Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
07SHANGHAI802
2007-12-21 00:32:00
CONFIDENTIAL//NOFORN
Consulate Shanghai
Cable title:  

NANJING PARTY SCHOOL ON PARTY SCHOOLS AND ORGANIZATION

Tags:  PGOV CH 
pdf how-to read a cable
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FM AMCONSUL SHANGHAI
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 6555
INFO RUEHBJ/AMEMBASSY BEIJING 1601
RUEHGZ/AMCONSUL GUANGZHOU 0994
RUEHCN/AMCONSUL CHENGDU 1024
RUEHSH/AMCONSUL SHENYANG 1024
RUEHHK/AMCONSUL HONG KONG 1155
RUEHIN/AIT TAIPEI 0842
RUCPDOC/DEPT OF COMMERCE WASHINGTON DC
RUEATRS/DEPT OF TREASURY WASHINGTON DC
RHEHAAA/NSC WASHINGTON DC
RUEHGH/AMCONSUL SHANGHAI 7077
C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 SHANGHAI 000802 

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DEPT FOR EAP/CM, INR/B AND INR/EAP
STATE PASS USTR FOR STRATFORD, WINTER, MCCARTIN, WINELAND, READE
TREASURY FOR OASIA - DOHNER/CUSHMAN, WRIGHT
USDOC FOR ITA/MAC - DAS KASOFF, MELCHER, MCQUEEN
NSC FOR WILDER

E.O. 12958: DECL: 12/21/2032
TAGS: PGOV CH
SUBJECT: NANJING PARTY SCHOOL ON PARTY SCHOOLS AND ORGANIZATION
DEPARTMENTS


CLASSIFIED BY: Christopher Beede, Political and Economic Section
Chief, U.S. Consulate General Shanghai, Department of State.

REASON: 1.4 (b),(d)



C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 SHANGHAI 000802

SIPDIS

NOFORN
SIPDIS

DEPT FOR EAP/CM, INR/B AND INR/EAP
STATE PASS USTR FOR STRATFORD, WINTER, MCCARTIN, WINELAND, READE
TREASURY FOR OASIA - DOHNER/CUSHMAN, WRIGHT
USDOC FOR ITA/MAC - DAS KASOFF, MELCHER, MCQUEEN
NSC FOR WILDER

E.O. 12958: DECL: 12/21/2032
TAGS: PGOV CH
SUBJECT: NANJING PARTY SCHOOL ON PARTY SCHOOLS AND ORGANIZATION
DEPARTMENTS


CLASSIFIED BY: Christopher Beede, Political and Economic Section
Chief, U.S. Consulate General Shanghai, Department of State.

REASON: 1.4 (b),(d)




1. (C) Summary: Officials at the Nanjing Party School (NPS)
explained how the Party School system in China is set out, with
central, provincial, municipal, county, and district level
schools in place. Schools are typically run by one of the
Deputy Party Secretaries at their respective levels, although it
is possible that the Party Secretary can also be the Party
School president. NPS officials also commented on the new
"permanent tenure system" for Party Congress representatives,
noting that there is not yet much meat on the pronouncement from
the 17th Party Congress work report calling for the
strengthening of the representative system. NPS officials also
discussed the role of Organization Departments in leadership
selection. End summary.

Fight for Your Right to Party


2. (C) During a November 27 discussion with officials from the
Nanjing Party School (NPS),NPS Vice President He Jiaquan
explained that the massive size of the Chinese Communist Party
(CCP) necessitated a broad network of training facilities to
ensure the proper education of its officials. He said that in
addition to the central-level schools used to train
central-level officials, provinces, municipalities, counties,
and districts (sheng, shi, xian, qu) all have Party Schools to
train officials at each level. Beginning in the 1990s, the
Party saw a need to train a growing number of officials who are
not party members and began opening "Schools of Administration"
to accommodate them. These "Schools of Administration," He
said, are one and the same as the Party Schools: they are
co-located with the Party Schools; share the same curriculum;
and students from each attend the same classes together. One
need not be a Communist Party member to be selected for training
at a Party School/School of Administration, and the Nanjing

Party School has at least one instructor (in economics) who is
not a Party member, He said.


3. (SBU) Party Schools at all levels work to implement a
three-fold curriculum that includes ideological education,
skills training, and moral and character instruction. Beijing
provides the guidance on ideological education, helping maintain
uniform Party discipline. However, skills training and moral
instruction are largely left up to the different levels to
establish curriculums to meet the local needs. Typical Party
School programs run for six months, although there are some that
are much shorter. The Central Party School, however, has
programs that can last up to a year.


4. (SBU) Professor He said that by law, the head of the Party
School at any given level is either the Party Secretary or a
Deputy Party Secretary. In practice, most Party Secretaries are
too busy to take on this challenge and delegate this to one of
their deputies. Given recent personnel reforms, each Party
Secretary now has only two deputies; one who serves as the

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government unit head and one who serves as head of the Party
School.

Coming to Terms with the Party Congress


5. (SBU) Professor He turned to recent reforms in the
"permanent tenure system" (renqizhi) for Party Congress
representatives announced at the 17th Party Congress. On paper,
the Party Congress is technically the most powerful organization
within the CCP, with the Central Committee answering to it.
However, in practice, it has been a relatively weak body, given
the fact that it only meets once and then disbands. However,
with the new reforms, Party Congress representatives will now
have continuing responsibilities within their five-year term
until a new Congress is elected. Representatives will now be
able to make suggestions to the Central Committee about their

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work throughout their terms.


6. (SBU) NPS Professor Shao Jianguan added that currently,
there are no real rules about how often Party Congresses should
meet. Each level has "space" to experiment and decide for
itself how often to hold meetings. Professor He noted that one
county in Jiangsu Province, for instance, has mandated its Party
Congress meet twice a year. NPS Professor Wu Shu said that the
17th Party Congress Work Report indicated that Beijing will be
selecting some cities, counties, and districts to conduct
experiments with the permanent tenure system.


7. (SBU) Professor He said strengthening the permanent tenure
system is one method the Party is using of strengthening
intra-Party democracy. Eventually, Professor He predicted, the
Party Congress will take on a role with the Central Committee
similar to the advisory role played by the National People's
Congress to the government. Party Congress representatives are
elected through a mixed direct and indirect process. Party
groups within various units (and these can be as small as three
people) are allowed to nominate candidates for Party Congress
representative. This ensures that there are more candidates
than actual positions. Then all party members at the local
level vote to choose the local Party Congress representatives.
Those representatives, in turn, follow a similar process to
nominate and vote on representatives to the next level up. This
process replicates itself until the central Party Congress
representatives are chosen.

Organization Department: The Party's Head Hunters


8. (SBU) When asked about the selection process for Party
officials, Professor He explained that the Organization
Department oversees that work. As with other Party and
government structures, the Organization Department is mirrored
at the different levels of governance down to the county level.
These bureaucracies are responsible for the appointment and
removal of Party leaders. The Organization Departments
investigate the characters of prospective candidates, oversee
training, and nominates candidates.


9. (SBU) Professor He continued that there are both horizontal
and vertical controls within the Organization Department system.
Horizontally, the local Organization Department head is chosen
by the Organization Department at the level above. Vertically,
the local Organization Departments--particularly at the
provincial level--are guided in their work by the Central
Organization Department. Party Secretaries, Deputy Party
Secretaries, and Party Committee members are all recommended by

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the Organization Department one level above. Accordingly,
provincial Party Secretaries are nominated to the Politburo for
approval by the Central Organization Department. Likewise,
municipal Party Secretaries are recommended by the
provincial-level Organization Departments for the approval of
the provincial Party Committees.


10. (C) Separately, on November 26, Jiaotong University
Professor Hu Wei explained that Li Yuanchao, head of the Central
Organization Department and a Hu Jintao protege, has little
actual authority when it comes to making central-level
appointments. Decisions on candidates are made by the Politburo
Standing Committee. While the Organization Department must
investigate the candidates, it cannot do so with a partisan bias
seeking to favor one leader's candidates while digging harder to
find dirt on other candidates.


11. (SBU) Professor He at the NPS added that Party leaders have
the authority to put forward their own candidates for positions
to the Organization Departments. However, if that candidate is
chosen, the leader who recommended the candidate is held
responsible for the candidate's performance. If the candidate
turns out to be corrupt or inept, it reflects poorly on the
Party official who recommended them. Moreover, even though a
leader might recommend an official for a position, the person
must be voted in by the Party Committee (or the Politburo in the
case of the center). Candidates can ill afford to be seen as

SHANGHAI 00000802 003 OF 003


too factional, lest they fail to garner the votes needed to
ascend to the positions for which nominated.

No Rule on the Politburo Numbers


12. (SBU) When asked about the likelihood of possible changes
in the number of Politburo Standing Committee (PBSC) members,
Professor He explained that it is unimportant how many people
serve on the PBSC, whether it be seven, nine, or any other
number. He said that there is no rule--written or otherwise--on
the number of people who will serve there. In contrast, local
level Party Committees are required to have 11-13 members.
Professor He, who himself previously served as a local-level
Party Secretary, said that having a large number of people on
the Party Committee ensures that important issues enjoy a
thorough discussion and that different interest groups are all
represented.


13. (U) Professor He said the Nanjing Party School would
welcome U.S. Government speakers and U.S. expert speakers,
including about the 2008 elections. He expressed interest in
learning more about government executive training programs in
the United States, both within the government and at
institutions such as the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard
University.
JARRETT