WORLD
Xi Jinping becomes Chinese president
Beijing, March 14 (AZERTAC). Xi Jinping on Thursday replaced Hu Jintao as China`s president, in the culmination of a once-in-a-decade leadership transition that began last year.
In a ceremony in the Great Hall of the People in Tiananmen Square, delegates to the National People`s Congress, China`s rubber-stamp parliament, appointed Mr Xi to run the country for the next 10 years. Mr Xi, the only candidate, garnered 2,952 votes with three abstentions and one vote cast against him.
The presidency is a largely ceremonial office in China. Last November, Mr Xi was appointed to the two most important leadership roles, general secretary of the Communist party and chairman of the Central Military Commission.
In the four months since his ascension, Mr Xi has made a mark on the politics of the country, at least on the surface. He has launched a campaign against corruption that has led officials to refrain from ostentatious displays of wealth, and he has cut back on the banquets, motorcades and excessively formal speeches traditionally associated with China`s top leaders.
In another indication of how Mr Xi is pushing for change, three people told the Financial Times that his wife – the famous folk sinker Peng Liyuan – will play a prominent role in his first official foreign trip to boost China`s “soft power”.
But there are no real signs that Mr Xi will promote more fundamental governance reforms. The selection of the new leaders at the NPC this week was put to a vote in name only. All of the appointments were agreed in advance in backroom deals between serving officials, outgoing leaders and retired elder statesmen.
Those negotiations produced one small surprise that was seen by some observers as a sign of Mr Xi`s strength. Li Yuanchao, a top official who briefly studied at Harvard University`s Kennedy School of Government and is regarded as a relative liberal within the Chinese system, was named vice-president of China.
Last November, Mr Li was believed to have fallen out of favor when he did not get a spot on the seven-person Politburo Standing Committee that effectively runs China.
Jiang Zemin, China`s leader until 2002 who still yields tremendous clout, was reported to favor another candidate. In maneuvering Mr Li into the post, Mr Xi has shown that he potentially has the power and will to shape his own agenda.