Pan Xuefeng: Advancing the Great Practice of Common Prosperity with the Spirit of Historical Initiative [1]
The spirit of historical initiative manifests the Chinese Communist Party’s historical self-awareness in theoretical innovation, its historical commitment to putting the people first, its historical responsibility for national development and rejuvenation, and its historical courage for self-revolution. It is a unique spiritual asset of Chinese Communists and the source of strength for our Party to unite and lead the people of the whole country in overcoming all hardships and obstacles. Entering the New Era, the Communist Party of China (CPC) has continued to adhere to the realization of common prosperity for all people as its goal of struggle. By upholding the people-centered philosophy of development, the Party has successfully overcome various risks and challenges, achieved the First Centenary Goal [1], and built a moderately prosperous society in all respects on the land of China. The transition from building a moderately prosperous society in all respects to the comprehensive construction of a modern socialist country requires us to stand at the strategic height of exerting the spirit of historical initiative. We must profoundly understand the theoretical basis of common prosperity, stimulate the practical sources of common prosperity, create inexhaustible momentum for common prosperity, and continuously consolidate the solid guarantees for common prosperity to advance it in a down-to-earth manner.
Deeply Investigating the Theoretical Basis of Common Prosperity
Common prosperity is not an abstract theoretical slogan; it possesses rich conceptual connotations that require deep understanding from the perspective of the basic tenets of Marxism and the great practice of socialism with Chinese characteristics. Marx pointed out: "The national centralization of the means of production will become the national basis of a society composed of associations of free and equal producers, who carry out social labor according to a common and rational plan." Implementing the public ownership of the means of production allows for the planned regulation of social production according to the needs of all members of society. This enables social members to jointly enjoy the welfare created by society and allows for the comprehensive development [2] of their talents. Engels emphasized that the so-called social appropriation of the means of production means that "all these branches of production are operated by society as a whole, that is, for the common interest, according to a common plan, and with the participation of all members of society." Clearly, according to Engels' exposition, common prosperity is not an equal distribution of social means of production, but rather that social members enjoy equal rights to manage, use, and distribute them. With a spirit of historical initiative, the CPC has deeply investigated the theoretical basis of common prosperity and correctly answered the "China Question" regarding common prosperity. We must conduct in-depth research on the experiences and theories of common prosperity generated during different historical periods—the revolution, construction, and reform—to better understand the path of common prosperity with Chinese characteristics.
The CPC’s theoretical innovation and practice regarding common prosperity have run through the stages of revolution, construction, and reform. The "Resolution on the Development of Agricultural Producers' Cooperatives," drafted under the personal auspices of Mao Zedong, used the term "common prosperity" in an important Party document for the first time. During his Southern Tour [3], Deng Xiaoping proposed a complete thesis on the essence of socialism: "The essence of socialism is to liberate and develop the productive forces, eliminate exploitation and polarization, and ultimately achieve common prosperity." Regarding how to pursue common prosperity in this great Eastern nation, our Party has continuously promoted theoretical innovation based on the actual conditions of different historical periods.
Since the dawn of the New Era, General Secretary Xi Jinping has made a series of important expositions on solidly promoting common prosperity on several important occasions, emphasizing: "The common prosperity we speak of is common prosperity for all people; it is the prosperity involving both the material and spiritual lives of the people. It is not prosperity for a few, nor is it uniform egalitarianism." To solidly promote common prosperity, the CPC has led the people in the world-renowned practice of poverty alleviation and the comprehensive building of a moderately prosperous society. Theory and practice prove that Chinese-path modernization toward common prosperity originates from the correct guidance of Marxist theory, from adherence to the basic principles of scientific socialism, and from the spirit of historical initiative in China’s continuous great practice of modernization. To grasp the spirit of historical initiative and better promote common prosperity by reflecting on the past to understand the future [4], we must enhance our historical self-awareness in theoretical innovation, profoundly summarize historical experience, and—through deep reflection on history—firmly maintain the direction of socialism with Chinese characteristics, drawing wisdom and strength to promote common prosperity while continuously improving our cognitive and practical capacities regarding its theory.
Answering Theoretical and Practical Questions Through the Spirit of Historical Initiative
The "people-centered nature" is the distinctive character of Marxism. As practice and the times evolve, the people continuously develop new needs and requirements in their pursuit of a better life, presenting new questions regarding common prosperity. General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized: "We cannot wait until modernization is realized to solve the problem of common prosperity; rather, we must always consider meeting the people’s new expectations for a better life as the starting point and end goal of development." Facing new tasks, exerting the spirit of historical initiative to promote common prosperity means scientifically addressing the realistic problems and solutions facing common prosperity based on the historical coordinates of socialism with Chinese characteristics entering a New Era, the latest changes in the principal contradiction of our society [5], and the latest expectations of the people.
Marx’s discussion of common prosperity never aimed for the equal distribution of material wealth; rather, it manifested as a state where "production will aim at the prosperity of all," thereby realizing the "comprehensive and free development" of every individual. Common prosperity is a collective cause for all people—a process in which the entire citizenry competes to exercise their historical initiative and join hands to create a better life. The CPC continuously exerts the spirit of historical initiative, leading the masses to fully play their proactive and creative roles in promoting common prosperity, fully stimulating the people's spirit of historical initiative to consolidate the material foundation for common prosperity through diligent labor and struggle, while simultaneously driving the innovation of common prosperity theory. The CPC treats meeting the people's needs for a better life as the starting point and end goal of common prosperity theory and the practice of national governance. It has proposed a series of new theses and conducted a series of practical explorations. Currently, China has become the world’s second-largest economy, having not only successfully solved the problem of food and clothing but also enriched and diversified the employment and income sources of the people. Resident income has maintained long-term steady growth, and the people's lives have achieved a historical leap from "insufficient food and clothing" to "moderate prosperity in all respects."
In the future historical process, at the theoretical level, we must continuously deepen our understanding that common prosperity is an essential requirement of socialism and an important feature of Chinese-path modernization. In practice, we must further explore how to construct norms for wealth growth, regulate the order of wealth distribution and redistribution, and actively promote the innovative development of the "third distribution" [6]. We must further push the theoretical innovation of common prosperity, responding to the diverse and multi-level needs of the masses, and always occupy the high ground of theoretical innovation with strong historical self-awareness. In practice, contemporary China is undergoing the most grand and unique practical innovation in human history. The weight of the task, the number of challenges, and the magnitude of the tests in promoting common prosperity are unprecedented, presenting a vast number of theoretical and practical questions in urgent need of answers. Exerting the spirit of historical initiative means never relaxing the consolidation and expansion of poverty alleviation achievements, preventing a return to poverty, and furthering work in employment, income growth, public services, and medical social security. We must continuously stabilize and expand employment, promote income growth for laborers to build a solid foundation for common prosperity; continuously improve the public service system that is sustainable, equalized, and covers both urban and rural areas; and build a multi-tiered social security system that is sustainable, covers the entire population, and clearly defines rights and responsibilities.
Solidly Advancing Common Prosperity for the Times
Marx pointed out: "Men make their own history, but they do not make it as they please; they do not make it under self-selected circumstances, but under circumstances existing already, given and transmitted from the past." Based on the great practice of socialism with Chinese characteristics since the founding of the PRC, and especially since the Reform and Opening-up, China’s development stands at a new historical starting point. The principal contradiction in society has evolved into the contradiction between the people’s ever-growing need for a better life and unbalanced and inadequate development. To answer the question of common prosperity in our times by focusing on the change in the principal contradiction, we must answer both theoretically and practically how to promote common prosperity for all through Chinese-path modernization on the new journey toward comprehensively building a modern socialist country.
Great practice nurtures great theory; great theory guides great practice. Common prosperity is an essential requirement of socialism. Navigating the path of Chinese-path modernization toward common prosperity requires adherence to the guidance of Marxism Sinicized and modernized for our times. On the new journey, to write a new chapter in the theoretical innovation of common prosperity, we must adhere to using the "arrow" [7] of Marxism to shoot the "target" of common prosperity in New Era China, allowing contemporary Chinese Marxism and 21st-century Marxism to demonstrate even more persuasive and powerful truth-power on the land of China. The system of socialism with Chinese characteristics effectively guarantees the historical inevitability of realizing common prosperity, but we must exert the spirit of historical initiative and utilize high historical self-awareness to focus on various problems on the road to common prosperity. In practice, we have won a comprehensive victory in the fight against poverty, eliminated absolute poverty, and built a moderately prosperous society in all respects. However, we must still focus on better meeting the people’s growing needs for a better life, making the solid promotion of common prosperity the focal point for seeking happiness for the Chinese people and rejuvenation for the Chinese nation. We must scientifically grasp the general trends of domestic and international development and implement the strategic deployment of advancing common prosperity in stages. The times are advancing, and practice is developing; the strategic blueprint and requirements for promoting common prosperity in the New Era are clear. We must use high historical self-awareness to timely adjust and choose a path of common prosperity suitable for world conditions and national conditions. This is the fundamental guarantee for maintaining the vitality of theoretical innovation and walking the path of common prosperity.
For over a hundred years, the CPC has always grasped historical initiative and remained committed to its goals, moving forward firmly in the right direction. Chinese-path modernization is the modernization of common prosperity for all; the path of Chinese-path modernization itself contains the realization of common prosperity as a vital goal. Exerting the spirit of historical initiative to promote common prosperity within the construction of Chinese-path modernization requires us to correctly understand the history, reality, and future of common prosperity and to recognize the objective laws of its advancement. Guided by scientific theory and following the historical trajectory of "standing up, becoming rich, and becoming strong" [8], the path of Chinese-path modernization will move steadily toward the goal of common prosperity for all. We must manifest our historical self-awareness, historical self-confidence, and sense of responsibility with a strong spirit of historical initiative, playing the magnificent movement of a great socialist power pursuing common prosperity, demonstrating the bright prospects of world socialism, and contributing Chinese wisdom and Chinese solutions to the common cause of peace and development for all humanity.
(The author is a researcher at the Nanjing University of Finance and Economics base of the Jiangsu Provincial Research Center for Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era)
Source: Chinese Social Sciences Net / China Social Sciences Today