{"id":28733,"title":"GED Explains: The Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party \u2013 What is it and Why Should We Care?","link":"https:\/\/bst-europe.eu\/de\/europe-in-the-world\/ged-explains-the-central-committee-of-the-chinese-communist-party-what-is-it-and-why-should-we-care\/","date":"10. November 2021","date_unix":1636534233,"date_modified_unix":1764244719,"date_iso":"2021-11-10T08:50:33+00:00","content":"<p><em>From November 8-11, the 19<sup>th<\/sup> <\/em><em>Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) will hold its 6<sup>th<\/sup> plenary session in Beijing. In this edition of <strong>GED Explains<\/strong>, we look at the role of this Committee and its place in Chinese politics. Then we give three reasons why this is of significance well beyond China.<\/em><\/p>\n<h2><strong>What is The Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party?<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>The Central Committee (CC) of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) is one of the three top decision-making bodies in <strong>China&#8217;s political system<\/strong>. The Politburo is the second and its Standing Committee the most powerful. CC members are elected every five years by the National Party Congress.<\/p>\n<p>The current 19<sup>th<\/sup> CC has 204 full members (i.e., eligible to vote) and 172 alternate members. In its five-year period, the CC usually gets together for <a href=\"http:\/\/news.sohu.com\/s2012\/dianji-1033\/\" target=\"_blank\" aria-label=\"\u00d6ffnet in einem neuen Tab\" >seven plenary sessions<\/a>, each of which has a <strong>specific agenda:<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>1<sup>st<\/sup> plenum: takes place shortly after the Party Congress (usually in autumn), is a constituting session, and focuses on internal elections and staff appointments.<\/li>\n<li>2<sup>nd<\/sup> plenum: takes place in spring the following year before the twin meeting (lianghui) of the <a href=\"https:\/\/bst-europe.eu\/globalization\/3-topics-to-follow-during-chinas-national-peoples-congress\/\" target=\"_blank\" aria-label=\"\u00d6ffnet in einem neuen Tab\" >National People&#8217;s Congress (NPC)<\/a> and the Chinese People Political Consultative Conference, approves, among others, government candidates prior to their approval by the NPC.<\/li>\n<li>3<sup>rd<\/sup> plenum: takes place one year after the Party Congress, discusses key economic and political issues, attempts to do something &#8222;big&#8220; so as to leave a legacy for its members, the Party, and the government. For example, China&#8217;s reform and opening policy was stipulated at a 3<sup>rd<\/sup> plenum (1978), and so was Xi&#8217;s reform agenda (2013).<\/li>\n<li>4<sup>th<\/sup> plenum: focuses on military governance, such as transferring the chair of the Party Military Commission to a successor and implementation of policies stipulated by the previous plenum.<\/li>\n<li>5<sup>th<\/sup> plenum: usually serves as the platform to stipulate the proposal of the new five-year plan, such as was the case last time in October 2020.<\/li>\n<li>6<sup>th<\/sup> plenum (the one being currently held): pursues the aim of ideology building and preparing the next Party Congress.<\/li>\n<li>7<sup>th<\/sup> and last plenum: a review of the CC&#8217;s past work and finetuning preparations for the next Party Congress, which usually takes place shortly after.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/bst-europe.eu\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/24\/2021\/11\/BST-Grafik-1-Finale-GED-Blog_Chinas-Party-State-20211105-01-01.jpg\" target=\"_blank\" aria-label=\"\u00d6ffnet in einem neuen Tab\"  target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-28736 size-large\" src=\"https:\/\/bst-europe.eu\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/24\/2021\/11\/BST-Grafik-1-Finale-GED-Blog_Chinas-Party-State-20211105-01-01-1024x768.jpg\" alt=\"organizational chart china party\" width=\"1024\" height=\"768\" srcset=\"https:\/\/bst-europe.eu\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/24\/2021\/11\/BST-Grafik-1-Finale-GED-Blog_Chinas-Party-State-20211105-01-01-1024x768.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/bst-europe.eu\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/24\/2021\/11\/BST-Grafik-1-Finale-GED-Blog_Chinas-Party-State-20211105-01-01-300x225.jpg 300w, https:\/\/bst-europe.eu\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/24\/2021\/11\/BST-Grafik-1-Finale-GED-Blog_Chinas-Party-State-20211105-01-01-768x576.jpg 768w, https:\/\/bst-europe.eu\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/24\/2021\/11\/BST-Grafik-1-Finale-GED-Blog_Chinas-Party-State-20211105-01-01-600x450.jpg 600w, https:\/\/bst-europe.eu\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/24\/2021\/11\/BST-Grafik-1-Finale-GED-Blog_Chinas-Party-State-20211105-01-01-1536x1152.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/bst-europe.eu\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/24\/2021\/11\/BST-Grafik-1-Finale-GED-Blog_Chinas-Party-State-20211105-01-01.jpg 1890w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><em>\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n<h2><strong>What&#8217;s the focus of the current plenary session?<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>As a 6<sup>th<\/sup> plenum, the current session will focus on ideological issues and set the tone in the one-year run-up to the 20<sup>th<\/sup> National Party Congress, which is supposed to take place in autumn 2022. Before the removal of the two-term limit for the presidency of the People&#8217;s Republic of China in 2018, we would have seen a leadership transition, first in the Party in 2022, followed by the <strong>government in 2023<\/strong>. However, given current circumstances, it seems that Xi is here to stay \u2013 a clear break with the transitional regime painstakingly established under Deng Xiaoping.<\/p>\n<p>Xi Jinping wants to write even more history at the running plenary session, as the CC <a href=\"http:\/\/theory.people.com.cn\/n1\/2021\/1105\/c40531-32274607.html\" target=\"_blank\" aria-label=\"\u00d6ffnet in einem neuen Tab\" >is supposed<\/a> to pass a &#8222;Resolution on the major achievements and historical experience of the Party&#8217;s centennial struggle.&#8220; This kind of <a href=\"http:\/\/theory.people.com.cn\/n1\/2021\/1105\/c40531-32274607.html\" target=\"_blank\" aria-label=\"\u00d6ffnet in einem neuen Tab\" >&#8222;historical resolution&#8220;<\/a> has only happened twice before in the CCP&#8217;s history:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Mao Zedong&#8217;s historical resolution in 1945 marked the final end and victory of his &#8222;rectification campaign,&#8220; largely aimed at ridding him of political adversaries.<\/li>\n<li>Deng Xiaoping&#8217;s historical resolution in 1981 tried to find a balanced assessment of Mao&#8217;s successes and mistakes while at the same time committing to China&#8217;s course of reform and opening.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>The two <strong>historical resolutions<\/strong> also served to strengthen the position of the current leadership and give them sovereignty over the interpretation of the Party&#8217;s history. By initiating a third historical resolution, Xi Jinping seems to pursue two major goals:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Joining the rows of the Party&#8217;s paramount leaders, Mao Zedong, and Deng Xiaoping. <a href=\"https:\/\/table.media\/china\/en\/feature\/the-6th-plenum-will-be-a-historical-one-for-xi\/\" target=\"_blank\" aria-label=\"\u00d6ffnet in einem neuen Tab\" >Some observers<\/a> argue that Xi even wants to replace Deng Xiaoping and the odds appear to be in his favor.<\/li>\n<li>Reinforcing his position as &#8222;the Core of the Party&#8220; in the run-up to the 20<sup>th<\/sup> Party Congress, which also means to fully gather the Party behind him and reaffirm China&#8217;s &#8222;new development pattern&#8220; based on &#8222;dual circulation,&#8220; which <a href=\"https:\/\/bst-europe.eu\/globalization\/3-topics-to-follow-during-chinas-national-peoples-congress\/\" target=\"_blank\" aria-label=\"\u00d6ffnet in einem neuen Tab\" >we explained<\/a> in a previous blogpost.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><strong>Why should we care?<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>Well, first of all, it&#8217;s about China, the <strong>second-largest economy<\/strong> and most populous country in the world. That should be reason enough why we should care about what happens at the meeting of one of China&#8217;s ruling party&#8217;s most powerful organs. For those who still think: &#8222;So what?!&#8220;, here are two more reasons:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>China is at a turning point in its economic development process. While Deng&#8217;s reform policy made China the &#8222;factory of the world,&#8220; Xi&#8217;s economic policy wants to turn China into a high-tech nation (not new for a Chinese leader, but expect it to be serious this time!) with the highest possible degree of technological self-reliance. Ideally, the roles between China and the world, esp. the West, may even be reversed in the future, which will be, and already is, strongly impacting <strong>trade relations, business models, and value chains<\/strong> around the globe. The plenum and its resolution might further elaborate on the underlying strategies, such as &#8222;dual circulation,&#8220; which is of significance to politics and business well beyond China.<\/li>\n<li>China&#8217;s role in international governance has shifted greatly under Xi Jinping. The country has become an assertive and self-confident geopolitical power, challenging western-style multilateralism by trying to establish itself as a viable alternative, especially for emerging and developing countries. It is clear by now that hopes for convergence, as embedded in China&#8217;s WTO accession 20 years ago, are off the table for the foreseeable future. The &#8222;<strong>competition of systems<\/strong>,&#8220; believed dead long &#8211; is back on the table. Some of the possible scenarios that this changing international order might bring about and which are the topic of our current blogpost series on <a href=\"https:\/\/bst-europe.eu\/globalization\/the-international-order-in-transition-what-might-the-world-look-like-tomorrow-scenario-1\/\" target=\"_blank\" aria-label=\"\u00d6ffnet in einem neuen Tab\" >globalization scenarios<\/a>, look rather gloomy for the West and the world in general. Taking these developments as a wake-up call, the West has started to see China in a different light. <strong>Even the EU<\/strong>, with a strong focus on an economic partnership with China, has added the category <a href=\"https:\/\/ec.europa.eu\/info\/sites\/default\/files\/communication-eu-china-a-strategic-outlook.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" aria-label=\"\u00d6ffnet in einem neuen Tab\" >&#8222;systemic rival&#8220;<\/a> to its view of China. It is, therefore, more important than ever before to closely follow and better understand policy-making processes and related key events in China \u2013 the running plenum being one of them.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n","excerpt":"<p>From November 8-11, the 19th Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) will hold its 6th plenary session in [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","thumbnail":"https:\/\/bst-europe.eu\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/24\/2021\/11\/alejandro-luengo-jL0tMFYOdBM-unsplash-scaled.jpg","thumbnailsquare":"https:\/\/bst-europe.eu\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/24\/2021\/11\/alejandro-luengo-jL0tMFYOdBM-unsplash-scaled.jpg","authors":[{"id":2725,"name":"Cora Jungbluth","link":"https:\/\/bst-europe.eu\/blogger\/dr-cora-jungbluth\/"}],"categories":[{"id":597,"name":"Europe in the World","link":"https:\/\/bst-europe.eu\/category\/europe-in-the-world\/"}],"tags":[{"id":330,"name":"Beijing","link":"https:\/\/bst-europe.eu\/tag\/beijing\/"},{"id":331,"name":"CCP","link":"https:\/\/bst-europe.eu\/tag\/ccp\/"},{"id":332,"name":"Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party","link":"https:\/\/bst-europe.eu\/tag\/central-committee-of-the-chinese-communist-party\/"},{"id":268,"name":"China","link":"https:\/\/bst-europe.eu\/tag\/china\/"}]}