This thesis appeared in the influential Communist magazine Qiushi. The "examples" are those of the Arab countries, who "tried to adopt this form of government and are now in chaos. The West believes its democracy is a universal value, but it has some inherent defects."

Beijing (AsiaNews) - Copying Western-style democracy "only leads to disaster. Just look at Egypt, Afghanistan, Libya, Iraq ... They tried to adopt this form of government and are now in chaos". This is the summary of a lengthy article published in the latest edition of Qiushi, the influential magazine published by the Communist Party of China, which carefully avoids any reference to Hong Kong.

According to the author, "the West always brags that its own democracy is a 'universal value' and denies there is any other form of democracy. But Western democracy has innate internal flaws and certainly is not a 'universal value'; its blind copying can only lead to disaster".

Without any mention of the riots fomented by Islamic extremists or neo-colonization of many countries - including China - the article argues that this assumption "is shown by Arab countries, which are now in chaos" after trying to establish a Western-style democracy.

Even without making any reference, it is a clear nod to the protests that are shaking Hong Kong. The population of the Territory has long called for Beijing to grant - as required by the agreements made prior to the return to the motherland - of a true universal suffrage. China has rejected these demands, fearing that such concessions could foment similar requests in Tibet and Xinjiang provinces which have been seeking more autonomy from the central government.

 

• china
• democracy
• west
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• protests