The Establishment, Development

The Establishment, Development, and Improvement of Socialism with Chinese Characteristics

The Theme of All Theories and Practices of the Party Since the Reform and Opening-Up

In 1982, at the opening ceremony of the 12th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC), Deng Xiaoping clearly put forward the theme of "taking our own path and building socialism with Chinese characteristics." Since then, all of the CPC's theoretical and practical innovations have revolved around this theme. Since the reform and opening-up, the CPC has adhered to the basic principles of Marxism while integrating them with the realities of contemporary China and the characteristics of the times, continuously advancing theoretical, practical, and institutional innovations, and successfully pioneering, upholding, and developing socialism with Chinese characteristics.

After the Third Plenary Session of the 11th Central Committee, under the leadership of Deng Xiaoping, the CPC united and led the entire Party and people of all ethnic groups across the country, deeply summarizing the positive and negative experiences since the founding of New China. They focused on the fundamental question of what socialism is and how to build it, drawing lessons from the history of world socialism. This led to the creation of Deng Xiaoping Theory, which emphasized emancipating the mind and seeking truth from facts. The historic decision was made to shift the focus of the Party and the country to economic construction and to implement the policy of reform and opening-up. This decision profoundly revealed the essence of socialism, established the basic line for the primary stage of socialism, and clearly proposed the path of building socialism with Chinese characteristics. It scientifically answered a series of fundamental questions about constructing socialism with Chinese characteristics and formulated a strategic plan to achieve basic socialist modernization in three steps by the mid-21st century, successfully pioneering the path of socialism with Chinese characteristics.

Following the Fourth Plenary Session of the 13th Central Committee, the CPC, with Jiang Zemin as the main representative, united and led the entire Party and people of all ethnic groups across the country, adhering to the Party's basic theories and lines. They deepened their understanding of what socialism is, how to build socialism, what kind of Party to build, and how to build it. This led to the formation of the important thought of the "Three Represents." In the face of severe tests posed by a complex domestic and international situation and serious setbacks in world socialism, they defended socialism with Chinese characteristics. They established the reform goals and basic framework of the socialist market economy, defined the basic economic system for the primary stage of socialism, which is characterized by public ownership as the mainstay and the coexistence of various forms of ownership, and the distribution system with labor-based distribution as the mainstay and the coexistence of various modes of distribution. They opened up a new situation of comprehensive reform and opening-up, advanced the Party's new great project of building socialism, and successfully pushed socialism with Chinese characteristics into the 21st century.

After the 16th National Congress of the CPC, the Party, with Hu Jintao as the main representative, united and led the entire Party and people of all ethnic groups across the country, promoting practical, theoretical, and institutional innovations in the process of building a moderately prosperous society in all respects. They profoundly understood and answered major questions regarding what kind of development to achieve and how to achieve it under the new circumstances. This led to the formation of the Scientific Outlook on Development, which emphasized seizing important strategic opportunities, focusing on development, and persisting in a people-centered approach, comprehensive, coordinated, and sustainable development. They worked hard to safeguard and improve people's livelihoods, promote social fairness and justice, strengthen the Party's governance capabilities and advanced nature, and successfully adhered to and developed socialism with Chinese characteristics under the new circumstances.

Since the 18th National Congress of the CPC, under the leadership of Xi Jinping, the Party has adhered to the basic principles of Marxism while integrating them with China's specific realities and China's fine traditional culture. They have upheld Mao Zedong Thought, Deng Xiaoping Theory, the important thought of the "Three Represents," and the Scientific Outlook on Development, deeply summarized and fully utilized the historical experience since the Party's founding, and from a new practical starting point, created Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era. This has led to historic achievements and transformations in the cause of the Party and the country, and socialism with Chinese characteristics has entered a new era.

The Path, Theory, System, and Culture of Socialism with Chinese Characteristics

Since the reform and opening-up, the fundamental reason for all of China's achievements and progress is that the CPC has led the entire nation in pioneering the path of socialism with Chinese characteristics, forming the theoretical system of socialism with Chinese characteristics, establishing the system of socialism with Chinese characteristics, and developing the culture of socialism with Chinese characteristics.

The path of socialism with Chinese characteristics is the one that, under the leadership of the CPC, is based on the basic national conditions of China, centered on economic development, adheres to the Four Cardinal Principles, and persists in reform and opening-up. It seeks to liberate and develop social productive forces, build a socialist market economy, socialist democracy, socialist advanced culture, a socialist harmonious society, and socialist ecological civilization, promote all-around human development, and gradually achieve common prosperity for all people, ultimately building a prosperous, democratic, civilized, harmonious, and beautiful socialist modernized country.

The theoretical system of socialism with Chinese characteristics, rooted in new practices and the characteristics of the times, adheres to and develops Marxism. It scientifically answers a series of basic questions about constructing socialism with Chinese characteristics, such as the development path, stages of development, fundamental tasks, driving forces, development strategies, political guarantees, national unity, foreign policy and international strategy, leadership forces, and forces to rely on, thus achieving a new leap in the sinicization of Marxism.

The system of socialism with Chinese characteristics is a scientific institutional system formed by the Party and the people through long-term practical exploration. All work and activities of China's state governance are conducted in accordance with the system of socialism with Chinese characteristics. China's state governance system and governance capacity are the concentrated embodiment of the system of socialism with Chinese characteristics and its implementation capacity. Institutional advantage is the greatest advantage a country can have, and institutional competition is the most fundamental competition between countries. A stable system ensures a stable nation. The system of socialism with Chinese characteristics and China's governance system, guided by Marxism, rooted in China's soil with deep Chinese cultural roots, and strongly supported by the people, are systems and governance frameworks with strong vitality and great superiority. They are capable of continuously advancing the progress and development of a large country with over 1.4 billion people and ensuring that the Chinese nation, with its civilization spanning over 5,000 years, achieves the "Two Centenary Goals" and ultimately realizes its great rejuvenation.

The culture of socialism with Chinese characteristics is rooted in the excellent traditional culture of the Chinese nation, nurtured by the revolutionary culture and advanced socialist culture created by the Party leading the people through the revolutions, construction, and reforms, and grounded in the great practice of socialism with Chinese characteristics. Developing the culture of socialism with Chinese characteristics means adhering to Marxism as the guiding ideology, upholding the Chinese cultural stance, based on the realities of contemporary China, and combining the conditions of the current era. It involves developing a national, scientific, and popular socialist culture that faces modernization, the world, and the future, and promoting the coordinated development of socialist spiritual and material civilization.

The path, theory, system, and culture of socialism with Chinese characteristics are interconnected and interact with each other, unified in the great practice of socialism with Chinese characteristics. In contemporary China, adhering to and developing socialism with Chinese characteristics is the true adherence to socialism. We must always hold high the great banner of socialism with Chinese characteristics, firmly maintain our confidence in the path, theory, system, and culture of socialism with Chinese characteristics.

In today's world, if any political party, country, or nation has reason to be confident, it is the CPC, the People's Republic of China, and the Chinese nation.