Chinese people's feelings about Xi's speech at the 19th Party Congress

Chinese people have optimistic feelings about Mr. Xi's speech at the opening ceremony of the 19th Communist Party Congress in Beijing.

Chinese President Xi Jinping delivers a speech at the 19th National Congress of the Communist Party of China in Beijing on October 18. Photo: Xinhua.

Wang Hai started working after graduating in mainland China when Xi Jinping came to power five years ago. He has been keeping up to date with the country's political, economic and social developments ever since. On the morning of October 18, Wang was watching Xi's "political report" at the opening ceremony of the 19th National Congress of the Communist Party of China at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing.

The record-breaking three-and-a-half-hour speech looked back on China's past five years under Xi's leadership and outlined its development direction until mid-century.

Wang described Xi's 65-page English-translated speech as "long and informative" but the content was within his expectations.

"Mr. Xi's speech mainly encouraged people, both at home and abroad. I look forward to what he will do in the next five years," Wang said.

According to Wang, China's economic growth has slowed down slightly over the past five years. People's incomes have increased, but prices have also increased.

In his speech, Mr. Xi affirmed that China "has made great achievements in economic development." GDP increased from 54 trillion yuan to 80 trillion yuan. China still maintains its position as the world's second largest economy, contributing more than 30% to the development of the global economy.

According to the National Bureau of Economic and Social Development Statistics of China, the average GDP growth in the period of 2013-2016 was 7.2%. In the first 6 months of 2017, China's GDP reached 6.9%. Meanwhile, the average GDP growth in the period of 2003-2012, under former President Hu Jintao, was 10.5%.

Delegate Yang Qiongying answers questions in an interview. Photo: Thuy Trang.

"You see the speech is very dense, but I don't see it as long, it contains comprehensive information. Listening to President Xi speak is like listening to a fairy tale, in which the Chinese dream is realized," delegate Yang Qiongying proudly told reporters right after Xi finished his speech.

Yang, a primary school principal in Yunnan province, is one of 2,280 delegates representing more than 89 million Chinese party members who will travel to Beijing for the party congress, which runs from October 18 to 24.

Having worked in education for more than 20 years, Wang said she has seen many changes under Xi's leadership. The lives of teachers like Wang have improved. Xi has also introduced policies to encourage teachers in rural areas to not leave their hometowns for the cities. In addition, students from grades one to nine receive free lunch.

Pei Zhen, a civil servant working in foreign affairs, also affirmed that Mr. Xi is "a good leader."

"China is a big country, with 1.3 billion people of many different ethnicities, and complex internal problems. What President Xi has done shows that he is a talented and strong leader," Pei said.

Living in Beijing, Pei has seen an improvement in air pollution. "The sky is clearer and the pollution index has dropped because many industrial plants around Beijing have been closed," Pei said. "However, compared to other regions, Beijing's air quality still needs to improve."

China has set two century goals: by 2020, the country will become a "moderately prosperous society" and by 2050, it will be a "strong modern socialist country", making the "Chinese dream" proposed by Mr. Xi come true.

Xi stressed the goal of building a "Beautiful China," which includes a clean environment and a narrowing of the urban-rural divide. He affirmed his determination to win people's hearts by overcoming air, water and soil pollution.

According to Phoebe Hong, a reporter for Hong Kong's Now TV, the speech showed that Xi Jinping's leadership power "has become stronger". "Normally, speeches to party congresses by previous leaders like Hu Jintao only lasted about 2 hours," she said.

Hong is less optimistic about the Chinese economy over the past five years. Growth indicators show that China has passed its peak or boom period.

"I expect the leadership to keep the economy from going down too fast and deal with emerging issues from the development of technology and the real estate bubble. However, the economy is not something I care much about," she affirmed.

As a Hong Konger, she is particularly interested in Beijing's policy toward the special administrative region. "Xi mentioned the central government's comprehensive management of Hong Kong," Hong said.

In his speech, Xi reaffirmed the policy of "one country, two systems", "Hong Kong people governing Hong Kong" and moving towards "national reunification". Hong said this was different from the message from the 18th congress in 2012. Hu Jintao then only mentioned respecting the policy of "one country, two systems".

"Hong Kong people have noticed this in the past five years. Now, we are concerned about policies on freedom of speech and the path of democratic reform," she shared./.

According to VNE