Why China’s students now face a longer long march to join the Communist Party
- As Xi Jinping puts his hopes for the future of the party on the younger generation, the focus for party membership has been on quality rather than quantity
- Number of those aged below 30 joining the organisation has dropped as prospective members face a stricter recruitment process
Ray Wu’s application is in the system.
To show his “sincerity”, he painstakingly handwrote the submission. “I took it as a test of my … willingness to go the extra mile to join the party,” he said.
The university’s student mentor in charge of party affairs formally accepted his membership application a week later but even for someone as keen as Wu, this is only the beginning of the process – he must now get through vigorous political screening by the party committee that lasts two years on average. Over that time, the committee will check that he truly identifies with the party’s ideals and is loyal to its leadership.
Yet the long march of Wu and his future comrades is becoming more difficult. They have been facing a stricter political review in the past few years, according to party committee instruction documents on the websites of various Chinese universities.
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