Xin Xiangyang: "Remaining True to Our Original Aspiration and Keeping Our Mission Firmly in Mind": The Constant Source of the Party's Leadershippower
Abstract: The Communist Party of China (CPC) possesses powerful leadership, the deep source of which derives from its original aspiration and founding mission. This original aspiration and founding mission have forged the CPC’s invincible strength. By staying true to its original aspiration and founding mission, the Party is able to possess strong core cohesion, theoretical innovation, historical confidence, strategic planning capabilities, scientific decision-making, educational and learning capacity, institutional execution, great fighting spirit, the capacity for self-revolution, and world-leading influence.
Keywords: Original aspiration and founding mission; the Party’s leadership; permanent source
General Secretary Xi Jinping has pointed out, "A nation that forgets where it came from is a nation with no way forward; a political party that forgets its original aspiration is a party with no future" [1]. On January 9, 2023, General Secretary Xi Jinping delivered an important speech at the second plenary session of the 20th Central Commission for Discipline Inspection, emphasizing: "How to always stay true to our original aspiration and founding mission, how to always unify our thoughts, will, and actions, how to always possess strong governing capacity and leadership levels, how to always maintain a spirit of entrepreneurship and initiative, how to always be able to discover and solve our own internal problems in a timely manner, and how to always maintain a clean and upright political ecosystem—these are all unique challenges that must be solved by our large Party" [2]. Since its founding over a century ago, the CPC has always taken seeking happiness for the Chinese people and rejuvenation for the Chinese nation as its original aspiration and founding mission, uniting and leading the people of all ethnic groups throughout the country in unremitting struggle to achieve national independence, people's liberation, and to realize national prosperity and people's happiness. Staying true to our original aspiration and founding mission is the permanent source of our Party's extraordinary leadership.
I. Staying true to the original aspiration and founding mission is the source of the Party’s core cohesion
The CPC is the core force leading our cause and has always been the "backbone" [主心骨] of the Chinese people and the Chinese nation. Throughout the practice of the Chinese revolution, construction, and reform, in order to realize its original aspiration and founding mission, our Party has forged and selected its most authoritative, influential, and experienced political leaders to oversee the overall situation and steer the course. Since the 18th National Congress, our Party has "established Comrade Xi Jinping’s core position on the Party Central Committee and in the whole Party, and established the guiding role of Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era." This reflects the common aspirations of the entire Party, the entire army, and the people of all ethnic groups across the country [3]. The "Two Establishments" are the fundamental requirements for realizing the CPC's original aspiration and founding mission in the New Era. The CPC’s roots are in the people, its lifeblood is in the people, and its strength is in the people. The people's leader loves the people, and the people's leader is loved by the people. Since the 18th National Congress, General Secretary Xi Jinping has proposed the people-centered development philosophy, always putting the people in the highest position in his heart and taking the people's aspiration for a better life as the goal of his struggle. The recently published book Xi Jinping Enters the Homes of the Common People uses 32 interview articles to vividly recount moving stories of General Secretary Xi Jinping asking about livelihoods, observing the people's conditions and desires, and explaining pro-people policies during his research tours. This centrally demonstrates the charisma and style of the people's leader as a "confidant, guide, respondent, and dream-fulfiller."
II. Staying true to the original aspiration and founding mission is the source of the Party’s theoretical innovation
Theoretical innovation and theoretical leadership are important components of the Party’s leadership, occupying an extremely vital position and role in the construction of the Party's overall leadership and its ideological and theoretical building. Over the past century—whether during China’s New Democratic Revolution, the socialist revolution and construction, the period of reform and opening up and socialist modernization, or the great social transformation of the New Era—our Party has stayed true to its original aspiration and founding mission. By combining the basic principles of Marxism-Leninism with China’s specific realities, the Party founded Mao Zedong Thought, achieving the first historic leap in the Sinicization of Marxism. This leap both greatly advanced the Party's theoretical innovation and provided a scientific theoretical guide for completing the original aspiration and founding mission. The Party formed the theoretical system of socialism with Chinese characteristics, achieving a new leap in the Sinicization and modernization of Marxism. This leap both opened up the cause of socialism with Chinese characteristics and profoundly influenced the historical process of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation. Since the 18th National Congress, the Party Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core has coordinated the overall strategy for the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation and the world's once-in-a-century great changes. It has promoted historical achievements and transformations in the cause of the Party and the state, founding Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, achieving a new leap in the Sinicization and modernization of Marxism. This leap not only pushed socialism with Chinese characteristics into the New Era but also continuously realizes the people's aspiration for a better life while resolving the principal contradiction of society. On the new journey of the New Era, we must stay true to our original aspiration and founding mission, persist in combining the basic principles of Marxism with China’s specific realities and with China’s fine traditional culture, and unswervingly use Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era—particularly its worldview and methodology—to guide practice and drive the historical process of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation forward.
III. Staying true to the original aspiration and founding mission is the source of the Party’s historical confidence
General Secretary Xi Jinping has pointed out: "All the struggle, sacrifice, and creation coordinated by the CPC in uniting and leading the Chinese people over the past hundred years can be summarized into one theme: realizing the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation" [4]. During the revolutionary period, after 28 years of bloody struggle, the Party led the people to establish the New China, whereby the Chinese people stood up, opening a new era of Chinese development. After the founding of the New China, our Party led the people in carrying out the socialist revolution and promoting socialist construction, laying the fundamental political prerequisites and institutional foundations for realizing the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation. The great achievements of reform and opening up and socialist modernization have attracted worldwide attention; our country achieved a historic breakthrough from a state of relatively backward productive forces to becoming the world's second-largest economy. We achieved a historic leap in the people's standard of living from insufficient food and clothing to moderate prosperity in general, and then toward moderate prosperity in all respects, promoting the great leap of the Chinese nation from standing up to becoming prosperous. The great changes of the ten years of the New Era have pushed the Chinese nation toward a great leap from becoming prosperous to becoming strong, possessing milestone significance in the history of the Party, the New China, the history of reform and opening up, the history of socialist development, and the history of the development of the Chinese nation. These brilliant achievements and great leaps tell us that the CPC has the most reason to be confident in its glorious history and the most reason to be confident in creating new historical undertakings. This deep historical confidence comes from our Party staying true to its original aspiration and founding mission, always struggling in the correct direction of historical development.
IV. Staying true to the original aspiration and founding mission is the source of the Party’s strategic planning capabilities
Strategy is a fundamental issue for a political party and a nation. General Secretary Xi Jinping has pointed out: "We are a large Party, leading a large country, and conducting a great cause; we must be adept at strategic thinking and adept at seeing and considering problems from a strategic perspective" [5]. The CPC is a Marxist party with a high degree of strategic insight and planning capacity. Over the past century, our Party has stayed true to its original aspiration and founding mission, always basing itself on reality, placing special emphasis on the analysis and judgment of opportunities and challenges, and excelling at combining strategic firmness with tactical flexibility. Proceeding from fundamental interests and the long-term overall situation, and with a high sense of historical responsibility and political courage, the Party has set the direction, grasped the general trend, and planned for the overall situation, thereby formulating correct political strategies and tactics to overcome countless risks and challenges, moving continuously from victory to victory. Since the 18th National Congress, the Party Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core has comprehensively examined the new international and domestic situation, made scientific judgments, thought deeply, and seized and made good use of important periods of strategic opportunity. It has always maintained strategic resolve, coordinating the great struggle, great project, great cause, and great dream, ushering in unprecedented bright prospects for the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation. Leading economic and social development through Five-Year Plans is an important method of the CPC's governance. Our country's Five-Year Plans are based on the advantages of the socialist system, focusing on the long-term development of the Party and state undertakings and on the people's needs and aspirations for a better life, fully reflecting and embodying the Party's original aspiration and founding mission. Strategic planning based on the original aspiration and mission has two basic characteristics: first, it consistently promotes the development of the cause of Chinese-path modernization, maintaining strategic resolve regardless of the difficulties and challenges encountered; second, it realizes the people's interest demands and the grand blueprint of national rejuvenation through step-by-step leaps.
V. Staying true to the original aspiration and founding mission is the source of the Party’s scientific decision-making
Comrade Mao Zedong pointed out that the Communist Party not only "subsists on the truth of Marxism-Leninism and on seeking truth from facts" but also "subsists on science" [6]. General Secretary Xi Jinping has repeatedly emphasized the necessity and importance of scientific decision-making. He pointed out: "When leadership cadres consider problems and make decisions, they must have the 'top priorities of the nation' [国之大者] in mind. They must use the 'big abacus' and calculate the 'big ledger,' rather than using the 'small abacus' and calculating the 'small ledger.' They must be adept at integrating the work of their regions and departments into the 'grand chessboard' of the Party and state undertakings, ensuring they both bring glory to their local area and add luster to the overall situation" [7]. For over a century, our Party has stayed true to its original aspiration and founding mission. Under the guidance of Marxist theory and Marxism that has been Sinicized and modernized, the Party has persisted in proceeding from Chinese reality and from the needs and fundamental interests of the masses, following objective laws to make scientific and correct decisions, and continuously exploring paths for revolution, construction, and modernization that suit China's national conditions. As is well known, during the process of deliberating and discussing major decisions and deployments in our Party and state work, the broad masses and Party members can fully express their opinions and speak their minds freely. They can propose countermeasures and suggestions, as well as criticisms. Scientific decision-making is an important manifestation of our Party's extraordinary leadership. Scientific decision-making must involve in-depth research, comprehensive analysis, and total weighing of factors to ensure decisions align with actual conditions. An important reason why our Party can continuously make scientific decisions is that our Party has no narrow partisan interests of its own; it represents the fundamental interests of the broadest masses of the people and reflects the most fundamental and long-term interests of the Chinese nation. A political party that only pursues its own special interests cannot make correct and scientific decisions.
VI. Staying true to the original aspiration and founding mission is the source of the Party’s educational and learning capacity
General Secretary Xi Jinping has repeatedly emphasized that "the Chinese Communists got to where they are today by relying on learning, and they will certainly rely on learning to move toward the future" [8]. In our Party's history, intra-Party study and education campaigns have been carried out many times to ensure that the broad ranks of members and cadres at all levels stay true to the original aspiration and founding mission, continuously strengthening their ideals and beliefs, tempering their strong Party spirit, and resolutely practicing the fundamental purpose of serving the people wholeheartedly. For example, the Yan'an Rectification Movement of 1942–1945, the Party Consolidation Movement of 1947–1949, the Rectification Movement of 1950, the Party Consolidation Movement of 1951–1954, the Rectification Movement of 1957, the Party Consolidation activities of 1983–1987, the "Three Stresses" education campaign of 1999–2000, the campaign to maintain the advanced nature of CPC members of 2005–2006, the campaign to study and practice the Scientific Outlook on Development of 2008–2009, and the campaign to excel in performance of 2010–2012. Since the 18th National Congress, the Party Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core has attached great importance to ideological Party building and strengthening the Party through theory. It has successively deployed and carried out the educational practice of the mass line, the "Three Stricts and Three Honests" education, the "Two Studies and One Doing" education, the "staying true to the original aspiration and founding mission" theme education, and Party history study and education, promoting the institutionalization and normalization of study and education to build a Marxist learning party. These study and education activities, focusing on the future and destiny of the people and the nation and on solving various practical problems encountered in realizing the original aspiration and founding mission, have both improved the Party's fighting capacity and maintained its advanced nature and purity. On the new journey of the New Era, we must guide the whole Party to stay true to the original aspiration and founding mission, enhance the "Four Consciousnesses," and consciously maintain a high degree of alignment with the Party Central Committee in thought, politics, and action. We must continuously improve political judgment, political understanding, and political execution, and consciously become firm believers and faithful practitioners of the lofty ideal of Communism and the common ideal of socialism with Chinese characteristics.
VII. Staying true to the original aspiration and founding mission is the source of the Party’s institutional execution
General Secretary Xi Jinping has pointed out: "Institutional advantage is the greatest advantage of a party and a country." [19] On January 8, 2020, in his speech at the summary meeting of the "staying true to our original aspiration and founding mission" theme education campaign, General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized: "Systems are meant to be observed and implemented. The whole Party must strengthen institutional awareness, consciously revere systems, strictly implement systems, resolutely safeguard systems, and improve authoritative and efficient mechanisms for institutional execution. We must strengthen supervision over institutional execution and promote the implementation of the system for staying true to our original aspiration and founding mission, resolutely putting an end to the phenomena of selective implementation, flexible adaptation, or discounted execution, so as to prevent 'hard constraints' from becoming 'rubber bands' and 'long-term effectiveness' from becoming 'ineffectiveness.'" [20]
The "Decision of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China on Several Major Issues Concerning Upholding and Improving the System of Socialism with Chinese Characteristics and Promoting the Modernization of China's Governance System and Capacity for Governance," deliberated and adopted at the Fourth Plenary Session of the 19th CPC Central Committee, summarized the significant advantages of our national system and governance system from 13 aspects for the first time. Simultaneously, it proposed upholding and improving the system of Party leadership, which includes: establishing a system for staying true to our original aspiration and founding mission; improving various systems for resolutely safeguarding the authority of the Party Central Committee and its centralized, unified leadership; perfecting the system of the Party's overall leadership; improving systems for governing for the people and by relying on the people; and improving the systems for enhancing the Party's governing capacity and leadership level. These provide a strong institutional guarantee for promoting the development of comprehensively and strictly governing the Party in depth. An important reason why our Party's systems play such a powerful role and are so efficient is that the Party's original aspiration and founding mission are embedded within them. These qualities endow the systems with vitality, vigor, and the power to overcome all difficulties and obstacles. In the New Era and on the new journey, the whole Party must stay true to its original aspiration and founding mission, strengthen institutional awareness, consciously revere systems, strictly implement systems, resolutely safeguard systems, improve authoritative and efficient institutional execution mechanisms, strengthen supervision over institutional execution, and resolutely ensure that the decisions and deployments of the Party Central Committee are implemented.
VIII. Staying True to the Original Aspiration and Founding Mission is the Source of the Party's Great Struggle Capacity
Daring to struggle and daring to win is the invincible and powerful spiritual force of our Party. From the day of its founding, the Communist Party of China has taken the realization of communism as its highest ideal and ultimate goal, resolutely shouldering the historical mission of achieving the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation. It has united and led the people in a most arduous struggle, writing magnificent epics that "devour the mountains and rivers" [11]. The century-long history of the Communist Party of China is a history of great struggle and great sacrifice. Today, we are closer to, and have more confidence and capability in achieving the goal of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation than at any period in history. However, we must also soberly realize that this rejuvenation will not be achieved easily through "playing gongs and beating drums" [12]; we must be prepared to engage in a great struggle with many new historical features.
This is a great struggle to uphold and develop socialism with Chinese characteristics in the New Era, a struggle characterized by non-compromise; it is a great struggle to build a great modern socialist country, characterized by severity and complexity; it is a great struggle to realize the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation, characterized by its grand scale; and it is a great struggle to build a community with a shared future for humanity, characterized by its world-historical significance. General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out in the report to the 20th CPC National Congress: "We must persist in carrying forward the spirit of struggle. We must enhance the ambition, grit, and backbone of the whole Party and the people of all ethnic groups, refusing to believe in heresy, fearing neither ghosts nor pressure [13], and pressing forward in the face of difficulties. We must coordinate development and security, strive to overcome all difficulties and challenges on the road ahead, and rely on tenacious struggle to open up new prospects for our cause." [21] In the New Era and on the new journey, the whole Party must stay true to its original aspiration and founding mission, enhance its awareness of potential dangers, strengthen its will to struggle, increase its mastery of struggle, grasp the laws of struggle, and improve the art of struggle. We must use correct strategies and tactics to respond to changes, nurture new opportunities, and open up new vistas, relying on tenacious struggle to open up new prospects for our cause and pushing the ship of socialism with Chinese characteristics to cleave the waves and forge ahead.
IX. Staying True to the Original Aspiration and Founding Mission is the Source of the Party's Capacity for Self-Revolution
Surveying the global political arena, the failure of major and long-standing parties such as the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, the Indian National Congress, and the Institutional Revolutionary Party of Mexico reveals a common cause: during their long periods in power, these parties gradually underwent ideological degeneration and lost their will to struggle. Fundamentally speaking, they forgot their original aspiration and founding mission. General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out: "The question of how to escape the 'historical cycle' [14] is a major issue concerning the Party's long-term enterprise, its life and death, and the success or failure of our country's socialist system. How can we escape this cycle? The Party has always been reflecting on and exploring this. Comrade Mao Zedong gave the first answer in a cave-dwelling in Yan'an: it is 'letting the people supervise the government.' After a century of struggle, and especially through the new practices since the 18th National Congress, the Party has given the second answer: self-revolution." [22]
The key to building a modern socialist country in all respects and comprehensively promoting the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation lies with the Party. In the New Era and on the new journey, the whole Party must always keep in mind its original aspiration and mission, persisting in the understanding that comprehensively and strictly governing the Party and the Party’s self-revolution are always "on the road." We must perseveringly promote the comprehensive and strict governance of the Party, resolutely guard against all dangers that violate our original aspiration and mission or shake the Party's foundation, deeply advance the new great project of Party building in the New Era, and lead social revolution through the Party's self-revolution. The report to the 20th CPC National Congress clearly proposed the "Three Resolutes": resolutely investigate and punish corruption where political and economic issues are intertwined; resolutely prevent leading officials from becoming spokespersons or agents for interest groups and power blocs; and resolutely govern the problem of collusion between officials and businesses that destroys the political ecosystem and the environment for economic development. [23] This is the most thorough, resolute, and powerful form of self-revolution. This revolution will undoubtedly drive the social revolution with majestic force to break through all obstacles hindering the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation.
X. Staying True to the Original Aspiration and Founding Mission is the Source of the Party's Global Leadership Power
General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out in the report to the 20th CPC National Congress: "The Communist Party of China is a party that seeks happiness for the Chinese people and rejuvenation for the Chinese nation; it is also a party that seeks progress for humanity and the 'Great Harmony' for the world [15]." [24] In 2021, on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of our Party's founding, more than 600 political parties and organizations from over 170 countries sent more than 1,500 congratulatory messages. On July 6, 2021, the CPC and World Political Parties Summit was held. This was the highest-level and largest-scale global summit of political parties hosted by our Party to date. General Secretary Xi Jinping attended the summit via video link in Beijing and delivered a keynote speech. He emphasized: "As an important force for promoting human progress, political parties must anchor themselves to the correct direction and shoulder the historical responsibility of seeking happiness for the people and progress for humanity." [25] "The Communist Party of China is willing to work with political parties of all countries to let dreams shine into reality and let actions achieve the future, remaining unswervingly a builder of world peace, a contributor to global development, and a defender of the international order." [26]
The global leadership power of the Communist Party of China is reflected in: persisting in the supremacy of the people, maintaining a global vision, ensuring the correct direction of economic globalization, and standing on the right side of history; and following the path of peaceful development, preventing the occurrence of large-scale global wars, and winning more opportunities for peaceful development for humanity. Currently, changes in the world, the times, and history are unfolding and evolving in an unprecedented manner. Our Party persists in deeply discerning the trends of human development and progress, promoting the common values of humanity—peace, development, equity, justice, democracy, and freedom—actively responding to the universal concerns of people in all countries, drawing on and absorbing all fine achievements of human civilization, and promoting the building of a community with a shared future for humanity to build a more beautiful world.