The Communist Party of China (CPC) has decided to launch an education campaign among its 96 million members on the study and implementation of Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era.
Beginning in April, the education campaign will be organized in two batches across the entire Party.
Noting the complex circumstances facing the Party both at home and abroad and the challenging tasks and uncertainties that lie ahead, Xi Jinping, general secretary of the CPC Central Committee, said on Thursday that to fulfill the strategic goals set at the 20th CPC National Congress, all Party members and cadres, especially leading officials at all levels, must further advance their study and implementation of the thought.
"One important piece of experience drawn from our Party's historical achievements and remarkable successes is to always equip our Party with the latest achievements in adapting Marxism to Chinese context and the needs of the times and use them to guide our practice and advance our work," said Xi.
Xi made the remarks while addressing a group study session of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee, which was designed to play an exemplary role and encourage the whole Party to thoroughly study and implement the thought in the upcoming Party-wide campaign.
According to an earlier meeting of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee, the campaign aims to help Party members strive in unity to build a modern socialist country in all respects and advance the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation on all fronts.
Xi attaches great importance to intra-Party education campaigns, saying that the Chinese Communists have relied on learning to get to where they are today, and this will inevitably continue to be the case going forward.
Since the 18th CPC National Congress in 2012, the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core has carried out a series of themed education campaigns.
-- Campaign for advancing study and implementation of the mass line
Based on arrangements made at the 18th National Congress of the CPC in November 2012, the campaign began in June 2013 with an aim of cultivating closer ties with the people.
"Mass line" refers to a guideline under which CPC officials and members are required to prioritize the interests of the people and exercise power on their behalf.
There was a thorough cleanup of undesirable work styles, with officials required to reflect on their own work and correct any bad practices.
-- Campaign for the observance of the Three Stricts and Three Earnests
The "Three Stricts and Three Earnests" refers to Party members being strict with themselves in practicing self-cultivation, exercising power, and maintaining self-discipline and being earnest in their thinking, work, and behavior.
An education campaign on these requirements for officials at or above the county level was launched in April 2015 to improve their lifestyle and work. It was also a continuation of the campaign for advancing study and implementation of the mass line.
-- Campaign for requiring Party members to study the Party Constitution, Party regulations, and General Secretary Xi Jinping's major policy addresses and to meet Party standards
In 2016, the CPC Central Committee decided to launch the campaign among all members of the Party.
It was an important step for the CPC to extend its internal education programs from among the "key few" to all Party members and to push for a shift of the mechanism from one that features centralized education to a regular practice.
In an instruction delivered in April 2017, Xi lauded the remarkable results achieved through the campaign, saying that it had helped with the strict management of the CPC, and must be continued.
-- Campaign for raising awareness of the need to stay true to the Party's founding mission
On May 13, 2019, the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee held a meeting at which it was decided that an education campaign on the theme of "staying true to the Party's founding mission" would start in June of that year.
It was considered high time for the CPC to launch such a campaign, as the year 2019 marked the 70th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China and the 70th anniversary of the CPC becoming the governing party of the whole country.
The fundamental task of the campaign was to conduct in-depth studies on and implement Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, forge the political character of loyalty, integrity and a keen sense of responsibility, and unite the Chinese people of all ethnic groups and lead them to strive together for the realization of the great dream of national rejuvenation.
In January 2020, a meeting was held to summarize the campaign, calling for continued efforts to ensure that the whole Party remains true to its original aspiration and keeps its mission firmly in mind.
-- Campaign for encouraging the study of the Party's history
In February 2021, the CPC launched a campaign on Party history learning and education among all of its members.
Xi stressed the vital necessity of launching the campaign as the CPC stands at a critical juncture where the timeframes of its two centenary goals converge.
Party members were called on to study the Party's history, understand its theories, do practical work and make new advances.
