Dr Bulbul Siddiqi is the Director of Confucius Institute and Professor, North South University
China has transformed into a prosperous country with the fastest-growing economy. It has become a role model for many developing countries that aspire to be socialist states.
This journey began with the Great Chinese Revolution in 1949 under the leadership of Mao Zedong, who successfully started implementing socialism with Chinese characteristics.
A great deal can be learnt from China's experiences of modernisation and development, which successfully challenged the Western model of progress.
Before moving on to the implications for Bangladesh, the concept of socialism with Chinese characteristics requires thorough discussion.
The idea of socialism comes from the theoretical contributions of the famous European social thinker Karl Marx, who was buried in Highgate Cemetery in London.
Socialism with Chinese characteristics is an improvised version of the ideas of Karl Marx and the vision of Lenin.
This theoretical context heavily influenced the ideas of Mao Zedong.
Karl Marx developed his ideas of communism in early modern Europe.
China implemented Marxist ideas by adapting them to its socio-political context and developed its own model.
Chinese-style modernisation is the outcome of a genuine adaptation of Marxist ideas of communism.
As the essence of Karl Marx's theory suggests, progress occurs through dialectical processes of continuous negotiation and class struggle, which may not be equally relevant today in many countries.
However, socialism with Chinese characteristics represents the precise result of applying the essence of Marxist theory in the Chinese context.
It involves adapting to the existing culture and political system of a country, which China began after the revolution and has continued ever since.
The process has not yet reached its peak; rather, China is still in the early phase of socialism, as Mr Xi Jinping stated in his famous book The Governance of China.
It is widely believed and accepted among the Chinese people that only socialism can save China, and only Chinese socialism can lead their country to development.
This belief has proven true in the Chinese context through long-term practice. Socialism with Chinese characteristics emerged with a strong theoretical base, incorporating the ideas of practice, theory and system.
In this context, practice or path refers to economic development as the central task. Economic development is not a stand-alone process; it depends on many other aspects of society, for example, political, cultural, social, ecological, and other forms of progress.
The theory entails the adaptation of Marxism to Chinese conditions.
The foundation of socialism with Chinese characteristics is based on Marxism, Leninism, and Mao Zedong's thought.
Later, Deng Xiaoping incorporated the idea of a scientific outlook on development.
The system refers to integrating these ideas into the fundamental political, basic political, and basic economic systems, along with other mechanisms.
It combines national and local democratic systems, party leadership, the population as the master of the country, and the implementation of law-based governance.
These three characteristics (path, theory and system) form the foundation of modernisation in China.
The Chinese model
While implementing socialism with Chinese characteristics, the Chinese government emphasised comprehensive and deep-level reforms in economic development, the rule of law, and combating corruption, treating these as continuous processes of modernisation.
They also highlighted their social and cultural heritage and values in all aspects of modernisation, ensuring that progress remained aligned with their rich tradition. Key areas were prioritised as essential elements of socialism in China.
The most important approach is prioritising the 'mass line' — meaning the people are the priority, and every initiative centres around them.
Thus, maintaining close ties between the people and the state has become crucial to governance. To improve the lives of the underprivileged population, China invested heavily in education for all, promoting the nationwide slogan: "No matter how poor the country is, we cannot be poor in education."
This demonstrates their commitment to universal education.
Viewing development and reform as continuous processes, China followed a flexible approach, keeping room for change and avoiding unbalanced urban–rural development, which hinders progress.
After the Great Revolution, the government immediately turned its attention to sustainable development and reform — key elements of China's progress.
As Mr Xi Jinping noted: "Doing things in a hurry is avoided, and neglecting fundamental changes of reality should be corrected."
Long-term goals have consistently prioritised infrastructural development, particularly roads and highways, which later expanded into the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) on regional and global scales.
At present, Mr Xi is advocating for two new ideas: the 'Two Mountains Theory' and 'High-Quality Development', both of which promote green and efficient development, emphasising ecology and natural resources.
Another significant characteristic of modernisation is the creation of the Chinese-style market economy, distinct from the capitalist model.
In this system, the market operates automatically, yet macro-level control by the state ensures the benefit of the masses. It represents the balance between the 'visible hand' of the state and the 'invisible hand' of the market. With this unique system, China opened to the wider world in 1978—a major reform of that era.
Improving the basic economic system was another revolutionary step.
The system, led by public ownership, allows multiple forms of ownership to coexist side by side — an important pillar of socialism.
Chinese authorities reformed the idea of ownership in 1978 when they launched the policy of reform and opening up. This has been an ongoing and evolving process.
Finally, China has promoted wide multi-tiered and institutionalised consultative democracy, which is considered a distinctive feature of its socialist democracy.
All these characteristics made socialism in China a unique system—not just the spirit of a political party, but the spirit of the entire nation.
The people work as one entity, united under the idea of the Chinese Dream. This narrative, built on history, tradition, culture, and patriotism, helps sustain the spirit of development in all aspects of life.
Implications for Bangladesh
What implications can we draw from these discussions? As Mr Xi Jinping said: "There is no such thing in the world as a development model that can be applied universally, nor is there any development path that remains carved in stone. The diversity of historical conditions determines the diversity of the development paths chosen by various countries."
For Bangladesh, several lessons can be identified:
First would be developing a Bangladeshi Dream for prosperity and development through national consensus, ensuring that this vision does not change with shifts in political regimes.
This dream must embody the 'mass line', not the aspirations of a privileged elite. Evidence-based policymaking, grounded in finding truth from facts, is crucial for identifying national priorities.
Second, after the July uprising, there is a real opportunity for transformation through reform and development. As Mao Zedong emphasised, development can bring independence and freedom from poverty and hunger, offering people a good life. Bangladesh must prioritise its 'mass line' — the backbone of the economy — ensuring that the underprivileged experience the same opportunities as the urban elite.
Development and reform can go hand in hand.
There is no universal model of development, as Bangladesh's past failures in following Western prescriptions have shown.
Development is a long journey of trial and error, requiring our own vision of a prosperous Bangladesh. Like China, we need a long-term plan, roadmap, and vision centred on people.
We must place the interests of the people at the centre of everything—not just in policy documents but in practice. For decades, development fruits have not reached the underprivileged, benefitting only a privileged minority.
There is no alternative to a people-centred, welfare-based system with Bangladeshi characteristics. Elements of a welfare state already exist—such as the public health system and universities—but without good governance, their potential remains unrealised. With proper state intervention, public services can be improved for all.
Bangladesh can also learn from China's market economy, developing a balanced and steady system free from syndicate control.
Corruption, stock manipulation, and unfair practices repeatedly harm the people. With macro-level state intervention, the market can stabilise, and the state can act where the market fails to protect citizens' interests.
Finally, just as China's revolution opened the path to development, Bangladesh now has a post-uprising opportunity to rebuild its institutions.
This is the moment to create a Bangladeshi Dream and our own pathways to modernisation. Bangladesh must move forward decisively, leaving past mistakes behind. It is now or never.
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