Tian Zundai: Deepen Reform Comprehensively and Strive to Write a New Chapter in Chinese Modernization
The Third Plenary Session of the 20th CPC Central Committee, centering on Chinese-path modernization, scientifically formulated the general arrangements for further comprehensively deepening reform. This fully demonstrates the historical initiative and firm determination of the Party Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core to develop and improve the system of socialism with Chinese characteristics and to advance Chinese-path modernization through comprehensively deepening reform. Under the leadership of the Party and through long-term efforts, we have achieved a series of great accomplishments that have attracted worldwide attention.
At the same time, we face a grave and complex situation both at home and abroad. Currently, we have entered a critical period for comprehensively advancing the building of a strong country and the great cause of national rejuvenation through Chinese-path modernization. The "test questions" [1] posed by social reality are more arduous and complex than in the past. Therefore, under the firm leadership of the Party, we must further comprehensively deepen reform and opening up, and strive to compose a new chapter of Chinese-path modernization.
I. Upholding the Leadership of the Party to Provide the Fundamental Guarantee for Comprehensively Deepening Reform and Advancing Chinese-path Modernization
General Secretary Xi Jinping has emphasized: "The leadership of the Party directly relates to the fundamental direction, future, destiny, and ultimate success or failure of Chinese-path modernization." History and practice have proven that our Party has led the people in carrying out socialist revolution, construction, and reform, achieving a series of accomplishments, successfully creating the road of Chinese-path modernization, and effectively advancing and expanding it. In the New Era and on the new journey, we will inevitably encounter various risks and challenges in the process of advancing Chinese-path modernization, and we must conduct many complex and arduous struggles. To overcome these difficulties and challenges, we cannot do without the firm leadership of the Party. Upholding the leadership of the Party is the fundamental guarantee for our efforts to comprehensively deepen reform and successfully advance Chinese-path modernization.
Therefore, we must always uphold the leadership of the Party; persist in proceeding from reality in all things; and liberate the mind and seek truth from facts. We must maintain the Central Committee’s centralized and unified leadership over further comprehensively deepening reform, maintain a high level of consciousness in leading social revolution through the Party’s self-revolution, persist in using the spirit of reform to manage and govern the Party, and grasp the implementation of reform with the "nail-driving" spirit [2]. We must transform the strategic deployments for further comprehensively deepening reform into a powerful force for advancing Chinese-path modernization.
II. Persisting in a People-Centered Approach to Gather a Powerful Synergy for Comprehensively Deepening Reform and Advancing Chinese-path Modernization
Persisting in a people-centered approach is the fundamental governing philosophy of the Communist Party of China and the secret to its success. In the process of comprehensively deepening reform to advance Chinese-path modernization, only by persisting in a people-centered approach can we gather synergy. For over a hundred years, the Party and the people have stood together through thick and thin, sharing life and death, and always maintaining a "flesh-and-blood connection" [3]. History and practice have proven that the powerful synergy of the masses is the key to the continuous success of Chinese-path modernization.
Therefore, only by regarding the masses as the practical subjects of comprehensively deepening reform and giving play to their subjective creativity can we extensively build a consensus on reform. Only by proceeding from the fundamental interests of the broadest swells of the people, aligning with their will, and mobilizing their initiative, enthusiasm, and creativity, can reform possess powerful momentum and better aggregate the synergy for Chinese-path modernization. On the new journey, we must persist in the people-centered approach, always keep the word "people" in mind, respect the people’s status as subjects and their pioneering spirit, and ensure that reform responds to what the people call for. We must ensure that reform is for the people, relies on the people, and its fruits are shared by the people. We must always put the people first, maintain a firm "people’s standpoint," and thereby gather the majestic strength of millions of hearts beating as one to overcome difficulties and smoothly advance Chinese-path modernization.
III. Upholding the Fundamentals and Breaking New Ground to Stimulate Strong Vitality for Comprehensively Deepening Reform and Advancing Chinese-path Modernization
Upholding the fundamentals and breaking new ground is a profound summary of our Party's century-long historical experience and a distinctive spiritual character of Chinese-path modernization. For over a hundred years, our Party has united and led the people of all ethnic groups in arduous struggle, upholding the fundamentals and breaking new ground, conducting difficult struggles and tortuous explorations, and achieving brilliant successes. In the New Era and on the new journey, strategic opportunities for development exist alongside risks and challenges: economic globalization is encountering local counter-currents, and the world’s "changes unseen in a century" [4] are accelerating; domestically, various contradictions and problems emerge one after another, and the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation has entered a critical period. The more complex the situation, the more we must accelerate the pace of reform. On the road toward Chinese-path modernization, we must carry the comprehensive deepening of reform through to the end to properly handle new situations, defuse new contradictions, and solve new problems.
In the process of comprehensively deepening reform to advance Chinese-path modernization, we must uphold the "fundamentals" of socialism and "break new ground" in Chinese-path modernization. Reform and innovation complement each other, and comprehensively deepening reform is an important path to promote innovation. Through reform and innovation, we can, on the one hand, continuously enhance the momentum and vitality of social development, promote high-quality development of the economy, and steadily thicken the material foundation of Chinese-path modernization. On the other hand, we can promote the improvement and development of the socialist system, enhance governance capacity and levels, and provide a more robust guarantee for advancing Chinese-path modernization. Furthermore, through reform and innovation, we can create a more vibrant social environment for Chinese-path modernization, thereby stimulating the vitality of market entities, strengthening the capacity for talent support, and augmenting the momentum for technological innovation—eventually realizing the liberation and development of productive forces, the advancement of Chinese-path modernization, the realization of national rejuvenation, and the ultimate goal of ensuring the people’s happiness.
IV. Persisting in Institutional Building as the Main Thread to Provide Institutional Safeguards for Comprehensively Deepening Reform and Advancing Chinese-path Modernization
Institutions are fundamental and long-term issues related to the cause of the Party and the state. The self-improvement and development of the socialist system is an intrinsic requirement of reform. Comrade Deng Xiaoping once pointed out: "Reform is the self-improvement of the socialist system, and within a certain scope, a degree of revolutionary change has also occurred." General Secretary Xi Jinping has also emphasized: "When we speak of strengthening institutional confidence, it does not mean becoming stagnant; rather, it means continuously eliminating the defects of systems and mechanisms to make our institutions mature and enduring."
Reform and opening up in the New Era face deeper-level issues in systems and mechanisms. It is necessary to break the barriers of entrenched interests, improve the requirements for the top-level design of reform, and enhance the systematic, holistic, and synergetic nature of reform. Therefore, we must firmly adhere to institutional building as the main thread, place institutional building and governance capacity building in a more prominent position, and continuously deepen the reform of systems and mechanisms in all fields and aspects to promote the greater maturity and formalization of various systems. Only by persisting in institutional building as the main thread can we, through comprehensively deepening reform, make the system of socialism with Chinese characteristics more complete, and transform institutional advantages into the developmental efficacy of Chinese-path modernization. Only then can we better provide institutional safeguards for comprehensively deepening reform and successfully advance the historical process of Chinese-path modernization.
V. Persisting in Comprehensively Governing the Country According to the Law to Provide a Rule-of-Law Guarantee for Comprehensively Deepening Reform and Advancing Chinese-path Modernization
Reform and the rule of law are like the two wings of a bird or the two wheels of a carriage, complementing each other. History and practice show that the realization of the rule of law cannot be separated from the promotion of reform; moreover, the deeper the reform, the more the rule of law must be emphasized and its guarantee required. Therefore, we must persist in advancing reform under the rule of law and improving the rule of law through reform. The Decision [5] points out that the rule of law is an important guarantee for Chinese-path modernization.
We must deepen reform and advance Chinese-path modernization on the track of the rule of law, timely elevating the achievements of reform into legal systems to escort comprehensively deepening reform with a systematic, complete, pragmatic, and efficient legal framework. On the new journey, we must give play to the guaranteeing role of the rule of law in "consolidating the foundation and benefiting the long term," maintain the authority of the Constitution, and synergistically promote reforms in all links of legislation, law enforcement, justice, and law observation. We must improve the guarantee mechanism for equality before the law, carry forward the spirit of socialist rule of law, safeguard social fairness and justice, and comprehensively advance the rule of law in all areas of state work. We take "systems thinking" as our methodology, persist in comprehensively governing the country according to the law, and use the rule of law to safeguard further comprehensively deepening reform, providing a strong legal guarantee for the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation.
VI. Persisting in Systems Thinking to Provide Methodological Support for Comprehensively Deepening Reform and Advancing Chinese-path Modernization
Systems thinking is an expression of Marxist methodology and one of the working methods of Chinese Communists. Currently, the comprehensive deepening of reform is exerting force across the board, achieving breakthroughs at multiple points and advancing in depth. To advance Chinese-path modernization through comprehensively deepening reform, we must persist in systems thinking.
In this process, we must correctly handle the relationship between top-level design and practical exploration. Our top-level design must meet the requirements of the times, starting from a macro perspective and planning from the height of the entire country; it must also meet the needs of the people, involving meticulous design from a micro perspective; and it must meet realistic needs, proceeding from "meso-level" practice to explore the laws of economic and social development. This ensures that policies reflect the characteristics of the times, the will of the people, and objective laws.
Furthermore, we must correctly handle the relationship between efficiency and equity. Efficiency is the condition for equity; equity without efficiency lacks a foundation and is difficult to sustain. Equity is the premise for efficiency; efficiency without equity cannot last. In comprehensively deepening reform to advance Chinese-path modernization, we must both "make the cake bigger" and "divide the cake well" [6]. Only then can we better maintain social fairness while mobilizing the enthusiasm of the vast majority and promoting long-term development.
Finally, we must handle the relationship between independence and opening up. On one hand, we must persist in independence and self-reliance, avoiding excessive dependence on the exterior and keeping core components firmly in our own hands. On the other hand, we must persist in expanding opening up, avoid "building cars behind closed doors" [7], and strengthen international exchange and cooperation. We must accelerate the construction of a mechanism where the domestic cycle is the mainstay and the domestic and international dual circulation transitions into a virtuous cycle of mutual interdependence and promotion, thereby continuously expanding the breadth and depth of Chinese-path modernization.
Reviewing history and looking at reality, it is easy to see that Chinese Communists have always adhered to a people-centered approach, remained true to their original aspiration, and forged ahead with fortitude. Through various transformations, they have injected new vitality into national development and provided a strong guarantee for China's path to modernization. In the New Era and on the new journey, development opportunities and challenges coexist. Looking at the globe, the world’s "changes unseen in a century" are accelerating; looking at the domestic front, social development still faces many problems. Comprehensively advancing the building of a strong country and the realization of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation through Chinese-path modernization is a task of great weight and a long road ahead. Therefore, we must persist in further comprehensively deepening reform and strive together to compose a new chapter of Chinese-path modernization and realize the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation!