United Front Work Department
Encyclopedia
The United Front Work Department (UFWD) of the People's Republic of China
is an agency under the command of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China
. Its main function is to manage relations with the non-Communist Party elite, including individuals and organizations holding social, commercial, or academic influence, or who represent important interest groups. In so doing, the UFWD seeks to ensure that these groups are supportive of and useful to Communist Party rule. The UFWD consists of eight minor political parties and the All-China Federation of Industry and Commerce
. It maintains a close relationship with the State Administration for Religious Affairs
, which overseas the five officially sanctioned religions, and plays an active role in managing ethnic and religious minorities, particularly in Tibet
. The current department head is Du Qinglin
.
The United Front Work Department was created during the Chinese civil war
, and was reestablished in 1979 under Deng Xiaoping
. It expanded the scope of its work internationally during the reform era, and again following the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests. The department includes a bureau tasked with handling Hong Kong
, Macau
, Taiwan
, and overseas affairs, and articulates the importance of using overseas Chinese populations to promote reunification
. It played an important role in building support for "One country, two systems
" in Hong Kong during the 1980s and 1990s, operating under the name of the "Coordination Department." The UFWD has been critically described as serving to co-opt non-Communist community leaders outside China, and "using them to neutralize Party critics," sometimes coercively. Some national intelligence agencies have expressed concern that the mandate and operations of the UFWD can constitute undue interference in other nations' internal affairs.
People's Republic of China
China , officially the People's Republic of China , is the most populous country in the world, with over 1.3 billion citizens. Located in East Asia, the country covers approximately 9.6 million square kilometres...
is an agency under the command of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China
Central Committee of the Communist Party of China
The Central Committee of the Communist Party of China is the highest authority within the Communist Party of China. Its approximately 350 members and alternates are selected once every five years by the National Party Congress....
. Its main function is to manage relations with the non-Communist Party elite, including individuals and organizations holding social, commercial, or academic influence, or who represent important interest groups. In so doing, the UFWD seeks to ensure that these groups are supportive of and useful to Communist Party rule. The UFWD consists of eight minor political parties and the All-China Federation of Industry and Commerce
All-China Federation of Industry and Commerce
The All-China Federation of Industry and Commerce is a non-governmental chamber of commerce, established in 1953 as a successor to the chambers of commerce that were first founded during the Qing Dynasty...
. It maintains a close relationship with the State Administration for Religious Affairs
State Administration for Religious Affairs
The State Administration for Religious Affairs , abbreviated SARA , is a functioning department under the State Council which oversees religious affairs and issues for the People's Republic of China...
, which overseas the five officially sanctioned religions, and plays an active role in managing ethnic and religious minorities, particularly in Tibet
Tibet
Tibet is a plateau region in Asia, north-east of the Himalayas. It is the traditional homeland of the Tibetan people as well as some other ethnic groups such as Monpas, Qiang, and Lhobas, and is now also inhabited by considerable numbers of Han and Hui people...
. The current department head is Du Qinglin
Du Qinglin
Du Qinglin is a politician of the People's Republic of China. He currently serves as vice chairman of Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference , and the director of United Front Work Department of Communist Party of China....
.
The United Front Work Department was created during the Chinese civil war
Chinese Civil War
The Chinese Civil War was a civil war fought between the Kuomintang , the governing party of the Republic of China, and the Communist Party of China , for the control of China which eventually led to China's division into two Chinas, Republic of China and People's Republic of...
, and was reestablished in 1979 under Deng Xiaoping
Deng Xiaoping
Deng Xiaoping was a Chinese politician, statesman, and diplomat. As leader of the Communist Party of China, Deng was a reformer who led China towards a market economy...
. It expanded the scope of its work internationally during the reform era, and again following the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests. The department includes a bureau tasked with handling Hong Kong
Hong Kong
Hong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour...
, Macau
Macau
Macau , also spelled Macao , is, along with Hong Kong, one of the two special administrative regions of the People's Republic of China...
, Taiwan
Taiwan
Taiwan , also known, especially in the past, as Formosa , is the largest island of the same-named island group of East Asia in the western Pacific Ocean and located off the southeastern coast of mainland China. The island forms over 99% of the current territory of the Republic of China following...
, and overseas affairs, and articulates the importance of using overseas Chinese populations to promote reunification
Chinese reunification
Chinese reunification refers to the bringing together of all of the territories controlled by the People's Republic of China and the Republic of China under a single political entity...
. It played an important role in building support for "One country, two systems
One country, two systems
"One country, two systems" is an idea originally proposed by Deng Xiaoping, then Paramount Leader of the People's Republic of China , for the reunification of China during the early 1980s...
" in Hong Kong during the 1980s and 1990s, operating under the name of the "Coordination Department." The UFWD has been critically described as serving to co-opt non-Communist community leaders outside China, and "using them to neutralize Party critics," sometimes coercively. Some national intelligence agencies have expressed concern that the mandate and operations of the UFWD can constitute undue interference in other nations' internal affairs.