China reshuffles party posts ahead of Congress
A meeting of the top functionaries of the Communist Party of China (CPC) at the seaside resort of Beidaihe earlier this month may have triggered a slew of new appointments, including new Party Chiefs in the border provinces of Yunnan and Tibet.
The Hong Kong-based South China Morning Post is reporting that Li Xiaopeng, the elder son of former Prime Minister Li Peng, is tipped to take charge as the new Transport Minister, as part of a reshuffle of personnel after the Beidaihe retreat.
New hierarchy
Analysts say the new appointments are in the run-up to next year’s 19th Party Congress, which is likely to result in the emergence of a new power hierarchy on President Xi Jinping’s watch. “The Chinese leadership will focus on domestic consolidation, including military reforms, and shoring up the economy till the 19th Party Congress, and less on foreign affairs,” an official source who did not wish to be named told The Hindu.
According to the Post, Lou Yangsheng, seen as President Xi’s ally, will become the new Governor of the resource-rich Shanxi province. The move is significant as President Xi’s anti-corruption campaign has targeted the local establishment in the province. The Shanxi province was home to Ling Jihua, a powerful former adviser to former President Hu Jintao. He allegedly led the “Shanxi Gang”, involving senior officials and businessmen who were linked with the province.
Setting the tone
The Chinese authorities have also appointed Wu Yingjie as the new Party head in the Tibet Autonomous Region (TAR). Analysts say the annual closed-door meetings at Beidaihe, which are also an occasion for the top leaders to share experiences with the former “elders” of the Party, in an informal setting of the retreat, usually sets the tone for major policies.
Quite often the summer retreat is followed by autumn plenums, which, in the current circumstances, are likely to pave the way for the induction of new faces within the country’s top leadership during the 19th Party Congress.
The Beidaihe retreat, a leafy compound well-known for its orange-roofed seaside villas, has been the nerve centre of politics during the summer since the early 1950s. It was here that Mao Zedong introduced his “summer office system” by shifting governmental decision making apparatus to the resort.
