Chinese Military, Economic, and Political Reform: Survey and Chronology.

摘要

During the second half of 1987, the prospects for further comprehensive reform of China's economic and political systems improved with the victory of reformists over their leftist opponents at the 13th Chinese Communist Party (CCP) Congress (25 October-2 November 1987). Zhao Ziyang, elected as CCP General Secretary by the Congress, expounded the theory of the initial stage of socialism, an ideological justification for further economic and political reform and experimentation. Although many powerful CCP leaders doubtless disagreed with or had reservations about some of the reforms Zhao proposed, their disagreements generally reflected concern over the timing or likely economic effect of particular reforms or the conflicting interests of particular industrial or bureaucratic constituencies. Disagreements were less likely to result from ideological concerns or to be expressed in the absolute, uncompromising terms of the leftists. A number of particular reforms of the military, economic, and political structures were introduced at the working level. The People's Liberation Army (PLA) continued its noncontroversial reforms intended to increase military proficiency through providing better training for officers and restructuring military units to enable them to coordinate various service arms such as artillery, infantry, and armor. Reforms in equipment development and supply introduced contracts and competitive bidding to the military-industrial sector. Markets for foods, capital, raw materials, and urban real estate continued to expand, and party leaders, although postponing price reform, pressed state factories to adopt managerial responsibility systems to become more productive and responsive to market demands.