Asia Times: Two votes against, three abstentions: Xi secures power in perpetuity
China's rubber-stamp parliament passes a constitutional amendment removing presidential term limits – thereby giving Xi Jinping almost total authority
The path was cleared on Sunday for China’s Xi Jinping to rule the country indefinitely as its rubber-stamp parliament passed a constitutional amendment removing presidential term limits.
The amendment was passed almost – but not quite – unanimously, with two “no” votes and three abstentions, against 2,957 in favor. Party members’ loyalty belied a wave of criticism of the move among internet users, a wave which censors have taken care to extinguish. The amendment was revealed by the Communist Party just last month.
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Commentaries, Analysis, And Editorials -- March 11, 2018
China’s Xi joins Russia, Zimbabwe in global autocrat club -- Joe McDonald, AP
Xi's life mandate seals march of the strongmen -- AFP
The China-India tango -- Khurram Husain, DAWN
How China Interferes in Australia: And How Democracies Can Push Back -- John Garnaut, Foreign Affairs
Godspeed, Trump and Kim. What's the Backup Plan? -- Albert Hunt, Bloomberg
A Summit Failure Would Hurt Trump More Than Kim -- James Gibney, Bloomberg
Vietnam’s aged communists ruling on borrowed time -- David Hutt, Asia Times
Iran's Mullahs Have No Answers -- Ali Safavi, RCW
The treacherous relationship between Pakistan’s intelligence agency and the CIA -- Anthony Lloyd, New Statesman
Putin Is Not Bluffing about Confronting the West -- Andranik Migranyan, National Interest
Putin’s Russia: From basket case to resurgent superpower -- Angela Charlton and Naira Davlashyan, AP
Warning signal for Europe from Slovakia -- Keno Verseck, DW
Moldova’s Conflict: Unfreezing, In a Good Way? -- Thomas de Waal, Carnegie Europe
Trump tariffs may imperil a delicate global economic rebound -- Paul Wiseman, AP
Trump's Tariffs are a Trade Tool -- Samuel Rines, National Interest
