THE CHINESE COMMUNIST PARTY SETS THE DATE...FOR THE 18TH NATIONAL CONGRESS

THE 18th PARTY CONGRESS 

IS ON (November 8, 2012) 

BO XILAI IS OUT 

THE 17th CONGRESS OF THE CCP 
(Chinese Communist Party), October 2007 
BO XILAI sits in the last row  
second from left 
He can be seen more clearly here 
(includes something of the backstory) 

THE CASE OF BO XILAI: CLOSING RANKS IN CHINA

RULING CHINA

THE PARTY CONGRESS

Once every five years

This one (above), the 17th

Beijing, October 2007

The 18th is due this autumn

The hammer and sickle is still the symbol of the Chinese Communist Party, which is now in the process of going hammer and tong after one of its own, the former Chongqing party secretary and Politburo member, Bo Xilai. A work in progress.

More on Bo Xilai here and here and here; on his father, Bo Yibo, one of the "Eight Immortals," here

RHP (RANK HATH PRIVILEGE): THE CHINESE RULING ELITE & THEIR CARS

THE ELITE FLEET

CARS AWAITING THEIR OFFICIALS

IN THE INTERIOR COURTYARD OF

THE GREAT HALL OF THE PEOPLE

DURING THE 17th CONGRESS OF

THE CHINESE COMMUNIST PARTY

BEIJING, OCTOBER 2007

The Audi A6 is identified as the "semiofficial car of the Chinese Communist Party" by Barbara Demick of the Los Angeles Times this week (here). Above is a flock of Audis waiting for delegates to the 17th Congress of the CC to be disgorged from the Great Hall of the People in October 2007. Cars for the privileged in the People's Republic of China are not new, and popular anger against the abuses of this system has been noted before, for example, in a 2006 Edward Cody piece in the Washington Post (here). What is perhaps new is the posting of cellphone photographs of offending vehicles online, reported by Demick.

An earlier example of this well-worked-out system of RHP (Rank Hath Privilege) can be seen here, in a photograph taken three decades ago in Nanjing.

REFLECTIONS ON THE CHINESE COMMUNIST PARTY'S 90TH (Founded July 1, 1921 )

AFTER THE PARTY 

FOR THE PARTY 

WAS OVER 

WU BANGGUO, HU JINTAO, 

& JIANG ZEMIN 

(left to right) 

Center stage at the 17th Congress 

of the Chinese Communist Party 

October 2007 

As the celebrations for the ninetieth anniversary of the founding of the Chinese Communist Party culminated in the grand set piece in the Great Hall of the People July 1, commentators (for examples, see here and here) quickly noticed who was missing:  Jiang Zemin. 

Jiang Zemin, who is only five years younger than the Party (born August 17, 1926), was not in the place of honor he has customarily occupied in these significant gatherings since he gave up the central place at the 16th Congress in November, 2002.  The photograph above, for example, shows him at the 17th Congress in October, 2007, at the left hand of General Secretary and President Hu Jintao.  Wu Bangguo, the head of the National People's Congress, ranked number two in the Party hierarchy, sits on Hu's right hand. 

On July 1 his successors proceeded without him, as can be seen from the official photographs.  Declining health seemed to be the favorite media speculation. 

 

For more on Jiang, see here, here, here, here, and here. 

BEIJING & TRANSPARENCY, TAKE TWO

BEIJING

CALLS FOR

TRANSPARENCY

TAKE TWO

Take One, Beijing calls for transparency -- in Tokyo --

can be found here.

CHINA WILL *NEVER* BE A MULTI-PARTY DEMOCRACY: THUS SPAKE WU BANGGUO

CHINA'S #2

SAYS

* NO *

TO

(MULTI-PARTY)

DEMOCRACY

WU BANGGUO

Photographed at the 17th CCP Congress

Beijing, October 2007

Wu Bangguo is Chair of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress, which is, officially, China's legislature, and which is holding its annual session in Beijing now.

Parliaments have at some moments in history been known to challenge the power of executive authorities such as kings.

But Wu is also number two in the hierarchy of the ruling Chinese Communist Party (only General-Secretary-and-President Hu Jintao is ranked higher). It comes as no surprise, then, that Wu announced today that "We have made a solemn declaration that we will not employ a system of multiple parties holding office in rotation," as the BBC reported.

No separation of powers, "bicameral or federal system," or diversification of "our guiding thought."

For if the system changed, "It is possible that the state could sink into the abyss of internal disorder."

The Party rules or Chaos looms.

THE COSTS OF THE REVOLUTION IN CHINA

OUT OF

THE MOUTHS

OF ...

THE HAMMER & SICKLE

DOMINATES

THE SETTING OF

THE 17th & MOST RECENT

CONGRESS OF

THE CHINESE COMMUNIST PARTY

(October 2007)

"Unrest is still imprinted deeply into Chinese society. Revolution catalyzed a new China, but society also paid heavy costs for the revolution."

This is the message not of some opposition group -- no whiff of jasmine, here, directly -- but of the March 7, 2011, editorial of the Global Times, owned by the flagship publication of the Chinese Communist regime, the People's Daily (as reported by the Washington Post).

JOURNALISTS OF THE WORLD! ELDER BROTHER IS DEFINITELY TRACKING * YOU *

TARGETING

THE

MESSENGER

THE MEDIA DISPERSE

AT THE CLOSE OF THE

17th CONGRESS OF THE

CHINESE COMMUNIST PARTY

Beijing, October 2007

Outside the Great Hall of the People

Another Sunday. The third "jasmine" Sunday of a massive security presence and a ratcheting up of pressure on journalists. No report of beatings this time, but preemptive intimidation, some detentions, and a threat of expulsions.

So the messenger is not being shot, but is definitely being targeted, and tracked.

P.R. IN THE PRC: JIA QINGLIN ON PROMOTING CHINA

P.R. IN

THE PRC

JIA QINGLIN

in the Great Hall of the People

for the 17th Congress of

the Chinese Communist Party

October 2007

As the member of the nine-member Standing Committee of the Politburo of the Chinese Communist Party responsible for chairing the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), Jia Qinglin is somewhat quaintly referred to by the authorities as a "political adviser." At the opening meeting of the annual CPPCC meeting in the Great Hall of the People yesterday, Jia said, according to McClatchy, that "We will strengthen our external publicity work so that the international community can learn more about our country's political system . . . so that we can win its understanding and support for China."

When the outside world learns "more about our country's political system," China will win "understanding and support." Right. I remember in 1992 when I covered the 14th Congress of the Chinese Communist Party, my minder delighted in repeating in answer to my questions attempting to "learn more about" the political system of the People's Republic of China, that "In the Information Department we have no information."

Now the plan is said to be to spend billions "to expand the global reach of its main state media outlets, giving it the ability to beam pleasing news from China to a wider audience."

"Pleasing news," but real information, especially about the political system, is rather likely to be as lacking as before.

ELDER BROTHER IS TRACKING YOU? BIG BROTHER IS WATCHING YOU, BEIJING-STYLE, 2011

ELDER BROTHER

IS

TRACKING YOU?

DELEGATES TO THE

17th CONGRESS OF

THE CHINESE COMMUNIST PARTY

DEPARTING (Beijing, October 2007);

ONE (upper right) LOOKS TO BE

CHECKING HIS MESSAGES

One of the Twenty Million? (see below)

Or perhaps he does not live in Beijing.

Will the new (newly revealed?) program

go country-wide?

It is being reported today by the New York Times that "Beijing officials" announced yesterday "that they intended to monitor the movements of millions of residents via information transmitted by their cellphones. One official was quoted on a government Web site as saying that the new program would provide 'real-time information about a user's activity.'"

The Times continues: "The project, which would make use of global positioning technology, aims to monitor all Beijing residents who use mobile phones -- some 20 million people -- to detect unusually large gatherings." And Chinese media reports themselves "said government officials could use the data to detect and prevent protests."

So: Not only is there such a project, but also it is the opposite of a secret endeavor.

You have been warned.

Big Brother, Elder Brother, is watching you.

The scent of jasmine? The scent of fear?

More Jasmine here and here

Chinese telephony a generation ago (1981)

"HERE BE GIANTS"

PEKING LAME DUCK?

PEKING LAME DUCK?

GENERAL SECRETARY

(AND PRESIDENT)

HU JINTAO

USHERS

EX-GENERAL SECRETARY

(AND EX-PRESIDENT)

JIANG ZEMIN

OFF THE STAGE OF THE

17TH CONGRESS OF

THE CHINESE COMMUNIST PARTY

BEIJING, 2007

Barely days after Hu Jintao's State Visit to the White House, the New York Times has this headline: "China Begins Preparing for Successor to Hu." The man slotted to succeed Hu is Vice-President Xi Jinping, unveiled as the intended Number-One-to-be at the 17th Congress, just as Hu Jintao had been introduced as the coming leader at the 14th Congress back in 1992.

"HERE BE GIANTS"

HU JINTAO, b. December 21, 1942

HU JINTAO

b. December 21, 1942

PRESIDENT,

PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC OF CHINA

GENERAL SECRETARY,

CHINESE COMMUNIST PARTY

Shown here at the unveiling of the

Politburo Standing Committee

17th Party Congress, Beijing, October 2007

Due to pass on the torch at the 18th Party Congress in Autumn 2012

Due for a state visit in Washington, D.C., shortly

Stay Tuned

More Hu

XI JINPING GETS HIS PROMOTION

XI

GETS

HIS PROMOTION

XI JINPING INTRODUCED

AS HU JINTAO'S SUCCESSOR

17TH CONGRESS OF THE

CHINESE COMMUNIST PARTY

BEIJING 2007

Today Chinese Vice-President Xi Jinping was named vice-chair of the Central Military Commission, solidifying his slotting to become the next General Secretary of the Chinese Communist Party and President of the People's Republic of China.

This is succession planning with Chinese characteristics: Xi Jinping was unveiled as potential top leader-to-be of China in 2007; the changes are not due to take place until late 2012 (on the party side) and early 2013 (on the government side).

If he had not been given this new post, it would have been seen as a sign of weakness, and of uncertainty at the top with signs of ferment in the air.

AS THE POLITICAL ELITE IN CHINA GATHERS...

AS THE

POLITICAL ELITE

IN CHINA

GATHERS

INTERIOR OF

THE GREAT HALL OF THE PEOPLE

BEIJING, CHINA,

WITH BASKETBALL COURT

A quiet photograph of the big venue as the Central Committee meets in Beijing in unquiet times.

LOITERING WITH INTENT: OUTSIDE THE GREAT HALL OF THE PEOPLE, BEIJING

LOITERING WITH INTENT

OUTSIDE THE GREAT HALL OF THE PEOPLE

LOOKING TOWARDS TIANANMEN SQUARE

BEIJING, CHINA, OCTOBER 2007

AT THE TIME OF THE 17TH CONGRESS

OF THE CHINESE COMMUNIST PARTY

THE NATIONAL PEOPLE'S CONGRESS OPENS IN BEIJING

THE NATIONAL PEOPLE'S 

CONGRESS (NPC) 

OPENS IN BEIJING 

AT THE GREAT HALL 

OF THE PEOPLE 

PREMIER WEN JIABAO (left) 

GIVES THE KEYNOTE ADDRESS; 

NPC CHAIR WU BANGGUO (right) 

PRESIDES 

Wen and Wu Photographed at the Unveiling of 

the Standing Committee of the Politburo of the 

Central Committee of the 17th Congress of 

the Chinese Communist Party, October 2007, 

in the Great Hall of the People, Beijing