A Chinese article crowns Xi Jinping as a bigger ‘reformer’ comparing Deng Xiaoping, who is better known as the ‘architect’ of China’s reform.
The much delayed Third Plenary Session of the 20th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC) was held in Beijing from 15 to 18 July 2024. The Session was attended by 199 permanent members and 165 alternate members of the Central Committee. The Plenary Session listened to and discussed the work report made by Xi Jinping on behalf of the Political Bureau of the Central Committee, and reviewed and approved the “Decision of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China on Further Comprehensively Deepening Reforms and Promoting Chinese-style Modernization”. The Session issued a Communique on 18 July, which was on the expected lines and could be termed as the summation of the Xinhua News Agency feature article titled “Xi Jinping: The Reformer” and another published by the Qiushi magazine of the CPC on 15 and 16 July respectively. The Session also strikes a chord with the report Xi presented to the 20th National Congress of the CPC in 2022.
Interestingly, the over 10,000 Chinese characters long “Xi Jinping: The Reformer” crowns Xi Jinping as a bigger “reformer” comparing Deng Xiaoping, who is better known as the “architect” of China’s reform. The article says both the leaders shoulder the same mission—modernisation of China albeit under completely different circumstances. Quoting Xi Jinping, it maintains, “The easy and happy reforms (容易的、皆大歡喜的) have been completed, the delicious meat (好吃的肉) has been eaten, and the remaining are the hard bones that are difficult to chew (難啃的硬骨頭).” Even under such difficult times, the article argues that when Deng Xiaoping launched reform and opening up in 1978, China’s per capita GDP was less than US$200, and when Xi Jinping took office in 2012, China was already the world’s second largest economy, with per capita GDP exceeding US$6,000, which in a decade under Xi has been doubled.
The article goes on to say that in the new era, Xi proposed that a new round of reforms should “further emancipate the mind, liberate and develop social productivity, liberate and enhance social vitality” and “provide a strong driving force and institutional guarantee for the Chinese-style modernization”. In 1978, be it the field investigation in Chuzhou, Anhui on the Household Contract Responsibility System, or the successful implementation of the same during his stint in Zhengding, or establishment of China’s first Sino-foreign joint venture bank, Xiamen International Bank during his tenure in Fujian had been attributed to the achievements of Xi, the reformer before he took the reins of the CPC. “He’s the kind of guy who knows how to score goals”, an encomium showered on Xi by Henry Paulson, the then U.S. Treasury Secretary has been used to demonstrate Xi’s pragmatist and reformist approach. Perhaps too much flattery has caused the article to disappear from the domestic internet shortly it was published, however, is still available on Ta Kung of Hong Kong.
The second article entitled “We must persist in self-confidence and self-reliance”, essentially sums up Xi Jinping’s thought on China’s governance ever since he became the General Secretary of the CPC. A basic paradigm running through it, which is also true for “Xi: The Reformer” and “Communique” is that China’s problems must be based on China’s basic national conditions and solved by the Chinese people themselves. The article reiterates the so-called “four matters of confidence” pertaining to China’s path, theory, system, and culture. As was expected, the above two feature articles and the communique lay emphasis on comprehensively deepening reforms and promoting Chinese-style modernisation. The Plenary Session proposed various components, requirements and guarantees of the Chinese modernisation. Some of these include reforms and opening up, a high-level socialist market economic system (高水平社会主义市场经济体制), urban-rural integrated development (城乡融合发展是) , the rule of law, harmony between human and nature, coordinated material and spiritual civilizations, national defence and military modernization, and national security etc. These are also considered prerequisites for completing the socialist modernisation by 2035.
Some of the salient features that draw attention in the Communique include: the leadership of the Party is the fundamental guarantee for further deepening reform and promoting Chinese-style modernisation. No wonder, understanding the significance of the “two establishments”, the “four matters of confidences”, the “two safeguards” etc., for upholding the core leadership of the CPC has been underlined. Xi Jinping’s comprehensive deepening of reforms is stated to be unprecedented in scope, scale and intensity, covering all fields such as economy, politics, culture, society, ecological civilization, party building, national security and the defence. His people centred philosophy, anti-corruption campaign and targeted poverty alleviation, governance, Five-Sphere Integrated Plan (五位一体 coordinated economic, political, cultural, social, and ecological advancement), Four-Pronged Comprehensive Strategy (四个意识building a moderately prosperous society in all respects, deepen reform, advance law-based governance, and strengthen Party self-governance), have been pronounced as the strategic layout to lead and deepen reforms. Xiongan New Area, known as the “Millennium Plan”, Yangtze River Delta, Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, together with the “Belt and Road Initiative” are touted as interconnected and inclusive initiatives promoting new type of economic globalization.
Absolute loyalty to the core leader is absolutely mandatory. The “Communique” reveals that the Plenary Session decided to accept the resignation of Comrade Qin Gang and remove him from the membership of the Central Committee. It reveals that Qin Gang’s ‘violations’ are not as grave as the purged officials of the Rocket Force, which is clear from the Session reviewing and approving the report of the Central Military Commission of the CPC on the serious violations of discipline and law by Li Shangfu (former Minister of National Defence), Li Yuchao (former Commander of the Rocket Force), and Sun Jinming (former Chief of Staff of the Rocket Force) and confirming the previous decision of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee to expel Li Shangfu, Li Yuchao, and Sun Jinming from the Party. It may be noted that Li Shangfu and Li Yuchao were former members of the 20th Central Committee, and Sun Jinming was a former alternate member of the Central Committee. The Plenary Session decided to replace them with Ding Xiangqun (member of the Standing Committee of the Anhui Provincial Party Committee and Minister of the Organization Department, female) as an alternate member of the Central Committee, and Yu Lijun (Sichuan Provincial Party Committee, Minister of the Organization Department), and Yu Jihong (President of Beijing Normal University, female) as members of the Central Committee.
Finally, the new energy industry with “new trio” (新三样EVs, lithium ion batteries and solar cells) is actually part of the new productive forces (新质生产力) proposed by Xi Jinping. Xi Jinping has almost become a “super fan” (超級粉絲) of electric vehicles according to the Xinhua feature article. The effects of the reform in education, science and technology, says the article are already yielding results with China’s Global Innovation Index ranking jumping from 34th in 2012 to 12th in 2023. However, will China’s clean energy sector replace the investment driven growth to the one driven by consumption? All will depend on how best China deals with the “overcapacity” discourse prevalent in the West, the biggest consumer of Chinese goods.
B.R. Deepak is Professor, Center of Chinese and Southeast Asian Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi.