, F. L6 y! G8 y) v( c$ x* n) dHu's visit spotlights China's two faces ) ]* B n; T9 `( F! G5 B4 L5 S 1 H7 l+ U8 I' ]& z# @! {! ]Washington Post Foreign Service6 b% S" Q' z' I8 Q. `: y
Sunday, January 16, 2011 U9 w& B$ }( h* X- F# V
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HONG KONG - When Hu Jintao visits the United States on Tuesday, he'll have a regal entourage of aides, bodyguards and limousines. But the Chinese leader will leave behind in Beijing the most potent totem of his power: the title of general secretary of the Chinese Communist Party. 0 Y9 q; e: M7 w1 K* Q" R5 y) k& q7 f/ W8 O5 |# d/ F
He's not giving up his day job as head of the world's largest political organization, but during his four-day U.S. trip, he'll assume an alternative identity. He'll be greeted at the White House and a Chicago auto-parts factory as Mr. President, a made-for-export alias used mostly for encounters with foreigners. ; J; ~4 ?- ^& Q( e* l - _( \" Q8 C5 b5 U5 }5 ?; J tThe morphing of roles flows from the protocol of his mission. Hu travels to the United States to represent China as a nation, not just its ruling party. But the shift obscures the true nature, and also curious limitations, of Hu's authority - his stewardship of a sprawling party apparatus that stands above all formal institutions of government but is no longer a rigid monolith obedient to a single leader. It also helps explain why Washington often has so much trouble figuring out who is making decisions in Beijing and why. ( m& ^3 Z0 D9 S: ]: {/ T5 ` O& Z, U& a0 B+ T/ r
中国党政不分 华府困扰 * `0 Z- f9 t% e) o身兼多项要职的胡锦涛十八日访美时,他是以中华人民共和国主席之姿、而非另一个更有份量与权势的头衔——中国共产党中央委员会总书记,亲临华府白宫与美国总统奥巴马举行会谈。 & A( F; q! @+ v7 G/ L& X/ E * r" {( [' x3 Y 北京到底谁当家?老美很困惑6 K0 ~# `* f, M! X- C. R: X4 t
0 o0 J+ W/ k& t) h* |* y3 R) P 胡锦涛当然没有放弃中共总书记一职,暂时转换头衔只是为了符合此行宗旨——代表中华人民共和国,而非中国共产党出访。以党领政或党政不分对中国人或许稀松平常,但看在外人眼中,此等党政权力重叠却徒增困惑,模糊了胡锦涛的权限本质与局限,也是华府经常搞不清谁才是北京当家作主的老大,以及为什么是这样的重要原因之一。 - W6 U- v1 E" N j+ Y9 `" c % t5 F0 k2 G. f s6 T 随着中国日益强大与富裕,北京领导人的权限反而更为分散与不集中,甚至说更为大权旁落。即便是党政军“一把手”胡锦涛,有时也会被部属蒙在鼓里,特别是人民解放军。此外,中国的朝鲜政策虽以国家利益为本,但亦未放弃与朝鲜劳动党的多年密切关系,以致负责朝鲜事务的单位并非中国外交部,而是中共中央对外联络部。对美国而言,中国在朝鲜事务上的任何决策,都是黑箱作业。 - w5 p& `! X" j, v$ ^8 d, ?7 t) B! x
走过强人时代 中共采集体领导制 6 t, Y) ] T# s r9 ` ( w8 S* `% R% Z' `% i* Z4 ^9 M8 y 前克林顿政府副助理国务卿谢淑丽(Susan Shirk)指出,当今中国政体已非由毛泽东或邓小平的单一强人统治,而是集体领导式的寡头政治。自一九九七年邓小平过世以来,中国中央领导阶层的权力分散更加迅速,反映出官僚共识妥协的结果。党员八千万人的中共权力无边,总能迅速打压对党权威的直接挑战。中国日后在外交决策上会变得与美国愈来愈像,但两者仍存有一大差异,即“天听”始终只闻其声,但不见其人。 * ~% ~4 G- w1 Y* l U1 b7 {" ?( F% `5 Q" t9 t
谢淑丽说,这正是外国与中国交往最大的挫折与矛盾来源;中国市场经济向世界敞开双臂,但其决策过程却极其隐晦。! o( ^; P$ `7 l8 j9 _( b
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当胡锦涛明年交棒给内定接班的国家副主席习近平后,过渡时期的高层动态是否会让民族主义与反美势力更为猖獗?中国高层向来行事审慎,但一个既封闭但又包容冲突的压力(包括公众舆论)的政治体制下,专断、不认错与残酷好斗,或许是高层最佳的行事之道。胡锦涛本次访美,华府决策者也将密切观察北京权力转移的蛛丝马迹。 5 W9 w j. l! q) I) K5 A$ u2 i/ ?8 ^: N$ }& f8 ?6 Y6 ~) Z" k7 L % Q5 i- p/ A9 ~本次胡奥会将对2011年的中美关系走势具有重要的指标意义