposes the law consistently and transparently, and which does not suffer from a yawning gap between legal rhetoric and practice. Crusading lawyers such as Xu Zhiyong, who has sought to help petitioners secure rights that are supposedly guaranteed to them, also continue to be persecuted by the government.
It is always tempting to mark such milestones in Chinese history with a reference to distance traveled and distance still to go, invoking the cliché that a "journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step." But modern China often takes steps backward even as it surges ahead. The party's biggest accomplishment may simply be its ability to defy so many predictions of its imminent demise. While that may be something for its leaders to celebrate, it has been at best a very mixed blessing for the Chinese people. |
狗仔卡
发表于 2011-7-3 14:24
提升卡
变色卡
抢沙发
千斤顶
显身卡
发表于 2011-7-3 15:46
再拿矮毛毛说事，你们真的就完蛋了。矮毛毛就是个蛋，不是个人。
