| by B.Raman
( November 9,
2012, Chennai, Sri Lanka Guardian) The 18th Congress of the Communist Party of
China (CPC) began at Beijing on November 8,2012, with the traditional inaugural
statement by the outgoing Party General
Secretary, Mr.Hu Jintao.
 |
| Guard listening to the final work report made by secretary-general and Chinese president Hu Jintao at the start of the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, China |
After the
inaugural statement, delegates from different provinces and regions take it up
for detailed discussion before approving it. These detailed panel discussions
are more important than the statement by the outgoing General Secretary because
often the new party leaders who will be in office for the next 10 years
initiate these panel discussions in important panels and draw attention to the
important themes of the inaugural statement.
On November
8,2012, after Mr.Hu had read out his statement, Mr.Xi Jinping, who is tipped to
take over from Mr.Hu as the next General Secretary before the Congress
concludes, initiated the panel discussion before the delegates from Shanghai,
who play a prominent and powerful role in the party affairs.
The details of
his briefing have so far been carried by the “PLA Daily”, but not yet by the
“People’s Daily” or the English edition
of the “Global Times” or the “China Daily”. Based on a Xinhua summary, the “PLA
Daily” stated as follows:
“The
theme of the ongoing 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China
(CPC) explicitly defines the path and goal of the Party, Xi Jinping said on
Thursday.
“
The underlying theme of the congress is "to hold high the great banner of
socialism with Chinese characteristics, follow the guidance of Deng Xiaoping
Theory, the important thought of Three Represents and the Scientific Outlook on
Development, free up the mind, implement the policy of reform and opening up,
pool our strength, overcome all difficulties, firmly march on the path of
socialism with Chinese characteristics, and strive to complete the building of
a moderately prosperous society in all respects.”
“The
theme of the congress, in a simple and explicit way, explains four major issues
concerning the overall work of the Party and the country to people within and
outside the Party, and to China and the rest of the world, Xi said.
“The
issues are what banner the CPC will hold, what path it will take, what
ideological state it will keep, and what goal it is trying to achieve.
“Putting
forward such a theme is of crucial importance for the CPC to unite and lead
people of all ethnic groups in the new historic journey to make greater
achievements and keep up with the times.
“The
theme of the congress is based on the full comprehension of current conditions
of the world, the nation and the Party, the new requirements of the nation's
development and new expectations of the people. It is closely interlinked with
the overall plan for promoting economic, political, cultural, social, and
ecological progress in the cause of socialism with Chinese characteristics, Xi
said.
“To
thoroughly understand the theme of the congress, one must understand the
historical background and soberly realize that the Party is facing
unprecedented opportunities and challenges, while the key lies in whether the
Party can grasp the opportunities and tackle the challenges in a cool-headed
way.
“The
Party shall continue to hold high the great banner of socialism with Chinese
characteristics, maintain an ideological state to free up the mind, implement
the policy of reform and opening up, pool the strength and overcome all
difficulties, promote economic, political, cultural, social, and ecological
progress and Party building in an all-around way.
“The
Party shall unswervingly advance along the path of socialism with Chinese
characteristics, and unite to forge ahead with tenacity and resolve, Xi said.
“The
report delivered by Hu Jintao on behalf of the 17th CPC Central Committee pools
the whole Party's wisdom by giving full play of democracy, Xi said.
“The
report is clear-cut, profound, pragmatic and comprehensive, and will become the
political manifesto and program of action to make new victory of socialism with
Chinese characteristics under new circumstances.”
The most
significant part of Mr.Xi’s remarks during the Shanghai Panel discussion was
that while he specifically referred to Deng’s Theory as one of the guiding
themes of the Party, he did not make a similar specific reference to Mao
Zedong’s Thoughts.
There has been
speculation for some weeks now that the Congress might amend the Party
Constitution and that the proposed amendments might dilute the importance of
Mao’s Thoughts as a guiding principle of the Party. This speculation had not
been corroborated till now. The Panel remarks of Mr.Li could indicate the
beginning of a Party exercise to ease out Mao from history without dishonouring
him.
It may be
recalled that one of the allegations against Bo Xilai, the discredited Party
strongman from Chongquing now facing a criminal trial on various charges, was
that he advocated the restoration of the purity of Mao’s Thoughts to strengthen
the ideological basis of the party.
There were also
reports of differences between President Hu Jintao and Prime Minister Wen
Jiabao----with Mr.Hu opposing Mr.Wen’s
efforts to link the dismissal of Bo to
his advocacy of Mao’s Thoughts. It was reported that Mr.Hu wanted that Bo’s
trial should be projected purely as a criminal case and not linked to
ideological issues relating to Mao.
On May 28,2012,
a report attributed to the Reuters’ news agency had stated as follows:
“Chinese
premier Wen Jiabao was recently criticized by fellow Communist Party officials
for comments made in March that linked the radical policies of fallen political
heavyweight Bo Xilai to Mao Zedong’s Cultural Revolution.
“President
Hu Jintao refused to link Bo’s downfall to his neo-Maoist political ideology,
and declared the scandal that led to the latter’s ouster an “isolated case” at
a meeting of 200 officials earlier this month in Beijing, Reuters reported on
Friday, citing three inside sources. The report appears to confirm speculation
that China’s leaders are concerned that Bo’s case is being regarded as a
political struggle between divergent party factions, rather than a genuine
criminal case.
“Two
of Reuters’ sources also claimed that the recent meetings saw Premier Wen —
known for his progressive views on reform — chided by party comrades for
earlier comments hinting that Bo’s ouster was related to his left-leaning
ideology.
“At
the close of two key political conferences on March 14, Wen said China risked a
repeat of the upheaval of the Cultural Revolution unless the country
implemented “urgent” political reforms. The disastrous socialist movement
instigated by Chairman Mao, which took place between 1966 and 1976, saw
millions of people persecuted in violent factional struggles and thousands of
historical relics and artifacts destroyed.
“If
the “new problems that have cropped up in China’s society” are not resolved,
the “historical tragedy” of the Cultural Revolution may happen again, Wen said,
adding that the “mistake” of the revolution is “yet to be fully eliminated.”
Most believe the comments were directly targeted at Bo.”
Mr.Xi’s silence on Mao’s Thoughts as a guiding
theme of the party and the earlier speculation about the likelihood of references to Mao’s Thoughts being removed
from the Party constitution would indicate that the debate on the relevance of
Mao’s Thoughts triggered off by Bo continues even after his humiliation.
(The writer is Additional Secretary (retd),
Cabinet Secretariat, Govt. of India, New Delhi, and, presently, Director,
Institute For Topical Studies, Chennai, and Associate of the Chennai Centre For
China Studies. E-mail: seventyone2@gmail.com
Twitter @SORBONNE75)
 The 18th Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC) began at Beij...){kind=link}