Key Beijing Conclave Emphasizes Xi’s Leadership, Hints at Tough Stance on Hong Kong

Chinese leader Xi Jinping walks past an honor guard as he approaches the Monument to the People's Hereos during a ceremony to mark Martyr's Day at Tiananmen Square in Beijing on Sept. 30, 2019. Mark Schiefelbein-Pool/Getty Images

The Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) fourth plenary session concluded on Oct. 31, with state media reports emphasizing that Chinese leader Xi Jinping is the core of the Party’s leadership, indicating that his faction remains dominant.

The plenum communique also mentions the need “to safeguard national security” in Hong Kong and Macau, leading many observers in Hong Kong to believe that Beijing has plans to reintroduce a controversial “national security” legislation.

Xi’s Position

As previously mentioned during Xi’s speech at the opening of the plenum, the Party’s top officials discussed “promoting modernization of the state governance system,” according to the communique published by Chinese state-run media Xinhua. The Party has previously used similar wording to describe its high-tech surveillance apparatus, such as its artificial-intelligence-enhanced security cameras and social credit system.