- Admin
Weekly Report 4|25 5.1.2021-5.7.2021
Highlights
Xi Jinping presided over the 29th CCP Politburo Collective Study Session focused on strengthening the country’s ecological civilization under the new situation (see Senior Leaders section).
Senior Leaders
Xi Jinping: Grasp the New Development Stage, Implement the New Development Concept, and Build a New Development Pattern
4.30 Qiushi printed a speech Xi Jinping gave in January 2021 at a seminar on the Fifth Plenum of the 19th Central Committee, which was circulated widely on Party platforms this week. The speech discusses the “new development stage,” “new development concept,” and “new development pattern,” all key concepts involved in the 14th Five-Year Plan. According to Xi, the new development stage is a stage within the primary stage of socialism, in which the Chinese people have reached “a new starting point.” It is the Party leading the people from the stage of “standing up,” to the stage of “getting rich,” to the stage of “becoming strong.” Xi said that after 13 five-year plans, the CCP has laid a solid foundation for achieving the party’s goal of becoming a modern socialist country. The new development stage will comprise the next 30 years, which will see China become a prosperous, strong, democratic, civilized, harmonious, and beautiful modern socialist country. The whole party must continue to work hard, “mobilize all the positive factors that can be mobilized, united all forces that can be united, use all its strength manage its own affairs well, [and] persevere in the achievement of its objectives.”
On the “new development concept,” Xi emphasized his personal origination of the idea at the Fifth Plenum of the 18th Party Congress, saying he introduced the idea of innovative, coordinated, green, open, and shared development. He emphasized that innovative development resolves the issue of the driving force of development, while coordinated development resolves the issue of unbalanced development, green development resolves the issue of harmonizing humanity and nature, open development resolves the issue of coordinating internal and external development, and shared development resolves the issue of social justice. Xi first urged readers to “grasp the fundamental purpose of the new development concept,” saying “seeking happiness for the people is not only the starting point and foothold of our Party’s leadership but also the ‘root’ and ‘soul’ of the new development concept.” Second, he said to “grasp the new development concept from a problem-oriented approach,” emphasizing the need to solve the problems of unbalanced and insufficient development. Third, he said to “grasp the new development concept from an awareness of adversity,” saying that since the internal and external risks to China’s development have risen unprecedentedly, it is necessary to “be ready to respond.”
Xi Jinping also traced his own contributions to the formulation of a “new development pattern” of “dual circulation,” in which the domestic and international markets reinforce each other with the domestic market as the “mainstay.” He said that the key to building a new development pattern is achieving a high level of self-reliance and putting more emphasis on independent innovation. He ended by emphasizing the need to strengthen the leadership of the Party over China’s socialist modernization.
Xi Jinping to the 29th Politburo Collective Study Session: Maintain Strategic Resolve in Building an Ecological Civilization and Strive to Build a Modernization with Harmonious Symbiosis Between Humanity and Nature
4.30 On 30 April, Xi Jinping presided over the 29th CCP Politburo Collective Study Session focused on strengthening the country’s ecological civilization under the new situation. During the study, Xi emphasized that environmental protection and economic development were not in conflict, but complementary. Xi stated that in the 14th Five-Year Plan (FYP), “[China’s ecological civilization construction is entering a crucial point to reduce carbon as its key strategic direction”; coordinating the simultaneous reduction of pollution and carbon; “promoting the all-around green transformation of socio-economic development,” and “achieving the improvement of ecological and environmental quality through quantitative and qualitative changes.” He further emphasized the importance of implementing the “new development concept,” and of seeking “a high degree of harmonious symbiosis between humanity and nature” in socio-economic planning, including with regard to industry and production.
Xi also pointed out that, “since the 18th Party Congress, the Party has strengthened its leadership over building an ecological civilization.” It has increasingly prioritized ecology, environmental protection, conservation, and resource management, doing innovative work resulting in “historical, transformative, and global changes.” Yet, challenges and contradictions still exist, so perseverance is required. He went on to identify “harmonious symbiosis between humanity and nature” as an important feature of China’s socialist modernization, simultaneously “building material culture and building an ecological civilization.” Describing a range of measures and goals around promoting “green, low-carbon development” and the “green transformation of socioeconomic development,” Xi stated that reaching peak carbon emissions and carbon neutrality was not only a “solemn promise China made to the world” but also a “wide-ranging and profound socio-economic change” that will not be easily achieved. He exhorted the Party and government at all levels to work toward these goals. He also emphasized the importance of environmental work that improves the quality of life for ordinary people--concentrating on pollution, water safety, and environmental cleanup--especially in rural areas. Other themes covered in the speech were: conservation and protection of China’s ecosystems, strengthening South-South cooperation and creating a “green belt and road,” and improving environmental governance.
Propaganda Work
PD Editorial: Forge a New Historical Undertaking on the New Journey
5.1 People’s Daily published an editorial on May Day, which discussed the importance of labor and laid out future goals. The editorial began by noting the achievements accomplished through the hard work of the Chinese people in pursuit of the “Chinese Dream,” stating that “it is precisely because of labor creation that we have a glorious history; it is also precisely because of labor that we have today’s achievements.” It stated that the 14th Five-Year Plan is the first to seize the opportunity to launch a new journey of comprehensively building a socialist modern country and march toward the second centenary goal and that this would only be possible to achieve by “giving full play to the role of the working class and the mainstay of the working masses, revering labor, respecting workers, further renewing enthusiasm for work, and liberating production potential.” After emphasizing the need for the working class and workers to listen to and follow the Party, the editorial highlighted the importance of resuming work and production, especially in the science and technology fields, while continuing to fight the epidemic. It also discussed the need to build a high-quality labor force, noting that the quality of workers has been and continues to be essential to China’s development. The editorial stated that protecting the rights and interests of workers is essential and that “allowing workers to obtain benefits and enjoy glory is the only way to stimulate labor ingenuity.” It concluded by stating, “honor and glory belongs to the workers and happiness belongs to the workers” and underscored the importance of uniting more closely around the Party.
Party Discipline
Maintain a High-Pressure Posture, Form a Powerful Deterrent
5.6 An article on the joint website of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection (CCDI) and National Supervision Commission (NSC) celebrated the fact that Beijing Municipal Commission of Education Deputy Director Zhang Yang (张洋) had surrendered himself to authorities for investigation after it was announced his was suspected of violating the law. In response, a member of Beijing’s commission for discipline inspection said “Under the continued high-pressure posture, corrupt elements have nowhere to hide, [and] eliminating wishful thinking and taking the initiative to surrender to authorities is the only way out and the only sensible choice.” The article reviewed how local discipline inspection commissions had been able to create such an environment of fear that those guilty of corruption are now turning themselves in because they know that their wrongdoings will be discovered sooner rather than later. It lauded supervision and discipline organs in Beijing for “maintaining their determination and insisting on preventing and correcting that which the people oppose and despise.”
International Liaison Work
Song Tao: Continue 100 Years of Splendor in International Work, Serve the Great Rejuvenation of the Chinese Nation
5.1 In honor of the first centenary of the founding of the CCP, International Department Head Song Tao (宋涛) authored an article in the Party’s theoretical journal, Qiushi, to discuss the achievements of the Party’s international work over the past one hundred years. First, saying the CCP has always been a political party with a “global vision,” Song reviewed the history of its international outreach and how it has played a role in the stages of revolution, construction, and reform. During the period of revolution, the CCP sought the support of progressive forces in the international community to integrate Marxism-Leninism with the Chinese reality, forge the correct path of China’s revolution, and to achieve national independence and the liberation of the Chinese people. After the founding of the People’s Republic of China, the International Department (then called the International Liaison Department) worked to overcome the PRC’s isolation by developing relationships with other communist parties around the globe. Following the changes of the late 1980s and early 1990s, as the “cause of global socialism suffered serious setbacks,” the CCP expanded its outreach to various types of political parties and “firmly declared to the world that China would adhere to reform and opening up.” International liaison work played a “major role in piercing the sanctions imposed by the West and transforming China’s external environment.” In the face of “new changes in international relations,” it successfully transformed its party-to-party relations in former Soviet Union countries, explored contacts with political parties in developing countries, injected development issues into foreign exchanges, and promoted inter-party exchange and cooperation. Now that the “international status of the CCP has significantly improved and its international influence is expanding,” the Party’s international work has become “an important platform for the Party to go into the world, observe the world, connect with the world, and influence the world.”
Song continued with a list of fundamental guidelines for the Party’s international work in the New Era, emphasizing that they are based on Xi Jinping’s “profound insights.”
“Constantly shoulder the mission and tasks of the Party’s international work and always maintain a political hue”: adhere to the leadership of the CCP and socialism with Chinese characteristics as a fundamental aspect of international work. This work must be loyal to, rely on, and serve the Party. The maintenance of the Party’s power and security should be the first priority.
“Firmly grasp the basic orientation of the Party’s international work and take the initiative to act”: The Party’s international work should be viewed within the context of the overall objectives of the country and should position itself to serve those objectives.
“Thoroughly implement the main principles of the Party’s international work and correctly grasp and handle party-to-party relations”: a “new type of party-to-party relationship” should be developed on the basis of “a new type of international relations” that seeks common ground while putting aside differences, seeks mutual respect, and does not advocate the adoption of one particular political model.
“Persevere in exhibiting [the CCP’s] unique advantages, continuously improve the political effectiveness of the Party’s international work”: The party’s international work must strive to develop more sympathizers, supporters, and peers of the CCP and the system of socialism with Chinese characteristics.
“Persist in gathering the strength of the entire Party, rely on the active support and broad participation of the entire Party to advance the Party’s external work”: Xi Jinping requires the participation of the entire Party in international work.
Song then laid out the fundamental objectives of the Party’s international work in the New Era:
Maintain political security, strengthen strategic operations, and faithfully fulfill its sacred duty as an important front of the Party: “Resolutely and vigorously push back against the acts of individual countries and certain forces with ulterior motives that discredit the Party and infringe upon the country’s sovereignty, security, and development interests. Many friendly foreign parties and political organizations have spoken out on behalf [of China] on China-US economic and trade frictions, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Xinjiang, Tibet, the South China Sea, the fight against the coronavirus pandemic, and other issues and have formed strong international support for the Party’s just stance in the international arena .”
Focus on the promotion of Xi Jinping Thought with Chinese Characteristics for the New Era, strengthen the party’s global influence and its “power to shape” (塑造力).
Actively promote the establishment of a new type of party-to-party relations, play a more active role in major-country diplomacy with Chinese characteristics: Follow the basic principles of seeking common ground while putting aside differences, mutual respect, and mutual learning.
Serve the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation, fully exhibit China’s unique advantages, and help to build a moderately prosperous society.
Build a community of shared future for mankind, strive to maintain world peace and promote mutual development, demonstrate the responsibilities of a major power and major party: this includes establishing a political party consultation mechanism to support the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).
5.7 International Department Head Song Tao (宋涛) attended a photo exhibition marking the third anniversary of Workers’ Party of Korea General Secretary Kim Jong-un’s first trip to China at the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) Embassy in the People’s Republic of China in Beijing. He was joined by officials from the Central Propaganda Department, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Commerce, Ministry of Culture and Tourism, and other relevant departments. They met with DPRK Ambassador to China Ri Ryong-nam.