Embarking on the Chinese path

We have pulled away from the crowd and come to the front position in the “international contest”.

The statement that the Chinese path is both correct and viable is not a matter of personal opinion. Rather, it is the powerful answer that has been received through practice, and the profound conclusion that has been reached through historical and international comparisons. If we compare how poor and weak China was at the end of the Opium War, and how poor and backward it was when the People’s Republic of China was founded in 1949, to how reinvigorated and vibrant it is today, it can be said that history has made a giant leap forward and great advances that few could have imagined, serving as a testament to the Chinese path – the path that the Chinese people have pioneered under the leadership of the Communist Party of China – in the most vivid possible way.

There is no judge better than practice, and nothing more convincing than a comparison. Since the end of World War II, and especially over the last three decades, a discreet contest between the developmental paths and models of different countries has been playing out around the world. In this contest, many countries have made a head start on China, had more abundant resources and enjoyed a more favorable external environment than China. However, after many years of tussling, the outcome of this contest is now becoming evident. Some countries opted to change their banner, only to lead themselves astray and land themselves in a tough predicament; some others opted to copy the systems of other countries, only to discover that these systems were incompatible with their local conditions, producing results very different from the ones intended. Coming in sharp contrast is China, which instead of going down the rigid, “closed-door” path of the past or embarking upon the erroneous path of changing its political system, has pioneered the path of socialism with Chinese characteristics.

By following this path, China has managed to complete, over a period of several decades, a process of development that took place over the course of several centuries in developed countries, realizing a historic leap from poverty to subsistence and further to moderate prosperity in overall terms. Advancing in great strides, the Chinese nation has caught up with the pace of contemporary development to come in touch with the prospects for its great rejuvenation. Looking at China’s economic development, for example, during the period from 1979 to 2012, China’s gross domestic product (GDP) grew at an average rate of 9.8% per year –considerably faster than the world average of 2.8% for the same period; China’s economy grew to become the second largest in the world – raising its share of the global economy from less than 2% to almost 12%; and China went from a state of material deprivation in which commodities were extremely scarce to being the “world’s factory,” moving towards the “center of the world stage.”

Of course, this path has not been an easy one; on the way we have suffered many setbacks, endured many tests, and overcome many risks and challenges. A more recent case is that we have responded to a formidable challenge in the form of the global financial crisis. China’s response to the crisis was nothing short of exceptional: as the first country to mount a successful recovery, China became an important engine driving the global economy out of the slump. Several years ago China’s contribution to world economic growth exceeded 20%; now it is as high as 30%. Some leading politicians and scholars in the world have used “the most important event of our time” to describe the huge changes China has undergone, and have called China’s achievements “unparalleled.” Former US Secretary of State Henry Kissinger went even further by describing China’s achievements “hard to imagine” and “beyond imagination.”

Since the Eighteenth National Congress of the CPC, the CPC Central Committee with Xi Jinping as General Secretary has taken over the baton of history, upheld the guiding role of Marxism, committed itself to the Chinese path, and engaged in efforts to broaden this path as the times advance, thereby opening up a new chapter in the development of Chinese socialism.

On the path towards realizing our dream, the CPC Central Committee has balanced domestic considerations with international ones, committed itself to comprehensively deepening reform, and demonstrated the courage to grapple with the toughest of problems and brave the most treacherous of waters. It has resolutely eliminated defects present in various systems and mechanisms, and advanced the modernization of our country’s governance system and governance capacity; it has adapted to a new state of economic growth, maintained a commitment to seeking steady progress while engaging in reform and innovation, and promoted sustained and sound economic growth; it has improved and guaranteed public wellbeing on the basis of China’s realities, and weaved a stronger social safety net; it has upheld the principle that the Party should govern itself according to a strict code of discipline, grappled the issue of conduct by taking vigorous action, and combated corruption with a zero-tolerance attitude; and it has persisted in pursuing the path of peaceful development, devoted major efforts to establishing a new model of international relations based on cooperation and mutual benefit, and won both the sincere support of the people and the widespread recognition of the international community. Through these efforts, the Party and state have opened up new horizons, created a new social atmosphere, and made new achievements, thereby laying down a new historical milestone on the Chinese path.