Speech at the Meeting to Celeberate the 95th Anniversary of the Founding of the CPC

Speech by Xi Jinping on July 1, 2016 at the Meeting to Celebrate the 95th Anniversary of the Founding of the CPC.

Published in People's Daily on July 2, 2016. In the same year, a single edition was published by People's Publishing House, Beijing.

The “Speech” recalled how the CPC has gloriously united the Chinese people and led them in tireless struggle; to look ahead at the bright prospects of the cause of our Party and our people; to honor outstanding Party members, exemplary Party workers, and advanced community-level Party organizations from across the country; and to mobilize the entire CPC and all Chinese people in an even more confident advance towards the goal of building a moderately prosperous society in all respects, and towards the Chinese Dream of national rejuvenation. Xi stressed that history and the people have correctly chosen the CPC to lead the cause of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation, which must be adhered to for a long time and never wavered; the path of socialism with Chinese characteristics pioneered by the CPC under the leadership of the Chinese people is correct and must be adhered to for a long time and never wavered; the strategy of the CPC and the Chinese people to achieve national development independently is correct and must be adhered to for a long time and never wavered.

The “Speech” focuses on the eight requirements of staying true to the original mission of the Party and on continuing to move forward under the new historical conditions:

Firstly, we must uphold the guiding position of Marxism, insist on closely combining the basic principles of Marxism with the realities of contemporary China and the characteristics of the times, promote theoretical and practical innovations, and constantly push forward the Sinicization of Marxism. This is because Marxism is the fundamental guiding ideology of our Party and country. If we depart from or abandon Marxism, our Party will lose its soul and direction.

Secondly, to stay true to why we started out and continue going forward, we must remember that our Party established communism and socialism as its program at the time of its founding; remain committed to the great ideal of communism and the common ideal of Chinese socialism; and constantly advance a great effort for our ideals. Revolutionary ideals rise above all else. The wavering of an ideal or belief is the most dangerous form of wavering; the collapse of an ideal or belief is the most dangerous form of collapse. We must consciously act as staunch believers in and loyal practitioners of both the great communist ideal and the common ideal of Chinese socialism.

Thirdly, to stay true to why we started out and continue going forward, we must remain confident in the path, theories, system, and culture of Chinese socialism; uphold the basic line of the Party with unswerving resolve; and constantly advance the great cause of Chinese socialism. Our direction determines our path, and our path determines our future. We must firmly believe that the path of socialism with Chinese characteristics is the only path that can lead us to socialist modernization, and the only path that can create better lives for the people, that the theories of Chinese socialism are not only correct theories that will lead the CPC and people to national rejuvenation along the path of socialism, that the system of Chinese socialism is a fundamental institutional guarantee for progress and development in China today, and an advanced system with distinct Chinese characteristics, notable institutional strengths, and a strong capacity for self-improvement.

Fourthly, to stay true to why we started out and continue going forward, we must advance the “Five-Pronged Overall Plan” for developing Chinese socialism; promote the “Four Comprehensives” strategy; engage in an all-out push to build a moderately prosperous society in all respects; and work constantly towards achieving the “Two Centenary Goals”. Building a moderately prosperous society in all respects represents a solemn promise that our Party has made to our people and to history. It is the common wish of more than 1.3 billion Chinese people. Development is the CPC’s top priority in governing and rejuvenating the country, and it is the key to solving all of China’s problems. Fifthly, to stay true to why we started out and continue going forward, we must uphold Reform and Opening-up with firm resolve; have the courage to comprehensively bolster reform; further liberate our minds, release and develop productive forces, and emancipate and boost social dynamism; and push forward the Reform and Opening-up program. Reform and Opening-up represents the most distinctive feature of contemporary China, and the most salient aspiration of the CPC in a new period of history. It is the crucial choice that has determined the fate of China today, and a major reason why the cause of the CPC and the people has been able to catch up with the times at such an extraordinary pace.

Sixthly, to stay true to why we started out and continue going forward, we must firmly believe that the people are the foundation of the CPC and the source of its strength, remain committed to serving the people and relying on them in all endeavors, give full scope to the enthusiasm, initiative, and creativity of the people; and keep working to make their life better. Standing on the people’s side represents the fundamental political stance of the CPC, and it is what distinguishes a Marxist political Party from other political parties.

Seventhly, to stay true to why we started out and continue going forward, we must remain firmly committed to the path of peaceful development and to a mutually beneficial strategy of openness; strengthen friendly ties with all countries; and work with all peoples to advance the grand cause of peace and development for humanity.

Preserving world peace and promoting common development are the core tenets of China’s foreign policy.

Eightthly, to stay true to why we started out and continue going forward, we must preserve the advanced nature and purity of the CPC, raise our ability to govern and lead, enhance our capacity to withstand risks, resist corruption, and prevent degradation, and constantly advance a grand new undertaking of self-improvement by the CPC. The most essential attributes of Marxist political parties are their advanced nature and purity, the foundation and lifeblood of the CPC and the country, and the interests and well being of all Chinese people, boil down to upholding and improving the leadership of the CPC.

The “Speech" emphasized that adopting a broader perspective, we must examine the practical foundations and needs of Marxism’s contemporary development. By upholding a problem-oriented approach, centering on the initiatives that we are currently advancing, and responding to the call of the times in which we are living, we need to advance in greater depth the concrete and actual integration of Marxism with China’s contemporary development, open up new prospects for the development of Marxism in the 21st century, and enable contemporary Chinese Marxism to shine even more brightly with the light of truth. The “Speech” is an important achievement by the CPC in the process of theoretical innovation CPC under the new historical conditions, which embodies the new ideas and thinking of the CPC in governing and managing the country since the 18th National Congress of the CPC.