{"id":22640,"date":"2015-09-24T14:45:58","date_gmt":"2015-09-24T04:45:58","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/?p=22640"},"modified":"2015-09-24T22:28:54","modified_gmt":"2015-09-24T12:28:54","slug":"beijings-anti-corruption-drive-whats-at-stake-part-1","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/beijings-anti-corruption-drive-whats-at-stake-part-1\/","title":{"rendered":"Beijing\u2019s anti-corruption drive: what\u2019s at stake? (part 1)"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"18th<\/a><\/p>\n

The Chinese Communist Party\u2019s (CCP) anti-corruption drive is of staggering scale, reach and audacity. From the powerful \u2018tigers\u2019 to the low-ranking \u2018flies\u2019, the anti-corruption policy of Xi Jinping\u2019s leadership has targeted and frightened multiple segments of the party, government, military, and state-owned enterprises.<\/p>\n

Many have since wondered about the motivation and nature of the wide-ranging and ambitious anti-corruption policy unleashed by President Xi and carried out by Wang Qishan, who is Secretary of the powerful CPC Central Commission for Discipline Inspection (CCDI) and one of the seven members in the Politburo Standing Committee.<\/p>\n

On 9 September, I attended a now-annual conference co-hosted by the International Department of the CCP Central Committee and the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection of the CCP Central Committee. This year\u2019s theme was To Discipline the Party: Responsibility of the Party<\/em>. It was appropriate that Wang\u2014who\u2019s in charge of the party\u2019s anti-corruption drive and the broader strategy of \u2018comprehensively disciplining the party\u2019\u2014agreed to offer his views to a select group of scholars and officials from China and abroad.<\/p>\n

As I listened to Wang\u2019s remarks at the Great Hall of the People, I realized that he was making a revolutionary statement in the history of the CCP. Wang raised an extremely provocative and hitherto taboo idea in CCP political discourse: he spoke of the legitimacy of CCP rule. Never before has the CCP leadership openly raised and even questioned the legitimacy of its own rule. Moreover, Wang actually set out to explain the legitimacy of CCP\u2019s long one-party rule in China, which he pointed out to be the key distinguishing characteristic of Chinese politics. The legitimacy of CCP rule, Wang explained, is based on the \u2018endorsement of the people\u2019 and the \u2018choice made by the people.\u2019 He elaborated that the CCP depends on the people being satisfied and happy.<\/p>\n

Through his comments, Wang was trying to imply that the anti-corruption effort was much more than a short-term expedient for the new leadership to win favor from the public or to establish political authority through factional or interest-groups-related struggles\u2014just some of the hypotheses offered by outside observers for the push. He pointed out that anti-corruption isn\u2019t a political campaign or movement\u2014Mao\u2019s Cultural Revolution taught the CCP that campaigns and movements eventually cease to exist. Anti-corruption, this time, will \u2018always be on the road\u2019, and \u2018there is only a beginning, never an end\u2019.<\/p>\n

Those remarks, together with the invocation of the all-important concept of CCP legitimacy, suggest that Wang is seeing anti-corruption as a long-term strategy to maintain and enhance the legitimacy of CCP rule in China; it\u2019s not just a temporary device for consolidating the rule of the new Xi leadership. Such an explanation would refute many existing hypotheses about anti-corruption. According to this view, what\u2019s at stake in anti-corruption is nothing less than the legitimacy and survival of the CCP as the sole ruling party in China\u2014something much more significant than the survival of the current Xi leadership, which, after all, has an implicit two-term limit of 10 years.<\/p>\n

But is that explanation credible? Wang struck many of us in attendance at the meeting as a deeply impressive political leader and as an intellectual. His remarks on the many issues of dissatisfaction the Chinese people have with CCP rule left the impression that the current generation of CCP leaders face significant governance challenges in China. He spoke of the difficulties and complexities of CCP rule in today\u2019s \u2018extraordinary difficulty\u2019 period, and he even said that the new leadership hasn\u2019t taken rest for a single day since it took office.<\/p>\n

His legitimacy-based explanation of the anti-corruption strategy would be readily comprehensible to a Western audience. The term \u2018legitimacy\u2019\u2014Wang used the Chinese translation of hefaxing<\/em>\u2014is, after all, of Western origin. The difference between Wang\u2019s narrative and many existing explanations for the anti-corruption effort comes down to the timeline: one takes a short-term tactical perspective, the other a long-term strategic view. While many Western analyses focus on the short-term interest maximization and political survival of the new Xi leadership, Wang takes a strategic view geared toward the long-term legitimacy of CCP rule beyond the expediencies of the current leadership.<\/p>\n

A second, and final, instalment will look at CCP rule and legitimacy in the context of the party\u2019s new \u2018four comprehensives\u2019 governing strategy advanced early this year.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Chinese Communist Party\u2019s (CCP) anti-corruption drive is of staggering scale, reach and audacity. From the powerful \u2018tigers\u2019 to the low-ranking \u2018flies\u2019, the anti-corruption policy of Xi Jinping\u2019s leadership has targeted and frightened multiple segments …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":417,"featured_media":22641,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mi_skip_tracking":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[1383,52,321,376,204],"class_list":["post-22640","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-general","tag-ccp","tag-china","tag-corruption","tag-politics","tag-xi-jinping"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nBeijing\u2019s anti-corruption drive: what\u2019s at stake? (part 1) | The Strategist<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/beijings-anti-corruption-drive-whats-at-stake-part-1\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Beijing\u2019s anti-corruption drive: what\u2019s at stake? (part 1) | The Strategist\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The Chinese Communist Party\u2019s (CCP) anti-corruption drive is of staggering scale, reach and audacity. From the powerful \u2018tigers\u2019 to the low-ranking \u2018flies\u2019, the anti-corruption policy of Xi Jinping\u2019s leadership has targeted and frightened multiple segments ...\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/beijings-anti-corruption-drive-whats-at-stake-part-1\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"The Strategist\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/ASPI.org\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2015-09-24T04:45:58+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2015-09-24T12:28:54+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/09\/8165950286_53f7c3bde7_z.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"640\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"427\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Feng Zhang\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@ASPI_org\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@ASPI_org\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Feng Zhang\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/\",\"name\":\"The Strategist\",\"description\":\"ASPI's analysis and commentary site\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":\"required name=search_term_string\"}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-AU\"},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-AU\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/beijings-anti-corruption-drive-whats-at-stake-part-1\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/09\/8165950286_53f7c3bde7_z.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/09\/8165950286_53f7c3bde7_z.jpg\",\"width\":640,\"height\":427,\"caption\":\"18th CPC Congress Beijing\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/beijings-anti-corruption-drive-whats-at-stake-part-1\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/beijings-anti-corruption-drive-whats-at-stake-part-1\/\",\"name\":\"Beijing\u2019s anti-corruption drive: what\u2019s at stake? (part 1) | The Strategist\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/beijings-anti-corruption-drive-whats-at-stake-part-1\/#primaryimage\"},\"datePublished\":\"2015-09-24T04:45:58+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2015-09-24T12:28:54+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/#\/schema\/person\/27a911c7378d48a8f555a3550fca344c\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/beijings-anti-corruption-drive-whats-at-stake-part-1\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-AU\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/beijings-anti-corruption-drive-whats-at-stake-part-1\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/beijings-anti-corruption-drive-whats-at-stake-part-1\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Beijing\u2019s anti-corruption drive: what\u2019s at stake? (part 1)\"}]},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/#\/schema\/person\/27a911c7378d48a8f555a3550fca344c\",\"name\":\"Feng Zhang\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-AU\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/572cc2b7815d847e58f1259fb0d52071?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/572cc2b7815d847e58f1259fb0d52071?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Feng Zhang\"},\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/author\/feng-zhang\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Beijing\u2019s anti-corruption drive: what\u2019s at stake? (part 1) | The Strategist","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/beijings-anti-corruption-drive-whats-at-stake-part-1\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Beijing\u2019s anti-corruption drive: what\u2019s at stake? (part 1) | The Strategist","og_description":"The Chinese Communist Party\u2019s (CCP) anti-corruption drive is of staggering scale, reach and audacity. From the powerful \u2018tigers\u2019 to the low-ranking \u2018flies\u2019, the anti-corruption policy of Xi Jinping\u2019s leadership has targeted and frightened multiple segments ...","og_url":"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/beijings-anti-corruption-drive-whats-at-stake-part-1\/","og_site_name":"The Strategist","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/ASPI.org","article_published_time":"2015-09-24T04:45:58+00:00","article_modified_time":"2015-09-24T12:28:54+00:00","og_image":[{"width":640,"height":427,"url":"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/09\/8165950286_53f7c3bde7_z.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Feng Zhang","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@ASPI_org","twitter_site":"@ASPI_org","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Feng Zhang","Est. reading time":"4 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/","name":"The Strategist","description":"ASPI's analysis and commentary site","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":"required name=search_term_string"}],"inLanguage":"en-AU"},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-AU","@id":"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/beijings-anti-corruption-drive-whats-at-stake-part-1\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/09\/8165950286_53f7c3bde7_z.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/09\/8165950286_53f7c3bde7_z.jpg","width":640,"height":427,"caption":"18th CPC Congress Beijing"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/beijings-anti-corruption-drive-whats-at-stake-part-1\/","url":"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/beijings-anti-corruption-drive-whats-at-stake-part-1\/","name":"Beijing\u2019s anti-corruption drive: what\u2019s at stake? (part 1) | The Strategist","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/beijings-anti-corruption-drive-whats-at-stake-part-1\/#primaryimage"},"datePublished":"2015-09-24T04:45:58+00:00","dateModified":"2015-09-24T12:28:54+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/#\/schema\/person\/27a911c7378d48a8f555a3550fca344c"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/beijings-anti-corruption-drive-whats-at-stake-part-1\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-AU","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/beijings-anti-corruption-drive-whats-at-stake-part-1\/"]}]},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/beijings-anti-corruption-drive-whats-at-stake-part-1\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Beijing\u2019s anti-corruption drive: what\u2019s at stake? (part 1)"}]},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/#\/schema\/person\/27a911c7378d48a8f555a3550fca344c","name":"Feng Zhang","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-AU","@id":"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/572cc2b7815d847e58f1259fb0d52071?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/572cc2b7815d847e58f1259fb0d52071?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Feng Zhang"},"url":"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/author\/feng-zhang\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22640"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/417"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=22640"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22640\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":22659,"href":"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22640\/revisions\/22659"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/22641"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=22640"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=22640"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=22640"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}