Introduction
China is an imposing player in the global political field. The country has been run by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) since 1949, despite a significant threat to its rule arising during the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests (Maizland & Albert, 2022). In recent years, the party gained new momentum and regained more power over the country with the election of Xi Jinping as the general secretary in 2012 and President in 2013 (Maizland & Albert, 2022). Overall, the Tiananmen Square protests can be viewed as a solidifying event in CCP history, allowing the party to remain the sole political party in China.
The Role of the Tiananmen Square Protests in Chinese Political History
The Tiananmen Square demonstrations led by Chinese students are infamous in the country’s history. The protests were spurred by the growing dissatisfaction of the citizenry with the government, corruption within it, and economic decline (Frontline, 2020). The weeks-long uprising culminated in the massacre of the protesters on June 4, 1989, authorized by the Chinese government (Trautwein, 2019).
The protests threatened the party’s stability and the country’s political system as a whole. The decision to clear the rioters with military force marked the country’s becoming an authoritarian state with a top-down political system that thrives on repressing opposition (Trautwein, 2019). Although Tiananmen-level conflicts have not happened in the country since 1989, the Chinese government is often accused of disposing of dissidents within the party through anticorruption policies (Maizland & Albert, 2022). Consequently, to date, the CPP is not challenged by any significant opposition and remains the sole political power in the country.
Conclusion
In summary, the government’s response illustrates that the primary goal of the CPP is to retain power by any means necessary, regardless of whether the country and its people benefit from its policies. The Tiananmen Square protests were answered by violence because the party was threatened by the people’s loss of trust and dissatisfaction with the government. Meanwhile, the current opposition is being silently ousted through legislation. Thus, by utilizing different methods to quell resistance, the CPP has retained a monopoly over political power in China.
References
Frontline. (2020). The Tank Man [Video]. YouTube. Web.
Maizland, L., & Albert, E. (2022). The Chinese Communist Party. Council on Foreign Relations. Web.
Trautwein, C. (2019). How China has changed since Tiananmen Square. Frontline. Web.