China is close to eliminating presidential term limits, meaning current president Xi Jinping would be able to stay in power indefinitely. The proposed change to the country’s constitution, which was announced on Sunday by the Central Committee of China’s Communist Party, would appear to signal that President Xi not only wants to stay in power, but has, unlike his predecessors, accumulated enough power to be able to change the rules in order to keep it. “Papa Xi” as he is referred to in official songs, was already the most powerful leader of the country since Mao Zedong, and by consolidating his power, he has developed a reputation of a strongman in the mold of Russian president Vladimir Putin.

Ending term limits would represent the biggest political change in the country in decades. Under current law, presidents are only allowed to serve two five-year terms, meaning the 64-year-old Xi would have to leave office at the end of his second term in 2023. The term limits were put in place in the 1990s to aid in smoother and more predictable transitions of power in the country.

The new draft amendments to China’s Constitution, which include abolishing the term limits as well adding Xi’s signature political treatise to the constitution’s preamble, were apparently approved by the Communist Party a month ago. They will not almost certainly be passed into law by the National People’s Congress in March, as China’s legislature always goes along with the proposals of party officials. </s> China is set to approve the removal of term limits for its leader, in a move that will effectively allow Xi Jinping to remain as president for life.

The change is part of a set of constitutional changes expected to be passed by China's annual sitting of the National People's Congress on Sunday.

China has imposed a two-term limit on its president since the 1990s.

Mr Xi, however, defied the tradition of presenting a potential successor during October's Communist Party Congress.

Instead, he consolidated his political power as the party voted to enshrine his name and political ideology in the party's constitution - elevating his status to the level of its founder, Mao Zedong.

In late February, the party proposed removing term limits from China's constitution. Mr Xi was due to step down in 2023.
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Sunday's vote on the changes at the National People's Congress is expected to pass without any difficulty.

The congress is, on paper, the most powerful legislative body in China - similar to the parliament in other nations.

But it is widely seen as a "rubber stamping" body, which will approve what it is told to.

The issue is not, however, without controversy.

The National People's Congress has never voted against the Communist Party. But some reports suggest a number of the 2,980 delegates may abstain - which would be seen as a clear protest vote.

Censors in China have been blocking discussion around the topic, including images of Winnie the Pooh. Social media users have taken to using cartoon character to represent Mr Xi.

One government critic wrote an open letter describing the proposal as a "farce", in a rare show of public dissent.

Former state newspaper editor Li Datong wrote that scrapping term limits for the president and vice-president would sow the seeds of chaos - in a message sent to some members of the national congress.

"I couldn't bear it any more. I was discussing with my friends and we were enraged. We have to voice our opposition," he told BBC China.

State media, however, have portrayed the changes as much-needed reform.

US President Donald Trump was criticised by some commentators for seeming to approve of Mr Xi's unlimited rule, saying on Monday: "President for life... I think it's great. Maybe we'll have to give that a shot some day."

At a political rally on Saturday, Mr Trump insisted he had merely been joking during a fundraiser, and that his comments were represented unfairly by some media.

Mr Xi's possible third term is not the only item the National People's Congress is likely to approve. It is also expected to:
• confirm China's new government line-up for the next five years, kicking off Xi Jinping's second term as president
• ratify a law to set up a new powerful anti-corruption agency
• ratify the inclusion of the president's political philosophy - "Xi Jinping Thought" - in the constitution

Xi Jinping thought is the ideology approved by the Communist Party last October. Officially, it is "Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for the New Era".

Schoolchildren, college students and staff at state factories will have to study the political ideology, which the Communist Party is trying to portray as a new chapter for modern China.

Mr Xi became president in 2012, and quickly consolidated personal power while cementing China as the regional superpower.

He also fought corruption, punishing more than a million party members - which has helped his popularity among some.

At the same time, however, China has clamped down on many emerging freedoms, increasing its state surveillance and censorship programs. </s> BEIJING (Reuters) – China’s largely rubber stamp parliament on Sunday passed a series of constitutional amendments, including one that removes presidential term limits, allowing President Xi Jinping to remain in office indefinitely. </s> China’s ruling Communist Party has proposed to remove a constitutional clause that limits the service of presidents to two consecutive terms, official news agency Xinhua reported on Sunday.

The party’s Central Committee proposed to remove the expression that the president and vice president of the People’s Republic of China shall serve “no more than two consecutive terms” from the country’s Constitution.

Constitutional reform needs the Parliament’s approval. If it is accepted, the change would pave the way for President Xi Jinping to stay in office indefinitely. As the country’s Parliament is full of members who are loyal to the party, the proposal is not expected to be blocked, according to Reuters.

In October 2017, the Communist Party endorsed Xi for a second five-year term, which will end in 2022. China also broke its tradition by not naming a clear successor to Xi, which has only further strengthened the president’s grip on the country.

The Central Committee also proposed that “Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era” should be inserted into the Constitution, Xinhua reported. Xi’s guiding political ideology has already been written into the Communist Party of China’s constitution, making him the country’s most powerful leader since Mao Zedong and Deng Xiaoping. </s> March 11 (UPI) -- China's legislature was nearly unanimously endorsed a change constitution Sunday in Bejing, formally removing term limits to enable Xi Jinping to stay on as the president for life.

Out of 2,964 ballots by the National People's Congress, just two delegates voted against the move and three abstained in the biggest change to the constitution in 36 years. The amendments' passage required two thirds of the vote.

Otherwise, X's term would expire in 2023.

The two-term limit was approved in 1982 to prevent a repeat of a decadeslong reign by Mao Zedong, who died while in office.

Before the vote by the largely ceremonial parliament, the ruling Communist Party announced the proposals on Feb. 25. It said it aligned the presidency with Xi's two other, more powerful, posts -- heads of the party and the military -- without no term limits.

Xi, 64, last week endorsed the proposed constitutional changes as a desire of "common will of the party and the people."

In China, there was opposition to the change.

"He just dug a huge hole for himself," said Li Datong, a former editor of the state-run China Youth Daily newspaper said to CNN. "The top leader's term limits are the biggest common denominator shared by all political forces in China. Its removal could trigger political infighting -- that's why this move is dangerous."

Shen Chunyao, a senior NPC official, said to media after the vote: "I don't think this issue exists."

The amendment also applies to the vice presidency, a largely ceremonial post.

Wang Qishan, China's fearsome former anti-corruption czar, is likely to become the new vice president later this week.

"He's a bit of bulldozer -- and there's no other senior politician who could or want to stand up to him," said Duncan Innes-Ker, regional director for Asia at the Economist Intelligence Unit, said to CNN. "The trouble with being the clear leader of everything is that everyone knows where the buck stops if something goes wrong."

In another major constitutional change approved Sunday, a national anti-corruption agency, called the National Supervision Commission, was approved. It has the same high-level status as the supreme court and the top prosecutor's office.

The NSC can prosecute anyone who exercises public authority, instead of just Communist Party members.

"It looks very much like the early stage of [Russian President Vladimir] Putin, the accumulation of power," Innes-Ker said. "The bigger question is whether or not this accumulation of power around Xi is positive or negative for reform."

Also among the 21 constitutional changes, Xi's political doctrine -- "Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era" -- was added to the constitution. The party added this to its charter in October. </s> Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption Should China's Xi be president for life?

China has approved the removal of the two-term limit on the presidency, effectively allowing Xi Jinping to remain in power for life.

The constitutional changes were passed by the annual sitting of parliament, the National People's Congress.

The vote was widely regarded as a rubber-stamping exercise. Two delegates voted against the change and three abstained, out of 2,964 votes.

China had imposed a two-term limit on its president since the 1990s.

But Mr Xi, who would have been due to step down in 2023, defied the tradition of presenting a potential successor during October's Communist Party Congress.

Instead, he consolidated his political power as the party voted to enshrine his name and political ideology in the party's constitution - elevating his status to the level of its founder, Chairman Mao.

On paper, the congress is the most powerful legislative body in China - similar to the parliament in other nations. But it was widely believed that it would approve what it was told to.

Xi forever?

Analysis by Stephen McDonell, BBC China correspondent in Beijing

It is now hard to see Xi Jinping being challenged in any way whatsoever.

He has amassed power the likes of which has not been seen since Chairman Mao Zedong.

Image copyright Reuters Image caption Mr Xi applauded after the amendment was passed

Only five years ago Beijing was being ruled by a collective leadership. Under ex-President Hu Jintao you could imagine differing views being expressed in the then nine-member Politburo Standing Committee.

There was a feeling that Mr Hu needed to please various factions within the Communist Party and it seemed that every 10 years a new leader would come along with their own people in a process of smooth transition.

From today all this has gone.

The constitution has been altered to allow Xi Jinping to remain as president beyond two terms and they would not have gone to this much trouble if that was not exactly what he intended to do.

There has been no national debate as to whether a leader should be allowed to stay on for as long as they choose. Quietly but surely Xi Jinping has changed the way his country is governed, with himself well and truly at the core.

Rare dissent

The issue is not, however, without controversy.

Online censors in China have been blocking discussion around the topic, including images of Winnie the Pooh. Social media users have taken to using the cartoon character to represent Mr Xi.

Image copyright WEIBO/AFP Image caption Social media users create "Winnie the Pooh" memes to avoid being seen as making derogatory posts against Mr Xi (r)

One government critic described the proposal in an open letter last month as a "farce", in a rare show of public dissent.

Former state newspaper editor Li Datong wrote that scrapping term limits for the president and vice-president would sow the seeds of chaos - in a message sent to some members of the national congress.

"I couldn't bear it any more. I was discussing with my friends and we were enraged. We have to voice our opposition," he told BBC Chinese.

State media, however, have portrayed the changes as much-needed reform.

US President Donald Trump was criticised by some commentators for seeming to approve of Mr Xi's unlimited rule, saying on Monday: "President for life... I think it's great. Maybe we'll have to give that a shot some day."

At a political rally on Saturday, Mr Trump insisted he had merely been joking during a fundraiser, and that his comments were represented unfairly by some media.

Xi Jinping thought

Mr Xi's possible third term is not the only item the National People's Congress is likely to approve. It was also expected to:

confirm China's new government line-up for the next five years, kicking off Xi Jinping's second term as president

ratify a law to set up a new powerful anti-corruption agency

ratify the inclusion of the president's political philosophy - "Xi Jinping thought" - in the constitution

Xi Jinping thought is the ideology approved by the Communist Party last October. Officially, it is "Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for the New Era".

Schoolchildren, college students and staff at state factories will have to study the political ideology, which the Communist Party is trying to portray as a new chapter for modern China.

More on China under Xi

Mr Xi became president in 2013, and quickly consolidated personal power while cementing China as the regional superpower.

He also fought corruption, punishing more than a million party members - which has helped his popularity among some.

At the same time, however, China has clamped down on many emerging freedoms, increasing its state surveillance and censorship programs. Critics also say Mr Xi has used the anti-corruption purge to sideline political rivals. </s> In an unprecedented decision, Chinese Communist Party has removed Presidential term limit. The decision will allow China’s most powerful leader in decades, Xi Jinping to lead the Asian giant up to the year 2023. Along with the president, the changed constitution of Communist Party will also be applied to the Vice President. 64-year-old Xi Jinping is leading China since the year 2013 and would have to leave the President seat under the current system. The new proposed system will allow the president to serve the country for more than 2 consecutive terms of 5 years.

The new change will be submitted to the lawmakers at the annual full session of the National People’s Congress going to start on March 5. Xi Jinping is following Den Xiaoping ideology of collective model of leadership. The current chief of Communist Party of India has hinted at bigger dreams after a major change. His previous two predecessors Jiang Zemin and Hu Jintao had served for 2 years 5 terms. This is not the first time that Chinese Communist Party has proposed some changes to the constitution, Last year in annual Congress October party unveiled a new 7 member Standing Committee.

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The party has also proposed to include Xi’s thought to the national constitution. After taking over a party general secretary, Xi has started a war against the corruption, which helped the country to improve its corruption perception ranking by Transparency International. The Central Committee has also proposed listing the National Supervisory Commission as a new organ in the Constitution.

Last October during annual Congress feared former head of the anti-graft agency, Wang Qishan had stepped down from the Standing Committee. It adds to the speculation that he might become China’s Vice President or get any other influential role. After getting China’s top post, Xi has a crackdown on democracy and human rights.

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ALSO READ: Indian troops to master Mandarin to enhance security skills against Chinese troops </s> The People’s Congress in China have adopted a constitutional amendment that allows Xi Jinping to become president for life.

The Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party proposed earlier this year to remove the limitation on the number of years the country’s president and vice president can sit.

The Chinese Constitution stated that they “shall not sit for more than two consecutive periods”, but this has now changed.

The nearly 3,000 delegates in China’s Legislative Assembly, the ‘People’s Congress’, voted on the proposal to amend the law on Sunday, and the outcome was read. Only two of the delegates voted against, while three abstained.

In practice, the change means that the country’s 64-year-old president, Xi Jinping, can remain seated, even after his second period expires in 2023.

“We have seen Xi Jinping consolidate power, and that he has a completely different style than his predecessor, who stood for a more consensus-based approach. Xi has,to a far greater extent, set himself in the lead and defined himself as the leader of the people’’, said researcher, Andreas Bøje Forsby at the Danish Institute of International Studies.

Xi exploits the void that US President Donald Trump has now created in world politics, noted Forsby last month.

China stands for a completely different model than liberal Western democracy, but it also stands for stability. And that is strengthened with this grip on power, said Bøje Forsby.

Professor Jørgen Delman at the University of Copenhagen agrees, and believes that XI will now become the world’s most significant man.

‘’Xi Jinping is crucial to what is happening in the world now.

And with this change he becomes very central to what’s happening globally over the next few years. There is no doubt about that’’,Delman noted. </s> CHINA’S parliament has passed historic constitutional changes that abolish term limits to let President Xi Jinping rule indefinitely.

Sunday’s announcement of the vote, witnessed by reporters in the Great Hall of the People, passed with two “no” votes and three abstentions among almost 3000 delegates.

China’s ruling Communist Party proposed the amendment last month and there was never any doubt it would pass as parliament is packed with loyal party members who would not have opposed the proposal.

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The amendment upends a system enacted by former Chinese leader Deng Xiaoping in 1982 to prevent a return to the bloody excesses of a lifelong dictatorship typified by Mao Zedong’s chaotic 1966-1976 Cultural Revolution. The slide toward one-man rule under Xi has fuelled concern that Beijing is eroding efforts to guard against the excesses of autocratic leadership and make economic regulation more stable and predictable.

In a sign of the issue’s sensitivity, government censors are aggressively scrubbing social media of expressions ranging from “I disagree” to “Xi Zedong.” US President Donald Trump was criticised last week for seeming to approve of Xi’s unlimited rule, saying: “President for life ... I think it’s great. Maybe we’ll have to give that a shot some day.”
China's National People's Congress approves the removal of presidential term limits, in a move that allows current president Xi Jinping to remain president for life.