Li Lin: Providing a Strong Institutional Guarantee for Chinese Modernization
Reform and opening up is the important magic weapon for the Party and the people to catch up with the times in great strides. General Secretary Xi Jinping has pointed out: "To achieve the goals and tasks of the New Era and the new journey, we must take the comprehensive deepening of reform as the fundamental driving force for promoting Chinese-path modernization." The meeting of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee held on April 30 emphasized that we "must continue to push reform forward" and proposed that this is an inevitable requirement for upholding and improving the system of socialism with Chinese characteristics and for promoting the modernization of the national governance system and governance capacity. We must profoundly grasp the relationship between reform and opening up and institutional building, and between institutional building and Chinese-path modernization, continuing to improve and develop the system of socialism with Chinese characteristics while promoting the modernization of the national governance system and governance capacity.
Promoting Chinese-path modernization requires strong institutional safeguards
General Secretary Xi Jinping has pointed out: "To comprehensively promote the construction of a strong country and the great cause of national rejuvenation through Chinese-path modernization is the central task of the Party and the state in the New Era and on the new journey." Completing this central task is a systematic project that requires holistic planning, systematic design, and integrated advancement; it cannot succeed without institutional safeguards. The system of socialism with Chinese characteristics and the national governance system possess deep historical foundations, diverse and significant advantages, and rich practical achievements. Consequently, they possess strong vitality and immense superiority, enabling the continuous promotion of progress and development in a major country with a population of over 1.4 billion.
In governing a country, institutions play a fundamental, holistic, and long-term role. Looking at the essential requirements of Chinese-path modernization—whether it is upholding the leadership of the Communist Party of China, adhering to socialism with Chinese characteristics, achieving high-quality development, developing whole-process people's democracy, enriching the people’s spiritual world, achieving common prosperity for all, promoting harmony between humanity and nature, pushing for the building of a community with a shared future for humanity, or creating a new form of human civilization—all require fully leveraging the advantages of the system of socialism with Chinese characteristics. We must better transform these institutional advantages into national governance efficacy to ensure Chinese-path modernization continuously achieves new progress and breakthroughs. Since the start of the New Era, our Party has anchored itself to the general goal of comprehensively deepening reform, upholding and improving the system of socialism with Chinese characteristics, and promoting the modernization of the national governance system and governance capacity. We have formed a complete set of institutional systems including the fundamental, basic, and important systems of socialism with Chinese characteristics [1], ensuring the development of the cause of the Party and the state, the happiness and well-being of the people, social harmony and stability, and the long-term peace and security of the country. This has provided a strong institutional safeguard for the promotion and expansion of Chinese-path modernization.
General Secretary Xi Jinping has pointed out: "Promoting Chinese-path modernization is an exploratory undertaking with many unknown areas, requiring us to engage in bold exploration in practice and promote the development of the cause through reform and innovation." When institutions are stable, the state is stable; when institutions are strong, the state is strong. Upholding and improving the system of socialism with Chinese characteristics and promoting the modernization of the national governance system and governance capacity are inherent components and requirements of promoting Chinese-path modernization. To advance this unprecedented and great cause of Chinese-path modernization, there is an urgent need to continue pushing reform forward on the new journey of the New Era, ensuring the system of socialism with Chinese characteristics better adapts to Chinese-path modernization. Faced with complicated international and domestic situations, a new round of scientific and technological revolution and industrial transformation, and the new expectations of the masses, we must demonstrate greater courage and adopt more measures. We must apply force with precision, synergy, and persistence to resolutely break down all institutional and mechanistic obstacles [2] hindering the smooth progress of Chinese-path modernization. We must both continue to "add bricks and tiles" [3] to the original institutional foundation and perform "fine decoration" [4] within the existing institutional framework, constructing an institutional system that is systematically complete, scientifically standardized, and effective in operation. This will ensure that Chinese-path modernization moves forward steadily and reaches far through its significant institutional advantages and strong governance efficacy.
Strengthening institutional safeguards for Chinese-path modernization requires further comprehensively deepening reform
General Secretary Xi Jinping has pointed out: "China's reform is the self-perfection and development of the system of socialism with Chinese characteristics." This important thesis profoundly elucidates the relationship between reform and opening up and institutional building. On the new journey of the New Era, to uphold and improve the system of socialism with Chinese characteristics, promote the modernization of the national governance system and governance capacity, and provide strong institutional safeguards for Chinese-path modernization, we must rely on further comprehensively deepening reform.
Our Party has always attached great importance to the construction of the state system and the national governance system. During the period of the New Democratic Revolution, our Party united and led the people in creating people's revolutionary political power in the base areas, accumulating precious experience for the establishment of a new type of state system in the New China where the people are the masters of the country. After the founding of the People's Republic of China, our Party united and led the people in establishing the basic socialist system, laying the fundamental political prerequisite and institutional foundation for modernization. After the start of reform and opening up, our Party reflected on and explored the issues of the national governance system and governance capacity from a brand-new perspective, establishing the system of socialism with Chinese characteristics and continuously improving national governance, which provided a reinvigorated institutional guarantee for Chinese-path modernization. Since the start of the New Era, the Party Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core has—with unprecedented determination and strength—broken through the shackles of outdated ideas and the barriers of entrenched interests [5]. It has resolutely eliminated institutional and mechanistic defects in various areas and actively responded to the risks and challenges brought by changes in the external environment, initiating a magnificent and soul-stirring process of comprehensively deepening reform. We have solidified fundamental systems, improved basic systems, and innovated important systems, pushing the system of socialism with Chinese characteristics toward greater maturity and formalization. The level of modernization of the national governance system and governance capacity has continuously increased, providing a more refined institutional guarantee for Chinese-path modernization.
Practice has proven that comprehensively deepening reform under the leadership of the Party is the effective path and inevitable choice for upholding and improving the system of socialism with Chinese characteristics and promoting the modernization of the national governance system and governance capacity. Through reform, we continuously form and develop institutional mechanisms that conform to contemporary China's national conditions and are full of vigor; our system matures daily through the elimination of institutional defects. Simultaneously, we must recognize that reform is forced by problems and deepened through their continuous resolution. As old problems are solved, new ones will arise; thus, reform can neither be accomplished overnight [6] nor once and for all. We must consciously place reform in a more prominent position, exerting real effort in improving systems, strengthening mechanisms, stimulating vitality, and adding momentum, continuing to push reform forward. At present, compared with the objective needs of promoting Chinese-path modernization and the grand goal of comprehensively building a great modern socialist country, some aspects of our national system and governance system are still not fully adapted. Shortcomings and weaknesses remain in perfecting the legal systems urgently needed for national governance, essential for meeting the people's growing needs for a better life, and required for maintaining national security. On the new journey, to uphold and improve the system of socialism with Chinese characteristics and promote the modernization of the national governance system and governance capacity, we must further comprehensively deepen reform with greater political courage and wisdom. We must promote the organic connection, systematic integration, synergy, and efficiency of various systems, enhancing the comprehensive efficacy of reform and national governance to better support and serve Chinese-path modernization.
Comprehensively deepening reform must reflect the requirements of the era for promoting Chinese-path modernization
The current and upcoming periods are critical for comprehensively promoting the construction of a strong country and the great cause of national rejuvenation through Chinese-path modernization. We still face many problems and challenges in upholding and improving the system of socialism with Chinese characteristics and promoting the modernization of the national governance system and governance capacity. The task of further comprehensively deepening reform and better leveraging the significant advantages of our national system and governance system has not become lighter; rather, it has become heavier. The more critical the period and the more risks and challenges we face, the more we must maintain strategic resolve. We must combine new era conditions with new missions and tasks, continuing to make full and effective use of reform as the "key move" [7] to provide strong institutional safeguards for Chinese-path modernization.
We must profoundly grasp the new requirements set by the theory of Chinese-path modernization for institutional building. In the New Era, General Secretary Xi Jinping, through a series of new ideas, viewpoints, and judgments, has profoundly answered the major theoretical and practical questions of what Chinese-path modernization is and how to build it. He has proposed and elaborately explained the theory of Chinese-path modernization, further deepening the understanding of its connotations and essence, making Chinese-path modernization clearer, more scientific, and more tangible and feasible. This has provided the fundamental follow-through and a guide to action for promoting Chinese-path modernization. We must adhere to the guidance of Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, profoundly grasping the new requirements that the theory of Chinese-path modernization places on comprehensively deepening reform and institutional building. With the upholding and improvement of the system of socialism with Chinese characteristics and the modernization of the national governance system and governance capacity as the main axis, we must conquer more difficulties in breaking down institutional defects and adjusting deep-seated interest patterns. This will facilitate better transformation and integration of institutional building and governance efficacy, adding momentum to the completion of the central task and the achievement of strategic goals.
We must always adhere to a scientific methodology for reform. General Secretary Xi Jinping has pointed out: "Reform involves both breaking down and building up; if the right method is found, one achieves twice the result with half the effort; if not, one gets half the result with twice the effort or even produces negative effects." Since the start of the New Era, General Secretary Xi Jinping has creatively proposed scientific methods and effective paths for comprehensively deepening reform, forming the most abundant, comprehensive, and systematic methodology for reform since the beginning of reform and opening up. On the new journey, we must deeply study and implement the series of new ideas, viewpoints, and judgments of General Secretary Xi Jinping on comprehensively deepening reform and adhere to a scientific methodology. We must take the promotion of social fairness and justice and the enhancement of the people's well-being as our starting point and ultimate goal. Proceeding from the people's holistic, fundamental, and long-term interests, we should plan and promote reform with a global perspective and systematic thinking. We must focus on the most direct and realistic interest issues that concern the people most to advance reform in key areas, paying more attention to systematic integration, the highlighting of priorities, and the actual results of reform. We must strengthen the coordination and support of various reform measures, preventing and overcoming the phenomenon of each department going its own way or hindering one another. We should ensure that reform measures in various fields and aspects exert force in the same direction to form a synergy, enhancing overall efficacy and better providing strong institutional safeguards for Chinese-path modernization.
We must correctly handle the relationship between institutional stability and developmental potential. Further comprehensively deepening reform is both the practical continuation of comprehensively deepening reform since the Third Plenary Session of the 18th CPC Central Committee and a new chapter of the era for promoting Chinese-path modernization on the new journey. This requires us to correctly handle the relationship between institutional stability and continuity on the one hand, and developmental potential and innovativeness on the other. General Secretary Xi Jinping has pointed out: "We must not only maintain the stability and continuity of the system of socialism with Chinese characteristics and the national governance system but also continuously enhance their developmental potential and innovativeness." On the premise of upholding, implementing, and improving the fundamental, basic, and important systems of socialism with Chinese characteristics, we should start with the most urgent tasks. We must deepen theoretical innovation and promote institutional innovation while solving practical problems, combining the deepening of reform breakthroughs with the promotion of institutional integration. We must strengthen the full linkage and coordinated support of institutional innovation, promoting the self-perfection and development of our socialist system from a higher starting point, at a deeper level, and toward a grander goal. This will help the relations of production better adapt to the productive forces, the superstructure to the economic base, and national governance to social development, forming an overall effect and achieving comprehensive results in better safeguarding Chinese-path modernization.