According to an article from Apple Daily reporter Zhang Hua, for the past two years, Chinese President Hu Jintao and Premier Wen Jiabao have been called the “Hu-Wen leadership,” indicating that they have a close relationship and share the same political views and interests. Especially when they first came to power, they cooperated well facing the challenges in securing their positions. As Hu has gradually gained power, however, his political nature is more visible as dividing lines between him and Wen become increasingly apparent.

The article indicates that compared to Hu, Wen earnestly practices the humanistic policies he advocates. He is closer to the people and cares more about farmers. This has been reflected in the State Council policies. For example, the compulsory detainment and relocation system, which was unfair to farm laborers, has been rescinded. After Wen recovered the back pay for a Chongqing farmer, a movement to find a way of paying other farmers’ back pay was initiated across the country; the agricultural tax is being phased out; fees collected from farmers have been reduced or rescinded; and there is a large increase in funding for countryside medical care to help farmers, the lowest class in society.

In contrast, since Hu came into full power, he has not made any resolute reforms in the system that would reflect a concern for the people; instead he has hunted down and arrested dissidents on a large scale, and tightened control over public opinion, thus betraying an anti-humanistic proclivity.

Another dividing line between the two is their attitudes toward the Chinese Communist Party’s bureaucratic system. Wen says he does not believe in bureaucracy. When he inspects various places, he often makes sudden changes in his itinerary to break away from the local officials’ arrangements in the hope of learning the real situation and avoid being deceived. In doing so, he has shown his dissatisfaction with the endemic hypocrisy in official circles. On the contrary, Hu rarely openly expresses discontent of other officials. He always follows his itinerary for local visits and affirms the local officials’ achievements in his speeches. The bureaucracy, of course, has always been a way for a leader to maintain power.

The distinctions between the two leaders seem to reflect their different understandings of the principle of “making man the measure of all things,” and their different outlooks regarding China’s future. As both of them continue to secure their power, their different values will be reflected further in their policy directions and political paths. How they coordinate with each other will have a great impact on China.