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---"Focused Coverage Informed Perspectives"---Sun, Sep 21, 1997 edition

New Standing Committee Announced

Also in this edition . . . 1: official biographies and photos of committee members 2: Zhu Rongji moves up 3: HK activists to heckle Li Peng 4: Taiwan activists protest nuclear plant 5: changing historiography 6: North Korea update

PARTY CONGRESS

Media: mainland newspapers differ in their coverage of new standing committee ( Party divisions exposed as media confusion reigns ) The new Politburo Standing Committee was unveiled today and a photograph shows its seven members, in order of rank: President Jiang Zemin, Premier Li Peng, Vice Premier Zhu Rongji, CPPCC Chairman Li Ruihuan, General Secretary of the Party Central Committee Secretariat Hu Jintao, First Secretary of the Central Discipline Inspection Commission Wei Jianxing and Vice Premier Li Lanqing. In their coverage of the vent, the Hong Kong Standard reports, mainland newspapers have broken with past practice in taking their cues from the People's Daily. According to practice a paper will represent each member's rank with appropriately sized photographs and placement in the layout. In the People's Daily the largest photographs were reserved for President Jiang Zemin and Premier Li Peng. But the Economic Daily, an organ of the State Council, and the China Youth Daily, "once a power base of disgraced party chief Hu Yaobang, refused to accept the People's Daily layout," writes the Hong Kong Standard. For they chose the trio of Jiang-Peng and Zhu Rongji as the top three. One diplomat quoted by the paper predicted, "Mr Zhu will become a rival to the two more conservative top leaders in the foreseeable future, and the reformist wing pins its hopes on the economic czar's political rise, as he almost certain to succeed Premier Li as head of government next spring." One explanation for the differing coverage points to propaganda chief Ding Guangen, 68, who fell from favour after revelations of his membership in the Nationalist Youth League under the Kuomintang. Without the coordination of the chief it would seem editors and interested parties have more opportunity to shape coverage for their own ends. ( Jiang Packs Politburo with Protégés ) Inside China writes about the composition of the Politburo and standing committee and some of the horse-trading behind the scenes. The paper also writes of the unveiling of the new standing committee: "The party's Central Committee which formed on Thursday re-elected Jiang, 71, and also chose a new, larger Politburo with 22 members and its all-powerful seven-man Standing Committee. "The career Communist emerged wreathed in smiles to show off China's new generation of leadership, all dressed in dark suits with white shirts and patterned blue or red silk ties." Socialism:( Inside China Today - Feature Stories ) A September 11 issue of Inside China has a Feature story entitled "Communist China Seeks New Socialist Identity." Published in the run-up to the party congress, the appear writes: "The heirs of late paramount leader and veteran revolutionary Deng Xiaoping (pictured) have spent the months since his death in February busily trying to invent a new socialism suited to a modern communist state." "Propaganda czars have said the consequences of failure to come up with a way to justify sweeping reforms of China's huge, lumbering and loss-making state firms would be unimaginable." "The reforms that have seen urban incomes almost quadruple since 1990 could founder without a conclusion to the raging debate over 'public' versus 'private,' over 'socialism' versus 'capitalism,' propaganda officials have said. A full list of their archived feature stories is here. Voting: indications of poor showing for Jiang allies and delegates from Guangdong ( Jiang allies fare poorly in balloting ) Results from the voting to the Central Committee and Politburo have not been released but indications are that some members of Mr Jiang's Shanghai gang did not do too well, reports the South China Morning Post. "Jiang allies with disappointing performances included Vice-Premier Wu Bangguo , head of the Jiang Zemin Office Zeng Qinghong and the President's bodyguard, General You Xigui." Defense Minister General Chi Haotian won a significantly higher number of votes. The paper notes, however, reformist delegates from Shenzhen and Guangdong, whom leftist delegates or ones from hinterland provinces did not like, did not fare well in the voting. The paper writes: "Meanwhile, party sources said a number of reformers including officials from Guangdong and other coastal areas, were snubbed by congress delegates." "Shenzhen party boss Li Youwei, a high-profile proponent of the shareholding system, saw his hopes of becoming a full Central Committee member dashed. The radical reformer received just enough votes to remain an alternate committee member." Zhu Rongji: ( Zhu's Rise Spells Boost for Reform ) Another Inside China article assesses Zhu Rongji's rise to the leadership's number three spot. Instrumental behind the economic reforms, Mr Zhu will be Jiang Zemin's point man in carrying out the reform of the state-owned sector, devising reform plans and keeping the economy on track. We might also note, Chinese and foreigners alike have hailed Mr Zhu for his economic reforms. He is also seen as more 'liberal' vis-a-vis the 'conservative' President Jiang Zemin and Premier Li Peng. But these terms of political affiliation are fuzzy ones begging for clearer definition. The newspaper notes Mr Zhu has most recently spearheaded a "drive to clamp down on speculation in the stock market and control financial risk that had threatened to undermine the nation's banking system." The paper goes on to quote an unnamed economist who says of Mr Zhu: "In his heart he doesn't trust the markets." In other news . . . ( Zhu to chair bank session in Hong Kong ) Zhu Rongji arrived in Hong Kong today to head up a seminar on banking at the meeting of the World Bank. Official sources: English and Chinese sources reveal new committee members with photos and short biography We have a number of articles from official Chinese sources with more information and the 'official' perspective on the actions of the National Congress. The China Daily recounts the closing session of the congress with two reports: "Historic congress ends". "Jiang's report to guide the nation". The paper writes: "The resolution adopted by the Congress yesterday says that the report, presented by Jiang during the opening session on Friday, has summed up history and made plans for the future. It has planned, in an all-round way, the trans-century development in China's reform and opening up as well as its modernization drive." "The report is a political manifestation and platform for action of the Party to lead people of all nationalities to the new century, says the resolution." "Democracy practised in personnel arrangement" explains that one of the central tasks of the National Congress is to elect a new party Central Committee and Central Commission for Discipline Inspection. The paper explains, 88 percent of the Central Committee is composed of "leading officials at or above the deputy provincial governor (vice-minister, deputy commander of greater military area) level." Also included are "38 cadres from ethnic minorities and 25 female cadres". In terms of education 92 percent, or 318 members, of the members and alternates has received a college education. "Members of the 15th CPC Central Committee", "Members of CCDI of the Communist Party of China" and "Alternate members of the 15th CPC Central Committee" are all in Pinyin and indicate nationality and sex. And the People's Daily (GB Chinese encoding) has published lists of those elected to various positions, including brief biographical sketches with a photograph. There is also a communique issued for the First Plenum of the 15th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC). These sources are all in GB-encoded Chinese.

HONG KONG

Li Peng: ( Activists plan Li Peng dinner din ) Premier Li Peng is in town for the IMF / World Bank conferences, and activists hope to shout the premier down as he hosts a dinner for IMF governors and their wives, reports the South China Morning Post. "Activists and ousted legislators Szeto Wah and Cheung Man-kwong will lead demonstrators from the Hong Kong Alliance in Support of the Patriotic Democratic Movement in China in calling for the release of political prisoners." "They will also castigate Mr Li over the Tiananmen crackdown." Ships and Hospitals: Shipbuilders slash $120m from compensation demand and Most happy despite hospital blunders are two unrelated South China Morning Post stories.

TAIWAN DESK

Protest: activists firebomb boat holding fake nuclear reactors ( SCMP Internet Edition ) Activists opposed to the government's plan to build the nations' fourth nuclear reactor took to the ocean yesterday in 106 fishing boats flying banners which read "Oppose the Fourth Nuclear Plant," reports the South China Morning Post. The plant is to be built by America's General Electric Corp. on a site north of Taipei later this year using two nuclear reactors The plan to built it has been a contentious one with many delays and protests following the government's 1994 decision to go forward after side-lining the project in the after math of the 1986 Chernobyl nuclear disaster, reports the paper. "Opposition politicians and anti-nuclear activists succeeded in cancelling the plant's funding in May last year, but the Kuomintang revived the project five months later, sparking riots." It is the nuclear waste from this plant and the country's other three which, despite from domestic and international; opposition, will be shipped to North Korea for disposal. Taipei: ( Hostess clubs shut in mayor's vice crusade ) Taipei Mayor Chen Shui-bian ordered a crackdown on hostess clubs last night, reports the South China Morning Post. "The clubs, mostly registered as restaurants or karaoke parlours, would face charges for violating the Corporate Law, police said." The mayor has said that such sweeps against illegal businesses were designed to hit at the gangs which run and profit from them.

LITERATURE AND HISTORY

History: new exhibit uncovers long-lost original and shows changing Chinese historiography ( Once 'lost' relics now museum's showpiece ) The China Daily reports, for the first time the National Museum of Chinese History is exhibiting the Siku Chaunshu, or "Complete Library in Four Divisions". The collection, requisitioned by the Qianlong Emperor (Qing Dynasty, 1644-1911), totals some 3,502 books divided into four sections: classics, historical works, philosophical works and belles-letters. Seven copies were made at the time, two of which had been destroyed. "The books on display had been stored at the Wenyuan Pavilion of Yuanmingyuan and they were believed to have been burnt in 1860 when the British and French soldiers burned down the imperial garden," the paper explains. They were recently 'discovered' at an auction and quickly purchased by the museum. What is particularly interesting is how this exhibit reflects changing historiography on the mainland. Where scholars would have said the Qing Dynasty effectively ended in 1840 with the on-set of the Opium Wars and Western imperialism, this exhibit covers the Qing period until its collapse in the 1911 Revolution: "The new exhibition has adjusted its focus from political struggles to China's economic and scientific development and covers the whole Qing Dynasty to 1911. Some 1,000 cultural relics have been added to the exhibits, taking the place of diagrams and long captions in the 6,000-square-metre exhibition hall. The exhibit contains 5,450 items, of which 80 per cent are classified as relics. . . ." "The former exhibition did not cover the late Qing Dynasty period (1840-1911), as the final year of Chinese dynastic history was set at 1840 by some historians." "The team of experts supervising the revision process challenged this theory, arguing that the Qing monarchy continued to rule China after 1840 and that the country on the whole retained its form of a feudal society until 1911. After much research and discussion, they finally decided at the end of 1992 that the exhibition should be extended to cover the late Qing Dynasty period." As the paper notes, the exhibit draws on artifacts, including archeological ones, from around the country; and although it is not mentioned, it would not be inaccurate to say that this exhibit is an example of the ongoing re-orientation of the 'Chinese' identity in line with its 'cultural,' 'ethnic,' and 'historical' aspects. As the singularity of Party ideology looses its coherence in the face of competing forces, including regional and local ones, there is a move to find a cohesive identity based on common and long-shared values and traits. It is the basis of ethnic nationalism. The questions would seem to be: what is it to be 'Chinese'? And what is happening at the local level, not reported in the news, where countervailing forces are discovering different, alternative pasts? See also Provinces aid Tibet relics in today's China Daily.

NORTH KOREA

Preliminary talks: ( Korea Herald : National News ) Preliminary talks for drafting a peace on the Korean peninsula broke down last week when North Korea insisted on a US troop withdrawal from the South and a separate peace agreement with the United States. The Korea Herald story suggests that both Soul and Washington will not be prepared to offer any more incentives to Pyonyang to come to the talks. ( Four-side Korean talks are stalled ) Meanwhile, the China Daily has published a terse piece about the talks, noting "The four delegations conducted wide-ranging and in-depth discussions in an effort to define an agenda for the formal talks, sources close to the meeting said. "The parties reached certain common understanding on some of the issues, but remained deeply divided on the agenda issue, the sources said. "They added that the parties will continue to consult with each other. " The paper then writes: "Media reports quoted a DPRK official as suggesting that the parties failed to reach agreement on the conference's agenda, but not due to a lack of will." "'The only thing we need here is patience and time,' he said."

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