Xi's 'Red Footprints' - 国之大者 - Learning from Zhou Enlai - Wang's Mideast Proposals - China's 5G Expansion
Here are the stories and pieces from the May 17, 2021, People’s Daily edition that I found noteworthy.
Page 1: First, there’s a report about a new notice by the CMC commending 10 advanced units and 18 individuals with regard to their role in the strategic planning work of the armed forces. These units and individuals, the report says, should be taken as examples. Unfortunately, the list of these isn’t present. I would be keen to see which of these are linked to China’s WTC.
The report also adds that in recent years, units at all levels have thoroughly implemented Xi Thought on strengthening the army, thoroughly implemented the military strategic policy for the new era, resolutely implemented the decisions and deployments of the chairman and the CMC, persisted in targeting enemies and focussing on actual combat, adhered to systematic planning, top-level coordination, etc.
Second, the People’s Daily has launched a new column series that tracks the “red footprint of General Secretary Xi Jinping.” The idea is that this is a reminder to cadres about the “original aspiration” and an emphasis on red genes that need to be carried forward along the new journey that China has embarked on. The story talks about Xi’s visits and engagements over the years. The message that it is emphasising is about putting people first in governance, community welfare, innovation, governance efficiency, etc, as being part of the so-called red spirit. For instance, at one point, the piece refers to Xi’s tenure as Zhejiang Party Secretary to say that:
“On the first working day after the Spring Festival in 2005, members of the Zhejiang Provincial Party Committee’s Theoretical Learning Center came to Nanhu to pay homage to the Red Boat, and held a special study session on education activities...Comrade Xi Jinping pointed out that a pioneering spirit, daring to be the first, firm ideals, indomitable spirit of struggle, and the spirit of dedication to establish the party for the public and be loyal to the people are the source of the Chinese revolutionary spirit and the profound connotation of the ‘red boat spirit’.”
Another key focus area in the article is ensuring grassroots party building, which for Xi “must keep pace with the times” and “adapt to the new situation.” “It is necessary,” as the piece says, “to do a good job in the education and management of party members and guide them to play a positive role.”
There are many ways to look at this piece. At one level, it tells us about Xi’s strengthened position as the core of the Party, and the cult around his personality. It also informs us about Xi’s effort to recast the Party’s history and use the past to suit his political, ideological and governance priorities. Finally, one can also view this from the point of view of a leader’s anxieties with regard to individuals, events and outcomes at lower levels of government. The difficult question, of course, is whether Xi’s succeeding in achieving these goals that he is pursuing.
Anyway, there is another short piece on the page about the Party’s red history. It says that:
“the closer you get to the red resources, the more you can understand the value of the party's original aspiration and mission, and the importance of sticking to the party's original aspiration and mission...Today, the old revolutionary areas have a new look, and the thousand-year dream of the Chinese nation to get rid of absolute poverty has been realized. Riding on the momentum, drawing wisdom and strength from the revolutionary history, and pushing forward the cause started by our forefathers is the best inheritance of the revolutionary spirit and the best homage to our revolutionary forefathers.”
Next, a short report on 5G, which informs us that as per the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, China “has built more than 819,000 5G base stations, accounting for about 70% of the global proportion.” The number of 5G cell phones is at 280 million; and China claims around 38% of all 5G essential patents. The quantity of patents although a useful datapoint is not necessarily a determinant of dominance; what the patent refers to is also important to keep in mind.
Also on the page are two pieces about the Greater Bay Area. The first is a long report about the process of development of this zone as a concept and then some details about developments that have taken place. The next one is a commentary that talks about how this was a decision taken at the top to nurture the Greater Bay Area. “In recent years, major infrastructure projects have been built successively, the ‘hard connectivity’ of facilities and the mechanisms of ‘soft connectivity’ have been continuously strengthened, the flow of key elements such as capital, technology, talents, and information has accelerated, and the level of market integration has continued to improve, making it suitable for living and business.”
It adds that:
“An important strategic consideration for the construction of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area is to promote the development of the One Country, Two Systems cause and maintain the long-term prosperity and stability of Hong Kong and Macao...”
Page 2: There’s lots of roll over from the front page here today. But there’s a story about water conservation in China. It tells us a little about the challenges related to water security. The piece informs that:
“According to data released by the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development, from 2012 to 2020, the cumulative amount of water saved in cities across the country reached 45.3 billion cubic meters, which is equivalent to the annual water transfer volume via the South-to-North Water Transfer Projects. The total water consumption in cities across the country only accounts for about 10% of the total water consumption in the country, despite cities supporting 60% of the country’s population and more than 70% of GDP.” The article calls for the need to “promote recycled water to become the cities’ ‘second water source’. In 2020, the amount of recycled water used in cities across the country reached 14.6 billion cubic meters, a four-fold increase from 2012, accounting for 23.2% of the total water supply in cities.”
Page 3: First, a report on China-Nigeria relations. The piece says that based on 2020 data from Nigeria’s National Bureau of Statistics, China accounted for 19.6% of Nigeria's total global trade. The piece says that “over the years, Chinese companies have actively participated in the construction of infrastructure such as railways, highways, airports, ports, free trade zones, and hydropower stations across Nigeria, cooperating to promote the economic and social development of Nigeria and the improvement of people’s livelihood.” It talks about specific projects such as the Zungeru hydropower project, Lekki Deep Sea Port, and the Lagos Rail Mass Transit System. It also talks about how Chinese investments and companies have been engaged in talent development in Nigeria and then discusses pandemic cooperation.
Second, a short report on the UNSC meeting on the Israel-Palestine issue. Wang Yi put forth four proposals. Xinhua reports that Wang said the “situation is extremely critical and severe, and a ceasefire and cessation of violence is urgently needed...He said that the Palestinian question has always been the core of the Middle East issue. Only when the Palestinian question is resolved comprehensively, fairly and permanently, can the Middle East truly achieve lasting peace and universal security.” Here are Wang’s four points.
“First, ceasefire and cessation of violence is the top priority. China strongly condemns violent acts against civilians, and once again urges the two sides to immediately stop military and hostile actions, and stop actions that deteriorate the situation, including airstrikes, ground offensives, and rocket launches. Israel must exercise restraint in particular.”
The international community must provide humanitarian assistance to Palestine, and the UN must play a coordinating role to avoid serious humanitarian disasters.
The UNSC must take vigorous action on the Palestine-Israel conflict, reiterate its firm support for a two-state solution, and push the situation to cool down at an early date...China calls on the United States to shoulder its due responsibilities, adopt a fair stand, and support the UNSC in playing its due role...”
“China supports the two sides resuming peace talks based on a ‘two-state solution’ as soon as possible, to establish an independent State of Palestine that enjoys full sovereignty with East Jerusalem as its capital and based on the 1967 border, and fundamentally realize the peaceful coexistence of Palestine and Israel...”
Third, a brief report (English version) about President of the Democratic Republic of the Congo Felix Tshisekedi discussing mining and infrastructure cooperation with China. He spoke about this while inspecting the Sino Congolaise des Mines (Sicomines), a joint venture between the DRC state mining company Gecamines and a group of Chinese companies, in Kolwezi of the southeastern province of Lualaba.
Fourth, a short report about the 38th escort fleet of the Chinese Navy leaving the port of Zhoushan for the Gulf of Aden and waters off Somalia. The fleet is composed of the guided-missile destroyer Nanjing, the missile frigate Yangzhou, and supply ship Gaoyouhu, with dozens of special operation soldiers and two helicopters on board.
Fifth, another short report (English version) about Senegalese President Macky Sall meeting with the Chinese Ambassador to Senegal Xiao Han. Xinhua reports that “Sall expressed his sincere gratitude to China, saying Chinese vaccines have provided important protection to the Senegalese people and brought hope to Senegal to overcome the pandemic.” Do note that Sinopharm vaccines have allowed Senegal to launch a national vaccination drive.
Finally, a Zhong Sheng commentary hitting out at US democracy. It says that:
“The goal of democracy should be ‘governance’, and the effectiveness of governance is the yardstick for measuring the merits of democratic practice. Obviously, if you ask what kind of ‘governance’ American democracy has brought to American society, this answer is already very difficult to comprehend. American society has been polarized and torn for a long time, and chaos is its normal state, and it has not made many good achievements in the face of major risks and challenges.”
The piece talks about government shutdowns, politicians bickering over masks, racial tensions, gun violence and so on as failures of US governance. There’s an entire paragraph dedicated to the January 6 Capitol Hill incident, and focus on partisan politics.
“As we all know, the differences between the two parties on economy, race, climate change, law enforcement, international participation and a series of other issues are becoming more and more obvious. Members of Congress vote more based on party interests on many major public issues, and policy disputes are increasingly turning into identity disputes. The endless struggle has plunged governance into a state of inefficiency and incompetence.”
“When the Covid-19 epidemic hit, the experts shouted incessantly. The president accused governors, and governors accused the federal government...All we saw was merely ‘throwing the pot’ (i.e., shifting blame/passing the buck), but the lives of American people were not safeguarded in a timely manner.”
The piece then talks about a piece by Francis Fukuyama’s January 2018 piece in Foreign Affairs to highlight elite capture of US government and then points to surveys showing public dissatisfaction. It ends saying:
“It is only a matter of time before the protracted polarization and tear of American society accumulates contradictions, and as the contradictions intensify, they evolve into confrontations. American democracy, wouldn’t that be a worry!”
Page 4: The two historical figures highlighted today are Mao Zemin and Liu Zhidan. Mao Zemin was Mao Zedong’s younger brother. The piece talks about his rise in the Party hierarchy. He was largely involved in economics and trade related areas. But also served as the political commissar of the Central 15th brigade. In 1942, he was captured by the warlord Sheng Shicai in Xinjiang. The story informs that he was tortured and interrogated before being killed a year later in September 1943.
Liu Zhidan joined the Party in 1925 and was sent to the Whampoa Military Academy. He gradually rose up the army’s ranks, commanding key battles. The report tells us that in September 1935, he “served as deputy commander and chief of staff of the Red 15th Army and participated in commanding the Battle of Laoshan. Later, he served as the commander-in-chief of the Northern Route Army and the 28th Army commander, and the commander of the Wayaobao garrison, the seat of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China...In March 1936, Liu Zhidan led the 28th Red Army to participate in the Eastern Expedition and marched into the northwest of Shanxi to defeat the enemy. On April 14th, he went to the front line to scout the enemy during the battle in Sanjiao Town, Zhongyang County. Unfortunately, he was shot in the left chest and died heroically. He was only 33 years old.”
Page 6: First, some criticism of local officials in Liaoning for the COVID-19 cluster there. PD tells us that “since May 14th, a cluster of novel coronavirus has developed in Bayuquan District, Yingkou City, Liaoning Province.” The local prevention and control center has pointed to problems related to insufficient supervision. The report says that so far, Song Liangwei, deputy party secretary and deputy director of the Liaoning Provincial Health Commission, was admonished, as were Jin Li, deputy mayor of Yingkou City Government, and Yingkou City Health Commission Director Wang Chengcheng. There are also other officials who are mentioned who were given warnings.
Second, amid the fresh cluster of cases in Liaoning and Anhui, Beijing’s stepped up control efforts. The story talks about the creation of teams to carry out work to ensure contact tracing, testing, isolation, and sanitisation. The objective is to guard against large-scale spread. The piece talks about responding promptly to even sporadic cases to ensure containment.
Page 9: On the Theory page today, the lead piece is by Jin Chongji, former deputy director of the Party Literature Research Office. I must confess that I was very reluctant (being lazy honestly) to go through this. But I am glad I did. This was really interesting to read.
Jin talks about the need to focus on history learning while “grasping the overall political situation.” He begins by talking about the importance of making the right judgment about situations.
“People’s actions are always based on their judgments about things, and it is not easy to make correct judgments about things. Things are often multifaceted and complex, and sometimes they give people a false impression. If you only see certain phenomena of a thing without seeing the essence of the thing clearly, you only see the part of the thing without seeing its full picture, you only see the momentary performance of the thing without seeing its future development, you only see this and that thing, without seeing the interconnection and mutual influence between them. This makes a judgment tasty, and leads to one believing that their judgment is justified; this is very dangerous.”
He talks about how during the war against Japan, ideas like the “subjugation theory” or the “quick victory theory” were flawed, while Mao’s understanding of the need for protracted warfare was based in reality and the correct judgment. Jin then writes that “scientific foresight is of great significance for improving political judgment.” To explain this he talks about Mao’s 1947 assessment of the Communist Party’s war effort against the KMT having reached a “turning point,” when many would have assumed that the KMT was in a much stronger position.
He says that: “Comrade Mao Zedong’s major judgment was first of all the result of looking at the problem politically. He analyzed that the mood of the people in the Kuomintang areas had changed; Chiang Kai-shek was isolated, and the broad masses of the people have come to our side. This is everything. In military terms, the People's Liberation Army had shifted from defense to offensive for the first time in history...Economically, the Chiang Kai-shek Group’s problems were already very serious.”
There are more such examples of the Korean War and then reform and opening up that Jin highlights to talk about the importance of overall political judgment. In the next section, Jin tells us that “the Party Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at the core is good at looking at issues politically and grasping the overall political situation.”
“The Party Central Committee emphasized the need to accurately grasp the new development stage, thoroughly implement the new development concept, and accelerate the construction of a new development pattern. This is a major political judgment and a major political decision made based on the overall situation and the overall situation at home and abroad, coordinating the overall strategy of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation and the major changes in the world unseen in a century.”
He then talks about the importance of improving political understanding by enhancing the understanding of the importance of “国之大者” (matters of great significance to the state). Jin says that Mao understood the significance of peasants to the revolution; Deng understood the significance of opening up; Xi understands that “common prosperity is not only an economic issue, but also a major political issue related to the Party’s ruling foundation.” The challenge with regard to 国之大者, Jin says, is to not simply look at short-term interests but the overall, long-term picture. The key issues of today, Jin writes, are to keep in line with the “fundamental purpose of the party, adhere to the party’s centralized and unified leadership, consolidate the socialist system, maintain the unity, stability and security of the country, promote the common prosperity of all people, and realize the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation.” And to him, studying Party history will help guide cadres in achieving this goal.
The final section talks about political execution, i.e., “Marxism has always believed that the important thing is not only to understand the world, but also to transform the world. To transform the world, political judgment, political insight, and political execution are indispensable.” Interestingly, he refers to the Bandung conference of 1955 in this context. He talks about a number of countries being negative towards China at the time and Zhou Enlai’s speech about the Chinese delegation being there to “seek unity, not to fight” and “seeking common ground” was an example of sound political judgment and implementation. The next paragraph is full of effusive praise for Zhou as a “great politician who had a broad strategic vision and could skillfully implement and execute that vision well.” (Of course, this is a fascinating little bit to allude to at this point of time when there is so much talk about so-called Wolf Warrior diplomacy.)
Turning to issues at home, Jin then says:
“looking back on the party’s history, a large number of facts show that the ‘blockers’ that hinder and endanger political execution are mainly formalism and bureaucracy in terms of ideological methods and work style...If party members and leading cadres are entangled in these "doctrines" in their ideological style, their political execution will be greatly reduced or even completely lost. The harm is that the major decisions, principles and policies of the CPC Central Committee cannot be implemented by them, which will damage the interests of the party and the people...The best way to cure these kinds of doctrinal limitations as the party's history tells us, is to go deep into reality and the masses, investigating and studying in reality and among the masses, and pooling ideas. When making and implementing decisions, we insist on coming from reality and going from reality, from the masses to the masses. This is an important way to improve political execution.”