Opinion / Op-Ed Contributors

Xi Jinping a man on a mission

By Giles Chance (China Daily) Updated: 2013-07-03 08:04

Xi Jinping a man on a mission

What message can we see from China under President Xi Jinping's leadership? With respect to China's position in the world, Xi's speech at the Bo'ao Forum in Hainan province in April stressed global interdependence and emphasized the country's peaceful and cooperative intentions.

At home, Xi has linked China's multi-millennial history with the nine-decade history of the Communist Party of China to create the background for his idea of a "Chinese dream". In his dream, everyone in China has access to four things: education, a job, a house and a good income.

In a recent speech to the CPC Central Committee, the president emphasized that without the backing of the Chinese people, the Party cannot achieve anything. It's a clear message that the Party can lead China to a better future only if its officials take stock of and adjust their behavior.

It's not difficult to perceive ordinary people's extreme level of cynicism which years of high-level corruption and cover-ups have produced in China. Xi is right to sound the alarm.

But is it too late to rescue the situation by fighting corruption?

China is too large and populous a country for the central government to monitor officials outside the main cities. So, in a way, the task has fallen on weibo, and its successor weixin. Social media brings subtle changes to China's political landscape. The technological revolution has also had a profound impact on China.

As a result, public opinion is becoming a powerful force in China. For many Chinese, the drama surrounding senior officials' fall from power have come as big shocks. The after-effects of these events still reverberate, and social media keep magnifying them.

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