ABSTRACT
The Chinese government stipulated democracy as one of the main objectives of China's modernization at the 12th Party Congress in 1982. In the view of democratic forces at home and abroad, however, and even in the eyes of many Chinese citizens, China's political reform has lagged far behind market-oriented economic reforms. To socialist countries, democracy in capitalist societies is premised on rule by the few, i.e., capitalists, over the many, i.e., the workers. Democratization, however, is not compatible with the one-party system in socialist countries. In the experience of the former socialist countries, limited adoption of democratic methods and gradual expansion of freedom and rights can go hand in hand with rejecting Western-style democracy. Many scholars believe that politics and economy are intertwined so political and economic reforms need to be carried out simultaneously in the socialist countries. The motivation for reform in socialist countries comes from political and economic stagnation and a sense of crisis.
