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Showing posts with label 20th National Congress. Show all posts
Showing posts with label 20th National Congress. Show all posts

Thursday, 27 October 2022

New Chinese leadership new journey begins

 

Xi Jinping, general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, and the other newly elected members of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the 20th CPC Central Committee Li Qiang, Zhao Leji, Wang Huning, Cai Qi, Ding Xuexiang and Li Xi, meet the press at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, capital of China, Oct. 23, 2022. (Xinhua/Shen Hong)

Xi Jinping, general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, and the other newly elected members of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the 20th CPC Central Committee Li Qiang, Zhao Leji, Wang Huning, Cai Qi, Ding Xuexiang and Li Xi, meet the press at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, capital of China, Oct. 23, 2022. (Xinhua/Shen Hong)

 

 Xi Jinping was elected general secretary of the 20th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC) at the committee's first plenary session held on Sunday, according to the communique of the plenary session.

The session, presided over by Xi, was attended by 203 members of the 20th CPC Central Committee and 168 alternate members. Xi was also named chairman of the CPC Central Military Commission at the session.

The members of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee elected at the session are Xi Jinping, Li Qiang, Zhao Leji, Wang Huning, Cai Qi, Ding Xuexiang and Li Xi.

Zhao and Wang were members of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the 19th CPC Central Committee. Li Qiang, Cai and Li Xi have served as Party chiefs of municipal CPC committees in Shanghai, Beijing and the Provincial CPC committee of Guangdong Province since 2017. Ding has been director of the General Office of the CPC Central Committee since 2017.

Analysts said the new central leadership of the Party with a strong core leadership, demonstrated solid unity, which is a key advantage and essential element for the Party to handle complex challenges and accomplish new great missions in the future, and to withstand "dangerous storms" in a turbulent world together.

Also elected at the first plenary session of the 20th CPC Central Committee were members of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee at the session, which endorsed the members of the CPC Central Committee Secretariat nominated by the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee.

The session named the members of the Central Military Commission, with Zhang Youxia and He Weidong as vice chairmen. The session approved the secretary, deputy secretaries and members of the Standing Committee of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection (CCDI) elected at the first plenary session of the 20th CCDI.

Remarks of confidence

After the plenary session concluded, Xi led the Party's new central leadership to meet Chinese and foreign journalists on Sunday at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, and delivered a speech at the meeting with the press.

Xi said China will open its door wider to the rest of the world. "We'll be steadfast in deepening reform and opening up across the board, and in pursuing high-quality development," Xi said when meeting the press, noting that a prosperous China will create many more opportunities for the world.

Just as China cannot develop in isolation from the world, the world needs China for its development, Xi said. Through over 40 years of relentless reform and opening-up, China has created the twin miracles of fast economic growth and long-term social stability, he said.

Chinese analysts said it shows that both the CPC's and Chinese people's determination on reform and opening-up is unchanged, and the Party will unwaveringly insist on the successful policy and strategy, which is a message of confidence and certainty not only to the Chinese economic development, but also to the world in turbulence and global recovery.

The Chinese economy has great resilience and potential, Xi said. "Its strong fundamentals will not change, and it will remain on the positive trajectory over the long run."

The week-long 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC) concluded on October 22, 2022, at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing. Photo: Li Hao/GTThe week-long 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC) concludes on October 22, 2022, at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing. Photo: Li Hao/GT

Humanity's shared values

Xi on Sunday also expressed China's commitment to promoting the building of a human community with a shared future.

"We will work with peoples of all other countries to champion humanity's shared values of peace, development, fairness, justice, democracy, and freedom to safeguard global peace and promote global development, and keep promoting the building of a human community with a shared future," Xi said when meeting the press at the Great Hall of the People.

Xi's remarks further highlight the core ideas of China's diplomacy since the 18th CPC National Congress, emphasizing the stability and continuity of major diplomatic policies, which drew a sharp contrast with certain countries that emphasize their own absolute security and maximize their own interests, building up small blocs, Su Xiaohui, deputy director of Department of International and Strategic Studies at the China Institute of International Studies, told the Global Times on Sunday.

"It shows that our diplomacy is not based on selfish and zero-sum mentalities, and the idea of promoting a human community with a shared future is winning and will win more support from the international community, especially from developing countries," Su said.

The concept of "humanity's shared values"  presented by the CPC is very different from the "universal values" promoted by the West, experts said. Based on the facts about the destruction and chaos in the non-Western world that has been caused by major Western powers, these so-called "universal values" actually serve as a pretext for hegemony to bully, interfere in and invade other nations, and the "values" are actually dividing the world rather than uniting it, as the West, especially the US, uses these concepts to create "enemies and competitors" to unite its own allies and followers, despite being guilty of hypocrisy and double-standards in many cases.

But the CPC's concept of "humanity's shared values" is inclusive and aims to unite all members of the international community and all civilizations, which also include civilizations in the Western world, and China under the CPC's leadership will always oppose and fight hegemony that threatens world peace, and will never follow the suit of hegemony or imperialism in the past to repeat the bloody and brutal path of rising in the new journey toward its Second Centenary Goal, experts said.

At this critical moment for the world to learn what China's core leadership will do, experts noted that China's core diplomatic ideas were incorporated in Xi's first address since he was elected general secretary of the 20th Central Committee of the CPC, indicating that China will uphold those common values of humanity by highlighting fairness and justice.

Keep Party invincible

"A political party can only become invincible if it remains committed to self-reform, even though it has had a glorious past," Xi made the remarks when meeting the press at the Great Hall of the People.

The revolutionary travails and tempering of the past century, and especially of the first decade of the new era, have made the CPC stronger and more dynamic, Xi said.

Xi urged the CPC members to remain on high alert and stay sober-minded and prudent in the face of new challenges and tests on the journey ahead.

Zhang Shuhua, director of the Institute of Political Sciences of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, told the Global Times on Sunday that "Facing an increasingly complex international environment, especially when Western political systems are deteriorating and many Western countries have no longer been able to elect leaders with professional performance, the CPC underscores a strong leadership, showing its capability to organize, unite and execute."

Political authority, consistency and certainty of the leadership are important for a major power to prevent the risk and handle the crisis in a turbulent world, and the CPC provides crucial advantages for China to overcome challenges in the future and to win the tough competition and confrontation launched by a few countries, experts said.

"We must make sure that our century-old Party, the biggest in the world, will become ever more vigorous through self-reform and continue to be the strong backbone that the Chinese people can lean on at all times," Xi said. He stressed that the Party should always act for the people and rely on the people on the journey ahead.

The week-long 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC) concludes on October 22, 2022, at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing. Photo: Li Hao/GTThe week-long 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC) concludes on October 22, 2022, at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing. Photo: Li Hao/GT

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It is hoped that the US can fully and accurately receive the signals the 20th CPC National Congress has sent out, correct its strategic perception of China, meet China halfway, and push China-US relations back to the track ...

 

 

China's new journey will show richer global significance: Global Times editorial

On Sunday noon, members of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the 20th Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee appeared before the press at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing. This event marks that a series of important political agendas surrounding the 20th CPC National Congress came to a successful conclusion. Like a huge ship, China will move forward under the leadership of the new CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core. The course the Party has charted has a global significance: It not only reflects the maturity and stability of the CPC as a major party, but also injects certainty into a world beset by changes and turmoil. 

 

China won't export devt model, opposes imposition on others

The just-concluded 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC) elaborated on Chinese modernization, which offers a path for other countries to seek inspiration, senior Party officials at a Monday press conference reiterated that China will not export its model to other countries, nor will it import models from other countries; every country should explore its own way to modernization that suits its own situation, in response to questions and concerns from the West about whether "China might export its ideology or development model."

 

Existing loopholes in US electoral or democratic system require political and legal reforms, but there seems to be little momentum to achieving so. The prospect of US-style democracy is dim.

 

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After reading a report delivered by Xi Jinping to the #20thCPCNationalCongress, Rick O'Shea said he has some photos to share. Check to find out the stories behind those who witnessed the significant development in the new era of China

Saturday, 15 October 2022

New march begins – How will CPC lead China to next centenary goal ?

Strong leadership core to provide ‘certainty, cohesion and strength’ in new journey A huge artificial flower basket decorates Tian'anmen Square during 2022 National Day holidays. Photo: VCG

Editor's Note:

The Communist Party of China (CPC) will convene its 20th National Congress on October 16 to bring China's development to the next stage. This congress is being held after China has accomplished its first centenary goal of building xiaokang - a moderately prosperous society in all respects by 2021 - and to start the second centenary goal of building a modern socialist country that is prosperous, strong, democratic, culturally advanced and harmonious by 2049.

From the founding of the CPC in 1921, the Chinese people took more than two decades to throw off oppression as a semi-colonial, semi-feudal society and found the People's Republic of China in 1949. After the launch of reform and opening-up in 1978 and through the continuous efforts of the Chinese people, China experienced the transformation from a huge, poor and backward country in the East into a thriving socialist China.

Today, after having lauded the great achievements that China has made in the past 100 years, the international community is paying close attention to how it will create a new miracle in a more complicated international environment. It is also necessary to review how the CPC has led the Chinese people to accomplish the first goal, as history always carries the secrets of future success. 

This is the second installment of the Global Times' special coverage of the special event. Here is
the first installment.


The 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC), which will convene in Beijing on Sunday, marks the start of a new journey for China's development and its role in international affairs, and the event takes place at a time when the world is experiencing profound changes not seen in a century. For people around the globe observing the historically significant political event, how China, under the strong leadership of the CPC, overcomes challenges to the country's development and contributes certainty to a world in turbulence has become a key interest.

In 2021, the CPC accomplished the First Centenary Goal for China - building a moderately prosperous society in all respects, or xiaokang in Chinese. The 20th CPC National Congress will be held at a historic juncture as the Party and the country continue marching forward to the Second Centenary Goal based on the achievements and experience gained from its past journey.

The Second Centenary Goal, set by the CPC at its 18th National Congress and further defined by the CPC at its 19th National Congress in October 2017, seeks "to develop China into a great modern socialist country that is prosperous, strong, democratic, culturally advanced, harmonious and beautiful by the middle of the 21st century."

Chinese President Xi Jinping, who is also general secretary of the CPC Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, said in 2017 that following the realization of a moderately prosperous society, the whole Party and people of various ethnic groups across the country would be motivated to build a modernized socialist country by 2049, the centenary of the founding of the People's Republic of China.

Since China's extraordinary achievements over the past 10 years have been widely acknowledged to have raised living standards at home and bolstered global development, the world is paying close attention to what more China can do for itself and the world in the next phase, especially as the world suffers from challenges including the COVID-19 pandemic, energy and food crises caused by the geopolitical turbulence in Ukraine, and the Western sanctions against Russia, as well as the intensifying tension between the two biggest world economies caused by Washington's hostility against China's peaceful development.
Lujiazui, a financial zone in Shanghai Photo: VCG

Lujiazui, a financial zone in Shanghai Photo: VCG



Changes and challenges

The COVID-19 pandemic has already taken more than 6 million lives worldwide in the past three years, bringing an unprecedentedly severe impact to humanity. A World Bank report said in 2020 that the pandemic caused the worst global economic recession "since World War II," and as central banks across the world simultaneously hike interest rates in response to inflation, the situation in 2023 could be even worse, and a string of financial crises in emerging market and developing economies will do them lasting harm, according to the World Bank on September 15.

The Russia-Ukraine conflict that started early this year also adds a new challenge to the severe situation. Observers around the globe believe that the conflict is profoundly changing the international political order, and the ensuing unilateral Western-launched sanctions led by the US have also caused huge damage to the international trade system and global supply chains. Many major EU members are now suffering from high energy prices, inflation, and strikes, while many developing countries are facing a serious food crisis.

Xu Bu, president of the China Institute of International Studies and secretary-general of Xi Jinping Thought on Diplomacy Studies Center, told the Global Times that "at present, the pandemic still exists, the international security situation is in turbulence, global economic recovery is fragile, and many crises are taking place. The world is entering a period of profound and complex change, and the journey to realize the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation has encountered new challenges."

In such a complicated and challenging period, cooperation between major powers has failed to emerge, but bloc-to-bloc confrontation and a zero-sum mentality are deeply affecting international relations, making the challenges more severe, analysts said.

Shen Yi, a professor at the School of International Relations and Public Affairs of Fudan University, told the Global Times that China has already developed to what it looks like today, and if it continues its growth and development, the international power comparison will surely change. 

"The US and some of its Western followers who still dominate the current international system have already launched comprehensive suppression against China. This is the biggest risk and challenge that we are facing right now," Shen said.

US China Illustration: Liu Rui/GT

US China Illustration: Liu Rui/GT



Xu echoed the view that the top external challenge for China is the interruption to the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation caused by hegemony and power politics, and the US hegemonic and unilateral strategy is not only threatening China, but also the world.   

The US has unilaterally sanctioned about 20 countries and regions worldwide. These sanctions are not only against governments, but have also been imposed against individuals and nongovernmental sectors like companies and academic institutes such as universities, with human rights observers and experts raising concerns that the US and other Western-launched unilateral coercive measures constitute "one of the most serious challenges to solidarity, universality, development and human rights protection."

The US is seeking "decoupling" from China in many aspects to serve its major power competition strategy, including imposing additional tariffs against Chinese goods and launching export controls of chips to contain China's sci-tech development, and has also launched cyberattacks against Chinese institutes such as universities. The US also repeatedly provokes and challenges China's sovereignty and core interests on sensitive matters including the Taiwan question, Xinjiang, and Hong Kong region, putting the peace and stability of the Asia-Pacific region in danger, said experts.

In Europe, the US continues to fan the flames of the Ukraine crisis which was fundamentally caused by US-led NATO expansion, and the continent is now experiencing its most dangerous situation since the Cold War, and with the unilateral anti-Russia sanctions dominated by the US, global supply chains have been seriously damaged and many countries have suffered from rarely seen high inflation, Xu said.  

Facing such an unprecedented, complicated external situation, the CPC still needs to make sure that the Second Centenary Goal it promised to the people of China can be accomplished, and analysts say this requires the CPC to have very high capability in both internal governance and in handing external affairs.

Wang Yiwei, director of the Institute of International Affairs at the Renmin University of China, told the Global Times that "in the previous era from the end of the Cold War to the early 2000s, the world was generally stable, and major powers still had some consensus on development and security. China was following the trend of globalization, but now, the situation has changed, and the Western-dominated globalization sees many problems and potential risks."

"It's time for China to actively guide the direction of the reform and improvement of globalization," Wang noted.

"The world is expecting China, a responsible major power with strength and wisdom, to provide solutions to the problems troubling the globe. China won't dominate the world order like a hegemon, but it can contribute certainty and stability to balance out the damage caused by the chaos and turbulence worldwide, because China is approaching the center of the international arena," said Zhang Shuhua, director of the Institute of Political Sciences of the hinese Academy of Social Sciences.

The upcoming 20th CPC National Congress will provide the Party's answer to questions from not only the Chinese people, but also the world about China's future.

The seventh plenary session of the 19th CPC Central Committee that ended on October 12 has analyzed the current situation and tasks, and hosted in-depth discussions on major issues including upholding and developing socialism with Chinese characteristics on the new journey in the new era, and building a modern socialist country in all respects. It has made full reparations for the upcoming 20th CPC National Congress, according to the communiqué of the plenary session. 

People visit an exhibition about China's victory over poverty at the National Museum of China on April 8, 2021. Photos: IC

People visit an exhibition about China's victory over poverty at the National Museum of China on April 8, 2021. Photos: IC



Promises and tasks

On its new journey toward the Second Centenary Goal, the CPC has made a clear and encouraging plan to reach such a great goal stage by stage. 

In his report delivered at the 19th CPC National Congress in 2017, President Xi said, "Based on a comprehensive analysis of the international and domestic environments and the conditions for China's development, we have drawn up a two-stage development plan for the period from 2020 to the middle of this century."

"In the first stage from 2020 to 2035, we will build on the foundation created by the moderately prosperous society with a further 15 years of hard work to see that socialist modernization is basically realized," and "In the second stage from 2035 to the middle of the 21st century, we will, building on having basically achieved modernization, work hard for a further 15 years and develop China into a great modern socialist country that is prosperous, strong, democratic, culturally advanced, harmonious and beautiful," Xi said.

Shen said the upcoming 20th CPC National Congress will have a clear systematic arrangement for the core leadership of the Party, and this will guarantee stability, certainty and consistency for the next stage.

President Xi said in November 2020 that "China's economy has the hope and potential to maintain long-term stable development."

Residents in Shenzhen, South China's Guangdong Province, enjoy the sunrise in the Shenzhen Bay Park on October 1, 2022. Photo: VCG

Residents in Shenzhen, South China's Guangdong Province, enjoy the sunrise in the Shenzhen Bay Park on October 1, 2022.  Photo: VCG



It is "completely possible" for China to meet the current standards for high-income countries by the end of the 14th Five-Year Plan (2021-25) period and to double the total economic volume or per capita income by 2035, Xi said.

Zhu Guangyao, former Chinese vice minister of finance, told Xinhua that this means the per capita GDP in 2035 would at least have doubled the volume in 2019 and reach $20,000.

Wang said that in order to accomplish such a task, China will no longer maintain the old development model and will require a new one driven by innovation with a greater global vision. "China's reform will promote the reform of the world, and China's high-quality development will boost the high-quality development alongside the routes of the Belt and Road, and will also guide the new rules-making for the future globalization and regional integration. This is a challenge we will face but also a mission that we must accomplish in the next stage."

Shen echoed that the new development model will be "green and sustainable," and after realizing the economic growth, the Party needs to make the growth transfer to the concrete wellbeing and livelihood improvement, so it requires a more advanced distribution system, which makes the distribution process and result fairer and more rightful.

In the field of science and technology, China needs to tackle its weaknesses and utilize its advantages to effectively overcome the problem of being suppressed by hegemonic sanctions in specific high-tech areas, Shen said.

According to the report of the 19th CPC National Congress, by the end of the first stage from 2020 to 2035, "China's economic and technological strength will have increased significantly, making China a global leader in innovation."

The biggest challenge to such a goal, domestically, is the contradiction between unbalanced and inadequate development, which requires more decisive reforms; externally, it's the suppression and containment strategy launched by the US, and China needs to find more effective solutions in the next stage, analysts said. 

The national reunification would also be a mission that must be accomplished. According to the report of the 19th CPC National Congress, "achieving China's full reunification is essential to realizing national rejuvenation." 

There is no timetable or deadline so far to clearly state when the Taiwan question will be solved, but Shen said that after the 20th CPC National Congress, the roadmap for China to solve this question will be much clearer and distinct, because this question won't last forever, and "the question won't be left to the next generation, as it's likely to be solved in this generation." 

In order to accomplish these missions, the Party and the country need a loyal, powerful and modernized military force with undoubtable combat capability that's able to deter and defeat all kinds of enemies and external threats, and to safeguard China's sovereignty and territorial integrity. In other words, it provides strategic support to the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation, experts said. 

The People's Liberation Army (PLA) will celebrate its centenary in 2027, and by that time, the Chinese military force will see significant improvement, and experts believe that in the upcoming 20th CPC National Congress, the Party will further define the tasks and missions for the military in the next stage. 

Source of strength 

From economic growth to sci-tech development and military modernization, as well as reform on governance system, there is no easy task and all of them require efforts, wisdom and courage, especially under the impact of the pandemic and in a world with profound change and serious turbulence. Apart from China, there is hardly any other major power able to set such an ambitious goal. 

Why is China so confident? Analysts said the most fundamental reason is that China has the leadership of the CPC, and the CPC has a strong core of leadership, and this is also the reason why China has achieved extraordinary goals in the past 10 years and also the past century.

Having a strong core leadership has always been the Party's key advantage that has helped it overcome serious challenges, such as finishing the Long March in the 1930s and winning the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea in the 1950s. It's also a key strength that allowed the Party to achieve historic goals such as the establishment of the People's Republic of China in 1949 and kicking off the reform and opening-up in 1978, analysts said.

Strong cores of leadership like Mao Zedong and Deng Xiaoping have guaranteed the Party's survival and victories again and again, and in the new era and the new journey amid the world with profound change unseen in a century, such rich experience and tradition will surely be inherited, experts said.

A visitor looks at statues of earlier generations of revolutionaries at the site of the First National Congress of the CPC in Shanghai on Thursday when restoration at the site finished and it is reopened to the public as a museum. Photo: Yang Hui/GT

A visitor looks at statues of earlier generations of revolutionaries at the site of the First National Congress of the CPC in Shanghai on Thursday when restoration at the site finished and it is reopened to the public as a museum. Photo: Yang Hui/GT



Shen said a strong core of leadership with high certainty is a great comparative advantage for the CPC and China, which allows China to maintain consistency and stability on its strategy and policy-making.

Chinese analysts said that with General Secretary Xi at the core of the CPC Central Committee and the whole Party, the CPC has proved that it is able to handle serious challenges and achieve historic goals.

Without such a strong core of leadership to continually lead the whole Party and the country, China might not have been able to successfully control the COVID-19 epidemic and prevent its huge impact on the economy and people's lives like what happened in many Western countries, especially the US which so far has recorded more than 1 million COVID deaths, and China might not have been able to handle the trade war launched by the US in 2018 and retaliate US' provocations in the South China Sea and on the Taiwan question, and also might not even have been able to successfully restore peace and order in Hong Kong after the 2019 turmoil, analysts said. 

For a great nation with a huge population and territory like China, many policies will need years or even decades to show effects, so it's essential to maintain stable leadership, so that the country will have a more long-term and consistent policymaking strategy, and many goals that require long-term efforts can also be realized, Shen noted. 

In comparison with the US, China's political system with one ruling party that has a strong and consistent leadership is definitely better than the two-party system that frequently changes leadership with great uncertainty, Shen said.

The upcoming 20th CPC National Congress will elect a new CPC Central Committee and a new CPC Central Commission for Discipline Inspection, according to Xinhua. 

The congress will be an event with historic significance in the new journey that the Party and all Chinese people will take marching toward the Second Centenary Goal, and the leadership of the CPC is the biggest advantage of the Socialism with Chinese Characteristics, Xu said. 

Xu stressed that "the congress will make scientific arrangements and plans for the Party and the country's development in the next five years and even a longer period and for the future of Socialism with Chinese Characteristics and the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation."
 
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