Foreign companies investing in China suffer the same fate as the Chinese private enterprises, in that they are forced in various ways to adhere to Beijing’s political agenda, explained a Chinese expert at a lecture held in Athens on Friday.
Professor Ning Leng, author of the book titled “Politicizing Business,” told the audience at the Institute of International Relations (IDIS) of Panteio University that there is no distinction between Chinese and foreign enterprises, as in both cases they are monitored by the state and are often required to toe the official line.
Dr Ning, who is an assistant professor at the McCourt School of Public Policy at Georgetown University in the US, explained that private companies in China are expected to meet state expectations, which may be a certain level of employment, etc.
She also presented examples of “visibility projects”, i.e. pharaonic public works by private companies aimed at pleasing the eye and for local authority officials to score political points on national scale, such as the mega-bridge at Qingdao Bay that proved to be a white elephant.
Dr Ning also referred to the Chinese Communist Party’s drive for societal control through private companies as another means of corporate politicization.