Having worked and lived in China for years, I have had the pleasure (and miss fortune) of seeing China develop into the globalised super power that it is today.
The former oppression of the Maoist regime has long left, and though I am afraid to admit it, as has the few benefits of a pure communist society.
As China opened itself to foreign direct investment and established special enterprise zones, real GDP growth within the country has been exponential since the arrival of Deng Xiaoping in the 1980s. China is unequivocally a wealthy country.
"Fantastic!" I hear you cry. Well, no. Whilst GDP has grown so too has the gap between the rich and the poor. It pains me to know that high numbers of the working Chinese live on as little as a $1 a day.
Yes, special enterprise zones have brought about a wealthy urban population but relative poverty within rural areas is rife, leading to high levels of rural to urban migration, most ending in absolute poverty on a Shanghai street.
Employment opportunities are reserved for the few as this economic powerhouse continues to pollute the atmosphere on a global scale.
With this economy driven by exports and investment, could it be a matter of time before these TNCs leave and reality kicks in for the Chinese once again.
The irony, China, is considered a communist country. Call me an old lefty, but this is not the socialism I subscribed to during the late 1960s.
