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Thu, Feb 20, 1997
The Deng Legacy:
Social, economic and political problems plague current leadership
Taiwan: share prices went up in the Taiwan stock market after traders overcame their 'jitters' about Deng's death. As for relations between the two countries, the Taiwan government expects that little will change in the mainland's Taiwan policies. Chang King-Yuh, chairman of the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC), said that the ROC will not change its policies or goals.
Today the President's office sent condolences to Deng's family. Deng's death came as no surprise, as he had been seriously ill for many years, and the ruling KMT said that no special meetings of the party will be convened to discuss the matter.
Analysis: CNN has a rather short piece on the social and economic problems that challenge China's stability, cohesion and economic development.
Inside China describes Deng as a pragmatist who failed to offer a vision for China's future and implement a mechanism for transferring power from one head to another. Rife with factionalism, the current political machine stands as testament to how the man "failed many of China's people . . . who dreamt of political reform along with economic liberalization," says the paper.
The Far Eastern Economic Review weighs in with its estimation of Deng's Legacy. In an unsigned piece the Review strikes a rather ideological chord in its criticism of Deng and his regime. In this sense, ironically, it balances out the perspectives proffered in other stories listed here. It also provides more details about Deng's past and his rise in the Communist Party. The story concludes by saying that Deng has left the current leadership with many "ticking bombs."
Note: readers will find listed below more stories concerning Deng's death and legacy, as well as numerous opinions on mainland China's future.