Chinascope – Page 712

In 2014, the Chinese Military Investigated 16 Major Corrupt Officials above the Corps Level

On January 15, Chinese Military authorities announced the major corruption cases investigated in 2014 which involved those above the army corps level. The list of 16 officials follows.

Wang Minggui, former Political Commissar of the Air Defense Forces Command Academy; Fang Wenping, former Commander of the Shanxi Province Military Region; Jin Wei, Deputy Political Commissar of the Tibet Military Region; Ye Wanyong, former Political Commissar of the Sichuan Province Military Region; Yang Jinshan, Deputy Commander of the Chengdu Military Region; Zhang Qiqin, Former Deputy Chief of Staff of the Jinan Military Region; Fu Linguo, Deputy Chief of the General Logistics Command; Xu Caihou, former Vice Chairman of the Central Military Commission; Liu Zheng, Deputy Minister of the General Logistics Department; Dai Weimin, Vice President of Nanjing Academy of Political Science; Gao Xiaoyan, Deputy Political Commissar of the PLA Information Engineering University; Ma Xiangdong, of the Political Department of Nanjing Academy of Political Science; Zhang Daixin, Deputy Commander of the Heilongjiang Provincial Military Region; Fan Changmi, Deputy Political Commissar of the Lanzhou Military Region; Yu Daqing, Deputy Political Commissar of the Second Artillery Corps; and Chen Qiang, Deputy Army Chief of the 96301 Military Troops.

Source: People’s Daily, January 15, 2015

http://military.people.com.cn/n/2015/0115/c1011-26393184.html

Briefings | | January 23, 2015 | Government/Politics

Study Times: Industrial Overcapacity and Countermeasures

On January 19, 2015, Study Times published an article setting forth measures to combat industrial overcapacity.

In the second half of 2013, capacity utilization in China was at 78 percent, the lowest since the fourth quarter of 2009. The third quarter of 2014 saw the capacity utilization at 78.7 percent, a reduction of 0.9 percent when compared to same period in 2013. The inventory of finished industrial goods grew by 12.6 percent in the first half of 2014, an increase of 5.4 percentage points. In the second half of 2014, capacity grew faster than demand, adding pressure to the inventory.

The article proposed a three-prong approach: Government intervention, industrial policies to increase capability instead of providing subsidies, and optimization of the system environment for the market economy.

Source: Study Times, January 19, 2015

http://www.studytimes.cn/shtml/xxsb/20150119/9125.shtml

Briefings | | January 23, 2015 | Economy/Resources

Qiushi: China Must Develop its Own Discourse System

On January 21, 2015, Qiushi published a commentary that advocated that China develop a comprehensive, thorough, and strong discourse system.

“We must strengthen [China’s] discourse system by cultivating a comprehensive, thorough, and strong discourse system. The term ‘comprehensive’ means that we should be able to use our own words to explain fully China’s achievements, its problems, and its future; the term ‘thorough’ means that we should explain the issues of concern clearly to everyone so that ordinary people and foreigners can understand them; the term ‘strong’ means that we must have a strong response to the challenge of Western discourse. The West accuses China of strong discourse. Those pro-Western forces in China also use strong but shallow western discourse. We need to fight back forcefully.”

The commentary stated that Maoist ideology, Deng Xiaoping theory, “the three represents,” the scientific outlook on development and Xi Jinping’s important speeches are all part of the Chinese discourse system.

The commentary expressed the belief that, without its own discourse system, China could be fooled by Western discourse. Citing the destruction of the former Soviet Union, it stated that, in that year, armed to the teeth, Germany and France failed to destroy the Soviet Union and Yugoslavia. However, the United States, using Western discourse, played such a role in the development of the Soviet Union’s mistakes and errors, that it destroyed them. The lesson we must bear in mind is not to let the Western discourse fool us. “We must bear this lesson in mind and not be fooled by Western discourse.”

Source: Qiushi, January 21, 2015

http://www.qstheory.cn/tjyd/2015-01/21/c_1114068621.htm

Briefings | | January 23, 2015 | Government/Politics

Huanqiu Reports on Obama’s State of the Union Address Comments on China

Huanqiu published an article commenting on what Obama said about China in his State of the Union Address:

The article said that Obama’s talk on diplomatic issues allowed us, once again, to see the hegemonic attitude of the United States toward "leading the world." Interestingly, similar to the previous State of the Union speeches, China was again a target of critics. Obama directly mentioned China on three occasions. The first two were mainly about trade competition with China, calling for rules that the United States sets rather than China. The third was praise because China and the U.S. reached a "historic" emissions reduction agreement. Given his emphasis on competition and his "high praise" [of cooperation with China], what are Obama’s hidden intentions?

The Huanqiu article cited a report from the Wall Street Journal on [January] 21 for its answer: "Obama uses China as an excuse to gain support for his trade policy." U.S. government officials have been using the excuse that China might gain economic dominance to try to win support for the TPP. The [TPP] agreement includes Japan and 10 other Asia Pacific countries, but excludes China. Critics claimed that warning about China’s intentions is a cover-up, an attempt to cover up the economic risks associated with lower trade barriers.

The article said that Obama’s enthusiasm about the climate change agreement is understandable because it is a major achievement [he made] to improve bilateral relations between the two countries.

Jin Canrong, Vice Dean of International Relations at Renmin University of China, said, "Obama delivered both positive and negative signals regarding China in his State of the Union Address. It just shows the complexity of Sino-U.S. relations and the ambivalence of the U.S. when handling Sino-U.S. relations." On the one hand, as the world’s only superpower, the United States is very worried about the emergence of new powers and a re-set of the world’s rules. [The U.S.] hopes to revitalize its domestic economy through the implementation of re-industrialization. This is precisely the reason a competitive relationship with China exists. On the other hand, in response to climate change, counter-terrorism, and other global issues, the United States alone cannot handle them with its own power and needs to cooperate with China.

Source: Huanqiu, January 22, 2015

ttp://world.huanqiu.com/exclusive/2015-01/5466186.html

Briefings | | January 22, 2015 | US-China Relations

Qiushi: The Contribution of China’s Path to World History

Qiushi published an article on the contribution of China’s path to world history.

“While the modern Western path is difficult to copy, to blaze our own path successfully is easier said than done. China, while achieving rapid economic growth, has also made commendable achievements towards fairness, democracy, order, and self-rule. Why? Our experience is that, no matter how market oriented our economy may be, how democratic our political system should be, and how pluralistic our culture should become, the authority of the central committee of the Party is indispensable. The central committee of the Party must have authority. It is both an important feature of the Chinese path and also the political principle and the fundamental experience that we have always followed.”

The article further stated that the Communist Party’s policy of befriending China’s neighbors is part of the Chinese spirit.

Source: Qiushi, January 19, 2015

http://www.qstheory.cn/zhuanqu/zywz/2015-01/19/c_1114037918.htm

Briefings | | January 22, 2015 | Government/Politics

The Unspoken Rules for Buying and Selling Official Military Positions in China

On January 17, 2015, udn.com published an article on corruption in China’s People’s Liberation Army. On January 15, 2015, a "Deep Throat" or secret informant in the PLA exposed that, when Xu Caihou and Guo Boxiong served as vice chairmen of the Central Military Commission, buying and selling official positions in the military had been unspoken rules across the whole PLA. A commander level position sold for US$1.6 million and a division level position sold for US$160,000. All other army positions were for sale and had specific price tags. The whole army was demoralized. Everyone was busy engaging in relationships and giving out gifts or money to their superiors. According to an open letter to Xi Jinping, the Chairman of the Central Military, "Democratic Evaluation" really referred to the unspoken rules of bribes and bribery implemented in the army.

Source: udn.com, January 17, 2015
http://udn.com/news/story/7331/647629

Briefings | | January 21, 2015 | Defense/Military

He Qinglian: Jiang Zemin and Zeng Qinghong Will Be the Next Top Officials to Be Arrested

On January 17, 2014, Voice of America published an article written by He Qinglian, the Chinese author and economist now living in the United States, titled, “Who is the ‘Iron Hat King’ Mentioned in People’s Daily?” The question was based on a statement in a People’s Daily’s commentary that “There is no ‘Iron Hat King’ in terms of corruption; there is no top official who cannot be taken down in the anti-corruption movement.” “Iron Hat King,” a title borrowed from the nobility system in the Qing Dynasty, was a royal king rank that the emperor granted for a deed of great merit. An Iron Hat King’s descendants would always enjoy the royal king title, generation after generation.

He Qinglian indicated in her article that the next high ranking Chinese Communist Party officials to be arrested in the name of anti-corruption would be Jiang Zemin, the General Secretary of the Communist Party from 1989 to 2002, and Zeng Qinghong, Jiang’s close ally and formerly powerful backroom operator.

Source: Voice of America, January 17, 2015 and People’s Daily, January 15, 2015
http://www.voachinese.com/content/he-qing-lian-20150115/2602015.html
http://paper.people.com.cn/rmrb/html/2015-01/15/nw.D110000renmrb_20150115_6-01.htm

Briefings | | January 21, 2015 | Government/Politics

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