Studying and Implementing the Spirit of the Third Plenary Session of the 20th CPC Central Committee | Upholding the Party's Overall Leadership to Ensure Reform Always Advances in the Correct Political Direction
The Communist Party of China (CPC) is a major party that leads a large country and pursues a great cause. At every critical historical juncture, the Party has always been able to formulate correct political strategies and tactics, guiding us to overcome countless risks and challenges and move from victory to victory.
　　At the crucial stage of comprehensively advancing the cause of building a strong country and national rejuvenation through Chinese-style modernization, the Third Plenary Session of the 20th CPC Central Committee was successfully held in Beijing. Proceeding from the strategic height of the overall development of the Party and the country's undertakings, the Session focused on studying issues concerning further comprehensively deepening reform and advancing Chinese-style modernization, and deliberated and adopted the Decision of the CPC Central Committee on Further Comprehensively Deepening Reform and Advancing Chinese-Style Modernization. This is a programmatic document guiding further comprehensive deepening of reform on the new journey, and another general mobilization and overall arrangement for advancing the comprehensive deepening of reform in breadth and depth at a new historical starting point. It fully demonstrates the historical initiative of the Party Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core in improving and developing the system of socialism with Chinese characteristics and advancing the modernization of China's national governance system and governance capacity, as well as the firm determination to open up broad prospects for Chinese-style modernization through further comprehensive deepening of reform. It also sends a strong signal to both domestic and international communities that our Party unswervingly holds high the banner of reform and opening up.
　　Being good at solving development-related problems through reform is an important experience of our Party in governing the country. During the new period of reform, opening up and socialist modernization drive, China caught up with the times by leaps and bounds, relying on reform and opening up. Since the 18th CPC National Congress, the Party and the country have made historic achievements and undergone historic changes, also relying on reform and opening up. On the new journey in the new era, to open up new prospects for advancing Chinese-style modernization, we still need to rely on reform and opening up. Practice has fully proved that the Party's leadership is directly related to the fundamental direction, future and destiny, and ultimate success or failure of Chinese-style modernization.
　　Since the 18th CPC National Congress, the Party Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core has united and led the whole Party and the people of all ethnic groups in China in advancing the comprehensive deepening of reform with great political courage and wisdom. It has dared to advance into uncharted waters, tackle tough problems, navigate treacherous shoals, and face new contradictions and challenges, opening up a brand-new situation with unprecedented intensity. The series of innovative theories put forward, major measures taken and major breakthroughs achieved are all revolutionary. Looking around the world, no other country or political party has such political courage and historical responsibility to carry out bold, self-oriented and self-reform; nor has any other country or political party been able to promote reform of such a wide scope, large scale and great intensity in such a short period of time. The successful practice and great achievements in comprehensively deepening reform since the new era are fundamentally attributed to the leadership of General Secretary Xi Jinping, who is the core of the Party Central Committee and the core of the whole Party, and to the scientific guidance of Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era. This fully proves that the "Two Establishments" are of decisive significance for us to cope with various risks and challenges and advance Chinese-style modernization.
　　Reform and opening up have a clear direction, stance and principles. The Session summarized and applied the valuable experience gained since the launch of reform and opening up, especially in comprehensively deepening reform in the new era, and put forward major principles that must be followed in further comprehensively deepening reform, with "upholding the Party's overall leadership" ranking first. We must clearly understand that the leadership of the CPC is the most essential feature of socialism with Chinese characteristics, the greatest advantage of the socialist system with Chinese characteristics, and the fundamental guarantee for further comprehensively deepening reform and advancing Chinese-style modernization. Only by upholding the Party's overall leadership, firmly safeguarding the authority of the Party Central Committee and its centralized and unified leadership, giving play to the Party's core leading role of exercising overall leadership and coordinating all parties, and integrating the Party's leadership into all aspects and the whole process of reform, can we ensure that reform always advances in the correct political direction.
　　Only by upholding fundamental principles can we avoid losing our way and making subversive mistakes; only through innovation can we keep pace with the times and lead the times. To further comprehensively deepen reform on the new journey, we must focus on the overall goal, adhere to emancipating the mind, seeking truth from facts, keeping pace with the times and being realistic and pragmatic. We must not only have strong determination to remain committed to our path and aspirations and unswervingly uphold socialism with Chinese characteristics, but also have the courage and resolve to innovate and tackle difficulties, so as to promote continuous new breakthroughs in reform. We will neither take the old road of isolation and rigidity nor take the evil road of changing our flags and banners. Instead, we will unswervingly follow the path of socialism with Chinese characteristics and carry reform through to the end, so as to firmly hold the future and destiny of China's development and progress in our own hands.
　　Studying and implementing the spirit of the Third Plenary Session of the 20th CPC Central Committee is a major political task for the whole Party and the whole country at present and in the period to come. Reform is sailing with a strong wind, and we are sounding the drum to march forward again. By closely uniting around the Party Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core, fully implementing Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, and thoroughly studying and implementing General Secretary Xi Jinping's series of new ideas, new viewpoints and new conclusions on comprehensively deepening reform, we will advance reform with an indomitable fighting spirit and surely turn the grand blueprint of Chinese-style modernization into a beautiful reality.

Source | People's Daily