East Asia “In-depth coverage notes” (No. 179)
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On March 13, the National People’s Congress closed in Beijing. President Xi Jinping, who has entered an unprecedented third term as president, has obtained “absolute power” like the emperor who once ruled China.
China’s official media summed up, “We ended the tournament with a victory,” but the winner was President Xi Jinping.
But in power struggles, there are winners and losers.
Below, I would like to take a look at the “four losers”. All of them are members of the “Danha” (Chinese Communist Youth League), which is linked to former President Hu Jintao, who was pulled out of the chamber at the 20th Congress of the Communist Party last October.
Former Prime Minister Li Keqiang ‘ignores cancer’ of Xi Jinping even after shaking hands
(1) Li Keqiang, Former Prime Minister
After being Xi Jinping’s biggest rival of his generation for the past 15 years or so, he has finally retired from politics.
This time, there were two symbolic scenes regarding Mr. Li Keqiang. The first was on March 11, when Li Qiang Party Standing Committee (ranked second in the party) was elected as the new prime minister at the Great Hall of the People. President Xi Jinping asked former Premier Li Keqiang, sitting next to him, to shake hands, and the two shook hands on the stage.
Li Keqiang has served as the second prime minister of the State Council for 10 years under the Xi Jinping administration, so it is only natural that the top would appreciate his efforts.
The 2,947 National People’s Congress representatives who filled the hall also gave a big round of applause.
However, former Prime Minister Li Keqiang himself “ignored” President Xi Jinping.
