The persecution has led to a backlash, resulting in a loss of power, and those in high positions are merely playing supporting roles. (Illustration by People News)
[People News] On December 1, the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China's official publication, "Qiushi" magazine, featured an article authored by Xi Jinping titled "Advancing the Party's Self-Revolution to Achieve 'Five Steps in Place.'" This article represents a significant portion of Xi Jinping's speech delivered during the Central Political Bureau's collective study session on June 30. Independent commentator Cai Shenkun noted that the style of this article closely resembles Mao Zedong's 'Bombard the Headquarters' from the Cultural Revolution, suggesting that a 'new era Cultural Revolution-style movement' is quietly taking shape.
Xi Jinping has secured unlimited re-election through constitutional amendments, yet he faces strong resistance from party elders and military factions, particularly the Zhang Youxia faction, which has destabilised his power. To suppress political adversaries, he continuously instils fear to maintain stability, but this has led to a deeper power crisis.
Reflecting on Xi Jinping's upbringing, his family was persecuted by the Kang Sheng faction during the Cultural Revolution. This challenging childhood experience appears to have influenced his unique approach to problem-solving, which involves not resolving conflicts through negotiation but rather actively creating larger contradictions to obscure old crises with new conflicts. Thus, this new Cultural Revolution may serve as a means for him to conceal significant internal issues. The diplomatic tensions between China and Japan in November exemplify this logic.
I. China-Japan Relations in Crisis
Looking back at the significant events of November, China-Japan relations entered a highly tense phase, capturing global attention.
On the 7th, Takashima Sanae made a statement asserting, 'If there is an issue in Taiwan, there is an issue in Japan.'
On the 8th, Ambassador to Japan Xue Jian responded forcefully and issued severe threats.
On the 17th, Japan's Asia-Pacific Bureau Director Kanai Masaaki travelled to Beijing to seek a resolution.
On the 18th, Liu Jingsong was seen with his hands in his pockets during discussions, exuding an air of arrogance; on the 23rd, Japan announced the deployment of medium-range surface-to-air missiles.
On the 24th, Xi Jinping made an urgent call to Trump, asking the United States to mediate.
Initially, the Chinese Communist Party sought to rally support through nationalism, but after facing repeated setbacks under its wolf warrior diplomacy, it found itself compelled to seek assistance from the United States. However, the online community of 'little pinks' had anticipated a strong response from Xi Jinping, only to be met with an awkward outcome. To address domestic and international questions about 'why not confront Japan?', Xi Jinping swiftly redirected public attention to larger conflicts.
2. The 'Hundred Billion Division Case' of Ma Xingrui
Amidst the height of the diplomatic crisis, the overseas media outlet Jiang Wangzheng continuously revealed details about the Ma Xingrui case, causing a seismic shift in public opinion.
The key elements are as follows:
Ma Xingrui governed Xinjiang for four years, overseeing funds totalling 3.3 trillion yuan; he is personally implicated in corruption amounting to as much as 100 billion yuan; these substantial funds are alleged to be shared with Peng Liyuan and Li Xi, the secretary of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection.
Ma Xingrui's wife, Rong Li, is not only a close friend and proxy of Peng Liyuan but has also formed alliances with Li Xi's wife and the wife of Gao Shiweng, the deputy secretary of the Nanchang Municipal Committee. Together, they have purchased properties, land, and gas stations in Hong Kong and abroad, creating an interest group.
Following the detention of Ma Xingrui and his wife, the case rapidly expanded.
Recently, Ma Xingrui's former subordinate Chen Weijun was officially announced to be under investigation. This investigation further implicated Zhu Zhongming, the deputy secretary of the Shanghai Municipal Committee, leading to the Ma Xingrui case involving a wide array of officials across Xinjiang, Guangdong, Shanghai, and Jiangxi.
This situation represents not just ordinary corruption, but the collapse of a hundred-billion-level division system, with a significant number of high-ranking officials entangled in the scandal.
3. The Death of Xu Ming and the Uncovering of an Old Case
On December 4, 2015, Xu Ming, the former head of Dalian Shide Group, died under mysterious circumstances, with officials attributing his death to a 'sudden heart attack.' However, recent disclosures by self-media figure Wang Jizhou have brought this case back into the spotlight.
In 2012, after Xu Ming was imprisoned, his substantial assets were appropriated by others. Just before his release, Xu convened a board meeting in prison to investigate the fate of his assets. Those with significant stakes feared he would demand his money back, prompting them to send two assassins into the prison. They injected him with drugs in the bathroom, exploiting the lack of surveillance in that area, and staged his death as a 'heart attack.'
Public records indicate that Xu Ming was incarcerated at Wuhan Qinduan Kou Prison, where it is indeed true that the bathrooms lacked surveillance, corroborating the details of the revelation.
While Wang Jizhou did not name the assassins, the context frequently references Wanda, suggesting that the implications are clear. In the 1990s, two major financial groups emerged in Dalian; as Shide collapsed, Wanda thrived.
Xu Ming was cremated just 48 hours after his death, with no autopsy report released to the public. This case has resurfaced, potentially linking business magnates with the political and legal systems.
4. Xi Jinping's Push for a 'New Cultural Revolution' to Conceal the Truth
When we connect these events, it becomes evident that Xi Jinping is facing a crisis.
In terms of foreign relations, the standoff between China and Japan has cornered Xi Jinping; the billion-yuan distribution scandal implicates the Politburo and Xi's family; Xu Ming's death highlights the Chinese Communist Party's legal system as virtually nonexistent. Additionally, the recent fire at Hong Kong's Hongfu Garden adds to the mounting pressure. Under these circumstances, Xi Jinping's 'self-revolution' seems more like a political smokescreen, employing greater political mobilisation to obscure explosive scandals, redirect public attention, and simultaneously thwart counterattacks from political adversaries.
By 2025, Xi Jinping finds himself on the brink of a political abyss, with the latest iteration of the 'New Era Cultural Revolution' appearing to be a high-stakes gamble of all his political capital.
In his efforts to solidify power through aggressive crackdowns or to mask internal crises with political mobilization, he ultimately falls into a cognitive trap: creating contradictions to obscure existing ones and using fear to ensure loyalty. The unravelling of Sino-Japanese diplomatic relations, the revelation of a multi-billion-dollar corruption network, and the revival of long-dormant cases have all contributed to a clearer understanding of the logic behind his rule. Whether Xi's decisions arise from a fear of losing power or are meant to conceal deeper scandals, these developments signal a significant shift in the political landscape of the Chinese Communist Party.
Ultimately, Xi Jinping should focus less on how to implement a Cultural Revolution and more on whether the CCP is on the verge of a power fracture.
(Originally published by the People News)
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