Xi Faces Mounting Pressure on Regime’s 70th Anniversary, Insiders Say

Chinese regime leader Xi Jinping begins a review of troops from a car during a military parade at Tiananmen Square in Beijing on Oct. 1, 2019. Greg Baker/AFP/Getty Images

Chinese leader Xi Jinping faces tremendous pressure as a result of the Hong Kong protests, the U.S.–China trade war, and domestic crises, two insiders told The Epoch Times ahead of National Day, the 70th anniversary of the Communist Party’s takeover of China on Oct. 1.

In addition, two factions within the Chinese leadership that are at odds with each other have stepped up their criticism of Xi’s handling of major political affairs.

The insiders, who are children of Party elders, spoke to the Chinese-language Epoch Times on the condition of anonymity.

Hong Kong Protests

The continuing protests in Hong Kong pose one of the biggest political challenges for Beijing. On the weekend before Oct. 1, Hong Kong demonstrators organized two large-scale activities, themed “Oppose Authoritarianism, Embrace the Dawn.”

Hongkongers came out in large numbers on Oct. 1 to express their frustrations with Chinese authorities: National Day isn’t a day for celebration, but a day of mourning.

One of the insiders told The Epoch Times that Xi is unwilling to show a harsh stance toward the Hong Kong protests when Beijing is celebrating the 70th anniversary of National Day. At the same time, he doesn’t want to make concessions to Hongkongers’ demands, especially the demand for universal suffrage, the person said.

“Xi decided not to suppress the protests before the National Day, and basically, no one within the top leadership would challenge him on that. What I am worried about is what he will do after the National Day. If Xi’s bottom line is ‘no firing at protesters and no deaths allowed,’ there won’t be another Tiananmen Square-like suppression; he would continue with the current tactics—you may call them shameless tactics or whatever. Correspondingly, the Hong Kong pro-democracy camp will organize protests and demonstrations on every holiday,” the insider said.

“However, if the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) decides to suppress the protests after the National Day in a brutal way, it is doomed to be a disaster for the CCP, because President Trump just made it clear at the United Nations that the United States will not reach an agreement with China in the bilateral trade talks, if China does not handle the Hong Kong issue in a humanitarian manner. Moreover, the European Union, Japan, Australia, and New Zealand all have declared to take similar stances,” he added.

“I believe this is the biggest pressure Xi is facing, as the loss he would have to face would be unbearable if he dares to offend all these free democratic countries. He also has to consider the losses this may incur to Hong Kong. Therefore, I don’t think he dares to suppress the protests in Hong Kong with military intervention. I really hope he won’t make the wrong decision, because he himself would suffer great losses, and there would also be huge losses for Hong Kong and the people of Hong Kong,” the insider said.

Mainland Police Among Hong Kong Officers

The insider also disclosed that there are many mainland Chinese police among Hong Kong’s police force.

The number of actual Hong Kong policemen is only 30,000, and they don’t have the capacity to handle such mass demonstrations. Mainland Chinese police are everywhere, dressed in Hong Kong police uniforms, according to the person.

In addition, he pointed out that since Hong Kong’s handover to China in 1997, the CCP has successfully infiltrated Hong Kong’s police force through its Blue-Gold-Yellow (BGY) campaign.

The CCP runs the so-called BGY campaign to extend its control outside China. Blue stands for internet censorship and brainwashing, gold stands for monetary influence, and yellow stands for sexual seduction and blackmail to coerce cooperation when necessary.

Opponents Step Up Criticism

Another insider revealed that the different voices targeting Xi within the Chinese leadership are growing louder and more intense. For instance, on Sept. 15, the CCP’s main theoretical journal, Qiushi magazine, published a 2014 speech by Xi, in which he abolished the previous life-tenure system for high-ranking CCP officials and implemented the system of fixed tenures.

That contrasts with Xi’s revision of the Constitution at the 19th National Congress in 2017, when he removed presidential term limits for the “Chinese President” and “Vice President,” seeking to become a “life-time president.”

“The different voices [targeting Xi] within the Party have become stronger and stronger, and these people often use Xi’s past statements to disapprove of what he is doing now.”

The insider said that is happening because Xi hasn’t done well in handling the Hong Kong protests and the China–U.S. trade war, and “created problems that are difficult to resolve,” thus making himself vulnerable to attacks.

In August, CCP leaders held their annual Beidaihe meeting. The secluded seaside meeting usually includes current and retired top Party officials, and the various factions within the CCP try to reach a consensus before key decisions are announced at the Party’s plenary sessions.

The insider said at the meeting, Jia Qinglin, a former member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau, wrote an open letter, titled: “Are we still going to have a Beidaihe meeting next year?”

Jia raised critical questions in the letter, such as, “How on earth do we plan to resolve the Hong Kong issue?” In addition, he noted that the U.S.–China relationship has worsened, and the Chinese economy continues to decline, and asked, “Can we [CCP] survive until next year?”

The source also confirmed information that The Epoch Times previously learned about the Beidaihe meeting, such as that Chinese leaders are split over the Hong Kong issue and the U.S.–China trade war, and the two opposing groups didn’t reach any consensus at the meeting.

“Actually, the two opposing groups both dislike Xi’s handling of Hong Kong affairs and U.S.–China relations. One group criticizes him for not making concessions, the other group criticizes him for not taking a tough stance.”

“The current situation, with regard to Hong Kong affairs and U.S.–China relations, is awful in every sense. Therefore both groups have their reasons to oppose Xi,” the person added.