Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC)

The organization of the patriotic united front of the Chinese people; an important institution of multi-party cooperation and political consultation under the leadership of the Communist Party of China; an important form of developing socialist democracy in China's political life; an important part of the national governance system; and an institutional arrangement with Chinese characteristics.

In the early days of the founding of the People's Republic of China, the CPPCC was an organizational form of the alliance between workers and non-workers led by the working class and based on the alliance of workers and peasants. After the socialist transformation basically completed and the system exploitation and classes eliminated, the CPPCC has become the organizational form of all builders of socialism, patriots who support socialism and the patriots who support the reunification of the motherland. Under the leadership of the CPC, the CPPCC assumed the function of conducting political consultation and democratic supervision on the major policies of the state and on the major issues concerning the life of the masses, which is composed of representatives from the CPC, as well as the democratic parties, people's organizations and representatives from all walks of life.

The People's Political Consultative Conference came into being on the eve of the founding of the People’s Republic of China. On May 1, 1948, the CPC called on the people of the whole country to unite, consolidate and expand the United Front, and called on the democratic parties, people's organizations and people from all walks of life to quickly hold a New Political Consultative Conference and establish a democratic coalition government. The call of the CPC was immediately supported by the people of the whole country. In June 1949, the Preparatory Meeting for the New Political Consultative Conference was held in Beiping.

The First Plenary Session of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference was held in Beijing from September 21 to 30, 1949. More than 600 delegates attended the meeting, representing all democratic parties, people's organizations, People's Liberation Army, all regions, nationalities and overseas Chinese. After thorough democratic discussion and consultation, the Conference formulated and adopted the “Common Program of the People's Republic of China” which played an interim constitutional role, the “Organic Law of the Central People's Government of the People's Republic of China” and the “Organic Law of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference”. At the Conference, the Central People's Government was elected, and the establishment of the People's Republic of China was legally and organizationally established. The Conference also marked the establishment of a system of multi-party cooperation and political consultation under the leadership of the CPC.

After the First Session of the First National People's Congress was held in September 1954 and the “Constitution of the People's Republic of China” was promulgated, the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference no longer exercised the functions and powers of the National People's Congress.

At the symposium held on December 19, 1954, Mao Zedong pointed out: “The nature of the CPPCC is different from the National People's Congress, which is the organ of state power, and CPPCC not the administrative organ of the state.” “The CPPCC is a people's democratic united front organization of all nationalities, all democratic classes, all democratic parties, all people's organizations, overseas Chinese and other patriotic and democratic personages, and it is partisan in nature and its members are mainly representatives of parties and groups.” Mao Zedong said that the tasks of the CPPCC are, first, to consult in respect to international issues; second, to discuss the list of candidates; third, to put forward opinions; fourth, to coordinate the relations among all nationalities, all political parties, all people's organizations and social democrats; fifth, to learn from Marxism-Leninism.

On December 25, 1954, the “Constitution of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference”, adopted by the First Plenary Session of the Second National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, pointed out: “The task of the plenary session of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference to exercise the functions and powers of the National People's Congress on its behalf has come to an end.” However, the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference was still needed to exist, as a people's democratic united front organization uniting all nationalities, democratic classes, democratic parties, people's organizations, overseas Chinese and other patriotic and democratic personages. “Under the leadership of the CPC, the Chinese people's Political Consultative Conference will continue to unite the people of all ethnic groups through the unity of all democratic parties and people's organizations, make joint efforts, overcome difficulties and strive to build a great socialist country.”

The CPPCC was of great significance for upholding and improving the Party system of New China, that is, the system of multi-party cooperation and political consultation under the leadership of the CPC. The new constitution of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, adopted at the Fifth Session of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference from November 24 to December 11, 1982, was based on the “Constitution of the People's Republic of China” in 1982, the principles and policies adopted since the Third Plenary Session of the Eleventh CPC Central Committee and the programme established at the Twelfth National Congress of the CPPCC, and it made specific provisions on the nature, tasks, functions, general principles of work and general principles of organization of the CPPCC.

According to the CPC's policy of "long-term coexistence, mutual supervision, sincere treatment, and sharing weal and woe” with all democratic parties and personages without party affiliation, the CPPCC carries out political consultation on the country's major policies and important issues of people's life and plays the role of democratic supervision through suggestions and criticism.

The “Constitution of the People's Republic of China” is the fundamental criterion for all the activities of the CPPCC. Its main task is to make every effort to further consolidate and develop the patriotic united front, mobilize all positive factors, unite all those who may unite, work together with one heart and one mind, work together to maintain and develop the political situation of stability and unity, promote the construction of socialist democracy and legal system, and strive to create a new situation of socialist modernization in an all-round way and realize the general task of the Chinese people of all nationalities.

The CPPCC is an important bridge and link between the CPC and the people's government and the democratic parties, people's organizations and personages without party affiliation, and it is also a feature of the Chinese people's democratic dictatorship system and reflects the extensive mass foundation of China's socialist democracy. The CPPCC will further play an important role in the country's political life, social life and foreign friendly activities, as well as in the struggle for socialist modernization and in the struggle for national unity and peace.