Recently, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) released the “Anti-Waste Regulations” and through its party media, emphasized that party and government agencies should “take the lead in tightening their belts”. CCP Politburo Standing Committee member Cai Qi subsequently went to Tangshan, Hebei to emphasize the need to strictly crack down on “wining and dining”. Experts believe that this move not only reflects the CCP’s ongoing financial constraints but also serves as part of internal political purges.
According to a report by CCP’s official Xinhua News Agency on May 18, the CCP Central Committee and the State Council recently jointly released a revised version of the “Regulations on Strict Economy and Anti-Waste in Party and Government Agencies” and issued a notice requiring strict implementation at all levels of government. The “Regulations” further strengthen the requirements for economy, imposing strict restrictions on official trips, receptions, meetings, and implementing a “responsibility system to combat waste” to hold accountable those who tolerate wasteful practices.
In a commentary published in the People’s Daily on the 19th, the regulations were described as an “upgraded anti-waste system dam”, calling for the limited financial resources to be used effectively, promoting a culture of thriftiness starting from party and government agencies, and creating an atmosphere of “waste is shameful, thrift is honorable”, urging everyone to “take the lead in tightening their belts”.
Chinese independent political scholar Chen Daoyin told Radio Free Asia that historical experience shows that whenever China’s economy faces difficulties, the CCP issues directives for economy measures. He cited examples such as the brink of economic collapse in 1980 and during the 1997 Asian financial crisis, where similar policies were implemented.
At the same time, the central government is promising significant financial aid to foreign nations, such as a recent announcement to provide a credit line of 66 billion RMB to Latin American countries, indicating that the belt-tightening measures primarily target local governments and grassroots public servants, with the central government’s spending remaining unaffected.
In response, Lai Rongwei, Executive Director of the Taiwan Inspiration Association (TIA), stated that the CCP’s push for austerity measures is not a new tactic but a recurring theme over the years, reflecting the unresolved contradictions within the entire system.
As early as 2019, the CCP government has been sending out signals to cut spending. On March 1st this year, Finance Minister Liu Kun stated at a State Council press conference that “adhering to the principle of tightening belts in party and government agencies is unwavering”, highlighting that general expenditure by central departments has been reduced for four consecutive years, emphasizing that “government austerity is not a short-term measure but a long-term policy to be adhered to”.
Lai Rongwei pointed out that while the CCP claims to be socialist, it has long accommodated capitalist elements, leading to institutional gray areas and dual operations. Under this structure, officials easily exploit their position for personal gain, especially in the absence of electoral and oversight mechanisms.
Lai Rongwei mentioned that in a one-party system, bureaucrats are only accountable to their superiors, not to the people, resulting in imbalanced public resource management. He stated, “The CCP’s operation relies on obedience to superiors and performance, causing local officials to rely on performance achievements for promotion, inevitably leading to projects for achievements and resource wastage.”
“Unless there are massive layoffs, genuine cost-cutting is impossible.” He anticipates that there may be disguised layoffs, salary reductions, pay freezes, and even reclaiming past allowances and subsidies in the future.
Of particular note, Lai Rongwei believes that behind the slogan of “we’re all in this together,” lies the possibility of the CCP reactivating methods from the Mao era for mass mobilization. He said, “The future may see encouragement for youths to go to rural areas for collective labor, as well as political study campaigns to divert public anxiety and discontent.”
In addition, CCP Secretary Cai Qi conducted inspections and chaired discussions in Tangshan, Hebei from May 16 to 17. At the meeting, he emphasized that learning and implementing General Secretary Xi Jinping’s important instructions on party building is a focus this year, and the spirit of the central government’s eight regulations must be implemented, cracking down on “wining and dining” and inaction, holding delinquent officials accountable.
Legal scholar Yuan Hongbing, currently in Australia, stated in an interview with the Epoch Times that no matter how dire the economic situation may be, the CCP’s party and government agencies would never actually lack funding, and the core of this current purge is to carry out selective attacks on disloyal officials under the guise of an “anti-waste campaign”.
Yuan Hongbing believes that this wave of crackdown led by Cai Qi, which is named as combating extravagant waste, is actually a political purge masquerading as a rectification campaign, targeting disloyal officials under vague charges.
Recently, the “Xi Jinping faction” has faced an unprecedented purge. Since Xi came to power, out of the 79 senior generals he personally promoted, at least 10 have been confirmed to fall from grace or be dismissed, with another 12 rumored to be under investigation, resulting in an overall “incident rate” exceeding 20%. Who is behind this large-scale cleaning operation?
Yuan Hongbing stated that core confidants of Xi Jinping, such as Miao Hua and He Wenlong, whom Xi personally promoted, have been found to be extremely disloyal to him, highlighting the structural predicament faced by autocrats.
Yuan Hongbing emphasized that Xi Jinping is actually facing internal instability and a crisis of loosened power within the party, especially on the eve of the Fourth Plenary Session, where he needs to cleanse dissent to maintain authority. However, Xi’s efforts are doomed to fail.
From a comprehensive perspective, the CCP’s promotion of the “belt-tightening” policy appears to be aimed at financial austerity and combating extravagance on the surface but serves multiple goals concurrently: it is an emergency response to financial constraints, as well as laying the groundwork for political purges and cleaning up the bureaucratic system.
Against the backdrop of economic decline and increasing societal pressures, the slogan of “we’re all in this together” may become a new normal in the governance of the CCP regime.