Chinascope – Page 635

VOA Chinese: Xi Tells Politburo Members to Stay in Line with Party Central

The Political Bureau (Politburo) of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) Central Committee held a special two-day meeting on December 28 and 29. At the meeting, Xi Jinping brought up the names of five disgraced top officials: Zhou Yongkang, Bo Xilai, Xu Caihou, Guo Boxiong, and Ling Jihua. Except for Ling, a former CCP Central Committee member who served as the top aide to then CCP Secretary General Hu Jintao, the other four were all former Politburo members. Zhou was also a member of the Politburo Standing Committee.

A news release issued after the meeting claimed that punishing these officials served to honor the responsibility to the CCP, to the country, to the people, and to history.

Xi was quoted as asking current Politburo members to "stay in line" with the CCP Central Committee, and to "be strict in educating and supervising their children and other family members as well as their subordinates."

VOA‘s report observed that asking Politburo members to "stay in line" with the CCP Central Committee (or Party Central, in short) is worth noting, as the Politburo itself is the power center of 80 million CCP members. Xi’s requirement would imply that the 20-plus Politburo members need stay in line with either the Politburo Standing Committee or with Xi himself.

Source: VOA Chinese, December 30, 2015

http://www.voachinese.com/content/xijinping-china-20151230/3125582.html

Briefings | | January 9, 2016 | Government/Politics

Caixin: The Founding Fathers of the United States Created a Superior Structure for the System

On December 31, 2015, Caixin, a media group that is close to current top CCP leader Xi Jinping, published an article titled, “The Reform of the Structure That Enables Reform of the System Is the Most Important (action).” There are three levels of social reforms in the history of mankind: 1) Reform at the Technological Level; 2) Reform at the System Level (the Rules of the Game); and 3) Reform of the Structure of the System Level (Rules for the Rules of the Game).

According to the article, the 1st (technology) and the 2nd (system) level reforms can be achieved by a few social elites or by an authoritarian government. Such reforms are not sustainable and cannot adapt to social and economic changes. The 3rd, the structure for the system level reform can be realized based on the newly formed social consensus and the social contract. Only after the completion of the 3rd reform in a country can that country be regarded as an open society. Social and economic development will then embark on a healthy development track: social development relies on a robust and secure system, rather than counting on a few social elites. In an open society, the government itself is also subject to the limitations and constraints of the social contract.

“Therefore, in terms of importance, the structure of the system is the first priority. If there is a superior structure for the system, a good system will be derived therefrom. Once there is a good system, it will give birth to advanced technology. I think this is why Washington, Jefferson, Franklin, and other founding fathers of the United States are respected by their posterity: They created a superior structure for the system."

Source: Caixin, December 31, 2015
http://opinion.caixin.com/2015-12-31/100894693.html

Briefings | | January 8, 2016 | Government/Politics

Huanqiu: China May Have Cut Five Ground Force Army Groups

On January 2, 2016, Huanqiu published an article on China’s military reform; it was based on an article from China’s military newspaper People’s Liberation Army Daily. According to the article, China may have reduced 5 of its ground force army groups, going from the previous 18 army groups to 13 army groups. The 5 removed army groups were from the Shenyang Military Region, the Beijing Military Region, the Jinan Military Region and the Chengdu Military Region.

China’s president Xi Jinping had announced on September 3, 2015, that 300,000 troops would be cut. The demilitarization of 300,000 troops mainly targeted the downsizing of land force armies, reducing non-combat institutions and personnel, as well as military official positions.

“China’s military reform has triggered massive reshuffles, the influence of which is ‘unprecedented’ in terms of its depth, breadth, and the range of interests affected. Some media call it ‘a system remodeling.’"

Sources: Huanqiu and People’s Daily, January 2, 2016
http://www.huanqiuzhiyin.com/hqjj/2016/01022182.html
http://military.people.com.cn/n1/2016/0102/c172467-28003660.html

Briefings | | January 7, 2016 | Defense/Military

China Urges North Korea to Return to the Negotiating Table

Xinhua recently published an article in which it made an express commentary on North Korea’s test of the hydrogen bomb, stating that Beijing authorities strongly oppose the North Korean test. The article commented, “The North Korean bomb test runs counter to the goal of denuclearization.”

The commentary further stated, “[N]o one will benefit from chaos in the peninsula. Any thoughts or actions that disrupt the peace and stability of northeast Asia are neither appropriate nor wise.” It urged that “interested parties should abandon this confrontation mentality and return to resolving the dispute through dialogue.”

Caixin, which is pro-Xi Jinping, expressed in its commentary that “[T]he six-party talks to resolve the nuclear issue continue to be shelved. North Korea’s nuclear test is reckless. Condemnation and sanctions are not good medicine for the North Korean nuclear issue. When will North Korea stop this practice of never listening to others?”

Sources:

Xinhua, January 6, 2016

http://news.xinhuanet.com/world/2016-01/06/c_1117686698.htm

Caixin.com, January 6, 2016

http://international.caixin.com/2016-01-06/100896794.html

Briefings | | January 7, 2016 | Geo-Strategic Trend

Personnel in the Largest State-owned Enterprises under Corruption Probe

On January 4, 2016, the website of the Commission for Discipline Inspection (CDI), the Chinese Communist Party branch in charge of the ongoing anti-corruption sweep, released a summary of its probes into the largest state-owned enterprise (SOE’s), the top 100 some SOE’s directly under the Central Government.

The Chairman of the Board, the General Manger (CEO), or the top Chinese Communist Party official of SOE’s directly under the Central Government, who are usually referred to as chiefs, are ministerial or deputy ministerial positions directly appointed by the State Council.

According to the article, in the past two years, CDI has covered 55 SOE’s directly under the Central Government, removing 64 personnel from their leadership positions at various levels for corruption investigation. Most of the problems came from the energy, communications, and machinery manufacturing sectors. Among the sacked officials, 36 or 56 percent are the chiefs – top executives or political leaders.

In 2015, six of the nine personnel under investigation were from PetroChina, CNOOC, Sinopec, Wuhan Iron and Steel Co, and China Telecom. Most of these companies are listed on the U.S. stock market.

Source: Commission for Discipline Inspection, Central Committee of Chinese Communist Party, January 4, 2016

http://www.ccdi.gov.cn/xwtt/201512/t20151231_71867.html

Briefings | | January 6, 2016 | Government/Politics

The U.S. Warned EU Not to Grant China Market Economy Status

Well-known Chinese news site Sina recently reported that the government of the United States warned the European Union not to grant Market Economy Status to China. The U.S. cautioned that conferring this Status could damage the effort to prevent China from dumping underpriced goods into the EU and the U.S. markets. Obtaining the Market Economy Status via the World Trade Organization (WTO) is one of China’s core strategic goals. In addition to other ways in which the Chinese side would benefit, it would be much harder for the EU and the U.S. to collect high tariffs on Chinese goods. Among EU members, Germany and Britain are supporters of granting China this Status. However, the majority of the rest of the EU countries, headed by Italy, are strongly against the idea. More and more labor unions and traditional industries such as Iron & steel, ceramics, and textiles support these countries. China argued that China should automatically be granted the Status based on its WTO sign-on agreement. However, many lawyers have observed that the government exercises significant control of the Chinese economy. The EU seems to be leaning towards granting the Status but no final decision has been made.

Source: Sina, December 28, 2105

http://finance.sina.com/gb/economy/sinacn/20151228/08011392247.html

Briefings | | January 5, 2016 | Economy/Resources

China Launched Satellite with Highest Resolution

Well-known Chinese news site Sina recently reported that China just successfully launched its first high resolution remote sensing satellite named “High-Res 4.” It is currently the geosynchronous orbit satellite with the world’s highest resolution, which covers one third of the surface of the earth. The mission of the satellite is to supply data for applications supporting work in areas of atmosphere, oceans, land, environmental protection, agriculture and forestry. China also plans to provide services to regions and countries covered under the “One Belt, One Road” strategy. The High-Res 4 weighs five tons and has an expected life-span of eight years. It is located over the equator. The satellite is equipped with a camera that has 50-meter resolution for the visible spectrum and 400-meter MWIR spectral resolution. The launch of the High-Res 4 was China’s latest and the 19th satellite launch mission in 2015. All of the 2015 launches were successful.

Source: Sina, December 29, 2015

http://dailynews.sina.com/bg/news/int/sinchewdaily/20151229/01397105290.html

Briefings | | January 5, 2016 | Information/Technology

People’s Daily: Grass-Root Communist Party Branches are Showing Weakness

People’s Daily recently reported that, when the newspaper’s reporters visited village-level Communist Party branches, many demonstrated shocking weakness and laxity. One example was that a village-level Party leader was delighted to have “earned” the title of “Weak and Lax Village Party Branch,” which entitled that branch to some funding to refresh its office hardware. The report suggested that this type of grass-root Party branches would only shake the base for the legitimacy on which the Communist Party remains in power. It also implied that the “Chinese people” are “losing confidence” in the ruling Party. The author of the report called for disciplinary action against the “weak and lax” party branches and members and also called for a stop to the practice of throwing money at those branch leaders without requiring that they correct their way of thinking.

Source: People’s Daily, December 28, 2015

http://fanfu.people.com.cn/n1/2015/1228/c64371-27984203.html

Briefings | | January 5, 2016 | Government/Politics

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

Xinhua Commentaries: “Exposing the Three Major Political Deficits of the U.S.”