Xi Jinping presides over the closing session of the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC) at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, capital of China, Oct 22, 2022. Photo:Xinhua

The week-long 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC) successfully concluded on Saturday in Beijing, and it noted that the establishment of Comrade Xi Jinping's core position on the Party Central Committee and in the Party as a whole and the guiding role of Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era has set the rejuvenation of the Chinese nation on "an irreversible historical course."

The establishment of both Comrade Xi Jinping's core position on the Party Central Committee and in the Party as a whole and the guiding role of Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era represents a major political achievement for the Party in the new era and a decisive factor in the historic successes and changes in the cause of the Party and the country, the Congress noted. 

It required all Party members to acquire a deep understanding of the decisive significance of this major achievement, more conscientiously uphold Comrade Xi Jinping's core position on the Party Central Committee and in the Party as a whole and uphold the Central Committee's authority and its centralized, unified leadership, fully implement Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, and closely follow the Party Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at the core in thinking, political stance, and action, the Congress stressed. 

Chinese analysts stated that the resolutions approved by the Congress show that the Party is fully prepared for its new journey and has greater and more modern visions and thoughts on governance, development, key missions and the world order.

The CPC congress has realized its goals of unifying thinking, fortifying confidence, charting the course, and boosting morale, Xi told 2,338 delegates and specially invited delegates present at the closing session of the weeklong congress at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on Saturday. "This has been a congress of holding our banner high, pooling our strength, and promoting solidarity and dedication."

At the closing session presided over by Xi, the congress elected a new CPC Central Committee, with 205 members and 171 alternate members, and a new CPC Central Commission for Discipline Inspection (CCDI) consisting of 133 members.

The congress passed a resolution on the report of the 19th CPC Central Committee, a resolution on the work report of the 19th CPC CCDI, and a resolution on an amendment to the CPC Constitution.

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/GT

Milestone with historic significance

"We believe that all the decisions and plans set out at the congress and all its outcomes will play a significant role in guiding and underpinning our efforts to build a modern socialist country in all respects, advance national rejuvenation on all fronts, and secure new victories for socialism with Chinese characteristics," Xi said at the closing session.

"The report of the 19th CPC Central Committee adopted at the Congress is the crystallization of the wisdom of the Party and the people. It is a political declaration and a program of action for the Party to bring together the Chinese people of all ethnic groups and lead them in securing new success for socialism with Chinese characteristics. It is a guiding Marxist document," said the passed resolution on the report.

According to the passed resolution on the Party Constitution amendment, "The Congress unanimously agrees that the new developments in Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era since the Party's 19th National Congress should be incorporated into the Party Constitution, so as to better reflect the major contributions made by the Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core to advancing the Party's theoretical, practical, and institutional innovations."

The Congress noted that, at the ceremony marking the centenary of the Communist Party of China, Comrade Xi Jinping solemnly announced on behalf of the Party and the people that we have realized the First Centenary Goal of building a moderately prosperous society in all respects, and that we are now marching in confident strides toward the Second Centenary Goal of building China into a great modern socialist country in all respects. The Party Constitution is revised to reflect this, the resolution said.

Zhang Shuhua, director of the Institute of Political Sciences of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, told the Global Times on Saturday that the latest resolutions have comprehensively reflected and established all political, theoretical and ideological achievements that the CPC has actualized since the 18th CPC National Congress in the past decade. 

Zhang Xixian, a professor at the Party School of the CPC Central Committee in Beijing, told the Global Times on Saturday that the resolution on the Party Constitution amendment is "a starting point for the CPC to set sail for the Second Centenary Goal and to strengthen Party building. It is a foundational milestone that involves the development requirements, patterns, direction and destiny of the Party in its journey toward the goal which is scheduled to be realized in the middle of this century." 

According to the passed resolution on the Party Constitution amendment, the Congress agreed to incorporate statements into the Party Constitution including "the Party's original aspiration and founding mission and its major achievements and historical experience over the past century" and "Basic socialist economic systems, including the system under which public ownership is the mainstay and diverse forms of ownership develop together, the system under which distribution according to work is the mainstay while multiple forms of distribution exist alongside it, and the socialist market economy, are important pillars of socialism with Chinese characteristics."

The Congress also agreed to add to the Party Constitution statements such as "carrying forward our fighting spirit and building up our fighting ability" and "gradually realizing the goal of common prosperity for all," as well as "following the path of socialist rule of law with Chinese characteristics; developing a broader, fuller, and more robust whole-process people's democracy."

Analysts said these all reflect that the CPC is advancing with the times as all of these statements that will be added into the Party Constitution actually reflect the learning, experiences and understandings that the Party has accumulated from the governance and overcoming challenges in the past 10 years, and also accurately mirror the key demands of the Chinese people, and the key missions that the Party seeks to accomplish in the future.  

For instance, emphasizing "carrying forward our fighting spirit" in the resolution shows a clear attitude in regard to the challenges the Party has faced in the past five years, and will face in the future, said Yang Xuedong, a professor of political science at Tsinghua University. 

"When facing a more complicated situation, we need to carry out more arduous fight as we aim to achieve ambitious goals such as the building of a modern socialist country in all respects and realization of national rejuvenation," Yang told the Global Times on Saturday.

The Congress also agreed to include the statements into the Party Constitution like "enhancing political loyalty in the military, strengthening the military through reform, science and technology, and personnel training, and running the military in accordance with the law; elevating the people's armed forces to world-class standards; fully, faithfully, and resolutely implementing the policy of One Country, Two Systems; and resolutely opposing and deterring separatists seeking 'Taiwan independence'." 

"These revisions reaffirm the Party's commitment to building a strong military with Chinese characteristics, making sustained and steady progress with the One Country, Two Systems policy, advancing national reunification, promoting the building of a human community with a shared future, and leading the tide of human progress," said the resolution.

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/GT

Global vision 

The CPC not only has eyes on China's development and destiny, but also has a greater vision to contribute its efforts to making a better world for the whole of humanity. According to the passed resolution, the Congress agreed to include in the Party Constitution statements on "holding dear humanity's shared values of peace, development, fairness, justice, democracy, and freedom; and advancing the building of an open, inclusive, clean, and beautiful world that enjoys lasting peace, universal security, and common prosperity."

Wang Yiwei, director of the Institute of International Affairs at Renmin University of China, told the Global Times on Saturday that this showed that the CPC is not only guided by its original aspiration and the mission to seek happiness for the Chinese people and rejuvenation of the Chinese nation, but also "having a greater idea to seek advancement for the human race and seek 'Great Harmony' ('Datong' in Chinese, an ideal society without war and inequality in the Chinese culture) for the world," because with greater power comes greater responsibility.

China is entering or has already entered the center of the international arena, so the CPC needs to have a greater idea on a higher level to include rather than exclude various values shared by different countries around the world and to build a human community with a shared future together, said experts.

"Only by doing so, we will be able to avoid the so-called 'Clash of Civilizations theory,' 'Thucydides trap' or a new Cold War," Wang noted. 

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-standard 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 include Western civilization, 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. 

New journey begins

Having come through a century of great endeavor, the Party is once again embarking on a new journey on which it will face new tests, Xi said at the closing session on Saturday, "We are fully confident and capable of creating new and even greater miracles on the new journey of the new era -- miracles that will amaze the world."

Xi urged all Party members to stay closely rallied around the CPC Central Committee and hold high the great banner of socialism with Chinese characteristics.

"We must remain confident in our history, exhibit greater historical initiative, and have the courage to fight and the mettle to win," he said.

Xi called on the Party to stay focused, determinedly forge ahead, and unite and lead all Chinese people in striving to fulfill the goals and tasks set out at the 20th CPC National Congress.

Following Xi's remarks, the closing session of the 20th CPC National Congress concluded with an instrumental performance of the Internationale.