Anyone who had any illusions about China being a country ruled by a political party, not a government, only needs to look at what has been happening here the last couple of months.

China has been dealing with a number of issues, internally and externally. Within China, corruption has been the watchword, while more recently the focus has also shifted to fighting pollution, after Beijing choked on some of the worst readings in the city’s history. Economic issues have also been a central focus. Externally, squabbles with a number of countries have been escalating, especially the ongoing dispute over the Senkaku/Diaoyu islands.

And who has been at the helm? Who has taken the lead on most of these issues? Xi Jinping has been at the forefront on many of these challenges, most recently chairing a committee to deal with the rising tensions with Japan. Yet Xi Jinping is not yet the President of the country. Li Keqiang is not yet the Premier, yet he chaired a meeting to decide on economic policy and direction recently. The new leadership does not get installed for another 5 - 6 weeks.

Yesterday for possibly the first time since November, Premier Wen Jiabao was seen in public, chairing a session of the State Council. It was in November that the Communist Party chose a new Secretary-General in Xi Jinping, and a new Politburo. It has been these people who have led China, using their positions of authority in a political party as a proxy for authority in government.

In China, government is an administrative arm and sometimes nothing more than a front for the Party. Be under no illusions - this is a Communist Party country.