Apply Daily published a commentary stating that Xi Jinping has started to remove princelings {descendants of prominent and influential senior Chinese Communist Party (CCP) officials} from power. A discussion of the contents of the commentary follows.

“The princelings are rare to see among the newly elected representatives of the Communist Party’s 19th National Congress. They are not only rare in the civil section and state-owned enterprises, but also in the military. Several high-profile princelings in the military have either retired or been pushed aside, including Mao Xinyu (grandson of former CCP head Mao Zedong), Liu Yuan (son of former President Liu Shaoqi), Liu Xiaojiang (son-in-law of former CCP General Secretary Hu Yaobang), Zhang Haiyang (son of former Central Military Commission Vice Chairman Zhang Zhen), Liu Yazhou (son-in-law of former President Li Xiannian), Zhu Heping (grandson of former Marshall Zhu De).”

“Obviously this is Xi’s arrangement.”

The article went on to explain that the princelings, many of whom appear to have a high-profile civilian or military rank, are normally not in the key posts. Also, they have been split among many smaller groups due to the CCP’s intense in-fighting, whether among themselves or inherited from their parents.

They are likely to interfere in the administration’s policies. In 2005, Zhu De’s grandson Zhu Chenghu claimed that, if the U.S. were to interfere in China-Taiwan affairs, then  China “is prepared to sacrifice all cities on the east side of Xi’an” to have a nuclear war with the U.S. Another grandson of Zhu De, Zhu Heping, stated that China may have a military fight with Japan to gain the control of the Senkaku Islands (called the Diaoyudao Islands in China).

While the princelings may not have contributed big achievements, they can create big trouble for Xi Jinping due to their political status and their influence over the business world. Therefore, Xi has had to restrict them.

Source: Apple Daily, September 15, 2017
http://hk.apple.nextmedia.com/news/art/20170915/20153339

Since Xi Jinping assumed power, he has mentioned and promoted traditional Chinese culture in a number of places. This is a deviation from the Communist Party’s approach which in the past has been to denounce, suppress, and even attempt the complete destruction of traditional Chinese culture.

Recently, Chinese Central Television (CCTV) broadcasted a six episode CCTV program, The Diplomacy of a Big Country. The first episode quoted Xi’s desire to keep traditional Chinese Culture.

“Xi Jinping: (Since) I became the President of the country, a number of retired officials have said to me, ‘What should the Chinese leader do? It is not to lose China’s 5,000 years of culture and civilization. It should also be passed down in your hands.’”

Source: CCTV, August 28, 2017
http://m.news.cctv.com/2017/08/28/ARTIVzGmfqhlkUslnKqCsVFB170828.shtml

On September 14, Hong Kong Oriental Daily published a news article reporting that, prior to the upcoming 19th National Congress, Xi Jinping finished a major restructuring of the Central Military Commission and the entities that report underneath it. This is unlike how it had been handled in the past when military restructuring took place following the completion of the party’s delegate conference. The restructuring included the elimination of members of the Central Military Commission. They were replaced with four Vice Chairmen of the Central Military Commission which will, therefore, consist of one Chairman and four Vice Chairmen. The article stated that the restructuring occurred after 5 years of cleanup of the old structure from the 18th National Congress in 2012, which former PLA Generals Guo Boxiong and Xu Caihou had controlled. The new structure is an indication that Xi has obtained total control of the military. The article explained, “It shows that Xi has built a foundation that is capable of resisting political interference as well as the existing differences inside or outside of the party.”

Source:
Hong Kong Oriental Daily, September 14, 2017
http://hk.on.cc/hk/bkn/cnt/commentary/20170914/bkn-20170914002326198-0914_00832_001.html