Customer Reviews

Empire of Lies: The Truth about China in the Twenty-First Century

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Economic conservatives and neoliberal "spinners" from James Fallows and Reed Hundt through Bill Clinton (singled out in one passage) are exposed as frauds, liars and enablers for a China of modern myth in this power-packed new book.

French journalist, politician and philosopher (and why can't we get that combo in America), exposes the lies of both the Chinese Communist Party and its Western apologists, which range from hardcore economic conservative American capitalists to French communists.

There's a few basic lies that underscore the scores of surface lies both the Chinese Party and its western enablers tell.

Sorman says Lie No. 1 is that capitalism will lead to democracy. He has a clear, albeit much smaller, counterexample - Singapore, led by, ironically or not, Chinese.

Lie No. 2 is that there is a "Chinese mindset," "Chinese way of business," or whatever, that is antithetical to democracy. Variants of that include references (usually wrong ones, according to Sorman) to Confucianism, etc. Counterexample? Taiwan. Daoism, repressed in China, flourishes there along with Confucianism, Buddhism and Protestant and Catholic Christianity -- along with traditional Chinese culture.

Lie No. 3 is the lie of Chinese economic statistics. Sorman says that even if you don't discount the costs of environmental degradation, Chinese growth rates are almost surely somewhat overstated, and possibly highly overstated.

Lie No. 4 might be a partial variant of No. 2, and would be the "China isn't all that bad" lie, especially if you compare it to the former Soviet Union. Sorman argues the other way around, that China is arguably more repressive than the Soviets of Khrushchev and beyond, at least in some ways.

As a result of all this, Sorman says, we really don't have that much to fear from China as a foreign power in general or a military adventurer in particular. On the economic side, in fact, he expects the rich-poor gap to be likely to worsen, not improve.

Another "sublie" would be the one that Western countries, through "economic involvement" with China, can moderate its behavior. China isn't going to be moderated by that. And, as a sidebar, Sorman estimates that about half the Western-owned factories in China are money-losers.

Read this book and get an unvarnished view of today's China.

Sorman has written a good summary of China's problems caused by the totalitarian Communist government. One has to feel a bit sorry for China's Communist leaders, as they are riding a runaway horse they cannot get off from - because the current political and economic system cannot go on (although like Gorbachev, they may not know it). However Sorman tends to overstate his positions (it's unlikely that almost all foreign investors are losing money in China for example) while some of his assertions could be backed up with some very persuasive evidence (the problem of bad loans in the banking system for one). The real value of the book is his conversations with Chinese both within the Party and those opposed, and his conversations in Taiwan. These are really illuminating.
The book was probably written more for the European (and especially French) intelligentsia with their love of socialism and a social and political order led by the properly academically qualified (somehow they seem to have forgotten that the intelligentsia were the ones murdered, tortured-frequently to death, exiled, and assaulted by their beloved Mao's Cultural Revolution). But their support of the Communists also allows them to satisfy their anti-American feelings.
So the book is a good summary of the political and economic problems facing China under the current system, although his points could be better documented. The translation unfortunately is not very good.

Much is made in the West today about the growing power and growing economy of China. Many fear that China will dominate the world by the end of the twenty-first century.

French writer Guy Sorman takes a different view in "The Empire of Lies". He interviews several people, including dissidents, in an attempt to uncover the truth about China today. Sorman believes that the Chinese economy is not growing as quickly as advertised, and that there is much discontent, especially in the countryside. The institutions in the country, he believes, encourage short-term thinking--this retards economic growth. In contrast to many in the West, he thinks that China will not be able to conquer Taiwan in the near future. Sorman also takes a look at religion and the persecution of religion by the Communist Party.

Sorman asserts that the West has had a tendency to misread China for centuries, and that it still does so today. Unlike many in the U.S. and Europe, he says that there is no reason to fear China at this time.

For too long we've been subjected to a view of China that is beneficial to those whose primary concern is international business, with no caveats. The author goes behind the facile observations that constitute today's reporting on China and gives historical and cultural perspectives on what you see and don't see in the news. This is an easy to read book, highly recommended.

I read this book soon after it was released back in 2008 right after listening to the author discuss his book on a radio talk show. It may be "dated" perhaps in a few details (such as the size of the economy comparable with that of Italy's), but economic data regarding China has always been unreliable. Nevertheless, it's main message is right on the mark.

China continues to be ruled by a party that varies between ruthless treatment of its subjects and mild toleration of it native detractors (dissidents). Sorman does an excellent job of interviewing the dissidents, describing in detail how they ran afoul of the government in the past as well as how they cope in their day-to-day lives while being under constant surveillance. To the one reviewer who states that Sorman leaves "very little space for the defense of the government", I can only say there is very little defense for a government that has created the largest police state in the world. It has the world's largest body of bureaucrats dedicated to policing the Internet and stifling any form of speech that may potentially challenge the Party. Even so, the recent political rumblings throughout Arab world (I'm writing this in May 2011), have reverberated all the way to China. It is therefore no surprise that China has launched a massive crackdown against lawyers, writers and activists, arresting and detaining dozens since February when on-line calls for protests similar to those in the Middle East and North Africa began to circulate despite the best efforts by Chinese authorities to squelch them.

Sorman notes throughout this book how the Chinese Communist Party leaders seek to develop a American style managerial class amongst its members. Apparently, the goal for the Party is to enjoy a level of economic development up to U.S. standards, yet somehow this is supposed to come about without any notions of Western liberty and the rule of law. How such a crony capitalist system discourages innovation should be painfully obvious. Think about this whopper of a contradiction (can we say lie?): the CCP has the manpower to police the internet and effectively stifle free thought, but no manpower nor will to stomp out rampant counterfeiting. Can we say the Chinese government wants to have their cake and eat it too?

Another book I highly recommend about Chinese governance that could have been similarly titled is "China: Alive in the Bitter Sea" by Fox Butterfield. Although nearly 30 years old, Butterfield's fascinating book should be in the library of any Chinese watcher.

B.A. East Asian Studies 1986 (Univ. CA, Davis)

Guy Sorman's article The Empire of Lies reminds the reader that the current economic and political change in China is not the miracle people suggest. Sorman argues that the recent gains in economic wealth have only benefited a small proportion of the Chinese population and have not brought about a more open civil society. Sorman's description of Chinese society provides an insightful if one-sided look into the current difficulties faced by the Chinese people. While it examines some serious social, economic and political issues many of the examples are based on his interviews with people who have challenged the government. When discussing the economic disparity between the urban-rural divide Sorman focuses on the negative aspects such as migrant labor rather than the analysis of the government's efforts to enhance the economic environment of the interior. He provides very little space for the defense of the government and the change taking place. It is this lack of balance that substantially weakens the article which otherwise provides a good reminder that China still has many issues to address if it is to become a true world power.

According to Sorman the portrayal of rapid economic development in China as a success story by Western media and business interests belies the truth of what is happening. He suggests that looking beyond the government's carefully managed image one can see that much of the success is in part a `mirage.' To support this Sorman points out that China's development has favored only a fortunate few and the remaining are amongst the `poorest and most exploited people in the world.' It is the `poorest and most exploited' along with the people who have dared to challenge the Government that Sorman uses to highlight the growing inequality between those with ties to the party and those who have been left behind. Issues that come under scrutiny in Empire of Lies are the widening economic and social disparities between those in the city compared to the provinces; the length to which the government will go to ensure the covered up of dissenting voices or circumstances that highlight the many social problems in China; and the use of economic data that provides a skewed view of the true economic environment.

Sorman uses many different examples of people who have directly suffered at the hands of the Chinese Communist party. Two such examples are a former medical student Hu Jia who gave up his studies to look after AIDS sufferers in the Hunan province and Chen Guangchen who sent a text message informing a Hong Kong journalist of the illegal violence being perpetrated against women by a family-planning squad in Linyi. Both Hu Jia and Chen Guangchen have suffered at the hands of the party for bringing these stories to light. These along with other examples provide the reader with an insight into just how far the party will go to hold on to power and curtail dissenting voices in order to project the image of a stable and prosperous China. Perhaps of even more concern for Western and other nations is Sorman's suggestion that the priority of the Party is not social development but power.

In his introduction Soman states that he `makes no claim to know China fully' and that he `merely wants to record the words and impressions of some exceptional Chinese men and women.' Empire of Lies succeeds in achieving this aim for the experiences of the men and women who have dared to challenge the Chinese government are truly exceptional. However, while Empire of Lies provides an interesting insight into the social issues the Chinese government faces but wishes to hide; it does not provide the reader with a balanced picture of the Party nor of the change taking place. It focuses solely on negative events such as the cover up of the crimes committed by family planning agents in Linyi and persecution of those who attempt to bring them to light. The one sided nature of the article leaves the reader feeling as if the government is not making any attempt to improve the lot of the average Chinese citizen.

Sorman persuasively argues that development has not equally benefited all Chinese citizens. He provides a compelling description of the life of a migrant worker from the inland regions not receiving an equal share of the wealth or services. Looking at the differing income levels provides an even starker picture of the disparity. Take for example the income of a manual laborer in Guangzhou which in 2005 averaged an annual income of US$3349 and manual laborers in the Sichuan province where the average was US$1489. However, what Sorman neglects to mention is the urban-rural economic divide has been noticed by the Chinese leadership. Recently President Hu Jintao and Premier Wen Jiabao have made lessening the urban-rural divide a central component of their political agenda, seeking to share the benefits of growth more broadly and to stem discontent. As part of this agenda the government has sped up the development of the countryside to provide the required infrastructure to support business. Moreover, the government is encouraging companies to relocate inland by offering incentives including low cost loans. While these measures do not ameliorate the disparities between the urban-rural they do provide some hope that future development will more equally benefit those who live outside the cities.

In a time when far too many descriptions on the growth of the Chinese economy and civil society have been overly positive, Empire of Lies provides a counterpoint for those who are interested in understanding China. However, this article may be interpreted as overly negative and lacking in balance. Balance would have given readers with a clearer and more accurate understanding of the Chinese situation. Sorman's encounters with people who have challenged the Chinese government provides readers with a perceptive look into how the Chinese government deals with dissention. Sorman achieves his aim in highlighting that the Chinese success story is a least in part a `mirage.' However, while he successfully draws readers attentions to the issues face by many Chinese, his assertions could have been better supported if he had chosen to use statistics as well as anecdotal evidence.

Most TIMELY profound analysis of the Chinese govt, and what can lead China to become a truly great nation. Confirms for me that China's brand of Communism will likely devolve like USSR.

Although issued in 2008, this book is woefully out of date already. It begins by reporting that China's ecoomy is about the size of Italy's. It's difficult to trust many of the insights that follow since they are all framed by a thesis that no longer applies.

One fifth of the world population in rebellion? China in chaos? What would this do to the world. Ask yourself, be responsible to the world and yourself. This book is bias. Mr. Sorman, you need to really really understand the chinese culture and thinking. Chinese think far ahead, not in years.. but in generations. Chinese can wait, even if it takes generations. I can tell you, if you let loose the 1.3 billions now, the world will not be able to handle it, think about the food, the resources, the energy, the many things needed.. and the pollution it brings. It is very frustrating that almost all China watchers can not see this.