The regular mass meetings of senior CCP cadres are a combination of pep talk, browbeating, ideology-tweaking, cliché sputtering and administration. Policy ideas are set forth and formalized that outsiders then parse. Appointments of senior officials and top leaders are made or recommended. Preparations are made for the next Party Congress.
Different aspects of this housekeeping are assigned to different plenums, First, Second, Third, Fourth, Fifth, Sixth, Seventh. Each plenum number rolls around roughly every five years.
If something really newsworthy came out of them—like toppling Xi Jinping, a thwarted hope last year—the plenums would be a little more newsworthy.
The Fifth Plenum is underway. The meeting began on Monday. It is, says Reuters, “aimed at tightening discipline and pressing officials to implement Beijing’s orders, paving the way for a leadership reshuffle next year expected to extend President Xi Jinping’s rule for another five years.”
According to state news agency Xinhua, “It is essential to both refine institutional rules and regulations to close loopholes and strengthen safeguards, and ensure their effective implementation.”
What outsiders say
Kerry Brown, who directs the Lau China Institute of King’s College London, tells Reuters that the plenum “will present Xi as in control, and able to continue his command. It is likely everything will be centred on him, to dispel any rumours or doubts about his physical fitness and ability to continue in his role.”
Also, “this will be a plenum where appearances will matter as much, if not more, than substance.”
Foreign Policy deputy editor James Palmer explains that “Plenums Matter So Much to Xi” because his power “is rooted in the CCP’s formal structures…. Xi’s political persona is built around hierarchy and order, not revolution….
“Even though Xi is the son of one of the founding fathers of the People’s Republic of China, he has not built close ties to other princelings, choosing instead to curtail them. He has also not hesitated to turn against figures once considered his allies, such as now-fallen top general Zhang Youxia.
“As a result, Xi’s power stems almost entirely from his formal position—including, critically, his control of the CCP’s internal security services.”
New coup rumors
Nothing much will happen, these guys seem to be saying.
On the other hand, Anna Wong of Chiang Rai Times has suggested in a confusingly dated article that Xi “Faces Serious Questions” and conveys rumors that a rebellion by anti-Xi forces is a possibility at the plenum. Sundry charges against Xi will be made. “The alleged objective of these charges is to force the leader to resign from his roles as General Secretary and Chairman of the Central Military Commission.” Wong’s proximate source is none other than Lei of Lei’s Real Talk.
Of course, adds Wong: “Removing the top leader of the Chinese Communist Party is incredibly difficult.” And three days in, no word yet that Xi has been kicked to the curb.
Also see:
Lei’s Real Talk: “Assassinations, Purges and Paranoia: Inside Xi Jinping’s Final Crisis”
“Reports suggest a covert task force, allegedly led by Hu Chunhua, is preparing seven explosive charges to oust China’s supreme leader…. Has Xi’s paranoia finally triggered an internal rebellion?”
