Xi and new thought police set to climb even higher

Xi Jinping is to be elevated to a higher place, with his “Thought” to be placed alongside Mao’s in the Chinese constitution.

Xi Jinping at the opening ceremony of the Belt and Road forum in Beijing last May. Picture: AP

Chinese paramount leader Xi ­Jinping is set to be elevated to an even higher place, with the President’s “Thought” to be placed alongside Mao Zedong’s in the nat­ional constitution.

This is triggering intense discussion among Chinese intellectuals as to whether Mr Xi, now lacking significant opponents, is starting to reveal his true “reformist” colours in the tradition of his comparatively liberal father Xi Zhongxun.

The Communist Party’s highest body decided at a meeting that ended at the weekend to recommend to the National People’s Congress, the parliament that meets annually in March, that it incorporates into the Chinese constitution “Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era”.

It has not previously proven easy for Chinese leaders to line up the ducks required to change the national constitution.

But now that the central committee of the party — which in ­October incorporated Xi Thought into its own constitution — has made this recommendation, the parliament will approve it.

One of Mr Xi’s initiatives creating considerable controversy is the establishment of a national supervision commission set above the country’s legal apparatus to investigate and punish all officials, at any level, deemed to be disloyal, indisciplined or corrupt. It is likely the national constitution will also be changed in March to incorporate this new body and its super powers.

These changes are taking place at the start of the 40th anniversary year of Deng Xiaoping’s “opening and reform” era that launched China’s drive towards its present economic prosperity.

In recent weeks, Mr Xi has ­attracted applause, especially from those who claimed he was always a closet reformer, on a number of fronts. The brownie points include for the blue skies over Beijing as environmental controls have been implemented, Mr Xi’s forcing of regional authorities to reveal the extent of their fraudulent boosting of economic data and his launching of pilot projects to allow farmers to develop and lease out residential property on their collectively owned land.

But others remain wary and critical, pointing out that Mr Xi has ruled out political reform ­altogether and champions the state’s continuing core role in the economy.

Beijing academic Hu Xingdou said Mr Xi would take a middle way between Deng and Mao, but inclined more towards Mao. “He will retain economic opening, but keep tight control elsewhere, as Mao did,” Professor Hu said.

“Xi’s authority is not as absolute as it might seem,” he said. “That is why he has to demand repeated vows of loyalty from the army and armed police force.”

Public intellectual Zhou Duo said Mr Xi’s path for his ­second term was emerging: to combine his “red” instincts with the Singapore model of governance. In terms of freedoms, it would be neither worse nor better.

“The economy will continue to grow, ordinary people will be pleased, and the country and the party will be more powerful. The good old days for the liberals, like the 1980s, are gone,” he said.