Back to the future in China?

Chinese Defense Minister Lin Biao crashed on his way to Soviet Union (September 1971)

My article Back to the future in China? appeared in the Edit page of The Pioneer
Here is the link...

The large number of ‘Lin Biao incidents’ taking place all over China smell of political vendetta and render the current regime weaker than it has ever been. Does Xi realise this?

On September 13, 1971, a Chinese Trident 1E airliner crashed in Inner Mongolia; everyone on board was killed. The special flight carried Marshal Lin Biao, China’s Defence Minister and Vice-Chairman of the Central Military Commission (CMC). Lin, a great soldier and Mao Zedong’s heir apparent, was also one of the architects of the dreaded Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution. The official narrative says that Lin was fleeing to the Soviet Union after a failed coup against Mao when his airplane ran out of fuel. Observers, however, believe Lin was fleeing an impending purge in the military; some leaders had gained too much power for Mao’s liking. Was the crash an accident? A year later, when US President Richard Nixon asked Zhou Enlai, the Chinese Premier, about what happened to Lin, Zhou smiled and cryptically said: “Lin left on a trip to Moscow and disappeared en route.”
This story came back to mind, when on October 21, the news that the head of the Chinese Government’s liaison office in Macau died by falling from the building at his residence. According to the well-informed South China Morning Post: “Hong Kong officials and politicians expressed shock over the sudden passing of Zheng Xiaosong.” He had been ‘suffering from depression’, said the official statement issued by the Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office (HKMAO).
It was last year only that the 59-year-old cadre had taken up the post in Macau. A Press release from Beijing affirmed that “leaders of the Central Government have entrusted comrades from the HKMAO to travel to Macau and send condolences to Zheng’s family”. Zheng’s death came just a few days before the opening of the 55km-long Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau bridge, to be inaugurated by Chinese President Xi Jinping.
Interestingly, Zheng belonged to the Fujian gang of officials, who worked in Xi’s favourite Province: “I spent my beautiful youth in Fujian Province. It lasted for 17 and a half years since I started to work there in 1985…I experienced the process of Fujian’s reform and opening up, moving forward with great momentum and changing with each passing day,” once wrote Xi.
Soon after Xi Jinping came to power, Zheng was promoted secretary of Fujian Party’s provincial committee. In the meantime, officials in Macau were unanimous, “it is unfortunate, one should not speculate”. Let us not speculate, but strange things seem to be happening again and again in China. In November 2017, The New York Times reported: “A senior Chinese general who was under investigation for bribery has killed himself, a development that cast a shadow over President Xi Jinping’s expanding crackdown on corruption and dissent.”
General Zhang Yang, formerly in-charge of the People’s Liberation Army’s (PLA) General Political Department, was found dead in his home in Beijing. He hanged himself. Xinhua said General Zhang was living at home “while being questioned in connection with corruption charges”. The US newspaper added: “Suicides by top officials are almost unheard-of in China, and the ruling Communist Party appeared uncertain how to handle the death. State-run media gave no explanation for the five-day delay in disclosing the news.” General Zhang was called “a traitor and coward for taking his own life.”
The PLA Daily just said: “In committing suicide to avoid punishment from the party and the country’s laws, Zhang Yang’s action was abominable.” General Zhang was called ‘a two-faced’ general. But that was not the end of Zhang’s ordeal.  Last week, it was announced that he had been posthumously stripped of his Communist Party membership and military rank for corruption. His colleague Fang Fenghui, a former chief of joint staff, still alive, received the same punishment for seriously violating political discipline and Central Government rules banning extravagance and taking bribes.
In October 2017, The PLA Daily had reported that Xi Jinping had launched a sweeping anti-corruption campaign: “At least 13,000 military officers found to be involved in corruption have been punished over the past five years.” Apparently, Fang and Zhang were linked to former disgraced Central Military Commission vice-chairmen, Guo Boxiong and Xu Caihou. But were not all the Chinese generals linked to the CMC? There is indeed something strange going on. War on the Rocks, a US publication noted: “Fang and Zhang join a growing list of senior PLA officers that have been arrested, expelled from the Party, and imprisoned on corruption charges…All told, since Xi Jinping came to power in 2012, over 100 PLA general officers have reportedly been forcibly retired or placed under investigation.”
The article added: “This large-scale uprooting, however, is also likely to be driven in part by Chinese internal politics. Many of the senior officers that have been summarily fired and imprisoned are linked to Xi Jinping’s predecessors…As with Xi’s anti-corruption efforts against various civilian leaders, those targeted appear to be political rivals, although this is not to say they may not also be corrupt.” All these incidents (or accidents) create, to say the least, a strange atmosphere in the Middle Kingdom. The oddest has been the arrest of Meng Hongwei, the Interpol chief, when he recently disembarked in Beijing. Let us remember that it was a first time that China held such prestigious post in an international organisation (headquartered in Lyon, France). At the time of Mengs’ arrest, Public Security Minister Zhao Kezhi, presently in India to sign a bilateral agreement, convened a midnight meeting in Beijing to express ‘unanimous support’ for the probe against Meng and pledged, as usual, ‘absolute political loyalty’ to President Xi Jinping.
Meng’s insistence “on doing things in his own way means he has only himself to blame for being placed under investigation,” said a communiqué, which forgot that as the head of an international organisation, he is not supposed to take orders from the Communist Party. Meng was suspected of corruption and violation of laws which ‘gravely jeopardised’ the Party and the police; the same night, Interpol received Meng’s ‘resignation’ as president. Is it not strange that before vetting his name for the prestigious job in France, the leadership in China would have not checked Meng’s antecedents? Nobody can take the sudden accusation of corruption seriously, as it is not while posted in Lyon that Meng could have become rich. All this smells of political vendetta more than anything else. The large number of ‘Lin Biao incidents’ taking place all-over China, render the regime weaker that it has ever been.
Does Xi realise this?

Chinese troops intrude in Ladakh: a coincidence?

Gen Zhang Yang in Ngari

Xinhua has just reported that General Zhang Yang, a former member of the Central Military Commission’s (CMC) and the boss of the CMC’s Political Work Department, committed suicide last week.
The South China Morning Post said that a source close to the former Guangzhou Military Command confirmed that Zhang hanged himself at his home in Beijing on the morning of November 23: “the news of his death had been relayed to all People’s Liberation Army theatre commands."
Later Xinhua confirmed the circumstances of his death.
Zhang was apparently linked to former disgraced CMC vice-chairmen Guo Boxiong and Xu Caihou who have been sentence for “serious disciplinary violations” in other words, corruption.

A couple of months back, I posted the following comments:

Yesterday while announcing the appointment of new PLA Army and Air Force Chiefs, Han Weiguo and Ding Laihang respectively, The Nikei in Tokyo pointed out:

[about] the rest of the 11-member Central Military Commission, Gen Fang Fenghui, Li's predecessor as head of the Joint Staff Department, and General Political Department chief Gen Zhang Yang were reportedly arrested in late August on suspicion of ‘disciplinary violations’. The allegations are believed to involve graft, though details have not been disclosed.

The Japanese newspaper added:

Though such arrests are extremely unusual, the two officers are not the only Central Military Commission members ensnared in Xi's anti-corruption campaign. Guo Boxiong and Xu Caihou, both loyal to former President Jiang Zemin, were previously ousted over bribery allegations. Fang and Zhang reportedly had close ties to Guo and Xu, respectively.

Reuters asserted that during his monthly news briefing, Defence Ministry spokesman Ren Guoqiang declined to comment on Fang, who turns 67 next year, usually around the age at which Chinese officials retire.
It is getting hot in Beijing.

I re-post here a piece posted in September 2015 about Gen Zhang Yang on the Indian border.

September 13, 2015
Was it a coincidence?
Just the day before the new stand-off between the Indian and Chinese defence forces in Ladakh started, a senior member of the Chinese Central Military Commission visited the region.
Let us look at the facts.
As it already happened before the visit of Premier Li Keqiang to India in April/May 2013 and also as President Xi Jinping arrived in Ahmedabad in September 2014, the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) intruded on India’s territory.
The face-off is currently happening in Burtse area, a few miles east of Daulat Beg Oldie (DBO), where the 2013 confrontation occurred.
According to The Times of India, “the bone of contention is a surveillance structure being erected by the PLA very close to the Line of Actual Control (LAC).”
The Indo-Tibetan Border Police apparently objected to the construction of the structure and, with the help of the Army, stopped the PLA.
Subsequently, the PLA called for reinforcements, followed by a massing of more Indian forces in the area.
The Times of India said: “The two forces are still locked in an eyeball-to-eyeball confrontation and efforts are being made to defuse the situation.”

General Zhang Yang 'inspects' a farm in Ngari

The Coincidence
On September 9 and 10, a member of the all-powerful Central Military Commission visited Ngari Prefecture, which borders Ladakh, in Western Tibet. General Zhang Yang was in Tibet to ‘celebrate’ the 50th anniversary of the creation of the Tibetan Autonomous Region.
At the end of the main function held in Lhasa, the ‘Central’ delegation divided itself into different groups. As mentioned in a previous post, Yu Zhengsheng went to Shigatse and visited the Tashilhunpo.
Vice-Premier Liu Yandong went to Shannan (Lhoka) Prefecture, while Jampa Phuntsok ‘inspected’ Nagchu. Another ‘sub-delegation’ led by Du Qinglin, Vice-chairman of the CPPCC, went to Nyingchi.
General Zhang Yang headed for a two-day tour of Ngari Prefecture. He went to convey the ‘loving care’ and the ‘deep feeling’ of the CPC Central Committee, the State Council, and the Military Commission to the ‘cadres and masses of all nationalities’.
Note that ‘of all nationalities’, just means ‘Tibetans’.

Like his colleagues, General Zhang brought along a banner carrying President Xi’s words, ‘Strengthen National Unity and Construct a Beautiful Tibet’.
Zhang was accompanied by Lt. Gen. Xu Yong, commander of the Tibet Military District.
Speaking at the main function in Lhasa, Lt Gen. Xu Yong had, a day earlier, declared that after 50 years of vicissitudes, with the region's rapid economic development and social progress, the living standards of the masses’ have markedly improved and social stability has overall been sustained: “During these 50 years in the same boat, the troops stationed in Tibet and police staff always depended on the Party's to write the bloody battles to defend Tibet, carve a new chapter the history of Tibet.”
What does General Xu refer to, when he speaks of ‘bloody battles’? It is not clear. The 1962 conflict with India?
Xu lavishly praised his boss, CMC's Chairman Xi: “All the troops stationed in Tibet and police officers must resolutely obey the Central Military Commission and Chairman Xi command; conscientiously implement the Sixth Tibet Work Forum’s spirit; vigorously carry forward the heritage of the ‘Old Tibet Spirit’ and faithfully fulfill our mission of responsibility,… and make new and greater contributions for the great prosperity of the motherland and border stability.”
Nothing new!
Also in the delegation, was Wang Yongjun of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection (CCDI). A year ago, WantChinaTimes had reported that the CCDI’s boss, Wang Qishan had started ‘parachuting’ CCDI officials into key posts around China in order to strengthen the party's anti-graft campaign and bring new blood to certain regions.
In January, 2014, Wang Yongjun, formerly deputy dean of the China Discipline Inspection and Supervision Institute was transferred to head the Tibet regional branch of the dreaded (by the corrupts) CCDI.
The Political Commissar of the Tibet Armed Police Corps, Xiao Tang was also in attendance in Ngari.

Meeting the 'masses'

After the customary photo sessions with the ‘cadres and the masses’, (i.e. herders, farmers, toilers, etc.), the General who also heads the PLA’s Political Department, stressed “the need to thoroughly study and implement the spirit of the important speech Xi Jinping, in particular, his speech at the Sixth Work Forum and implement the good advices given by Yu Zhengsheng during the 50th anniversary function.”
He concluded, “seize the opportunity, work hard and continue to strive.”
This is the usual stuff.
But during his visit to Ngari, General Zhang Yang and his delegation “made a special trip to lay a wreath on the revolutionary martyrs’ cemetery.”
Which martyrs? 1962 again?
And perhaps more importantly, one line in the local press mentions that Zhang 'visited the troops'.
Was the 'political' general informed that the PLA was planning to build a structure in an area considered by India to be within her territory?
If Zhang was not informed, the PLA has a serious problem of command.
If he was informed, it is a serious issue for India.

PS: By the way, where was Lt. Gen. Peng Yong, the commander of the Xinjiang Military District, who looks after Ngari area?  Can a Yong (Xu) replace a Yong (Peng)?

Big Changes in the People’s Liberation Army?

General Zhao Keshi: he did not go to the border

A few weeks ago, The South China Morning Post had reported the possibility of sweeping reforms in the People’s Liberation Army (PLA).
One of these changes could be the phasing out of Soviet-style command structures which would be replaced by a US-style model.  the Hong Kong daily had further mentioned that the PLA’s seven Military Areas Command (MAC) could be merged into four only.
Till now, this was speculations only.
But this week, a Chinese military newspaper has openly called for the PLA to learn from the joint command system used by the US.
Writing in the Zhongguo Guofangbao (‘China National Defence News’), a publication of the PLA Daily group, a PLA officer, Li Wenqing said:

the PLA's outdated structure was the biggest obstacle to developing President Xi Jinping's vision of a modern army capable of defending the country and leading it to victory.

The South China Morning Post quoted a Beijing-based retired major general Xu Guangyu: "The article is so far the most explicit statement by a military news outlet to highlight the need to learn from the Western model."
Another analyst, a PLA senior-colonel noted:

It is almost certain the seven military commands will be remodelled [into] four, the air force and navy will be expanded, and some military departments and institutions will be integrated or even scrapped. …But it's foreseeable that such a big step would face strong resistance inside the army as many senior officials would be required to hand over powers.

Zhongguo Guofangbao attributed the US victory in the first Gulf war to its 'C4ISR' systems (computerised command, control and communications; intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance), saying that this was the model the PLA should follow, though it warned, “the overhaul would not only aggravate some existing disputes [within the PLA] but could also raise new problems. …[But] we should not stick to yesterday's paradigm when considering tomorrow's warfare."
Is it possible to make an omelet without breaking eggs, asks the French proverb.

Other reforms are in the pipeline.
As I already mentioned on this blog, during the September Grand Parade on the Tiananmen Square, Xi Jinping announced a 300,000 troops cut in the PLA (70 per cent of those cut would be officers in the land force).
Other 'reforms' are in preparation.
Earlier this week, The PLA Daily said  that the State Council and Central Military Commission (CMC) have approved a pension and insurance scheme under which all veterans decommissioned since last October would receive a one-off subsidy based on length of service. Local authorities would help them find new jobs and provide financial support.
Another big change is the large scale entry of the private sector in the development and production of military equipment and weapons. For the purpose, the license requirements for private companies to enter the defense sector, will be greatly eased.
The Beijing-based Economic Daily said that the State Administration of Science, Technology, and Industry for National Defense of China recently released an updated catalog of military equipment and weapons that require a license for production or development.
WantChinaTimes, a Taiwanese website wrote: “The number of categories that require a license has been streamlined and reduced from 1,988 in the previous edition of the catalog, published in 2005, to 755.”
Xinhua also announced that China will recruit more civilian personnel who could play a role within the PLA and the People's Armed Police Force (PAPF): “The spouses and offspring of military personnel who have fallen in the line of duty, and the spouses of those still in service will be eligible to apply for certain posts.”
The news agency added: “More positions will be made available for candidates with relevant work experience. It is hoped that the drive will improve recruitment in remote areas and unpopular positions.”
Many more changes are in the offing.

The entire Tibet in Chengdu MAC
Let us come back to the reform on the MACs.
When General Zhang Yang, a member of the Central Military Commission (CMC) visited Ngari (Western Tibet) after ‘celebrating’ the 50th anniversary of the so-called Tibetan Autonomous Region, he was accompanied by Lt. Gen. Xu Yong, commander of the Tibet Military District.
This surprised me as Ngari falls under the jurisdiction of the Lanzhou MAC, while General Xu is posted in the Chengdu MAC.
Before departing for Ngari (the Ladakh and Himachal border), Lt Gen. Xu Yong said in Lhasa that after 50 years of vicissitudes, thanks to the region's rapid economic development and social progress, the living standards of the masses have markedly improved and social stability has overall been sustained: “During these 50 years in the same boat, the troops stationed in Tibet and police staff always depended on the Party's to write the bloody battles to defend Tibet, carve a new chapter the history of Tibet.”
Which 'bloody battles to defend Tibet' is General Xu referring to, is not clear.
However, Xu Yong lavishly praised his boss, CMC's Chairman Xi: “All the troops stationed in Tibet and police officers must resolutely obey the Central Military Commission and Chairman Xi command.”
More importantly, why was Xu in Ngari?
It can only be seen in the context of the reorganization of the MACs.
Could Tibet, i.e. the border with India, be regrouped under one MAC only (Chengdu?) instead of two presently.
It is what the presence of Lt Gen Xu Yong seems to indicate.
And militarily, it would make sense for China.

General Zhao Keshi in Xinjiang

Another sign of the forthcoming changes?
A couple of weeks after General Zhang Yang’s visit to the Indian border in Ladakh, one of his colleagues of the all-powerful CMC, General Zhao Keshi, head of PLA's General Logistics Department attended the commemoration of the 60th anniversary of the founding of the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region.
He accompanied Yu Zhengsheng, Chairman of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) and member of the Politburo’s Standing Committee (No 4 in the Party).
Though General Zhao met senior military officers from the Xinjiang MAC, the Xinjiang Division of the PAPF and Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps (XPCC - an economic and semi-military organization), he did not go to the border.
During the same meeting with the troops and officers, Yu spoke of a 'protracted war' against terrorism, but nothing about the border with India (it was soon after the Burtse incident).
Instead of visiting the Ladakh/Aksai Chin area, falling under the Xinjiang Military District of Lanzhou MAC, General Zhao Keshi went to Turpan, in Xinjiang’s northwest to meet the ‘local residents’.
Reuters, quoting The PLA Daily, says that the PLA in Xinjiang are at the ‘centre of the storm’ when it comes to fighting militants and separatists: “Their job is more than just fighting,” said the article, “pointing to the thousands of activities they have arranged in the last five years going into villages to ‘explain the party’s ethnic and religious policies ... and refute rumours.”
It is certainly not an easy task to force Communism down the Uyghurs’ throats.
This could be one more reasons why Beijing is thinking of bringing the entire Tibet under the same MAC? We may not have to wait too long to know if it is Xi's intention.

Mirage in the High Himalayas

Same Senior Colonel (ext. left) with General Zhang Yang
in Ngari a few days earlier
Was General Zhang informed about Burtse?

After a swift victory, Julius Caesar is said to have bragged in the Roman Senate: “Vini, Vidi, Vici” (I came, I saw, I conquered). These historic words need to be adapted for the recent intrusion of the Chinese Peoples’ Liberation Army (PLA) in Ladakh: “they came, they saw, they built a tower, but they did not come.”
It is at least what Hong Lei, Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ spokesman affirmed in Beijing: "As far as I know, there is no such 'face-off' between China and India in the border area."
And of course, he added, China is committed to maintaining peace and tranquility on the border area.
Let us look at the facts from this side of the Line of Actual Control (LAC).

Indian officers with Chinese Senior Colonel
during flag meeting on September 8

As it happened before the visit of Premier Li Keqiang to India in April/May 2013 and also when President Xi Jinping arrived in Ahmedabad in September 2014, on September 11, the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) intruded on India’s territory.
The next day, it was reported in the Indian press that a face-off had occurred in Burtse area, a few miles east of Daulat Beg Oldie (DBO), where the 2013 confrontation had occurred.
According to The Times of India, “the bone of contention is a surveillance structure being erected by the PLA very close to the LAC.”
The Indo-Tibetan Border Police apparently objected to the construction of the structure and, with the help of the Army, stopped the PLA. Subsequently, the PLA called for reinforcements, followed by a massing of more Indian forces in the area.
On September 12, The Times of India said: “The two forces are still locked in an eyeball-to-eyeball confrontation and efforts are being made to defuse the situation.”
The nationalist Chinese newspaper, The Global Times, quoting Jiang Jingkui, director of the Department of South Asian Languages at Peking University counterattacked: “this is not the first time that Indian media has reported 'confrontations' that do not exist in the Sino-Indian border area. These news are often untrue, negative, misleading and aimed at provoking public opinion, and are harmful to the relationship between China and India."
Such media accusations are unreasonable, as Chinese troops have never intruded, he said. In other words, the PLA did not come, they not did see anything, they did not erect a tower.
Jiang added that this type of information always come from “a certain group of people, including the military, who are hostile towards China.”
Conclusion: the Indian side must have been victim of a high-altitude mirage.
Not only were the local Indian troops fooled by the visual phenomena (they quickly rushed reinforcements), but the Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) and other Long-Range Reconnaissance and Observation System, mistakenly saw the PLA troops entering Indian territory near Burtse, erecting a tower and later massing troops.
A more serious aspect has however not been mentioned in the Indian press.
Just a day before the stand-off in Ladakh (which never was, according to the Chinese!), a senior member of the Chinese Central Military Commission (CMC) visited the region.
A coincidence, you may think?
Or a mirage?
On September 9 and 10, a member of the all-powerful CMC visited Ngari Prefecture, which borders Ladakh, in Western Tibet. General Zhang Yang, Director of the PLA’s Political Department was in Tibet to ‘celebrate’ the 50th anniversary of the creation of the Tibetan Autonomous Region.
At the end of the grandiose function held in Lhasa, the ‘Central’ delegation split into different groups.
Yu Zhengsheng, chairman of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) and member of the Standing Committee of the Politburo, who headed the delegation, went to Shigatse and visited the Tashilhunpo, seat of the Panchen Lamas.
Vice-Premier Liu Yandong, also a member of the Politburo, headed towards Shannan (Lhoka) Prefecture, while Jampa Phuntsok, an old Tibet-hand ‘inspected’ Nagchu. Another ‘sub-delegation’ led by Du Qinglin, one of the CPPCC’s Vice-chairpersons went to Nyingchi, north of Arunachal Pradesh.
On September 7 in Lhasa, Yu Zhengsheng personally met the Army and the Armed Police; he urged them “to crack down on separatist forces and be ready to fight a protracted battle against the 14th Dalai [Lama] clique.”
Yu also asked the defence forces “to improve their abilities of governing Tibet according to law [sic], specifically cracking down on the separatist forces.”
The defence forces should uphold the correct ‘political direction’ and exert a larger role for safeguarding border stability and ethnic solidarity, he said.
Does it help to ‘safeguard border stability’ by crossing over to the neighbour’s side?
And this happened a day after General Zhang Yang spent 2 days in Ngari Prefecture. Officially, he came to convey the ‘loving care’ and the ‘deep feeling’ of the CPC Central Committee, the State Council, and the Military Commission to the ‘cadres and masses of all nationalities’, affirms the Chinese press.
Like his colleagues in other parts of Tibet, General Zhang brought along a banner carrying President Xi’s words, ‘Strengthen National Unity and Construct a Beautiful Tibet’. Interestingly, though Ngari depends upon Xinjiang Military District (MD), Zhang was accompanied by Lt Gen Xu Yong, commander of the Tibet MD and not Lt Gen Peng Yong, the Commander of Xinjiang MD.
A day earlier, speaking at the grand function in Lhasa, Lt Gen. Xu Yong had asserted: “During these 50 years in the same boat, the troops stationed in Tibet and police staff always depended on the Party to write [the history] of the bloody battles to defend Tibet.”
What ‘bloody battles’ does General Xu refer to? Battles in Ladakh during the 1962 conflict with India? We will probably never know.
Also in the delegation to Ngari, was Wang Yongjun of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection (CCDI). A year ago, WantChinaTimes had reported that the CCDI’s boss, Wang Qishan had started ‘parachuting’ CCDI officials into key posts around China in order to strengthen the party's anti-graft campaign and bring new blood to certain regions.
Wang’s presence may be an indication that heads could soon roll on this front too. Let us not forget that a ‘bloody’ battle against corruption, particularly in the PLA, is raging in the Middle Kingdom; more than 50 generals have already lost their jobs.
Apart from the customary photo sessions with the ‘cadres and the masses’, (i.e. herders, farmers, toilers, etc.), General Zhang Yang and his delegation “made a special trip to lay a wreath on the revolutionary martyrs’ cemetery,” said the Chinese press. Which martyrs? Of 1962 War again?
One line also mentions that Zhang 'visited the troops'.
This raises an important question: was the CMC’s member informed that the PLA was planning to build a structure in an area considered by India to be within her territory?
Let us presume that Zhang was not informed, it means that the PLA has a serious problem of command. A free for all in the PLA?
If he was informed, it is a serious issue for India (despite Beijing’s denial).
By the way, why did a Division Commander (Maj Gen Joshi) need to participate in a flag meeting if nothing had happened?

Stability, Stability, Stability, the new 'Tibet Mantra'

As the dust is settling down on the Potala Square in Lhasa, the time has come to take stock of the ‘grand’ event held last week in the Tibetan capital, namely the celebrations for the 50th anniversary of the foundation of the so-called Tibetan Autonomous Region (TAR); in other words, the dismemberment of the Roof of World in 5 parts (with the TAR remaining the largest one, parts of Tibet are now administered by Sichuan, Yunnan, Qinghai and Gansu provinces).
Beijing has been preparing the events for months.
Imagine, 2 White Papers published since March 2015, a full Politburo meeting (on July 30), a two-day Sixth Tibet Work Forum (on August 24 and 25), a new Leading Group on United Front Work to deal with Tibet affairs and numerous high-profile visits to Tibet reported from time to time on this blog.

Why should China spend so much time and energy on Tibet?
The Chinese propaganda will probably tell you: China loves Tibet.
A few days ago, China Tibet Online announced a photo contest on ‘Charming Tibet’ to be held in Beijing: “The event aims to provide a platform for Tibet enthusiasts and photography lovers to showcase and share the charm of Tibet through their lens. Outstanding photos will receive awards. …In order to objectively present Tibet’s achievements in economic development, peace and stability in Tibet over the past 50 years, the event encourages all amateur and professional photographers, domestic college students and foreign students to show to the world a real Tibet through their cameras.”
Today, everyone in China loves 'charming' Tibet .

Tibet is indeed ‘charming’ and Beijing is ‘rejoicing’.
On September 10, an article in China Daily says: “The now-50-year-old Tibet autonomous region has every reason to rejoice: The national regional autonomy mechanism is working well and benefiting ordinary Tibetans.”
This is the Golden Age, according to the Communist leadership, which takes the occasion to demolish the Dalai Lama’s Middle Path approach: “Yet the 14th Dalai Lama and those in Dharamsala of India will not be sharing the festive mood, for this is not what the Dalai Lama wants. The ‘high degree of autonomy’ he advocates is de facto independence. He wants the central government to forsake any military presence in the region and for the region to conduct its own diplomacy. This would mean the region becoming an independent sovereignty entity.”
It is not what the Dalai Lama has been advocating, but it is irrelevant for Beijing, which continues with its propaganda: “But for that to happen, he would first have to overturn the established jurisprudential truth that Tibet is a part of China. Which is impossible.”
It seems impossible today!

The doors to the negotiations are closed
This is one of the visible outcomes of the grand celebrations: the doors are closed for the Dalai Lama to discuss any ‘degree of autonomy’ with the Communist authorities in Beijing.
I arrived at that conclusion a few years ago, in my book The Negotiations that never were, but now Beijing openly says so, and it adds: “Even among the country's autonomous regions, Tibet has been the subject of envy for the policy favors it has received. Financial subsidies from the central government accounted for almost 93 percent of financial expenditures of Tibet from 1952 to 2014, not to mention the endless aid programs provided by dozens of central government offices, provinces and major State companies. And the sixth central conference [Sixth Tibet Work Forum] on Tibet has just promised further efforts to improve local living standards.”
Will economic measures be sufficient?
Beijing knows that it will not suffice, and that why the leadership is so nervous about the ‘stability’ of the region.
This was reflected in Yu Zhengsheng's program while in Tibet.

Yu met the generals: the Stability of Tibet
Apart from the political issue which seems sealed for the time being, to analyze the recent events on the Roof of the World, one has to look beyond the glamourous function in front of the Potala Palace.
In China, side-visits often speak more than grandiose parades.
Take for example the meeting of Yu Zhengsheng, chairman of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) with the representatives from the People's Liberation Army (PLA) and the People’s Armed Police Force (PAPF) posted in Tibet.
On September 7, Yu took the opportunity to urge the army, the police and the judicial staff “to crack down on separatist forces and be ready to fight a protracted battle against the 14th Dalai clique.”
Yu also asked the defence forces “to improve their abilities of governing Tibet according to law [sic], specifically cracking down on the separatist forces, strengthening social management and protecting the people's rights.”
The defence forces should uphold the correct ‘political direction’ and exert a larger role for safeguarding border stability and ethnic solidarity.
Yu also addressed through video conference the defence staff posted at the ‘stability-maintaining command centers’ in the seven prefectures across the plateau region, says China Tibet Online.
Yu praised the army, police and judicial staff's contribution to Tibet's stability and development, calling them a strong team that the Party can trust and the masses can rely on.

The Visit to Tashilhunpo monastery
The Chief Guest of the TAR’s ‘celebrations’ also visited Shigatse and the Tashilhunpo Monastery, the traditional seat of the Panchen Lama, as pointed out by the Chinese press.
But, as mentioned in a previous post, Gyaltsen Norbu, the Beijing-selected Panchen Lama, was nowhere to be seen.
He should certainly have been present in ‘his’ monastery, the Tashilhunpo, to receive the eminent member of the Politburo's Standing Committee.
His absence speaks a lot about the climate of insecurity in which the Chinese leadership lives. Beijing can’t even showcase their selected ‘leader’ and head of monastery!
Here too, like in Jokhang, Yu Zhengsheng held a banner with President Xi’s words, "Enhancing ethnic unity, building a beautiful Tibet”.
In his speeches, Yu highlighted again and again the importance ethnic unity and social stability.

Yu at the Tashilhunpo monastery

‘Ethnic Unity’ probably means ‘Unity between Hans and Tibetans under Han leadership.'
Yu affirmed that “the top priority of work in Tibet at present and in the near future is to strengthen ethnic solidarity and safeguard national unity, promote economic development while improving people's livelihoods, and to enhance social stability and harmony.”
Stability, stability, stability is the new Mantra of the Land of Snows.
In the monastery, Yu urged the Lamas “to observe religious precepts and national laws at the same time, further advance their religious studies.”
The Sutra of Stability to start with, Nirvana can wait!

Yu inaugurates the Lhasa-Nyingchi road
Perhaps more importantly (for India at least), Yu Zhengsheng presided over the opening ceremony of the new four-lane highway linking Lhasa with Nyingchi.
It is “expected to help tourism, assist regional industrial transformation as well as preserve border stability and bolster ethnic unity,” said Yu.
And like for any infrastructure in Tibet, it will have dual use: civilian and military.

The new road Lhasa-Nyingchi

Nyingchi (or Nyingtri for the Tibetans) is the prefecture bordering the Indian border (Arunachal Pradesh), still today claimed by China.
The article speaks of Dagze county as the terminus of the highway; it it probably Dagze Village, where the Benri La Mountain is located, 28 km of Bayi town (the PLA headquarters). It is a sacred site for the Bön tradition and one of the four great holy mountains in Tibet.
The construction of the highway started in 2013 and it has been built with an estimated investment of 6 billion U.S. dollars.
It is a game changer for India, but who is bothered in Delhi?
According to the information of Tibet Business Daily, the high-grade highway between Lhasa and Nyingchi is expected to start a trial operation on September 15.
On September 10, 2015, reporters drove from Lhasa to Maizhokunggar (Meldro Gungkar) County east of the Tibetan capital, testing the Lhasa-Nyingchi high-grade highway on this section. The whole journey took only  40 minutes.

General General Zhang Yang arrives in Ngari

General Zhang Yang visits Western Tibet
Xinhua reported that on September 9, General Zhang Yang, head of General Political Department of PLA and member of the Central Military Commission, visited Ngari Prefecture.
He was accompanied by Lt Gen Xu Yong, commander of the Tibet Military District Party (note that Ngari depends from the Lanzhou Military Area Command (MAC), while Central Tibet belongs to Chengdu MAC; therefore technically Lt Gen Xu Yong was not in his jurisdiction).
Zhang arrived by plane at Alikunsha Airport in Ali (Ngari) Prefecture, one of the 6 main airports in Tibet.
It is not said that if General Zhang Yang visited the close-by border areas (adjacent to Ladakh), though he was seen inspecting an ecological agriculture park in Gar[tok] County of Ngari Prefecture.
Did he go and see the seagulls (and the speedboats) on the Tibetan side of the Panggong Lake?
It was not mentioned by the Chinese press.
What is interesting to note is that it is the boss of the ‘Political Department’ who was selected to represent the PLA during the ‘celebrations’.
Does it mean that the 'political' situation is not 'stable?
Stability has certainly been that main focus of the recent Tibet celebrations and ‘Political Stability’ is bound to remain the Mantra for the years to come.
Bringing millions of tourists will not help solve the issue.