Profile: Xi Jinping and his era

SERVANT OF THE PUBLIC

"Xi is a very great leader. He works not only in his office, but among the people," said Keovichith Lamngeun, a Laotian who worked as one of the nine foreign linguists on the translation of the 19th CPC National Congress report.

"From my observation, the general public likes Xi because he has brought about changes," said Peggy Cantave Fuyet, who was responsible for the French version of the report.

Many times over the last five years, the general secretary popped up in crowds of ordinary people amid roars of cheering and the sound of mobile phone camera shutters.

He queued and dined with members of the public in a roadside restaurant. He bought festival gifts himself before visiting old acquaintances in the village where he worked as an "educated youth." He stood in heavy rain talking with frontline workers.

He has walked into farmers' barns and kitchens, checked the menu at nursing homes and stressed virtue to young students.

He stayed overnight in a makeshift prefab during a visit to the scene of an earthquake.

He once visited Beijing's hutongs in heavy smog, dropping in on residents to ask about their work, salaries, what they burned for cooking and heating, as well as how far their homes were from the nearest toilet.

Xi has visited all of the poorest areas suffering "abject poverty" in China.

At the 19th CPC National Congress, he was a delegate of southwest China's Guizhou Province, one of the poorest regions in China, with per capita GDP of around 33,000 yuan (about 4,980 U.S. dollars), close to 20,000 yuan lower than the national average in 2016.

When Xi sat down to talk with other delegates from the province in a panel discussion, no one was quite sure how the conversation would turn. Later, somewhat surprised delegates found themselves discussing pork delicacies, strong liquor and tourism with him, all of which are regarded as effective means to bring in extra income for locals.

Media reports of this discussion have drawn numerous clicks and many "thumbs-up" on the Internet.

The people always take the center stage in Xi's blueprint for "a great modern socialist country."

"The original aspiration and the mission of Chinese Communists is to seek happiness for the Chinese people and rejuvenation for the Chinese nation," Xi told more than 2,300 delegates at the congress.

In November 2013, during an inspection tour to the central province of Hunan, Xi visited Shibadong, a Miao minority village labeled "poor" at the time.

"What should I call you?" asked illiterate villager Shi Pazhuan, as she welcomed Xi into her home.

"I am a servant of the people," Xi introduced himself.

During that tour, Xi first put forward the concept of "targeted poverty alleviation," which refers to measures that include a system to keep track of every household and individual in poverty to verify that their treatment is having the desired effect.

For Shi, "targeted poverty alleviation" meant a government subsidy to finance a kiwi fruit plantation for her and her neighbors.

Xi was visibly pleased on learning later that people of Shibadong had finally shaken off poverty.

He has pledged to lift the country's remaining 40 million impoverished people out of their situation by 2020, a step against poverty unprecedented in human history.

Securing sustenance for all 1.3 billion people of China is, in itself, a huge accomplishment.

He is determined to bring about even more: better education, more stable jobs, higher incomes, more reliable social insurance, better medical services, more comfortable living conditions, a more beautiful environment and a richer cultural life.

As socialism with Chinese characteristics has entered a new era, Xi said the principal contradiction facing Chinese society has evolved into one "between unbalanced and inadequate development and the people's ever-growing needs for a better life."

To meet the needs of the people, Xi is striving to ensure equal access to quality education for every child in the country.

He presided over meetings of the Central Leading Group for Deepening Overall Reform to discuss major medical reforms and made "Healthy China" a national strategy.

A property rights protection system is being improved to give people a greater sense of security.

Reform of household registration system will ensure equal access to public services for more people.

Xi is practicing the CPC principle of serving the people wholeheartedly. What makes him stand out may lie in his experiences of living and working as an "educated youth" -- urban youth sent to remote rural areas to "learn from farmers" during the Cultural Revolution. He stayed in Liangjiahe, a small village in northwest China's Shaanxi Province, from 1969 to 1975.

"At that time, I did all kinds of work -- reclaiming wasteland, farming, hoeing, herding, hauling coal, mounding, and carrying manure," Xi recalled. "I came to understand what reality, seeking truth and the masses meant. These gave me an enduring inspiration in my life."

He is well qualified to be confident about his comprehension of ordinary people's life in this populous country. During his about 44 years in politics, he rose from grassroots Party chief to the CPC leader, from an ordinary citizen to the country's president, from an average military officer to the Central Military Commission chairman.

He has worked in Party, government and military units, holding posts at all levels from village-level to county-level and all the way through to provincial and central authorities. Wherever he works, he makes a remarkable impact.

He leads the CPC in serving the people's interests -- usually long-term interests -- with foresight and consideration for what can be carried through.

"I respect Xi. The Chinese leader has the qualities necessary for the new era," said Olga Migunova, the Russian linguist on the translation of the 19th CPC National Congress report.