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That’s not how China works. Source, my Wife is Chinese and her father is a retired CCP member. Local officials are highly corrupt and also are terrified someth
by simonh 5y ago
That’s not how China works. Source, my Wife is Chinese and her father is a retired CCP member.
Local officials are highly corrupt and also are terrified something they are responsible for will come to the attention of the central leadership in a bad way. Thus they will bodge things for personal gain against the policies of the central leadership, and will try to ensure the central leadership don’t hear about things they very much want to hear about.
This is a terribly high risk strategy, but it’s the only one that actually works. That’s the problem with corrupt bureaucracies.
Of course once central leadership is aware of a situation they can mobilise vast resources and have absolute power to impose whatever strategy they choose. Anything or anyone in the way gets flattened. This is now happening in Hong Kong.
- tailspin2019 5y agoI'm not sure how this statement from the parent: > The CCP had an incredibly tight control over the entire country. And your comment below really disagree with one another? > Of course once central leadership is aware of a situation they can mobilise vast resources and have absolute power to impose whatever strategy they choose. Anything or anyone in the way gets flattened. I'm totally ignorant on this matter but to my reading there seems to be more in common between your two viewpoints than not.
- simonh 5y agoThe point is there are different stakeholders with mutually incompatible interests in China. It’s not monolithic and no one centre of power knows and directs everything all the time. That’s why when the central authorities come across local officials doing stuff that hurts it embarrasses them, they impose such harsh penalties, including death. You don’t have to punish behaviour that doesn’t happen.