CCP Officials Opting to ‘Lie Flat’ in Passive Resistance to Xi: Analysis

Facing difficulty satisfying the most potent Communist totalitarian, his officials chose to ‘lie flat’ and do nothing, a political observer says

Attendants wait to lead delegates to small group discussions of the draft of the anti-secession law during the second plenary session of the National People's Congress, or parliament, on March 8, 2005 in Beijing, China. Cancan Chu/Getty Images

News Analysis

A recent article in a Chinese Communist Party (CCP) magazine quoted the party leader expressing dissatisfaction with officials’ passivity and inactivity. Analysts see this as a sign of “lying flat,” or passive resistance to Xi Jinping’s growing centralized power within the party.