The Chinese Communist Party leadership, including President Xi Jinping, played a significant role in drafting documents for party reform. On November 1, state-run Xinhua News Agency released Xi's remarks explaining the decisions made during the 5th Plenary Session of the 20th Central Committee, held in Beijing from October 26 to 29.
During the session, Xi stated, "In January of this year, the Central Committee formed a foundational team for the 5th Plenary Session document, with myself as the leader and Wang Huning, Cai Qi, and Li Xi as deputy leaders." Wang Huning is the Chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, Cai Qi is the Director of the General Office of the Central Committee, and Li Xi is the Secretary of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection. They rank fourth, fifth, and seventh in the party hierarchy, respectively, and are all members of the Politburo Standing Committee.
The document drafting officially began with the first plenary meeting of the foundational team on February 6. Following this, the Central Committee conducted extensive consultations and research. On January 31, it requested feedback from various regions and departments regarding the plenary agenda and assigned 23 key research topics to 16 institutions. On May 6, Xi personally chaired a symposium in Shanghai. On August 3, the draft document was distributed to key party figures for feedback, gathering opinions from party elders, representatives from various democratic parties, and leaders of the All-China Federation of Industry and Commerce.
Throughout the drafting period, the Politburo Standing Committee held three meetings, and the Politburo convened twice to review and revise the draft.
Xi emphasized that five principles were crucial during the drafting process: comprehensive implementation of the party's construction thoughts for the new era, serving the party's historical mission, maintaining strict standards, being problem-oriented, and adopting a systematic approach. He signaled that the core of strict party management is rigor, indicating that it will become increasingly stringent.
Regarding the focus on strict party management as a key agenda item at the 5th Plenary Session, Xi explained, "This is to maintain the party's advanced nature and purity and to solidify the foundation for the Communist Party's long-term governance." He noted that as more party members and officials born after the reform and opening-up era emerge, new educational and management challenges arise, and issues regarding ideological, organizational, and work styles' purity remain fundamentally unresolved. He stressed that the core of this decision is to strengthen a concrete party management system to address these issues.
Xi highlighted that Chapters 2 through 8 of the document outline strategic measures in seven areas to enhance party management. Chapter 2 identifies strengthening party members' loyalty as a core task, emphasizing ideological cohesion through loyalty education and innovative theories, while also fostering party spirit through the party's excellent traditions and Chinese traditional culture. It includes practical training and strengthening the discernment of party spirit.
Chapter 3 addresses the strict enforcement of democratic centralism, particularly standardizing the duties and authority of the party organization's top leader. Chapter 4 focuses on training high-level officials capable of shouldering the responsibility of national rejuvenation, enhancing the selection and management of young officials.
Chapter 5 discusses strengthening the control of party organizations from the central to local and grassroots levels. Chapter 6 deals with improving work styles and strengthening discipline, continuously implementing the spirit of the Central Eight Regulations, correcting issues like corruption and bureaucratism, and reinforcing the party's mass line. It emphasizes strict punishment for disciplinary violations and discipline education.
Chapter 7 proposes an integrated approach to the so-called "three no's" anti-corruption system: preventing corruption (不敢腐), making corruption impossible (不能腐), and discouraging thoughts of corruption (不想腐). It maintains a high-intensity stance on corruption punishment and strengthens oversight of power exercise. Chapter 8 emphasizes party management through institutional frameworks and internal regulations, aiming to refine the party's legal and regulatory system.
Ultimately, this decision focuses on comprehensively strengthening the party's ideological, organizational, disciplinary, personnel, and anti-corruption systems. Xi's direct leadership of the foundational team and the appointment of three Politburo Standing Committee members as deputy leaders signal his commitment to advancing strict party management as a core national policy.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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