From a GDP of US$150 billion to US$15 trillion in 42 years. This is a phenomenal growth of 100 times, never seen in the history of human civilisation for a big country, or any country big or small. This is China in 2021, from a poverty stricken agrarian economy that had nothing but small machinery and village factories supporting agricultural produces to a modern industrial economy producing practically anything on earth that is needed by humankind, and the biggest consumer market in the world.
The economic achievement of China, with a population of 1.45b, did not come easy. After a century of humiliation and oppression and exploitation by the western powers, China was bankrupt as a country in every sense of the word. A country with 90 per cent of its people living in poverty, 90 per cent of its people uneducated, barely any schools and a handful of under equipped tertiary institutions, barely any industrial base to talk about, and facing isolation and sanctions by the western economic and military powers, China and Chinese could not expect to see daylight for eons to come like many under developed and ex colonies of the West. It was unimaginable then to think of what China is today, a global economy and a global power at par with the number one super power, the USA, and in the process of being number one, over taking the Americans in a matter of years, maybe less than 10 years.
1949, China broke free from all external forces of Imperialism and oppression to be once again an independent state, as a new nation, a republic, and to rebuild itself literary from ground zero. The task was intimidating and extremely difficult as it was not allowed to develop freely as a free nation. The West imposed a complete locked down on China, cutting it off from international trade, technology and economic assistance. It was a case of only the Chinese to help themselves with their bare hands and elementary tools.
China was forced to experiment itself to leap out of the poverty trap to give its people a better life, but with limited resources and technology and with limited funds and talents, the task was daunting. Today, many still sneered at the failure of the Great Leap Forward, an economic plan for self sufficiency and to hasten the speed of economic development in the 1960s. Given the circumstances and the unsupportive nature that brought drought and flood to lay waste the great plains of China, the Chinese people took a big toll with famines, deaths and suffering all over the country.
There was no help coming from the international community, definitely not from the hypocritical West that were hell bent on strangling China and the Chinese people to death. There was no foreign aid, no Red Cross, no humanitarian organisations to lighten the suffering of the Chinese people. The Chinese people tighten their belt and ploughed on, slogging day and night, many living in absolute poverty. No meat on the table. An egg was a luxury that few were able to afford or to have and often shared by a few persons.
All kinds of obstacles were thrown into the path of China and the Chinese people to keep them poor and undeveloped in all fields. China still chucked along furiously, in quiet fury, longing for a better day when they could have 3 decent meals a day and a decent roof over their heads.
In the face of grave depravity and poverty and isolation, China still managed to produce the Atomic and Hydrogen bombs. 100,000 men and women disappeared into the wilderness to achieve this feat. They went into the deserts of Mongolia without their families knowing where they had gone and what they were doing. They exchanged their names for a number to protect themselves from assassination attempts, and their families from blackmailed. The cruel fate we saw today of many Iranian scientists, assassinated by the West for their roles in advancing their nation's goal of scientific development in nuclear technology. The 100,000 nameless Chinese were saved from this cruel fate and survived and built the bombs for China.
A detente with the West came in 1972 when Nixon visited China and reestablished diplomatic relations and allowed freer movement of people, exchanges of scientific knowledge and technology in exchange for China's support against the Russians. This was followed with the opening up of trade and lifting of sanctions and isolation in many fields.
In 1978 China under Deng's leadership China opened its economy to international trade and have more exchanges with the world. The door to the WTO was opened in 2001 when the Americans relented with the prospect of exporting their dirty factories and labour intensive industries to China to take advantage of China's cheap labour. China ate the humble pie, did the dirty jobs that the West had given up doing and at dirt cheap prices.
China was willing to start from scratch, to learn everything they could and to acquire skills and knowledge in the process, to rebuild its economy. There was no dispute about the West having a bigger slice of the pie, no criticism and acrimony about the West exploiting the Chinese labour. The Chinese people continue to slog along, quietly, no protest, no demonstration, no strikes. It was too good to be true for the western companies, making huge profits and paying very low wages for it.
China and the Chinese people learnt very quickly, from just making shoes and copies of everything, they acquired new knowledge and skills and funds to do it on their own. They innovated and improved on whatever they had learnt and done for the West. And the rest is history.
The poor Chinese peasants have come knocking at the doors of every country in the world, in Europe and the Americas, with stash of cash to spend, the nouveau riche of the 21st Century.
Then came the meeting in Anchorage, Alaska, USA. The Chinese have been bidding their time under the guidance of Deng's policy of working quietly and not to speak up to ruffle anyone's feathers. The Americans were still expecting the Chinese to bend their heads when lectured by the West, speak politely and not to talk back. And when slapped by the West, just turn the other cheek. The Chinaman, condemned to be railway workers, cooks and laundrymen, berated the Americans for their bad behaviour as a hegemonic power, and talking down to the Americans as the new super power to be reckoned with.
This time, on 18 Mar 2021, the Chinese stood up and told the Americans they would not take American white lies anymore. Instead of being lectured by the Americans about their domestic affairs and unacceptable behaviour, the Chinese gave the Americans a lecture they would never forget. The Americans are not fit, not qualified to lecture Chinese for fabricated crimes that the Americans had been committing and perpetuating for centuries, in the genocide of Red Indians, inhuman treatment and abuses of the black Americans, for abuses of power and hegemony in invading countries, in conducting regime change, in wars etc etc.
The Chinese gave notice to the Americans that henceforth, if the Americans do not stop meddling in China's domestic affairs or the domestic affairs of other countries, China would be putting its fingers into American domestic affairs and air American's dirty laundry to the world. The Chinese told the Americans in no uncertain terms, to mind their own business, and China would mind its own. China would deal with the Americans in exactly the same way as the Americans think fit to deal with China.
The Chinese Miracle has arrived, a new and rich China, economically strong and wealthy, scientifically and technologically on par with the Americans and surpassing the Americans in many fields, would be talking down to the Americans, the number two super power, with confidence and strength.
The Americans can try to make America Great Again, if they could, in trade, science and technology. They could no longer use military might to threaten and coerce the Chinese Miracle not to overtake them and be better and richer and stronger than the Americans. The Chinese have every right to be rich and live a better life without having to fight a war for dominance. To be rich, to want to live well, is not a crime against anyone or any country. This is not a threat to anyone or any country. Every country has the same right as the Chinese and the Americans to want to live well and good. This is basic human right and freedom for every human bean on earth.
The Chinese Miracle is going to become the nightmare of the Americans. From virtually penniless, they have amassed a national reserve of US$3 trillion. On the other hand the Americans have gone from being the richest country to a poor country with a national debt exceeding US$30 trillion. China is now the world's biggest creditor and banker while the USA is the biggest debtor and borrower of the world.
The Chinese Miracle is the new reality waiting to explode and overturn the American apple cart.
