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Excerpts of CPC Central Committee Plenum's Decision on Improving Party Style
The full text of a document which was passed at the Sixth Plenum of the 15th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China on September 26, was made public Sunday, spelling out the principles and tasks of the Party in terms of improving Party style.
The document, the "Decision of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China on Strengthening and Improving the Building of the Party Style," consists of 11 parts and contains about 14,000 Chinese characters.
It pointed out that now and in the future, efforts must be centered on the Party's way of thinking, studying, and working and on its leadership and on the lifestyle of cadres. The main tasks will be:
-- to adhere to the principle of emancipating the mind and seeking truth from facts, so as to prevent old ways of doing things and refrain from being contented with things as they are;
-- to uphold the principle of combining theory with practice, and fight against bookishness;
-- to keep in touch with the people, and fight against formalism and bureaucracy;
-- to maintain democratic centralism, and refrain from acting arbitrarily or despotically and prevent laziness;
-- to keep to the Party's disciplinary rules, so as to prevent liberalism;
-- to promote justice and honesty, and to fight against the abuse of power for personal gain;
-- to work hard, and fight against hedonism; and
-- to promote officials according to their ability and merits, so as to prevent unfair and corrupt appointment of officials.
The decision called on Party members to work at implementing the above-mentioned "eight do's and eight don'ts" so that the Party can make definite progress, and the ties between the Party and the people and between the cadres and the people will noticeably improve, creating more public confidence in the Party.
CPC Central Committee Calls for Ideological EmancipationThe Communist Party of China ( CPC) Central Committee has stressed the need to adhere to ideological emancipation and to the principle of seeking truth from facts, to oppose the old ways of doing things and refrain from being contented with things as they are so as to make efforts to open up a new field in developing Marxist Theory and create a new situation in the development of the cause of the Party and the nation.
The decision made public Sunday says that the building of ideological style must be put in the first place in terms of strengthening and improving the Party style. Adherence to ideological emancipation and the seeking of truth from facts are the fundamental requirements of the Party to go with the progressive tide of the times and maintain its permanent advancement, it notes.
The whole Party must proceed from the actual conditions of China's initial stage of socialism and from the changing international situation so as to make strenuous efforts to go ahead.
It warns that the Party's ideological theory may not develop, its cause may not advance, and the Party may face the danger of being washed out by the times, if it cannot keep up with the times and out in front of the field.
The emancipation of mind and seeking truth from facts mean to unswervingly implement the principle of centering on economic construction, to adhere to the Four Cardinal Principals and to the basic lines of reform and opening up to the outside world and to act in line with the principle that practice is the only criterion to test the truth, the decision states.
The emancipation of mind and seeking truth from facts also mean an integration of sticking to the basic theory of Marxism and the enrichment and development of Marxism, as Marxism is a developing science, the decision says.
The decision also stresses that the whole Party must keep cool- headed to guard against both "Leftism" and rightism, with the focus on preventing "Leftism".
Linking Theory With Practice The linking of theory with practice, which is the Marxist way of study and has always been adhered to by the Communist Party of China (CPC), continues to be the key to the Party's maintaining of its vitality and creativity.
The Decision also calls on the whole Party to further foster the style of linking theory with practice and opposing bookishness.
The decision calls for arming the whole Party with Marxism- Leninism-Mao Zedong Thought and Deng Xiaoping Theory; a further understanding of the important thinking of "Three Represents" put forward by President Jiang Zemin so as to constantly enhance and deepen the awareness of the laws and rules governing the administration of state power by the Communist party, the building of socialism and the social development of mankind.
All new experiments, thoughts and achievements made by all other countries should be studied and used positively, the decision says, adding that they must not be copied without first looking at China's actual conditions.
It calls on the whole Party to step up their investigation and study and the Party and government institutions at different levels should set up corresponding systems on the matter to enhance the work.
Leading officials at the provincial and ministerial level should spend at least one month every year conducting investigations at the grass-root level, while officials at the prefecture and county levels should spend at least two months doing so, according to the decision. Close Ties with Masses The "CPC Central Committee's Decision on Strengthening and Improving the Building of the Party Style" makes it clear that the Communist Party of China (CPC) must unswervingly follow its mass line, maintaining close ties with the masses while firmly doing away with formalism and bureaucratism.
Formalism, the decision says, mainly features doing things without regard to actual effect while bureaucratism is characterized by deviation from the masses and actual situations.
The decision points out that bureaucratism results in formalism, which in turn promotes bureaucratism, saying that both have become a great hurdle to the progress of the Party's cause.
To maintain close links with the masses, according to the decision, the most important thing to do is to experience and observe people's living conditions, listen to their opinions, pool their wisdom, and treasure their work.
Cadres at all levels, the decision says, should take into consideration hardships faced by the people, always ensure that they have enough food and clothing, and safeguard their economic, political and cultural rights and interests.
Special attention should be paid to people who face difficulties in their work and lives, the decision says.
The decision stresses that measures should be taken to guide and support further development of relatively developed regions, and that still more efforts should be made to help people in poor areas become rich.
Further development should be sought through brave reforms at a pace acceptable to the masses, according to the decision.
Human, financial and material resources should be cherished and mainly used to tackle the most urgent issues, and gaudy and unrealistic projects should be objected to, the decision says.
The decision also stresses the need to establish and improve scientific criteria for assessing cadres to prevent malpractice in official promotion.
According to the decision, superiors should not impose unrealistic demands on their subordinates nor resort to coercion and commandism, stressing that effective efforts should be made to prevent rudeness and injustice.
The decision calls for opening wider channels for public opinion, saying that all leading organs of the Party and the state should stick to the system of leading cadres receiving common people on a given day and that leading cadres should deal with letters from the masses and receive visitors in person.
Further reforms should be carried out to prevent such problems as inefficiency, which result from the overlapping of organizations and their functions, according to the decision.
The decision also says that it is a must to improve the Party' s leadership and working methods and calls for reducing meetings and documents.
Party Discipline The Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC) has urged its members to keep to the Party's disciplinary rules and stand firmly against all actions that fall punishable under the rules.
The Decision stresses the importance of adhering to the Party's disciplines and guarding against liberalism.
The decision says that strict enforcement of the disciplinary rules is essential for the implementation of the Party's guidelines, the maintenance of its unity and attainment of its missions.
Political discipline is the most important discipline of the CPC, the decision says, stressing that Party organizations at all levels and all its members must stick to the basic line of the Party and consciously take the side with the CPC Central Committee, stand up for its authority and ensure the faithful enforcement of its orders.
"The fabrication and spread of political rumors and remarks that uglify the Party and the state must be forbidden. Participation in various illegal organizations and activities must be banned," says the decision.
The decision stresses that anyone who violates the Party's disciplines will be criticized or duly sanctioned.
Democratic Centralism The "CPC Central Committee's Decision on Strengthening and Improving the Building of the Party Style" stresses the need to further educate all Party members, especially leading cadres, with democratic centralism.
No leading cadres, whatever positions they hold, are allowed to place themselves above Party organizations and act arbitrarily, the decision says.
Uncompromising measures, the decision says, should be taken to prevent such weak and incompetent practices as discussions without decision and decision making without implementation.
The decision, passed by the Sixth Plenum of the 15th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC) on September 26, 2001, makes it clear that democratic centralism is the fundamental organizational and leadership system of the Party, saying that the key to strengthening and improving the building of Party style lies in fully promoting democracy while safeguarding centralism.
The decision says that it is a must to establish and improve various concrete systems under democratic centralism, noting that centralism must be based on democracy while democracy must be guided by centralism.
The decision calls for greater efforts to safeguard the democratic rights of Party members and widen democratic channels within the Party, so as to have Party members know more about and take a greater part in Party affairs.
Party organizations should do their best to solicit the opinions of Party members on major issues in the Party's work, the decision says, adding that effective systems are to be established to ensure that the opinions of Party members at the grassroots level and subordinate organizations be passed on to superior organizations.
Party congresses and committees should be brought into full play, according to the decision, and major issues should be discussed by the standing committees of Party committees, and issues concerning the general situation and having a far-reaching influence must be discussed by the plenums of Party committees.
The decision says that Party committees should integrate the leadership of the Party with the promotion of democracy, the rule of law, and respect to objective laws.
The decision calls for adherence to and improvement of the system of people's congresses and that of multi-party cooperation and political consultation under the leadership of the CPC.
The decision stresses that measures should be taken to resist the influence of such political patterns as the Western multi- party system.
The unity of the Party and the state should be maintained firmly because it is in the fundamental interests of the people of all ethnic groups, the decision says.
The individual must submit to the organization, the minority to the majority, a lower-level organization to a higher-level organization, and the whole Party to the National Congress of the Party and the Party Central Committee, the decision says. That the whole Party must submit to the Party Central Committee is of the greatest importance, the decision says.
Profound changes in the international environment, and the progress of the reform, opening up and the socialist market economy, the decision says, have made new requirements for maintaining the unity of the Party and the state.
The decision emphasizes the unity of the Party and the state in guidelines, goals of struggle, policies, laws and regulations, and plans.
No local and departmental protectionism is allowed and no regulations are to go against central policies and state laws and regulations, the decision stresses.
Any person and any organization at any level would be seriously criticized and dealt with if they violate and undermine democratic centralism, the decision says.
More Anti-Corruption Efforts The Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC) has called for a comprehensive approach in combating corruption and promoting justice and honesty.
The call was contained in a decision on improving the party's style.
The decision points out that serving the public cause and the Chinese people is the requirement of the party's nature and its basic creeds, as well as the fundamental purpose in improving the party's style.
It calls for enhanced education of party members on the ideals of the party and the importance of being honest and clean, so that the members will know what their purpose is for joining the party, what they should do and what they should leave behind them, and that they will consciously resist the erosion by bourgeois thought and stand more firmly against corruption.
To ensure that cadres will use their power correctly, the internal supervision system of the party must be strengthened, the decision says.
Party members' rights to criticism, to appeal, to inform against an offender, and to file a charge against somebody, as provided for by the party's Constitution, must be ensured, so that the system of democratic supervision by members will be fully carried out, the decision says.
The drafting of the CPC's internal supervision regulations must be accelerated, the decision adds.
It says the party shall also be subject to the supervision of the people so that its power will be effectively supervised.
The supervision by the law, the general public, the non- Communist parties and public opinion must be strengthened, the decision says.
It says that the establishment of an effective power checking system is the fundamental means to prevent the abuse of power for personal gain.
As part of the system, all major reform measures, policies, laws and regulations must be fully appraised before they are issued. In dealing with major cases, not only those who are directly responsible but also relevant leaders shall be punished, the decision adds.
In the fight against bribery, the buying and selling of portfolios and other corruption practices, leading organs of the party and the government, the administrative and law enforcement agencies, economic management departments and officials at or above the county level in question will be the main targets, it says.
Efforts will be focused on dealing with major cases. Thorough investigation will be made into all those who are involved, irrespective of their connections and official positions. Corrupt officials shall be punished in strict accordance with the party's disciplinary rules and the law. There is no mercy on them, the decision says.
The handful of corrupt persons shall find no hide in the party. The drive to promote justice and honesty and combat corruption must make achievements to win the trust of the people, the decision says.
Selection, Appointment of Cadres The Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC) stresses that persisting in appointing cadres on their merits is an organizational guarantee for strengthening and improving the building of Party style, according to a CPC Central Committee's decision published Sunday.
The decision stresses that it is imperative to implement the principle of making cadres more revolutionary, younger, better educated and more competent, and speed up reform of the personnel system regarding cadres.
The decision says that the principle of the Party administering cadres should be adhered to and that efforts should be made to improve the management of cadres.
The decision also stresses the need to further expand democracy in selecting and appointing cadres and the need to guarantee the right of people to know about and participate in the selection and the appointment of cadres.
The decision says the principle of being open and just, choosing the best and selecting through competition should be adhered to, so as to motivate cadres to work hard and be ready to accept a higher or lower post.
Efforts should be made to introduce measures which will ensure that cadres are selected openly and through competition, and to improve systems for the exchange of cadres, their assumption of posts by rotation and their withdrawal owing to conflict of interests. Work should be done to establish a term system for Party and government officials, and a system under which officials and cadres take responsibility for their mistakes and resign or be ordered to resign, the decision says, adding that criteria for examining incompetent cadres will also be worked out.
The decision points out, to select and appoint competent people, it is very important to strengthen supervision over the work of selecting and appointing cadres. A system of accountability will be gradually established to identify responsibilities for the selection and appointment of cadres, and those who use improper people will be called to account.
The decision says that style-related behaviors should be taken as an important basis for selecting and appointing cadres. Important tasks should be given to those who earnestly implement Party's lines and policies, work with a pioneering spirit, and who have made outstanding achievements, are clean and supported by the masses.
Those who separate themselves from the masses and truth, those who advocate formalism and bureaucratism, and practice fraud, and those who are not enterprising, seek pleasure and abuse power for personal gains will not be promoted and, moreover, they will be gravely criticized and face disciplinary action.
The decision stresses, Party committees and organizational departments at all levels should strictly abide by working principles on cadres: appointing people by abilities, nepotism is not allowed; persisting in selecting cadres from all quarters; being just and above-board, the practice of favoritism is not allowed; sticking to group decision, decision by an individual and a few people is not allowed; working in accordance with procedures, the proposing of an extempore motion is not allowed.
Carry forward Fine Tradition of Hard Work The Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC) has called on all Party members to carry forward the fine tradition of hard work and fight against hedonism.
Carrying forward the fine tradition of hard work is of great significance to guard against various kinds of decadent thinking, the decision notes.
The decision says officials and cadres should be the first to bear hardships and the last to enjoy comforts while leading the people to a better life.
Working conditions for leading organizations and officials should be gradually improved in keeping with economic development, and more funds should be used to develop the economy and improve the lives of the people, the decision says.
The decision says the living style of officials is not a minor matter, noting that CPC members and cadres should consciously resist money worship, hedonism and extreme individualism, be fair and pure-hearted, and bring along the people with lofty character and personality.
Efforts should be made to reform and perfect the management mechanism, checking gluttony and wasteful pleasure-seeking activities, the decision says.
Fine Tradition of Hard Work The Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC) has called on all Party members to carry forward the fine tradition of hard work and fight against hedonism.
Carrying forward the fine tradition of hard work is of great significance to guard against various kinds of decadent thinking, the decision notes.
The decision says officials and cadres should be the first to bear hardships and the last to enjoy comforts while leading the people to a better life.
Working conditions for leading organizations and officials should be gradually improved in keeping with economic development, and more funds should be used to develop the economy and improve the lives of the people, the decision says.
The decision says the living style of officials is not a minor matter, noting that CPC members and cadres should consciously resist money worship, hedonism and extreme individualism, be fair and pure-hearted, and bring along the people with lofty character and personality.
Efforts should be made to reform and perfect the management mechanism, checking gluttony and wasteful pleasure-seeking activities, the decision says.
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