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and, following the virtual coup d'état against Mao's widow, as Party leader also. The objectives which Hua set were those
the Four propounded by Chou En-lai as long ago as 1963 Modernisations which would turn China's economy into that of an advanced state. Complementary to this was the opening to the West. Teng Hsiao-ping, General Secretary of the Party until 1956 and closely associated with Chod until the latter's death in 1976, was restored to power and together with Hua ruled the country.
10.
It is a
This is basically still the present situation. hopeful moment. At the end of a long period of travail Chin is at last well placed to attempt to catch up with the modern world and is at last ready to approach the business of learning from advanced Western nations in the necessary spirit of operness and modesty. There are signs of greater freedom in internal discussion and attempts to develop a legal system and assert some kind of equality before the law. But this is still a Communist state, with all the inefficiencies, rigidities, suppressions and organised lying which any such state entails. It is still heavily encumbered with the legacy of Mao. It is economically backward. Ferhaps most dangerous of all, it is without any tradition of internal political flexibility or moderation. The system has in the past seemed to require that progress is made, not in a steady, compromise fashion, but in a series of zigs and zags, accompanied by murderous political in-fighting as one "line struggle" succeeds
another.
The Present Situation
11.
Against this background we can examine the most recent levolopmeats. Why do we have the present sweeping rehabilitations, the manoeuvring, the rash of posters and the appeals to democracy?
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/In part