Today, the People's Republic of China celebrates its 60th anniversary. In the Chinese calendar, 60 years is a full natural cycle, and after that, an entirely new chapter is said to begin. It is therefore a time to take stock and a glance forward.

During the past six decades, the ruling Communist Party of China has performed the miraculous feat of saving the country from a century of free fall, rebuilding it from the ruins of 12 years of war and to initiate a growth cycle in which China is soon to become the No 2 economy in the world. As it stumbled along, it encountered a few setbacks in the first three decades, which nevertheless laid the foundation for the second three decades of unprecedented, frenetic growth. Materially and technologically, it is not an exaggeration to say that China has achieved in three decades what has taken the West three centuries. This, however, has been accomplished at some social and environmental costs, which the country is now trying hard to redress.

From the point of view of Chinese citizens, the past sixty years have given us back our dignity and self-confidence, and earned us a place in the 21st century. This is most important for the Chinese people, because for most part throughout known history, China has always been No 1 in the world. Its defeat in the Opium War in 1842 and the subsequent century-long humiliation and hardship had led many to question our survivability on this planet. We have now proved to the world in an irrefutable manner that we Chinese are as good as anybody. We the people feel good about it.

And come to think of it, the Chinese people have never felt so good since the Song Dynasty a thousand years ago. Looking back, this single factor is overriding, and the rest, for better or for worse, are only secondary. For this, the ruling Communist Party of China has earned its place in our national history.

To restore the glory of Han and Tang, we will have to overcome the constraints of our population, resources and the environment, and the social and political challenges both internal and international that lie ahead. Are we as wise as our ancestors? We Chinese will always let the future be the judge.

The author is a member of the Commission on Strategic Development

(HK Edition 10/01/2009 page1)