China: Imminent Grant of “Core” Leader Status to Xi Jinping?

by D. S. Rajan

Abstract : On the basis of latest indicators, particularly taking into account the chances of Xi Jinping emerging as the “Core” fifth generation leader, the ongoing consolidation of political power in China by the leader can be termed as one which is almost nearing completion. At the same time, it cannot be denied that there are problems for Xi; in the main, there is a growing requirement for him   to address   the apparent disunity among the cadres; the repeated calls to all party, government and military personnel to display loyalty to the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), albeit in real terms to Xi, give rise to suspicions that there could be divisions in the party over the Xi leadership. Also, the leader may have to reckon with potential challengers   in future; his latest public denouncement of Bo Xilai’s political ambition can be considered as a subtle warning to such challengers.  In consolidating power, Xi seems to have come under compulsions arising from another challenge, i.e. in the economic realm; China’s economic growth has slowed to a 25-year low of 6.9 per cent in 2015. Coming to the military side, the position of the leader may also not be comfortable; his launch of massive military reforms could be met with some resistance from vested interests in the army, which are to lose out of the reforms. Xi may also have to deal with opinions in the country in favor of bringing the military under the State control, instead of being under the party command.  Overall, as the present domestic  climate centering round over-concentration of power in the hands of Xi Jinping  further develops,  there could be repercussions for  the intra-party  power equations ahead of the next  CCP Congress in 2017;  one thing is however clear : Xi  seems to be  well on his way to get reelected as the party chief in that congress.

( February 3, 2016, Chennai, Sri Lanka Guardian) Three developments of high political significance have been noticed in the People’s Republic of China (PRC) in the month of January 2016.

Firstly,  the  heads of  several provincial/city  party units  ( for e.g the party chiefs  in Sichuan, Hubei,  Anhui, Guangxi and in the cities of  Tianjin and  Xian ) have begun to describe[1]  Xi Jinping, the General Secretary of the ruling Chinese Communist Party (CCP) in China,  as the “Core” of the CCP  leadership.  The exact remarks  made by these units  in their party gatherings held  to sensitize the cadres  under them on a Politburo speech[2] delivered by Xi  in  December 2015, have been that party members  should  “resolutely support General Secretary Xi Jinping, this  core” (坚决维护习近平总书记这个核心).

Secondly,   a   new book[3] captioned “Edited Excerpts From Discussions by Xi Jinping on Tightening Party Discipline and Rules,” compiled by the CCP’s Central Discipline Inspection Commission (CDIC) and the Party Literature Research Center, containing extracts of the leader’s 200 pieces of hitherto undisclosed remarks, selected out of his 40 speeches and articles,    pertaining to the period November 16, 2012 to October 29, 2015, has been published. In the remarks, the party organizations at all levels have been asked to organize CCP members to study Xi’s sayings during the period.

Thirdly, Li Zhanshu, a CCP Politburo member, has stressed[4]  at a meeting on the work of authorities affiliated to the CCP Central Committee that “all party organizations and members should take absolute loyalty to the Party as their fundamental political requirement and foremost political discipline, achieve a high degree of conformity with the central committee and strengthen awareness of the party theories and policies”.

A closer look at the three developments mentioned above may be necessary in order to find out what they really convey. Most important politically is the first which signals that very soon the status of Xi Jinping could be formally elevated to that of “Core” of the fifth generation leadership. As the CCP sees, Mao had occupied the “Core” position with respect to first generation leadership, Deng Xiaoping to the second, and Jiang Zemin to the third; the party  though  placed  Hu Jintao in the category of fourth generation leaders, did  not accord  him the position of  the leadership  “Core”. The same type of visualization has so far continued in the case of Xi Jinping who heads the CCP since 2012;   in the party hierarchy, he is still being addressed only as the party General Secretary not as the ‘Core’ of the leadership, implying thereby that he as a leader is only primus inter pares and that a collective leadership is working in the country.

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