On April 29th, Chen Yixin, the Minister of China’s Ministry of State Security, wrote an article in a publication of the Chinese Communist Party School, declaring that the Ministry of State Security will launch the “Five Anti-Struggle” against subversion, hegemony, separatism, terrorism, and espionage. Experts believe that this indicates that the Chinese Communist Party is facing internal and external crises. Xi Jinping is afraid of the instability of the regime, allowing Chen Yixin to seize the opportunity to perform, but the Chinese Communist Party’s large-scale political movements will accelerate the collapse of the regime.
Chen Yixin’s article, published on the front page of the CCP’s “Study Times” on April 29th, stated that the Ministry of State Security will combat subversion, hegemony, separatism, terrorism, and espionage.
Subversion is placed at the top of the “Five Anti” list. The article mentions that the CCP’s “anti-subversion defense war” aims to build a “steel Great Wall to safeguard political security” against Westernization, division by so-called “hostile forces”, and resolutely prevent and resist “color revolutions”, among other threats.
Chen Yixin also mentioned the need to eradicate the “soil affecting political security” internally, guard ideological battlegrounds such as the internet, universities, and particularly emphasized the firm removal of “nails” and internal traitors. However, the article did not clarify the target of “internal traitors”.
Mainland Chinese media headlines often highlight “removing nails and internal traitors”.
On April 30th, Lai Rongwei, Executive Director of the Taiwan Inspiration Association (TIA), told Epoch Times that the contents of the “Five Anti” reflect the current internal and external crises facing the Chinese Communist Party. Putting subversion at the forefront of the five anti-struggles illustrates that the ultimate goal of the CCP’s national security is to maintain regime stability. Additionally, Xi Jinping may have already identified the instability of his regime being linked to internal and external forces.
“Nowadays, the Chinese economy is not doing well, and he may say it’s not due to problems with his policy direction, but rather the impurity of ideology within cadres or collusion with foreign interests, even possibly the emergence of so-called traitors.”
Lai Rongwei believes that the publication of this article in a publication of the Central Party School is also aimed at the CCP’s party and government officials. “These people are very dissatisfied with Xi Jinping and may even collude with external forces, so the actions of the Ministry of State Security are now significant.”
Shen Mingshi, a researcher and director at the Taiwan Institute for National Defense and Security Research, told Epoch Times on April 30th that Xi Jinping has a strong sense of crisis regarding his regime, especially fearing subversion by Western countries. Therefore, he has taken many protective measures, including amending the Anti-Spy Law and recently arresting a Japanese scholar. The Ministry of State Security is a key component of the Central National Security Commission of the CCP, and in order for Chen Yixin to gain Xi Jinping’s favor, he must deliver concrete results. Hence, he has been involved in diplomatic affairs over the past two years.
Shen Mingshi stated that the CCP believes that many spies infiltrated China after opening up to foreign investment. They now aim to root out these individuals as if they were nails.
Since taking over the Ministry of State Security, Chen Yixin’s once secretive and powerful department has become increasingly high-profile, involved in diplomacy, finance, launching nationwide anti-spy campaigns, and directly threatening foreign companies. The Ministry of State Security has recently boasted of its “privileges,” claiming that security personnel have the right to use all public transportation without purchasing tickets and prioritized boarding in emergency situations. Anyone intentionally obstructing national security work may face criminal responsibility, warning, administrative detention, fines.
Shen Mingshi explained that Chen Yixin’s high profile and the past actions of current Politburo Standing Committee member Cai Qi are somewhat similar. When Cai Qi was clearing out “low-end population” in Beijing, he said to “make the knife red,” and after receiving Xi Jinping’s orders, he executed actions aggressively. Chen Yixin is now doing the same.
However, Lai Rongwei believes that Chen Yixin’s high-profile approach may backfire. If a department becomes too large and interprets “national security” excessively broadly, it will inevitably infringe on the people and clash with the interests of other departments, possibly leading to chaos within the CCP regime.
“If the powers of other departments conflict with those of the Ministry of State Security, they may be treated as spies and arrested. Foreign investors coming to China for development, if they want to withdraw their investments and leave, may be detained for reasons of national security; and when people protest in society, the CCP uses ‘national security’ to arrest individuals. Various forms of anger and dissatisfaction will gradually increase.”
Shen Mingshi believes that Chen Yixin’s efforts to showcase his performance may be aimed at securing positions such as the Secretary of the Central Political and Legal Affairs Commission in the future, or even joining the Politburo Standing Committee. He is currently trusted by Xi Jinping, and those around him are afraid to oppose him for fear of being targeted. However, if Chen Yixin ever loses power or Xi’s trust, these individuals may find the opportunity to retaliate against him.
Lai Rongwei stated that Chen Yixin’s proposal of the “Five Anti” reminds people of the “Three-Anti and Five-Anti” campaigns in the 1950s. At that time, as the CCP was establishing its regime, they carried out the “Five Anti” campaigns to reform the capitalist industrial and commercial sector and purge certain reactionary forces left by the Kuomintang.
In the 1950s and 60s, the CCP conducted two so-called “Five Anti” campaigns. The first campaign aimed at bribery, tax evasion, using inferior materials, embezzlement of state property, and theft of economic intelligence; the second “Five Anti” targeted corruption, speculation, extravagance, decentralism, and bureaucracy.
Numerous wrongful cases emerged during the CCP’s “Five Anti” campaigns, causing economic damage. Data shows that in Shanghai alone, from January 25th to April 1st, 1952, incomplete statistics indicated that there were 876 suicides related to the campaign, with an average of nearly 10 suicides per day, including many businessmen and families committing suicide together.
Shen Mingshi pointed out that due to Xi’s insecurity, Chen Yixin has the opportunity to perform, but the authorities’ large-scale political movements of purging individuals will impact the future of CCP rule. “In many authoritarian countries, the stricter the rule, the more repression, the more it leads to the collapse of the regime.”