We must continue to promote the sinicization of Marxism

We Must Continue to Promote the Sinicization of Marxism (Monograph on Celebrating the 100th Anniversary of the Founding of the Communist Party of China)

Wang Weiguang

Core reading

Marxism is the fundamental guiding ideology for building our party and the country, and is the soul and banner of our party. The great achievements made in China's revolution, construction, and reform have proven, and will continue to prove, why the Communist Party of China can and why socialism with Chinese characteristics is good, in the final analysis, because of Marxism! To comprehensively build a socialist modern power and realize the Chinese dream of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation, we must adhere to the guidance of Marxism and continue to promote the sinification of Marxism.

In his important speech at the conference celebrating the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Communist Party of China, General Secretary Xi Jinping stressed: "To learn from history and create the future, we must continue to promote the sinicization of Marxism. He also made an important thesis that "why the Communist Party of China can and why socialism with Chinese characteristics is good is, in the final analysis, because Marxism works." This is a scientific conclusion drawn from summing up the CPC's century-long struggle. To achieve the second centenary goal of building a socialist modern power in an all-round way and realize the Chinese dream of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation, we must always adhere to the guidance of Marxism and continue to promote the sinification of Marxism.

History and the people have chosen Marxism

General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out: "Marxism is the fundamental guiding ideology for building our party and the country, and it is the soul and banner of our party. "Looking back at China's modern and contemporary history, history and the people's choice of Marxism have an intrinsic and deep logic, which is completely correct.

After the Opium War in 1840, China gradually became a semi-colonial and semi-feudal society, with the country humiliated, the people suffering, and civilization being dusted, and the Chinese nation suffering unprecedented disasters. In order to save the nation from peril, Chinese people waged an indomitable struggle. However, the self-improvement movements that do not touch the old social foundations, reformism in various guises, old-style peasant wars, democratic revolutions led by bourgeois revolutionaries, various programs that copy the western political system model, and the ideas and efforts of various class forces and various political factions have all ended in failure, and they have not been able to complete the historical tasks of the Chinese nation to save the Chinese nation and to survive and to oppose imperialism and feudalism. The ideas and methods of feudalism do not work, nor do the ideas and methods of the bourgeoisie, the old road cannot be followed, and the advanced elements in China are unremittingly exploring new ideological weapons and ways out. The success of the October Revolution in Russia made people see the bright future of using Marxism to save the Chinese nation from peril.

The Chinese Communist Party chose Marxism because China needs Marxism. Comrade Mao Zedong pointed out: "The reason why Marxism-Leninism came to China to play such a great role is because China's social conditions have this need, because it is linked to the practice of the Chinese people's revolution, and because it is mastered by the Chinese people. "Modern China has produced a bureaucratic-comprador bourgeoisie and a weak national bourgeoisie with a dual character; the bureaucratic-comprador bourgeoisie is a reactionary class that maintains the old system, and the national bourgeoisie, because of its own weakness, cannot lead the Chinese democratic revolution to success. The feudal ruling class tried every means to maintain the old feudal autocratic regime. China's hopes and future have historically fallen on the shoulders of the new class forces. In the 1920s, the working class representing China's advanced productive forces gradually grew up, forming about 2 million industrial workers, which became a solid class foundation for the Communist Party of China and a deep social foundation for Marxism to take root in China. Faced with the situation of national peril, a group of advanced intellectuals "felt the danger and urgency of the national situation, eagerly pondered and studied political reasoning, and sought good strategies to save the nation and inspire the nation and the masses," determined to seek a way out for a suffering China. The powerful power of Marxism to change the world has won the high trust of China's advanced elements, and the wide spread of Marxism has laid the ideological and theoretical foundation for the birth of the Communist Party of China.

China needs Marxism, and Marxism also needs China. Marx pointed out: "Once the theory has mastered the masses, it will also become a material force" and "the degree to which theory is realized in a country always depends on the degree to which theory meets the needs of the country." Once scientific theories grasp the masses, they will be transformed into a powerful material force for transforming the world; the practice of the masses of the people, as the embodiment of material forces, promotes the development of theories and is the only criterion for testing the truth of theories. Marxism in China has encountered the advanced forces of the working class, the soil and conditions that can take root, blossom and bear fruit. The Chinese working class has found Marxism as an ideological weapon, the subjective and objective conditions of the Chinese revolution need Marxism, and the truth of Marxism is highly consistent with the inherent needs of Chinese society. Marxism spread to China, was accepted and applied by the Chinese people, became a powerful ideological weapon for the Chinese people to transform the world, and became a scientific theory guiding China's revolution, construction, and reform from victory to victory.

Marxism has profoundly changed China

General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out: "The Communist Party of China adheres to the basic principles of Marxism, adheres to seeking truth from facts, proceeds from China's actual conditions, has insight into the general trend of the times, grasps the historical initiative, conducts arduous exploration, continuously promotes the sinicization of Marxism, and guides the Chinese people to continuously promote the great social revolution." Over the past 100 years, the Chinese Communists have persistently integrated the basic tenets of Marxism with China's specific reality and with China's excellent traditional culture, and in the course of unremitting exploration and struggle, they have promoted the sinification of Marxism and achieved fruitful results, and guided China's revolution, construction, and reform to achieve great achievements.

Inspired by the "Russian-style revolution", take the socialist road. The old feudal rule could not continue to maintain the survival and development of China, and the road of feudalism could not go on. The Chinese national bourgeoisie has never developed into an independent revolutionary leading force, and the road of capitalism has not been paved. In the end, what kind of development direction to choose and what kind of road to take in order to lead the old China, which was deeply suffering, to the light is the most important task facing the Chinese people. The victory of the October Revolution in Russia gave the Chinese, who were groping in the darkness, hope and a way out. In December 1920, Comrade Mao Zedong wrote to Cai Hesen and Xiao Zisheng: "I see the Russian-style revolution as a change in which there is no way to exhaust all roads. This shows that the Chinese Communists have found the only correct answer from Marxism: "take the road of the Russians", that is, the road of socialism to save China. Since its birth, the Communist Party of China has taken the realization of socialism and communism as its goal of struggle, marched forward all the way, and has never been unswerving.

We have successfully opened up the road of the new-democratic revolution and creatively completed the transformation from the new-democratic revolution to the socialist revolution. On the question of exactly how the road of the Chinese revolution will be carried out, two erroneous tendencies have emerged: One is the right-leaning opportunist mistake made by Chen Duxiu and others in the later period, which separates the two closely linked stages of the bourgeois-democratic revolution and the socialist revolution in the process of the Chinese revolution, sees only the difference between the two, does not see the connection between the two, advocates first carrying out the bourgeois-led bourgeois-democratic revolution, then carrying out the socialist revolution led by the proletariat, and ceding the revolutionary leadership to the Kuomintang. As a result, the defeat of the vigorous Great Revolution was led to the defeat of the "Left" revolution represented by Wang Ming, which confused the boundary between the bourgeois-democratic revolution and the socialist revolution, and attempted to merge the two stages of revolution of different natures in one step, "devote all their merits to one battle" and seize the victory of the socialist revolution in one fell swoop, resulting in the Chinese revolution on the verge of defeat. Both the "Left" and the Right line have committed the mistakes of subjectivism and dogmatism, resulting in the separation of subjectivity from objectivity, from the specific national conditions of China's semi-colonial and semi-feudal society, and from the objective laws of the Chinese revolution. Proceeding from China's specific national conditions, the Chinese Communists, with Comrade Mao Zedong as the main representative, believe that the Chinese revolution must be divided into two steps: the first step is to change the colonial, semi-colonial, and semi-feudal social form so that it becomes an independent democratic society; the second step is to make the revolution develop forward and build a socialist society. These two revolutionary stages of different nature are both distinct and interconnected. "The democratic revolution is a necessary preparation for the socialist revolution, and the socialist revolution is the inevitable trend of the democratic revolution." Under the guidance of correct theory, our Party has successfully opened up the road of a new-democratic revolution in which the countryside encircles the cities and seizes power by force. After the founding of New China, our party formulated the general line of the transitional period of "one transformation and three reforms", realized the socialist transformation of agriculture, handicrafts, capitalist industry and commerce, and creatively completed the transformation from the new-democratic revolution to the socialist revolution.

Proceed from reality, take our own road, and build socialism with Chinese characteristics. What kind of socialism to build in China, how to build socialism, and how to take the socialist road? In the early days of the founding of New China, due to subjective and objective conditions, learning from the Soviet Experience became an inevitable choice. With the advancement of socialist construction, the Chinese Communists gradually realized the shortcomings of the Soviet Union's highly centralized planned economic system. Whether to continue to copy the Soviet experience or to follow its own path has become a major choice before our Party. The Chinese Communists, with Comrade Mao Zedong as the main representative, uphold the principle of independence and self-determination, clearly put forward the principle of "taking the Soviet Union as a mirror," can no longer take the detours that others have taken, take the initiative to draw on the experience and lessons of socialist construction in the Soviet Union, and independently explore the road of socialist construction suited to China's national conditions and with Chinese characteristics. During this period, although The exploration of Socialist Construction in our country encountered mistakes and twists and turns, it still made tremendous achievements, providing valuable experience, theoretical preparation and material foundation for opening up the road of socialism with Chinese characteristics. On the basis of a profound summary of the practice of socialist revolution and construction, the Third Plenary Session of the Eleventh Central Committee of the Communist Party of China made the historic policy decision of shifting the work center of the Party and the state to economic construction and carrying out reform and opening up. In the great practice of reform and opening up over the past 40 years, the Communist Party of China has united and led the people to struggle unremittingly and successfully embarked on a path of socialism with Chinese characteristics. Practice has proved that only by taking our own road and building socialism with Chinese characteristics can we realize socialist modernization and realize the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation.

The sinicization of Marxism has yielded fruitful results. The Chinese Communists, with Comrade Mao Zedong as the main representative, in the process of integrating the basic tenets of Marxism-Leninism with the concrete practice of the Chinese revolution and in the struggle against erroneous tendencies such as dogmatism and empiricism, founded Mao Zedong Thought and provided correct ideological guidance for the practice of China's revolution and construction. In the new period of reform and opening up, our party adhered to the basic tenets of Marxism, inherited and developed Mao Zedong Thought, closely linked China's actual conditions and the characteristics of the times, founded Deng Xiaoping Theory, and formed the important thinking of the "three represents" and the scientific outlook on development, thus providing a scientific guide for promoting reform, opening up, and socialist modernization. After long-term efforts, socialism with Chinese characteristics has entered a new era, and the Chinese Communists, with Comrade Xi Jinping as the main representative, conformed to the development of the times, systematically answered the major issue of the times of what kind of socialism with Chinese characteristics to uphold and develop in the new era, how to uphold and develop socialism with Chinese characteristics from the combination of theory and practice, and founded Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics in the New Era. Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era is the inheritance and development of Marxism-Leninism, Mao Zedong Thought, Deng Xiaoping Theory, the important thinking of "three represents" and the scientific concept of development, the ideological banner of the Communist Party of China in the new era, the fundamental guideline for the country's political and social life, the contemporary Chinese Marxism that leads China and influences the world, and the Marxism of the 21st century.

Continue to develop contemporary Chinese Marxism and Marxism in the 21st century

General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out: "Adhering to the guidance of Marxism must fall on the major theoretical and practical issues facing the development of our country and the ruling power of our party, and on proposing correct ideas and effective methods to solve problems." Over the past 100 years, the Communist Party of China has always adhered to the guidance of Marxism, proceeded from the specific realities of the various historical stages of revolution, construction, and reform, led the Chinese people to win one victory after another, and led an ancient nation that has suffered a lot of hardships to revitalize and irreversibly march toward great rejuvenation. On the new journey of comprehensively building a socialist modern power and realizing the Chinese dream of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation, we must persist in taking history as a mirror, create the future, and continue to promote the sinification of Marxism.

Under the guidance of Marxism, during the period of the new-democratic revolution, our party united and led the people to oppose armed counter-revolution with armed revolution, overthrew the three great mountains of imperialism, feudalism and bureaucratic capitalism, established the People's Republic of China in which the people are the masters of their own affairs, realized national independence and people's liberation, created great achievements in the new-democratic revolution, and created fundamental social conditions for the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation. During the period of socialist revolution and construction, our party united and led the people to eliminate the feudal system of exploitation and oppression that had lasted for thousands of years in China, establish the basic socialist system, promote socialist construction, defeat the subversion and sabotage and armed provocation of imperialism and hegemonism, realize the most extensive and profound social changes in the history of the Chinese nation, realize the great leap of the big eastern country with a large number of poor people and a large population into socialist society, and create great achievements in socialist revolution and construction. It has laid the fundamental political premise and institutional foundation for the realization of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation. In the new period of reform, opening up, and socialist modernization, our party has established the party's basic line in the initial stage of socialism, united and led the people to unswervingly promote reform and opening up, overcome risks and challenges from all sides, pioneered, adhered to, defended, and developed socialism with Chinese characteristics, and realized the historic transformation from a highly centralized planned economic system to a vibrant socialist market economic system, and from a closed and semi-closed to an all-round opening up. It has achieved a historic breakthrough from the situation of relatively backward productive forces to the second largest economic aggregate in the world, realized the historic leap in the people's living standards from insufficient food and clothing to the overall well-off, and rushed to a well-off society in an all-round way, created great achievements in reform, opening up, and socialist modernization, and provided institutional guarantees and material conditions for rapid development full of new vitality for realizing the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation.

Socialism with Chinese characteristics has entered a new era, the Party Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping as the core adheres to and strengthens the party's overall leadership, unites and leads the people to comprehensively promote the overall layout of the "five-in-one", coordinates the promotion of the "four comprehensive" strategic layout, adheres to and improves the socialist system with Chinese characteristics, promotes the modernization of the national governance system and governance capabilities, adheres to governing the party according to the rules, forms a relatively perfect system of inner-party laws and regulations, overcomes a series of major risks and challenges, and achieves the first centenary goal. Clearly defining the strategic arrangements for realizing the second centenary goal, the cause of the party and the country has made historic achievements and undergone historic changes, creating great achievements of socialism with Chinese characteristics in the new era, and providing a more perfect institutional guarantee, a more solid material foundation, and a more active spiritual force for the realization of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation. Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era is the latest achievement in the sinification of Marxism, carries the mission of the Chinese Communists to seek rejuvenation for the nation, draws a grand blueprint for realizing the Chinese dream of national rejuvenation, exalts the great spirit of creation, great struggle, great unity and great dream of the Chinese nation, inherits and carries forward the excellent traditional Chinese culture, and provides a strong spiritual force for the realization of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation. On the new journey, to realize the Chinese dream of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation, we must hold high the great banner of Marxism and socialism with Chinese characteristics without wavering, we must adhere to the guiding position of Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, examine the practical basis and practical needs of Marxism in contemporary development with a broader vision, persist in integrating the basic principles of Marxism with China's specific reality and with China's excellent traditional culture, and use Marxism to observe, grasp, and lead the times. Continue to develop contemporary Chinese Marxism and Marxism in the 21st century.

(The author is a professor at the University of Chinese Academy of Social Sciences)

Source: People's Daily