BEIJING (AP) — Midway through its annual session, China’s
ceremonial parliament is focusing on boosting the economy, building
self-reliance in technology and further squeezing room for political opposition
in Hong Kong. The weeklong meeting of the National People’s Congress, which
rubber stamps policies approved by the Communist Party leadership, provides a
window into government priorities.
SETTING AN ACHEIVABLE GROWTH TARGET
The party set a growth target of “over 6%”, as the world’s
second-largest economy shrugs off the effects of the coronavirus pandemic. Last
year, it departed from practice and didn’t set a target because of
pandemic-related uncertainty. The target was lower than the 7% to 8% that
forecasters expected and seen by some as signaling a shift from quantity to
quality growth, including efforts to expand the green economy.
ACCELERATING LEADING-EDGE TECHNOLOGY
Premier Li Keqiang vowed Friday to “work faster” to develop
tech capabilities seen as a path to prosperity, strategic autonomy and
international influence. The party is focused on becoming a global competitor
in telecoms, electric cars and other profitable areas. Its tactics have
inflamed trade tensions with the US and and Europe and also raised security
concerns. China has poured massive computing and human resources into artificial
intelligence, including sometimes controversial technologies such as facial
recognition.
CLOSING DOWN DISSENT IN HONG KONG
The congress has been given draft legislation that would
give an Election Committee dominated by businesspeople and other pro-Beijing
figures a role in choosing the members of the Hong Kong legislature. Wang Chen,
a deputy chairman of the congress, said the committee would choose a
“relatively large” share of the Legislative Council and have the right to vet
all candidates. He did not provide specifics. A spokesman for the congress said
that Beijing wants “patriots ruling Hong Kong,” fueling fears opposition voices
will be shut out of the political process.
BEEFING UP THE MILITARY
The government announced a 6.8% rise in military spending to
1.4 trillion yuan ($217 billion), continuing a tradition of roughly tracking
the economic growth target. Analysts say actual military spending is up to 40%
more than the reported figure, the world’s second-highest after the United
States. Recent years have seen a massive expansion of China’s naval
capabilities as it seeks to assert its claims in the South China Sea. A deadly
clash with India last year underscored the potential for conflict over their
disputed border, while America’s prominent role in Asian security and its
support for Taiwan, the self-governing democracy that China claims, raise the
threat of conflict with the US
NO ROOM FOR COMPROMISE ON TAIWAN
At an annual news conference on the sidelines of the
session, Foreign Minister Wang Yi demanded the Biden administration reverse
former President Donald Trump’s “dangerous practice” of showing support for
Taiwan. China’s claim to Taiwan, which split with the mainland in 1949, is an
“insurmountable red line,” he said. Separately, Wu Qian, a spokesperson for the
Defense Ministry and a delegate to the congress, said that China would not
“renounce the use of force and reserve the right to take whatever measures are
necessary.” The US State Department expressed concern about Chinese attempts to
intimidate Taiwan and other neighbors and said, “Our support for Taiwan is
rock-solid.”
PURSUING GREEN INITIATIVES
The party pledged to reduce carbon emissions per unit of
economic output by 18% over the next five years, in line with its goal for the
previous five-year period. Environmentalists say China needs to do more.
President Xi Jinping, the leader of the Communist Party, pledged last year to
ensure that the country would be carbon neutral by 2060. Achieving that will
require huge investments in clean energy for an economy that gets 60% of its
power from coal. Chinese leaders are also pushing to reduce waste, especially
of food, and increase recycling to handle the mountains of paper and plastic
produced by a burgeoning consumer economy.
WHAT’S NEXT
The annual session, which has been reduced from two weeks to
one because of the pandemic, finishes on Thursday. Li will give the premier’s
annual news conference after the congress closes.
