Zhang Wenxian: Further Comprehensively Deepening Reform Must Adhere to the Comprehensive Rule of Law
Governance according to the law is the most reliable and stable form of governance; the rule of law is the most scientific and effective mode of national governance. Since the start of the New Era, we have persisted in advancing reform under the rule of law and perfecting the rule of law within reform, driving the deep-level development of comprehensively deepening reform through the prominent achievements of comprehensively governing the country according to the law. The Decision of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China on Further Comprehensively Deepening Reform and Advancing Chinese-path Modernization, deliberated and adopted at the Third Plenary Session of the 20th CPC Central Committee, profoundly summarizes the valuable experience of reform and opening up, especially comprehensively deepening reform in the New Era, and identifies "persisting in comprehensively governing the country according to the law" as one of the major principles for further comprehensively deepening reform. To deeply study and implement the spirit of the Third Plenary Session of the 20th CPC Central Committee, we must profoundly understand and grasp this major principle, continuously strengthening our political, ideological, and active consciousness to deepen reform and advance Chinese-path modernization on the track of the rule of law. We must also unceasingly improve our capacity to use legal thinking and legal methods to deepen reform, promote development, resolve contradictions, maintain stability, and respond to risks.
Proven by History, Tested by Practice, and Required by Reform
Looking across the history of human civilization, it is not difficult to discover the close relationship between the rule of law and development, reform, and modernization. Utilizing explicit legal norms to regulate social life and maintain social order—and leveraging the important role of the rule of law in promoting development, deepening reform, and advancing modernization—is a common experience in domestic and international governance, both ancient and modern.
Our Party's long-term practice in leading revolution, construction, and reform fully demonstrates that the rule of law is of vital significance for reform, development, stability, and socialist modernization. When leading the drafting of the 1954 Constitution, Comrade Mao Zedong famously compared the Constitution to "tracks" [1], noting: "By using the form of a Constitution, a fundamental law, to fix the principles of people's democracy and socialism, the people of the entire country are provided with a clear track, making them feel they have a clear, explicit, and correct path to follow." Regarding how to incorporate socialist modernization into the track of the rule of law, our Party has led the people in unremitting exploration. Since the start of reform and opening up, our Party has regarded the rule of law as the fundamental way of governing the country, persisting in using legal thinking and legal methods to promote reform. We have revised the current Constitution five times to provide the fundamental legal basis for reform, opening up, and socialist modernization. We have continuously improved the socialist legal system with Chinese characteristics, centered on the Constitution, compiled the Civil Code, perfected the legal system of the socialist market economy, and promoted a better alignment between the relations of production and the productive forces, the superstructure and the economic base, and national governance and social development.
Based on the practical exploration of advancing and expanding Chinese-path modernization, and summarizing the historical experience and lessons regarding the rise and fall of various civilizations, General Secretary Xi Jinping has clearly proposed significant conclusions such as: "When the rule of law flourishes, the country flourishes; when the rule of law declines, the country falls into chaos" [2] and "When systems are stable, the country is stable; when systems are strong, the country is strong." He emphasized: "Throughout the entire process of reform, great importance must be attached to the use of legal thinking and legal methods, giving play to the leading and driving role of the rule of law"; "We must persist in advancing the modernization of the national governance system and governance capacity on the track of the rule of law"; and "We must comprehensively build a modern socialist country on the track of the rule of law." Under the scientific guidance of Xi Jinping Thought on the Rule of Law, we have persisted in comprehensively governing the country according to the law. The rule of law has effectively guided, promoted, regulated, and guaranteed comprehensively deepening reform, achieving historical transformations, systemic reshaping, and holistic reconstruction in many fields, propelling our country onto a new journey of comprehensively building a modern socialist country.
History and reality enlighten us that comprehensively deepening reform and comprehensively governing the country according to the law promote and complement each other. On the new journey, only by continuing to persist in comprehensively governing the country according to the law and further comprehensively deepening reform and advancing Chinese-path modernization along the track of the rule of law can we better transform institutional advantages into governance efficacy. Achieving the general goal of further comprehensively deepening reform—focusing on building a high-level socialist market economy system, focusing on developing whole-process people's democracy, focusing on building a great socialist culture, focusing on improving the quality of people's lives, focusing on building a Beautiful China, focusing on building a Peaceful China at a higher level, and focusing on improving the Party's leadership level and long-term governing capacity—all require the rule of law to provide rule-based guidance and institutional safeguards. We must profoundly understand the strategic significance of taking the persistence of comprehensively governing the country according to the law as a major principle for further comprehensively deepening reform. We must accurately grasp the scientific connotation and practical requirements of the proposition raised at the Third Plenary Session of the 20th CPC Central Committee that "the rule of law is an important guarantee for Chinese-path modernization." We must deepen reform in the legislative field, promote law-based administration in depth, improve the systems and mechanisms for impartial law enforcement and justice, perfect the mechanisms for building a law-based society, strengthen the construction of foreign-related rule of law, and use the comprehensive governance of the country according to the law to push comprehensively deepening reform toward greater breadth and depth.
Emphasis on Better Playing the Guaranteeing Role of the Rule of Law
Further comprehensively deepening reform and advancing Chinese-path modernization is a complex systemic project. The deeper reform goes and the further Chinese-path modernization advances, the greater the resistance and pressure encountered, and the more complex the risks that need to be prevented and resolved. Thus, persisting in comprehensively governing the country according to the law becomes more important and urgent. To persist in this and advance modernization on the track of the rule of law, we must ensure that the rule of law and reform exert force in the same direction, progress simultaneously, and promote one another. The focus should be on better utilizing the guaranteeing role of the rule of law in consolidating the foundation, stabilizing expectations, and benefiting the long term.
Providing support to ensure that further comprehensively deepening reform always adheres to the correct direction. Direction determines the future, and the path determines destiny. The direction of reform is a fundamental issue. Ensuring the correct direction of further comprehensively deepening reform is an inevitable requirement for the rule of law to play its role in consolidating the foundation, stabilizing expectations, and benefiting the long term. General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out: "Our reform and opening up have a direction, a stance, and principles. We certainly must hold high the flag of reform, but our reform is a reform that continuously advances on the path of socialism with Chinese characteristics, neither taking the old path of closed rigidity nor the evil path of changing flags and colors" [3]. "We will resolutely change what should and can be changed, and resolutely not change what should not or cannot be changed." The general goal of further comprehensively deepening reform—to continue improving and developing the system of socialism with Chinese characteristics and to promote the modernization of the national governance system and governance capacity—points out the correct direction. On the track of the rule of law, "the rule of law" here is not just any "rule of law," but the rule of law of socialism with Chinese characteristics. Persisting in the leadership of the Party, persisting in the system of socialism with Chinese characteristics, and implementing the theory of socialist rule of law with Chinese characteristics—these three aspects are the core essentials of the path of socialist rule of law with Chinese characteristics. To further comprehensively deepen reform along this track, we must build the foundation, exercise the power, and accumulate the momentum of the rule of law to uphold the Party's leadership and the system of socialism with Chinese characteristics. We must use socialist rule of law with Chinese characteristics to ensure that reform measures do not deviate, stall, or warp, always expanding and deepening in the correct direction.
Providing a guarantee for the steady and sustained progress of Chinese-path modernization. Tracks not only support where one stands but also extend into the distance. Ensuring the steady and sustained progress of Chinese-path modernization is an inherent requirement of deepening reform on the track of the rule of law, and a vivid manifestation of the rule of law's role in consolidating foundations and stabilizing expectations. This requires implementing the persistence of comprehensively governing the country according to the law throughout all aspects and the entire process of further comprehensively deepening reform and advancing Chinese-path modernization. It must be reflected in all fields and links of economic, political, cultural, social, and ecological civilization construction. This involves using the rule of law to coalesce reform consensus, lead the direction of reform, regulate the reform process, resolve reform risks, and consolidate and expand reform achievements. We must continuously enhance the legitimacy, rationality, conformity with objective laws, and purposiveness of reform. We must profoundly realize that the demand for the rule of law in further comprehensively deepening reform and advancing Chinese-path modernization is not temporary or local, but all-encompassing and holistic. Centered on strengthening fundamental systems, improving basic systems, and innovating important systems, the more than 300 reform measures proposed by the Third Plenary Session of the 20th CPC Central Committee—such as "improving the system of primary-level democracy," "perfecting the income distribution system," "improving the ecological environment governance system," and "strengthening the coordination mechanism for national security work"—mostly involve establishing systems and mechanisms. All of these need to be implemented through the formulation of rules and the strict enforcement of the law. To ensure the steady and sustained progress of Chinese-path modernization, we must systemically respond to the demand for the rule of law in further comprehensively deepening reform and comprehensively promote the law-based conduct of all aspects of national work.
Earnestly Achieving the Unity of Reform and the Rule of Law
Further comprehensively deepening reform must persist in comprehensively governing the country according to the law. Deepening reform and advancing Chinese-path modernization on the track of the rule of law ultimately rests upon achieving the unity of reform and the rule of law, ensuring that major reforms have a legal basis and that reform achievements are promptly elevated into legal systems. Generally speaking, reform is "breaking" (po) and the rule of law is "establishing" (li). How can the two be unified? General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out: "Scientific legislation is a key link in handling the relationship between reform and the rule of law." To correctly handle the dialectical relationship between reform and the rule of law, achieve simultaneous progress, and advance Chinese-path modernization within their unity, the key is to grasp the important link of scientific legislation and achieve the unity and connection of reform decision-making and legislative decision-making.
Ensuring that major reforms have a legal basis. We must maintain the unity, dignity, and authority of the national legal system, persisting in advancing reform under the rule of law. With ensuring a legal basis for major reforms as our focal point, we should simultaneously "break" and "establish," but "establish before breaking" (xian li hou po). This requires that legislation actively adapt to the needs of reform. When researching reform plans and measures, we must simultaneously consider the legislative issues involved, timely raising legislative needs and suggestions. Laws and regulations urgently needed for reform should be treated as legislative priorities. For laws involving further comprehensively deepening reform, we must seize the moment to formulate or revise them. In the process of legislation, the direction, principles, and requirements of reform should be fully reflected. Existing laws and regulations that conflict with reform plans or no longer adapt to reform requirements should be cleaned up, revised, or abolished in a timely manner, preventing outdated laws or specific clauses from becoming "tripwires" [4] for reform. For major reform measures where practical conditions are not yet mature and require pilot testing, if they might breach existing legal provisions, authorization must be granted according to legal procedures. We must neither willfully break legal "red lines" nor delay reform simply on the grounds of lacking a basis in current law.
Timely elevating reform achievements into legal systems. General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out: "As the practice of socialism with Chinese characteristics moves one step forward, the construction of the rule of law must follow one step forward." Every successful reform is a successful institutional innovation; reform achievements are hard-won, and reform experiences are worth summarizing. We must persist in perfecting the rule of law within reform, taking the timely elevation of reform achievements into legal systems as our point of exertion. This makes reform results institutionalized and legalized, driving the socialist rule of law in our country to continuously coalesce the theoretical achievements and practical experiences of the Party's governance, consistently serving as the most basic, stable, and reliable guarantee for the "rule of systems" (zhidu zhi zhi). Further comprehensively deepening reform and advancing Chinese-path modernization place higher requirements on the quality of legislation. Currently, in elevating reform achievements into legal systems, we must place greater emphasis on the legislation of "good laws" (liang fa), continuously improving legislative quality to promote development and guarantee "good governance" (shan zhi). We must start from the supply side of legislation, deeply promoting scientific, democratic, and law-based legislation. We should focus on using the power of the rule of law to consolidate and expand reform achievements, confirming experiences and practices proven effective through practice in legal form, making them universal norms of conduct that must be followed. We must deepen reform in the field of the rule of law, coordinately advancing reforms in the links of legislation, law enforcement, justice, and law-abidance, ensuring that faith in the rule of law, its authority, and its efficacy are permeated and reflected throughout the entire practice of reform.