Unit 2- China

Question 1

What is socialism?

Answer 1

Socialism is a political and economic theory or system in which factories, businesses and industries are owned by the community collectively, usually through social state.

Question 2

What is communism?

Answer 2

communism is a political and economic system under which all inequalities would be eradicated. Wealth would be distributed equally. Unlike socialism a communist country would be a stateless society.

Question 3

3 examples of political institutions?

Answer 3

• The Chinese communist party
• The politburo
• The National People’s Congress

Question 4

What is the Chinese communist party?

Answer 4

They have ruled the country since 1949.
The current leader is Xi Jinping.
The party has over 87 million members.
The party oversees and influences many aspects of people lives.
Members get access to better information, their children get better schooling, and many jobs are only open to members.

Question 5

What is the Politburo?

Answer 5

The country’s most senior decision making body and contains important people who work as part of the standing committee, heading a pyramid of power which tops every village and workplace.
Politburo members have never faced a competitive election, making it to the top thanks to their patrons, abilities.
Once a decision has been made all members are bound to it.
New members are chosen only after rigorous discussion and investigation of their backgrounds.

Question 6

What is the national people’s congress?

Answer 6

The congress is made up of nearly 3,000 delegates elected by China’s provinces. Delegates hold office for five years, and the full congress is convened for one session each year.
It meets every couple of months.
Delegates loyalty is to the party and then 2nd to the congress.

Question 7

Examples of political participation and limitations?

Answer 7

• Joining the CCP
• Voting in elections
• Campaigning during elections
• Taking part in protests and demonstrations

Question 8

How do people join the CCP?

Answer 8

Chinese citizens have the right to join the CCP. Applicants need to be recommended by 2 or more existing members and then undergo exhaustive checks into their background and examination by their local party branch. They can face a years probation, involving training.
The CCP only makes up 6% of China’s population.

Question 9

How can China vote in elections?

Answer 9

Elections are held every 3 years.
After a village election the winner is usually invited to join the CCP.
All citizens above the age of 18 have the right to vote and can be elected. Such an election comprised usually over no more than 2000 voters and the first past the post system is used in determining the winner.

Question 10

How can people campaign during elections?

Answer 10

Chinese citizens have the right to campaign during village elections. Campaigning can include, posters, banners, door to door visits, badges, mega phones and public speeches. Campaigning has increased significantly at a local level from only an estimated of 10% of people campaigning in 2005 to well over 80% of people on 2014. However, this right is limited by the CCP and they keep a close eye on all campaigning groups.

Question 11

How do people take part in protests and demonstrations?

Answer 11

While Chinese citizens can take part in protests, they are restricted in the areas that they are allowed to protest about. They are not allowed to take part in demonstrations which criticise the CCP or the political system. To be allowed to protest you must apply to the CCP for permission.
If you are found to be protesting against the CCP you can find yourself with a heavy jail sentences in prison camps.

Question 12

What 3 ways did Deng Xiaping desire to communicate with the western world?

Answer 12

1. Special economic zones (SEZ’s)
2. Household responsibility system
3. Four modernisations

Question 13

What is the most successful SEZ in China?

Answer 13

Shenzen

Question 14

How many people live in Shenzen?

Answer 14

Just over 12 million people. Just over 30 years ago it was a small fishing village

Question 15

What is the special economic zone (SEZ’s)?

Answer 15

Special economic zones were essentially free trade areas where the government reduced tariffs or provided financial support to encourage economic investment. SEZs allowed geographical regions to run their economy separately from the rest of the country.

Question 16

What was the cost of living in Shenzen?

Answer 16

Considerably lower than living in Hong-Kong.

Question 17

What was the household responsibility system?

Answer 17

Each family was independently responsible for managing plots of land. The decisions of what to produce and how to produce are made by farmers.

Question 18

What is the four modernisations?

Answer 18

Reforms in agriculture, industry, science and technology and the army.

Question 19

What did modernisations in agriculture mean?

Answer 19

That the emphasis on human labour in the communes was replaced by machinery. Modern fertilisers, pesticides and technology increased agricultural output and ensure more reliable food supplies.

Question 20

What did modernisations in the industry lead to?

Answer 20

Rapid developments in the chemical, textile, metal and engineering industries which created greater efficiency and productivity.

Question 21

What did modernisations in in science and technology mean?

Answer 21

Was spurred on when the scientists who had been imprisoned or send to work as peasants in the communes were released and their skills employed. Schools and universities were encouraged to help more gain qualifications to feed the research projects into modern technology, so money was put into universities to allow more people to study in these fields.
The fourth modernisation involved defence and the modernisation of the armed forces.

Question 22

China costumes more what than any other nation?

Answer 22

Steel, coal, meat and grain

Question 23

What happened in 1990 in China?

Answer 23

Stock markets opened in shanghai and Shenzhen

Question 24

examples of human rights in China?

Answer 24

Internet access, Tibet, legal system, detention without trial, death penalty, work camps (laogai)

Question 25

Outside of hotels in China where else is best for Wi-Fi?

Answer 25

Starbucks

Question 26

What’s different in rural areas when it comes to internet connection?

Answer 26

There’re limited or some with no connection at all. The more remote the place the more limited the access to the Internet.

Question 27

What social media websites are not found in China?

Answer 27

Facebook, YouTube, Twitter and other social media site have still not reached China’s mainland .

Question 28

Is Tibet seperate from China?

Answer 28

Tibet currently isn’t a separate country; it is part of China.

Question 29

What happens with tibets media?

Answer 29

Is tightly controlled by the Chinese leadership, making it difficult to determine accurately the scope of the human rights abuses.

Question 30

What is China’s death penalty?

Answer 30

The death sentence continues to be imposed after unfair trials. Statistics on death sentences and executions remains classified as state secrets and while execution numbers in the thousand, the government does not release actual figures.

Question 31

What were the work camps in China?

Answer 31

Many of those found guilty of crimes in China, if not given the death penalty, will find themselves in prison worm camps or laogai where conditions are extremely harsh.

Question 32

Prisoners in work camps were:

Answer 32

• routinely beaten or tortured
• denied sleep, adequate food or clothing and access to friends and family
• subjected to ‘re-education’ it thought reform
• forced to work, often dangerous or unhealthy jobs

Question 33

What is a hukou system?

Answer 33

Is a family registration program that serves as a domestic passport, regulation population distribution and rural-to-urban migration.

Question 34

What are shanty towns like in China?

Answer 34

Are becoming the worlds worst. The number of shanty towns in China has exploded. Anhui had 800,000 households living in shanty towns in 2008.

Question 35

Negatives to shanty towns?

Answer 35

• overcrowding
• fires
• overpopulation
• competition for jobs
• disease
• lack of space
• infrastructure

Question 36

What does China aim to do to shanty towns?

Answer 36

By 2020 China aim to spend 1 trillion yuan, improving conditions in shanty towns. It also aims to build some high rise flats, this is difficult however due to the lack of space.

Question 37

What is the ‘iron rice bowl’?

Answer 37

Is a Chinese idiom which referred to the now abolished system guaranteed lifetime employment.

Question 38

What happened when communists took control?

Answer 38

All workers and farmers were put under state control. Their work units controlled every aspect of daily life, including the allocation of housing, food and clothing. They also decided who could marry and when.

Question 39

What is a problem with employment in China?

Answer 39

Too many over qualified citizens. Youth employment in China is getting worse, the country is not creating a sufficient number of high-quality positions to soak up its educated youngsters

Question 40

What is the increase in monthly pay from 2011 to 2012 with those who have graduated?

Answer 40

2011- 282 yuan

2012- 3,048 yuan

Question 41

What is capitalism?

Answer 41

Capitalism is a set of ideas which forms the basis of the way some countries run the economy. It is an economic ideology. The USA, UK, France, Japan and Germany are examples of countries that have capitalist economic systems.