China | The red front-line

China’s Communist Party is splurging on new local drop-in centres

Filling them can be a challenge

IN SHENZHEN’S GLISTENING tech district, opposite the headquarters of Tencent, a giant digital conglomerate, the Communist Party vies for attention. “Follow the party, start your business” is etched into a futuristic-looking cube at the entrance to a two-storey building, its walls sprayed with paintings of giant robots. In the lobby stands a life-size statue of Mao Zedong, flanked by other Communist leaders. But most visitors bypass the exhibit on the party’s history and head directly upstairs.

This article appeared in the China section of the print edition under the headline “The red front-line”

Office politics: The fight over the future of work

From the September 12th 2020 edition

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