Four Histories Propaganda, One-China Principle, Yimeng Spirit & China-model Promotion

Here are the stories and pieces from the People’s Daily’s May 26, 2021, edition that I found noteworthy.

Page 1: On the front page today, we have a report about a new notice by the General Office about propaganda around the Four Histories, i.e., History of the Party, History of New China, History of Reform and Opening-up, and the History of Socialist Development in the Whole Society.

So the objective of the campaign is fairly clear through this: “The circular clearly stated that it is necessary to study, publicize and implement Xi Jinping's thought of socialism with Chinese characteristics in the new era as the main line, accurately grasp the theoretical logic, historical logic and practical logic of this important thought, deeply understand the historical status and great significance of this important thought, and continuously enhance political identity, ideological identity, theoretical identity and emotional identity.”

Here’s more, if you had any doubts. This campaign is about Xi’s version of history: What’s called for is an “in-depth study and understanding of General Secretary Xi Jinping's important expositions on Party history, the history of New China, the history of reform and opening up, and the history of socialist development, especially the spirit of the important speech delivered at the mobilization meeting of Party history study and education and the celebration of the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Communist Party of China.”

The activities that we are likely to see are: reading activities, public lectures, promotion of red tourism with solemn commemorative activities, events paying tribute to “revolutionary martyrs,” popularising of recognized outstanding role models (PD has been doing this), telling family stories about “red inheritance,” national defense education activities, and cultural activities like art exhibitions, movies, TV shows, signing of red folk songs, etc.

Lastly, do note this: “all localities and departments should always grasp the correct orientation, establish a correct view of history, accurately grasp the main theme and mainstream essence of party history, the history of new China, the history of reform and opening up and the history of socialist development, and take a clear-cut stand against historical nihilism. It is necessary to highlight the youth group, grasp the characteristics and habits of the youth group, organize the study and education of the youth, and cultivate the feelings of loving the party, patriotism and socialism, so that the red gene and revolution can be passed down from generation to generation.”

Next, today’s piece about Xi’s red footprints takes us to Shandong. Visiting the province in November 2013, Xi had apparently said that “the Yimeng spirit, like the Yan'an spirit, the Jinggangshan spirit, and the Xibaipo spirit, is a precious spiritual wealth of the party and the country.” The piece talks about Xi’s visit to the East China Revolutionary Martyrs Cemetery in Linyi; he also “listened to the introduction of the revolutionary war history in the Yimeng area.” The piece talks about the establishment of the cemetery. It tells us that over 530,000, “Japanese puppet troops” 日伪军 were captured and killed in the Shandong base area from 1938 to 1945. The piece talks about how apart from fighting against the enemy, the CCP “also reduced the burden on the masses and improved their lives through measures such as streamlining the administration of troops and land reform.” This in essence, it tells us through Xi’s words, is what the Yinmeng spirit is all about, i.e., “the harmonious blend of military and civilian, life and death together...”

The piece then talks about the “heroic” people and “martyrs” from the region, before telling us the following. The narrative below offers insight into how propaganda blends, redness and developmental goals along with the cult of Xi’s personality as this down-to-earth leader who takes the time to meet people, visit their homes and cares about the little things along with the big picture. 

“On November 25, 2013, General Secretary Xi Jinping came to Zhu Village, Caozhuang Town, Linshu County, to see the historical exhibition of the model village before the establishment of the party organization in the early days of the Anti-Japanese War, and to understand the production and life of the people in the old revolutionary base areas. In the home of Wang Kechang, an 83-year-old, the general secretary inspected each room, and sat down with his family...He asked about how many acres of land they had, how much money they earned through wickerwork, and what difficulties they faced? General Secretary Xi Jinping was very happy to hear the old man say that his family’s life has improved. The General Secretary stressed that life is getting better every day, but we cannot forget history, martyrs and heroes who fought bloody battles for the birth of New China, and people in old districts who made great contributions to the revolution...Every year, the first bowl of jiaozi on the first day of the first lunar month is dedicated to martyrs, which is a red folk custom inherited by Zhu Village for more than 70 years...General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized that it is our party's solemn commitment to let the people in the old revolutionary base areas live a good life. Party committees and governments at all levels should continue to increase their support for the old revolutionary base areas and form a strong joint force to accelerate the development of the old revolutionary base areas.”

Third, Li Keqiang was in Ningbo, Zhejiang Province, this week. He spoke about (English report) the need to “advance reform and opening-up, strengthen market vitality and actively deal with changing domestic and external situations for pushing forward the country's stable and sound economic development.” He visited the Ningbo-Zhoushan port, telling people to be wary of commodity price fluctuations, and talked about the need to “use market-oriented methods to improve the import, storage and trading of bulk commodities.” 

Here’s more: “He said that rising commodity prices would not only bring excessive pressure to large and medium-sized manufacturing enterprises but also affect the small, micro and individual businesses, adding that consumption activities downstream would also be affected. Li called for making good use of policies, such as tax and fee cuts and inclusive financing, to support market entities, and ramping up market regulation to slow down the transmission of rising costs to the downstream sectors. Enterprises should also pay attention to tapping into their potentials and drawing on innovation to relieve cost pressures and improve competitiveness.”

There’s also a bit on employment, where he committed to protect “the basic rights and interests of flexible employees,” asked job-seekers to upskil and talked about supporting entrepreneurs. 

Page 2: Only one piece to note here. Visiting veteran communities, a veteran service center, and a hospital for veterans in Shandong, Sun Chunlan talked about the need for increased support for retired military personnel and veterans with disabilities and illnesses. 

Page 3: First, Yang Jiechi, who is in Moscow to attend the 16th round of China-Russia strategic security consultation, spoke to Vladimir Putin on the phone (English story). Putin’s in Sochi. The report says that:

“Putin said Russia-China relations are at the best in history and it is essential that the heads of state maintain close contact. During the phone call, Yang relayed Xi's best regards and an oral message to Putin. Thanks to the planning and strategic leadership of the two heads of state, the China-Russia comprehensive strategic partnership of coordination for a new era has been developing with a strong momentum.”

Also on the day, Yang and Secretary of the Security Council of the Russian Federation Nikolai Patrushev co-chaired the 16th round of China-Russia strategic security consultation. “They had an in-depth exchange of views and reached broad consensus on China-Russia relations and a number of major issues regarding global security and strategic stability.”

Second, we have a Zhong Sheng commentary. The core argument is that the DPP in Taiwan is to blame for Taiwan’s non-participation in the WHA; this is because the DPP does not adhere to the 1992 Consensus, which for Beijing embodies the one-China principle. This is a “core interest” and Beijing will not “compromise or make concessions.” Of course, the piece also blames the DPP for politicising the pandemic to further its interests rather than for concerns regarding public health.

Here’s an excerpt:

“The one-China principle is a universally recognized norm of international relations, and it is also a universal consensus of the international community (This is factually incorrect). China’s Taiwan region’s participation in international organizations, including the World Health Organization’s activities, must be handled in accordance with the one-China principle. Resolution 2758 of the United Nations General Assembly and Resolution 25.1 of the World Health Assembly confirmed this fundamental principle. Before 2016, on the basis of adherence to the one-China principle on both sides of the strait, China made special arrangements for China's Taiwan region to participate in the World Health Assembly. However, since the DPP came to power, it has placed political self-interest above the well-being of the people in the Taiwan region, stubbornly adhered to the ‘Taiwan independence’ separatist stand, and refused to recognize the ‘92 Consensus’ embodying the one-China principle, which led to Taiwan’s participation in the politics of the WHO Conference The foundation no longer exists. The rejection of the Taiwan region by the World Health Assembly was entirely caused by the DPP authorities, which stubbornly insisted on the separatist stand of ‘Taiwan independence’.”

The other pieces on the page are about foreign media praising China’s Mars rover landing, diplomatic engagements with parliamentarians from Mozambique and Gabon and the next draft in the junket that Arab diplomats are on. The latter saw the diplomats go to the Shanghai Party School; there they heard lectures and we have quotes praising the CCP. They also got the Arabic translations of the first two volumes of Xi’s Governance of China. And you have quotes like this:

“The book explains China's national strategy for realizing the Chinese dream of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation and China's happiness for all mankind. And the goal of striving is very helpful for me to understand China and learn from Chinese experience,” said a Palestinian diplomat.

And this bit:

“During a question and answer session as part of the party history class, Bashir Madhur, a diplomat of the Iraqi Embassy in China, expressed his appreciation for the heroic spirit of the Chinese Communist Party in the revolutionary struggle and asked: Why did the Chinese Communist Party achieve such great success? Wang Yao, an associate professor...who was taking the session, said that the Communist Party of China had a clear goal from the beginning, and in the spirit of seeking truth from facts, it advanced step by step on the basis of profound insight into the laws of history and grasping the general trend of the times to achieve what it has achieved today.” (Clearly, there is a desire to promote China’s governance values as a model to be emulated.)

Page 4: Only one story to note. China’s discipline inspectors “investigated and dealt with 6,926 violations of the spirit of the eight central provisions in April. Some 9,942 people were dealt with, of which 6,410 people were subject to party disciplinary and political sanctions. Among the cadres subject to party disciplinary and administrative sanctions, 34 people were at the district level, 438 at the county level, and 5938 at the township level and below.” The piece further gives a brief breakdown of the categories of cases, from formalism to hedonism, inaction and poor implementation of central leadership directives to outright bribery and corruption.

Page 6: Like yesterday, today too we have a “red family” story. This one talks about the song Ode to Yan’an. It tells us about the life of Mo Ye, the original lyricist, and of course, her family having inherited her work ethic and dedication to the Party. 

At the end of her life, Mo Ye left a profound message for her children: ‘What kind of experience have I never seen in my life?’ Despite many difficulties and setbacks, her revolutionary will remained firm. As her old comrades wrote in an article commemorating her: ‘Her life was not slack because the road ahead was paved with flowers, and she did not sink because of a moment of falling rain and snow. She was a strong person who never retreated and a revolutionary who commanded respect’.” The piece then tells us about her son cycling all the way to Yan’an to commemorate his mother’s struggle and memory.

Meanwhile, the two other historical figures talked about today are Mao Anying, i.e., Mao Zedong’s eldest son, and Huang Jiguang. Mao Anying, of course, died during the Korean War. The piece about him ends with his father’s statement about not treating it as a major event. “The Chinese People's Volunteers have already given so many lives to their soldiers, and their sacrifices are glorious. Anying is one of them -- an ordinary soldier, don’t treat it as a major event just because he is my son.”

Huang, like Mao Anying, also died in the Korean War. He was posthumously awarded “the Hero of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea and the Gold Star Medal by the Standing Committee of the Supreme People's Assembly of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.”

Next, an event in Kunming that featured Hao Lixin, a researcher at the Institute of Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for the New Era of the People’s University of China, and a distinguished professor of the Yangtze River Scholars of the Ministry of Education, giving a speech entitled ‘A Hundred Years History of the Communist Party of China and the Innovative Development of the Party’s Guiding Ideology’. Useful to note these bits because this is an example of how the Party history campaign plays out in local communities. From an impact point of view, the piece tells us that “more than 230 cadres and the masses listened to the lecture, 1.221 million netizens across the country watched the program, and 94,000 netizens participated in the exchange through Weibo and forums.”

Page 13: Today’s Theory page has pieces about the importance of socialism with Chinese characteristics. In the first piece, Han Qingxiang, a professor from the Central Party School, writes:

“In the course of history, Chinese culture has developed the values and spirituality of stressing benevolence, being people-oriented, observing honesty, upholding justice, respecting harmony and seeking common ground. Socialism pays attention to fairness and justice, advocates collectivism, pursues common prosperity, and is committed to promoting everyone’s free and all-round development, which has many similarities with Chinese excellent traditional culture. Chinese civilization has provided the cultural foundation for socialism to take root in China, and socialism has also activated the great civilization created after thousands of years, making Chinese civilization once again radiate with strong spiritual power.” 在漫长的历史岁月中，中华文化形成了讲仁爱、重民本、守诚信、崇正义、尚和合、求大同的价值理念和精神境界。社会主义注重公平正义，倡导集体主义，追求共同富裕，致力于促进每个人的自由全面发展，与中华优秀传统文化有诸多契合之处。中华文明为社会主义在中国落地生根提供了文化基础，而社会主义也激活了历经几千年创造的伟大文明，使中华文明再次迸发出强大精神力量。

This is the core argument, i.e., that socialism is compatible with Chinese culture, and therefore, is the only doctrine that could “save” China and “develop” China. And therefore, “on the way forward, no matter what stormy waves we encounter, we must unswervingly uphold and develop socialism with Chinese characteristics, and move forward with determination to achieve the goal of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation.”

Fudan University’s Zhang Weiwei concurs, arguing that “practice has proved that only socialism can save China, only socialism with Chinese characteristics can develop China, and only by upholding and developing socialism with Chinese characteristics can the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation be realized.” He adds that:

He talks about China’s economic management that allows the “invisible” and “visible” hands to cooperate with each other, developing the publicly-owned and non-publicly-owned economies. He talks about persisting in the “basic framework” domestic political system, which he argues is based on “national conditions and reality.” He ends with this:

“Using a model different from that of the West, China has achieved unprecedented development in both speed and scale in human history, which has impressed the world. This is the success of China and the victory of socialism. It not only brings development to China, but also encourages more and more countries to take a development path that suits their own national conditions and explore a better social system.” 中国用与西方不同的模式，实现了人类历史上速度和规模都前所未有的发展，令世界刮目相看. 这是中国的成功，也是社会主义的胜利. 它不仅给中国带来发展，也鼓舞越来越多的国家走符合自己国情的发展道路，探索更加美好的社会制度.