China’s New Era Of Oppression

The Chinese Communist Party’s 19th national congress started on Wednesday, and is due to re-elect President Xi Jinping to power. Mr Xi, who ascended to office in 2012, has since led a campaign of anti-corruption purges and increasing restrictions on civil society, with the ‘Great Firewall of China’ being a central cog in his tirade of censorship. Hopefulness surrounds the congress with Jing Jinquan, a senior party official, deeming it the third historic period for the party, after those of Mao and Deng Xiaoping. In a speech to the congress, Xi outlined the stipulations of his ‘new era’: prosperity, harmony, and democracy. Perhaps, in a country which has been plagued by allegations of human rights violations, this course would seem idyllic, however the reality of life in China treads far from such notions, and seemingly will continue to do so. When President Xi speaks of “strengthening the party’s long-term governance capacity,” it is not difficult to see this approach defying ideas of democracy, or respect for human rights. It is widely accepted that democracy in China is a mostly illusionary concept, with local People’s congresses elected by the public, and nothing more. These congresses are viewed as ornamental at most, and the bureaucratic authority lives entirely within the communist party’s upper-tier who choreograph decisions on appointments to the central committee. The Economist regards this week’s party congress as adding “a veneer of intraparty democracy to decisions made beforehand in secret.” As one can imagine, the controlling hands of the party extend into public life, even if democratic rights do not, in a constant paranoid pursuit of general submission. Accordingly, Frances Eve, a researcher for a Chinese human rights group, claimed that “Xi’s vision of totalitarian control would see civil society eliminated and freedom of opinion and expression strangled”. As shall be explored, human rights are increasingly under threat by the omnipotence of the Communist Party of China, yet this week’s events must also be noted.

The last week has seen a massively heightened police presence in the capital, with hordes of volunteer guards filling the streets alongside the traditional law enforcement. Those travelling into Beijing are being made, at roadblocks, to sign papers which state an agreement to not cause disruption. Airbnb has been temporarily suspended and venues with the potential to hold gatherings, such as clubs and restaurants, have been forcibly closed. Ridiculous propaganda litters the streets, posters claiming life in China to ‘feel like a holiday’, according to the New York Times’ sources. Five years of suppression and the current scale of the police operation in Beijing is effectively crippling the ability to show dissent, and President Xi’s supremacy looks to grow with the current turnover in political power – threatening further repression under his authority. Since his inaugural speech in 2012, key to Xi’s policy are the ‘anti-corruption’ purges, which have rid the party of scores of officials. Additionally, with those who have reached retirement, around 70% of the central committee will be newly appointed in this week’s congress, granting Xi huge potential to consolidate his power. Following his accession, the President has consistently moved toward enlarging his influence, notably through the creation of ‘Central leading groups’, in order to bypass current institutions in making decisions. As the President is set to further his authority, his penchant for oppression shall see even more severe violations in human rights, in his coming term.

Only a brief look at Xi’s China since 2012 shows a contradiction between reality and the President’s harmonious ‘Chinese dream.’ Indeed he states that it will be “no walk in the park,” which could be interpreted as an explanation for his government’s crackdown on civil society. These actions, additional to those of this past week, suggests no loosening of the party’s grip on the Chinese people is forecasted. Yu Wensheng, a notable human rights lawyer, has argued that the security surrounding this congress far outweighs that of the last five years, with the targeting of “human rights defenders, petitioners and dissidents, many of whom have been arrested nationwide.” During July of 2015, Xi’s governance saw a crackdown on the legal profession, questioning and imprisoning approximately 248 activists and lawyers. The reasoning behind the actions was largely attributed to lawyers supposedly using contentious cases to criticize the ruling party, which apparently is illegal, and punishable through humiliating televised confessions, holding great similarities to Orwell’s Thought Police. Approximately 40 of these were broadcast between 2013 to 2016. The ideas purported in Xi’s vision of a ‘new era’ have widely been dubbed as ‘old wine in a new bottle,’ without real substance.

Human rights lawyer Li Boguang, this week, allegedly had a group of men tied to the local government in Zhejiang threaten to sever his hands and feet after beating him, when he filed a complaint of corruption against party officials. Since Mao’s China, the legal profession has gradually grown in audacity and acted as a defense against the omnipotence of the central government, and despite Xi’s moves to suppress lawyers, petitions and open dissent are widespread within human rights groups. Wang Qiaoling, the wife of outspoken human rights lawyer Li Heping, has said that “The police will torture you till the edge of death, both physically and mentally,” speaking in place of her husband forced into silence. Under Xi, China’s ‘anti-corruption’ purges have impacted over 1 million officials and crippled competing party factions. With Xi’s increasing authority and fondness for repression, to many in China it now seems that there is no nuance in the consensus, no competing opinion, only a single all-powerful thought. Furthermore, the country has recently passed regulations which hold organizers of social media groups responsible for the content of their discussions, and consistently stories on public concerns with the government are simply erased. Essentially the Chinese online arena is completely manipulated. Oddly, for a nation which releases an annual report on the human rights record of the United States, China cares very little for the autonomy and rights of its own citizens.

Looking to the upcoming five years of Xi’s ‘new era,’ great skepticism surrounds the Chinese approach to human rights. When a country takes to unjustifiably arresting scores of its human rights lawyers and advocates, their guilt is obvious, it is painfully clear that Xi’s autocracy is desperate to subdue opposing voices. A recent report released by the Human Rights Watch (HRW) details the actions of the Chinese government to avoid the condemnation of the United Nations. In order to prevent activist engagement with the UN, the party strongly discourages doing so, detaining activists to prevent travel, or punishing those who do travel, which according to the HRW report, has created a great reluctance to engage with outside bodies. China’s political leverage has led to a staunch defense of their human rights record by their allies, when the questions are posed at the UN Human Rights Council, further preventing real investigation. The country fervently defends its record – explaining the attempts to switch the conversation to US violations – yet in truth, human rights fall low on their list of priorities, and are easily sidelined by the ruling faction. It is no surprise therefore, that the Taiwanese people so strongly reject the moral vacuum of Chinese governance. Sadly, China’s actions are set to face even fewer barriers with the increasingly powerful Xi Jinping in power.

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