Government/Politics - 69. page

On July 27, Zhao Kezhi, China’s Minister of Public Security, delivered a speech at the video conference of the National Public Security agency.

Zhao emphasized that “in the face of a profoundly changing external environment and severe and complex situations, public security organs at all levels must resolutely implement the decisions and deployment of the Chinese Communist Party’s Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at the core. We must … carry forward the fighting spirit, make preparations, be on guard against different risks and challenges, and strive to achieve the ‘two safeguards’ in the actions of maintaining the nation’s political security and social stability.” Here the “two safeguards” is a new slogan coined during Xi Jinping’s regime, meaning to safeguard the position of Xi Jinping as the core of the CCP Central Committee and the core of the whole party, and to safeguard the authoritative and centralized leadership of the CCP Central Committee.

Zhao asked “strictly to guard against and crack down on the disruptive sabotage activities of hostile forces at home and abroad, carry out anti-infiltration, anti-subversion, anti-separatism and anti-evil religion struggles, and resolutely safeguard national political security.” “It is necessary … further to step up social control, strengthen warnings and early assessment, strengthen overall prevention and control … eliminate hidden risks, and severely crack down on different types of illegal and criminal activities in accordance with the law.”

Source: Public Security Department of Hunan Province, July 27, 2020
http://gat.hunan.gov.cn/articles/221/2020-7/65371.html

Xinhua reported that the inauguration ceremony of the Xi Jinping Research Center for Diplomatic Thought was held in Beijing on July 20. Comments from China experts overseas show they believe that the establishment of this center means that China has formally bid farewell to Deng Xiaoping’s diplomatic principle of “hiding our capacities and biding our time.” Instead, it promotes the “wolf warrior” diplomacy that China has pursued in recent years.

The China Institute of International Studies set up the research center under the direction of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. It aims “to coordinate national research resources, and to conduct comprehensive, systematic and in-depth research, interpretation, and publicity with regard to Xi Jinping’s diplomatic thoughts. … It focuses on studying the nature, theory, practice, communication, policies, and specific subjects of Xi Jinping Thought on the subject of Diplomacy … enabling and supporting the guiding role of Xi Jinping’s diplomatic thinking on diplomatic practice. … It also makes a positive contribution to opening up a new era of major country diplomacy with Chinese characteristics.”

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi stated at the ceremony that, in the face of the uncertain international situation, Xi Jinping’s diplomatic thoughts must be used as the fundamental guiding principles to maintain (China’s) strength in chaos, seize opportunities in changes, and continue to make breakthroughs in a new era of major country diplomacy with Chinese characteristics.

It is believed that, since Xi Jinping came to power, the CCP has reversed its course on the party’s ruling ideology on diplomacy.

Sources:
1. Xinhua, July 20, 2020
http://www.xinhuanet.com/2020-07/20/c_1126262860.htm
2. Radio Free Asia, July 21, 2020
https://www.rfa.org/mandarin/yataibaodao/zhengzhi/gf1-07212020071317.html

The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has once again launched a brainwashing campaign. It is requiring its members and school students to study the “Four Histories,” which refers to “the history of the CCP, the history of new China, the history of the reform and opening up, and the history of socialist development.” In one sentence, it is the history of the Chinese Communist Party. Parents of students shared some WeChat screenshots of a teacher’s message to the parents with Radio Free Asia: “Please ask each student firmly to keep in mind the contents of the ‘Four Histories.’ There will be exams when the new semester begins.”

According to official media, the “Four Histories” is a new political drive and it is a “key task” to promote the contents in classrooms at colleges and universities. East China Normal University in Shanghai has incorporated the campaign materials in the school’s seminar series so that the students will be learning and also preaching to people outside of the campus.

Source: Radio Free Asia, July 15, 2020.
https://www.rfa.org/mandarin/yataibaodao/zhengzhi/ql-07152020062503.html

As China is facing intensified internal and external pressures, the head of Chinese Communist Party (CCP) Xi Jinping published an article in the upcoming issue of Qushi magazine, the official publication of the Central Committee of the CCP, warning that one cannot afford to falter even a little bit on the issue of “adherence to the party’s leadership.”

Xinhua News Agency, the mouthpiece outlet of the CCP, reported that Xi’s article entitled, “The Leadership of the Chinese Communist Party is the most Essential Feature of Socialism with Chinese characteristics” will be published on July 16th. It emphasizes that the greatest advantage of the socialist system with Chinese characteristics is “the leadership of the Chinese Communist Party,” and that the CCP is the paramount political leading force.

Xi said that the CCP’s governance is “a great blessing for China, the Chinese people, and the Chinese nation.” “On the important principle of adhering to the Party’s leadership, which determines the future and destiny of the party and the country, the entire party and the whole country must maintain a high degree of ideological, political, and behavioral consciousness, and cannot falter even a little bit.”

Observers believe the timing of the article, a signal to compel loyalty from CCP members, as well as people in China, only shows the unprecedented challenges that Xi is now facing.

Source: Central News Agency, July 15, 2020
https://www.cna.com.tw/news/acn/202007150432.aspx

On July 8, the Central Political and Legal Affairs Commission announced that it has set up an office that, over the next three months, will launch “rectification work” [Editor’s note: a political shakeup] in a number of pilot cities nationwide. The pilot plan will then be rolled out to the entire country. The goal is to finish it prior to Party’s 20th session in 2022. On the same day, the Central Party School held a seminar specifically to mobilize party members to study the “Yan’an Rectification” in the 1940s. The Central Party School emphasized that “the Yan’an Rectification started with ideological education, focused on solving fundamental ideological problems, and then achieved unprecedented unity among the party members.” On July 9, the Ministry of Public Security announced that it will spend the next year and a half on the “rectification work” within its organs and eliminate the influence of people like Zhou Yongkang and those who engage in forming their own interest groups.

According to the quoted comments in the article that Radio Free Asia published, people are speculating that, similar to the Great Purge in the Soviet Union in the 1930s, the “rectification work” is for Xi Jinping to clean out those who hold different opinions and get ready for personnel shakeups that will occur after the party’s 20th session in 2022. Xi will then develop a political system that he can trust.

An article that Beijing Youth Daily published stated that the main task of the “educational rectification” movement in the political and legal system is to eliminate the leading bad influences. It emphasized that justice is the last line of defense for social justice and the actions of the political and legal teams have a direct impact on the public.

Source: Radio Free Asia, July 10, 2020
https://www.rfa.org/mandarin/yataibaodao/zhengzhi/gf-07102020083122.html

On June 22, a former deputy minister of the CCP’s International Liaison Department published an article entitled, “Proactively Responding to Changes in the External Environment.” It was in the China Social Science News magazine that the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences publishes.

The article laid out six changes for which China should be prepared. They are as follows: 1.) The deterioration of Sino-US relations and the full escalation of conflict; 2.) A decrease in external demand and the disruption of industrial supply chains; 3.) Adjusting to the new norms under COVID 19 and the long-term coexistence of viruses and humans; 4.) Detaching from the dominance of the dollar and disconnecting the Chinese Yuan from the dollar; 5.) The outbreak of the global food crisis; 6.) The resurgence of international counter-terrorism forces.

The article stated that China is facing unprecedented challenges and quoted Xi Jinping’s speech in which he stated that the CCP must “adhere to bottom line thinking and be mentally and physically prepared to deal with changes in the external environment.”

Sources:
1. hk01.com, July 4, 2020
https://www.hk01.com/議事廳/493885/中聯部原副部長-要做好中美鬥爭全面升級-人民幣與美元脫鉤準備

2. China Social Science Network, June 22, 2020
http://www.cssn.cn/gd/gd_rwhd/gd_ktsb_1651/gjrlmygttsrjzd/202006/t20200622_5146140.shtml?COLLCC=930243883&