It is a celebration of Marxist-Leninism in what could soon be the world's top capitalist power. Communism is alive and well and living in China, where the party partied this Thursday to mark its centenary birthday. Much of those 100 years were indeed a struggle and a bloody one. But for three decades now, the planet's most populous nation has gone from strength to strength.
To employ the phrase favoured in Beijing, what does socialism with Chinese characteristics look like, particularly under the strongest ruler since Mao? What does Xi Jinping mean when he tells a cheering audience on Tiananmen Square there will be no more "bullying" from the outside world?
And what makes this Communist Party such a success? Some liken it to an authoritarian state apparatus meets the rotary club, with members ranging from students to all the top business leaders. Here in the West, we have been raised on the notion that history aspires to a liberal democracy that someday the whole planet will embrace. But what about China?
Produced by Alessandro Xenos, Juliette Laurain, Imen Mellaz and Jack Colmer Gale.
