Tongfang Academy
Micro Party Class · Issue 280
Firmly grasp the starting point and ultimate goal of further deepening reform in a comprehensive manner.
“Theoretical cultivation is the core of the comprehensive quality of Party members and cadres. Theoretical maturity is the foundation for political maturity, and political steadfastness stems from theoretical clarity.” For Party members and cadres, fostering a fine academic ethos and strengthening theoretical training are both fundamental requirements for cultivating Party spirit and an inescapable political responsibility.
Tongfang Law Firm provides a learning platform for all its lawyers in the form of micro-party classes, aiming to enhance their ideological and political awareness as well as their spirit of learning and inquiry. By establishing a long-term educational mechanism, the firm has created a new platform for self-education and self-improvement.
The Third Plenary Session of the 20th Central Committee of the Party proposed that further deepening reform in a comprehensive manner should “take promoting social fairness and justice and enhancing the well-being of the people as both the starting point and the ultimate goal.” This not only clarifies the logical starting point for further deepening reform in a comprehensive manner but also elucidates the fundamental purpose of such reform. General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out: “Reform is meaningful only when it is carried out for the sake of the people; reform gains momentum only when it relies on the people.” To thoroughly study and implement the spirit of the Third Plenary Session of the 20th Central Committee, further deepen reform in a comprehensive manner, and advance Chinese-style modernization, we must firmly grasp the starting point and ultimate goal of this reform, ensuring that its original intent, process, and outcomes more closely align with the people’s aspirations and needs, continuously promoting social fairness and justice and enhancing the well-being of the people.
Deeply recognize the significant importance of promoting social equity and justice and enhancing the well-being of the people.
The people are the creators of history and the fundamental force that determines the future and destiny of the Party and the country. The fundamental purpose of our Party—through its unity and leadership in guiding the people through revolution, construction, and reform—is to enable the people to lead a better life. Since the advent of the new era, the Party Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core has regarded social development as an important component of the coordinated advancement of the “Five-in-One” overall layout. Focusing closely on promoting social equity and justice and enhancing the well-being of the people, it has continued to deepen reforms in areas such as ensuring that children have access to care, students receive quality education, workers earn fair remuneration, the sick receive adequate medical care, the elderly enjoy dignified care, everyone has decent housing, and the vulnerable receive necessary assistance. In particular, it has introduced a series of major reform measures in income distribution, employment, education, social security, healthcare, and housing provision, thereby continuously boosting the people’s sense of gain, happiness, and security, making these gains more substantial, more secure, and more sustainable. Taking the promotion of social equity and justice and the enhancement of the people’s well-being as both the starting point and the ultimate goal of further deepening comprehensive reform is an inevitable requirement for upholding the Party’s fundamental principle of serving the people wholeheartedly; it is also an intrinsic demand for advancing and expanding Chinese-style modernization, and it clearly demonstrates the value orientation underlying further deepening comprehensive reform.
This is an inevitable requirement for upholding the fundamental principle of serving the people wholeheartedly. General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out: “The question of who we serve is the touchstone for testing the nature of a political party and a regime.” Serving the people wholeheartedly is the fundamental hallmark that distinguishes our Party from all other political parties. The reason our Party has won the support of the people, and why socialism with Chinese characteristics has gained their backing, is precisely because it has brought tangible benefits to the people. The reason our Party has been able to grow and thrive, and why socialism with Chinese characteristics has continued to advance, is precisely because it has relied on the people. To strive for the happiness of the Chinese people and the rejuvenation of the Chinese nation is both the original aspiration and mission of Chinese Communists, and also the original aspiration and mission behind reform and opening-up. In further deepening reform in a comprehensive manner, we must take the pursuit of the happiness of the people as the yardstick for measuring the effectiveness of reform, ensuring that the fruits of reform and development benefit all the people more widely and equitably.
The intrinsic requirement for advancing and expanding Chinese-style modernization. General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out: “Chinese-style modernization is the cause of all Chinese people; we must rely closely on the people and pool the boundless wisdom and strength hidden within them.” Whether the path of modernization can ultimately succeed and remain stable hinges critically on whether we adhere to a people-centered approach. By responding to the people’s aspirations for a better life and striving to achieve material prosperity, political integrity, spiritual fulfillment, social stability, and a pleasant ecological environment, we can ensure that the fruits of Chinese-style modernization benefit all the people more widely and equitably, thereby rallying tremendous momentum for fully building a modern socialist country. Further deepening reform in a comprehensive manner and advancing Chinese-style modernization inevitably calls for harnessing the boundless wisdom and strength embedded in the people. We must start by addressing the most pressing, direct, and realistic concerns of the masses, focusing on creating a more equitable and just social environment, using more reform outcomes to enhance the well-being of the people, and thus endowing Chinese-style modernization with the most reliable, profound, and enduring source of strength.
Highlight the value orientation of further deepening reform in a comprehensive and all-around manner. General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out: “To advance reform and promote development ultimately means enabling the people to lead better lives.” The questions of “for whom” and “on whom we rely” are crucial issues that determine the value orientation of further deepening reform in a comprehensive and all-around manner. The reason why reform and opening-up have won the heartfelt support and active participation of the broad masses of the people lies fundamentally in the fact that from the very beginning, we have deeply rooted the cause of reform and opening-up among the people. Practice has fully demonstrated that only by firmly grasping the value orientation of reform—ensuring that reform always serves the people and relies on the people—can we lead the people to push reform forward. Only by taking the promotion of social fairness and justice and the enhancement of people’s well-being as both the starting point and the ultimate goal of further deepening reform in a comprehensive and all-around manner can we stay true to our value orientation, ensure that everything is done for the people and everything depends on the people, respond promptly to the calls of the people, and guarantee that reform is truly for the people, relies on the people, and its fruits are shared by the people.
Promoting social equity and justice, and enhancing the well-being of the people, requires properly handling several key relationships.
General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized: “We must implement reform with the spirit of driving nails home—being both proactive and steady, clearly prioritizing tasks, grasping the right timing and pace, doing our utmost within our capabilities, and never losing touch with reality.” Further deepening reform in a comprehensive and all-around manner is a complex systematic undertaking. Promoting social equity and justice and enhancing the well-being of the people require advancing reforms across all fronts, throughout the entire process, in broad fields, and at multiple levels. In further deepening reform in a comprehensive and all-around manner to promote social equity and justice and enhance the well-being of the people, it is essential to properly handle the following relationships.
Properly balance doing one’s utmost with acting within one’s capabilities. General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized: “We must adhere to the principle of doing our utmost within our capabilities, go deep among the masses and at the grassroots level, adopt more measures that benefit the people and warm their hearts, and focus on effectively addressing the urgent, difficult, and troubling issues that the people are concerned about.” Work related to people’s livelihoods involves direct engagement and accountability to the general public; there is absolutely no room for even the slightest bit of falsity. We must be both proactive and realistic—once we make a commitment, we must deliver on it. To promote social equity and justice and enhance the well-being of the people, we must uphold the dialectical unity of doing our utmost and acting within our capabilities. We must devote great efforts to tackling the most pressing and deeply felt problems raised by the people—tackling these “hard nuts” with determination and making immediate improvements. By stepping up our efforts and adopting more concrete measures, we can ensure that the people feel a greater sense of gain. At the same time, we must ground ourselves in China’s basic national conditions, strike a balance between what is needed and what is feasible, and base the enhancement of people’s well-being on a foundation of sustainable economic development and fiscal capacity. We must avoid making promises that cannot be fulfilled or going beyond reality.
Properly handle the relationship among reform, development, and stability. General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized: “We must correctly handle the relationship among reform, development, and stability.” If the intensity of reform is too great or too small, or if the pace is too fast or too slow, it will all affect both the speed of development and society’s capacity to bear the changes. To thoroughly implement the strategic plans laid out at the Third Plenary Session of the 20th Central Committee of the Party, we must integrate the intensity of reform, the pace of development, and society’s capacity to bear the changes. We should regard improving people’s livelihoods as a crucial nexus for properly handling the relationship among reform, development, and stability. In promoting social equity and justice and enhancing the well-being of the people, we must be bold in our initiatives, act swiftly upon making commitments, and tackle issues with urgency and efficiency—identifying precisely what the masses are thinking, hoping for, worrying about, and urgently needing, and then formulating and implementing targeted reform measures. At the same time, we must keep the bigger picture in mind, assess the situation judiciously, take a holistic approach, and carry out reforms in a scientifically sound manner, avoiding rashness and impetuousness. We should address one issue after another and work steadily year after year.
We must strike a good balance between advancing reforms in a holistic manner and achieving breakthroughs in key areas. General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized that further deepening comprehensive reform requires—on the one hand, continuing to exert efforts across the board so that reform measures comprehensively address the salient issues that need to be tackled in advancing Chinese-style modernization; and on the other hand, persisting in making substantive progress in deepening reform, with a particular focus on the economic system, and making concerted efforts to remove deep-seated institutional barriers and structural contradictions. In all our work, we must adopt both a dialectical approach that considers multiple aspects and a strategic approach that highlights key priorities. We must pay attention both to overall planning and to identifying and tackling the "crucial leverage points." Promoting social equity and justice and enhancing the well-being of the people involve work across all fronts and sectors. Therefore, we must ensure that holistic advancement and targeted breakthroughs reinforce each other. We must adhere to a systematic perspective, coordinating all aspects, all levels, all elements, and all groups. We should formulate reform strategies and design reform measures from the standpoint of the people’s overall interests, fundamental interests, and long-term interests, being adept at taking into account the big picture, the overarching context, and the long-term implications, thereby enhancing the systemic, holistic, and coordinated nature of reform. At the same time, we must focus on key areas, identifying the most pressing, difficult, and concerning issues for the people as the starting points and breakthroughs for reform. We should begin with what the masses most eagerly anticipate and tackle those issues that cause them the greatest dissatisfaction, effectively addressing the most immediate, practical, and concrete concerns of the people.
Ensure that the fruits of reform and development benefit all people more widely and equitably.
General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out: “In the process of comprehensively deepening reform, when we encounter issues involving complex relationships and difficult-to-balance interests, we must carefully reflect on the actual situation of the masses—what exactly are their real conditions? What do they truly expect? How can we safeguard their interests? Are the masses satisfied with our reforms?” On this new journey ahead, the challenges and complexities of reform and development have reached an unprecedented level. The needs of the people are now diverse, multi-layered, and multifaceted. The situation confronting us in promoting social equity and justice and enhancing the well-being of the people has become even more complicated, and the tasks before us are heavier than ever. We must thoroughly implement the spirit of the Third Plenary Session of the 20th Central Committee of the Party, adhere to a development philosophy centered on the people, identify the key areas and breakthroughs for reform by focusing on the issues that concern the people most and the difficulties they face in their daily lives, and transform the list of urgent, difficult, and troubling problems faced by the people into a clear list of responsibilities and tasks for reform. We should introduce more reform measures that address the pressing needs of the people and resonate with their aspirations, genuinely relieve their burdens and solve their problems, and effectively enhance the precision, relevance, and effectiveness of our reforms.
We must uphold reform for the sake of the people. Whenever the people voice their concerns, reform must respond accordingly. Taking the promotion of social fairness and justice and the enhancement of the people’s well-being as both our starting point and ultimate goal, we must continue to deepen reform comprehensively in the new era by firmly following the Party’s mass line. This means aligning our reform ideas and measures with the aspirations and demands of the masses. We must always adhere to the principle of coming from the masses and going to the masses, maintaining at all times the close bond between the Party and the people, gaining a deep understanding of their conditions and sentiments, and taking the “greatest common divisor” of public opinion as a crucial basis for further deepening reform comprehensively. We should implement reform measures that are widely recognized and supported by the people, ensuring that these measures are scientific, fair, and feasible. In this way, reform can take deeper root among the masses and spread more extensively, continuously moving forward in the right direction.
We must firmly uphold the principle that reform relies on the people. The broad masses of the people are the true heroes—the source of our strength and the main driving force behind reform. To further deepen reform comprehensively, with the goal of promoting social equity and justice and enhancing the well-being of the people, we must unswervingly rely on the people, respect their central role and pioneering spirit, fully mobilize their enthusiasm, initiative, and creativity, ignite their passion for participating in reform, open up smooth channels for their involvement, and establish sound mechanisms for their participation. We should promptly summarize the fresh experiences created by the people, draw nourishment from their practices and wisdom, build the broadest possible consensus on reform, and unleash the greatest possible momentum for reform, thereby continuously injecting strong impetus into the comprehensive deepening of reform. We must consistently take whether the people support or oppose, approve or disapprove, are happy or unhappy, and agree or disagree as the fundamental criteria for formulating reform policies, and let the people themselves evaluate the effectiveness of these reforms.
We must ensure that the fruits of reform are shared by the people. The key to improving people’s livelihoods lies in ensuring public security, enriching the people, and bringing them joy. We should further deepen reform comprehensively, taking the promotion of social equity and justice and the enhancement of people’s well-being as both our starting point and ultimate goal. In doing so, we must follow the laws governing the development of people’s livelihoods, always keep the safety, well-being, and daily concerns of the masses close to our hearts, improve the basic public service system, strengthen inclusive, foundational, and bottom-line-oriented livelihood-building efforts, firmly secure and precisely target the basic livelihood bottom lines, and make concerted efforts to narrow the gaps between regions, between urban and rural areas, and between income groups. We must continuously advance the equalization of basic public services. We need to refine the income distribution system, improve employment-priority policies, enhance the social security system, deepen reform of the medical and healthcare system, and strengthen the support and service system for population development. By continually expanding the scope of those benefiting from reform and steadily promoting common prosperity, we can enable the people to experience greater fulfillment, happiness, and security, and continuously meet their aspirations for a better life.
Source | People's Daily Online, Official Website for Party History Study and Education
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Tongfang Academy Micro-Party Class, Issue 281: Truly Use the Party Constitution, Party Regulations, and Party Discipline to Correct Our Thoughts and Actions
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Tongfang Academy Micro-Party Class, Issue 279: Upholding the Mass Line and the Mass Work Approach
