Think tanks with Chinese characteristics won't fully succeed in muzzling scholars

The vague term "with Chinese characteristics" has been used in the past by the authorities to defend the authoritarian system. At the meeting of the "leading group for overall reform" at the end of last month, President Xi Jinping called for the building of "a new type of think tank with Chinese characteristics".

In this instance, we should perhaps take it to mean "with overt government influence", or adhering to the party line, as Xi stressed at the meeting. But could such a think tank actually function properly and offer independent views, critical thinking or objective evaluation? It would probably end up justifying government policies rather than breaking new ground, for fear of crossing the "red line".

And what about the intellectuals and researchers at think tanks? There has been much debate about the role of public intellectuals even before Xi's remarks. In July, Wang Weiguang , the president of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, China's top think tank and research institution, said its members must be "red experts" (experts with the correct ideology) because the institution is not a "loose organisation of a bunch of freelancers who can say whatever they want or write whatever they please".

Wang's remarks led to heated discussion on the internet about whether academy members should be independent thinkers or the party's soldiers. One freelance writer, Shi Pingshan, claimed that what had upset Wang was the word "freedom". "So many conservatives still view it as frightening as 'flood or fierce animal'," Shi wrote.

Renowned scholar Wu Jiaxiang wrote in his Sina blog: "If the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences is not a loose organisation of freelancers, is it a cage for slaves?" Only a few netizens felt academy scholars should serve the government given that they are on its payroll; others pointed out that they are funded by taxpayers. The overall consensus seems to be that the scholars should be allowed to do their job - think independently.

However, several "black sheep" within the organisation have already got into trouble. In 2006, Lu Jianhua , an academy researcher and author of a controversial book Disasters Caused by the Leftists - a scathing examination of the disasters under the Communist Party - was jailed for 20 years for supposedly leaking state secrets. In truth, he was probably punished for his often critical view of the regime.

This May, liberal-minded scholar Xu Youyu was arrested and detained for attending a gathering commemorating June 4.