Xi and us

Ronald Brownstein used to say that it is easier to climb to the penthouse from the fiftieth floor than from the basement.  To a great extent, this phrase explains political rise of Xi Jinping, the brand-new General Secretary of the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party and beginning in March 2013, the official President of the People´s Republic of China. Furthermore, President Hu Jintao broke with tradition and has ceded the Chairmanship of the Central Military Commission to Xi.

Xi is one of the princelings, a very exclusive circle, composed of the descendants of revolutionary heroes whom through alliances, marriages and, in particular, their privileged positions, have gained control of the threads of Chinese economic and political power. This red aristocracy has accumulated fortunes; they send their sons and daughters to study in the best universities of the world and have access to the best opportunities.

Nevertheless, we cannot be naïve to the point that we believe that Xi rose to the top only because by virtue of his connections or, as Chinese people say, guanxi. On the contrary, he graduated from Tsinghua University (which was the maximum educational aspiration of a Chinese young man at the time), and his life experiences allowed him to perfectly understand the grassroots of Chinese society. When prompted by the Washington Post, Zong Qinghou, the richest man of China nowadays according to Forbes Magazine, said about Xi, “he experienced hardships when he was young and working in the countryside, which gives him a profound understanding of the lower class and ordinary people.” This, in particular, is one of the most valuable qualities of Chinese political, academic and enterprise leaders: due to the historical time during which they were born, they have felt in their own backs the rigorousness of certain jobs, have seen hunger near them and thanks to all that, have acquired a sense of humbleness that leaders from other parts of the world seem to lack.

What are the main challenges that Xi will face in the international sphere? “China needs to learn more about the world, the world also needs to learn more about China,” Xi said during his first public speech as General Secretary. The key for enhancing that learning is to create a better dialogue in both the public and private sectors, in addition to increasing youth engagement. Latin American countries should emulate the program launched by President Barack Obama in 2009, which aims to have one hundred thousand Americans studying in China at the end of the four year period.

What are the main challenges that Latin America and Uruguay face in their relationship with the Asian giant? China needs Latin-American natural resources to maintain China's production levels as well as to guarantee food security of its population. Simultaneously, Latin America needs to incorporate added value to its commercial relationships with China by diversifying its exports. To accomplish this end, it is essential to structure creative joint-ventures between Chinese and Latin American companies to obtain the most of China´s Going Global policy.  China is a strategic partner for Uruguay, as Chinese companies have the capabilities for executing some of the infrastructure projects that the Uruguayan government has categorized as urgent. Our country will have to seize the fact that Xi is a “friend-leader”.

China is a marvelous country and with its new leadership, a new hope arises. There is a hope that all China's citizens can have the same opportunities, without special privileges. Hope of defeating the corruption and bureaucracy that affect millions of Chinese citizens. Hope that China will definitively assume its role as a global leader and continue to collaborate in finding an end to the world economic crises. Ultimately, as Warren Bennis said, leadership is the capacity to translate vision into reality. Let´s hope that Xi Jinping will be able to translate his, provided he continues the opening up and reform path initiated by Deng Xiaoping in 1978.