(Note by the editor: Below is the English outline of the speech by Yao Cheng, the speaker for the fourth of “The Way Out for China” seminars by the Wei Jingsheng Foundation on March 22, 2016. For a complete contents of this one hour long speech, please read the Chinese version or visit the Youtube links which are listed at the end of this English version.)
Nationalization of the Military Is the Fundamental Guarantee of Social Stability in China (outline of the speech)
— Yao Cheng
Ladies and gentlemen,
At the invitation of the Wei Jingsheng Foundation, I am here to discuss my personal view of the military issues in the course of the democratic movement for your reference. My topic today is “Nationalization of the Military Is the Fundamental Guarantee of Social Stability in China”.
First, let us clarify the definition and substance of the nationalization of the military.
The nationalization of the military is a proposition in the field of military and political science, that is, the military is not divided along partisan lines and political parties. It belongs all the people of a country; the unification of military orders and decrees from the government is an important symbol of the democratic countries.
The essence of the nationalization of the military is that the military must not become a tool for one political party, a tool for private interference, or a means to affect domestic politics. That is, it should not be used to protect a certain political party or regime, and the military should not be subject to the orders of certain political parties. The duty of the military personnel is only to defend the country and serve all the people. The opposite of the nationalization of the military is the privatization of the military. Here I explain the important significance about the work to promote the nationalization of the military from five aspects.
First, military nationalization is the primary condition of a democratic constitutional system.
Throughout the history of mankind, both in China and foreign countries, the rulers taking over the country basically rely on violence. Therefore the dynasty is always in warfare for or against replacement, the destruction/reconstruction of civilization is a vicious cycle, and each change is accompanied by people’s blood.
After the twentieth century, especially after experiencing two world wars, the opposition against dictatorship and the establishment of democratic systems became a common understanding. Democracy, freedom and human rights became universal values. Especially after the collapse of the Soviet Union, the communist regimes were abandoned by the vast majority of countries. As of now, 174 of the 193 countries in the world have established democracies, only 19 are authoritarian countries, and only five of the 19 autocratic countries are communist despotisms. The most important thing of democratic systems is the military is separated from politics, without interference.
Second, “a regime is produced from the gun barrel” is bandit logic.
This “regime is produce from the gun barrel”is the action principle for the Communist Party to establish, lead, and control the military force, as well as the biggest challenge for us to promote democracy in the Mainland China today.
We must point out that in the past sixty years of the establishment of the Communist regime, in order to maintain their dictatorship, the number of people killed in China was far more than the sum of people killed in the two world wars. We must also let people realize that in the process of implementing the democratic system, as long as the military maintains neutral in politics, China will not have a civil war; on the other hand, once the political party splits, with the military standing on one side and/or the other, it will be difficult to avoid civil war. The involvement of the military is the biggest destabilizing factor.
Third, military nationalization is also to ensure the military’s own security and its need for its interests.
In recent years, veterans rights defending has highlighted the internal crisis of the armed forces. From the surface, Veterans’ rights defending seem to be mainly for their claims for welfare and security. But in fact, it reflects the consistent practice of the Communist regime which kills the donkey once it finished its work.
The Communist regime has always carried out the military ideology of the people’s war. Therefore, the number of troops has been the highest in the world, with a maximum once reached seven million. After several major reductions, the current number in active duty remains at more than three million (including the Armed Police). The annual recruitment of new troops also in hundreds of thousands. When it is needed, the military expands infinitely; otherwise it is kicked to the side.
Fourth, about the external combat environment faced by the Chinese Communist military.
It should be said that there is the possibility of a military conflict between China and all its neighboring countries. The Communist regime has a certain advantage in military strength relative to neighboring countries, while the possibility of a fairly sizable war between neighboring countries is not too great. But the situation at sea is not the same. This possible conflict was mainly in two directions, the Taiwan Strait and the South China Sea. Now the Korean peninsula is also added.
Fifth is what the democracy movement should do during the process of military nationalization.
1) We should not have the illusion that the Communist regime will take the initiative to put down the guns.
2) In an effort to hold a peaceful evolution as our main purpose, we need to put more effort into pushing for the military nationalization in China.
3) We should start military preparations without delay.
Finally, I want take this opportunity to say a few words to the Chinese military personnel who are serving in China about future…
Thank you all for listening.
(March 22, 2017 in Washington)
