This Is How China's Top Political And Military Leaders Communicate With Each Other

The “Channel One Operater” unit is an all-women military group that transfers calls between leaders through a system of red desk phones. Photo: Handout

South China Morning Post: The military unit that connects China’s secret ‘red phone’ calls

PLA group that runs communication for leadership must memorise 3,000 numbers, know who’s calling by their voice alone and understand all Chinese dialects, state media reports.

It’s 57 years old, operates out of western Beijing and connects the biggest players at the highest echelons of power in China.

It’s the “Channel One Operater” unit, an all-women military group that transfers calls between leaders through a system of red desk phones.

Shedding rare light on the top-secret web of communications, military mouthpiece PLA Daily revealed on Thursday that the unit was under the direct command of the Central Military Commission’s Joint Staff Department, the hub for the overhauled armed forces.

The red phones are status symbols in Chinese politics, linking officials from the deputy provincial level upwards. They have no dial pads and to make a call, a user simply picks up a handset, names the person they want to speak to and a member of the unit puts the call through.

In an age of mobile digital communication, the system is a holdover from the days of late leader Mao Zedong.

Read more ....

WNU Editor: The qualifications to be in this unit are tough ....

.... each of the unit’s operators must memorise more than 3,000 phone numbers and be able to recognise the voices of the top leaders, ­according to previous reports by state media.

The operators must also be able to understand all Chinese dialects and type at a speed of 150 Chinese characters per minute.

Bottom line .... these military officers .... to do what they do .... have to be on top of their game.