Khor Eng Lee

China's Renaissance Khor Eng Lee

After a century of humiliation, China re-emerged as an independent and sovereign nation following the1949 Communist victory in the post-WW2 civil war. Chairman Mao Tse-tung said that "the Chinese people (then) comprising one quarter of humanity, have now stood up..." His grand mission, as well as the aspiration of many Chinese, was for China "to become rich and strong" again, which it had been historically for millennia. From a dirt poor country, China's phenomenal progress led to its rise as the world's second largest economy in 2010; its GDP grew from US$216.8 billion in 1978 to US$8.2 trillion in 2012. New China has freed over 700 million people from the clutches of extreme poverty -- more than twice the present population of the United States. China's urbanization has also been unparalleled in history -- from 17.9% (180 million urban residents) in 1978 to 51.27% (710 million) by the end of 2012, when its urban population exceeded its rural for the first time in its long history of over 5,000 years. China's previous renaissance occurred during the Northern Song dynasty (960-1126)., about one millennium ago. The present leadership in Beijing has described the "Chinese Dream" as a work in progress over a time span of one century (1949-2049), when China will be completely reconstructed and rejuvenated. The "rise of China" has been named the top news story of the 21st century by the Global Language Monitor. And, it's probably the greatest story ever of the development and transformation of a major nation in the annals of the human race.