Speeches Archives - Page 7 of 8 - Friends of Socialist China

Xi Jinping’s speech marking the centenary of the Communist Youth League of China

We are very pleased to publish the full text of the speech given on May 10th 2022 by President Xi Jinping marking the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Communist Youth League of China.

In his comprehensive exposition, President Xi outlines how the youth have always stood in the forefront of the struggles and striving of the Chinese people and nation. The May Fourth Movement of the youth and students in 1919, “promoted the spread of Marxism in China, ushered in the new-democratic revolution, and marked the beginning of the youth’s role as the pioneers advancing social changes in China… As Marxism-Leninism was becoming closely integrated with the Chinese workers’ movement, the Communist Party of China was born. Since the day of its founding, the Party has paid particular attention to the youth and placed the hopes of revolution on them.”

He further outlined the indispensable role of the Communist Youth League and young people generally in the periods of the new-democratic revolution, socialist revolution and construction, reform, opening up and socialist modernisation, and the new era of socialism with Chinese characteristics.

“Inspired by ideals and convictions,” Xi pointed out, “the Communist Youth League has organised and united young people with firm belief and scientific thinking. The first national congress of the League defined building a communist society as its ultimate ideal and made clear its banner of socialism, which has lit the beacon of ideals and convictions among generations of young people. This is the most fundamental and enduring cohesion of the League. History tells us that only by holding high the banner of communism and socialism, can the Communist Youth League form the most solid unity, forge the most effective organisation, and ensure that the youth are united under the banner of the Party’s ideals and convictions.”

Expressing the hope that the League would continue to play its vanguard role, President Xi noted that: “Young people are the most vigorous, enterprising, and least conservative group in society, who possess infinite power to improve the objective world and promote social progress,” adding:

“Revolutionaries are always young. Today, a hundred years on from its founding, the Communist Party of China is still in its prime, and remains as determined as ever to achieve lasting greatness for the Chinese nation. Quoting from Engels, Lenin once said, ‘We are the party of the future, and the future belongs to the youth. We are a party of innovators, and it is always the youth that most eagerly follows the innovators. We are a party that is waging a self-sacrificing struggle against the old rottenness, and youth is always the first to undertake a self-sacrificing struggle.’ Both history and reality have shown that the Communist Party of China is a party that always preserves its youthful features and a party that is worthy of the young people’s trust and worth following.”

Party organisations, the Chinese President said, “must attach great importance to the training and recruitment of outstanding young people and should particularly focus on cultivating and admitting outstanding League members into the Party, so as to ensure our socialist country never changes its nature.”

Members of the Communist Youth League of China (League), young friends, and comrades,

Youth gives rise to infinite hope, and young people are the creators of a bright future. A nation can thrive and prosper only when it places hopes on its youth and maintains its youthful vigor.

Today, we are gathered here at the ceremony marking the centenary of the Communist Youth League of China to encourage League members and young people to forge ahead on the new journey toward realizing the Chinese Dream of national rejuvenation.

Xi Jinping’s speech at 2022 Boao Forum for Asia

We are very pleased to publish the full text of President Xi Jinping’s important speech delivered via video to the opening session of this year’s Boao Forum for Asia on the morning of April 21. Often referred to as the ‘Asian Davos’, this year’s forum was joined virtually by several regional leaders, including the presidents of the Philippines, Mongolia and Nepal and the Prime Ministers of Laos and Kazakhstan.

In his comprehensive speech, President Xi made a number of important calls to the Asian and wider international community, stressing the need to unite together to win final victory over the Covid-19 pandemic; to promote economic recovery and to overcome uneven and inadequate development through the Global Development Initiative; and to work together to promote peace and stability in the world.

The Cold War mentality, President Xi explained, would only wreck the global peace framework, hegemonism and power politics would only endanger world peace, and bloc confrontation would only exacerbate security challenges in the 21st century.

China would therefore like to propose a Global Security Initiative – to stay committed to the vision of common, comprehensive, cooperative and sustainable security, and work together to maintain world peace and security; stay committed to respecting the sovereignty and territorial integrity of all countries, uphold non-interference in internal affairs, and respect the independent choices of development paths and social systems made by people in different countries; stay committed to abiding by the purposes and principles of the UN Charter, reject the Cold War mentality, oppose unilateralism, and say no to group politics and bloc confrontation; stay committed to taking the legitimate security concerns of all countries seriously, uphold the principle of indivisible security, build a balanced, effective and sustainable security architecture, and oppose the pursuit of one’s own security at the cost of others’ security; stay committed to peacefully resolving differences and disputes between countries through dialogue and consultation, support all efforts conducive to the peaceful settlement of crises, reject double standards, and oppose the wanton use of unilateral sanctions and long-arm jurisdiction; stay committed to maintaining security in both traditional and non-traditional domains, and work together on regional disputes and global challenges such as terrorism, climate change, cybersecurity and biosecurity.

Specifically turning to Asian issues, the Chinese president noted that: “The Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence and the Bandung Spirit, first advocated by Asia, are all the more relevant today. We should honor such principles as mutual respect, equality, mutual benefit and peaceful coexistence, follow a policy of good-neighborliness and friendship, and make sure that we always keep our future in our own hands.”

The entry into force of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), and specifically the opening to traffic of the China-Laos Railway, were cited by Xi as key examples of Asian cooperation.

Ambassador Ma Hui: China and Cuba are bound together by common experiences and beliefs

On 19 March 2022, China’s ambassador to Cuba, Ma Hui, spoke at our event 21st Century Socialism: China and Latin America on the Frontline.

Ambassador Ma discusses the nature, development and trajectory of Socialism with Chinese Characteristics; the history of China-Cuba relations; Cuba’s remarkable progress in pursuing its own form of socialism; and the importance of ending the criminal US blockade against Cuba.

Dear friends:

I am delighted to join you at this very important webinar. The topics are wide-ranging. I will first share two points on what socialism with Chinese characteristics is and what it is not, then two points on Chinese-Cuban relations, and then my observations about Cuba.

First, socialism with Chinese characteristics is the result of the Chinese people’s painstaking trials and great sacrifices. It just doesn’t come easy to us.

Since the 1840s, through successive aggression such as the two Opium Wars, the Sino-French War, the First Sino-Japanese War, and the Eight-Allied Powers invasion, the Western powers bullied China into signing a series of unequal treaties, gradually reducing China from a world power to a semi-colonial and semi-feudal state. As a result, the Chinese people embarked on the arduous quest for survival and rejuvenation. China tried constitutional monarchy, parliamentary system, multi-party system, presidential system, you name it, but all failed.

Xi Jinping calls for global cooperation on climate change and warns against Cold War

In this important speech at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) CEO Summit, Chinese President Xi Jinping calls for a coordinated global effort to suppress the pandemic, to tackle climate change, and to prevent a New Cold War.

Xi reiterates his oft-stated belief that vaccines must be a global public good, and urges countries to work together to ensure fair and equitable distribution, with particular attention to developing countries. Speaking on the need for a comprehensive low-carbon transition, he points out that this will be impossible without simultaneously pursuing development and improving the living standards of those that currently live in poverty.

He notes that humanity’s major challenges cannot be solved in the context of a New Cold War, and warns against any attempts to divide the world on ideological lines or to break with the principles of multilateralism and respect for sovereign development, stating that “the Asia-Pacific region cannot and should not relapse into the confrontation and division of the Cold War era.”

Leaders of the Business Community,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Dear Friends,

I am very glad to meet you again. At present, COVID-19 is still ravaging the world, and the journey to global economic recovery remains a difficult and tortuous one. The Asia-Pacific has all along been an important engine driving the global economy. Indeed, it is among the first to regain the momentum of recovery in this crisis. At this historical juncture, it is important that we in the Asia-Pacific face up to the responsibility of the times, be in the drive’s seat, and strive hard to meet the goal of building an Asia-Pacific community with a shared future.

Xi Jinping’s remarks at COP26 World Leaders Summit

We are pleased to publish the written statement of President Xi Jinping delivered today to the COP-26 meeting in Glasgow. The Chinese President makes three essential points – he stresses the need to uphold multilateral consensus; to focus on concrete actions; and to accelerate the green transition. This succinct and principled statement not only sets out the key tasks facing the entire international community if we are to prevent climate catastrophe – it also constitutes a fitting retort to those national leaders who would rather engage in vacuous rhetoric and foster a new Cold War against China and Russia than take concrete actions and face up to their responsibilities.

Honorable Prime Minister Boris Johnson,

Colleagues,

It gives me great pleasure to attend the World Leaders Summit and discuss ways to address the climate challenge. As we speak, the adverse impacts of climate change have become increasingly evident, presenting a growing urgency for global action. How to respond to climate change and revive the world economy are challenges of our times that we must meet.

Xi Jinping at the G20 Summit expounds a vision of peace, cooperation and sustainable development

We are very pleased to print the text of President Xi Jinping’s speech, delivered by video link on October 30, to the G20 Summit in Rome. In his speech President Xi makes five key calls to the international community, namely to:

1. Work in solidarity to combat COVID-19
2. Cooperate to promote recovery
3. Embrace inclusiveness to achieve common development
4. Pursue innovation to tap growth potential
5. Promote harmonious coexistence to achieve green and sustainable development

Taken together, these five themes represent a comprehensive programme for humanity to overcome its present grave challenges and advance to a better future. It represents the antithesis of the new Cold War peddled by the various imperialist powers even whilst they also intensify an increasingly ill disguised contention between themselves. President Xi’s proposals constitute a programme around which the broadest united front of countries at various levels of development can coalesce and should be supported by all progressive forces.

Your Excellency Prime Minister Mario Draghi,
Dear Colleagues,

I wish to begin by sincerely thanking Italy, the G20 President, for the great efforts it has made in hosting this Summit.

Videos: the propaganda war against China

On Saturday 9 October, we held a very successful webinar opposing the propaganda war being waged by the US and its allies against China. The videos from the event are embedded below.

Carlos Martinez: lies about Xinjiang are designed to build public support for the New Cold War

Below is the text of a speech given by Carlos Martinez at the recent webinar organised by the Islamabad Institute of Conflict Resolution and the China NGO Network for International Exchanges to expose the Western media’s propaganda in relation to the treatment of Uyghur Muslims in Xinjiang.

The video of the full event can be watched on YouTube. The webinar has also been written up in CGTN, China Daily, and Asia Free Press.

Thank you very much for inviting me to speak today.

Living in the West – as I do, in London, England – I’m exposed to a very intense media propaganda campaign in relation to Xinjiang.

When I read the newspapers, or I watch the debates in the Houses of Parliament, I often see accusations of Chinese genocide against Uyghur Muslims, of cultural genocide, of forced labour, of forced sterilisation of women, of prison camps. Actually we see these sorts of accusations every day.

Review of ‘China and the Left: a socialist forum’

We are pleased to republish this detailed and helpful summary of the recent ‘China and the Left’ forum recently organised by Qiao Collective in association with the People’s Forum, Monthly Review and CODEPINK. The review first appeared on Charles McKelvey’s blog.

A full playlist of videos from the forum can be found on YouTube.

A socialist forum on China and the Left, sponsored by the Qiao Collective, was held in New York City on September 18, 2021. The Qiao Collective was formed in January 2020 by intellectuals and activists of the Chinese diaspora, with the intention of defending Chinese socialism against imperialist aggression.

Opening Keynote Address by the Qiao Collective

In the Opening Keynote address on the “The U.S. Hybrid War,” Michelle of the Qiao Collective maintained that Chinese trade has long stimulated imperialist aggression, which has included the colonial concession zones, the taking of Hong Kong, the backing of Chinese nationalists, and the support of Formosa. Imperialist aggression against China is historic.

Xi Jinping: Bolstering confidence and jointly overcoming difficulties to build a better world

We are pleased to republish President Xi Jinping’s address to this year’s UN General Assembly. In his speech the Chinese leader addresses the most crucial issues facing humanity. He highlights the need to defeat the Covid pandemic, describing it as a “decisive fight crucial to the future of humanity”. He also sets out a comprehensive programme for a greener global development.

Mr. President,

The year 2021 is a truly remarkable one for the Chinese people. This year marks the centenary of the Communist Party of China. It is also the 50th anniversary of the restoration of the lawful seat of the People’s Republic of China in the United Nations, a historic event which will be solemnly commemorated by China. We will continue our active efforts to take China’s cooperation with the United Nations to a new level and make new and greater contributions to advancing the noble cause of the UN.

Xi Jinping speech at the Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit

Below we reproduce the statement by President Xi Jinping at the 21st Meeting of the Council of Heads of State of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) on 17 September 2021. The English translation originally appeared on Xinhua. Comrade Xi’s speech covers a number of important topics including the fight against Covid, Afghanistan, multilateralism, the Belt and Road Initiative, and the record thus far of the SCO.

Your Excellency President Emomali Rahmon,

Dear Colleagues,

I wish to thank you, President Rahmon, and Tajikistan for hosting this meeting under Tajikistan’s Presidency of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO). As the SCO marks its 20th anniversary, together with all of you, I look forward to reviewing the proud history of the SCO and charting the course for even broader prospects of its future development.

Xi Jinping’s address at the 13th BRICS summit

On 9 September 2021, President Xi Jinping addressed the 13th BRICS summit via video link in Beijing. His speech provides a concise overview of China’s approach to international relations, focused on multilateralism, common development, and solidarity. He also used the speech to announce that China would be donating a further 100 million Covid vaccine doses to developing countries.

Dear Colleagues,

At present, the COVID-19 pandemic is still wreaking havoc around the world. The road to global recovery remains bumpy and tortuous. And the international order is going through profound and complex changes. Facing these challenges, we the BRICS countries must step forward to make an active contribution to world peace and development and advance the building of a community with a shared future for mankind.

Elias Jabbour: Socialist China is the last frontier between reason and barbarism

This speech by Elias Jabbour (Adjunct Professor of Economics, Rio de Janeiro State University) at the recent launch of Through Pluripolarity to Socialism usefully describes the current state of international relations, the global trajectory towards socialism, and the vanguard role of the People’s Republic of China.

First of all, I would like to thank the organizers of this Manifesto for the invitation to be here with you today. Thank you for the opportunity to be part of a document which summarizes not only the fundamental contradictions of our epoch, but mainly the solutions towards pluripolarity and socialism. This Manifesto not only demonstrates the defense of socialist experiences, but also shows to the world that we don’t deny the history of the international communist movement. On the contrary. We are proud of our history. The Soviet Union was responsible, for the first time in history, for giving women equality before the law.

Wang Yi on the 50th anniversary of the restoration of China’s seat at the UN

This speech by China’s foreign minister Wang Yi, delivered at the Join Hands for a Shared Future Seminar to Commemorate the 50th Anniversary of the Restoration of The Lawful Seat of the People’s Republic of China in the United Nations, provides a succinct and powerful outline of China’s foreign policy framework and its approach to international relations. It sets out a clear vision of multilateralism and cooperation to tackle shared problems and build global peace and prosperity.

Distinguished Guests,

This year marks the 50th anniversary of the restoration of the lawful seat of the People’s Republic of China in the United Nations. It is of great significance that we have in-depth discussions under the theme “Join Hands for a Shared Future.” Let me extend my congratulations on the successful opening of the seminar and express my appreciation to all the guests for your active participation and contribution.

At its 26th Session in 1971, the UN General Assembly adopted Resolution 2758 with an overwhelming majority, restoring all the lawful rights to the People’s Republic of China in the United Nations. This was a landmark in history. It signified that the UN had truly become the most representative and authoritative inter-governmental organization. It also opened a new chapter in China’s cooperation with the UN. Over the past 50 years, China, with concrete actions, has lived up to the purposes and principles of the UN Charter, and has served as an important builder of world peace, the biggest contributor to global development, and a firm defender of international order.

Cheng Enfu speech at the launch meeting of ‘From Pluripolarity to Socialism’

On 5 September 2021, the International Manifesto Group held a launch meeting for its manifesto, entitled From Pluripolarity to Socialism. Friends of Socialist China’s editors support the manifesto, and we encourage people to read and sign it.

We reproduce below the text of a speech given at the launch event by Cheng Enfu, former president of the Academy of Marxism at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (CASS), currently Academician of CASS, principal professor of the University of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, and president of the World Association for Political Economy (WAPE).

I would like to thank the drafters of the manifesto for presenting many new ideas of contemporary Marxism, and for writing a declaration that reflects the voices of a vast number of workers and oppressed nations. After reading it, I found the following elements and features are particularly important:

First, it objectively describes the tortuous history of the socialist movement under the theoretical guidance of scientific socialism founded by Marx and Engels.

Xi Jinping: Understanding the new development stage, applying the new development philosophy, and creating a new development dynamic

We are republishing this important speech by Xi Jinping, made at a seminar for provincial and ministerial level officials on studying and implementing the guiding principles of the Fifth Plenary Session of the 19th CPC Central Committee, on 11 January 2021. It summarises the transition taking place in China, from ‘building a moderately prosperous society in all respects’ (achieved with the eradication of extreme poverty last year) to building – by the middle of this century – a ‘great modern socialist country that is prosperous, strong, democratic, culturally advanced, harmonious, and beautiful’. The English translation of the speech originally appeared in Qiushi Journal.

Since the Fifth Plenary Session of the 19th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC) held in October 2020, all regions and departments have yielded positive results from their hard work to study, publicize, and apply the guiding principles from the Session in line with the Central Committee’s requirements. During this special seminar, the Central Committee hopes that we will gain an accurate understanding of the new stage of development through extensive discussions and exchanges of experience, with a view to fully implementing the new development philosophy, accelerating our efforts to create a new development dynamic, and promoting high-quality development during the 14th Five-Year Plan period (2021-2025). Doing so will see us setting the stage for building a modern socialist country in all respects.

I have spoken of the importance of studying and applying the guiding principles of the Fifth Plenary Session both at the Session itself and on many other occasions, such as meetings of the Central Committee Political Bureau and its Standing Committee, the Central Economic Work Conference, and the Central Rural Work Conference. Today, I would like to focus on the following four subjects.

First, we need to have an accurate understanding of the new stage of development.

An accurate understanding of the historical stage that the cause of our Party and people has entered is essential for defining the central task of the current period and setting the guidelines, principles, and policies for our work. This is an important practice our Party has used to move from victory to victory in leading China’s revolution, development, and reform.

Xi Jinping: Fighting Covid-19 and leading economic recovery through solidarity and cooperation

Below we reproduce the remarks made by President Xi Jinping at the Informal Economic Leaders’ Retreat of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) held on 16 July 2021. This speech highlights China’s approach to multilateralism, global cooperation, and a shared future for humanity. It stands in stark contrast to the New Cold War strategy being adopted by the US and its allies.

The Right Honorable Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern,

Dear Colleagues,

It gives me great pleasure to attend this meeting. I thank Prime Minister Ardern and the New Zealand government for their great efforts to make the meeting possible.

As we speak, the COVID-19 pandemic is undergoing many twists and turns, including the constant mutations of the virus. Controlling the pandemic still poses a difficult challenge, while global economic recovery is still on shaky ground. That said, peace and development remains the theme of our times, and the call for upholding multilateralism, strengthening solidarity and cooperation, and meeting challenges together is growing stronger than ever.

The Asia-Pacific is a major engine for global economic growth. For member economies of the Asia-Pacific, defeating COVID-19 and restoring growth at an early date are our top priority for the time being. Since the start of the pandemic, APEC members have united as one and carried out active cooperation against the coronavirus. Being the first to gain the momentum for recovery, the Asia-Pacific economy has made contributions to driving the world economy. Last year, we adopted the APEC Putrajaya Vision 2040 and set ourselves the goal of an open, dynamic, resilient and peaceful Asia-Pacific community, charting the course for economic cooperation in the Asia-Pacific. Under the current circumstances, we must enhance solidarity and cooperation to overcome the impact of the pandemic and boost global economic recovery.

First, we need to strengthen international cooperation on COVID response. The pandemic proves once again that we live in one global village, where countries stand to rise and fall together. We must stick to solidarity and cooperation as we go through this difficult time and jointly work for a healthier and brighter future for humanity. Vaccines are a powerful weapon to prevail over the pandemic and revive the economy. China has been calling for closer international cooperation on vaccines to ensure that they are accessible and affordable in developing countries and that they become a global public good. Overcoming the challenges of its own mass vaccination program, China has provided more than 500 million doses of vaccines to other developing countries, and will provide another 3 billion US dollars in international aid over the next three years to support COVID-19 response and economic and social recovery in other developing countries. China supports waiving intellectual property rights on COVID-19 vaccines, and will work with other parties to push for an early decision by the World Trade Organization (WTO) and other international institutions. China will take an active part in cooperation initiatives to keep vaccine supply chains stable and safe and support the movement of essential goods, and take effective measures to ensure healthy, safe and orderly people-to-people exchanges and restore normal business cooperation in our region at an early date. China has financed the founding of a Sub-Fund on APEC Cooperation on Combating COVID-19 and Economic Recovery, which will help APEC economies win an early victory over COVID-19 and achieve economic recovery.

Second, we need to deepen regional economic integration. Opening-up and integration is the prevailing trend. It is important that we promote the liberalization and facilitation of trade and investment and uphold the multilateral trading system with the WTO at its core. We must remove barriers, not erect walls. We must open up, not close off. We must seek integration, not decoupling. This is the way to make economic globalization more open, inclusive, balanced and beneficial for all. We need to step up macroeconomic policy coordination, minimize negative spillovers, and fully implement the APEC Connectivity Blueprint to promote cooperation on digital connectivity. We need to advance regional economic integration, with a view to establishing a high-standard Free Trade Area of the Asia-Pacific at an early date. China is among the first to ratify the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership agreement. We look forward to its entry into force this year.

Third, we need to pursue inclusive and sustainable development. Earth is the only home for humanity. We must follow a people-centered approach, foster a sound environment to buttress sustainable economic and social development worldwide, and achieve green growth. China attaches great importance to addressing climate change. We will strive to peak carbon dioxide emissions before 2030 and achieve carbon neutrality before 2060. China supports APEC in advancing cooperation on sustainable development, improving the List of Environmental Goods, and making energy more efficient, clean and diverse. We need to enhance economic and technological cooperation, promote inclusive trade and investment, support the development of small- and medium-sized enterprises, scale up support for women and other vulnerable groups, share experience on eliminating absolute poverty and strive to deliver the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

Fourth, we need to seize opportunities from scientific and technological innovation. The digital economy is an important area for the future growth of the world economy. The global digital economy is an open and close-knit entity. Win-win cooperation is the only right way forward, while a closed-door policy, exclusion, confrontation and division would only lead to a dead end. We need to ensure full and balanced implementation of the APEC Internet and Digital Economy Roadmap, further develop digital infrastructure, facilitate the dissemination and application of new technologies, and work for a digital business environment that is open, fair and non-discriminatory. China has concluded a number of cooperation initiatives, including those on using digital technologies for the prevention and control of COVID-19 and on smart cities. We will host a workshop on digital capacity building and take forward such initiatives as bolstering the recovery of the tourism sector with digital tools, as part of our efforts to contribute more to Asia-Pacific cooperation on digital economy.

Colleagues,

China has embarked on a new journey toward fully building a modern socialist country. As China enters a new development stage, we will follow a new development philosophy and foster a new development paradigm. We will build a new system of open economy of higher standards, create a more attractive business environment, and advance high-quality Belt and Road cooperation. We hope to work with countries in the Asia-Pacific and beyond to achieve higher-standard mutual benefit and win-win cooperation.

There is a Maori saying in New Zealand that goes, “Turn your face to the sun and the shadows will fall behind you.” We have full confidence in humanity’s victory over the pandemic through cooperation. We have full confidence in the prospects of world economic recovery. We have full confidence in a shared, bright future of humanity. Let us stand with each other in solidarity, promote anti-COVID cooperation and economic recovery, and work for a bright future of prosperity for all in the Asia-Pacific.

Thank you.

Jenny Clegg: Was Mao a Marxist?

In this session for the Marx Memorial Library on 1 July 2021, Jenny Clegg explores how Mao adapted Marxist ideology to drive the Chinese peasant revolution from 1925-1949.

Introduction

Edgar Snow’s famous book Red Star over China opens with a series of questions he was looking to answer as he set off for Yenan in 1936: was the CPC a genuine Marxist Party or just a bunch of Red bandits? was the Red Army essentially a mob of hungry brigands as the Right wing KMT Nationalists made out?

From the Left also, Mao was being accused of departing from proletarian politics – for Trotsky the CPC under Mao’s leadership had been ‘captured by the peasants’ rich peasants at that.

Today similar scepticism is directed at whether or not China is genuinely socialist referencing these doubts about the earlier CPC history.

Mao was indeed a peasant leader; the Communist Party could not have come to power without the support of hundreds of millions of peasants – they joined its mass organisations, they joined the Party itself, they carried out and conformed with its policies, and they gave material support in paying taxes and enlisting in its armies.

Mao’s strategy of protracted revolution, building Red bases in the countryside to encircle the towns, is familiar to most people and will not be my focus here.

To answer the question ‘was Mao a Marxist’ it might be expected then that I start with his essays on philosophy – On Practice and On Contradiction. But these essays in themselves are not the focus of my discussion either.

Evo Morales speech on multipolarity and Bolivia-China cooperation

The following is the text of a speech given by Evo Morales, former president of Bolivia and leader of the Movement to Socialism – Political Instrument for the Sovereignty of the Peoples (MAS-IPSP), at the CPC and World Political Parties Summit held on 6 July 2021. Translated by Carlos Martinez.

Greetings to brother Xi Jinping, general secretary of the Communist Party of China and president of the People’s Republic of China, and to the presidents and leaders of the political parties of the world.

On this day of enormous importance for the Chinese people, commemorating the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Communist Party of China, I send a revolutionary salute in the name of the Movement to Socialism – Political Instrument for the Sovereignty of the Peoples (MAS-IPSP) and of the Bolivian people.

Sisters and brothers, China is more than 17,300 kilometres from my country. But this distance has not been, nor is it now, an obstacle to deepening our ties of brotherhood and cooperation. Even more, the Plurinational State of Bolivia and the People’s Republic of China maintain a relationship characterised by wide-ranging and diverse cooperation and reciprocity, which in the course of 36 years of diplomatic relations have allowed for the development of political trust, economic complementarity and mutual learning.

As a trade union leader, I have always admired the revolution which China carried out over the course of decades – a revolution which has made huge achievements, improving the lives of 1.4 billion Chinese people.

For example, in February, China officially announced that it had lifted 770 million rural inhabitants out of extreme poverty, meaning that China represents more than 70 percent of the global figure for poverty reduction.

The policies of Socialism with Chinese Characteristics have put China on the road to becoming the largest economy in the world; an economy that works in a joined-up way with other countries and benefits the peoples of the world; the opposite to that which was imposed on us for decades by the US, in which predatory, individualistic and competitive capitalism looted our people’s resources for the benefit of transnational corporations.

China’s commitment to multilaterialism, to international law and to the United Nations is extremely important in facing up to global challenges.

The pandemic shows us how connected we are and how fragile life is. The current challenges such as the climate crisis and global inequality can only be resolved on the basis of truly global coooperation.

Furthermore, I want to highlight the impetus and the spirit of global cooperation that China projects through its Belt and Road Initiative, which will help to lift millions of people out of poverty in the participating countries.

Overcoming distances is a priority to strengthen our economies. It’s for this reason in South America that we have planned (along with China) the construction of the Central Bi-Oceanic railway, which will connect the Atlantic coast with the Pacific coast.

Sisters and brothers, on this important date, I want to thank the government and people of China for their solidarity with our country from the beginning of the pandemic. Up to now, we have received 2.7 million vaccine doses, and soon 6 million doses will follow, helping us to contain the Covid-19 virus. We are sure that only the unity of the peoples will allow us to overcome this global crisis.

The Movement to Socialism – Political Instrument for the Sovereignty of the Peoples, like the Communist Party of China, has demonstrated that it can govern with honesty, dignity and sovereignty, without submitting itself to the interests of the US empire. At 13 years, 9 months and 18 days, our democratic cultural revolution has brought about a social, political and economic transformation without precedent in the history of Bolivia. We have nationalised our natural resources. We have recovered the strategic companies for the benefit of the people. As a result, we have been able to reduce extreme poverty from 38.2 percent to 15.2 percent.

The size of the economy has increased considerably. Nominal GDP increased from 9.5 billion dollars in 2005 to 42 billion dollars in 2018.

Again thanks to the nationalisation of strategic resources and the resulting increase in fiscal income, transfers from the central government to the regional governments and to universities increased almost four-fold. Our foreign reserves increased from 1.7 billion dollars in 2005 to 15.1 billion dollars in 2014.

And we can continue enumerating more achievevements of the democratic and cultural revolution. These achievements benefit older people, professionals, youth, children, and run counter to the interests of the national oligarchs, who did not want a government which met the needs of the people.

Sisters and brothers, on 10 December 2019, radical right-wing groups, organised and financed by the US and its allies, perpetrated a coup in my country in order to gain control over our natural resources. This led to the formation of a de facto government which oversaw a rise in racism and intolerance towards the indigenous community and towards the poorest sections of Bolivian society.

But thanks to the conscience and unity of the people, on 18 October 2020, the MAS-IPSP consolidated itself as the largest political force in the history of Bolivia. Our brother Lucho Arce was elected president with more than 55 percent of the vote.

Brother Xi Jinping, general secretary of the Communist Party of China, the Chinese and Bolivians are both peoples with deep roots, thousands of years old. Those roots define our cultural identity and our outlook on life.

To finish, in my role as leader of MAS-IPSP, I express our will to construct spaces of cooperation and complementarity between our parties, joining forces to push forward a bright future for the people of both China and Bolivia.

Many thanks.

Jenny Clegg reflects on a hundred years of the CPC

The following is the text of a speech given by British author, academic and campaigner Jenny Clegg at a recent webinar hosted by the Morning Star and Friends of Socialist China to celebrate the centenary of the CPC. Jenny discusses China’s unique contributions to Marxism, as well as outlining the history of the revolution and analysing the reasons for its continuing successes.

The story of how the CPC, founded in secret by just a handful of people, grew into an organisation of some 95 million members is truly remarkable.

It is a story that goes together with that of China’s transformation from the ‘Sick Man of Asia’ into the world’s second largest economy. It is the Party that provided the political architecture that has made this possible.

Taking stock at 100 years means looking not only at China’s achievements but also what this has meant – and means – for the world.

The CPC’s story is one of twists and turns, of tenacity against adversity, retreating when retreat was necessary but also daring to seize the time when the opportunity arose. What has given the CPC its strength, its courage to face reality, to learn from mistakes, was and is Marxism. For the CPC, Marxism is not a dogma, but a set of tools applied concretely to solve China’s problems.

The key to the success of the Revolution in 1949 lay mainly in the Party’s ability to mobilise the people effectively both around national and around class goals. For this it drew on Marxist class analysis to devise a revolutionary strategy of shared benefit so as to unite all who could be united in the common goals of ending foreign domination and building the nation.

Fundamental here was land reform which gained the CPC the support of hundreds of millions of peasants – they participated in its mass organisations, they joined the Party itself, they carried out and conformed with its policies, and they gave material support in paying taxes and enlisting in its armies.

China’s contribution to the defeat of worldwide fascism in 1945 is often overlooked in the West. It was Communist resistance together with the Nationalist armies that kept Japanese troops bogged down in China so that the Soviets could concentrate all their forces against the Nazis on the Western front. This cost up to 20 million Chinese lives. Nor is it widely understood that China the first country to end colonial rule as the Allies agreed to give up the Unequal Treaties in 1943. China was to be one of the four founding members of the United Nations and the CPC was present at the occasion.

This example of how the Chinese people, led by a Communist Party, gained liberation in 1949 shone a bright light for colonised people around the world. Its experience of people’s war, revolution and the transformation of rural society was to be the inspiration for national liberation movements in many different countries in the years to come.