Against Privatization in China: A Historical and Empirical Argument

Reform in China’s urban public sector has been so contentious that the nature, function, validity and viability of state firms require clarifications. First of a two-part critique, this essay assesses the outcomes and wider consequences of China’s largely free wheeling process of privatization as compared to the rationale claimed for its instigation. By identifying the ideological and political forces behind that process, the essay further seeks to explain the erosion of public policy capacities pivotal for social defence in market globalization, thereby demonstrating the need to reorient the reform. Losing the opportunity to reinvigorate a sizable and strong state sector capable of healthy interactions with other sectors is shown to be especially damaging in developing and transitional societies, which in turn negatively impacts both global economy and ecology.