Secure a Decisive Victory in Building a Moderately Prosperous Society in All Respects and Strive for the Great Success of Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era

On October 18, 2017, Xi Jinping delivered a report to the 19th National Congress of the CPC on behalf of the 18th Central Committee.

The report described the grand blueprint of building a moderately prosperous society in an all-round way and winning the great victory of socialism with Chinese characteristics in the new era, it further pointed out the direction of the Party and the cause of the state, the crystallization of the wisdom of the people of all nationalities in the whole Party, the political declaration and program of action for the unity of the Party to lead the people of all nationalities in the country to uphold and develop socialism with Chinese characteristics in the new era, and it was a programmatic document of Marxism. The report pointed out that socialism with Chinese characteristics has entered a new era, and the main contradiction in our society has been transformed into a major political judgment of the contradiction between the people's growing needs for a better life and unbalanced and inadequate development.

It was pointed out that socialism with Chinese characteristics has entered a new era, which is a new historical orientation for development of China.

As socialism with Chinese characteristics has entered a new era, the principal contradiction facing Chinese society has evolved. What we now face is the contradiction between unbalanced and inadequate development and the people's ever-growing needs for a better life.

The report put forward that since our 18th National Congress, changes both in and outside China, and the progress made in all areas of China's endeavors, have presented us with a profound question—the question of an era. Our answer must be a systematic combination of theory and practice and must address what kind of socialism with Chinese characteristics the new era requires us to uphold and develop, and how we should go about doing it. In answering this question, our Party has continued to uphold dialectical and historical materialism; has considered carefully the new conditions of the era and the new requirements of practice; and has adopted an entirely new perspective to deepen its understanding of the laws that underlie governance by a Communist Party, the development of socialism, and the evolution of human society. It has worked hard to undertake theoretical explorations, and has achieved major theoretical innovations, ultimately giving shape to the Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era.

Xi Jinping's Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era builds on and further enriches Marxism-Leninism, Mao Zedong Thought, Deng Xiaoping Theory, the Theory of “Three Represents”, and the “Scientific Outlook on Development”. It represents the latest achievement in adapting Marxism to the Chinese context and encapsulates the practical experience and collective wisdom of our Party and the people. It is an important component of the theory of socialism with Chinese characteristics, and a guide to action for all our members and all the Chinese people as we strive to achieve national rejuvenation. This “Thought” must be adhered to and steadily developed on a long-term basis. The report systematically summarized the historical achievements and changes since the 18th National Congress of the CPC and pointed out that the achievements in the past five years are comprehensive and pioneering, and the changes in the past five years are profound and fundamental.

The report points out that “national rejuvenation has been the greatest dream of the Chinese people since modern times began. At its founding, the CPC made realizing Communism its highest ideal and its ultimate goal, and shouldered the historic mission of national rejuvenation.”

To achieve the dream of great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation, we must carry out a great struggle with many new historical characteristics, we should deepen the great undertaking of Party building, and advance the great cause of socialism with Chinese characteristics. This great struggle, great project, great cause, and great dream are closely connected, flow seamlessly into each other, and are mutually reinforcing, among which the great new project of Party building plays the decisive role.

We must see that as history progresses and the world undergoes profound changes, the Party remains always ahead of the times; that as history progresses and we respond to risks and tests at home and abroad, the Party remains always the backbone of the nation; and that as history progresses and we continue to uphold and develop socialism with Chinese characteristics, the Party remains always a powerful leadership core.

The report emphasizes that the basic strategies for adhering to and developing socialism with Chinese Characteristics in the New Era include: Ensuring Party leadership over all work, committing to a people-centered approach, continuing to comprehensively deepen reform, adopting a new vision for development, seeing that the people run the country, ensuring every dimension of governance is law-based, upholding Socialist core value, ensuring and improving living standards through development, ensuring harmony between human and nature, pursuing a holistic approach to national security, upholding absolute Party leadership over the people's armed forces, upholding the principle of “One Country, Two Systems” and promoting national reunification, promoting the building of a community with a shared future for mankind, and exercising full and rigorous governance over the Party.

All our members must fully implement the Party's basic theory, line, and policy so as to better steer the development of the Party and people's cause. The report has made two strategic arrangements for the decisive victory of building a moderately prosperous society in an all-round way and the opening of a new journey of building a modern socialist country in an all-round way: in the first stage, in the period from 2020 to 2035, on the foundation created by the moderately prosperous society, China— with a further 15 years of hard work— will strive to achive that socialist modernization is basically realized. In the second stage from 2035 to the middle of the 21st century, we will, building on having basically achieved modernization, work hard for a further 15 years and develop China into a great modern socialist country that is prosperous, strong, democratic, culturally advanced, harmonious, and beautiful.

The report also made a comprehensive arrangements for promoting the economic, political, cultural, social and ecological civilization construction of socialism with Chinese characteristics, the modernization of national defense and the army, the reunification of the motherland, the construction of a community of shared future for mankind, unswervingly and rigorously governing the Party, and other aspects of work to make a comprehensive deployment in the new era.