Strategy Insights Ep 98: Worldwide Chinese on High Alert！Beijing's Global Crackdown Who's Next?

Good morning, ladies and gentlemen. Welcome to Professor Ming's Strategic Insights. Just a few days ago, Beijing made an announcement saying that they had officially put into effect an act which is called Ethnic Unity and Progress Promotion Act. It sounds very good. They just put it into effect and starting July the 1st. Ever since its announcement, this act received much criticism around the world. But anyway, they put it into effect. But as I see it, there's much more to this act. Actually, this law has a deeper agenda. But let's talk about the surface level aspect first. People outside of China pay more attention to Article 63. It goes like this. Any organization or individuals outside of the People's Republic of China, if you have committed any acts which undermines the unity and progress of our nation or to create any kind of division inside our nation, your legal liability will be pursued in accordance with the law. That's the article people pay more attention to. So what China is saying is they're actually going to expand their extraterritorial jurisdiction. Now the question is, if any foreign countries or any organization outside of China or the individuals outside of China, they want to have some kind of exchange with Taiwan and other countries would have some diplomatic interaction with Taiwan, doing business with Taiwan, or doing religious exchanges with Taiwan, or even arms sales to Taiwan could be interpreted as supporting Taiwan independence and causing division among the Chinese people or undermining China's unity and progress. Could it be that way? So naturally, European countries or America or Canada, they all criticize this so-called extraterritorial jurisdiction idea. For instance, the State Department of the United States, this law or this act will force the people outside of China or what they call the overseas Chinese to support the ethnic policy or the national policy of the Chinese Communist Party. Otherwise, they'll be retaliated or would be pursued by Chinese law. The United States made it clear they're going to protect the people inside their country to avoid being oppressed or suppressed or even persecuted by foreign countries. And some people argue with the emergence of this act, it will further undermine the so-called cultural autonomy of the minorities inside China. They pay much attention to the preservation and the teaching of culture and language and the religion of the Tibetan people, of the Uyghurs, of the Mongols, or even of the Hong Kong citizens. And for some international human rights organizations, they tend to see this act extending or giving Beijing a new legal foundation for their transnational repressions. After all, they've been engaging in these kind of activities for a long time. For instance, Beijing has been caught by other countries like by the United States and also by France. Beijing has been engaging in illegal police activities in their own countries. And they were even stopped by the French police or by New York police at the airport. And that's really absurd. But anyway, that's actually what happened. So that's basically what international human rights organizations are concerned about, about this new act, about this new law. All these accusations, as I see it, are correct and also are legal. But in my opinion, they're still kind of shallow or kind of looking just at the surface value of the act. Like I said, there's a deeper agenda, much deeper agenda in this act. There's something, and this is a topic I'm going to turn to. For instance, although the title of the act is called National Unity and Progress, it's something about the nation or about the country. But actually, in fact, it is aiming at protecting or safeguarding the rule or the status of the Chinese Communist Party and its authorities. For instance, Article No. 2, it reads something like this. The business of promoting ethnic or national unity and progress must uphold the comprehensive leadership of the Chinese Communist Party. That's Article No. 2. It comes out very early in this act. And Article No. 20, it says the parents and teachers must guide and educate their children, love the Chinese Communist Party dearly. That's Article No. 20. And who should be responsible for all these things aside from parents and teachers? Articles from 44 to 46 says this. Educational institutions, mass media, business, family, religious groups such as temples and churches and any social organizations must be responsible for all these. So everything is included. Everybody is charged with this kind of legal responsibility of protecting or so-called safeguarding the national unity and progress. But in fact, it is safeguarding the rule of Chinese Communist Party. And that's for these. But look at Article No. 54. It says any citizen has the right to report to government authorities about any act or actions which undermines the unity and progress of the people. That is to say that the Beijing government encourages its people to snitch on each other. Actually, it has already happened in Hong Kong. Ever since July 1, 2020, the effect of the national security law in Hong Kong, Hong Kong students are now snitching on their professors and their teachers if they consider their statements or their discussions are deviating from the government line or the official line that can be reported to the government or to their superintendents. So that's really a bad thing for them to do. But what bothers us even more is we don't know how wide this act could apply to. For instance, does it have any kind of retroactive applications or retroactive effect? And does it target languages, actions, or even identities? Because all these things happened before under the rule of Chinese Communist Party. And all these charges could be nothing but catch all the charges, trumped up the accusations, and even moving red lines. So these are very troublesome. But anyway, like I said, these are all correct, but perhaps not even complete. The law may have some deeper agenda in itself. So what could this deeper agenda be? Well, the Chinese Communist Party is going to hold their 21st Party Congress next year in the year of 2027. And Xi Jinping seeks another term. The question is, it seems he doesn't have any major achievements to show for it. So if he really wants to seek another term, then he must come up with something. And getting Taiwan or incorporating Taiwan is, of course, the best choice. But what if that cannot be done because of incapability of the so-called Liberation Army or because of the intervention by foreign forces such as the United States or Japan or even other countries, European countries, and so on and so forth? So taking Taiwan by force seems impossible. But getting Taiwan closer from some help from inside Taiwan may be the best choice for them, as suggested by Secretary of State Marco Rubio. He mentioned that a couple of weeks ago. For the past few weeks, we've been reminding you that Beijing or Communist China has launched a new wave of propaganda war or cognitive war against Taiwan. And the main themes being promoted are things like, well, the United States is not reliable and maintaining status quo is impossible. So Taiwan should actively enter into a peace talk with mainland China or a peace negotiation with China. And for Taiwan, this is a choice between war and peace and so on and so forth. So the promotion or the promulgation of this new law, of this new act, the so-called National or Ethnic Unity and Progress Promotion Act is just another piece of a mosaic of this entire round of cognitive warfare against Taiwan. But again, as what I mentioned to you, as I reminded you last week, this new round of cognitive warfare is not just aiming at Taiwan. It will extend to the United States and you'll be bombarded by things like these. So what they're trying to do is to drive a wedge between the United States and Taiwan. And that's part of their grand strategy. So again, that's be alert and be vigilant. Well, I think that's all I want to share with you today. I hope you liked this program and please share it with your friends and please subscribe to it if I haven't done so. And do remember to click the icon bell so that you'll get an in-time notification. That's all for today. I'll see you next time.