IndexSocial Credit SystemFighting CriticismFuture ProspectsNowadays, totalitarianism is commonly regarded as a terrifying regime of the past, a regime that has caused numerous deaths and suffering. However, some countries continue to maintain totalitarian or authoritarian regimes. What is even more surprising is that the development of modern technologies facilitates total control over the public, a control that is mainly applied by China, one of the most advanced countries in the world. This topic is especially interesting for us, citizens of the former totalitarian state, on which the experience and ideas of the Chinese government mainly relies. This essay attempts to explore the modern Chinese political course, to discover its totalitarian characteristics by drawing on academic notes and writings of Hannah Arendt and other renowned political scientists, and to understand the prospects of this concept. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on the topic "Why violent video games should not be banned"? Get an original essayThe XIX Congress of the CPC (Chinese Communist Party) was held from October 18 to 24, 2017. Congresses of the Chinese ruling party elected the leadership of the CCP and, consequently, the state for the next few years. What is more important, it establishes the country's development strategy and defines the main objectives. At the 19th Congress, CPC General Secretary Xi Jinping said that the basis for China's improvement is socialism with Chinese characteristics, the only correct way that the state should abide by in the long term. In his speech, Xi Jinping characterized Chinese socialism as the ideology based on Marxist principles. According to the CCP, it is necessary to adapt the main Marxist norms to the Chinese reality, which in the 1920s was also the target of the first Chinese Communist Party. This adaptation is largely driven by the idea of ​​building a relatively affluent society by 2020, accompanied by a market economy, democratic politics and a harmonious society. However, the principles of democracy are in contradiction with some methods chosen to build that type of society, while some transformations suggest digital totalitarianism. According to Hannah Arendt's The Origins of Totalitarianism, one of the indicators of the totalitarian state is an attempt by the government to gain absolute control over all spheres of social life. The concept of smart cities in China was established in 2008. This project aimed to increase the quality of life in the cities where it was implemented. Nowadays the concept is accepted by most Chinese cities and offers services such as environmentally friendly transportation, holograms instead of hosting staff, passport-free system thanks to facial recognition system, independent shops and many other profitable benefits. All this is possible thanks to the close connection between society and the electronic system, created together by the Chinese giants (for example Alibaba Group) and the government. This mechanism works through a special video surveillance system, which covers all areas of the cities. It allows you to recognize each registered person in a very short time through face scanning. Although such an apparatus makes life more comfortable and significantly reduces the crime rate, it has another, less pleasant side. Social Credit System“Social stability makes it possible for us to carry out reforms and development which in turn provide a solid foundation for social stability. " - this quote is from Xi Jinping's book The Governance of China. Having equipped smart cities with advanced cameras, it was possible to install constant surveillance of all people on the streets, which gave the opportunity toimplement social credits. This system involves dividing people into different categories based on their social classification, which changes, where possible, based on the behavior of each registered citizen. The insurable behavior of people includes not only obedience to the law, but also their food culture, cultural tastes, and some types of morally good actions, such as visiting parents, supporting strangers if necessary, and more. Using Chinese social media platform Weibo, Zhou wrote that the nuclear engineer was “shameless” for not “contacting his parents for 30 years.” Three days later, Zhuo was arrested by local police. He was detained for 10 days and fined 500 yuan, or about 79 dollars, for his public criticism of the famous state hero". -Washington Post (2018). Each citizen receives a number of about 1000 points (depends on the region), which then varies according to his actions. The subject has a low number of points, is deprived of some services or possibilities, for example, those who have less than 300 points are not able to work in government organizations, as well as in different types. of responsible professions, cannot buy a high-speed train or plane ticket and cannot access any bank purchases which records all the goods purchased by a particular person and all the information about him. Due to the app's statistics, the social rating is influenced by both the type of user purchases and their regularity. Furthermore, it offers some privileges to buyers with higher ratings. By summarizing these reforms, the Chinese government has created the perfect conditions to monitor human behavior, including its tastes and influences. Friedrich and Brzezinski defined five main characteristics of totalitarianism: a dominant ideology, a monopolistic party, the monopoly of information, terror against the opposition and a centrally planned economy. It is clearly seen that the Chinese Communist Party plays the role of the dominant party with its ideology, established in The Governance of China by Xi Jinping. Like any other totalitarian party, the CCP seeks to gain control over information. Currently, a significant part of our social life (especially in China) takes place on the Internet. A limiting Internet network is, probably, the most complicated part of gaining total control due to the existence of various methods to overcome any limitations, for example the most popular are VPN (Virtual Private Network) services. In any case, the CCP seeks to establish absolute control over the Internet. The Internet restriction program is considered web authoritarianism. “Before Xi Jinping, the Internet was becoming a more vibrant political space for Chinese citizens. But today the country has the largest and most sophisticated online censorship operation in the world. Under Xi, the government has also developed new technologies that have allowed it to exert much greater control over the Internet. In January 2015, the government blocked many of the VPNs used by citizens to bypass the Great Firewall. In the spring of 2015, Beijing launched the Great Cannon. Unlike the Great Firewall, which has the ability to block traffic entering or leaving China, the Great Cannon is able to regulate and replace content as it travels across the Internet. ” - “The Guardian” (2018). Currently, at least 18,000 websites are blocked by the Chinese government, including all Google services, many media portals and the vast majority of popular social networks. The Chinese have no choice but to use websites (2018).