VR tests to check party loyalty

China’s ruling Communist party is using a unique virtual reality test to check the loyalty of its members and determine whether they possess qualities required for the party’s membership, the official media here reported on Monday.

Members of the CPC at Qingyang town, in Binzhou city of East China’s Shandong province appear to be the first to have taken the loyalty tests using VR gear, State-run Global Times quoted a report by the news website, binzhouw. com.

The test of ‘dangxing’, literally meaning party spirit, refers to the qualifications a party member must have, including loyalty to the Communist Party, willingness to contribute to the people and the party, and being a role model.

30 questions

Party members in Qingyang were required to wear VR headsets, hold a remote control and enter a virtual room to conduct the test of almost 30 questions, the report said.

The test included questions on the party theory, members’ daily lives and their understanding of the party’s “pioneering role”. Party members were asked questions like, “Do you agree that if you are not corrupt, you will be marginalised?” The test results were said to determine party members’ weak points, and they could then receive a consultation from experts of the party schools of Binzhou and Qingyang, who provided face-to-face or remote counselling and guidance, the report said.

Such VR testing needs a more scientific basis to affirm the reliability of the results, Cai Zhiqiang, a professor at the party school of the Communist Party’s Central Committee in Beijing, told the Global Times on Sunday.