PEKING POLICY OF OPENING UP TO THE OUTSIDE WORLD

Since 1978, the policy of opening up to the outside world has been an important ingredient of Peking's (Beijing's) socialist reform drive. ' Although the inflow of foreign investment and technology has greatly b enefitted economic development in mainland China, the regime is gravel y concerned about the social impact of the policy. Opening-up is said to have resulted in ''bourgeois liberalization'' and provided the capi talist countries of the West with an opportunity to promote the ''peac eful evolution'' of mainland China's socialist system. The Peking regi me has countered these negative effects of opening-up by emphasizing t he ''four cardinal principles'' and has maintained that opening-up sho uld be conducted in a conditional and limited way. However, unless the leadership is prepared to make institutional adjustments, society is likely to grow more corrupt, thus creating a serious political crisis for the regime.