National policy and territorial integrity of the people’s Republic of China

The People’s Republic of China (PRC) was established as a unified multi-ethnic state, home to 56 officially recognized nationalities, with an overwhelming majority (over 90%) of Han Chinese. Together with other ethnic groups, the Han form the “Chinese nation,” which is characterized by considerable diversity. The areas inhabited by non-Han nationalities account for at least 60% of the PRC’s total territory. In shaping the new Chinese statehood, the leadership of the Communist Party of China (CPC) diverged from the Leninist principle of granting nations the right to self-determination. Instead, non-Han nationalities were afforded the opportunity to establish autonomous administrative units at various levels. These units are granted significant powers, including the right to preserve and promote their languages, customs, traditions, and religions. Members of minority groups serve in organs of state power and administration, including the National People’s Congress (NPC), the PRC’s unicameral parliament. For example, the current NPC includes a representative of Russian nationality, Min Xiaoqing (female), despite the Russian population in the PRC being numerically small. At the local level, administrative organs underwent a process of “korenizatsiia” (indigenization) to involve as many nationalities as possible in governance and administration. The establishment of district-level national autonomies, on the one hand, made it possible to move away from the Leninist model of peoples’ self-determination, and on the other hand, granted meaningful rights and opportunities for self-development to non-Han nationalities. Most importantly, abandoning the Leninist principle allowed China to safeguard its statehood against potential disintegration, as seen in the case of the Soviet Union. This approach has helped ensure the peaceful and harmonious coexistence of diverse nationalities within a unitary state while providing an effective mechanism for addressing national contradictions, many of which are deliberately supported from abroad. Today, China is pursuing the “Great Revival of the Chinese Nation,” a policy initiative aimed at fostering shared development goals for all nationalities as part of a renewed national policy under Xi Jinping’s leadership.