China’s Xi Jinping Re-Emerges in Public After Quarantine
The Chinese leader is taking center stage ahead of a Communist Party conclave at which he is expected to secure another term in power
BEIJING—Chinese leader Xi Jinping got out of quarantine and made his first public appearance since visiting Central Asia, trumpeting his governance record over the past decade as he prepares to extend his rule for a third term.
Until Tuesday, Mr. Xi hadn’t appeared in public since his trip earlier this month to Central Asia, where he met with Russian President Vladimir Putin, because he was abiding by quarantine protocols that China imposes on people returning from overseas travel, according to people familiar with the matter.
China, one of the world’s last countries to maintain its strict Covid-19 regime, requires people entering mainland China to quarantine in a hotel for seven days, followed by three days of medical surveillance at home. In some cases, people are allowed to get a government waiver to serve the 10-day quarantine at home. It couldn’t be determined whether Mr. Xi did his quarantine at home or in a hotel.
Mr. Xi’s name has dominated the front pages of major party newspapers and prime-time newscasts on state television, even during the roughly 1½-week period when the Chinese leader didn’t make any public appearances after returning from Central Asia.
On Tuesday afternoon, Mr. Xi toured a major exhibition in Beijing that showcased China’s achievements under his leadership since late 2012, when he first took office as Communist Party chief. The exhibition comprised more than 6,000 displays and elements recounting key moments in recent Chinese history, including efforts under Mr. Xi to revitalize the economy, modernize the military and combat the Covid-19 pandemic, state media reported.
Authorities must “widely publicize the strategic measures, transformative practices, breakthrough progress, and landmark achievements of the past 10 years,” Mr. Xi told senior officials who toured the exhibition with him, according to state media.
The tour comes just weeks before the party opens its twice-a-decade national congress on Oct. 16, when Mr. Xi is widely expected to claim a third five-year term as party leader and break from the 10-year leadership cycle that his predecessor set.
Mr. Xi has often used such major exhibitions to rally public support for his leadership, and they offer a window into his policy priorities. His latest tour came on the heels of other pieces of political stagecraft, seemingly designed to bolster Mr. Xi’s image as a wise leader and global statesman.
Earlier this month, Mr. Xi traveled to the Central Asian states of Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan for his first overseas visits since early 2020, a trip that featured a summit with leaders of regional partners, including his first in-person meeting with Mr. Putin since the start of the Ukraine war. Officials said the meetings underscored Beijing’s commitment to its strategic partnership with Moscow, a relationship underpinned by Mr. Xi’s personal ties with Mr. Putin.
Officials and state media have stepped up a publicity blitz extolling Mr. Xi in recent months. Since April, the party has arranged about three dozen news briefings to promote the Chinese leader’s governance record, in a series titled “China in the Past Decade.”
This week, the party announced that a total of 2,296 people have been selected as delegates to the October congress. Officials said Mr. Xi personally directed this selection process, demanding rigorous checks on candidates’ qualifications and moral integrity.
Mr. Xi was chosen as a congress delegate in April, when party cadres in the impoverished southern region of Guangxi backed him in a unanimous vote. The official Xinhua News Agency recounted that vote in a report on Tuesday, proclaiming that “the election of the party and nation’s leader is the coalescing of the entire party’s will, and the manifestation of the hearts and minds of the party and the people.”