PLA Generals & CMC vice-chairmen back Hu’s report


| by B.Raman

( November 10, 2012, Chennai, Sri Lanka Guardian) Senior PLA Generals and the Vice-Chairmen of the newly-expanded Party Central Military Commission (CMC) have in panel discussions praised the record of Mr.Hu Jintao, the outgoing General Secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC), and his report to the 18th Party Congress submitted on November 8,2012, and underlined the CPC’s absolute leadership over the Armed Forces.

Cartoon Courtesy: Washington Post
The PLA and the CMC’s panel discussions on Hu’s report were attended by the following:

  • Gen.Guo Boxiong, member of the Political Bureau of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC) and vice chairman of the Central Military Commission (CMC).
  • Gen.Xu Caihou, member of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and vice chairman of the CMC.
  • Gen.Fan Changlong, vice chairman of the CMC.
  • Gen.Xu Qiliang, vice chairman of the CMC.
  • Gen.Liang Guanglie, member of the CMC, state councilor and minister of national defense.
  • Gen.Chen Bingde, member of the CMC.
  • Gen.Li Jinai, member of the CMC.
  • Gen.Liao Xilong, member of the CMC.
  • Gen.Chang Wanquan, member of the CMC.
  • Gen.Jing Zhiyuan, member of the CMC.
  • Gen. Wu Shengli, member of the CMC and commander of the Navy.
  • Gen.Fang Fenghui, chief of general staff of the PLA.
  • Gen.Zhang Yang, director of the General Political Department (GPD) of the PLA.
  • Gen.Zhao Keshi, director of the General Logistics Department (GLD) of the PLA, and
  • Gen.Zhang Youxia, director of the General Armaments Department (GAD) of the PLA.

The “PLA Daily” has reported as follows on the panel discussions:

“Senior generals of the People's Liberation Army (PLA) supported the keynote report by Hu Jintao at the opening of the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC) on Thursday, saying that the principle of the Party's absolute leadership over the armed forces must be unwaveringly adhered to.

“Hu's report is a great achievement of the Party's theoretical innovations and serves as a guide to action for completing the building of a moderately prosperous society in all respects, said Gen. Guo Boxiong .

“The military should intensively study and apply Hu's thinking on the development of national defense and the armed forces under new conditions, adhere to the principle of Party's absolute leadership over the armed forces more voluntarily and push forward military preparedness more effectively, Guo said.

“Gen. Xu Caihou called the 18th CPC National Congress a" milestone," noting Hu's inspiring report demonstrates the Party's political confidence and determination, and the Scientific Outlook on Development supplies the armed forces with "a powerful theoretical weapon."

“The PLA and the armed police force should carefully study the report and more firmly follow the Party's leadership in united ideology and action to accelerate the modernization of the national defense and the armed forces, Xu said.

“Gen. Fan Changlong said the 18th CPC National Congress is an important meeting being held when China enters a decisive stage of completing the building of a moderately prosperous society in all respects and Hu's report serves as a guiding document for the cause of socialism with Chinese characteristics.

“Fan said the armed forces should understand the report's core requirement on the military and unswervingly stick to the Party's absolute leadership and give high priority to military preparedness.

“Gen. Xu Qiliang said in the discussion that Hu's report serves as a guidance to action of winning new victory for socialism with Chinese characteristics.

“The armed forces must study and implement the decisions of the 18th CPC National Congress and take it as the top political task at present and a strategic mission for the long term, he added.

“In their discussion on the report of the 18th CPC National Congress, all the PLA delegates agreed that the report delivered by Comrade Hu Jintao scientifically reviewed international and domestic development trends, profoundly summed up the historical experience, systematically expounded a series of major theoretical and practical issues on upholding and developing socialism with Chinese characteristics, clearly specified the new goal of building a moderately prosperous society and the new requirements of comprehensively deepening reform and opening up, fully planned the economic, political, cultural, social and ecological civilization construction of socialism with Chinese characteristics and put forward new tasks and new requirements in comprehensively improving the scientific level of the Party building.”

The reports on the PLA/CMC panel discussions carried by the “PLA Daily” do not indicate whether  Mr.Hu will continue as the Chairman of the CMC after handing over as the General Secretary of the Party to Mr. Xi Jinping next week.

This may please be read in continuation of my earlier article titled “Will Hu Jintao Emulate Jiang andRetain Control of PLA after Party Transition?

(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)