Xi calls for army paper loyalty amid military reforms and job cuts
President makes first trip to party mouthpiece since taking control of the military amid plans for massive cuts to the nation’s armed forces
President Xi Jinping (習近平), also the head of the country’s military, has paid a rare visit to the headquarters of the PLA Daily in a sign suggesting he was trying to keep a tight grip on the top army mouthpiece amid sweeping military reforms and job cuts.
Xi, chairman of the Central Military Commission, called for the newspaper to uphold the Communist Party’s absolute leadership over the army and maintain a high degree of consistence with the party leadership, Xinhua reported.
It was first his visit to the newspaper since he became the military chief in 2012.
Xi also sat before a computer terminal and typed out a social media message to send a new year greeting to the army during his visit.
The president announced a major restructuring of the nation’s military earlier this year, including massive cuts in personnel and plans to create new command systems intended to organise land, air and sea forces into a more modern, efficient and combat-ready army.
Xi said the newspaper should rally support for the reforms from the rank and file of the military.
“Military propaganda work An excellent public opinion environment must be created for advancing the national defence and military reforms.”
The newspaper revealed a new editor-in-chief on the same day Xi visited the newspaper.
Major General Sun Jilian, former director of the PLA television publicity centre, has replaced Major General Tan Jian, who has turned the retirement age of 60.
The newspaper last month carried a rare article expressing concerns Beijing could destabilise the armed services and society if it went ahead with plans to restructure and slash the size of the country’s military without addressing the issues of salaries and pensions.
The article was by two senior researchers at the PLA National Defence University’s department of strategic education and research. Their public show of concern suggested Xi’s ambitious plans have met some resistance from within the military.
The president has pledged to cut the size of nation’s army by about 300,000 personnel.
The seven military commands of the PLA will be replaced by five new strategic zones in the biggest reforms of the military in decades.
“The PLA Daily must step up political awareness and strictly implementing the requirement of having the newspaper run by political [staff] to ensure only those loyal to the party control the newspaper,” Xi was quoted as saying.
The newspaper was founded in January 1956 and is celebrating its 60th anniversary.
Xi had always attached high importance to the newspaper’s status as the party’s official mouthpiece in the army, Xinhua said.
He served a secretary in the general office of the Central Military Commission from 1979 to 1982.
