WORLD SOCIAL SUMMIT 2008
'WSS: Bell, in China no revival of the authoritarism'

"How Confucianism answers to modern anxieties": this is the reading key that Daniel Bell, teacher of the Chinese Tsinghua University in Beijing offered by analyzing the development of the Chinese society. With his speech held at World Social Summit organized by Fondazione Roma that ends today in the Capital city, he said: "we must not fear a revival of the dictatorial culture in China" and invited the western societies not to use their moral frames to understand others".

To fight the "constant anxiety in today's world, some countries are becoming more and more traditional". China is an example and Confucianism represents one of these paths. In analysing the Chinese society, Bell says: "the more China becomes modernized, the more it becomes individualist and Confucianism helps to eliminate anxieties". We are often worried, says Bell "whether China uses Confucianism in a wrong way, as it had already occurred in Chinese imperial history". In the past dictatorial governments used Confucianism as a "patriarchal government instrument, which was preaching the status quo". Bell makes the worries of international observers less dramatic: "during the last thirty years, China abandoned totalitarism. Today in China, there are more personal rights that in the past".

With regards to Confucianism applied to education, according to Bell "we have a lot to learn from the understanding of Confucianism". He meant for example to "import the classics". This created a new cultural, educational model based on "real learning phases".

Confucius was also preaching the principle of meritocracy in politics. And this consists of a principle different from democracy, based on the election of the most voted person. According to this principle, says Bell, "it is important to select who has a political judgement higher than the average". And he distinguishes "the moral judgement from the political one". The former depends also on maturity.

"Confucian intellectuals proposed a bicameral legislation found on a meritocratic chamber and an electoral chamber". The operation of the legislative body is based on this bicameral system that is different from the democratic system, says Bell, but it is not less powerful for this reason.

Bell defines some limits to democracy and proposes a reflection: is it "really the best way to face the global heating issue?".

Analysing what he thinks it is a "different aspect compared to liberal democracy", Bells says that in China the state takes care of the poor, creating common emotional foundations and building a principle of solidarity on those. The "employees" says Bell "share emotions and therefore generate" reciprocal loyalty with employers.

With regards to press, Bell reminds the difference with western media, that emphasize bad news. "In China - says Bell - people want to hear good news" and they expect "media to support solidarity values".