As the Party celebrates its 103rd anniversary, Tongfang Law Firm is launching a special series of Party classes. We hope that Tongfang’s Party members will carry forward the spirit forged over the past century, courageously engage in self-revolution, and celebrate the Party’s birthday with their original aspirations!

The Communist Party of China is celebrating its 103rd birthday. Despite a century of vicissitudes, the Party remains vigorous and full of youthful vigor; after enduring countless trials and tribulations, it continues to brim with vitality. A key reason for this enduring vitality lies in the Party’s courage to carry out self-revolution and its unwavering commitment to preserving the essential character of a Marxist political party. Having weathered a century of storms and hardships and emerging stronger through rigorous tempering, the Party’s courage to engage in self-revolution is a defining hallmark that sets it apart from other political parties. General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out: “Only a Party that has achieved great glory yet remains courageous in carrying out self-revolution can be invincible.” Self-revolution demonstrates the political consciousness of seizing historical initiative.

Starting anew, they remain true to their original selves and never forget their original aspirations as they write a new chapter of glory.

Why is self-revolution necessary? General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out: “Only by daring to carry out self-revolution can we take the initiative in history.”

Historical initiative stems from historical consciousness. General Secretary Xi Jinping’s important thought on the Party’s self-revolution is grounded in a strategic perspective that bears on the Party’s enduring cause and its very survival. It clearly defines the Party’s self-revolution as having the strategic goal of breaking free from the historical cycle and focusing primarily on addressing the unique challenges faced by a large political party. This conclusion, drawn from a profound synthesis of the Party’s arduous and extraordinary struggle throughout history and from an analysis of the patterns of political rise and fall both ancient and modern, both at home and abroad, is imbued with a high degree of historical consciousness and deep-seated historical concern.

Looking back at history, from the “Two Musts” to the “Three Musts,” from “Going to Beijing to Take the Exam” to “A New Journey of Examining Ourselves,” and from “Letting the People Supervise the Government” to “Self-Revolution,” the Chinese Communist Party has consistently demonstrated self-awareness, self-reflection, and self-discipline—qualities that remain as relevant and enduring today as ever. Drawing lessons from history, the greater our achievements and fame, the more we must remain vigilant and prepared for potential dangers, maintaining clarity and resolve in addressing the unique challenges faced by a major political party.

Historical initiative stems from historical mission. The Communist Party of China is a Marxist revolutionary party born in the midst of national crisis. From the moment of its founding, it explicitly stated that “the Party’s fundamental political goal is to carry out a social revolution.” Throughout the historical processes of revolution, construction, and reform, the Party has led the people to continuously break with the old and embrace the new, striving tirelessly to “build a new world.” A mission calls for responsibility. In this great social revolution of upholding and developing socialism with Chinese characteristics in the new era, we must continue to uphold that spirit of revolutionary zeal combined with relentless dedication, making the Party even stronger and more powerful, and using the Party’s self-revolution to lead the great social revolution forward.

Self-revolution stems from a political stance of pursuing the greater good for all under heaven.

Why can we carry out self-revolution? General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out: “Our Party has no special interests of its own; this is precisely the source of our Party’s courage and confidence in daring to conduct self-revolution.”

In 1936, Comrade Mao Zedong said: “Whoever wins the peasants will win China,” and “Whoever can solve the land issue will win the peasants.” The Kuomintang was not unaware of this principle; Sun Yat-sen’s thought on people’s livelihood also included the propositions of “equalizing land rights” and “land to those who till it.” At the root of the matter, “the crux of the problem lies in insufficient resolve.”

With a heart free of personal bias, one’s horizons become vast and boundless. Guided by the greatest interests of the Chinese people—the broadest and most numerous segment of our society—Communists in China are convinced that their cause is entirely just and righteous, and they are willing to sacrifice everything personal for its sake. The Communist Party of China has never represented the interests of any special interest groups, powerful cliques, or privileged classes. Precisely because of this, we have been able to break free from the corrosive “hunting” and entanglement of these interest groups, powerful cliques, and privileged classes, and we have begun to take firm action against those within the Party who have been ensnared by them.

The Communist Party of China is a political party that wholeheartedly strives for the happiness of the people, the rejuvenation of the nation, the progress of humanity, and common prosperity for the world. It is a party that believes in the principle of public good for all under heaven and steadfastly pursues the righteous path on earth. The so-called “great party” is not merely defined by its enormous size and long history; rather, its greatness lies in its political character—upholding the greater good, adhering to noble principles, and seeking the greater self. This political character stems from the dual fusion of the intrinsic nature of a Marxist political party and the profound heritage of China’s outstanding traditional culture. It is precisely this fusion that enables the Party to persist in self-revolution and solve the “Goldbach Conjecture” of national governance—the challenge of effective self-supervision.

Self-revolution has opened up new horizons in the great practice of comprehensively and strictly governing the Party.

How can we advance self-revolution? A century of Party history is permeated by the theme of the Party’s self-revolution.

In the grand century-long history of the Party, whether it has been steadfast in upholding truth and correcting errors in its guiding ideology, or boldly addressing issues such as ideological impurity, political impurity, organizational impurity, and style impurity within the Party itself, or resolutely combating corruption—what makes the Party great is not that it never makes mistakes, but rather that it has never shied away from confronting its own shortcomings and has possessed the spirit of self-revolution: turning the blade inward and making tough choices with unwavering determination. Thus, it has continuously eradicated all viruses that erode the Party’s healthy body, emerging through a century of trials and tribulations as the world’s largest political party—unfazed by any adversity, unbreakable under pressure, and forever brimming with youthful vitality.

Since the 18th National Congress of the Party, we have exercised unprecedented courage and determination in comprehensively enforcing strict governance over the Party. Over the past decade, we’ve honed our skills and delivered a “combination punch” of self-revolutionary measures, making the Party stronger and more resilient through this revolutionary forging process.

The comprehensive and strict governance of the Party is an ongoing journey, and the Party’s self-revolution is also an ongoing endeavor. General Secretary Xi Jinping’s important thought on the Party’s self-revolution encapsulates the rich practical experience and significant theoretical achievements gained in the course of comprehensively and strictly governing the Party. It clearly puts forward the practical requirements of “nine ‘with’” approaches. This ideological system encompasses both epistemological insights at the macro-strategic level and methodological guidelines at the specific-practical level, providing a fundamental guide for deepening the comprehensive and strict governance of the Party in the new journey and serving as a crucial guarantee for ensuring that this century-old Party continues to brim with vitality and remains the backbone of the Chinese people and the Chinese nation.