Jiang Zemin, on behalf of the 15th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC), delivered a report to the 16th CPC National Congress which opened in Beijing Friday morning.
The report is titled "Build a well-off society in an all-round way and create a new situation in building socialism with Chinese characteristics".
Jiang said that the 16th CPC National Congress is the first of its kind held by the Party in the new century and it is a very important congress convened by the Party in the new situation in which China has begun to take the third step of the strategic plan for socialist modernization.
The theme of the congress is to hold high the great banner of Deng Xiaoping Theory, fully act on the important thought of Three Represents, carry forward the Party's cause into the future, keep pace with the times, build a well-off society in an all-round way, speed up socialist modernization and work hard to create a new situation in building socialism with Chinese characteristics, Jiang said.
Jiang's report consists of 10 parts: work of the past five years and basic experience of 13 years; implementing important thought of Three Represents in an all-round way; objectives of building a well-off society in an all-round way; economic development and restructuring; political development and restructuring; cultural development and restructuring; national defence and army building; "one country, two systems" and completing national reunification; international situation and external work; strengthening and improving party building.
Jiang summarized the achievements that China had made since the 15th CPC National Congress. In the past five years, the national economy has maintained a sustained, rapid and sound development. Reform and opening up have yielded substantial results. Notable progress has been registered in improving socialist democracy and spiritual civilization. New strides have been taken in strengthening national defense and army building. On the whole, the people have reached a well-off standard of living. Fresh progress has been made in the great cause of national reunification. New prospects have been opened up in our external work. Party building has been strengthened in an all-round way.
The achievements over the past five years have been scored through reform and opening up, especially through our practice since the Fourth Plenary Session of the Thirteenth CPC Central Committee, Jiang said.
"As is universally recognized, the 13 years have been a period in which China's overall national strength has risen by a big margin, the people have received more tangible benefits than ever before, and China has enjoyed long-term social stability and solidarity and had a good government and a united people. China's influence in the world has grown notably, and the cohesion of the nation has increased remarkably."
"The practice of the 13 years has helped us acquire a deeper understanding of what socialism is, how to build it, and what kind of Party to build and how to build it, and we have gained most valuable experience in this regard," Jiang said.
He defined the experience over the past 13 years as follows:
-- Uphold Deng Xiaoping Theory as the guide and constantly bring forth theoretical innovation;
-- Keep economic development as the central task and solve problems cropping up on the way forward through development;
-- Persevere in reform and opening up and keep improving the socialist market economy;
-- Adhere to the Four Cardinal Principles and develop socialist democracy;
-- Attach equal importance to both material and spiritual civilization and run the country by combining the rule of law with the rule of virtue;
-- Ensure stability as a principle of overriding importance and balance reform, development and stability;
-- Persevere in the Party's absolute leadership over the army and take the road of fewer but better troops with Chinese characteristics;
-- Continue to unite with all forces that can be united with and increase the cohesion of the Chinese nation;
-- Pursue the independent foreign policy of peace, safeguard world peace and promote common development;
-- Strengthen and improve the Party's leadership and propel the new great project of Party building.
Jiang said that the above-mentioned experience and the historical experience gained by the Party since its founding can be summarized as follows: the Party must always represent the development trend of China's advanced productive forces, the orientation of China's advanced culture and the fundamental interests of the overwhelming majority of the Chinese people.
"They are the inexorable requirements for maintaining and developing socialism and the logical conclusion our Party has reached through hard exploration and great practice," he said.
Jiang said that the important thought of Three Represents, as a continuation and development of Marxism-Leninism, Mao Zedong Thought and Deng Xiaoping Theory, reflects new requirements for the work of the Party and state arising from the changes in China and other parts of the world today. It is a powerful theoretical weapon for strengthening and improving Party building and promoting self-improvement and development of socialism in China.
"It is the crystallization of the Party's collective wisdom and a guiding ideology the Party must follow for a long time to come," he said, stressing that persistent implementation of the "Three Represents" is the foundation for building the Party, the cornerstone for its governance and the source of its strength.
He noted that the implementation of the important thought of Three Represents is, in essence, to keep pace with the times, maintain the Party's progressiveness and exercise the state power in the interest of the people.
Jiang said that an overview of the situation shows that for China, the first two decades of the 21st century are a period of important strategic opportunities, which China must seize tightly and which offer bright prospects.
"We need to concentrate on building a well-off society of a higher standard in an all-round way to the benefit of well over one billion people in this period," he said, "We will further develop the economy, improve democracy, advance science and education, enrich culture, foster social harmony and upgrade the texture of life for the people."
He said that in building a well-off society in an all-round way, it is of vital importance to take economic development as the central task and keep liberating and developing the productive forces.
In the first two decades of this century, China should undertake the following main tasks for economic development and reform: to improve the socialist market economy, promote strategic adjustment of the economic structure, basically accomplish industrialization, energetically apply IT, accelerate modernization, maintain a sustained, rapid and sound development of the national economy and steadily uplift the people's living standards.
He put forward eight tasks which have a bearing on the overall situation:
-- Take a new road to industrialization and implement the strategy of rejuvenating the country through science and education and that of sustainable development;
-- Make the rural economy flourish and speed up urbanization;
-- Advance the development of the western region and bring about a coordinated development of regional economies;
-- Stick to and improve the basic economic system and deepen the reform of the state property management system;
-- Improve the modern market system and tighten and improve macroeconomic control;
-- Deepen the reform of the income distribution system and improve the social security system;
-- Do a better job in opening up by "bringing in" and "going out";
-- Do everything possible to create more jobs and improve the people's lives.
Jiang also said that developing socialist democracy and establishing a socialist political civilization are an important goal for building a well-off society in an all-round way, and that adhering to the Four Cardinal Principles, China must go on steadily and surely with political restructuring, extend socialist democracy and improve the socialist legal system.
On reunification of the motherland, Jiang said that "we firmly oppose all words and deeds aimed at creating 'Taiwan independence,' 'two Chinas' or 'one China, one Taiwan'."
"We will never allow anyone to separate Taiwan from China in any way," he said.
"On the basis of the one-China principle, let us shelve for now certain political disputes and resume the cross-straits dialogue and negotiations as soon as possible," he said, stressing that "one country, two systems" is the best way for the reunification between the two sides.
Jiang made an in-depth analysis over the current international situation, pointing out that peace and development remain the themes of this era, but the old international political and economic order, which is unfair and irrational, has yet to be changed fundamentally.
"No matter how the international situation changes, we will, as always, pursue the independent foreign policy of peace," Jiang said, noting that the CPC stands for establishing a new international political and economic order that is fair and rational, stands for maintaining the diversity of the world, promotes democracy in international relations and diversifying development models, and stands for fighting against terrorism of all forms.
Jiang underlined the importance of Party building in the report. "In a large multi-ethnic developing country like ours, we must spare no efforts to strengthen and improve the Party's leadership and fully advance the great new undertaking of Party building if we are to rally the entire people to work heart and soul in building a well-off society in an all-round way and speed up the socialist modernization drive," he said.
It is necessary to study and implement the important thought of Three Represents intensively and raise all Party members' level of the Marxist theory, build up the Party's governing capacity and improve its art of leadership and governance, adhere to and improve democratic centralism and enhance the Party's vitality, solidarity and unity, build a contingent of high-caliber leading cadres and form an energetic and promising leadership, build the Party well at the primary level, reinforce its class foundation and expand its mass base, and strengthen and improve the Party's style of work and intensify the struggle against corruption, Jiang said.
He said that it is a historical mission the Party must take on with courage to build a well-off society in an all-round way, step up the socialist modernization drive and make socialist China a stronger and more prosperous country, thus contributing still more to the cause of human progress,.
"The fulfillment of this mission inevitably depends on the solidarity of the Party and that of the Chinese people of all ethnic groups," Jiang said.
"All Party comrades and the people of all ethnic groups of the country, let us rally closely around the Party Central Committee and work with one heart and one mind in a joint and unyielding effort to advance the cause of building socialism with Chinese characteristics and create a happier life and a better future for us all! " he said.
(Xinhua News Agency November 8, 2002)
