Xi Jinping Makes History As Smears Of Chinese "Dictatorship" Flurry Western Media.
Xi Jinping Makes History As Smears Of Chinese "Dictatorship" Flurry Western Media.
Xi Jinping has been elected for a record third time to be the president of China. We are always told China is not a democracy but a dictatorship, so how was Xi Jinping "elected"?
In October 2022, China held its 20th National Congress. The National Congress is held every five years. During this crucial political event, the Communist Party of China evaluates its progress. However every year there is another important political process that happens in China, the Two Sessions or 兩會 as it is called in Mandarin. This annual political assembly is of members not just of the CPC, but all 2980 leaders from the whole of China.
Two Sessions Explained.
Two Sessions are simultaneous meetings of the National People's Congress and the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference. The National People's Congress is the legislative body and the highest authority of the Chinese State. The Consultative Conference is a united-front political advisory and consultation organization with no legislative or executive functions. During the Two Sessions, the State goals for the rest of the year are established.
On the eve of the creation of the People's Republic of China, Chairman Mao Zedong convened the first Consultative Conference in September 1949 with 662 representatives from 46 parties and political groups participating. This meeting laid the legal foundation of the formal establishment of the People's Republic of China and define the nature of the state and its political systems. It was there that historical definitions were made such as the flag, the capital of the country and the anthem. The head of the state and state bodies were also elected.
In the early years of the People's Republic of China, since an official parliamentary system had not yet been established the Consultative Conference acted as the supreme body of state power. In 1954 the first National People's Congress was convened which approved the constitution of the People's Republic of China.
Before the Two Sessions, various sectors of society are consulted on different legislation. For instance, to create China's first comprehensive Civil Code, for four years deputies of the Assembly conducted different study cycles and consultation rounds in which nearly 3000 opinions were submitted. In addition, online consultations were carried out receiving more than a million opinions from more than 420,000 citizens. The Civil Code was finally voted on and approved at the 2020 National People's Assembly session. It was promulgated on January 1st 2021 with 1200 articles covering aspects such as property, marriage, inheritance and personal rights.
All members of the standing committee of the National People's Congress and the National Committee of the Consultative Conference have five-year term mandates which officially began in 1954.
In the mandate from 2018 to March 2023, both the Assembly and the Consultative Conference were the 13th National People’s Assembly. This is made up of 2980 deputies the 13th Assembly was divided as follows 2119 are members of the CPC and 861 belong to the eight Democratic parties or people with no political affiliation.
Amongst these deputies, 468 are workers, 742 are women and 438 belong to ethnic minorities. In China, 91.1% of the population belongs to the Han ethnic group, while the other 55 ethnic groups account for 8.9% of the population. This means that although the population of ethnic minorities is 8.9%, they hold 15% of representation in the People’s Assembly. This is by design because many ethnic minorities live in remote and/or rural parts of the country. Hence participation from their representatives is crucial for the Chinese government to function evenly.
For its part, the National Committee of the Consultative Conference has 2158 members 60% of whom are not members of the CPC but play a crucial role in advising the People’s Congress. The members of the Consultative Conference are nominated and recommended by parties and groups and are chosen through consultation with the CPC. The 8 parties that makeup 60% of the Consultative Conference were created before the founding of the People's Republic of China as part of the united front strategy.
The meeting of the National People's Congress in 2023 is a continuation of the 20th CPC National Congress held in October 2022. In the Assembly, the deputies elect the President and Vice President of the country. They will also vote to approve the nomination of the Prime Minister of the State Council. That appointment is made by the President and follows a list of nominees proposed by the Central Committee of the CPC.
The Two Sessions are an important part of China's complex political system. They are meant to bring diversity, debate and long consultation processes that lead to concrete policies. In these times of significant geopolitical shifts, the Two Sessions and the decisions made there find new and greater relevance for China and the world.
The result of the Two Sessions in 2023 is that Xi Jinping has been voted by Congress to be the president for a record third term of five years. China will have a new Prime Minister, Li Qiang.
Oh But Democracy.
In the West, people are constantly fed the narrative that China is a dictatorship and not a “functioning democracy” like many Western nations are. This is a lazy interpretation and wilful propaganda against internal Chinese politics. China has a complex political system and Chinese people do vote. In 2016-17, more than 900 million people voted in their Local Assembly elections in China, which is the largest voter participation in the history of the world.
In 2021 China released a white paper report called Democracy That Works. It highlights how democracy in China works at the lowest levels to the upper echelons of the CPC and the state itself. To understand internal Chinese politics we must understand the major structures, the State and the Party.
The State
In the State structure, the President is at the top and he presides over the National People’s Congress and the Consultative Conference at the Two Sessions.
The structure also comprises the Supreme People’s Court and Supreme People’s Procuratorate, which are the Chinese Judiciary.
The State Council is presided over by the Prime Minister. The Prime minister leads 27 ministries and local commissions.
Lastly, the President is the commander in chief, like in most countries, having control over the military executive.
Upon formation, the Chinese leadership was of the view that the 8 old parties of China must remain in function, but under the leadership of the Communist Party of China.
It is a system in which multi-party cooperation is highly valued, with the State being under the CPC. According to China, this system works to engage in real democracy without the lust for power at the top.
Provinces have their own assembly structure. Local leaders are elected directly by the people with nearly a billion people participating in the electoral process. This ensures that every district in China is represented by an administration that’s rooted in their community, ethnicity and culture.
The Party
The structure of the Communist Party explains why CPC holds total executive power.
The CPC has nearly 97 million members. Any of these 97 million members can run for civil service sector positions and jobs. Serving the local community is an important aspect of the fabric of Chinese society.
The entry-level members come from universities and colleges. The brightest students are given the opportunity to join the CPC, making it an entirely merit-based selection process. 7 million members are at this level at any given point.
With experience, an entry-level member achieves higher positions with higher responsibilities. This again is a merit-based process because only the best cadre is chosen. Entry Level > Functional Senior > Section Chief > Director General > Minister, Governor, National Party Congress > one of 360 Counsellors in the central committee > Politburo.
The central committee is where the highest decisions of the CPC are made after a year-long process of discussions with the other millions of members at the lower ranks. The National Party votes for Central Committee members.
An independent body called the Party Organization Department is an agency that reviews the performances of all members every year. Right from community service and conduct to achievements are reviewed by this body.
POD conducts public opinion surveys throughout the year that help them review a CPC member’s performance. If a member’s performance has low ratings from the public, he or she would be replaced based purely on merit and dedication to the people. For example, cultural icon and congresswoman Ocasio Cortez has an approval rating of 26% in her district. By Chinese standards, she would no longer be a serving member of the CPC or local governments, as she would fail the review standards of POD. Contrary to western propaganda, public surveys are conducted in China at every level of governance.
As a member rises in the ranks, they can choose to enter public administrative services(cadres) and be involved in growing cities and provinces or enter state-owned enterprises where they can manage multi-million dollar companies.
The process from entry-level to being in charge of city administration or becoming a director at state-owned companies takes 20 to 30 years. For instance, President Xi Jinping started as a village secretary, going up to govern two provinces. He governed 150 million citizens in these two provinces with an economy of over $1.5 trillion. It is only after three decades of public service, President Xi became a Counsellor in the central committee.
This party hierarchy is to ensure that only the best and those most dedicated to people reach the top of the political ladder. Unlike in Western democracies where oligarchs buy political power and the bottom 99% of people have no say, China celebrates the most dedicated to leading their nation. Community service is built in each stage of the hierarchy.
In October 2022, the National Party Congress met to discuss achievements, failures and plans for the next 5 years. It’s a central planning model that gives the local provinces the freedom to implement and achieve their 5-year goals in their ways. For instance, to implement the Zero-Covid policy goal, many provincial governments had their own strategy. The National Party Congress is interested in progress and results.
Conclusion.
What China has achieved is coming as close as possible to a meritocracy with local democracy. With 97 million CPC members, all engaged in some kind of public service or the other at various levels, China calls itself a Democracy that Works. With a population of 1.4 billion, 97 million members constitute nearly 1 CPC member per 15 Chinese people.
It is extremely orientalist and racist to look down upon countries in the global south that are finding ways to govern their countries the way it works for them. China is the largest country in terms of population. A large part of China is impenetrable geographically and inhabited by ethnic minorities. Both the state and the party have managed to include all corners of the country in its legislative process. Nearly a billion people in China vote in local elections. These elected local representatives elect the people higher up in the government.
Is it a perfect system? No. China never claimed to be a perfect democracy. But they have a democracy that from the lowest to the highest echelons is rooted in community service and the progress of a nation as a whole. China never imposes its system onto its allies or trade partners.
We must reject the western propaganda against a country that has lifted more than 800 million people out of poverty. China is a dictatorship, a dictatorship of the proletariat. 83% of Chinese people believe they have a functioning democracy in China, while less than 40% of Americans think they have a functioning democracy in the USA.
China is proud of its 4000-year-old civilization. Their political system is based in their culture, history and being colonized. You will often hear the same accusations about Cuba or Bolivia or Venezuela, who have a single party hold in their governments. However, what most western propagandists omit is these same countries have their citizens vote for constitutional changes, at times even changes in laws. For instance, Cuba recently put same-sex marriage to a public vote. Due to a majority of Cuban citizens voting to legalize same-sex marriage, it is now in Cuban civil law.
Let us educate ourselves about different nations and cultures. Let us understand the history of these countries and regions, instead of blindly believing what the United States spews.
You may or may not agree with the Chinese political system, but a large majority of Chinese people love their President and the direction he has taken China in since 2012. This is something I witnessed during my last trip to 7 Chinese cities. People respect the Chinese government’s dedication to bettering their lives, so what is stopping us to respect the Chinese people’s mandate?
Updates.
My explanation of Two-Sessions was based on the annual summit last year, 2022. Here is our friend Andy Boreham discussing the Two-Sessions of 2023.
Here is Li Jingjing who covered the entire Two-Sessions report on the rural development plans that were discussed.