Wanda Gets on Red Tourism Bandwagon

"Red" tourists take part in re-enacting the Long March in Yan'an

Chinese tycoon Wang Jianlin is back in the limelight again -- this time to show off his patriotism.

His company Wanda Group announced this week it will build a theme park in Yan'an, the birthplace of the Communist Party to cash in on "red tourism".

The description of the project already sounds like an eye-roller -- located in the loess plateau of Shaanxi province near Gansu and Shanxi, the theme park will feature shopping malls, indoor parks, theatres and hotels built in the style of the 1930s, when Yan'an was the headquarters of the Communist Party.

Wang Jianlin's Wanda will promote "red tourism" in Yan'an

Construction on the 1.26 square kilometre project will begin in the first quarter of next year and expected to be completed in 2021, in time for the party's centenary celebrations, Wanda said.

"Wanda is committed to the Yan'an spirit and will turn the Yan'an Wanda City into a new brand for red tourism," Wang said in a statement.

For the past year the developer, China's wealthiest man in 2017, according to Forbes, was laying low, after he dispersed his US$9.4 billion in hotels and tourism assets to rivals Sunac China and Guangzhou R&F Properties to relieve Wanda from its heavy debts.

In October, Wanda disposed of its last remaining stake in its tourism projects for 6.28 billion yuan.

The company had attracted the scrutiny of China's banking and securities regulators for over leveraging acquisitions it made overseas, such as for yacht builder Sunseeker, AMC chain of cameras, real estate around the world, and even Iron Man races.

Mao Zedong's modest cave in Yan'an during the Long March

But now it seems Wanda and Wang are back in the government's good books with another 20 billion yuan project in Lanzhou, the start of the ancient Silk Road, and this Yan'an theme park, that would take advantage of the 484 million tourists who pay homage to 436 historical sites around China that hold special significance to the Communist Party.

Yan'an is revered in particular, as it was here towards the end of the Long March that became the focal point of Chinese Communism. In 1935 Mao Zedong took the Red Army from Jiangxi province on an over 9,000-kilometre trek to Yan'an in 370 days.

We can't wait to see what Wanda does with its "red" theme park...










Wanda came under the scrutiny of China’s banking and securities regulators for the outsize leveraged acquisitions it undertook overseas, for such assets as the Sunseeker yacht builder, the AMC chain of cameras, real estate around the world and even the Iron Man races.

Jack's a Party Member

Jack Ma is a card-carrying member of the Chinese Communist Party

Well what do you know! Jack Ma Yun is a Communist Party member!

He was outed yesterday in the People's Daily as one of 100 Chinese people who have made extraordinary contributions to the country's development in the past 40 years.

Ma along with Tencent Holdings CEO Pony Ma, Baidu CEO Robin Li, basketball star Yao Ming and volleyball coach Lang Ping were on the list.

Pony Ma of Tencent is on the 100 list, but not a Party member

It is unclear when Ma joined the party and how much money in dues he pays each year.

Interestingly this made huge headlines today, but one should expect that someone as successful as Ma is to have some kind of affiliation with the Party. How else could he succeed?

But he has said before that it's not a good idea to be too close to the Party. In media interviews he would say, "Fall in love with the government, but don't get married."

However, with President Xi Jinping wanting to have greater control over everything, everyone else has to comply, and Ma seems to be one of them.

"We're seeing an increasingly close relationship between China's leading internet companies and government because government sees them as one of the most effective ways to realize its policy initiatives," says Mark Natkin, managing director of Beijing-based Marbridge Consulting.

Xi Jinping visits the cave in Yan'an he spent during his teens

"Being a party member is essentially tipping your hat to the legitimacy of the party and it doesn't necessarily denote any particularly high level of political activity."

Nevertheless, some entrepreneurs are going a step further to demonstrate their loyalty to the Party.

In 2015 Jack Ma visited Yan'an, the city often considered the birthplace of the Chinese Communist Revolution. Pony Ma -- who is not a Party member -- also went to Yan'an this year and even wore a Red Army uniform. Yan'an is also where President Xi spent much of his teenage years.

Ah the symbolism! And the song and dance people need to do to keep in the government's good books...