Decision of the Central Committee of the CPC on Major Issues Pertaining to Deepening the Reform of Cultural System and Promoting the Great Development and Prosperity of Socialist Culture

Adopted by the 6th Plenary Session of the 17th Central Committee of the CPC on October 18, 2011. Included in the Selection and Compilation of Important Documents since the 17th National Congress (Vol. 3).

The “Decision” consists of nine parts: (1) Fully understand the importance and urgency of promoting cultural reform and development, and more consciously and actively promote the great development and prosperity of socialist culture; (2) Adhere to the path of socialist cultural development with Chinese characteristics and striving to build a strong country of socialist culture; (3) Promote the construction of a Socialist core value system, and consolidate the common ideological and moral basis for the unity and struggle of the entire Party and the people of all nationalities; (4) Comprehensively implement the "Two Serves" orientation (serving the people and socialism) and the "Two Hundred" policy to provide better and more spiritual nourishment for the people; (5) Vigorously develop public welfare cultural undertakings and safeguard the basic cultural rights and interests of the people; (6) Accelerate the development of cultural industry and promote it to become the pillar industry of national economy; (7) Further deepen Reform and Opening-up and speed up the construction of institutional mechanisms conducive to the prosperity and development of culture; (8) Build a large contingent team of cultural talents to provide strong talent support for the great development and prosperity of socialist culture; (9) Strengthen and improve the Party’s leadership upon the cultural work and improve the scientific level of promoting cultural reform and development.

The “Decision” enunciates the importance and urgency of promoting cultural reform and development, and points out that culture is the blood of the nation and the spiritual home of the people. The Party has always attached great importance to the use of culture to lead the way to the direction of progress and uniting the strength of struggle, uniting and guiding the nationalities of the whole country, and, by constant new awakening of ideology and culture, by theory creating new fruits, by culture establishing new successes, promoted the progressive development of the Party and the people. Cultural work has played an irreplaceably important role in reform, construction, and every historical period of reform. The whole Party should comprehensively realize that the advanced socialist culture is the banner of the ideological and thought spirit of the Marxist political Party and that building of a socialist culture is an important part of the overall design of the cause of socialism with Chinese characteristics. Without the vigorous cultural guidance, there is no richness in the spiritual world of the people, and the full exertion of the spiritual power of the whole nation, a country or a nation cannot stand in the forest of the world's nations. Without the prosperity and development of socialist culture, there will be no socialist modernization. The “Decision” states that in order to build a strong country of socialist culture, efforts should be made to promote the advanced socialist culture to be more deeply rooted in the hearts of the people and to promote the all-round development of socialist spiritual civilization and material civilization. The “Decision” put forward the important principles that should be followed in building a strong socialist cultural country: adhering to the guiding position of Marxism; adhering to the direction of socialist advanced culture; adhering to people-oriented view; adhering to putting social interests first; adhering to Reform and Opening-up.

The “Decision” puts forward that the Socialist core value system is the soul of rejuvenating the country, the essence of the advanced socialist culture, and determines the development direction of socialism with Chinese characteristics. We should persist in using the Socialist core value system to lead the social trend of thoughts and in order to form a unified ideology throughout the Party and society, common ideals and beliefs, strong spiritual force and the basic moral and virtuous norms, throughout the Party and society. The “Decision” emphasizes that we should adhere to the guiding position of Marxism, strengthen the common ideal of socialism with Chinese characteristics, carry forward the national spirit with patriotism as the core and the spirit of the times with reform and innovation as the core, and establish and practice the socialist concept of honor and disgrace. The “Decision” is of great and far-reaching significance in promoting the great development and prosperity of socialist culture, winning a new victory in building a well-off society in an all-round way, creating a new situation for the cause of socialism with Chinese characteristics and realizing the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation.