Xi Jinping and religions: the Party must lead “effectively” and “forcefully”
John Mok Chit Wai, from Chinese University of Hong Kong, highlights President Xi’s intentions toward religions, which should have no autonomy, and submit to the party. For some, this is the beginning of a "Second Cultural Revolution" to “decimate the religions”.
Hong Kong (AsiaNews) - The keynote speech Xi Jinping gave last week on religions has generated many comments with different nuances and positions.
Most commentators see the speech as the usual “old wine in new bottle". Conversely, some pro-Beijing commentators have praised it because it finally recognised the “separation between state and religion”, and shows religions some respect since, in his speech, Xi uses the term Yindao "(引導), to channel, and not" Zhidao "(指導), which indicates a more heavy-handed leadership role.
AsiaNews has asked John Mok Chit Wai, from the Chinese University of Hong Kong, for a comment. AsiaNews has already published a memorable piece he penned after Asia Times published an interview with Pope Francis on Chinese New Year.
Reading Xi Jinping’s speech, I am quite doubtful about these views. It is true that "yindao"(引導) can be seen to have a softer tone than "zhidao"(指導). While both terms mean "to guide", "yindao" is more like "to channel", while "zhidao" has a meaning of "to instruct". But one should also note that "yindao" also has the meaning of "to lead". The differentiation is not concrete, as "yindao" does not necessarily indicate "a reaction".
In the speech, Xi made it very clear that there would be no religious activities outside the control of the party. Xi pointed out that the emphasis is on "dao"(導): the party has to "effectively" and "forcefully" guide all religions (導之有效、導之有力), and to "firmly grasp hold of the leading role of all religious works" (牢牢掌握宗教工作主導權).
On the other hand, Xi also instructed that when dealing with religions, one must "adhere to the leadership of the party, strengthen the party's position in office", and all religions must "serve the highest interest of the state and the overall interest of the Chinese nation: supporting the leadership of the CPC, supporting the socialist system, and adhering to the socialist way with Chinese characteristics".
For the issue of some party members privately having religious faith, Xi also pointed out that they "must not seek their own values and beliefs in religions". Instead, they "must be remain staunchly Marxist atheists".
If we read the above lines, I think it is quite clear that Xi has no intention at all in making a "linguistic/philosophical compromise in the role and religious groups". On the contrary, Xi is making clear that there cannot be any compromise, the party must be above religions.
Sang Pu (桑普), a Chinese commentator and lawyer, strongly criticized Xi's speech, arguing that by making such a speech, the CPC has "torn the masks of moderation worn by Deng Xiaoping, Jiang Zemin and Hu Jintao", and is launching a "Second Cultural Revolution" to "decimate all religions". In fact, as far as I know, no one in Hong Kong sees Xi's speech as good news.
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24/10/2017 12:06
08/10/2020 16:10
