CPC hails achievements over 90 years, highlights importance of development, stability
By Xinhua Writer Meng Na, Cheng Zhiliang, Wang Pan
BEIJING, July 1 (Xinhua) -- President Hu Jintao on Friday highlighted the importance of both development and stability, while hailing the achievements the Communist Party of China (CPC) has made over the past 90 years.
"To strike a balance between reform, development, and stability and achieve unity of the three is an important guideline for achieving overall success in China's socialist modernization," Hu Jintao, also general secretary of the CPC Central Committee, said at a grand gathering marking the 90th founding anniversary of the CPC.
When summarizing the achievements the CPC has scored, Hu said the Communist Party of China (CPC) has accomplished three major events in the 90 years that reshaped the future and destiny of the Chinese people.
The first is the new-democratic revolution winning national independence and liberation of the people, Hu said.
The second is the socialist revolution and establishment of the basic socialist system. The third is the great new revolution of reform and opening up and the creation and development of socialism with Chinese characteristics, he said.
However, Hu noted that the CPC must not and will never rest on its laurels.
He pointed out the long-term, complicated and severe tests that the Party is facing. He said the Party should enhance Party building, continue to reform and maintain stability of the country.
TESTS AND DANGERS
When mentioning challenges faced by the CPC, President Hu said "We are facing long-term, complicated and severe tests in governing the country, in implementing reform and opening up and in developing the market economy, as well as tests in the external environment."
And the Party is confronted with the growing danger of lack of drive, incompetence, disconnect of the people, lack of initiative, and corruption. It has become even more important and urgent than ever before for the Party to police itself and impose strict discipline on its members, he said.
Some experts believe that the challenges, embodied in various aspects of China's current economic development and social management, pose "a full spectrum" of tests to the CPC's governance ability.
Regarding challenges in the market economy, Cai He, a labor expert from the Sun Yat-sen University, said industrial workers will inevitably seek constant wage increases with inflation on the rise, which, however, would likely cause difficulties for a large number of labor-intensive enterprises.
"The CPC needs to take into account the overall interests of the Chinese society. We understand the difficulty in meeting the requirements of both the workers and enterprises," Cai said.
Zhang Yubiao, an experienced village Party official in the southern city of Shenzhen, said the CPC works in a practical and innovative way which allows it to get through difficulties.
DEVELOPMENT AND STABILITY
Hu Jintao noted "development is critically important, and upholding stability is also a critically important task. Without stability, nothing could be done, and even the achievements already made could be lost."
President Hu's remarks on the relationship between stability, development and reform offered a guiding direction for solving current economic and social difficulties in China, said He Yiming, head of the population and labor employment institute of the Guangdong University of Finance.
Some experts said the CPC will pay great attention to the unity of reform, development and stability in the future as it understands the long-term nature, arduousness and complexity of challenges and difficulties.
"Problems must be solved under the condition of the country's stability. Without stability, no problem can be solved and no one will benefit from it," said Fan Hesheng, a professor of sociology from the Anhui university.
President Hu noted that China is going through social changes unparalleled in scope.
"While releasing tremendous dynamism for China's development and progress, these changes have inevitably given rise to conflicts and problems," Hu said.
To cope with the problems, the president pointed out that the Party should reduce and defuse these conflicts by building the material basis, enhancing moral strength, improving policies and measures, and providing a stronger institutional guarantee.
He said that the Party should also strengthen social administration in an innovative way.
CONTINUE TO REFORM
Hu said China will continue to carry out reform and opening up in the future, as it was thanks to reform and opening up that China has developed rapidly over the past 30 plus years.
China suffers from a serious lack of balance, coordination, and sustainability in its development, and there are institutional obstacles to scientific development. "In no way can we get around these problems, which must be resolved in the course of deepening reform," Hu said.
Hu vowed to continue to reform the economic, political, cultural and social systems.
Meanwhile, the country must firmly carry out the central task of economic development and stay committed to pursuing scientific development.
China remains the largest developing country in the world and despite all the achievements, development is still key to solving the country's problems, Hu said.
China will continue to promote socialist democracy and enhance the socialist political system with Chinese characteristics in the future.
Hu said the Party and country will improve institutions, standards, and procedures for exercising socialist democracy.
China will also promote socialist culture and improve the people's well-being in the future, Hu said. He called for efforts to ensure that social development advances in step with economic, political, and cultural development.
PARTY BUILDING
The General Secretary outlined efforts to improve the Party, or "make Party building more scientific under the new historical conditions," in his speech.
"As a political party, it must have the abilities to fulfill its missions. The CPC has to improve itself to rule the country," said Prof. Ding Junping, an expert on Party building from Wuhan University.
The CPC must adapt Marxism both to China's conditions and to the current times, and make it known to the general public so as to raise the ideological and political awareness of the whole Party.
"We never take Marxism as an empty, rigid, and stereotyped dogma," Hu said.
"We must continue to free up our minds, seek truth from facts, advance with the times," he added.
Hu underscored the importance of talents for the Party, saying the CPC must recruit people on merit without regard to their origin and attract as many talents as possible.
Last year, 3.075 million people joined the CPC, boosting the number of Communist Party of China (CPC) members to 80 million.
The two leading groups of new members were college students and people at the frontline of production or work, such as industrial workers, farmers, herders, and migrant workers, both accounting for more than 40 percent of the total new Party members.
At the age of 59, Lu Daishu, a villager from Guizhou's Songyan Township, is the area's oldest person to apply for CPC membership. Lu converted his home into a service center for villagers back in 2008.
"Villagers come to me when they have disputes, or if they have any suggestions for village affairs. My sons often call me 'village judge' because I often help to resolve disputes here," Lu said.
Lu also had persuaded a tea producer and a fruit company to set up shop in his village to improve local employment situation.
Lu's leadership has won him praise from local farmers and recognition from the local Party committee. In October 2010, the local Party committee admitted Lu as a probationary member of the CPC.
On Friday's gathering, Hu Jintao also reiterated the principle of putting people first and governing for the people, and called on the Party to maintain close ties with the people.
The CPC is increasing its use of the Internet to keep close ties with the people. China now boasts the world's largest Internet population with 477 million users.
In Hu's speech, he said the CPC must intensify efforts to improve Party conduct, uphold integrity and combat corruption so to maintain the advanced nature and integrity of the Party.
"If not effectively curbed, corruption will cost the Party the trust and support of the people," he said.
The CPC stepped up its efforts to crack down on corruption within the Party in 2010, by giving disciplinary punishments to 146,517 people and transferring 5,373 to judicial agencies for criminal proceedings.
The CPC must also place power, Party affairs, and Party members under institutional safeguards, Hu said, adding all the Party members are equal before the law.
"Hu has made it clear on what to do in different aspects to build a stronger Party. The key now lies in implementation," said Prof. Ding Junping. Enditem
(Huang Yan, Cai Min, Zhang Chunxiao and Mou Xu also contributed to the story.)
1.3 billion people are watching you,don't let us down,CPC
