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Chinese Party–State under Xi Jinping
The abolition of the two-term limit on the President’s tenure in China has generated a lot of debate. Portraying this as the return to hard authoritarianism in China does not fully take into account the gamut of changes that are taking place at the political, economic, and societal levels. Newer studies and research suggest that the mainstream Western projections of China as a repressed, controlled society, suffering under the iron grip of the party, cannot be taken at face value and must be explored in greater depth.
Since the middle of 2017, arguably, no event was as intensely debated, analysed and examined across the world as the quinquennial 19th Party Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC), convened in Beijing from 18 to 24 October 2017, and the subsequent National People’s Congress (NPC) in March 2018. The NPC is convened annually in Beijing for two weeks from 5 March. No domestic events in any other country—except possibly the United States presidential elections—have generated as much excitement and even frenzy all around.
From theoreticians and scholars who grapple with concepts such as world order, power transition and globalisation, to policy and decision-makers who are adjusting their tactics and strategies vis-á-vis this rising power, to security and strategic communities who ponder over the People’s Republic of China’s (PRC) capabilities and intentions, to the business and commercial sectors around the globe whose fortunes have been, and continue to be, shaped by their dealings with China, the interest and concern were palpable. This is a profound testament to the transformative impact that the rise of the PRC has had on the international system, on the regional orders, and even on the domestic calculations of a large number of countries over the last three decades.
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