Chinese Mind Emancipation at the Guangzhou Party

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 GUANGZHOU 000241

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

STATE FOR EAP/CM, INR/EAP

E.O. 12958: DECL: 2033/04/25
TAGS: PGOV CH
SUBJECT: Chinese Mind Emancipation at the Guangzhou Party
School


1. (U) Classified by Consul General Robert Goldberg for
reason 1.4 (d).


2. (C) SUMMARY: City leaders who do not sufficiently
"emancipate their minds" (jiefang sixiang -- the latest
Party buzzword) could face reassignment, according to
senior staff at the Guangzhou Communist Party School. Even
so, reform would not be allowed to endanger the stability
of the Communist Party. Political reforms from the 17th
Party Congress are not directly linked to the Mind
Emancipation campaign, but share a common background,
including a heavy dose of Hu Jintao's theory of Scientific
Development. The Party School bills Mind Emancipation as a
continuation of preexisting philosophies of opening and
reform, with the campaign largely focusing on the training
of cadres instead of the general public. END SUMMARY.

Incumbents Could Face Replacement
--------------


3. (C) Leaders who do not sufficiently "emancipate their
minds" and overcome arrogance and complacency could face
removal or transfer, according to Guangzhou Party School
Executive Vice President Wang Yongping. Wang noted that,
although the Mind Emancipation campaign would largely focus
on economic reforms, political reformsQould likely also
take place at a measured pace. Wang was careful to note
that any political reforms, including removing "outdated
ideas," "must be done actively, but in a stable manner."
He pointed to efforts to expand the oversight role of the
municipal People's Congress as one example of acceptable
change.


4. (C) Wang Yongping also said that, officially, the kind
of political reform coming out of the 17th Party Congress
shared a "common background" with, but was not directly
connected to, Mind Emancipation. (Comment: This probably
shows a desire by Guangdong Party Secretary Wang Yang to
avoid being tagged with the politically uncomfortable label
of "democratic reformer" by progressive -- or competing --
Communist Party (CPC) members or the public.)

A Continuation, not a Beginning
--------------


5. (C) Wang emphasized that the campaign called on
individuals to "continue to emancipate their minds" and
said that Mind Emancipation had been taking place in
Guangdong Province for decades. Feng (full name unknown),
who teaches at the Party School, noted that the Mind
Emancipation campaign was well timed to correspond with a
study by Guangdong Province of the past 30 years of
development. Wang went on to say that, though
theoretically "there is no end to mind emancipation," the
period of "study and discussion" would end late 2008 or
early 2009, to be followed by a period of local-level
implementation.

No Unified Implementation Plan
--------------


6. (C) Resisting the idea that Mind Emancipation was
primarily a Guangdong phenomenon, Party School instructor
Li (full name unknown) noted that Guangxi, Hebei and Anhui
were also conducting similar campaigns, but that Guangdong
admittedly was in the vanguard. Party School instructor
Yin (full name unknown) explained that the overall campaign
is loosely directed by Beijing through general instructions
to provincial CPCs, which then develop implementation plans
for their respective provinces and municipalities, using
Scientific Development and statements from the 17th Party
Congress as guides. (Comment: In addition to allowing each
provincial CPC to adapt Mind Emancipation to its particular
situation, the decentralized implementation system also
will likely encourage competition between provincial party
secretaries as each vies to be the most innovative -- and

SIPDIS
to have his province chosen as the national model for Mind
Emancipation.)

Cadres First
--------------


7. (C) In response to the question of the public's role in
Mind Emancipation, Wang said that the campaign currently
focuses on Communist Party members. Leading cadres working
in bureaus -- especially those providing public services --
are the primary target. According to one of the

GUANGZHOU 00000241 002 OF 002


instructors, Guangdong benefits from having a large number
of cadres in their 40s who have witnessed the entire cycle
of development over the past 20 years, and who are
generally enthusiastic about the Mind Emancipation
campaign. Though he said that Party members "at all
levels" should take part in the program, and that he
considered grassroots CPC activities to include the
"general public," the comments of Wang and others made
clear that in Guangzhou, at least, the campaign so far had
been limited to the CPC.

GOLDBERG