China's new orchestra plays the same music

The Chinese leader, Jiang Zemin, kept control of the military as the 16th Party Congress ended and a new leadership line-up was paraded for the press. By remaining China's commander-in-chief, he made his retirement far from clear. Chinese media trumpeted the "victorious" ending of the congress but made no mention of his retirement, reported only by the English-language Xinhua news agency. Instead, Mr Jiang's photo was on the front page of the state press, despite headlines declaring a switch to the new generation.

As expected, China's grey man, Hu Jintao, is the new party general secretary, heading a nine-man team, most of whom belong to Jiang Zemin's "Shanghai Gang". Half of the members of the politburo and other senior party committees have been replaced, but China observers hesitate to say whether significant policy changes can be expected soon.

A middle-ranking Chinese journalist said: "It doesn't look as if this is the start of political reform. The economic policies will remain the same too." A Western diplomat agreed. "The orchestra is different but the music will be the same." Some observers say the team will be more united than the old politburo standing committee, which was riven by fundamental disagreements on economic reforms and the need for political ones.

In a sign of how little will change, the new party secretary, Hu Jintao, led the new politburo standing committee in front of the press at the Great Hall of the People in a repeat of proceedings in 1997. The team marched out, clapping each other. In identical outfits – dark suits, white shirts, dyed black hair and red ties – they stood to attention for Mr Hu's bland speech. None fielded any questions and they filed out, each giving a victorious wave.

Mr Hu promised to continue reform, accelerate modernisation of the economy and to follow Mr Jiang's thinking. But he omitted to say Mr Jiang would remain in charge of the Central Military Commission, the position Deng Xiaoping retained after he gave up all his other posts in 1987.

Among those promoted are Mr Jiang's right-hand man from his days as Shanghai's party chief. They include his right-hand man, Zeng Qinghong; Huang Ju, the party chief of Shanghai; Wu Bangguo, whom Mr Jiang promoted from Shanghai to handle reform of state industries; Jia Qinglin, whom Mr Jiang installed to run Beijing; and another favourite, Li Changchun, the boss of booming Guangdong province.

Western diplomats say Hu Jintao appears to have had little say in the new line-up and that to install his own men will take many years.

New head man is 'smooth operator'

By Jasper Becker in Beijing

In Hun Jintao's first speech as general secretary he stressed China had "a collective leadership" but what this means is far from clear.

Mr Hu will struggle to put his stamp on a politburo filled with men selected and nurtured by Jiang Zemin whose influence may have increased. Yet Western diplomats praise the 59-year-old as smooth, intelligent and accomplished.

The new leader has spent his life in the party, joining when he was 22 and studying at Qinghua University in Beijing. He stayed on as a political instructor in the university's Communist Youth League.

He became a protégé of Deng Xiaoping and at 43, ran the province of Guizhou, moving to manage Tibet and overseeing a brutal crackdown after pro-independence riots.

Mr Deng appointed him heir-apparent to Jiang Zemin and in 1992 he joined the politburo standing committee. In 1998, Hu Jintao became the deputy head of state, deputy commander in chief and deputy party chief.