Unbridled Evil: The Corrupt Reign of Jiang Zemin in China | Chapter 3, Part I

A translation of the book 'The Real Jiang Zemin' from the original Chinese

Former Chinese leader Jiang Zemin attends the 18th Communist Party Congress in Beijing on Nov. 14, 2012. Lintao Zhang/Getty Images

Read the series here: Unbridled Evil

The Reality Behind China’s Economic ‘Miracle’ (Part I)

Section 1: State-Owned Enterprises

• Unprofitable SOEs
  Jiang’s SOE ‘Reforms’
  Private Business Owners Join the Party

Section 2: Stock Market

• The ATM Machine for State Enterprises
  ‘Fool and Swindle the Investors’
  A Market That Does Not Pay
  Big Losses for Ordinary Investors

Section 3: Land Seizures, Demolitions, & Evictions

• The Party’ Land Policy
  The Grand Land Grab
  Violence Erupts as Farmers Evicted
  Self-Immolation Protests
  Meager Compensation

Section 1: State-Owned Enterprises

Unprofitable SOEs

China’s industrial structure took shape in the 1950s, based on a large-scale aid program from the Soviet Union. The Soviet model was characterized by a system of State Owned Enterprises (SOEs) in key sectors. Inefficient and still pervasive today, SOEs have been the founding components of the Chinese economy.

In a one-party system, the Communist Party must control the nation’s economic lifelines, and that includes the SOEs. The management of these enterprises freely administer the state’s assets, while taking no responsibilities for their losses. The senior executives only need please their superiors who appointed them.