Interpretation of | Zhang Haipeng: Why do the party and the state attach so much importance to commemorating the Xinhai Revolution?

This year marks the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Communist Party of China and the 110th anniversary of the Xinhai Revolution. The Xinhai Revolution was a bourgeois national democratic revolution led by Dr. Sun Yat-sen to overthrow the feudal monarchy, which opened the floodgates of progress in modern China and promoted the social progress of modern China, which played an important historical role.

General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out in his speech to commemorate the 110th anniversary of the Xinhai Revolution: "The Xinhai Revolution has greatly promoted the ideological emancipation of the Chinese nation, spread the concept of democracy and republicanism, opened the floodgates of China's progressive trend, shaken the foundation of the reactionary ruling order, established Asia's first republican state on the land of China, promoted China's social change with great shock and profound influence, and explored the road to realize the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation." "The Xinhai Revolution will always be a majestic milestone on the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation!"

The Xinhai Revolution promoted historical progress and is of great historical significance

Why do the party and the state attach so much importance to commemorating the Xinhai Revolution? This is determined by the Communists' view of history. The Marxist materialist view of history is the guiding ideology for communists to observe the process of historical development. It is precisely on the basis of this idea that the Xinhai Revolution is confirmed to be a representative event in the progress of modern Chinese history.

How to view the historical significance of the Xinhai Revolution? I think there are the following points worth noting.

The Xinhai Revolution, which toppled the emperor's throne and replaced the autocratic system of the feudal landlord class with a bourgeois democratic republican system, was a great historical progress. There are many precedents in Chinese history for the overthrow of the emperor's throne, and after the old emperor was overthrown, a new emperor reappeared. The Xinhai Revolution was not aimed at supporting a new emperor, but to overthrow the emperor and establish a completely new system. The overthrow of the emperor's throne shook the Chinese's worship of the imperial rule that seemed unchanged for two thousand years. Since then, the concept of republican democracy has been deeply rooted in the hearts of the people, and those who dare to have an imperial system and themselves will strike at it together under the whole world, which has become a new and deep-rooted belief of the masses of the people. This is the great progress of history.

The Provisional Law of the Republic of China is China's first constitution of a bourgeois nature, an important achievement of the Xinhai Revolution, and a historic progress. The picture shows the Provisional Law of the Republic of China (partial)

The Xinhai Revolution brought about a series of new changes in China's political system, foreign relations, social economy, education and culture, customs and concepts. The Provisional Government of Nanjing promulgated the "Provisional Law of the Republic of China," which embodies the republican democratic color of sovereignty over the people and the distinct nature of the civil rights constitution, which is of great significance in the history of The Chinese Constitution; after the Xinhai Revolution, although the imperialist powers still tried to continue to control and bully China, the chinese people's awakening level has never been higher, and the demands for national independence and state sovereignty have converged into a huge trend, forcing those in power not to compromise easily with the outside world, and also forcing the imperialist powers not to disregard the will of the people in China. China's foreign relations began to change, and a slow recovery of the country's status began.

After the Xinhai Revolution, there was a wave of modern industrial development that lasted nearly a decade, and the proportion of the modern economy in the national economy increased significantly, thus laying a broader economic foundation and class foundation for the new democratic revolution that followed.

With the further development of the modern education system, the dissemination of public opinion has become more popular and active, thus preparing the conditions for talents and public opinion for greater political, economic, and social changes.

People's customs, behaviors, and etiquette are changing, men's braids are cut off, women's small feet are no longer wrapped, bowing and shaking hands replace prostrating their heads, and new styles of clothing have replaced old styles.

The Xinhai Revolution was a great ideological emancipation movement. The replacement of the imperial system with republican democracy is a remarkable turning point and achievement in China's history, and the ideological emancipation it has brought is unprecedented. The concept of imperial power for more than two thousand years has collapsed overnight, of course, it is a huge emancipation of the mind! Chinese embraced new ideas and new concepts with great enthusiasm, formed parties and associations, expressed their own views, and were unprecedentedly active in their thinking and unprecedented in public opinion. The new cultural movement and the May Fourth Movement that followed were logical, and the spread of Marxism became a trend. The Communist Party of China was founded subsequently, and in just over 20 years, with great momentum, it led the Chinese revolution to gallop forward, completed the historic task of opposing imperialism and feudalism, and established a brand-new People's Republic of China.

The Xinhai Revolution opened the floodgates for China's historic progress in the 20th century. In the 20th century, China underwent earth-shaking changes, and the reason why such changes could occur was, without exaggeration, the prelude to the Xinhai Revolution, the floodgates. Soon after the Xinhai Revolution, although there were chaotic periods of warlord chaos, national division, and people's hardships, this was only an episode in the long river of history.

As with any revolution involving fundamental social change, the development and progress of the country and the nation always has to pay a certain price, and there is always a process. In 1640, a bourgeois revolution took place in England, and it was not until 1688 that the political situation in England stabilized, and a bourgeois monarchy with British characteristics was established. There were 48 years in between. The bourgeois revolution in France in 1789, through the Rule of the Girondins, the Dictatorship of the Jacobins, the Rule of the Thermists, the Third Reich of Napoleon, the Restoration of the Bourbon Dynasty, was not consolidated until the July Revolution of 1830, which consolidated the achievements of the French Revolution. It also took 41 years.

Therefore, there should be a full estimate and positive evaluation of the historical significance of the Xinhai Revolution and the historic turning point it brought to China.

The Xinhai Revolution gave birth to a new type of politician for modern China, including the early leaders of the Kuomintang and the Communist Party. Sun Yat-sen, Huang Xing, Song Jiaoren, Liao Zhongkai, and others were famous leaders of the Kuomintang of China. Sun Yat-sen, as the forerunner of China's democratic revolution, is still commemorated today. Sun Yat-sen and Liao Zhongkai kept pace with the times, actively promoted cooperation between the Kuomintang and the Communist Party, and effectively promoted the progress of the Northern Expedition, which we need to remember. The early leaders of the Communist Party of China, such as Chen Duxiu, Zhu De, Dong Biwu, Wu Yuzhang, Mao Zedong, and Lin Boqu, all participated in or experienced the process of the Xinhai Revolution and gradually moved toward communism.

The Xinhai Revolution was a revolution that took place in semi-colonial and semi-feudal China and was of world significance. The occurrence of the Xinhai Revolution was the result of the joint action of the internal and external situations in the international environment and was greatly affected by the world situation.

The Xinhai Revolution was an important part of the national liberation movement in the world, especially in the colonial and semi-colonial countries in Asia, which struck a blow at the imperialist colonial system and aggressive forces, encouraged the national independence and liberation struggles of the world's colonial and semi-colonial countries, especially the neighboring countries, and was supported by people of insight in Korea, Vietnam, Japan, Europe and the United States.

Lenin argued that the Xinhai Revolution not only marked that "a quarter of the earth's population can be said to have awoke from its slumber, to the light, to the movement, to the struggle"; but also meant that "a new birthplace of great world storms has emerged in Asia" and that "we are now in an era when these storms and their 'in turn' affected' Europe." ”

Looking a little further, we see that Lenin's prediction is very accurate. The era when the new sources of world storms emerging in Asia "in turn" to Affect Europe are really beginning to arrive. When China went from standing up and getting rich to becoming strong, when the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation was about to be realized, when we were struggling for a community with a shared future for mankind, it was precisely when Lenin's prediction became a reality.

The historical lessons of the failure of the Xinhai Revolution

Of course, we can also draw necessary historical lessons from the defeat of the Xinhai Revolution.

The Western-style political system is not suitable for China's national conditions and is doomed to failure. The Xinhai Revolution was a revolution of a bourgeois nature, the aim of which was to establish a bourgeois republican democratic system in China. To this end, the leaders of the Xinhai Revolution proposed a set of institutional designs derived from Western capitalist countries. For a short period of time, parliamentary politics and so on were quite active.

However, historical facts have proved that these institutional designs are not suitable for China's national conditions. In the eyes of a warrior like Yuan Shikai, the institutional design of Western-style democracy, such as the separation of powers and parliamentary politics, is nothing more than a decoration that comes and goes. Although the Kuomintang, which was formed on the basis of the Chinese League, won a majority of seats in the parliamentary elections, its leader Song Jiaoren was soon assassinated, the national assembly was dissolved, and the Kuomintang was declared illegal. Sun Yat-sen had to return to the revolutionary road. Since then, there have been some people in China who have continuously put forward and advocated the institutional concept of Western-style democracy, but they have not been able to put it into practice.

Facts have shown that it is impossible to introduce a Western political system and take the road of Western-style democracy in China, and the result can only be chaos and division, which is not conducive to the fundamental long-term interests of the Chinese people. Only Sinicized Marxism, which is based on reality and in line with China's development, is the correct theory guiding the Chinese revolution, and only socialism can save China and develop China. This is a scientific conclusion based on the historical development of China since the Xinhai Revolution.

China's revolution, construction and development all require strong party leadership. The lack of strong party leadership was one of the most important factors in the failure of the Xinhai Revolution. Strictly speaking, the China League Association is not yet a political party in the modern sense, lacks a strict organizational system and a strong leadership group, is loosely organized, and has different political views among its core members and many contradictions. Although Sun Yat-sen was a recognized revolutionary leader, because of the organizational structure and historical origins of the League, it was difficult for Sun Yat-sen's leadership role to be effectively brought into play, and the political program and revolutionary goals he put forward could not be recognized by many people in the Party. The Kuomintang has become more and more scattered organizationally and politically, and it is difficult for it to shoulder the responsibility of continuing to lead the revolution and fulfilling the historic tasks of China's modern revolution.

Facts have shown that in a large country like China, which has a vast territory, a large population, diverse nationalities, unbalanced development, complicated contradictions, and entangled foreign relations, it is necessary to have a well-organized, clear program, strong leadership group, far-sighted leading figures, and political parties that can penetrate deep into the people, embody the interests of the people, and lead the broad masses of the people forward in order to truly lead China's development and progress and realize the historic tasks that China has to accomplish in modern times. Taking the socialist road under the leadership of the Communist Party of China is the choice of history and the people, and it is also the correct conclusion we have drawn from the lessons of the Xinhai Revolution.

Firmly relying on the masses of the people is the starting point for accomplishing the tasks of China's modern history. Due to the inevitable weaknesses and weaknesses of the Chinese national bourgeoisie, during the Xinhai Revolution, they did not dare to put forward thorough anti-imperialist and anti-feudal slogans, could not put forward practical anti-imperialist and anti-feudal propositions, and thus could not mobilize and rely on the broad masses of the people to base the revolution on a solid social foundation, but could only compromise with the imperialist powers and the warlords and powerful factions in the country, and finally the fruits of the Xinhai Revolution fell into the hands of warlords and warriors like Yuan Shikai. Facts have shown that China's national bourgeoisie is unable to undertake the historic task of accomplishing China's anti-imperialist and anti-feudal revolution and is unable to solve the various problems facing China.

Whether it is the successful experience of the Xinhai Revolution, or the lessons of failure, or the historical significance of the Xinhai Revolution, or the defects and deficiencies, they are all things that should be kept in mind when commemorating the Xinhai Revolution today, and all of them provide important historical enlightenment for those who come after them. History proves that the historical mission of rejuvenating China and realizing the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation, which the Xinhai Revolution failed to accomplish, was accomplished by the Chinese Communists, friends and collaborators of Sun Yat-sen and the successor to Sun Yat-sen's cause, in the new-democratic revolution and socialist construction led by sun yat-sen.

After the death of Dr. Sun Yat-sen, the Chinese Communists inherited his last wishes, united and led the Chinese people to fight bloody battles and persevere, defeated all reactionary forces at home and abroad, won the great victory of the new-democratic revolution, established the People's Republic of China in which the people are the masters of their own affairs, fulfilled the historical tasks of national independence and people's liberation, and opened a new historical era of development and progress of the Chinese nation.

(The author is the former president of the Chinese Historical Society and a member of the Faculty of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences)

Interpretation of | Zhang Haipeng: Why do the party and the state attach so much importance to commemorating the Xinhai Revolution? _Beijing Daily APP News