Ghosts of Mao and Deng

At the Communist Party of China (CPC) Congress in October 2022, Xi Jinping was confirmed for a third term as the Party’s General Secretary. The Party had already passed a historic resolution the year before — only the third in its 100-year history — establishing Xi as the ‘core of the central committee and of … more

The Twentieth Party Congress: A Primer

The Party Congress 中国共产党全国代表大会 is the most important meeting in the calendar of activities of the Communist Party of China (CPC). Since 1977, one has been held every five years. Before that, they were less regular. Delegates to the congress formalise changes to the Party’s leadership, review the previous five years, and set policy directions … more

Australia-China Relations Need Re-thinking, Not Re-set

Australia-People’s Republic of China (PRC) relations appear to be on a healthy win-win-win track. Australia’s federal ministers are back on talking terms with their PRC counterparts, visits to the PRC are resuming from Canberra and by state premiers, our longsuffering ambassador in Beijing, Graham Fletcher, is finally getting to meet appropriate Chinese peers, and some … more

‘Take Off Your Kong Yiji’s Gown’: Why Are State Media and Unemployed Youth Disagreeing Over Interpretations of Lu Xun’s Classic

For graduates in search of a job in China, March and April are traditionally the busiest hiring season. This golden window of opportunity has even acquired the nickname ‘golden March, silver April’ 金三银四. But this year’s job-finding season proved exasperating for many, with the National Bureau of Statistics reporting that in March 2023, unemployment among … more

Semiconductors, Supply Chains, and the Fate of Taiwan

Innovation in science and technology has become the main battleground of the global strategic contest.[1] — Xi Jinping, 28 May 2021 Realising the complete reunification of the Motherland is the shared longing of all Chinese sons and daughters and represents the essence of National Rejuvenation.[2] — Xi Jinping, 13 March 2023 Introduction At the Two … more

How Fearful is China’s Military Rise?

DoD photo by Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Chad J. McNeeley/Released

During a meeting with delegates from the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) and the People’s Armed Police Force at the Fourteenth National People’s Congress in March 2023, Xi Jinping called for the improvement of China’s ‘integrated national strategies and strategic capabilities’ and to ‘accelerate the modernisation of [the] army as a world-class armed force’. His speech … more

Letters From Lockdown II

In a news conference held on 15 March 2022, Shanghai city officials told reporters that ‘there’s no need to lock down the city’. Thirteen days later, on 28 March 2022 officials announced a five day lockdown of Shanghai, China’s biggest financial hub. Many of the city’s residents prepared a week or two weeks’ worth of groceries and … more