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Secrets aplenty as China communists meet
2007-10-17
Chinese President Hu Jintao stands before singing the national anthem during the opening ceremony of the 17th Party Congress at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing October 15, 2007. |
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China's ruling communists on Wednesday had yet to agree on a method of electing their top bodies, almost halfway through a national congress that will determine the future leadership of the party and ultimately the country. In keeping with the party's highly secretive nature, top leaders including President Hu Jintao remained in seclusion amid backroom deliberations on appointments and other key issues. Despite repeated references to "intraparty democracy" in Hu's opening address to the weeklong congress, the inner workings of its electoral processes remain largely a mystery. Party official Ouyang Song told reporters the more than 2,200 congress delegates would elect the roughly 200 members of the Central Committee by secret ballot, with more candidates than seats to allow competition. But he said details of the process were still under discussion for the party, which has repeatedly ruled out allowing Western-style democracy despite economic reforms. "As to how large the margin of the competition, that is decided by the election method, which is still being drawn up," said Ouyang, vice minister of the party's Central Committee Organization Department. Ouyang said Central Committee members would then elect a new Politburo at their first meeting. The Politburo then produces a smaller Politburo Standing Committee, the apex of power in China. Its members are to be revealed Monday. While the twice-a-decade congress is expected to set the tone of national politics for the next five years, most of its agenda has been kept secret. The dates of the congress weren't even announced until six weeks before it began. No Central Committee candidate list has been made public and it is not even known how many seats are up for grabs. The Central Committee currently numbers 198, the Politburo 24 and the Politburo Standing Committee nine. A key issue is the percentage by which the number of candidates will outnumber available seats. Traditionally, the margin of elimination, known in Chinese as the "cha'e," has been 5 percent, although there has been speculation it might rise to as much as 10 percent. A larger percentage raises the possibility some vulnerable incumbents, including those identified with former leader Jiang Zemin, will fail to gain enough votes. Secrecy surrounding the proceedings has stoked speculation of a struggle over voting rules between Hu and his allies and those who owe their careers to Jiang. The former president remains a leading figure on the committee handling the congress' arrangements despite having given up his official party and government posts over the past five years. "It is logical to assume that Hu would favor expanding the margin of competition," said Jean-Pierre Cabestan, a China politics expert at Hong Kong Baptist University. Cabestan said the mystery surrounding the congress electoral methods was a normal state of affairs for the party. "It is a little ironic given all the recent talk about building democracy within the party," Cabestan said. However, Ouyang, the party official, indicated there would always be limits to the 73 million-member party's openness. "Democracy is the party's lifeline, but unity is also the party's lifeline. While expanding democracy, we must maintain unity and ensure rules are followed," Ouyang said. Deliberations over the Standing Committee lineup have been going on for months and could continue to the last minute. Like the Central Committee and Politburo, the Standing Committee's size is not set. Jiang expanded it to nine at the last congress, apparently to squeeze in loyalists who have sometimes curbed Hu's authority. Hu is believed to favor a smaller Politburo Standing Committee to streamline decision making and show his authority. A key test of his political strength will be whether he is able to maneuver allies and a possible future successor onto the leading bodies. Most speculation has focussed on Li Keqiang, the 52-year-old party head of the industrial province of Liaoning, and Shanghai party boss Xi Jinping, 54, as the most likely contenders to replace Hu, 64, when he steps down at the next congress in 2012.
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