A CPC-owned magazine published an article recently, expounding the significance of the people's democratic dictatorship, a concept and form of Chinese government. This article opposes an idea that puts the rule of law in contradiction with the people's democratic dictatorship, saying it is wrong to negate or replace the people's democratic dictatorship with the rule of law.

This article has triggered intense reactions on the Internet, with some voices condemning the position as being against China's mainstream ideas of governance which prioritize the rule of law.

However, after reading through this article, we can find that such criticism is an over-interpretation of the author's intent.

As the Constitution states that China is a socialist state under the people's democratic dictatorship, this article, which was issued in a Party-owned publication, is only a theoretical discussion rather than sending any political signal.

Like the last debate over class struggle, the people's democratic dictatorship has become a new target of online critics, whose preferences show the new dynamics of the Chinese ideological realm.

The rule of law is the only path toward accomplishing China's political reform and social construction, and it has won high support from all walks of life.

However, some people are still calling for so-called constitutionalism with ulterior motives to replace the rule of law. Their advocacy is not accepted by mainstream ideology, and the ongoing debates over class struggle and people's democratic dictatorship could probably be their sideline struggles for constitutionalism.

The people's democratic dictatorship is one of China's conventional political concepts. As the key element that determines the nature of China's state system, it is still applicable to Chinese society. But the heavy influx of new concepts and utterances has dramatically changed the public discourse, and these conventional concepts need to be interpreted in different ways so that the general public can better understand their meanings.

It must be noted that some people are underlining these concepts without considering their theoretical environment on purpose so that the public will connect these concepts with some individual and historic matters. It becomes more difficult for the public to really understand the connotations of these concepts, which have long-been considered obsolete.

Concepts like the people's democratic dictatorship and class struggle are attached to the bottom line of Chinese society, so it is better if they were not debated in the public discourse. 

New interpretations of these concepts are needed, but we have to know the difficulties and risks generated from the public discourse, and in the meantime, we need to take a firm stand to avoid misinterpretations.