Government/Politics - 295. page

According to China News Service, on February 3, 2010, Jia Qinglin, a member of the CPC Central Committee Political Bureau Standing Committee and Chairman of the National Committee of the CPPCC, held a meeting with the new leadership team members of the Buddhist Association of China at the Great Hall in Beijing.

Jia said: “For more than half a century, the Buddhist Association of China (BAC) has always whole heartedly assisted the Communist Party of China and the government (of the PRC) to implement the principles and policies of the Party’s religious work. Sharing the same boat with the Party through rain and storm, the BAC adheres to the path that accords with socialist society.” Jia hopes that the new BAC will take the responsibility to serve the overall work of the CPC and the country.

Source: China News Service, February 3, 2010
http://www.chinanews.com.cn/gn/news/2010/02-03/2108241.shtml

According to China Radio Network on January 20, 2010, every province, municipality or autonomous region is now convening its local conferences of the “People’s Congress” and the “Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference” (CPPCC). The network reports that the “People’s Congress is not just a display of applause and the CPPCC is not just a show of hands.” The “two annual conferences” carry too much of the people’s expectations and concerns regarding housing, education, medical care, employment, the environment, and so on. Yang Yu, Director of the News Center for the China Economic Herald, provided a commentary on the two conferences in a radio interview, saying that “the economic growth drive” is an important problem that must be solved each year, and other issues should be covered in the 11th Five-Year Plan. 

Source: China Radio Network, February 3, 2010
http://www.cnr.cn/allnews/201001/t20100120_505921826.html

During December 2009 and January 2010, there were significant changes in the minister and provincial level officials, and from the Central Committees of the Communist Party of China to the State Council’s several core agencies, including provinces. 
 

Xinhua republished a report from China News Weekly stating that the focus must be on official retirements and appointments. The focus includes: consideration of age (younger) and education (with advanced degrees); switching between local (province) and the central government; and promoting females. This cycle of official changes is also a dry run for the newly published “2010-2020 outline plan to deepen the reform of the cadre and personnel system.”

Source: Xinhua, January 20, 2010
http://news.xinhuanet.com/politics/2010-01/20/content_12844485.htm

Li Yuanchao, member of the Political Bureau of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China and head of the Organization Department of the CPC Central Committee, called for a significant focus on the propaganda work of the Organization Department. Li made the speech at the conference on propaganda for organization work on January 26, 2010. Li stressed strengthening and improving the propaganda work in order to develop public opinion support for the Organization Department’s work and innovation.  

Li laid out a new direction, which includes propaganda work as part of the routine work of the Organization Department. The directive includes establishing a spokesperson system, improving media planning, monitoring and analyzing public opinion, strengthening policy interpretation and role model advocacy, actively responding to societal issues, and improving the ability to use media to its best advantage, which allows the development of a good public opinion base.

“News media is the indispensable voice, ears, eyes, and window for organization work in the current environment,” claimed Li.

Source: Xinhua, January 26, 2010
http://news.xinhuanet.com/politics/2010-01/26/content_12879923.htm

The State Council recently developed a strategy to strengthen development of the movie industry: (1) Improve the quality while keeping the growth of quantity; (2) transform the state movie producing companies into shareholding enterprises; (3) grow cross-regional theater lines; (4) establishing more digital theaters; (5) increase financial support for movie industry; (6) push technological innovations; (7) implement digitalization in the countryside; (8) enhance international influence with the “go out” strategy; (9) improve the governing laws and policies; (10) enhance the work of building a talent pool.

Source: Xinhua, January 25, 2010
http://news.xinhuanet.com/politics/2010-01/25/content_12872402.htm

According to Xinhua on January 25, 2010, the first session of a series of seminars on the “Prediction of the 2010 International Situation” was held by Xinhua’s “Discussion of the World” Program in Beijing. More than 10 well-known experts and scholars gathered together, predicting international situations for 2010 and positioning China in the world.

In terms of China’s position in the world, the participants agreed that "the Westerners have switched from ‘Killing with a Stick’ to ‘Killing with Flattery’ following the international financial crisis. They have kept praising China, from ‘China’s Responsibility’ to ‘Sina-US Two Nations’, pushing China to the center of the world." However, “China must remain clear-headed, adhering to a strategic position as a developing country, safeguarding the interests of developing countries and striving to strengthen ourselves.”

Source: Xinhua, January 25, 2010
http://news.xinhuanet.com/world/2010-01/25/content_12870883.htm 

According to People’s Daily, in a report on January 24, 2010, the CCP Central Organization Department had recently decided to allocate 66.95 million yuan from collected CCP membership fees to sustain the poor as well as the old CCP members without pensions. Last year, the CCP Central Organization Department allocated 21.9 million yuan from membership fees to express sympathy to Party members in the 18 provinces that had serious natural disasters and also to repair the damaged Party member educational facilities in the same areas.

The CCP Central Organization Department stressed that letting the Party members feel the real concern and warmth of the Party is an important measure to effectively maintain stability.

Source: People’s Daily, January 24, 2010
http://politics.people.com.cn/GB/1026/10830427.html

According to Xinhua, the Beijing authorities just issued a new red-letter directive that mandates the shutdown of several thousand representative offices in Beijing in the next 6 months. Currently there are 52 Beijing offices representing provincial level governments, 520 representing municipal level governments and over 5,000 representing county level governments. The number of representative offices exceeds 10,000 if it includes those for various government organizations, and liaison offices of state-owned enterprises. The assets of these representative offices totaled 10 billion yuan in 2001.

The function as outlined by the new directive for the representative offices includes carrying out tasks assigned by the Communist Party committees from the sending location, and by the Communist Party Central Committee and the State. Notably, these offices should assist the Beijing municipal government in maintaining social stability in Beijing.

Source: Xinhua, January 24, 2010
http://news.xinhuanet.com/politics/2010-01/24/content_12863841.htm