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India.com
4 days ago
- Politics
- India.com
China's government officials banned from dining out, driving luxury cars because...
China's government officials banned from dining out, driving luxury cars because… Beijing: In a surprising development, China has recently issued an order banning government officials from dining out, travelling in luxury cars, and staying in expensive hotels. The orders were issued in view of Xi Jinping's austerity campaign, which solely focuses on cutting down the expenses of government officials. As per the order, government officials in Beijing cannot eat outside in a group of more than three people. Additionally, these officials have to use the least amount of government money for their luxury spending. Impact of Xi Jinping's Austerity Law In the month of May, the Chinese government implemented austerity laws for the Communist Party members and public sector officials and employees. According to the law, expensive hotels, luxurious car fittings and the use of decorative plants in office meetings are banned. According to experts, the austerity law reflects Jinping's long-standing association with anti-corruption. China's Drinking Culture Drinking culture among civil servants in China is very famous. However, the government is unable to find solution for it yet. Hence, the same law can be applied on everyone. Alfred Wu, an associate professor at the National University of Singapore said, 'While Beijing wants to promote consumption, clean government – which is Xi's fundamental priority – has a price.' Strict Guidelines For Government Officials Three Chinese government officials died in April, May, and June from alcohol poisoning following official banquets. Subsequent investigations in Hunan, Anhui, and Henan provinces revealed attempts to cover up the incidents and privately compensate the victims' families, resulting in disciplinary action against numerous officials. Recent regional guidelines reflect a heightened awareness of these events, with officials now showing increased caution regarding social gatherings and official meals. Eight-Point Regulations The rules expand upon the existing 'eight-point regulations', which is a code of conduct that focuses on curbing corruption in China's bureaucracy. Notably, Jinping implemented the regulations after taking power in 2012. Between February and April, the number of officials sanctioned for breaching 2012 austerity rules increased significantly, rising from 9,292 to over 16,500.
Newsweek
25-06-2025
- Politics
- Newsweek
Chinese President Xi Jinping's Tough Childhood Revealed in New Book: Excerpt
Chinese President Xi Jinping's father, Xi Zhongxun, was a Communist Party official for more than seven decades—from the Communist Revolution through the Great Leap Forward, the Cultural Revolution, the Tiananmen Square protests and beyond. In the first English biography of Xi Zhongxun, The Party's Interests Come First, Professor Joseph Torigian uncovers the story of his life and of the modern Communist Party—and sheds light on the formative influences on Xi Jinping. This excerpt from Torigian's deeply researched book talks about the family's home life. Xi Zhongxun with his sons Jinping (left) and Yuanping (center), 1958. Xi Zhongxun with his sons Jinping (left) and Yuanping (center), 1958. Xi Zhongxun huace At work, Xi Zhongxun faced a dizzying array of policy challenges and the vicissitudes of his own shifting fortunes. But in party culture, home life was no escape from the political. Everything from schooling and leisure to clothes and food in the Xi household were shaped by broader preoccupations within the elite. Aaron Solts, the Soviet Union's most famous theorist of Bolshevik ethics, had asserted that "the family of a Communist must be a prototype of a small Communist cell" and "must, in all their work and life, represent a unit of assistance to the Party." Domesticity presented an existential challenge to the Communist war on bourgeois weakness and materialism. Having fought decades of war to establish a transformational regime, party leaders in China were proud of what they had achieved yet concerned about their families losing the revolutionary élan that had proven so instrumental. The leadership, including Xi, worried that the next generation would grow up spoiled and separated from the so-called masses. Before he arrived in Beijing in 1953—well before the one-child policy—Xi was already a father to three surviving children with his first wife (a son, Zhengning, and two daughters, Heping and Qianping), as well as two daughters with Qi Xin (Qiaoqiao and An'an). Two more sons, Jinping and Yuanping, were born in the capital in 1953 and 1955, respectively. All the children lived at school during the week. Qiaoqiao, An'an, Jinping and Yuanping all went to middle school at the August 1 School, where the students were primarily the children of high-ranking military, not political, figures. One graduate described the school as a place where "softness and delicateness were especially despised." Although it was tough, the August 1 School was also an exciting place. The students "were full of resolution to give their lives to the desire to struggle, the will to serve, the collective spirit and sincere beliefs and traditional pursuits, and at the same time, they were full to the brim with the special confidence and pride of victors," according to one former student. The education system emphasized class struggle, teaching that enemies could be lurking behind any problem, that anyone could be an enemy, and that such enemies were to be treated viciously. During political-education class, they read books such as Be a Successor to the Revolution, which in Jinping's own words "influenced the idealistic beliefs and life choices of our generation." Graduates of the school credit the education there with giving them the spiritual power not to lose hope during the dark times that were to come during the Cultural Revolution. In 2003, an interviewer bluntly asked whether Xi Jinping had enjoyed a privileged lifestyle as a child. Xi responded: "It can be put this way: there were no worries about clothes or food, but my father's demands upon us made us live very frugally." As an example, Xi said that he was forced to wear the clothes of his older sisters as hand-me-downs. He tried to depict his own family as especially thrifty, but in doing so, he also revealed the "privileges" he enjoyed when participating in activities with the party elite: "At the Lunar New Year, we participated in several evening parties; when we went to the Great Hall of the People or to Tiananmen Square, the staffers would ask whose children were wearing such run-down clothing? Those who understood would reply that we were the children of the Xi family." Xi did spend time with his children on weekends. By several accounts, Xi was a ferocious disciplinarian. Even Qi Xin wrote: "Sometimes, I really believed that your demands on the children were too strict." Xi's children often spoke of their father's thriftiness. Qianping wrote: "When we were little, none of us were willing to eat at the same table as father. We were terrified of his strict rules on frugality.... For example, when eating, he never allowed us to drop a single piece of rice or bits of food; if we were not careful and dropped any food, he would immediately pick it up and eat it." In 2001, Jinping told two interviewers at the end of a conversation that he would not ask them to stay and eat. "Actually, eating with me is a form of suffering," he said. "I am the son of a peasant. I have never been picky about eating, and, moreover, I never allow people to leave any leftovers." Xi's harshness also included physical punishment. In his diaries, Li Rui described a conversation with Ren Zhongyi—who would later succeed Xi as party boss of Guangdong—in March 1998: "[We] discussed how Xi raised his three sons; he was extremely brutal based on feudal rules of etiquette that included beatings." Journalist John Garnaut, who has conducted extensive interviews with elite political families in China, writes: "Xi Zhongxun, despite his noble exterior, drank too much and would occasionally explode with anger. His children were sometimes on the receiving end of his anger, according to a close family friend who witnessed such occasions." According to another journalist with deep ties in Beijing, on one occasion, Xi was so angry that he lined up his children, as well as the child of another high-ranking leader, and struck them one by one. Xi was tougher than most, but his behavior was still reflective of the context of the times. Many "cadre offspring" deeply worried their parents because they played too much and did not study hard. The Xi household was not the only "Red aristocratic" family in which children would kowtow; many elite families had such strict protocols. When a friend asked Xi why he was so cruel, he responded: "I do not do this to make them fear me. It is to make them feel a sense of awe and veneration for heaven and earth so that, from a young age, they have understood that one cannot act in an anarchic fashion." Children who did not respect their parents were a disaster when they entered society. But Xi had a softer side too. On one occasion, he carried Jinping on his head. When Jinping started urinating on him, Zhongxun waited patiently until Jinping had finished. Xi believed that when children were urinating, they should not be frightened, otherwise they will "have an illness for the rest of their life." Xi and Qi Xin would help their children jump rope, and they played "horse" on their father's back. Although the children feared their father, they cherished the time with him. In Qiaoqiao's words: "I was happiest at those times, but the time we had together with father and mother was truly too little." The Party's Interests Come First - The Life of Xi Zhongxun, Father of Xi Jinping The Party's Interests Come First - The Life of Xi Zhongxun, Father of Xi Jinping Courtesy of Stanford University Press Excerpted from The Party's Interests Come First: The Life of Xi Zhongxun, Father of Xi Jinping, published by Stanford University Press, ©2025 by Joseph Torigian. All Rights Reserved.
Al Etihad
07-06-2025
- Business
- Al Etihad
China allows limited exports of rare earths as shortages continue
7 June 2025 09:39 BEIJING (THE NEW YORK TIMES NEWS SERVICE)China's Ministry of Commerce has started issuing more export licenses for shipments of rare earth magnets in recent days, but the pace remains factories in the automotive sector and other industries in Europe and the United States, and a few in Japan, are running low on the makes 90% of the world's supply of these magnets, which are essential for cars, drones, factory robots, missiles and many other a 90-minute call Thursday with Chinese PresidentXi Jinping, US President Donald Trump wrote on social media that the two men had discussed rare earths. Trump mentioned that rare earths were a complex subject, but did not indicate whether anything had been decided about China's strict export licensing requirement, which Beijing imposed April wrote on social media Friday that Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and US trade representative Jamieson Greer would hold further economic talks Monday in London with top Chinese Trump was asked later on Air Force One whether Xi had agreed to allow rare earth minerals and magnets to flow to the US, Trump replied, 'Yes, he did,' but did not statement Thursday about the call did not mention rare earths, however. Lin Jian, a spokesperson for China's foreign ministry, declined to answer a question about the minerals Friday at the ministry's daily briefing, saying that it was a matter for other Chinese Ministry of Commerce said Thursday before the two leaders spoke only that it would issue export licenses according to its new rules, introduced two months US and European chambers of commerce in China each said Friday that somewhat more export licenses had been issued in recent days. But both groups emphasised that more were needed, as the Ministry of Commerce faces a huge backlog of detailed applications for licenses. Rare earth metals, a group of 17 elements found near the bottom of the periodic table, have a wide range of industrial applications. China produces practically the entire world's supply of seven of the least common rare earths, including three that are crucial in making powerful, heat-resistant magnets.
News18
03-06-2025
- Business
- News18
Donald Trump Likely To Speak With Xi Jinping This Week Amid US-China Tariff Tensions
Last Updated: Donald Trump is likely to speak with Xi Jinping "very soon" amid the ongoing tariff war between the US and China, the White House said. US President Donald Trump is likely to speak with his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, this week, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said on Monday. This comes days after Trump accused the rival country of breaking a deal to reduce tariffs and trade limits. The agenda of the call is likely to sort out disagreements over last month's tariff deal made in Geneva, besides other major trade issues between the two countries. However, it was not entirely clear when Trump and Jinping would speak. Leavitt is the third top US official to confirm Trump's possible call with Jinping, after the President himself and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent. Bessent told CBS News on Sunday that Trump and Jinping would talk to each other 'very soon" to discuss the trade differences, which also include a dispute over critical minerals and Beijing's restrictions on exports of certain minerals. Trump said last week on Friday that he was sure he would speak with his Chinese counterpart. Bessent led the trade talks with China in Geneva last month, which resulted in a temporary pause in the trade war between the two economic giants, however, the progress has been slow since then, the US Treasury chief said in an interview with Fox News last week. The announcement of the US-China deal to put on hold the retaliatory high tariffs on each other for 90 days sparked a big rally in global stock markets. However, it didn't solve the main reasons behind Trump's tariffs on Chinese products — especially U.S. concerns about China's state-controlled, export-focused economy. Such issues are yet to be discussed in future conversations between the two leaders. Last week, a US trade court ruled that Trump went beyond his legal powers when he imposed most of his tariffs on imports from China and other countries, including India, using emergency law on April 2. However, a federal appeals court put that decision on hold and brought the tariffs back, stating that it needed time to review the government's appeal. The appeals court gave the challengers until June 5 to respond, and the Trump administration until June 9. First Published: June 03, 2025, 07:05 IST
Mint
19-05-2025
- Business
- Mint
China asks officials to spend less on cigarettes, alcohol and travel; Here's why
China has instructed its officials once again to slash wasteful spends on travel, food as well office spaces, the official Xinhua News Agency said on Sunday. As a the Bloomberg report quoting the Chinese news agency, the noticed issued by the government asks officials to specifically cut costs on alcohol and cigarettes. The latest instructions, as per Bloomberg, comes as added signs of an austerity push by President Xi Jinping amid economic headwinds that strain government budgets. The regulations also reinforce the ruling Communist Party's stance on officials having to reduce expenditure at a time when land sale revenues are declining, putting pressure on budget as local authorities stare at significant debts. Chinese authorities in 2023 had asked its officials to embrace austerity measures, in a move to strengthen Jinping's drive to fight corruption. The latest notice issued by the government for 'strict diligence and thrift, and opposes extravagance and waste,' as per the Chinese news agency. It reportedly added that 'waste is shameful and economy is glorious.' Last year, Beijing kicked off its largest effort in years to address risks from local-authority debt, a move aimed at cutting default risks and giving local governments room to support economic growth. A measure consumer staples stocks led was the biggest loser among the benchmark CSI 300 Index's sub-groups on Monday, slumping as much as 1.7 per cent, according to Bloomberg. Kweichow Moutai Co. retreated as much as 2.4 per cent, the most in six weeks. Meanwhile, global investment banks are raising their forecasts for China's economic growth this year, after Beijing and Washington agreed to a 90-day pause on tariffs, despite uncertainty around Sino-US trade negotiations. China's official target for full-year GDP is around 5.0 per cent. Citi has upgraded it to 4.7 per cent from 4.2 per cent, Goldman Sachs revised it to 4.6 per cent from 4.0 per cent and JP Morgan revised from 4.1 per cent to 4.8 per cent. (With Bloomberg, Reuters inputs)
