Last week, the world was glued to the five-yearly 19th national congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC). The highlight was General Secretary of the Party, President Xi Jinping’s three and a half hour long speech. Three striking personality features struck all: The absence of both excitement and one-upmanship in his body language; consistent flow in his expressive tones and diction; and of course, a high degree of humility and calmness. Already acclaimed as a “core” leader in the CPC, Xi Jinping has refrained from throwing invectives against inimical forces.

A better life

Institutions, youths, common folks, communities, officials and the private sector all waited to hear what plans president Xi had to transform China into a ‘moderately prosperous society’ by 2021 (centenary of the CPC formation) and “a global leader in terms of composite national strength and international influence” by 2047 (centenary of the establishment of the People’s Republic of China). The message was loud and clear in every respect, from development to environment, philosophical guidelines to socialist bastion, governance based on rule of law to zero tolerance on corruption, party discipline to supremacy of CPC, economic reforms to national sovereignty, new global order to connectivity and market access, and soft power to climate change impact. It all worked.

It was apparent that Xi Jinping was in the Great Hall of the People in Beijing at the right time, the right place and for the right cause.

The contents of his speech, attended in person by over 2200 delegates, had five conspicuous aspects: Firstly, party-country-people remained the critical tri-junctional matrix of Chinese policy. Secondly, the story of achievements was told in a modest language, and suave assertion was made for a more enriched ‘new normal’ in the future. Thirdly,  the vision and targets for 2021 and 2049 were awe inspiring for the younger generation in both China and abroad. Fourthly, a roadmap for China to re-imagine and renegotiate for a new global order was clearly laid out. And finally, an unequivocally frank and forthright statement was made when he said that the biggest challenges for China would be found within the country. 

Xi Jinping redefined philosophy, re-coining theoretical underpinnings of development discourse and inviting all to closely examine the pragmatic approach and practical policies of China. He elaborated his buzz phrases, such as ‘socialism with Chinese characteristics’ and “mei hao sheng huo” (a better life) by saying “now the needs to be met for the people to live a better life are increasingly broad. Not only have their material and cultural needs grown, their demands for democracy, rule of law, fairness and justice, security, and a better environment are increasing.”

Unlike the ‘perfect competition’ and ‘free entry and exit’ based multiparty system in many democracies, China has a ‘monopoly’ based single party system. Its leaders are selected and not elected. The CPC’s 89.5 million members from diverse backgrounds including students, professionals, army, women, ethnic minorities, entrepreneurs and the private sector are tested at every level, from their educational qualifications to social commitments and professional contributions. However, the core issue in both types of democracies are development, and the meeting of basic needs of the poorest and remotest geographies.

Leaps and bounds

In this game, by any stretch of imagination and socio-economic yardstick, the Chinese have fared much better than countries in the global South that started with planned development much earlier and with better legal, physical and institutional infrastructure. Xi Jinping made the astounding revelation that ‘more than 60 million people have been lifted out of poverty over the past five years’ and during the same period, an average of over 13 million urban jobs were created each year. He also admitted that “what we now face is the contradiction between unbalanced and inadequate development and the people’s ever-growing needs for a better life.”  And committed that “to meet the people’s desire for a happy life is our mission.”

On the poverty eradication front, what has been remarkable in China is the accountability of the provincial governments and also the scientific design of the delivery mechanisms. Governmental machinery and CPC cadres work hand in hand right down to the county and household level, and monitor and evaluate each other’s performance. The traditional bureaucratic institutions have to remain constantly alert, accessible and accountable in their targeted performance. For other developing countries in Asia and Africa, this infectious model of development is worth examining.

Xi’s campaign for ‘zero tolerance of corruption’ has connected him with the people at the grassroots level, shaken the party cadres, and dispossessed ministers, bureaucrats and the private sector of their ill-gotten wealth and extravagance.

It is cleansing the polity while raising public morale. The latest available data presented by the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection (CCDI)—CPC’s apex discipline watchdog—revealed that since 2012, 66,000 county chief level officials; 8,600 bureau and department chiefs (one rank below the ministerial level) and 280 directly under the organisation department of the CPC Central Committee (most at or above ministerial level) have been investigated.

People receiving party or administrative penalties increased from 182 in 2013 to 415 in 2016 and people handed over to judicial authorities for suspected corruption increased from 9,600 in 2013 to 14,000 in 2015. In the process, the CCDI recovered $1.4 billion and identified 3,339 wanted fugitives returned to the Chinese mainland. The National Bureau of Statistics found in its survey that over 92 percent of the people expressed satisfaction of this drive and wanted low-ranking officials to be kept on the watch list.

Xi Jingpin’s reiteration that  “China will deepen relations with its neighbours in accordance with the principles of amity, sincerity, mutual benefit and inclusiveness and the policy of forging friendship and partnership with its neighbours,” does indicate that the cooperative rather than conflict framework will guide China in the neighbourhood. China’s increasing realisation regarding the serious non-traditional threats to its national security and sovereignty is now widely discussed within and outside the country. President Xi Jinping recognised and internalised this in his speech. Recollecting the “five principles of peaceful coexistence” or Panchasheel that China identified with India in 1954, he stated that “we should commit to settling disputes through dialogue and resolving differences through discussion, coordinate responses to traditional and non-traditional threats, and oppose terrorism in all its forms.” 

South Asia has now become a major source of global migrants. Even for a small landlocked country such as Nepal, remittances from the migrants constituted almost 30 percent of its Gross Domestic Product in 2014. As the two highest recipients of remittances from their migrant population in the world, China and India could lead a collective front at the global negotiations for accessing the developed market economies with the Temporary Movement of Natural Persons under the Mode IV of the General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS) of World Trade Organisation. The scope and complexity of migration is changing fast as globalisation is affecting migration and vice versa. President Xi Jinping’s address alluded to all these trends while seeking a newer global order and reforms in the existing Bretton Woods institutions including World Bank and the International Monetary Fund.

Lama is presently High End Expert in Institute of South Asian Studies, Sichuan University in China and a senior Professor at Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi