Shoes lobbed at Nawaz, ink thrown on minister
BEIJING: President Xi Jinping can now continue after his tenure ends in 2023 as China on Sunday amended its Constitution to remove the two-term limit, amid fears expressed by experts at home and abroad that he is building a cult of power and personality around himself.
The move effectively means that Xi could remain president for life. As many as 2,958 deputies of the National People’s Congress (NPC), China’s rubber-stamp parliament, voted in favour of changing the Constitution; two voted against it and three abstained. The NPC also granted constitutional authority to the ’Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era’.
China has had a two-term limit for presidents since 1982. On Sunday, that limit was officially scrapped at the Great Hall of the People. The decision was a foregone conclusion after it was made public a week before the annual session of the NPC that started on March 5. A report in the official Xinhua news agency made it public on February 25.
Since he took over as Communist Party of China (CPC) general secretary and then as president in 2013, the 64-year-old former governor of Fujian province has gradually consolidated power, taking control of China’s key ISLAMABAD: As general elections approach and Pakistani politicians return to their constituencies to muster support, the anger of some people on how the government has performed seems to be coming to the fore.
On Sunday, two men lobbed shoes at ousted prime minister Nawaz Sharif while he was addressing a gathering i n Lahore. On Saturday, a man threw ink at foreign minister Khawaja Asif during a workers convention in Sialkot. The same day, a shoe was hurled at interior minister Ahsan Iqbal in his home constituency of Narowal. So far, all the attacks have been on the ruling PML-N politicians.
Sharif was attacked as he reached the podium to deliver a speech at an event organised by the Jamia Naeemia outside a madrassa. The shoe hurled by a man hit him between the neck and shoulder.
The attacker then jumped on the stage and raised slogans in favour of Mumtaz Qadri – the institutions. He is the chairperson of the powerful Central Military Commission and was designated the “core” of the party in 2016.
Soon after taking over, Xi launched a massive anti-corruption campaign, which, his critics say, was used for purging his political opponents, besides netting thousands of officials.
His international connectivity and infrastructure programme, the Belt and Road Initiative has garnered worldwide attention with dozens of countries joining it.
Speculation that Xi intended to stay beyond his tenure was rife in the run-up to the once-infive year CPC congress last October. The speculation got stronger when, breaking from tradition, Xi didn’t appoint a successor at the end of the October congress.
It was later revealed that Xi had presided over a meeting on the CPC politburo as early as September when it was decided to change the Constitution.
The move has faced both domestic and international criticism.
“China needs a certain amount of centralisation. But what do we do after the centralisation ? If it is back to the Mao era, of course, the centralisation is a bad thing ,” said professor Hu Xingdou, a Beijing-based expert.
As many as 2,958 deputies vote in favour of changing the Constitution
killer of Punjab governor Salman Taseer – before fainting as the crowd tackled him down.
Meanwhile, another man hurled his shoe at the former premier, nearly hitting him.
Sharif appeared shaken by the incident which also suggests the challenges his party faces from militant religious parties, some of which were once allies of his government.
The attacks on key members of the ruling party have been going on during the past week. On Saturday, a man was taken into police custody after he threw ink at foreign minister Khawaja Asif during his speech at the PML-N workers convention in Sialkot.
Asif, however, directed the concerned authorities to release the suspect.
The same day, a man lobbed a shoe at Iqbal while he was addressing a workers’ convention in Narowal.