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Government/Politics - 177. page

Nearly 10,000 Falun Gong Practitioners Press Criminal Charges against Jiang Zemin

According to Minghui.org (whose English version is en.minghui.org), between May 27 and June 18, the Minghui website editors received copies of criminal complaints that had been filed by 9,748 Falun Gong practitioners in China and other countries.  
These 9,748 practitioners filed suit against Jiang Zemin the former head of the Chinese Communist Party. The complaints came from more than 1,400 counties and cities. They were from 29 provinces, autonomous regions, and municipalities in China, as well as from the United States, Canada, Australia, France, the United Kingdom, Malaysia, Thailand, Japan, and South Korea. The top five provinces in China where the persecution of Falun Gong is most severe, including Hebei, Heilongjiang, Liaoning, Jilin, and Shandong also saw the most practitioners filing lawsuits against Jiang.
Background: In 1999, Jiang Zemin, as head of the Chinese Communist Party, overrode other Politburo standing committee members and launched the violent suppression of Falun Gong. Over the past 16 years, the persecution has led to the deaths of many Falun Gong practitioners. More have been tortured and many families have been broken apart. Under Jiang’s personal direction, the Chinese Communist Party established an extralegal security organ, the “610 Office,” so named for having been formed on June 10, 1999. The organization’s authority overrides the police forces and the judicial system in carrying out Jiang’s directive regarding Falun Gong: to ruin their reputations, cut off their financial resources, and destroy them physically.
Chinese law allows for citizens to be plaintiffs in criminal cases, and many practitioners are now exercising that right to file criminal complaints against the former dictator.
Source: Minghui.org, June 20, 2015; En.mingui.org, June 22, 2015
http://www.minghui.org/mh/articles/2015/6/20/311166.html
http://en.minghui.org/html/articles/2015/6/22/151201p.html
Briefings | | |   Government/Politics

Xinhua: CCDI Identified Three Key Black Holes of Central Government Owned Companies

Xinhua recently reported on an "issues list" that the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection (CCDI) of the Chinese Communist Party published on its official website. The “issues list” dealt with 26 central government owned companies. The CCDI identified three major “black holes” in the operations of these companies. The first was that half of the companies did not follow the right procedures in the procurement bidding processes – a large number of corrupt activities were found. The second “black hole” was that the management of overseas investments had become the “hardest hit region.” A lack of regulation and monitoring contributed heavily to the loss of state-owned assets overseas. The third “black hole” that the CCDI identified was the unlawful transfer of company wealth to relatives of those on the management teams. The corruption situation in these companies demonstrated a trend towards a “family operation” model. The CCDI called for deepened reforms to prevent turning state-owned assets into personal gold mines.
Source: Xinhua, June 20, 2015
http://news.xinhuanet.com/yuqing/2015-06/20/c_127934581.htm
Briefings | | |   Government/Politics

Report Shows Four Major Unhealthy Trends in Central Enterprises

China News published an article on the report that the Central Leading Group for Inspection Work recently released. Since March of this year, the Central Leading Group has dispatched 13 inspection teams to report on 21 central enterprises. The article said that the findings indicated that the companies inspected exhibited four major unhealthy trends. The first involved the inappropriate use of funds for meals and entertainment, luxury display art work, conference centers, hotels, and exercise training facilities. The second was that favors were issued during promotions and any conflict of interest when using family members was ignored. Third was the corruption among company leaders when they used state owned assets for personal gain and when there were loopholes in state asset supervision. Fourth was the formation of interest groups using family members to take possession of state owned assets. The article also listed the names of the companies under each of the four categories. China Mobile was the only company, out of the 21 in the report, that was not on that list.

Source: China News, June 19, 2015
http://www.chinanews.com/gn/2015/06-19/7354184.shtml

Briefings | | |   Government/Politics

Xinhua: Party Should Play Leadership Role in the Countryside

Xinhua published an article to reiterate that there should be no doubt about the leadership role that the Party organization plays in the countryside. The article said the lack of focus on the Party’s role has weakened the Party’s foundation in the countryside. It stated that, regardless of the types of organizations formed in the countryside, whether they are economic or civil organizations, they must be under the leadership of the Party. For any type of important tasks or issues, the decisions must follow the Party’s collective opinion. The article concluded that only when there is persistence in the Party’s leadership role can there be “unity among the people in the countryside.” Therefore the people should “form positive energy” during the reform in the countryside.

Source: Xinhua, June 21, 2015
http://news.xinhuanet.com/politics/2015-06/21/c_127936677.htm

Briefings | | |   Government/Politics

Caixin: Fukuyama Gives Priority to the Rule of Law

In its June 1 issue, Caixin, a media group that features financial and business news in China, published an interview of Francis Fukuyama, author of the well-known book, The End of History and the Last Man (1992). In his book, Fukuyama claimed that liberal democracy was the last stop on history’s long road. On June 15, Caixin also published the interview on its English website.


In recent years and with the rise of economic powerhouses linked to political systems such as China’s that do not rely on the one-man-one vote model, memories of what many called democracy’s Cold War victory have dimmed. In Caixin’s recent interview in Beijing, Fukuyama said he remains committed to the premise that the modernizing human family is marching toward political systems that balance the rule of law, "state capacity," and democracy. 

Fukuyama stated that it is possible for a strong state to succeed economically without democracy, but that democracy builds stability and legitimacy, which, in turn, supports growth and helps governments survive economic crises. "I think that, in the long run, transitioning to democracy makes the whole system stable and legitimate and therefore is good for growth." Fukuyama continued, "I think that’s why most rich countries in the world today are actually liberal democracies." 

In answering the question on the relative importance of state capacity, the rule of law, and accountability in today’s China, Fukuyama gave priority to strengthening the rule of law. Discussing his interest in China, besides its size, and that it has never been integrated into the world system, Fukuyama observed, "There is so much in Chinese history about being a civilization that people aren’t aware of." It was the richness of that tradition that he found really fascinating.

Fukuyama also questioned the sustainability of China’s growth model, as well as the lower productivity of its state-owned enterprises compared to its private sector. 

Source: Caixin Online; Caixin Weekly
http://english.caixin.com/2015-06-15/100819331.html 
http://weekly.caixin.com/2015-05-29/100814472.html
Briefings | | |   Government/Politics

Caixin: Fukuyama Gives Priority to the Rule of Law

In its June 1 issue, Caixin, a media group that features financial and business news in China, published an interview of Francis Fukuyama, author of the well-known book, The End of History and the Last Man (1992). In his book, Fukuyama claimed that liberal democracy was the last stop on history’s long road. On June 15, Caixin also published the interview on its English website.


In recent years and with the rise of economic powerhouses linked to political systems such as China’s that do not rely on the one-man-one vote model, memories of what many called democracy’s Cold War victory have dimmed. In Caixin’s recent interview in Beijing, Fukuyama said he remains committed to the premise that the modernizing human family is marching toward political systems that balance the rule of law, "state capacity," and democracy. 

Fukuyama stated that it is possible for a strong state to succeed economically without democracy, but that democracy builds stability and legitimacy, which, in turn, supports growth and helps governments survive economic crises. "I think that, in the long run, transitioning to democracy makes the whole system stable and legitimate and therefore is good for growth." Fukuyama continued, "I think that’s why most rich countries in the world today are actually liberal democracies." 

In answering the question on the relative importance of state capacity, the rule of law, and accountability in today’s China, Fukuyama gave priority to strengthening the rule of law. Discussing his interest in China, besides its size, and that it has never been integrated into the world system, Fukuyama observed, "There is so much in Chinese history about being a civilization that people aren’t aware of." It was the richness of that tradition that he found really fascinating.

Fukuyama also questioned the sustainability of China’s growth model, as well as the lower productivity of its state-owned enterprises compared to its private sector. 

Sources:
Caixin Online, June 15, 2015
http://english.caixin.com/2015-06-15/100819331.html 
Caixin Weekly, May 29, 2015
http://weekly.caixin.com/2015-05-29/100814472.html
Briefings | | |   Government/Politics

With No Confidence in the Future, the CCP Departmental and Regional Officials Stay Idle at Work

On May 20, 2015, People’s Tribune, which is under People’s Daily online, published an in-depth analytical article on why Chinese Communist Party officials do not take action in applying the CCP Central Committee’s policies, why they are waiting and remaining idle, and why they have the mentality of not causing problems or not messing things up. 

The reasons behind the officials’ inaction are:

1) They lack political confidence in China’s future.
2) As the anti-corruption movement continues, they are uncertain about their own futures.
3) They find the policy changes and current comprehensive reforms too confusing.

Source: People’s Tribune, May 20, 2015
http://paper.people.com.cn/rmlt/html/2015-05/20/content_1574755.htm

Briefings | | |   Government/Politics

Qiushi: Promote Positive National Image of China in Multiple Ways

On June 3, 2015, Qiushi, the Chinese Communist Party School and the Chinese Communist Party Central Committee’s political theory website, republished an article from Chinese Social Sciences Today, titled, “Avoid Single-Mode Propagation of China’s National Image.” 

According to the article, Western countries have a serious misunderstanding of China’s national image due to the fact that China’s official media always exaggerate the positive aspects of China and the Chinese government. To display a responsible, positive, and pragmatic national image of China, China’s official media may sometimes, at the same time that they showcase the greatness of China’s achievements, “skillfully and appropriately” present some problems, difficulties, or even failures that China faces so as to demonstrate to the world that China is willing to be humble, accept well-intentioned criticism, and be active in solving problems. In addition, the article recommended using movies, TV operas, books, performances, cultural exchanges, and activities to further promote China’s national image.
Source: Qiushi, May 3, 2015
http://www.qstheory.cn/international/2015-06/03/c_1115495442.htm
Briefings | | |   Government/Politics