Twenty years ago, at a crucial moment for China's reform and opening-up, then Chinese leader Deng Xiaoping made a tour of several southern cities and delivered a series of speeches. From a political perspective, Deng's tour marks the establishment of China's new authoritarianism.
Radical liberals were marginalized after the political incident in the summer of 1989, but conservative leftists resurged to interfere with the reform line. The southern speeches were mainly targeted at this tendency and paved the way for China's reform and opening-up under the guidance of the Party.
Since Deng's southern tour, China's achievements in economic reform are obvious, but political reform has stagnated. One of the legacies of Deng's southern speeches is open-mindedness and the courage for reform.
However, the reality now is that the government acts too cautiously in the political aspect, overreacting to the influences of some liberals. Some mistakenly judge the current situation as one where we are surrounded by hostile forces and overestimate the influence of radicals, which makes the government susceptible to challenges and loses the driving force for political reform.
This may risk being caught in a vicious circle. As the Chinese society can apply limited supervision over government now, if China is unwilling to advance political reform, there won't be enough supervision within the Party, which will create more corruption.
As a result, public dissatisfaction about social inequality and conflicts will increase and reach a final crisis. The even worse thing is that the government will become much more cautious and political reform will be at a standstill.
Most intellectuals in China today are not the same as those radicals in 1989 who clamored for the adoption of a Western style political system, but instead fully recognize there is no prospect for China to copy a Western path. A "Jasmine revolution" could only drive China into chaos.
Most Chinese intellectuals and the majority of Chinese society don't expect a Western style government at the current stage of development, but want stronger supervision on power through political reform.
China's development needs a new authoritarianism. The government has a firm foundation, and the new authoritarian politics should be strongly adapted to the times and have greater flexibility. They must better respond to social demands and institutional changes.
In the past 10 years, some have become rather frustrated by the stagnant process of reform. Some are calling for a second "southern tour" with the purpose to urge China to seek the direction of future reform, political reform in particular.
I entirely understand the public demand for this, but I am more hopeful to see institutional innovation created by the forthcoming 18th CPC National Congress, which will enhance the new authoritarianism and provide a stronger driving force for a democratic construction.
We have seen a growing gap between the rich and the poor, lots of small and medium-sized enterprise going bankrupt while State-owned enterprises boom, and severe official corruption due to a lack of supervision on power.
It has been exposed that many high-level officials in State-owned enterprises enjoy luxurious working conditions. This money should be used for normal people. If officials are further indulged, public dissatisfaction and social conflicts will grow.
The grassroots should enjoy more social welfare. Nowadays, China's public opinion has reached a certain level. It can't be overlooked. Letting civil society grow is an inevitable process.
However, only when the interests of the grassroots can be secured will civil society not be a platform to challenge the government.
The government should inherit Deng's spirit of reform. Political reform is not untouchable. Enhancing supervision on power, developing democracy in the system and constructing civil society are the directions of further reform.
The article was compiled by Global Times reporter Yu Jincui based on an interview with Xiao Gongqin, a history professor at Shanghai Normal University. yujincui@globaltimes.com.cn