Luo Wendong: An Analysis of the Experience of the Communist Party of China's Centenary Journey
When the Communist Party of China was born in 1921, it had only 50-some members and faced a backward country struggling in the abyss of a semi-colonial and semi-feudal society—beset by foreign invasion, chronic poverty and weakness, warlord factionalism, and widespread destitution. Today, 100 years later, the CPC has developed into a mega-party with over 91 million members and over 4.6 million Party organizations, exercising long-term governance over a major power of more than 1.4 billion people. Under the Party’s leadership, China’s comprehensive national strength has risen significantly; it has finished building a moderately prosperous society in all respects and embarked on a new journey of moving toward the second centenary goal of fully building a modern socialist country. In the long river of human history, 100 years is but a flick of a finger, yet the changes that have occurred and the progress achieved in China are earth-shaking and rare in the world. What force propelled China to undergo such world-shaking changes? What are the reasons for the world-renowned achievements made by the CPC? This article attempts to analyze and elaborate from the perspective of the CPC’s 100-year glorious journey and precious experience.
I. Leading the New Democratic Revolution to Great Victory, Establishing the People’s Republic of China, and Opening a New Era in Chinese History
For nearly 5,000 years prior to the 15th century, China, with its long history and splendid civilization, consistently stood at the forefront of world development. However, after the 15th century, Western countries rapidly rose and surpassed China through the Renaissance, the Enlightenment, democratic revolutions, and the Industrial Revolution. Particularly after the Opium War of 1840, Western powers successively invaded and carved up China. The rule of the feudal dynasties became increasingly corrupt, and the people suffered from hunger, cold, and enslavement. The Chinese nation faced a profound crisis of national subjugation and racial extinction. In those dark and stormy years [1], the industrious and brave Chinese people and countless people of vision [2] engaged in unyielding struggles. History has proven that old-style peasant wars, the Westernization Movement [3] (which did not touch the foundations of feudal rule), and various reformist and revolutionary schemes emulating Western capitalism could not complete the arduous task of China’s anti-imperialist and anti-feudal struggle or the historical mission of national salvation. To solve the problems of development and progress in modern China, there was an urgent need for an advanced class and a leading force capable of steering social transformation, as well as a scientific theory and a correct path to guide China’s progress. This historical responsibility ultimately fell upon the Chinese working class and its vanguard—the Communist Party of China.
On July 23, 1921, the First National Congress of the CPC was convened at No. 106 Wangzhi Road in the Shanghai French Concession. A total of 13 delegates sent by Party organizations from across the country and those stationed in Japan attended the congress; Comintern representatives Maring and Nikolsky were also present. On the evening of the 30th, the police of the French Concession searched the venue, and the final day of the meeting was moved to a pleasure boat on South Lake in Jiaxing, Zhejiang. The congress determined the name of the Party as the "Communist Party of China" and its program as: "overthrowing the bourgeoisie with a proletarian revolutionary army," "adopting the dictatorship of the proletariat to achieve the goal of class struggle—the abolition of classes," "abolishing private ownership of capital," and uniting with the Third International. This demonstrated that the Party clearly took socialism and communism as its goals of struggle and intended to use revolutionary means to achieve them, thereby drawing a clear line of demarcation with the Second International revisionism that worshipped the bourgeois democratic system and advocated the parliamentary road. The First National Congress formally announced the founding of the CPC, signaling the birth of a new type of working-class party on the ancient land of China with Marxism-Leninism as its guide for action. Although the Party’s strength was still very weak at this time, it was full of confidence in its mission to transform China and liberate humanity, pointing out the direction for the Chinese revolution and bringing light and hope to the Chinese people. As Mao Zedong said: "Without a revolutionary party, without a party built on the revolutionary theory and in the revolutionary style of Marxism-Leninism, it is impossible to lead the working class and the broad masses of the people in defeating imperialism and its running dogs," and "Since the founding of the Communist Party of China, the face of the Chinese revolution has taken on an altogether new aspect."
After its founding, the CPC organized and developed labor and peasant movements, taking the "diligent study of China’s objective practical conditions to seek the most appropriate practical solution to China’s problems" as its "primary task." In July 1922, the Second National Congress of the CPC was held in Shanghai. The manifesto issued, through an analysis of China’s economic and political situation, revealed the semi-colonial and semi-feudal nature of Chinese society. It determined that the Party’s maximum program was: establishing a government of the dictatorship of laborers and peasants, eradicating the system of private property, and gradually reaching a communist society. However, the goal of struggle at the time, the minimum program, was: eliminating internal strife, overthrowing the warlords, and building internal peace; overthrowing the oppression of international imperialism to achieve the complete independence of the Chinese nation; and unifying China into a true democratic republic. This was the first time a clear democratic revolutionary program against imperialism and feudalism was presented to the world. The congress adopted the Constitution of the Communist Party of China, which made specific provisions for membership qualifications, Party organizations at all levels, and Party discipline, reflecting the principle of democratic centralism. The congress also proposed uniting with all revolutionary parties in the country and the bourgeois democrats to form a "democratic united front" to achieve the revolutionary goals. In the 1920s and 30s, erroneous tendencies within the Party toward the dogmatization of Marxism-Leninism and the sacralization of Comintern resolutions led to heavy losses for the Chinese revolution, bringing it almost to a dead end. The Chinese Communists, with Comrade Mao Zedong as their chief representative, integrated the universal truths of Marxism-Leninism with the concrete realities of the Chinese revolution. They studied the characteristics and laws of the Chinese revolution and correctly answered fundamental questions concerning its nature, targets, tasks, motive forces, and goals, as well as the forms of struggle, the leading force, and the allies. They formulated the theory, line, and program of the New Democratic Revolution, implemented the great project of Party building, and explored a revolutionary path of encircling the cities from the countryside and seizing political power by armed force, finally achieving national victory. After twenty-eight years of bloody struggle through the four stages of the First Revolutionary Civil War, the Agrarian Revolutionary War, the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression, and the War of Liberation, the CPC led the people of all ethnic groups in the country to finally overthrow the "three great mountains" of imperialism, feudalism, and bureaucrat-capitalism [4]. They defeated the Japanese invaders, eliminated the reactionary rule of the Kuomintang, established the People’s Republic of China, and completed the historical task of national salvation. On September 21, 1949, the First Plenary Session of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) opened in Huairen Hall, Zhongnanhai, Peiping. Mao Zedong solemnly declared: "The Chinese people, comprising one-fourth of humanity, have now stood up," and "Our nation will henceforth join the big family of peace- and freedom-loving nations of the world; it will work courageously and industriously to create its own civilization and happiness and will, at the same time, promote world peace and freedom." The conference adopted the Common Program of the CPPCC, providing that "The People’s Republic of China is a state of New Democracy, that is, people’s democracy, practicing a people’s democratic dictatorship led by the working class, based on the alliance of workers and peasants, and uniting all democratic classes and all ethnic groups within the country." It further stipulated that "The organs through which the people exercise state power are the people’s congresses and people’s governments at all levels" and "State organs at all levels shall practice democratic centralism." On October 1, 300,000 soldiers and civilians held a founding ceremony at Tiananmen Square in the capital, Beijing, marking the birth of New China and the victory of the New Democratic Revolution. The Chinese people, through thousands of years of oppression and enslavement, stood up to become the masters of the new state. The Chinese nation, having washed away the humiliation of more than 100 years, stood tall among the nations of the world with a brand-new posture. Chinese history thus opened a new era.
Without the Communist Party, there would be no New China. This is a truth and a song of praise confirmed by the Chinese people based on their own lived experience. People of insight abroad have also praised the CPC’s leadership and success. For example, two American journalists [5] wrote: "Though their enemies curse them and splash them with every foul name they can think of, no one can deny that they have worked a miracle with their hands... In modern war or modern politics, few other political causes can compare with the miracle created by the Chinese Communist Party." They noted that the Chinese Communists "went deep into the grass roots of every village and, with their own will and their own slogans, aroused a massive force that neither the Kuomintang nor the Japanese could have imagined." The CPC led the people to a great victory in the New Democratic Revolution, abolished the unequal treaties imposed by Western powers and all privileges of imperialism, completed the historical leap from thousands of years of feudal autocracy to people’s democracy, and fundamentally changed the tragic fate of China as a poor, blank, and victimized nation, clearing the obstacles and opening the path for national prosperity and rejuvenation.
II. Leading Socialist Revolution and Construction to Great Achievements, Establishing a New Socialist Society Where the People are Masters of the Country, and Laying the Political Prerequisite, Material Foundation, and Institutional Guarantee for Contemporary China’s Development and Progress
At the beginning of New China’s founding, the CPC faced a reality of devastation and extreme poverty where everything remained to be done. Production was shrinking, unemployment was serious, prices were skyrocketing, and the people’s livelihood was difficult. The Gross National Product was only 70 billion yuan, per capita national income was only 27 US dollars, one-third of the highways were unusable, almost no major railway line was fully operational, and a large number of unemployed workers and 40 million disaster victims were waiting for relief. Counter-revolutionaries were also unwilling to accept defeat and launched frantic attacks on the Party and government; in 1950 alone, 40,000 cadres and civilians were killed in the newly liberated areas. The first-generation central collective leadership with Comrade Mao Zedong at its core led the people to consolidate the nascent state power, quickly complete land reform and other democratic reforms, achieve a fundamental turnaround in the financial and economic situation, and win the great victory of the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea. By the spring of 1950, prices across the country began to stabilize and float downward, and the inflation that had worsened over a long period in Old China was basically eliminated. Around 1952, the Party and government launched the "Three-Antis Movement" (against corruption, waste, and bureaucratism), which boosted the morale of Party and state personnel. Simultaneously, the "Five-Antis Movement" (against bribery, tax evasion, theft of state property, cheating on government contracts, and stealing state economic information) struck at the illegal activities of capitalists and refreshed the social atmosphere. After more than three years of hard struggle, the national economy was fully restored and initially developed; the total value of industrial and agricultural output increased by 77.5% compared to 1949, 20% higher than the historical peak of 1936. Land system reform was completed in newly liberated areas with a population of over 300 million, and large areas of farmland that had lain fallow due to the chaos of war were reclaimed—in the East China region alone, the total sown area increased by nearly 100% compared to before the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression. People’s lives improved significantly; the average wages of workers across the country rose by 60% to 120% compared to 1949, and the entire country showed a scene of burgeoning prosperity. In particular, the Party Central Committee adhered to the policy of "fighting, stabilizing, and building simultaneously," leading the whole Party, the whole army, and the people of all ethnic groups to share bitter hatred for the enemy and unite as one to win the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea. This victory demonstrated the national prestige of New China and the prowess of its military, maintained peace in Asia and even the world, and won a relatively stable peaceful environment for China. As Xi Jinping said: "The great victory of the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea is a manifesto that the Chinese people have stood up and stood tall in the East, a major milestone for the Chinese nation toward great rejuvenation, and has significant and far-reaching significance for China and the world." Practice has proven that the CPC can not only overthrow an old society but also build a new China.
In order to transform China from a backward agrarian country into an advanced industrial one, and from a New Democratic state into a socialist state, the Communist Party of China (CPC) formulated the General Line for the Transition Period in 1953. This line held that within a considerable period, the country would gradually realize socialist industrialization and the socialist transformation of agriculture, handicrafts, and capitalist industry and commerce. Starting that year, China began implementing the First Five-Year Plan, concentrating resources on industrial construction centered on 156 projects designed with Soviet assistance and composed of 694 units. China, which previously had to import even iron nails and matches, rapidly established industries such as aviation, machine tools, electronics, and automobiles, laying a solid foundation for the formation of a relatively complete industrial system and national economic system. Regarding agriculture and handicrafts, mutual-aid forms such as primary production cooperatives were created, gradually transforming individual ownership into socialist collective ownership. For capitalist industry and commerce, through forms such as processing goods on order, centralized planning of supply and marketing, and joint state-private ownership, capitalist private ownership was gradually transitioned to socialist public ownership, successfully realizing the peaceful "buy-out" [6] of the bourgeoisie. In September 1954, the First Session of the National People’s Congress (NPC) convened in Beijing and adopted the Constitution of the People’s Republic of China, establishing the fundamental system of the people as masters of the country in the form of a basic law. By the end of 1956, our country had basically completed the socialist transformation, abolished the system of exploitation based on private ownership of the means of production, and implemented the system of public ownership of the means of production and the principle of distribution according to work. The system of people's congresses, the system of multi-party cooperation and political consultation under the leadership of the CPC, and the system of regional ethnic autonomy were all implemented, allowing this ancient and great Oriental nation to enter socialist society. The victory of the socialist revolution and the establishment of the socialist system realized the most extensive and profound social change in Chinese history. This not only provided the fundamental political premise and institutional guarantee for all development and progress in contemporary China, but also broke through the imperialist front in the East and strengthened the global forces of socialism. From then on, the CPC led the people of the whole country as they embarked with great passion upon the great journey of socialist construction.
Building socialism in a large Oriental country with such a massive population, vast territory, and legacy of poverty and backwardness undoubtedly encountered extremely complex and difficult problems, forcing the CPC to lead the people in cutting through brambles and thorns [7] and feeling their way forward. In April 1956, Mao Zedong delivered the report On the Ten Major Relationships at an enlarged meeting of the Political Bureau of the Central Committee, putting forward the basic policy of mobilizing all positive factors at home and abroad to serve the cause of socialism. He advocated that economic plans should be appropriately adjusted to further develop agriculture and light industry, increase the development of coastal industries, and reduce the proportion of military and administrative expenditures. In 1957, Mao further proposed the need to distinguish between different types of contradictions in socialist society, taking the correct handling of contradictions among the people as the theme of national political life, and expounding the policies of "letting a hundred flowers bloom and a hundred schools of thought contend" and "long-term coexistence and mutual supervision." The Third National People's Congress announced the magnificent goal of building a powerful socialist country with modern agriculture, modern industry, modern national defense, and modern science and technology, which gave great encouragement to the people across the nation. Although errors such as the enlargement of the Anti-Rightist Campaign and the "Great Leap Forward" were committed, economic and social development achieved significant results. Compared to 1956, the original value of the nation's industrial fixed assets in 1965 grew fourfold. The output of major industrial products such as cotton yarn, raw coal, electricity generation, crude oil, steel, and mechanical equipment all saw massive increases. Basic agricultural construction and technical transformation were launched on a large scale. Education developed rapidly; the number of graduates from institutions of higher learning reached nearly 1.4 million, 4.9 times that of the previous seven years. Science and technology also saw prominent achievements, including the successful detonation of the first atomic bomb, which broke the nuclear monopoly and nuclear blackmail of the superpowers and raised New China’s international status.
Just as the adjustment of the national economy was basically completed and China began implementing the Third Five-Year Plan, the "Cultural Revolution" occurred and lasted for ten years; this was a serious setback encountered by the Party in its journey to explore China's own path to socialism. The CPC relied on its own strength to eventually rectify this serious error itself. During this period, though the national economy experienced significant fluctuations, various works still made important progress amidst difficulties. Grain production grew steadily, and a series of major achievements were made in industry, transportation, and science and technology, including the commissioning of several large-scale enterprises, the successful testing of the hydrogen bomb and launching of man-made satellites, and the breeding and promotion of hybrid rice. External work also opened a new horizon; the recovery of China's lawful seat in the United Nations and the improvement of relations between China and countries such as the United States and Japan created favorable conditions for foreign exchanges in the new period of reform and opening up.
III. Leading the Great New Revolution of Reform and Opening Up, Establishing a Vibrant New Socialist System, and Completing the Great Task of National Prosperity in the Historical Process of Creating and Defending Socialism with Chinese Characteristics
In December 1978, the Third Plenary Session of the 11th CPC Central Committee made the historic decision to shift the focus of Party work to economic construction and to implement reform and opening up, achieving a great turning point of far-reaching significance since the founding of New China. Chinese Communists, with Comrade Deng Xiaoping as their chief representative, broke the shackles of the People's Commune system and implemented the household contract responsibility system to mobilize the initiative and creativity of hundreds of millions of farmers. They approved the establishment of four Special Economic Zones in Shenzhen, Zhuhai, Shantou, and Xiamen, and later decided to open 14 coastal ports including Dalian and Tianjin, opening the Yangtze River Delta, Pearl River Delta, Southern Fujian, and the Bohai Rim as coastal economic development zones, courageously opening the door to the outside world. In his opening speech at the 12th National Congress of the Party, Deng Xiaoping clearly stated: "To integrate the universal truth of Marxism with the concrete realities of our country, to blaze a path of our own and build socialism with Chinese characteristics—this is the basic conclusion we have reached after summing up long-term historical experience." The Third Plenary Session of the 12th Central Committee initiated economic structural reform focused on urban areas and the enhancement of enterprise vitality. By promoting the contract management responsibility system and the joint-stock system, encouraging the development of the individual economy, the private economy, and foreign-invested enterprises, reducing mandatory planned regulation, reforming the price system, and promoting market growth, the urban and rural economies became active as never before. The Party Central Committee also formulated a "three-step" development strategy: the first step was to double the 1980 Gross National Product (GNP) to solve the problem of food and clothing for the people; the second step was to double the GNP again by the end of the 20th century so that the people's lives reached a level of moderate prosperity (xiaokang); and the third step was to reach the per capita GNP level of moderately developed countries by the mid-21st century, making the people relatively wealthy and basically realizing modernization, then continuing to advance on that basis. The 13th National Congress expounded the theory of the primary stage of socialism and formulated the basic line of taking economic construction as the center while adhering to the Four Cardinal Principles and adhering to reform and opening up. Precisely because the Party led the people to successfully create the path, theory, and system of socialism with Chinese characteristics through the process of setting things right and carrying out reform and opening up, it was able to overcome various difficulties and maintain political stability and socio-economic development under the severe circumstances of the drastic changes in the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe and the political disturbances at home.
After the Fourth Plenary Session of the 13th Central Committee, Chinese Communists, with Comrade Jiang Zemin as their chief representative, adhered to the Party's basic theory and basic line. In the face of a highly complex domestic and international situation and the test of serious setbacks for world socialism, they advanced the "Great New Project of Party Building" and defended and developed socialism with Chinese characteristics. The 14th National Congress determined that the goal of China's economic structural reform was to establish a socialist market economy system, resolving a major issue concerning the overall situation and direction of socialist economic construction. The Fifth Plenary Session of the 14th Central Committee, by formulating the proposal for the Ninth Five-Year Plan and the Long-Range Objectives through the Year 2010, made the decision for "two fundamental shifts": first, a shift of the economic system from the traditional planned economy to a socialist market economy; and second, a shift of the economic growth mode from extensive to intensive, promoting the sustained, rapid, and healthy development of the national economy and all-around social progress. The 15th National Congress formulated the basic program for the primary stage of socialism, established the basic economic and distribution systems for that stage, and clarified the basic characteristics and requirements for building a socialist economy, politics, and culture with Chinese characteristics. The Congress also proposed a "new three-step" development goal: the first decade of the 21st century would see a doubling of the 2000 GNP, making the people's xiaokang life more affluent and forming a relatively complete socialist market economy system; after another 10 years of effort, by the centenary of the founding of the Party, the national economy would be further developed and various systems further perfected; and by the mid-21st century, the centenary of the founding of New China, modernization would be basically realized, building a strong, democratic, and civilized socialist country. It was in accordance with the deployments of the 15th National Congress that the Party led the people to advance reform, opening up, and modernization, responding to the Southeast Asian financial crisis and catastrophic floods. Socio-economic development reached a new level, and the people's standard of living realized the leap from basic food and clothing to moderate prosperity. The return of Hong Kong and Macau ended British and Portuguese colonial rule in China, erecting two monuments on the road to national reunification. From 1989 to 2001, GDP grew at an average annual rate of 9.3%, far ahead of the world average of 3.2%, the 2.7% of developed countries, and the 5.2% of developing countries; the total economic volume rose to sixth in the world. On December 11, 2001, China successfully joined the World Trade Organization (WTO), marking a new stage in China's opening up to the outside world.
The 16th National Congress determined the strategic deployment for comprehensively building a moderately prosperous society (xiaokang) in the first 20 years of the 21st century. Chinese Communists, with Comrade Hu Jintao as their chief representative, adhered to the people-centered approach and comprehensive, coordinated, and sustainable development. They improved the socialist market economy system, built a socialist harmonious society, formed the overall layout for the cause of socialism with Chinese characteristics, and strengthened the Party's governing capacity and "advanced nature." They advanced practical, theoretical, and institutional innovation in the process of building a moderately prosperous society in all respects. The 17th National Congress provided a penetrating exposition of the path and theoretical system of socialism with Chinese characteristics and comprehensively summarized the process, achievements, and experience of nearly 30 years of reform and opening up, providing an important guarantee for adhering to and developing socialism with Chinese characteristics. Although the international situation was volatile and domestic contradictions became increasingly prominent, the Party Central Committee led the whole Party and the people of the country to deepen the reform of the administrative management system, promote rural reform and development, and foster the great development and prosperity of socialist culture. They withstood various risks and tests, achieving new victories in building a moderately prosperous society in all respects. From 2002 to 2012, China's total economic volume rose from sixth to second in the world, and people's livelihoods and social security improved significantly, with national strength and international influence rapidly increasing. China successfully hosted the Beijing Olympics and Paralympics and the Shanghai World Expo, fought natural disasters such as the catastrophic Wenchuan earthquake, responded to the international financial crisis that broke out in 2008, and handled a series of major emergencies, further demonstrating the superiority and vitality of socialism with Chinese characteristics.
During the new period of reform, opening up, and socialist modernization, our country realized the great historical transition from a highly centralized planned economy system to a vibrant socialist market economy system, and from a closed or semi-closed economy to all-around opening, creating the "two miracles" of rapid economic development and long-term social stability. Deng Xiaoping clearly pointed out: "When China truly became active and truly concentrated its strength on doing the things the people hoped for, it was still after the Third Plenary Session of the 11th Central Committee at the end of 1978." From 1978 to 2012, China's GDP grew from 365 billion yuan to 51.93 trillion yuan, and total imports and exports rose from 20.6 billion US dollars to 3.87 trillion US dollars, growing by 141 times and 186 times respectively. It became the world's second-largest economy, the world's largest exporter, and the "world’s factory" following Britain, the United States, Japan, and Germany since the Industrial Revolution of the 18th century. People's lives significantly improved, completing the historical leap from insufficient food and clothing to overall moderate prosperity, and steadily entering the ranks of middle-income countries. The Party led the people in reform and opening up for the purpose of liberating and developing the productive forces, realizing national modernization, and revitalizing the great Chinese nation; for the purpose of promoting the self-improvement and development of the socialist system and imbuing socialism with new vitality; and for the purpose of strengthening and improving Party building, maintaining and developing the Party's advanced nature, and ensuring the Party always stays at the forefront of the times. Practice has proved that reform and opening up is the key choice that determines the fate of contemporary China, the important magic weapon [8] for the Party and the people to catch up with the times in giant strides, and the only path to adhere to and develop socialism with Chinese characteristics and realize the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation.
IV. Leading the Great Struggle Under New Historical Conditions, Coordinately Advancing the "Five-Sphere Integrated Plan" and the "Four Comprehensives" Strategic Layout, and Advancing the Great Cause of Building a Powerful Nation in the Practice of Persisting in and Developing Socialism with Chinese Characteristics in the New Era
Since the 18th National Congress of the CPC, the Chinese communists, with Comrade Xi Jinping as their chief representative, have coordinately advanced the "Five-Sphere Integrated Plan" (economic, political, cultural, social, and ecological civilization construction) and the "Four Comprehensives" strategic layout (completing the building of a moderately prosperous society in all respects and the comprehensive building of a modern socialist country, comprehensively deepening reform, comprehensively advancing the law-based governance of the country, and comprehensively and strictly governing the Party). They have implemented the new development philosophy of innovation, coordination, green development, openness, and sharing, and have unswervingly opposed corruption. They have solved many tough problems that had long remained unresolved and accomplished many major tasks that were previously left unfinished. This has pushed the cause of the Party and the state to achieve historical achievements and undergo historical transformations, leading socialism with Chinese characteristics into a New Era.
On November 29, 2012, while visiting the exhibition "The Road to Rejuvenation" at the National Museum, Xi Jinping explicitly proposed striving for the Chinese Dream of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation. At the first session of the 12th National People's Congress, he elucidated that the essence of the Chinese Dream is the prosperity of the country, the rejuvenation of the nation, and the happiness of the people. He emphasized that to realize the Chinese Dream, we must follow the path of socialism with Chinese characteristics, carry forward the Chinese spirit centered on patriotism, reform, and innovation, and coalesce Chinese strength through the great unity of all ethnic groups. This expressed the beautiful aspirations of every son and daughter of the Chinese nation and found the "greatest common denominator" [9] to inspire the people of the whole country to unite and struggle. The Third Plenary Session of the 18th CPC Central Committee made systematic arrangements for comprehensively deepening reform and advancing the modernization of the state governance system and capacity, clarifying the direction, goals, and tasks of future reform. The Fourth, Fifth, and Sixth Plenary Sessions of the 18th Central Committee also conducted special studies and made strategic arrangements respectively on comprehensively advancing the law-based governance of the country, completing the building of a moderately prosperous society in all respects, and comprehensively and strictly governing the Party. The "Four Comprehensives" strategic layout has become the master grip [10] for the Party’s governance of the country under the new situation, centrally embodying the fundamental goals and major measures for the long-term development of the Party and the state, and marking a new height in the Party's understanding and application of the laws governing the development of socialism with Chinese characteristics.
The 19th National Congress of the CPC proposed that the principal contradiction in Chinese society has evolved into the contradiction between the people’s ever-growing needs for a better life and unbalanced and inadequate development. It made strategic arrangements to: complete the building of a moderately prosperous society in all respects by the centenary of the CPC; basically realize socialist modernization by 2035; and build a prosperous, strong, democratic, culturally advanced, harmonious, and beautiful great modern socialist country by the centenary of the People’s Republic of China. The Fourth Plenary Session of the 19th Central Committee passed the decision on upholding and improving the system of socialism with Chinese characteristics and advancing the modernization of the state governance system and capacity. The Fifth Plenary Session of the 19th Central Committee determined the 14th Five-Year Plan for National Economic and Social Development and the Long-Range Objectives Through the Year 2035. Our country stands once again at a new historical starting point, entering a new development stage of comprehensively building a modern socialist country—that is, the historical stage of achieving the Second Centenary Goal and pushing the historical cause of national prosperity, national rejuvenation, the people's happiness, and "Great Harmony" [11] (shìjiè dàtóng) to a new realm. It is precisely under the strong leadership of the Party Central Committee that the people of the whole country have united as one to fight the "tough battles" [12] of preventing and resolving major risks, targeted poverty alleviation, and pollution prevention and control. We have won the battle to intercept and control the COVID-19 epidemic, and China's economic recovery and development lead the world, with social livelihoods effectively guaranteed. By 2020, the GDP exceeded 100 trillion RMB, and the per capita GDP exceeded 10,000 USD, placing China firmly among upper-middle-income countries. Under current standards, 98.99 million rural poor have been lifted out of poverty, the overall appearance of poverty-stricken areas has undergone a transformation, and the goal of completing the building of a moderately prosperous society in all respects was achieved as scheduled. This fulfilled the solemn promise the CPC made to the people and to history regarding the First Centenary Goal, and marked a critical step toward the Second Centenary Goal of becoming a powerful modern socialist country and achieving the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation.
The entry of socialism with Chinese characteristics into a New Era is of great significance not only in the development history of the Party, the state, and the Chinese nation, but also in the development history of world socialism and human society. Xi Jinping emphasized: "Socialism with Chinese characteristics in the New Era is the result of the great social revolution led by our Party, and it is also the continuation of the great social revolution led by our Party; it must be pursued consistently." Entering the New Era, the appearance of the Party, the state, the military, and the Chinese nation has undergone unprecedented changes. These changes have profoundly altered China and profoundly influenced the world, meaning the Chinese nation, which has endured many trials since modern times began, has ushered in a great leap from standing up and becoming active to becoming prosperous and strong, and has ushered in the bright prospect of realizing the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation. It means that scientific socialism has radiated powerful vitality in 21st-century China, holding high the great banner of Marxism and socialism in the world. It means that the path, theory, system, and culture of socialism with Chinese characteristics have continued to develop, opening up a path to modernization for developing countries, providing a brand-new choice for countries and nations in the world that wish to both accelerate development and maintain their independence, and contributing Chinese wisdom and Chinese solutions to solving human problems. Looking back at the century-long history of the CPC, we are proud of having created the globally recognized and world-renowned great causes of saving the nation, establishing the nation, enriching the nation, and strengthening the nation. We have become increasingly firm in our "Four Confidences" in the path, theory, system, and culture of socialism with Chinese characteristics. Looking forward to the centenary goal of the PRC, we are full of confidence in building a prosperous, strong, democratic, culturally advanced, harmonious, and beautiful great modern socialist country and making greater contributions to humanity. By the mid-21st century, China’s material, political, spiritual, social, and ecological civilizations will be comprehensively enhanced, the modernization of its state governance system and capacity will be fully realized, it will become a country leading in comprehensive national strength and international influence, common prosperity for all people will be basically achieved, the Chinese people will surely enjoy a happier and healthier life, socialism with Chinese characteristics will surely move toward a higher stage, and the Chinese nation will surely stand tall among the nations of the world with a more spirited posture.
V. The CPC’s Valuable Experience: Maintaining Close Ties with the Masses, Guided by Scientific Theory, and Coordinately Advancing the Party’s Self-Revolution and Great Social Revolution
"The birth of the Communist Party in China was an epoch-making event [13]." For 100 years, the CPC has united and led the people of all ethnic groups in completing and advancing the New Democratic Revolution, the socialist revolution and construction, the reform and opening up, and socialism with Chinese characteristics in the New Era. These major events have fundamentally changed the future and destiny of the Chinese people and the Chinese nation, writing an earth-shaking, arduous, and magnificent epic in the history of human development. The valuable experience of the CPC can be briefly analyzed and discussed from three aspects: political, theoretical, and practical.
(1) Adhering to the political stance of putting the people first and maintaining flesh-and-blood ties between the Party and the masses. The future and destiny of a political party or a regime ultimately depend on the support or opposition of the people. Serving the people wholeheartedly is the fundamental purpose of the CPC, and maintaining close ties with the masses is the Party's fine style of work. In the political report to the Party's Seventh National Congress, Mao Zedong heroically stated: "The people, and the people alone, are the motive force in the making of world history." Jiang Zemin clearly pointed out that the reason the CPC won the people's support is that during the various historical periods of revolution, construction, and reform, the Party always represented the development requirements of China's advanced productive forces, the orientation of China's advanced culture, and the fundamental interests of the overwhelming majority of the Chinese people. Always achieving the "Three Represents" is the "foundation for building the Party, the basis for its governance, and the source of its strength." In essence, always putting the people in the highest position in one's heart, taking the people's aspiration for a better life as the goal of struggle, adhering to the principal status of the people, persisting in a people-centered approach, and realizing the fundamental interests of the broadest masses of the people are the fundamental political stances of the CPC. "Everything for the masses, everything relying on the masses, from the masses, and to the masses"—turning the Party's correct propositions into the conscious action of the masses—is the Party's fundamental work line. Whether the people support, approve of, are happy with, or agree to something is the Party's fundamental value standard. Being born for the people, flourishing because of the people, sharing weal and woe, life and death with the people, and always standing with the people is the fundamental guarantee for the Party to overcome all difficulties and risks and lead the people to create historical achievements. "History has fully proven that the people are the state and the state is the people [14]; the support or opposition of the people is a matter of life and death for the Party."
(2) Adhering to the guiding position of Marxism and continuously advancing theoretical innovation and theoretical arming. In modern society, the prosperity of a country and the rejuvenation of a nation are inseparable from the leadership of an advanced political party, and the growth and strength of a political party are inseparable from the guidance of advanced theory. Lenin said: "Without revolutionary theory there can be no revolutionary movement," and "the role of vanguard fighter can be fulfilled only by a party that is guided by the most advanced theory." Hu Jintao pointed out: "The history of the Party tells us that theoretical maturity is the foundation of political firmness, and theoretical advancement with the times is the prerequisite for pioneering and enterprising action," and "wherever theoretical innovation advances a step, theoretical arming follows a step; this is an important experience of our Party in strengthening its own construction." From the day of its birth, the CPC has held high the banner of Marxism-Leninism as a scientific guide for leading the people in the great struggle. Throughout the long historical process of revolution, construction, and reform, the CPC has combined the universal truths of Marxism-Leninism with concrete national conditions, the characteristics of the times, and the will of the people, successively creating Mao Zedong Thought, Deng Xiaoping Theory, the "Three Represents" important thought, the Scientific Outlook on Development, and Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era. It persists in using the results of theoretical innovation—centered on the Sinicization, modernization, and popularization of Marxism—to arm minds and guide practice, consolidating the common ideological foundation for the united struggle of the whole Party and the people of the whole country. This is a decisive factor for the CPC to always maintain its advanced nature and purity, continuously promote the development of its cause, and victoriously complete its historical mission.
(3) Adhering to the powerful spirit of "revolution plus desperation" and promoting social revolution through the Party's self-revolution. The supreme ideal and ultimate goal of the CPC is the realization of communism, which necessarily involves a long and arduous historical process of fundamentally transforming the social environment and human beings. Marx and Engels wrote in The German Ideology: "Revolution is necessary, therefore, not only because the ruling class cannot be overthrown in any other way, but also because the class overthrowing it can only in a revolution succeed in ridding itself of all the muck of ages and become fitted to found society anew." The reason the CPC has grown and expanded despite many trials is that it possesses that spirit of "revolution plus desperation" (gémìng jiā pīnmìng), dares to carry out the Party's self-revolution, and unremittingly struggles against its own problems and errors. This is both an internal requirement of Party building and development and an objective necessity for the Party to lead the people in a series of great social revolutions. As Xi Jinping said in his speech when meeting Chinese and foreign journalists with the members of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the 19th CPC Central Committee: "In 2021, we will usher in the 100th anniversary of the founding of the CPC. The Party is committed to the eternal great cause of the Chinese nation, and a hundred years is just the prime of life! The CPC is the largest political party in the world. Being big means having the appearance of being big. Practice has proven that the CPC can lead the people in a great social revolution and can also conduct a great self-revolution... We will continue to clear away all viruses that erode the healthy body of the Party, vigorously create a clean and upright political ecosystem, and use the powerful positive energy of the whole Party to coalesce the majestic power of the whole society to promote China's development and progress."