Series: Changing of the Guard
Articles in this series examine the implications for China and the rest of the world of the coming changes in the leadership of the Chinese Communist Party.
Andy Wong/Associated Press
Overview: 18th National Congress
In November 2012, China’s Communist Party completed its most sweeping transfer of power in a generation, only its second orderly hand-over in more than six decades of rule. The party’s 18th National Congress culminated on Nov. 15, when it unveiled a new leadership slate headed by Xi Jinping, the son of a revered revolutionary leader and economic reformer, who will face the task of guiding China to a more sustainable model of growth and managing the country’s rise as a global power.
For this nation of 1.3 billion, the transition concluded a tumultuous period plagued by scandals and intense political rivalry that presented the party with some of its greatest challenges since the student uprising of 1989. After a confirmation vote by the party’s new Central Committee, Mr. Xi, 59, strode onto a red-carpeted stage at the Great Hall of the People accompanied by six other party officials who form the Politburo Standing Committee, the elite group that makes crucial decisions on the economy, foreign policy and other major issues.
The ascension of Mr. Xi and other members of the “red nobility” to the top posts means that the so-called princelings have come into their own as a prominent political force. Because of their parentage, they believe themselves to be the heirs of the revolution that succeeded in 1949, endowed with the mandate of authority that that status confers.
Mr. Xi is facing a growing chorus of calls from Chinese elites to support greater openness in China’s economic and political systems, which critics say have stagnated in the last decade under the departing party chief, Hu Jintao, despite the country’s emergence as the world’s second-largest economy and a growing regional power.
Mr. Hu, 69, also turned over the post of civilian chairman of the military to Mr. Xi, which made this transition the first time since the promotion of the ill-fated Hua Guofeng in 1976 that a Chinese leader had taken office as head of the party and the military at the same time. That gives Mr. Xi a stronger base from which to consolidate his power, even as he grapples with the continuing influence of party elders.
The new standing committee has allies of Jiang Zemin, Mr. Hu’s predecessor, in five of seven seats, reflecting his considerable power despite being hit by serious illness. Li Keqiang, a protégé of Mr. Hu’s, is expected to get the state title of prime minister next spring, when Mr. Xi becomes president. Mr. Li and Mr. Xi were the only members on the departing standing committee who are remaining part of the group.
The other officials on the new committee in order of ranking and their expected portfolios are Zhang Dejiang, head of the National People’s Congress; Yu Zhengsheng, who will run a similar advisory body; Liu Yunshan, vice president and overseer of propaganda; Wang Qishan, the head of an anticorruption agency; and Zhang Gaoli, the executive vice premier, who helps manage the economy.
One princeling said earlier to be a contender for the committee, Bo Xilai, was felled last spring by a scandal after his wife was accused of killing a British businessman.
The princelings are not a coherent political faction, and their ranks are rife with personal and ideological rivalries. Their family connections may mean a greater confidence with wielding power and pressing for bolder changes. At the same time, that class has grown wealthy off China’s political economy, in which officials and state-owned enterprises work together to reap benefits, often at the expense of private entrepreneurship. Even those princelings who support liberalizing the economy or the political system still believe in the primacy of the party, and their push for various reforms is seen as an effort to ensure the party’s survival.
ARTICLES ABOUT CHINA
China Steps Up Pressure on Japan in Island Dispute
Analysts say China has fixed upon a strategy to take back the islands known as Diaoyu in China and the Senkaku in Japan, by using air and naval patrols as evidence that they are in charge.
December 16, 2012, Sunday
China’s Communist Party Chief Acts to Bolster Military
Xi Jinping, the new party chief, casts strengthening the armed forces as a centerpiece of the “Chinese dream” of national rejuvenation.
December 15, 2012, SaturdayMORE ON CHINA AND: Chinese People's Liberation Army, Communist Party of China, Deng Xiaoping, Xi Jinping, Economic Conditions and Trends, Defense and Military Forces, East China Sea, China, Guangdong Province (China)
China: Claims to Waters Detailed
China provided the United Nations with detailed claims to waters in the East China Sea on Friday, apparently adding to its legal argument in its territorial dispute with Japan.
December 15, 2012, SaturdayMORE ON CHINA AND: International Relations, East China Sea, Japan, Okinawa and Other Ryukyu Islands (Japan), China
Man Stabs 22 Children in China
A man wielding a knife wounded 22 children and one adult outside a primary school in the village of Chengping, as students were arriving for classes on Friday.
December 15, 2012, Saturday
Opposition to Labor Camps Widens in China
Opponents of China’s “re-education through labor” system say new leadership could put an end to abuses at the labor camps, which confine perceived troublemakers without trial.
December 15, 2012, SaturdayMORE ON CHINA AND: Communist Party of China, People's Daily, Xi Jinping, Hu Jintao, Sentences (Criminal), Reform and Reorganization, Human Rights and Human Rights Violations, China
Only in My Dreams?
Waking life can be as surreal, alarming and absurd as the other kind.
December 14, 2012
The Value of an Old Coin
Displays of nostalgia in Hong Kong are not for colonial rule, but for the freedoms we once enjoyed.
December 14, 2012, FridayJapan Scrambles Jets in Island Dispute With China
A Chinese surveillance plane entered what Japan considers its airspace above disputed islands on Thursday, prompting the nations to exchange accusations.
December 14, 2012, FridayChinese Court Said to Punish Tibetan Students with Prison Terms
The International Campaign for Tibet said that eight Tibetan students were sentenced to five-year terms for their role in street protests last month during a wave of self-immolations.
December 14, 2012, FridayChina Pushes Deposit Insurance in Bank Overhaul
China’s new leadership is preparing to introduce bank deposit insurance as the first step in financial reforms to be started at a top-level meeting in the coming days in Beijing.
December 14, 2012, FridayMORE ON CHINA AND: Deposit Insurance, Banking and Financial Institutions, Regulation and Deregulation of Industry, China
SEARCH 58512 ARTICLES ABOUT CHINA:
Multimedia
In China, a New Beginning
The Chinese Communist Party on Thursday unveiled a new leadership slate headed by Xi Jinping, who will face the task of guiding China to a more sustainable model of growth.
The New Members of China’s Ruling Body
All members of China’s Politburo Standing Committee, the group of politicians who rule the country, have close connections with former leaders. The top two figures of the new administration were also part of the previous government.
Party Leaders and Party Elders (in Chinese)
The Politburo’s Growing Number of Influential Leaders
Since China’s first ruling committee was appointed, each successive leader has enjoyed less authority than the last.
‘Princelings’ Reshape China
China’s “princelings” are emerging as an aristocratic class with an increasingly important say in ruling the country.
A Transfer of Power Begins in China
China’s 18th Communist Party Congress precedes the naming of China’s top leader, who will replace Hu Jintao as president. The meeting also debuts a new generation of party leaders.
China's 18th Congress | Introduction
Tom Redburn, China editor for The New York Times, introduces a short video series on China’s changing of the guard.
China's 18th Congress | A New Leader
The New York Times’ Beijing correspondents discuss Xi Jinping, China’s presumptive new leader.
China's 18th Congress | China Rising
The New York Times reporters in Beijing discuss economic reform in China as the country takes a more central position on the world stage.
China's 18th Congress | Human Rights
The New York Times correspondent Andrew Jacobs discusses China’s record on human rights.
Changing of the Guard in China
The New York Times’s Beijing correspondents discuss the challenges ahead for China as the country begins its once-in-a-decade leadership transition.
The Times in Chinese
On June 28, 2012, The New York Times introduced a beta version of a new Chinese-language Web site, which continues to grow in scope and functionality.
Series: Culture and Control
Articles in this series explore the struggle to shape the culture of authoritarian China.
Series: Endangered Dragon
Articles in this series examine China’s system of government-managed capitalism, and the potential weaknesses that could threaten the nation’s remarkable economic growth.
Series: Uneasy Engagement
Articles in this series examine the stresses and strains of China’s emergence as a global power.
Choking on Growth: China's Environmental Crisis
A series of articles and multimedia examining the human toll, global impact and political challenge of China’s epic pollution crisis.
Multimedia
China at a Glance
Official Name: People’s Republic of China
Capital: Beijing (Current local time)
Government Type: Communist State
Population: 1.32 billion
Area: 3.7 million square miles
Web site: Gov.cn
Key Figures
Xi Jinping
Hu Jintao
Bo Xilai
Jiang Zemin
Art and Architecture
The Environment
Business and the Economy
Freedom and Human RightsAdvertisement
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