Out from under Jiang's
shadow By Wu Zhong, China
Editor
HONG KONG - About one year ahead of
the all-important 17th National Congress of the
Chinese Communist Party, President Hu Jintao is
deftly making political moves to strengthen his
power and authority, walking out of the shadow of
his predecessor, Jiang Zemin.
The
announcement of the removal of Chen Liangyu as
Shanghai party chief, which deals a heavy blow to
the so-called "Shanghai
Hu
succeeded Jiang as the party's general secretary
in late 2002 and then as Chinese president in
March 2003. But it was not until two years ago
that Jiang gave up his last, but most powerful,
post as chairman of the party's Central Military
Commission.
Jiang used to work in Shanghai
as mayor and then party chief until he was
hand-picked by late paramount leader Deng Xiaoping
to replace the disgraced Zhao Ziyang as party
general secretary after the June 4 Tiananmen
crackdown in 1989. As such, Shanghai had been
Jiang's power base. Before his retirement, Jiang
promoted many Shanghai officials to key posts in
the party's central leadership and the central
government.
Jiang favored Shanghai so much
that it was said that China was ruled by the
"Shanghai Gang". This was illustrated by a popular
joke among Beijing residents at that time, which
went as follows: One day a Shanghai official
arrived at Beijing airport and hailed a taxi. The
cab driver asked where to take him. The man said,
"To the Shanghai government's representative
office [in Beijing]."
Some time later, the
taxi stopped in front of the Xinhua Gate, the main
entrance to Zhongnanhai - headquarters of the
party's Central Committee and the State Council.
Astonished, the Shanghai official said, "No, this
is a wrong place."
"Yes," replied the cab
driver, "this is the right place, as many Shanghai
representatives are inside.''
Walking
out of Jiang's shadow During his early
years as party leader, it could be said that Hu
had been working, for better or for worse, under
the shadow of his predecessor, though Jiang's
influence may in fact have been declining day by
day. This is despite Hu (as well as Premier Wen
Jiabao) having established his people-friendly
work style, which has won him great popularity in
the country.
Political analysts say that
in China's cultural tradition, it is natural for a
retired leader to try to retain his influence, and
often even his control as well, over his
successor. But for Hu it might have been too much
if Jiang's shadow had extended well into his
second term as party leader.
Therefore,
the party's 17th National Congress is widely seen
as a good opportunity for Hu to walk out of
Jiang's shadow by claiming full control of party,
government and military affairs. According to the
party charter, the congress, which meets every
five years, is to re-elect the party's
policymaking Central Committee. The reshuffle next
year is thus all-important for both Hu, as he
tries to establish his own authority, and Jiang,
who may want to keep his influence by having
proteges remain in key posts.
Making
Jiang a 'spiritual leader' So, with
considerable deftness, Hu began began to lay the
political groundwork. In early August, the
three-volume Selected Articles of Jiang
Zemin was officially published. In China's
practice, publication of a leader's writings must
have the approval of the central leadership. This
meant it was Hu who gave the green light. Not only
that, Hu also delivered speeches highly praising
Jiang's "theory" and calling party members to
study it "wholeheartedly".
It should be
noted that the three-volume Selected Articles
by Deng Xiaoping was also officially published
shortly before the late paramount leader went into
full retirement. Hence by approving the
publication of Jiang's works, Hu in fact has
"elevated" Jiang into an honored but powerless
status of a "spiritual leader" of the party who is
not supposed to meddle in mundane affairs of
state.
Promoting Youth League
cadres The second part of Hu's current
political maneuver is to reshuffle minister-level
officials. Some ministers in the State Council
have been reassigned to work as provincial
governors, and some provincial officials moved to
other regions. When an official has worked in a
department or a place for long, he can easily form
a power base within his jurisdiction enabling him
to go around or even defy the central authority.
Rotation of officials is an effective way to
prevent the problem.
While making the
reshuffle, Hu could also appoint officials he
trusts to important posts in the party and
government. Hu started his political career
working for the Chinese Communist Youth League and
became the head of the league in the early 1980s.
Because of such a background, it is said he
inclines to promote those officials who used to
work as cadres of the Communist Youth League.
According to the early-August issue of the
Hong Kong-based, China-watching Wide Angle
magazine, 11 of the current 31 provincial
Communist Party chiefs are former league cadres,
and one-third of the governors of the 31 provinces
also once worked as league officials. In the
central government, nine of the 28 ministries
under the State Council are now headed by former
Communist Youth League cadres.
Among them,
Li Keqiang, Li Yuanchao and Zhang Baoshun, the
party chiefs of Liaoning, Jiangsu and Shanxi
provinces respectively, used to work in the
league's central committee directly under Hu, and
thus they are the closest to the president.
Speculation is rife now in China that Li Keqing is
likely to be promoted as a member of the Politburo
Standing Committee in the 17th Party Congress next
year and that he is the most hopeful candidate to
succeed Hu in 2012.
In June, Hu promoted
another 10 lieutenant-generals to full generals,
signaling that he is strengthening his grip on the
military.
Anti-corruption to rein in
the officialdom The last, but probably the
most striking, of Hu's political maneuvers is to
strengthen the crackdown on official corruption,
using it to rein in disobedient officials.
Monday's announcement of the removal of Chen as
Shanghai party chief marks the climax of the
maneuver. Political analysts say the removal of
Chen could be a way of killing three birds with
one stone, which fully demonstrates Hu's political
adroitness.
Firstly, sacking Chen deals
the "Shanghai Gang" a heavy blow that decisively
weakens, if not completely destroys, its political
influence. This paves the way for Hu to dominate
the major leadership reshuffle in the 17th Party
Congress next year.
Second, the dismissal
of Chen serves as a stern warning to officials,
regional officials in particular, that they had
better toe the line of the central leadership
headed by Hu or they could be severely dealt with.
After all, Chen had been one of the 24 members of
the all-powerful politburo and was said to have
the blessing of Shanghai-origin senior officials,
including Jiang. So the message is very clear that
if a person like Chen could be dealt with, whom
else would Hu not dare to touch?
The
import of Hu's move is strongly conveyed in the
central leadership's announcement of Chen's
removal: "Whoever it is, no matter how high their
position, anyone who violates party rules or
national law will be investigated and severely
punished." This certainly is a great help in
checking the increasingly rampant regionalism
enabling Beijing's macroeconomic control policy to
be faithfully carried out at the local level.
Finally, Chen's removal demonstrates to
the public the determination and courage of the
leadership headed by Hu in the arduous fight
against official corruption, which is one of the
major sources of public discontent in the country.
Jiang launched a nationwide crackdown on
official corruption in 1998. But under his rule
and his continued influence after his retirement,
not one ranking official in Shanghai has been
included in the almost two-decade-old campaign
until now, while "big fish" have been caught in
all the other 30 provinces. Shanghai had appeared
as if it were immune to the rampant evil. No
wonder people in China sarcastically say that
"Shanghai is the only clean soil in our country".
Continuing investigation into Chen is
expected to expose more scandals, with more
officials netted. So once again, Hu could justly
and forcefully tell his people, "Whoever it is, no
matter how high their position, anyone who
violates party rules or national law will be
investigated and severely punished." This
certainly will greatly boost public approval of
Hu.
All in all, Chen's dismissal marks the
greatest triumph of Hu's political career so far.
It symbolically marks the end of the Jiang era.
Hu's performance has led many political analysts
to have a completely new appraisal of his
political wisdom and courage. Now it can be said
that a self-confident Hu Jintao will have his
final say in the major leadership next year. In
this sense, the 17th Party Congress in late 2007
will open a genuine Hu era.
(Copyright
2006 Asia Times Online Ltd. All rights reserved.
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