China's Political Dynamics Under Xi Jinping

Zhiyue Bo

• Publisher: WSPC
• Year: 2016
• eBook ISBN: 9789813146327
• Topic: Politics & International Relations
• Subtopic: Asian Politics
• Index: Politics & International Relations

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China watching is anything but being boring because Chinese politics is filled with dramas almost on a daily basis. In the past three years since Xi Jinping became general secretary of the Chinese Communist Party, the Chinese political drama has unfolded with a lot of twists and turns.

Based on a series of articles published on the Diplomat, this volume offers snapshots of different episodes of the political drama from December 2014 to January 2016, focusing mostly on the main character of the show — President Xi Jinping and serving as an appetizer for those who are hungry about Chinese elite politics.

--> --> Contents: Anti-Corruption Campaign;Elite Dynamics;China's Economic Development;China, Taiwan, Hong Kong and the Foreign Affairs;Rising Political Stars;China's Future;
Readership: Graduates, researchers interested in China Studies; general readers interested in China watching.
Xi Jinping, Anti-Corruption Campaign, Princelings, Factions, Wang Qishan, Mao Zedong, Jiang Zemin, Hu Jintao, Ling Jihua, Politburo, Zhou Yongkang, Xu Caihou, Guo Boxiong0

Part I

THE ANTI-CORRUPTION CAMPAIGN

1

THE DOWNFALL OF LING JIHUA AND THE NEW NORMAL OF CHINESE POLITICS

Ling Jihua’s fall indicates the new normal in Chinese politics — no one is safe.

24 December 2014

On 15 December 2014, Ling Jihua (

), vice-chairman of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference and director of the Central United Front Department of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), had just published an article in Qiushi (

Seeking Truth) — a mouthpiece of the CCP — pledging his loyalty to President Xi Jinping (

). In an article of 4,231 words, Ling mentioned Xi’s name 19 times. According to an old norm of Chinese politics, this is a clear indication that Ling, a member of the “Youth League” clique who served as the head of the General Office of Former President Hu Jintao (

) for 13 years, was switching his loyalty to the new boss and that he had already engineered a “soft-landing,” in spite of corruption scandals involving his family members. Yet on 22 December, Ling was declared a suspect of violations of party discipline and was placed under investigation.

An old norm of Chinese politics is that a politician would be considered safe if they have appeared in a political function, published an article in a major official outlet or participated in an event in which the paramount leader was also present. But this old norm no longer holds true under Xi’s leadership. Xu Caihou (

), former vice-chairman of the Central Military Commission and Politburo member, appeared along with Xi Jinping on a major function on 20 January 2014. But less than two months later on 15 March, he was placed under investigation for corruption charges. On 30 June, he was expelled from the Party and sent to stand trial for legal charges. Zhou Yongkang (

), former Politburo Standing Committee member in charge of security apparatus and law enforcement institutions in China, visited Suzhou High School on 29 April 2013 and China University of Petroleum on 1 October 2013. Two months later, he was under investigation. Now Ling Jihua has fallen into the same trap.¹

It does not matter whether one is from Jiang Zemin’s (

) camp (such as Xu Caihou and Zhou Yongkang) or from Hu Jintao’s camp (such as Ling Jihua). Nor does it matter whether these individuals are willing to be loyal subjects of the new emperor. No one is exempt from punishment.

This new arrangement is good for Xi Jinping and Wang Qishan (

) to gain popularity as credible corruption busters. But it may also have unforeseen consequences. In such a political environment, some may resort to desperate measures.

________________________

¹ Ling was expelled from the CCP on 20 July 2015. The Supreme People’s Procuratorate arrested him to face criminal proceedings on the same day. He was sentenced to life imprisonment by the Tianjin No. 1 Intermediate People’s Court on 7 June 2016 for taking bribes, illegally obtaining state secrets, and abuse of power.

2

THE RISE AND FALL OF XU CAIHOU, CHINA’S CORRUPT GENERAL

How Xu Caihou rose from nothing to the pinnacles of power — and then lost everything.

18 March 2015

Julius Caesar is not the only person who should “beware the ides of March.” The date 15 March 2014 spelled doomsday for Xu Caihou, the former Central Military Commission (CMC) vice-chairman and Politburo member who became the highest ranking officer in the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) to be brought down for corruption since 1949. Exactly one year later, he died of bladder cancer.

A native of Liaoning Province, Xu was born in the village of Xujiazhuang in Changxing Island in June 1943. His grandparents were both farmers, and his father worked as a clerk in a grocery store in Dalian City. An outstanding student through his elementary and secondary education, Xu entered Harbin Institute of Military Engineering — an elite university usually reserved for princelings — through competitive college entrance examinations in 1963. He was one of the only two students from his high school (the No. 8 High School in Dalian) to study there. He was a star student at the time.

Xu became a member of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) in April 1971, at the age of 27, and rose quickly in the military. He was promoted to the position of deputy political commissar of a company in the Shenyang Military Region within a few months, skipping three grades. In the early 1980s, when China was preparing for military modernization, Xu was selected as a candidate for future promotions because of his educational background with the Harbin Institute of Military Engineering.

He was appointed deputy director of the Political Department of Jilin Provincial Military District in 1983 and subsequently promoted to director of the Political Department of the 16th Group Army two years later. He was further promoted to political commissar of the 16th Group Army after another five years. In 1992, he joined the ranks of national military leaders as assistant director of the General Political Department as well as director of the PLA Daily, the mouthpiece of the Chinese military forces.

A rising military and political star, Xu was further promoted to deputy director of the General Political Department in 1993 and to political commissar of the Jinan Military Region in 1996. In 1999, Xu was inducted into the CMC as the executive director of the General Political Department (a rare honor) and was conferred the rank of full general, along with Guo Boxiong (

).

Between September 1999 and November 2012, Xu was in charge of appointments and promotions of high-ranking officers within the PLA. During that time, Xu personally screened more officers for promotion to the rank of full general than any other CMC chairman since 1988. Deng Xiaoping (

) only promoted a batch of 17 generals in 1988. As chairman of the CMC from November 1989 to September 2004, Jiang Zemin promoted a total of 79 generals. As chairman of the CMC from September 2004 to November 2012, Hu Jintao promoted a total of 45 generals. But Xu Caihou screened and recommended 83 full generals — almost five times as many generals as those promoted by Deng.

Two years ago, Xu was still very well regarded as a role model for high-ranking officers of the PLA. One month before his formal retirement from the CMC, Xu was diagnosed with bladder cancer in February 2013. As a man from a humble background who rose to the pinnacle of the Chinese power structure, Xu’s life could have made for an inspiring story: a high-ranking officer who dedicated his life to the great cause of military modernization in China. He could have been an example to follow for future officers. Probably based on this consideration, the PLA began in September 2013 to collect materials on Xu Caihou’s life to prepare for an official biography of the former vice-chairman of the CMC.

Had Xu died sooner, he might have been remembered as “an outstanding member of the CCP, a long-tested loyal communist soldier, and an outstanding leader of the PLA.” Unfortunately, he outlived his purpose and saw his reputation destroyed. But there is one small comfort in Xu passing away on 15 March 2015 — in legal terms, he died an innocent man, without going through a formal trial.

3

GUO BOXIONG, JIANG ZEMIN, AND THE CORRUPTION OF THE CHINESE MILITARY

If two of the most powerful military leaders in the past 16 years are corrupt, who in the Chinese military is not?

31 July 2015

Guo Boxiong, former vice-chairman of the Central Military Commission (CMC) and former Politburo member, have been dismissed from the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and handed over for a court martial.¹

According to Xinhua News Agency, at its meeting on 30 July 2015, the Politburo of the CCP reviewed the report on Guo’s case and decided to expel him from the Party and turn his case over to military prosecutors because of his involvement in taking huge bribes, directly and indirectly.

Along with Xu Caihou, another former vice-chairman of the CMC and Politburo member who was expelled from the Party for corruption, Guo practically controlled the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) for 13 years on behalf of Jiang Zemin, former president and chairman of the CMC as well as former general secretary of the Party.

During his first decade as chairman of the CMC from 1989 to 1999, Jiang did not have any actual power over the military. In September 1999, Jiang began to assert his authority by appointing two of his confidants to the CMC. One was Xu Caiho...

Table of contents

• Cover Page
• Title
• Copyright
• Dedication
• Contents
• Preface
• Acknowledgements
• Part I The Anti-Corruption Campaign
• Part II Elite Dynamics
• Part III China’s Economic Development
• Part IV China, Taiwan, Hong Kong and Foreign Affairs
• Part V Rising Political Stars
• Part VI China’s Future
• About the Author
• Index