The central committee of the Chinese Communist Party has issued a decree that the subject – historical significance of the Xi Jinping era – be prioritised as part of the national syllabus in ideological education, cadre training, propaganda and theory research activities.
The subject is the third history resolution adopted at the Sixth Plenum last November that glorified the CCP’s 100-year history and President Xi Jinping’s unprecedented contribution to the country’s progress. There is no question of anyone not complying with the directive which was used by the General Office of the Central Committee: Opinions on Promoting the Normalisation and Long-term Effectiveness of Party History Learning and Education.
The new directive issues a core message, paraphrased into a narrative form: “The Party has a glorious past and a bright future. We know this because we have grasped the rules of historical progression. We can be confident of our place in history. While we should be confident in our purpose and actions, we should also be confident in our theory — Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics. As the crystallisation of collective wisdom, this theory will guide us to national rejuvenation. We need to uphold the authority of Xi and his thought. We need to remember why the Party exists: to serve the people. And we must be willing to fight for our cause, even if it means making painful changes.”
The resolution is timed to propagate the third resolution by the time President Xi is ready to take over as the supreme boss of China for the third term at the party congress later this year.
Studying party history is from now considered necessary for career development because it “implements the requirements of learning history to understand reason, learn history to increase trust, learn history to honor morality, and learn history to practice, and has achieved important political, theoretical, practical, and institutional achievements”.
The directive tells the Chinese people that from 2022 onwards, their lives and choices will revolve around the third resolution, meaning that their happiness is dependent on their loyalty to the party and to Xi.
The directive comes with conditions to be strictly followed by the citizens. First, “in-depth study of General Secretary Xi Jinping’s important exposition on the history of the party, from which a profound understanding of the historical value of the party’s century-long struggle and the fundamental purpose, basic requirements and scientific attitude of learning the party’s history, and further enhancing the ideological and action consciousness of learning the party’s history and using the party’s history”
Two, “focus on studying and implementing the spirit of the Sixth Plenary Session of the 19th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China, and persistently promote the summary, study, education, and publicity of the party’s history, and further achieve the understanding of history, increase trust, honor morality, and practice history”.
Three – this is the critical one – “originally study the party’s third historical resolution, learn to understand the glorious history of the party’s century-long struggle, learn to understand the persistent struggle of the party to stick to its original mission, learn to understand the historical significance and historical experience of the party’s century-old struggle, learn to understand Through the important requirements of taking history as a mirror and creating the future, especially in-depth understanding of the historical achievements and historical changes that have taken place in the cause of the party and the country since the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, as well as the original ideas, transformative practices, and breakthrough progress in the new era , landmark achievements, and continuously deepen the understanding of the historical process, the grasp of historical laws, and the application of historical wisdom”.
Four, adhere to the party’s historical experience as an important ideological weapon for correctly judging the situation, scientifically foreseeing the future, and grasping the initiative of history, as an important follow-up for thinking about problems, making decisions, and doing things, as an important basis for judging the right and wrong of major politics, and as a way to strengthen party spirit. Important guidelines. Strengthen historical cognition, promote the establishment of the correct view of the party’s history more deeply and widely, make official history the consensus of the whole party and the whole society, and educate the majority of party members, cadres and all the people, especially the young people, to see the past clearly from the party’s century-long struggle,”
The fifth one is about President Xi. “Focus on enhancing theoretical consciousness and unremittingly arm the mind with Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era. Thoroughly implement the basic requirements of learning the party’s history and comprehend the thought, deeply comprehend the ideological power from the century-long process of Marxism sinicization, fully understand why the Communist Party of China can and why socialism with Chinese characteristics is good, in the final analysis, it is because of Marxism.”
Lastly, the directive says political ideology under the Xi Era is the real Marxism. “Adhere to the study of Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era as the top priority, and guide the majority of Party members and cadres to have a deeper understanding of this important thought. It is contemporary Chinese Marxism, 21st century Marxism, and the essence of the era of Chinese culture and Chinese spirit. It has achieved a new leap in the sinicization of Marxism; a profound understanding of this important ideology has answered the questions of China and the world.”