The ruling Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has reaffirmed its leadership while promising “to deepen reforms” during its Third Plenum, which concluded last week. China observers say the proposed reforms could hurt the people struggling to make ends meet amid a sluggish economy.
The Third Plenum, held from July 15 to July 18, is the CCP’s most significant meeting. It is convened every five years to set major political and economic policies for the Chinese regime.
Economic ‘Great Leap Forward’
The CCP emphasized implementing the strategy of invigorating China through science and advancing “socialist modernization” with Chinese characteristics.Wang Juntao, a U.S.-based political scientist, said the plan indicates that Xi intends to launch an economic Great Leap Forward, “which means overtaking the West through scientific and technological revolution as the core of its industrial policy.”
China analyst Wang He concurs. He said the CCP wants to establish a new nationwide centralized system and set up science and technology committees in various regions.
“The establishment of these science and technology departments and local science and technology committees is related to the so-called deepening of reform and self-reliance in science and technology announced by the Third Plenum,” said Mr. Wang He. The National Science and Technology Conference was also just held ahead of the Third Plenum to support this policy direction, he said.
However, Mr. Wang He said that China’s scientific and technological foundation is weaker than in the West, and that the CCP is also constrained in terms of acquiring new technology. In recent years, for example, the United States has imposed high-tech sanctions on China because the regime has been using imported and sometimes stolen Western technologies to develop its military.
Moreover, he noted that science and tech fraud in China has become rampant. “China’s scientific research is prolific, but their papers and patents are of inferior quality. ... On the surface, the data appear very good, leading the authorities to make wrong judgments—that China’s technology can overtake others by taking a shortcut.”
Mr. Wang He noted too that economists, both in China and abroad, say that the Chinese economy cannot be revitalized just by developing some cutting-edge technologies. “The entire Chinese economy is developing abnormally, with domestic overcapacity and low-price dumping abroad, leading to more and more trade wars and tariff wars with other countries around the world,” he said.
Collective Economic System
According to Mr. Wang Juntao, the second plan announced at the CCP’s Third Plenum, is to establish a collective economic system nationwide in the name of establishing a unified market, which would allow the central government to directly extract resources to aid its ambition to overtake the West and invest in the so-called new quality productive forces.“New productive forces” is part of Xi’s new slogan, which refers to energy technologies and products such as EVs, solar energy, and panels.
This plan would require belt-tightening to accomplish. Due to high government debt, declining foreign investment, and a sluggish economy, the CCP is short of money. They have directed local governments to cut back on spending, and asked the people to live frugally. It also means a crack down on corruption in local governments, Mr. Wang Juntao said.
As the CCP has repeatedly emphasized deepening reforms while strengthening the Party’s rule, Mr. Wang Juntao pointed out that these plans are not beneficial to the people.
He says, Xi’s only focus is on taking shortcuts, like stealing intellectual property from the West. “He spends all of China’s money on so-called new quality productive forces, regardless of people’s livelihood and employment. The things that matter to people’s livelihood are actually in ruins,” he said.
Amid a declining economy, the Chinese people face various challenges, such as high unemployment rates, salary cuts, the default of major Chinese property and finance firms, and China’s real estate crisis.
Major Political Movement
In the communiqué, the CCP also announced that former Foreign Minister Qin Gang has resigned from the Central Committee, the CCP’s top leadership body, and confirmed the removal of top military leaders from their posts and expulsion from the Party because of their “grave violations” of the CCP’s disciplines.Mr. Wang Juntao said reshuffling the leadership indicates Xi’s third plan of launching another major political movement and carrying out large-scale political purges to get rid of CCP officials who disagree with him.
