The Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee Friday proposed to write Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era into the Constitution.

 Major theoretical achievements, principles and policies adopted at the 19th CPC National Congress should be incorporated in the upcoming revision to the Constitution, according to a communique issued after the second plenary session of the 19th CPC Central Committee, which was held in Beijing Thursday and Friday.

 A proposal from the CPC Central Committee on the revision to the Constitution was adopted at the meeting. </s> A closed-door meeting of the ruling Communist Party on Friday endorsed a proposal to include “Xi Jinping Thought”, the president’s political theory, in China’s constitution, Xinhua reported.

The proposal – to be formally approved by the national legislature’s full session in March – would make Xi the first sitting Chinese leader to see his name in the constitution since Mao Zedong.

It follows revisions made in October at the party congress that saw Xi’s theory – Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era – enshrined in the party charter.

The has reported that revisions to be discussed at the meeting were also likely to include the addition of former president Hu Jintao’s contribution to the Chinese Communist Party’s political theory, which was added to the party charter in 2007 but is yet to be included in the constitution.

The preamble of the constitution states that the party is guided by Marxism and Leninism, Mao Zedong Thought, Deng Xiaoping Theory and the Three Represents – the latter three being the theoretical legacies of Mao, Deng and former president Jiang Zemin.

But the statement released after Friday’s meeting put Hu’s theory – Scientific Outlook of Development – ahead of Xi’s thoughts as being among the “guiding principles” for the revision.

Jiang’s Three Represents was added to the constitution when it was last amended in 2004, when he had retired from most top public offices except the military’s governing commission. Deng’s theory was included in the constitution in 1999, two years after his death.

Revisions discussed at the meeting on Friday will also pave the way for the new National Supervisory Commission to be established, a move described in the statement as “a major political reform”.

The super anti-corruption body will have huge investigative power and is being set up under a national supervision law that is also expected to be passed by the legislature in March.

Revisions to Chinese constitution will be key task for top cadres at plenum

Some of Xi’s signature policies were also discussed at the second plenum of the party’s Central Committee – a two-day session that finished on Friday – including environmental conservation and building “a shared destiny of mankind”, Xi’s call for China to play a bigger role in global affairs.

These policies were also likely to be added to the constitution, according to Beijing-based political commentator Zhang Lifan.

“The slogans he’s come up with may also be included in the preamble as part of the narrative of the country’s history,” Zhang said. “We were also watching for any change to the term limit [of the president] but there was no mention of that in the communiqué.”

First he swept up corrupt officials. Now Xi is tightening party control </s> BEIJING (Reuters) - China's ruling Communist Party will enshrine President Xi Jinping's political thought into the country's constitution, state media said on Friday, further solidifying his power following its addition last year to the party constitution.

The arguably more important party constitution was amended at the once-in-five-years party congress in October to include Xi's political thought.

The party unanimously passed an amendment then to add "Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era" as one of its guiding principles.

Following a two-day meeting in Beijing, the party has now proposed writing the same theory into the state constitution, state news agency Xinhua said.

Because the amendment is of the state constitution, it needs parliament to formally approve it, probably when it holds its annual session in March, though it could happen before.

Whether Xi was able to have his name "crowned" in the party constitution had been seen as a key measure of his power, elevating him to a level of previous leaders exemplified by Mao Zedong Thought and Deng Xiaoping Theory.

No other leader since Mao has had an eponymous ideology included in the document while in office. Deng's name was added after his death in 1997.

The state constitution was last amended in 2004 to include guarantees to protect private property and human rights.

While it theoretically offers broad guarantees to things like freedom of speech, religion and association, rights groups say in practice these are ignored. It also highlights the primacy of the Communist Party in leading China. </s> China to enshrine Xi’s name in state constitution

China’s Communist Party proposed today to engrave President Xi Jinping’s guiding philosophy in the country’s constitution. — Reuters picBEIJING, Jan 19 — China’s Communist Party proposed today to engrave President Xi Jinping’s guiding philosophy in the country’s constitution, further cementing his status as its most powerful leader in decades.

Xi’s eponymous “thought” was already enshrined in the Communist Party constitution at a major congress in October, elevating him to the same status as modern China’s founder Mao Zedong.

The architect of China’s economic reforms, Deng Xiaoping, is the only other leader whose name appears alongside his guiding principle in both the state and party constitutions.

The party’s Central Committee proposed at a two-day meeting that “Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era” should also be added to the state constitution, said the official Xinhua news agency.

The constitutional change must be approved by the National People’s Congress, which is expected to hold its annual plenary session in March.

The elevation of Xi, 64, into the Communist Party constitution in October had already brought him into the pantheon of the country’s most powerful leaders.

The congress also unveiled a new seven-member ruling council that did not include a clear successor to Xi, leaving the impression that he could break with recent tradition and seek a third term in office in 2022. — AFP </s> BEIJING (Reuters) - China’s ruling Communist Party will enshrine President Xi Jinping’s political thought into the country’s constitution, state media said on Friday, further solidifying his power following its addition last year to the party constitution.

FILE PHOTO: China's President Xi Jinping claps after his speech as he and other new Politburo Standing Committee members meet with the press at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, China October 25, 2017. REUTERS/Jason Lee

The arguably more important party constitution was amended at the once-in-five-years 19th Party Congress in October to include Xi’s political thought.

The party unanimously passed an amendment then to add “Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era” as one of its guiding principles.

Following a two-day meeting of top officials in Beijing, the party has now proposed writing the same theory into the state constitution, state news agency Xinhua said.

The communique said Xi’s thought had generated a national “fervor” which had helped provide “great spiritual impetus” in the implementation of 19th Party Congress’s strategic policies.

The meeting also stressed that a “centralized, unified, authoritative and highly effective” national supervision system should be set up to fight corruption throughout the state bureaucracy, Xinhua said.

Chinese legal scholars have said the country needs to amend its constitution before it can set up the new supervision commission to ensure there is a proper constitutional basis for its powers.

Xinhua however did not explicitly say what might be amended when it came to the supervision commission.

Fighting deeply ingrained graft had been a key policy plank for Xi in his first term in office and that battle will take on a new hue with the setting up of the National Supervision Commission as he begins his second term.

Trial work has already begun for that commission, which is likely to be formally codified in law in March at a meeting of China’s largely rubber stamp parliament.

Because the state constitution is being amended, it needs parliament to formally approve it, probably at the March session, though it could happen before. Xinhua did not say exactly when it would happen.

Whether Xi was able to have his name “crowned” in the party constitution had been seen as a key measure of his power, elevating him to a level of previous leaders exemplified by Mao Zedong Thought and Deng Xiaoping Theory.

No other leader since Mao has had an eponymous ideology included in the document while in office. Deng’s name was added after his death in 1997.

The state constitution was last amended in 2004 to include guarantees to protect private property and human rights.

While it theoretically offers broad guarantees to things like freedom of speech, religion and association, rights groups say in practice these are ignored. It also highlights the primacy of the Communist Party in leading China. </s> , Beijing, China, Jan 19 – China’s Communist Party proposed on Friday to engrave President Xi Jinping’s guiding philosophy in the country’s constitution, further cementing his status as its most powerful leader in decades.

Xi’s eponymous “thought” was already enshrined in the Communist Party constitution at the 19th Party Congress in October, elevating him to the same status as modern China’s founder Mao Zedong.

The architect of China’s economic reforms, Deng Xiaoping, is the only other leader whose name appears alongside his guiding principle in both the state and party constitutions.

The party’s Central Committee proposed at a two-day meeting that “Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era” should also be added to the state constitution, said the official Xinhua news agency.

The constitutional change must be approved by the National People’s Congress, which is expected to hold its annual plenary session in March.

The forthcoming amendment would need to “enshrine the major theoretical points and major principles and policies stipulated by the 19th Party Congress — especially Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era — into state law,” the body said in a statement released by Xinhua.

“The plenum believes that is a major event in the country’s political life,” it said.

A major outcome of the 19th Party Congress was the decision to establish a new anti-graft agency, the National Supervisory Commission, that will coordinate investigations at all levels of government and expand their remit to include non-party members.

The Central Committee noted in its statement that reforms to the state supervisory system would be included in the amendment.

“It is necessary to establish an anti-corruption work organ under the unified leadership of the party according to law, and establish a centralised, authoritative and efficient national surveillance system,” it said.

The elevation of Xi, 64, into the Communist Party constitution in October had already brought him into the pantheon of the country’s most powerful leaders.

Earlier this week, the Party mouthpiece People’s Daily further cemented that status by publishing an article that for the first time referred to Xi as “lingxiu” — a Mao-era honorific with more reverential and spiritual connotations than the ordinary monikers.

“We should resolutely support the core, faithfully follow the ‘lingxiu’, use our courage and morale…and make strides toward a brighter future,” read the article published Monday.

China’s ruling body, the Politburo, in October used the term to refer to Xi and the military’s official PLA Daily and Henan Daily have also used it.

Mao, at the height of his personality cult during the early years of the 1966-76 Cultural Revolution, was hailed as a “great teacher, great lingxiu, great commander-in-chief, and great helmsman” — a slogan known as the “four greats.”

The party congress unveiled a new seven-member ruling council that did not include a clear successor to Xi, leaving the impression that he could break with recent tradition and seek a third term in office in 2022. </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> China's proposed on Friday to engrave Xi Jinping's guiding philosophy in the country's constitution, further cementing his status as its most in decades. Xi's eponymous "thought" was already enshrined in the constitution at a major in October, elevating him to the same status as modern China's founder The of China's economic reforms, Deng Xiaoping, is the only other leader whose name appears alongside his guiding principle in both the state and party constitutions. The party's proposed at a two-day meeting that " Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era" should also be added to the state constitution, said the official The constitutional change must be approved by the National People's Congress, which is expected to hold its annual plenary session in March. The elevation of Xi, 64, into the constitution in October had already brought him into the pantheon of the country's most powerful leaders. The also unveiled a new seven-member ruling council that did not include a clear successor to Xi, leaving the impression that he could break with recent tradition and seek a third term in office in 2022. </s> (Eds: Updating with more inputs) By K J M Varma Beijing, Jan 19 (PTI) Xi Jinping, recently christened as "lingxiu", a leader with highest prestige, further cemented his powers as the most powerful leader after Mao Zedong, with the Chinese president's ideological thought set to be enshrined in the Constitution, state media said today.

The Central Committee of the ruling Communist Party of China (CPC) today proposed to write 64-year-old Xi's 'Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era' into the Constitution to take forward Marxism-Leninism and Mao Zedong Thought, state-run Xinhua news agency reported.

"We should keep pace with the times and improve the Constitution while maintaining its consistency, stability and authority," the report quoted CPC document as saying.

The amending process should take Marxism-Leninism, Mao Zedong Thought, Deng Xiaoping Theory, the Theory of Three Represents, the Scientific Outlook on Development, and Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era as the guide, it said.

A proposal from the CPC Central Committee on the revision to the Constitution was adopted at the meeting.

Only the ideological thoughts of CPC founder Mao and his successor Deng Xiaoping were mentioned in the Constitution along with their names so far.

Ahead of this meeting, official media declared him as "lingxiu" meaning a leader with highest prestige.

Xi, a princeling born to former vice premier Xi Zhongxun, will be the only modern era leader to be mentioned directly in the Constitution which analysts say may enable him to remain leader of the party and the country for life doing away with the two five-year term followed by his predecessor Hu Jintao.

Hu's predecessor Jiang Zemin also relinquished the leadership after 10 years at the helm even though he remained head of the military for a while.

Xi, who started his tenure as the head of the party, Presidency and the military in 2013, has begun his second five-year term after the once-in-a-five-year Congress of the CPC endorsed his leadership and approved his thought to be included in the Constitution.

Since then he has officially been regarded as the highest-ranking leader ending the collective leadership system followed in the past two decades.

Xi has already solidified his leadership with massive anti-graft campaign in the last five year in which over a million officials including top military generals were punished for corruption.

The CPC document has stressed that any act against the country's Constitution will be dealt with according to law.

"All anti-Constitutional behaviour shall be corrected, without fail. No organisation or individual has the power to overstep the Constitution or the law," it warned.

The new constitutional process was expected to be completed after the approvals by the legislature -- the National People's Congress (NPC) -- which is expected to meet in March this year. PTI KJV CPS AKJ CPS .

This is unedited, unformatted feed from the Press Trust of India wire.
Citing a national "fervor", the Communist Party of China proposes writing the Xi Jinping Thought into the state constitution, after it was already added to the party constitution.