中國習近平在與阿里巴巴馬雲等商界領袖的會晤中承諾保持政策穩定

Recently Yahoo News on-line picked up the following:

China's Xi promises policy stability at meeting with business leaders, including Alibaba's Jack Ma

Huizhong Wu

Mon, February 17, 2025 at 6:56 a.m. PST·3 min read

The Associated Press

BANGKOK (AP) — China's President Xi Jinping met with private sector business leaders on Monday, offering them assurances that policies regarding the private sector would not change, state media reported, as government officials work to revive an economy disrupted by a pandemic, regulatory crackdowns and a real estate crisis.

Among those present was Alibaba founder Jack Ma, who was part of a focus on a crackdown on the tech industry in recent years.

Xi told the audience that the Communist Party and the government's approach towards the private sector has been incorporated into “the socialist system with Chinese characteristics," which is how the party describes its governance, according to state broadcaster CCTV. “They cannot and will not change,” said Xi.

The president also said the government would “sincerely protect the legal rights of private businesses and entrepreneurs, according to the law.” But, “at the same time, we must realize that our country is a socialist country ruled by law, and any type of illegal activities by enterprises cannot avoid investigation and punishment.”

The words of assurance were made after Beijing launched a crackdown on the tech sector in 2020 to break down monopolies and implement strict data regulations.

One of the most public faces of that crackdown was Ma, who founded e-commerce firm Alibaba in the 1990s and was once China’s richest man. He has kept a low profile with few public appearances in recent years after he publicly criticized China’s regulators and financial systems during a speech in Shanghai.

Other business leaders at Monday's meeting in Beijing were Zeng Yuqun, the chairman of battery developer CATL, Wang Chuanfu, chairman of electric cars manufacturer BYD, and Pony Ma, the CEO of Tencent, which owns WeChat, according to a video of the meeting from state broadcaster CCTV and a state media report.

Xi said he hoped private businesses will continue to “get rich first, and then promote common prosperity,” a reference to a program to encourage development and close the wealth gap. Alibaba previously pledged $15.5 billion to the cause, while Tencent pledged $7.7 billion.

Earlier on Monday, a two-paragraph report about the meeting which originally had been carried by state media was subsequently deleted. Instead, a search online revealed a shorter state media statement which had cut out the names of those present.

A later readout of the meeting carried Xi's speech, and mentioned the names of some of those present, but not Ma.

Ma, one of the wealthiest men in the country, gave a speech in Oct 2020 in which he said regulators were too conservative. The government responded by scuttling his plans for Ant Group 's stock market debut. The finance-focused business grew out of Alipay, the popular digital payments system. It then forced Ant Group to restructure, dividing it into multiple independent businesses.

Alibaba was also investigated and fined $2.8 billion for breaching antitrust rules.

Translation

中國習近平在與阿里巴巴馬雲等商界領袖的會晤中承諾保持政策穩定

曼谷（美聯社）— 據官方媒體報道，中國國家主席習近平周一會見了私營企業領袖，向他們保證私營企業的政策不會改變，目前政府官員正在努力重振因疫情、監管打擊和房地產危機而受到破壞的經濟。

出席者包括阿里巴巴創辦人馬雲，他是近年來打擊科技業行動的重點對象人士之一。

據中央電視台報道，習近平告訴出席人士，共產黨和政府對待私營部門的方針已經融入“中國特色社會主義制度”，這是共產黨對其治理的描述。習近平說：“這些變化不可能改變，也不會改變。”

主席也表示，政府將「依法切實保護私人企業和企業家的合法權益」。但“同時也要認識到，我國是社會主義法治國家，企業的任何違法行為都逃脫不了查處。”

中國政府在 2020 年對科技業展開打擊行動，以打破壟斷並實施嚴格的資料監管後，做出了這樣的保證。

那次打擊行動中最受關注的人物之一是馬雲，他於 1990 年代創立了電子商務公司阿里巴巴，曾是中國首富。自從在上海發表演說公開批評中國的監管機構和金融體係以來，他近年來一直保持低調，很少公開露面。

根據國營中央電視台和官方媒體報道的會議影片，週一在北京舉行的會議的其他商界領袖還包括電池開發商 CATL 董事長曾氍群、電動車製造商比亞迪董事長王傳承以及微信所有者騰訊執行長馬化騰。

習近平表示，他希望私人企業繼續 “先富起來，然後促進共同富裕”，這是一項鼓勵發展、縮小貧富差距的計劃。阿里巴巴先前已承諾為該事業捐款 155 億元，而騰訊則承諾捐款 77 億元。

週一早些時候，全國媒體最初刊登的兩段關於此次會議的報告報道隨後被刪除。相反，透過網路搜索，你會看到一份較短的官方媒體聲明，其中刪去了與會者的姓名。

隨後的會議記錄中刊登了習近平的講話，並提到了一些與會人員的名字，但沒有提到馬雲。

馬雲是中國最富有的人之一，他在 2020 年 10 月發表演講，表示監管機構過於保守。政府對他的回應是打沉了螞蟻集團上市的計劃。該以金融為重點的業務源自於流行的數位支付系統支付寶。隨後，這迫使螞蟻集團進行重組，將其分拆為多個獨立的業務。

阿里巴巴還因違反反壟斷規則而受到調查並被罰款 28 億元。

So, Xi tells the audience that the Communist Party and the government's approach towards the private sector has been incorporated into “the socialist system with Chinese characteristics."  Xi says that “They cannot and will not change”. I am wondering whether these words can bring back the confidence of the private sectors.