CHINA Beijing creates a new body to monitor civil society

The new Department of Social Work of the Communist Party of China got going with a low profile. Its goal is to tighten control over private companies and other social organizations, as well as deal with the complaints system. It is also believed that it has the function of acting as an intelligence agency. In the 1940s, a similarly named body persecuted the Kuomintang and participated in the purges.

Beijing () – It is called the Department of Social Work and the official Chinese media reports that it formally came into operation not long ago. It is a new body of the Chinese Communist Party whose function would be to extend the Party’s tentacles over the public sector, private companies and social organizations. The authorities keep a low profile on this new Department within the Party and the structure of the organization has not been disclosed either. But analysts believe that the new body also has the function of collecting social information and doing intelligence.

The decision to create it was announced in March during the sessions of the National People’s Assembly. In the restructuring scheme, the Social Work Department of the Communist Party of China is in charge of the complaint system that allows citizens to file complaints and complaints about wrongdoing by the authorities. It should be recalled that the authorities have often been accused of preventing citizens from complaining, and even of imprisoning and harassing those who resort to a higher hierarchy in retaliation. It is believed that the Department will have the function of maintaining social stability.

The Department of Social Work is also tasked with entrenching the Party in civil society. The structures of the CCP within private companies and societies, industrial associations, chambers of commerce, and other social organizations are under the direction of this Department.

The Chinese authorities have not formally announced who is responsible for this new body. However the boss, Wu Hansheng (吴汉圣), appeared in the official media with the new title of him and participated in a conference on the complaint system. Meanwhile, official media reported that the deputy chief, Liu Zheng (柳拯), delivered a speech at a congress on industry associations and chambers of commerce.

In the history of the Chinese Communist Party, between 1939 and 1949 there was already a body with a similar name, the Central Department of Social Affairs, which acted as an intelligence agency. During the civil war, the Department’s main target was the nationalist Kuomintang, and at that time it also participated in purges within the Party.

Analysts believe the new department will try to penetrate various aspects of society and tighten control over the private sector and non-governmental organizations. In recent years, private companies and foreign companies have been ordered to set up Party committees within companies.

Some commentators also point out that the new body shares a similar function to that of the United Front Work Department, as the latter covers private companies and the “new social classes”, i.e. employees of private and foreign companies, professionals, self-employed and people working in emerging industries.