- David Brown
- BBC visual news team
5 hours ago
The Communist Party of China should grant Xi Jinping, considered the most powerful Chinese leader since Mao Zedong, a third five-year term.
At 69, he could also serve as China’s president for life.
Three important positions of Xi Jinping
- General Secretary of the Central Committee of the CCP
- Chinese President
- President of the Central Military Commission
He is also considered a “leader” or “supreme leader”.
At this five-year party congress, Xi Jinping will likely hold the positions of general secretary of the party’s central committee and chairman of the central military commission, and then hold the post of chairman at the National People’s Assembly in the spring of 2023.
How does the party congress take place?
About 2,300 delegates will gather in the Great Hall of the People near Tiananmen Square for a week-long meeting.
About 200 of them will be elected to the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party, with about 170 alternate members.
The Central Committee will elect 25 people to the party’s Politburo.
The Politburo will appoint the Politburo Standing Committee.
They are the elite of the elite in their power structure.
There are currently seven members of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CCP Central Committee, including Xi Jinping, general secretary of the CCP Central Committee.
Not everything will be done at the party congress.
The day after the congress, the new Central Committee will hold a plenary session.
The importance of the party congress
Xi Jinping leads the second largest economy in the world and one of the largest military armed forces in the world.
Some analysts say it could push China to a more authoritarian political stance in its third term.
“China under Xi Jinping is heading in a totalitarian direction,” said Professor Steve Tsang of the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS), University of London.
“China under Mao Zedong was a totalitarian system. We are not there yet, but we are heading in that direction.”
Professor Zeng said that this party congress could revise the party constitution to make “Xi Jinping Thinking” the guiding ideology of the party.
“Xi Jinping’s thinking on socialism with Chinese characteristics for a new era” is Xi Jinping-style Chinese socialism, a staunchly nationalist philosophy with a high degree of suspicion of private enterprise.
Under his leadership, the Chinese authorities cracked down on giant corporations in various sectors of the economy.
“If so, that actually makes him a dictator,” said Professor Tsang.
The top Chinese leadership, unveiled at the party congress, will formulate a wide range of policies.
Any hint of China’s future will be closely followed by the world, particularly on some key issues: economics, politics, diplomacy and environmental issues.
China’s economic challenges
The Chinese economy has been booming over the past few decades.
But now, China faces severe economic instability, rising prices and a severe housing crisis during the Covid-19 blockade.
The war in Ukraine has fueled growing fears of a global recession, which has also affected confidence in the Chinese economy.
Under Xi Jinping, the economic growth rate was lower than that of Jiang Zemin, Hu Jintao and other predecessors.
Some analysts argue that the legitimacy of the Communist Party government depends heavily on its ability to provide Chinese people with high incomes and good jobs.
Therefore, if the economy does not perform well in the next five years, it could mean a serious political crisis for Xi Jinping.
The current party congress will create the conditions for changes in key economic actors such as central bank governors and prime ministers.
New “zero” policy of the crown
The new “zero” policy of the Chinese crown is one of Xi Jinping’s distinctive policies.
While much of the world is returning to normal, Chinese authorities have stepped up efforts to contain the outbreak, including stringent lockdowns, mass testing and extended quarantines.
According to reports, several cities, including Shenzhen and Chengdu, have been completely or partially blocked in recent weeks, affecting tens of millions of residents, disrupting many industries and signaling public dissatisfaction from time to time.
image source,Getty Images
Medical personnel from Guiyang city, Guizhou province, test residents for the new crown.
Xi Jinping stated that he would “resolutely fight against all words and acts that distort, doubt and deny the epidemic prevention policies and policies of my country”.
A large-scale outbreak on the eve of or during the party congress could damage Xi Jinping’s image in power.
Some observers have suggested that the CCP could use the party congress to declare victory in the fight against the epidemic, and thus end the new crown’s “zeroing” policy.
Or, the CCP will insist that China, unlike other countries, value people’s lives above economic interests, so that the “zero” policy continues.
Taiwan and the West
Xi Jinping is also in favor of a hard line on relations with the West, especially on the Taiwanese issue.
The chairman of the US House of Representatives visited Taiwan in August, prompting China to conduct military exercises around the island, including real-time missile tests.
China has long regarded Taiwan as a province of betrayal that will eventually fall under Beijing’s control. Taiwan sees itself as a different place from mainland China.
Xi Jinping said that “unification” with Taiwan must be achieved by 2049, the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Communist Party – and did not rule out the possibility of achieving it by force.
Security experts say a Chinese takeover of Taiwan would undermine U.S. influence in the Western Pacific and beyond.
Taiwan is of strategic importance to the West and is part of the so-called “first island chain”, a long list of areas in the Asia-Pacific region that have been aligned with the United States for decades.
