By H.E. Wang Lixin, Chinese Ambassador to Maldives

This year marks the 100^th anniversary of the founding of the Communist Party of China. Recently, the 19^th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China successfully convened its sixth plenary session. This Plenary Session is of great historical significance as it was held at the time when the Communist Party of China has, through uniting and leading the Chinese people, fulfilled the First Centenary Goal of building a moderately prosperous society in all respects on schedule and is embarking on the new journey to accomplish the Second Centenary Goal of building a great modern socialist country.

The plenum highlighted that the Party has established Comrade Xi Jinping’s core position in the Party Central Committee and in the Party as a whole, and defined the guiding role of Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era. This reflects the common will of the Party, the armed forces, and Chinese people of all ethnic groups, and is of decisive significance for advancing the cause of the Party and the country in the new era and for driving forward the historic process of national rejuvenation.

The most important outcome of the plenum is that it has deliberated and adopted the Resolution of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China on the Major Achievements and Historical Experience of the Party over the Past Century. Looking back on the Party’s endeavors over the past century, we can see why we were successful in the past and how we can continue to succeed in the future. The Resolution is a glorious Marxist programmatic document, a political declaration for Chinese Communists in the new era to keep in mind our original mission, uphold and develop socialism with Chinese characteristics, and a guide to action for taking history as a mirror, creating the future, and realizing the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation.

The Major Achievements of the CPC

Since its founding in 1921, the Communist Party of China has remained true to its original aspiration and mission of seeking happiness for the Chinese people and rejuvenation for the Chinese nation. Staying committed to communist ideals and socialist convictions, it has united and led the Chinese people of all ethnic groups in working tirelessly to achieve national independence and liberation, and then to make the country prosperous and strong, and pursue a better life for the Chinese people. The past century has been a glorious journey. The centenary struggle of the Party and the people has written the most magnificent epic in the millennia-long history of the Chinese nation.

In the period of the new-democratic revolution, the Party led the Chinese people in fighting bloody battles with unyielding determination, achieving great success in the new-democratic revolution, establishing the People’s Republic of China and realizing the independence of the Chinese nation and the liberation of the Chinese people. This marked the country’s great transformation from a millennia-old feudal autocracy to a people’s democracy and the beginning of a new epoch in China’s development. This also reshaped the world political landscape and offered enormous inspiration for oppressed nations and peoples struggling for liberation around the world. The Party and the Chinese people showed the world that the Chinese people had stood up.

After the founding of the People’s Republic of China, the Party led the Chinese people in carrying out socialist revolution, promoting socialist construction, and establishing an independent and relatively complete industrial system and national economic framework, achieving great success in socialist revolution and construction, bringing about the most extensive and profound social change in the history of the Chinese nation and a great transformation from a poor and backward Eastern country with a large population to a socialist country.

From the late 1970’s on, the Party led the people in achieving great success in reform and opening up and socialist modernization, achieving the historic transformations from a highly centralized planned economy into a socialist market economy brimming with vitality, and from a country that was largely isolated into one that is open to the outside world across the board, and the historic transformation from a country with relatively backward productive forces to the world’s second largest economy, and making the historic strides of raising the living standards of its people from bare subsistence to moderate prosperity in general and then toward moderate prosperity in all respects. All these achievements marked the tremendous advance of the Chinese nation from standing up to growing prosperous.

Following the Party’s 18^th National Congress, socialism with Chinese characteristics entered a new era. Guided by Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, the Party led the Chinese people in fulfilling the First Centenary Goal, starting to embark on the new journey to achieve the Second Centenary Goal and continuing to strive toward the great goal of national rejuvenation. With this, it has brought about great success for socialism with Chinese characteristics in the new era, prompted historic achievements and historic shifts in the cause of the Party and the country. The Chinese nation has achieved the tremendous transformation from standing up and growing prosperous to becoming strong.

The Party’s endeavors over the past century have fundamentally transformed the future of the Chinese people, have opened up the right path for achieving rejuvenation of the Chinese nation, have demonstrated the strong vitality of Marxism, have produced a profound influence on the course of world history, have expanded the channels for developing countries to achieve modernization, and have made the the Party a forerunner of the times.

The past century witnesses profound changes. All those changes that have taken place in China and all the achievements of the Chinese nation have strongly proved that without the Communist Party of China, there would be no new China and no great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation. The Party was chosen to lead by history and the Chinese people. Its leadership is the very foundation and lifeblood of the Party and the country, and it is the crux upon which the interests and well-being of all Chinese people depend.

The Historical Experience of the CPC

Over the past 100 years, the Party has led the Chinese people in great endeavors and has continuously moved from victory to new victory, we have accumulated valuable historical experience, which can be summarized in ten aspects: upholding the Party’s leadership, putting the people first, advancing theoretical innovation, staying independent, following the Chinese path, maintaining a global vision, breaking new ground, standing up for ourselves, promoting the united front, and remaining committed to self-reform. These ten points represent valuable practical experience gained over long term and intellectual treasures created through the joint efforts of the Party and the people. They are also the secrets of why the Party has been so successful. The following stories will help you better understand the successful experience of the Party.

President Xi Jinping has repeatedly stated that “we must ensure that the power given by the people is always used for the well-being of the people”; “The country’s most fundamental interest is the happiness of the people, and the people’s desire for a better life is our goal”; “I am determined to devote myself to serving the Chinese people and the development of China wholeheartedly.” All these words illustrate the deep love for the people of the great leader of a century-old party, and also embody the Party’s aspiration and mission of seeking happiness for the Chinese people and rejuvenation for the Chinese nation.

On July 1, 2021, President Xi Jinping solemnly proclaimed “we have fulfilled the First Centenary Goal of building a moderately prosperous society in all respects, bringing about a historic resolution to the problem of absolute poverty”. 98.99 million rural residents below the current poverty line had been lifted out of poverty. The Chinese people had been lifted out of absolute poverty, with a per capita gross national income of more than 10,000 USD, leading an increasingly prosperous life and moving towards the goal of common prosperity. President Xi Jinping has visited poor mountainous areas for several times to conduct field survey and offer guidance for the work of poverty eradication, leading all people to common prosperity. He once said, “common prosperity is a long goal, it requires a process and can not be achieved overnight. This long-term, difficult and complex task should be fully estimated, and should be done without rest nor rush.”

In face of Covid-19, the Party has always put “people first” and “life first”. Immediately after the outbreak of the pandemic, the Party quickly launched patient treatment, city-wide testing and even lockdown of Wuhan City. It did not miss a single infected person nor gave up any patient. In this way, the Party has safeguarded the people’s life and health “at all costs”. President Xi Jinping said: “More than 3,000 senior patients over 80 years old were rescued from Covid-19 in Hubei Province alone, among whom an 87-year-old man was carefully treated by more than 10 medical workers for dozens of days. Their recoveries demonstrate the essence of ‘people first’. Taking care of a single patient with dozens of medical workers, this well illustrates the true meaning of ‘at all costs’.”

Maintaining a Global Vision is one of the Party’s characteristics. Since the start of COVID-19, China has provided the international community with over 350 billion masks, over 4 billion protective suits, over 6 billion testing kits, and over 1.7 billion doses of vaccines. China will endeavor to provide 2 billion doses of vaccines to the world throughout the year, and donate 100 million doses of vaccines to developing countries for free this year on top of the 100 million USD donation to COVAX. China has proposed the Global Vaccine Cooperation Action Initiative, also sponsored by Maldives, aiming to provide 3 billion USD over the next three years to support developing countries in fighting against Covid-19 and reviving economic and social development. All of these show China’s great contributions as a responsible major country.

In terms of climate change, China advocates the harmonious coexistence between man and nature, accelerates transition to green and low-carbon development, tackles climate change proactively, fosters a community of life for man and nature. At the General Debate of the 76th Session of the UNGA, President Xi Jinping announced that China would strive to peak carbon dioxide emissions before 2030 and achieve carbon neutrality before 2060, would step up support for other developing countries in developing green and low-carbon energy, and would not build new coal-fired power projects abroad. At the COP26 Summit, President Xi Jinping presented China’s major propositions on the next step of global climate governance, demonstrating China’s determination and sincerity to effectively implement the Paris Agreement and support global green and low-carbon development, contributing to the adoption of the Glasgow Climate Pact.

Not long ago, President Xi Jinping proposed a Global Development Initiative at the General Debate of the 76th Session of the UNGA, calling on accelerating of implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and achieving more robust, greener and more balanced global development, so as to build a global community of development with a shared future. China has hosted International Import Expo for four consecutive years, demonstrating that we will not change our resolve to open wider at a high standard; we will not change our determination to share development opportunities with the rest of the world; and we will not change our commitment to an economic globalization that is more open, inclusive, balanced and beneficial for all.

Over the past hundred years, while pursuing happiness for the Chinese people and rejuvenation of the Chinese nation, the Party has also contributed to human progress and world harmony and has been cogitating on the future of humanity with a global vision. It has been and will continue to be builder of world peace, contributor to global development, and defender of the international order. Ready to work together with political parties in various countries including Maldives to exchange governance experiences, the Party will stay true to its original aspiration of pursuing happiness for the people and of building a community of shared future for mankind.

Looking forward, to accomplish the Party’s mission, we must never forget why we started. The Party remains focused on achieving lasting greatness for the Chinese nation, and a hundred years on from its founding, the Party is still in its prime. Over the past century, the Party has secured extraordinary historical achievements. Today, it is rallying and leading the Chinese people on a new journey for the Second Centenary Goal. We are convinced that the Party and the Chinese people will build upon the great glories and victories of the past hundred years with even greater glories and victories on the new journey in the new era.