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Government/Politics - 99. page
Beijing’s Intensified Control over China’s Higher Education
A Duowei News article put together information about the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP’s) practices of tightened control over the nation’s higher education.
At the beginning of 2019, for the first time, the Chinese media reported a case of the CCP Central Disciplinary Committee intervening in the personnel appointment at a Chinese university. Observers believe that this is a new signal that the CCP is strengthening its discipline and supervision of its universities. Days later, at a Provincial and Ministerial Leadership Seminar on January 21, 2019, Xi Jinping emphasized ideological risk when talking about the “seven major risks.” The two incidents point to the same group in the population – China’s youth. The article gave a list of CCP actions at China’s universities.
In April 2013, the CCP General Office’s “No. 9 Document,” or Bulletin on Current Ideological Situations, issued a warning that there was an ideological crisis in China’s higher education system.
On August 19, 2013, the China National Propaganda and Ideological Work Conference identified Chinese universities as “important areas and as having forefront positions in ideology.”
In October 2014, the CCP General Office issued a document that Chinese universities should “adhere to the core leadership position of the Party committee” and that “the Party committee has the overall leadership of the school’s work.”
In June 2017, the CCP Central Committee inspection teams pointed out problems that existed in 14 Centrally Controlled Universities (CCU’s) including Peking University and Tsinghua University. The problems are that “the Party’s leadership has weakened” and that “the core role of the Party committee is not fully functional.” The Central Committee demanded that a comprehensive rectification occur in order to correct all the universities.
In August 2018, it was reported that the Chinese-foreign joint venture universities would be required to set up a Party branch.
In China the CCP Central Committee directly manages a group of 31 so-called Centrally Controlled Universities (CCUs), or colleges and universities. The CCU’s party secretary and president are directly appointed by the CCP Central Committee, instead of the Ministry of Education, and rank at the deputy minister level. It is generally believed that the 31 CCU’s are the top universities in China, including Tsinghua University and Peking University.
Source: Duowei News, February 1, 2019
http://news.dwnews.com/china/news/2019-02-01/60116265.html
BBC Chinese: The CCP Faces Nine Challenges to Its Political Security
BBC Chinese recently reported that, entering the year 2019, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) is steering into high political risk zones. The article summarized these critical risks using nine points. The top challenge is the reduced economic growth, which is on the borderline of the “tipping point.” The second risk lies in the rapidly expanding gap between the rich and the poor population. The growing and stubborn powerful and special interest groups present the third challenge. That risk is followed with failing rural villages as well as more and more homeless people in the city. The fifth challenge is a society that is, considering several different standards, highly divided. The sixth challenge is that the Internet brings everyday citizens a new political landscape. Tension among ethnic groups in China is now at a dangerous level, so the seventh risk is now quickly becoming a risk that will split the nation’s unity. On the eighth note, widespread corruption is everywhere and more and more people are losing faith in the ruling party. Finally, China’s geopolitical situation has worsened a lot in the past few years. The international pressure has transformed and affected the domestic political environment. All these risks interact with one another and are forming serious challenges for the administration.
Source: BBC Chinese, January 31, 2019
https://www.bbc.com/zhongwen/simp/chinese-news-47079653
CNA: Hong Kong Working on Law with Potential Three Years in Prison for Insulting China’s National Anthem
Central News Agency (CNA) of Taiwan reported that the Hong Kong government is working on a draft law for the National Anthem. A person will face a maximum of three years in prison and a HK$50,000 (US$6,500) fine if he shows disrespect for China’s national anthem.
The new law also requires that all students in Hong Kong must learn the Chinese national anthem, its history, and its spirit.
The Economists reported that, though Hong Kong was handed over to Beijing in 1997, Hong Kong soccer fans have maintained a tradition of making noises when China’s national anthem is played in the field. Some fans wave the flag of the Hong Kong Special Administration Region (instead of China’s flag), and some even wave the Hong Kong flag from the era when it was under the U.K.’s control.
Currently, Beijing influences the Hong Kong government. Beijing is happy to see that the Hong Kong government is working on this law.
CNA warned that the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP’s) promise cannot be trusted. Its “one country, two systems” policy means “one country under one party’s rule and two systems with one system dominating the other one.” “Hong Kong’s national anthem law is a warning to Taiwan of its possible future (if Taiwan chooses to unite under the CCP).”
Source: CNA, January 24, 2019
https://www.cna.com.tw/news/acn/201901240132.aspx
To Buy Fireworks in Beijing Now Needs Real Name Registration
- The first time a person wishes the purchase fireworks or firecrackers in Beijing, he now has to register for the purchase using his real name. For the record, the purchaser needs to provide personal identification information, a mobile phone number, and enter the type and quantity of fireworks and firecrackers into the computer database. According to media reports, a Beijing municipal official revealed that the number of retail outlets for purchasing fireworks and firecrackers will be reduced from more than 80 last year to no more than 30. The sales time window is from January 30 to February 9. The purpose of real-name registration is said to be strengthening the supervision of the flow of fireworks and firecrackers. “Every retail outlet will be equipped with special instruments and an ID card will be used for the purchase. Then, once a problem occurs, it can be traced back to the purchaser.”
- Beijing is the second city after Xinjiang, which started in 2014, to have implemented real-name registration for purchasing fireworks and firecrackers.
- Beijing will hold a number of major political events this year. First, the second “One Belt, One Road” international cooperation summit forum will be held in April. Following that will be the 70th anniversary of the People’s Republic of China. The government has been conducting a series of security deployments since New Year’s Day to ensure political security, including the sale of fireworks and firecrackers.
- Source: Radio Free Asia, January 31, 2019
https://www.rfa.org/mandarin/yataibaodao/shehui/ql-01312019102334.html
Chinese Ambassador Admitted Personal Involvement in Cancelling Shen Yun Performance
Epoch Times reported that, according to a recent investigation, Lu Fan, China’s Ambassador to Spain, admitted that he pressured a Spanish theater into cancelling a performance that Shen Yun Performing Arts had booked with the theater.
“Lu admitted in a phone call, that he personally put pressure on the Royal Theater in Madrid to cancel its contract with Shen Yun Performing Arts. By using the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP’s) control of the large Chinese market as an enticement, Lu and the theater’s director jointly planned to cancel the Shen Yun performances under the pretext of “technical difficulties.” After the case was reported, Lu and the theater continued planning on how to respond.”
Shen Yun Performing Arts is a New York-based independent performance troupe specializing in classical Chinese dance. Its many companies have tours around the world every year in as many as 130 major cities. It has, for years, been the target of the CCP, which uses Chinese embassies and consulates to try to disrupt the performances. The World Organization to Investigate the Persecution of Falun Gong (WOIPFG), a non-profit organization that investigates human-rights abuses perpetrated against Falun Gong adherents, has been following such incidents.
A WOIPFG investigator, who, posed as a high-level Chinese government official, called Lu Fan directly and got him to reveal the details of how he intervened in Spain. Lu Fan directly called the Royal Theater and requested that it cancel the Shen Yun performance that had been scheduled for January 31 to February 2 this year.
In the investigator’s phone call, Lu admitted that the theater’s general manager was initially reluctant to carry out the embassy’s request because the theater had already sold nearly 900 tickets. “I directly talked to him,” said Lu, “On this issue, you cannot think only about the economic gains, but you also need to consider the politics. You are working with China and have signed the ‘International League of Theaters of the Silk Road.’ There is a great market potential for you to collaborate with China. You should not lose the Chinese market because of (the Shen Yun performance).” China has been promoting the “International League of Theaters of the Silk Road” agreement for exchanges in the field of performing arts as part of its “One Belt and One Road” initiative.
Lu also stated in the call that he worked closely with the theater’s general manager to come up with a good reason (claiming technical difficulty and a time shortage) for cancelling the show. The theater then used that excuse to cancel the performance.
Lu also stated that, after Shen Yun reported the cancellation in a local newspaper, he worked with the theater to come up with responses. “Our initial thought was to avoid making it a hot issue. Stay with the technical reason.”
The recorded phone conversation with Lu Fan is available on the Epoch Times’ website.
Source: Epoch Times, January 28, 2019
http://www.epochtimes.com/b5/19/1/28/n11008988.htm
RFA: State Council Ordered to Ban For-Profit Kindergartens
Radio Free Asia reported that the State Council issued a notice on January 22, stating that the state will put more effort into building a public education system for kindergartens and no for-profit kindergarten will be permitted. The notice requires that a comprehensive investigation of all kindergartens be completed before the end of April of 2019.
According to RFA, at present, there are two types of kindergartens in China. The first one includes government sponsored public kindergartens and public college and enterprise affiliated kindergartens. The other type is a private kindergarten. Public kindergartens mainly receive funding from the government or from enterprises. The teachers at the private kindergartens are highly skilled but the admission cost is also higher. They are more popular among middle-class families.
The RFA article quoted comments from people in China regarding a policy change which will allow government subsidized kindergartens gradually to take over the private kindergartens. One person told RFA that the public kindergartner uses the teaching materials that the municipal Department of Education designs. The private kindergartens are special. They make a profit and focus on quality education. They produce their own teaching materials, which have fewer contents involving public brainwashing. If the government transforms kindergartens from private to public, that will make it easier for it to brainwash the kids.
On January 21, the National Bureau of Statistics of China announced that the number of births in 2018 was 15.23 million, a decrease of 2 million from 2017. Some mainland media reported that from 1997 to 2017, the proportion of Chinese public kindergartens dropped from 95 percent to 44 percent.
Source: Radio Free Asia, January 24, 2019
http://https://www.rfa.org/mandarin/yataibaodao/kejiaowen/ql1-01242019083419.html
Xi Jinping Speaks about Omnimedia
Omnimedia is a relatively new concept of media still in development. In China, the discussion of omnimedia started around 2008 or 2009. Although it may refer to different people who may have different ideas, generally speaking, Omnimedia refers to a communication of information based on the integration of different channels of transmission – print, television, radio, Internet, mobile phone – and different means of presentation – text, images, animation, audio, and visual – so that the audience will absorb the information via multi-dimensions.
Xinhua News Agency reported that the Chinese communist party’s politburo held a group study session on January 25 in Beijing. Xi Jinping, the general secretary of the party, stressed that promoting media integration and building the omnimedia has become an urgent issue. “It is necessary to use the fruits of the information revolution to promote in-depth development of media integration and make the mainstream public opinion stronger.” The “mainstream public opinion” usually refers to the public discourse that is in line with the party’s ideology.
Xi said that the party’s newspapers and periodicals should strengthen the innovation of the means of communication and develop various new media such as websites, Weibo and WeChat channels, electronic newspapers, mobile newspapers, and Internet TV. This also should include exploration of interactive, service-oriented, and experience-oriented communication. The party’s voice should directly cover all types of user terminals.
At the same time, Xi demanded that new media adhere to the correct political direction. The mainstream media should provide more true and objective information with clear-cut views and in a timely manner, so as to take control of public opinion. Xi also emphasized safeguarding national political security, cultural security, and ideological security in terms of the contents of omnimedia communication, and guarding against the risks that new technologies, such as big data, may pose.
Source: Xinhua News Agency, January 25, 2019
http://www.xinhuanet.com/politics/2019-01/25/c_1124044208.htm