China’s abolition of term limits for the president, which will pave the way for Xi Jinping (習近平) to rule for life, is the culmination of a campaign of tightening control waged by Xi since he came to power in 2012.
Over the past five years Xi has worked doggedly to build a cult of personality, endearing himself to the populace as a father figure while requiring unwavering loyalty from officials and cracking down harshly on dissent.
This is how Xi cemented his grip on China.
Illustration: Constance Chou
PURGES
Soon after coming to power in 2012, Xi began a sweeping anti-graft campaign that has seen about 1.3 million officials punished in some form. However, Xi’s work to weaken rival factions at the pinnacle of Chinese politics has left him the last man standing.
Former Chinese domestic security head Zhou Yongkang (周永康) became the highest-ranking official since the founding of the People’s Republic of China to be jailed on corruption charges.
“Xi has a very particular vision of where China is going — for China to enter the center stage of world affairs and reshape the global order,” said Victor Shih, an associate professor of political economy at the University of California, San Diego. “He feels he needs [to] control every little detail to achieve those goals and will silence officials he thinks stand in his way.”
The president has also targeted high-ranking military officials, with some committing suicide rather than suffer the consequences of a public shaming, and is pushing to establish an anti-corruption watchdog with more extensive powers, ensuring the purges will continue.
MEMORABILIA
For a visual comparison to former Chinese leader Mao Zedong (毛澤東), look no further than the plethora of shops selling Xi-themed memorabilia in cities across the nation.
Xi and Mao airbrushed portraits frequently hang side by side. For something a little more inspiring, Chinese calligraphy with quotes by Xi and a faux-ink portrait of the man are also widely available.
However, if wall space is limited, China’s souvenir merchants offer commemorative plates decorated with Xi’s portrait or a photo of the first couple waving. And for those who want to carry Xi with them everywhere, heart-shaped necklaces with his likeness hang by the dozen from countertop racks. They are identical to the ones featuring Mao: The only difference is the portrait.
“The way he has associated himself with Mao, as a kind of revolutionary hero, is an effort to build legitimacy in a system where for a long time the [Chinese] Communist Party’s [CCP] credibility was based on the revolution,” said Merriden Varrall, director of the East Asia program at the Lowy Institute. “Since he wasn’t alive then, he needs to associate himself with the real thing.”
CRUSHING DISSENT
Xi began taking a hard line against any form of dissent shortly after coming to power. He launched a nationwide crackdown on civil rights lawyers and activists that saw nearly 250 people detained by police.
Internet and press censorship has also increased under Xi, meaning there are few alternative voices to even offer moderate differences to the party line. He has openly said the media should be a tool of the CCP and sending an offending tweet is now enough to land someone in jail.
“There are a variety of alternative viewpoints, whether it’s religion, civil society or the media, and Xi doesn’t want anyone to question the direction he is taking China,” said Ely Ratner, a senior fellow for China studies at the Council of Foreign Relations.
CONSTITUTION
At a CCP meeting last year, Xi succeeded in placing himself on the same level as the two most important modern leaders, Mao and Deng Xiaoping (鄧小平).
Xi had his name written into the party’s constitution, not just a nod to his ideology as his predecessors had done.
Now he is poised to have his name inscribed in the country’s constitution as well. Still, ordinary Chinese are already accustomed to seeing Xi’s name everywhere.
While China’s state-controlled media have always focused heavily on the achievements of national leaders, Xi was second only to Mao in frequency and intensity of state media coverage, according to a 2014 study.
“The airwaves are saturated with his thoughts, his image and his work, they go out of their way to cover him,” Shih said. “It shows he’s firmly in control, but also that he is personally responsible for China’s direction, instead of the state or the party.”
MAN OF MANY TITLES
Xi has amassed a laundry list of titles, leading many to refer to him as the “chairman of everything.”
His three most important for governing are president, CCP general secretary and chairman of the Central Military Commission.
However, he has also created a host of specialized working groups — on topics such as Taiwan and cyberspace — and consistently placed himself at the head of them.
“No one has the capacity to handle the complexities of all these issues at once, and it’s a good question why he has an inability to delegate,” Ratner said. “There’s a sense of bureaucratic paralysis; officials don’t want to take certain actions or report bad news, and that will lead to bad decision-making down the line.”
He is also known as the “core leader,” a distinction trumpeted on countless red propaganda banners hanging in every city in China. While it does not confer any specific powers, it sends a strong message Xi is firmly in control.
LITTLE BEIGE BOOK
Mao had his little red book, a pocket-sized collection of quotations that loyal followers carried everywhere.
Xi has his own version, although it is far less portable. The off-white tome has a color portrait of Xi with red lettering displaying the bland title: The Governance of China. It has so far run over two volumes and is a collection of speeches and his thoughts outlining his plans for the nation’s political future.
“Xi seems to fundamentally believe China needs to be saved, believes the Communist party is the only entity that can do that and he believes he’s the only person that can lead it,” Varrall said.
LOYALTY OR DEATH
Supporters of China’s authoritarian government have often praised what they describe as collective leadership: The leader is unelected, but he is heavily influenced by the six other powerful men who sit on the politburo standing committee.
Xi has centraliZed power in his own hands to a greater extent than even Deng, and for junior officials to critique Xi’s policies would amount to career suicide.
“If he makes a policy mistake, no one is going to be there to correct him,” Shih said. “What used to be healthy policy debates will turn into sycophancy.”
Shih cited the creation of a new city called Xiong’an, meant to be a satellite capital to Beijing where non-essential departments are based, as a “massive waste” helmed by Xi.
In theory absolute power comes with absolute responsibility, but so far Xi has been able to deflect the blame for crises, like a stock market meltdown in 2015.
TREE WORSHIPING
The sycophancy has reached such heights that last year, senior provincial officials were bused in to gaze upon a tree planted by Xi and consider the mission of the party. The excursion was followed by a reading of a poem about a dogged propaganda official from the 1960s, composed by Xi.
“It’s incredibly excessive and very deliberate,” Ratner said. “The effort to which Chinese propagandists are going to elevate him to a great man and a great leader is at times excessive to the point of parody.”
Xi has also made his own trips to prominent sites in CCP history, highlighting his nostalgia for some aspects of the Mao era. He started a trend that saw many officials recite the party oath at historical sites.
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