Chinascope – Page 216

CCP’s Grassroots Control of Local Communities – Grid Administrator’s Microscopic Grip over every Chinese Citizen and Resident.

Chen Yixin, Secretary General of the Political and Legal Affairs Commission (PLAC) of the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP’s) Central Committee, recently visited the city of Shenzhen. Chen pointed out that the current domestic and international security environment is becoming more complex and that it is necessary to optimize the grid-based grassroots management mechanism, improve the coverage of video surveillance, and set up a “red property management team.”

The PLAC is a very powerful Chinese Communist Party organ that oversees all judicial and law enforcement authorities, including the Supreme Court, Supreme Procuratorate, the Ministry of State Security, Ministry and Public Security, and the police force. The Secretary General is a senior leadership position in the Commission.

Chen pointed out that, in recent years, there have been mass social unrest cases where people’s conflicts and disputes were not solved in a timely manner. They all relate to “grassroots governance.” He said that “grid management” is an effective innovation in grassroots governance, and it is necessary to improve China’s grid management.

The Chinese government has divided local “grassroots” communities into a grid pattern, with each grid made up of 15 to 20 households. They are monitored by a designated person called the “grid administrator.” These persons must fully familiarize themselves with the residents in their grid – who lives there, their housing and facilities, their membership in organizations, and their place of work. In addition, they must identify any possible hidden dangers. The authorities make use of the “grid management” system to exert the most microscopic grip over every Chinese citizen and resident.

Chen proposed that there should be a focus on the entrances and exits of buildings and public areas, improved coverage of video surveillance, and a focus on the use of big data to predict risks and refine the “grid management” to ensure that the grid covers a moderate population and area. Business buildings, enterprises and institutions are divided into specially designated grids.

Chen asked grid administrators to mingle themselves with the people, watch out for the first signs of any problems, and organize CCP members and cadres in the community grids.

Chen said he would work with government bodies to promote “red property management” and introduce the participation of CCP members and university students, so that CCP cadres in the community also serve as the head of property management.

Source: Website of Political and Legal Affairs Commission, September 22, 2021
http://www.chinapeace.gov.cn/chinapeace/c100007/2021-09/21/content_12539687.shtml

Briefings | | October 1, 2021 | Social Stability

Tsinghua to Cut Number of Doctoral Students in Liberal Arts

In recent years, the Chinese government has signaled that there are “too many liberal arts students.” Tsinghua University in Beijing has proposed to control the scale of liberal arts programs and reduce the number of liberal arts doctoral students.

According to Tsinghua University’s website, when Qiu Yong. the current president of Tsinghua University, attended a conference on liberal arts on September 17, he put forward a 10-point to-do list for the future liberal arts education. At the top of the list was to control the scale of discipline and to downsize doctoral programs.

According to China Youth Daily, an official newspaper targeting young people, starting in 2019, Chinese universities and colleges have kept a tight grip on enrollment and significantly scaled back humanities and social science programs.

In April of this year, the People’s Bank of China published a paper titled, “Understanding and Responding to China’s Demographic Transition.” The paper argued that one of the reasons that Southeast Asian countries fell into the middle-income trap was that “there were too many liberal arts students.” It suggested that China “should pay attention to science and technology education” when formulating population policy.

Source: Tsinghua University, September 20, 2021
https://www.tsinghua.edu.cn/info/1177/87151.htm

Briefings | | October 1, 2021 | Economy/Resources

Chinese Communist Party Central Committee Sets a Goal to Become an Intellectual Property Power in the Next 15 Years

According to a Xinhua report, the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China and the State Council recently issued the “Guideline for Building a Powerful Intellectual Property Country (2021-2035).” The “Guideline” states that it is a major top-level design for the development of China’s intellectual property industry over the next 15 years.

The “Guideline” proposes that, by 2025, the added value of patent-intensive industries will account for 13 percent of GDP. The added value of copyright industries will account for 7.5 percent of GDP, and the total amount of royalties from the annual imports and exports of intellectual property will reach 350 billion yuan. The number of patents for high-value inventions per 10,000 people will reach 12.

Source: Xinhuanet, September 30, 2021
http://www.news.cn/politics/2021-09/30/c_1127922346.htm

Briefings | | September 30, 2021 | Government/Politics

China’s New Equipment Manufacturing State Giant

China Electrical Equipment Group Co., Ltd. (CEEG) was established in Shanghai on the 25th. CEEG is a state-owned company which the central government manages directly. It is based on the restructuring of a few electric equipment companies including China XD Group Co. Ltd, XJ Group Corp, Pinggao Group Co. Ltd and Shandong Electric Engineering & Equipment Group Co. Ltd.

China aims to move its electrical equipment manufacturing industry up to the high-end of the global value chain. It is viewed as being of strategic importance to the implementation of China’s energy security.

After the completion of the reorganization, CEEG’s business will produce equipment related to power generation (including new energy), power transmission, transformation, and distribution. It may also be involved in energy storage, rail transportation, industrial automation, and energy grid. It vows to be the most capable and comprehensive manufacturer of AC and DC electrical equipment.

Source: SASAC, September 25, 2021
http://www.sasac.gov.cn/n2588025/n2643314/c20909163/content.html

Briefings | | September 29, 2021 | Economy/Resources

Government & Leadership: After Meng Wanzhou, China Wants U.S. to Fix All Its Wrongs on Two Lists

Hua Chunying, the spokeswoman for China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said, during a press conference on September 28, that Xi Jinping, himself, gave directions on Meng Wanzhou’s case and requested the United States to resolve it properly.

Hua stated that Xi Jinping has given his personal attention to Meng’s case since she had been detained in early December 2018. The Chinese government representatives at all levels have worked to their full strength in every situation to help Meng.

Hua pointed out, in the recent China-U.S. diplomat meeting at Tianjin, that China gave the U.S. two lists. One list included the wrong talks and actions that the U.S. must stop. The other one included the key cases to which China pays attention. Both lists clearly requested that the U.S. should cancel its wrong accusation against Meng and let her return to China quickly.

“When the two state heads talked (Editor’s Note: referring to the Biden-Xi talk on September 9), … Meng said, “President Xi Jinping clearly made an effort on Meng’s case. He stated China’s stand and requested the U.S. to resolve the situation properly.”

Hua said that she has noticed that some media commented on how the resolution of Meng Wanzhou’s case helped to pull out a thorn that was deeply embedded in Sino-U.S. relations. “Due to the fact that the U.S. side has carried out a wrong China policy in the past period, there are many other thorns, big and small, in the Sino-U.S. relations. China hopes the U.S. will pay high attention (to them) and take substantive actions, to clear all items on the two lists.”

Sources:
1. China Press, September 28, 2021
https://www.chinapress.com.my/20210928/华春莹答覆孟晚舟事件-习近平明确部署工作！/
2. China Youth Daily, September 29, 2021
http://news.cyol.com/gb/articles/2021-09/29/content_Xx507fpEJ.html

Hot Topics | | September 29, 2021 | Government/Politics US-China Relations

After Biden-Xi Talk, CCP Held a Party Dialog with the U.S.

China reported that, on September 13, the Chinese Communist Party held its 12^th Sino-U.S. party dialog in an online video conference. The CCP Foreign Liaison Department along with the Democratic Party and the Republican Party in the U.S. organized the dialog.

Song Tao, the Minister of the CCP Foreign Liaison Department spoke for China.

Howard Dean, former Chair of the Democratic National Committee and former Vermont Governor represented the Democratic Party.

Carla Hills, former U.S. Trade Representative and former Secretary of Housing and Urban Development represented the Republic Party.

Around 50 representatives, from the ministries and universities of China, the Democratic Party, the Republican Party, and key think tanks in the U.S., attended the dialog.

Source: China News Agency, September 14, 2021
https://www.chinanews.com/gn/2021/09-14/9564748.shtml

Briefings | | September 29, 2021 | Government/Politics US-China Relations

Xiaomi Cellphones Found to Have Security Issues

Well-known Chinese news site Sohu (NASDAQ: SOHU) recently reported that, in July, the Baltic State of Lithuania allowed Taiwan to set up a “representative office” under the name “Taiwan,” leading to a sudden escalation of diplomatic tension between the two countries, Lithuania and China. Now the Ministry of National Defense of Lithuania released an investigation report, claiming that content censorship “features” have been found in mobile phones produced by some Chinese companies like Xiaomi. The Ministry even advised consumers to avoid buying Chinese mobile phones or to trash them if they currently own such equipment. The National Cyber Security Center of the Ministry of Defense of Lithuania indicated that Xiaomi’s flagship phones have built-in detection and censorship functions which can be turned on remotely. Xiaomi’s encrypted mobile phone usage data is transmitted to a server in Singapore. Similar loopholes have also been found on one Huawei model. According to Deutsche Welle Chinese Edition, the German Federal Office for Information Security (BSI) confirmed that, based on the Lithuania Report, it has launched an investigation into allegations of security vulnerabilities in Chinese mobile phones such as Xiaomi.

Sources:
(1) Sohu, September 22, 2021
https://www.sohu.com/a/491346708_115479
(2) DW Chinese, September 25, 2021
https://p.dw.com/p/40qBc

Briefings | | September 27, 2021 | Geo-Strategic Trend Information/Technology

China’s Reaction to Trump’s Election Win

Xinhua Commentary Series: Spotlight on the U.S. Presidential Election

Wu Guoguang: Xi Jinping’s Reversal of the Course, Will China’s Transition be Peaceful or Marked with Bloodshed?

Cheng Xiaonong: U.S.-China Strategic Relations Have Crystallized