By Chen Guangcheng
{Editor’s Note: Reports indicate that the Vatican is getting closer to signing a contract with the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) in which they jointly appoint Bishops in China. Continue reading
Government/Politics - 119. page
Duowei News: Xi Jinping to Amend Constitution: “The Party’s Leadership Is the Most Essential Feature of Socialism with Chinese Characteristics”
Duowei reported that, in addition to the elimination of term limits, Xi Jinping also recommended that the Constitution be amended to include the following language: “Chinese Communist Party leadership is the most essential feature of socialism with Chinese characteristics.” Regarding what was delivered in his political report at the 19th National Congress held in October 2017, Xi Jinping reiterated that, “The Chinese Communist Party leadership is the most essential feature of socialism with Chinese characteristics.” The greatest advantage of the system of socialism with Chinese characteristics is that the Chinese Communist Party leads it; that China must uphold the party’s leadership over all work; and that the party is leading everything.” It is expected that the amendment will be passed during the National People’s Congress which started on March 5. According to Duowei, in 1982, Deng Xiaoping deleted the phrase, “The Chinese Communist Party is the core leadership of the entire Chinese people” from the Constitution. Deng believed that there were too many disadvantages to having the party take the leadership of everything indicating, “An over-concentration of power could turn into leadership by an individual.” The article went on to state, “However, 36 years later, the leadership of the Chinese Communist Party will very likely to be written into the constitution again.”
Source: Duowei, March 2, 2018
http://culture.dwnews.com/history/news/2018-03-02/60043390.html
Beijing to Clean up Internet Audio-visual Program Service Websites
Xinhua reported that Beijing will increase its efforts to “clean up internet audio-visual program service websites to ensure that the chief editor is held accountable for the contents, to impose zero tolerance of any violations, and to apply tighter control over programs from overseas.” According the article, in 2017, The Beijing Bureau of the State Administration of Press, Publication, Radio, Film and Television (SARFT) shut down 501 programs due to different violations and cleaned up 280,000 postings that contained inappropriate sexual and violent video postings. Meanwhile the Beijing Cultural Law Enforcement Team inspected 20 video sites, social media, live and short video websites including ifeng, Sina Weibo, AcFun, Miaopai, and Huajiao and shut down 31 unlicensed sites.
Source: Xinhua, March 6, 2018
http://www.xinhuanet.com/2018-03/06/c_1122496472.htm
RFA: Xinhua Got in Trouble for How It Handled “Term Limit Elimination” Reports
RFA reported that, based on a news report from Hong Kong’s Sing Tao Daily, Xinhua published an urgent news announcement on February 25 about the “Central Committee’s recommendation to eliminate term limits.” At first it was in English. The Chinese version was published one hour later. The way Xinhua handled this news were reported to be a “political mistake” because it caused media hype and speculation in the Western media, as well as discussions in overseas social media. People were fired because of it. A China News Agency source claimed that they were directed “not to report the verbal directions they had been given; they must ensure ‘stability’ and ‘not allow foreign countries to use them as discussion topics.'”
Source: Radio Free Asia, February 28, 2018
https://www.rfa.org/mandarin/Xinwen/XQL-02282018025328.html
China Promotes Confucius Institutes to Serve Its Diplomacy in Major Countries
On the afternoon of January 23, Xi Jinping, leader of the leading group for deepening the overall reform of the central government, presided over the second meeting of the leading group and delivered an important speech. The meeting passed a number of “resolutions,” or “documents.” One of them was, “Guiding Opinions on Promoting the Reform and Development of Confucius Institutes.”
The resolution pointed out that the promotion of the reform and development of Confucius Institutes should center on the building of a powerful socialist country with Chinese characteristics, serving China’s major powers diplomacy with Chinese characteristics, deepening the reform and innovation, improving the institutional mechanisms, optimizing the distribution structure, strengthening the building efforts, and improving the quality of education, so as to let the (Confucius Institutes) become an important force of communication between China and foreign countries.
Source: People’s Daily, January 23, 2018
http://politics.people.com.cn/n1/2018/0123/c1024-29782294.html
Duowei: China’s State Media Comments on U.S. Sanctions Proposal against North Korea
Duowei reported that, after the U.S. Treasury Department recently announced its program to institute, “the largest sanctions against the DPRK in history,” the Chinese government media (Xinhua) published an article commenting that the sanctions that the United States imposed are inappropriate and that the United States has the aim of safeguarding Washington’s dominance over the Korean Peninsula issue. However, the unilateral strengthening of sanctions will only make the situation more complicated and cause negative effects.
This is the (Xinhua) issue: The article, entitled “The Heaviest Sanctions in History, which the United States Imposed, Are Not Appropriate,” points out that since the start of this year, North Korea and South Korea have taken the opportunity of the Pyeongchang Winter Olympics to resume a dialogue, to seek cooperation; as a result the situation has seen a rare easing. However, the “long-arm” sanctions that the United States has imposed, have shown the U.S.’s always arrogant attitude and have also shown how the United States is playing an inharmonious and destructive role. The article mentions that it is incontrovertible that Washington’s intensification of sanctions on the ebb of the peninsula tensions will have a negative effect on the situation on the peninsula. Strengthening sanctions is inconsistent with the UN Security Council’s resolution to promote the fundamental spirit of peace talks and cannot close the differences between the two countries as a prerequisite for dialogue and appeal. The commentary pointed out: Not only does North Korea not accept the aggressive posture of the United States, but it also will not solve any substantive issue.
Source: Duowei, February 24, 2018
http://news.dwnews.com/china/news/2018-02-24/60042188.html
RFA: Formal Twitter Software Engineer Pressed to Spy while Visiting China
According to an article Radio Free Asia published, the Chinese Public Security Bureau asked a formal Twitter software engineer, while he was visiting his family, to provide twitter code technology in order to monitor twitter contents. Fearing for his safety, on February 22, the formal Twitter employee tweeted several times using the @eddiex account before and after his meeting with the bureau officers and asked his friends to let more people know about his situation. The tweets showed that the Public Security Bureau told him that the type of meeting is a routine meeting that applies to all who have studied and worked in the U.S. They expressed interest in his work experience at Twitter and the coding technology and asked for his cooperation for the sake of “China’s national interest.” The software engineer turned down the requests and said he needs to consult his lawyer. He suspected that he was followed the entire time during his visit in China. Some of his tweets were since deleted. He also turned down an interview with Radio Free Asia and hoped to move beyond the whole situation peacefully. The RFA article reported that it is likely that he and his family could be under tremendous pressure from the Chinese authorities.
Source: Radio Free Asia, February 23, 2018
https://www.rfa.org/cantonese/news/twitter-02232018073132.html
Xi Jinping’s Close Aide Issued Warning to Jiang Faction; Xi Makes Little Progress in Anti-Corruption Effort
According to a commentary article that huaglad.com published, Ding Xuexiang, director of the General Office and close aide to Xi Jinping, recently spoke at a meeting that departments under the party central committee attended. Ding indicated that almost all of the officials who were investigated after the 18th National Congress had “political issues.” Some of them even had the intention to, “Usurp the party and seize power.” The article stated that the comments Ding made served as a warning signal to the Jiang faction. According to the statistics, over the past five years, over 440 provincial level officials were the subject of investigations, including six officials who had the highest rank: Bo Xilai, Sun Zhengcai, Zhou Yongkang, Ling Jihua, Xu Caihou, and Guo Boxiong. The media reported that the Jiang faction, which both Jiang Zemin and Zeng Qinghong backed, had planned to have Bo Xilai promoted to the Politburo Standing Committee and oust Xi Jinping from his post. After the fall of Bo Xilai and prior to the 19th National Congress, Sun Zhengcai, Bo’s successor from Chongqing was also taken down. The article reported that the “big tigers” that Xi took down during the anti-corruption effort were mostly members of the Jiang faction.
The article also pointed out that Xi’s anti-corruption effort has had little impact because China is under a one-party autocracy. China is ranked 77th out of 180 countries and regions according to the 2017 Clean Government index, while a survey conducted in China found that 73 percent of the people surveyed believe that, even though Xi has conducted the anti-corruption effort over the past few years, the corruption has been getting worse in China. The article reported that corruption has penetrated all levels of the party structure and has become part of the party culture, which will eventually drag down economic growth. Xi is facing a tremendous challenge in dealing with his corrupt party and the problems can’t be fixed simply with an administrative order or an anti-corruption campaign.
Source: huaglad.com, February 25, 2018
https://www.huaglad.com/zh-tw/topimagenews/20180225/318585.html