Speech at the Symposium to Commemorate the 120 Anniversary of Comrade Deng Xiaoping's Birth

Xi Jinping

Comrades and friends:
Today, we have a grand gathering here to commemorate the 120 anniversary of the birth of the beloved Comrade Deng Xiaoping.
Comrade Deng Xiaoping is recognized by the whole party, the whole army and the people of all ethnic groups in the country as an outstanding leader with high prestige, a great Marxist, a great proletarian revolutionist, politician, military strategist, diplomat, and a time-tested communist fighter. The core of the second-generation central leadership group, the chief architect of China's socialist reform, opening up and modernization, the pioneer of the road of socialism with Chinese characteristics, and the main founder of Deng Xiaoping Theory, A great internationalist who has made great contributions to world peace and development.
Comrade Deng Xiaoping's life is a glorious life, a life of fighting, and a great life. He has made outstanding contributions to the party, the people, the country, the nation, and the world.
comrade deng xiaoping was born in guang'an county, sichuan province. Facing the deep national disaster of feudal rule corruption, the invasion of Western powers, and the people's hunger and cold, the young Deng Xiaoping actively participated in the mass struggle in his hometown, and then went to Europe for work-study programs, firmly chose Marxism and joined the Communist Party of China.
In 1927, Comrade Deng Xiaoping returned from the Soviet Union to participate in the new democratic revolutionary struggle led by the Party. He successively led the Baise Uprising and the Longzhou Uprising, established the Zuojiang Revolutionary Base, participated in the relevant work of the Central Revolutionary Base, and personally experienced the Long March and the Zunyi Conference. During the War of Resistance against Japan and the War of Liberation, together with Liu Bocheng, Chen Yi and other comrades, he successively opened up the Shanxi-Hebei-Shandong-Henan Anti-Japanese Base area, led his army to leap thousands of miles into the Dabie Mountains, and organized and carried out the Huai-Hai campaign and the campaign of crossing the Yangtze River. to make outstanding contributions to the cause of national independence and people's liberation led by the party and the establishment of New China.
At the beginning of the founding of New China, Comrade Deng Xiaoping served as the main person in charge of the Southwest Bureau of the CPC Central Committee. He and comrades Liu Bocheng and he long led the liberation of the southwest, led the construction of political power, participated in the work of leading the march into Tibet and the peaceful liberation of Tibet, and promoted earth shaking changes in the southwest region.
After July 1952, Comrade Deng Xiaoping served as Secretary General of the CPC Central Committee, member of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee, and vice premier of the government. At the first Plenary session of the eighth CPC Central Committee in 1956, he was elected member of the standing Committee of the political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and general secretary of the CPC Central Committee, and became an important member of the first generation of central collective leadership of the party with Comrade Mao Zedong at the core. In the following 10 years, he was responsible for a large number of daily work of the Party Central Committee, put forward many correct propositions and carried out fruitful work for the establishment of the socialist system and socialist construction, and for strengthening and improving party building. Soon after the start of the "Cultural Revolution", he was wrongly criticized and struggled, and was deprived of all positions. In 1973, he returned to work. In 1975, he began to preside over the daily work of the party, the state, and the army. In order to reverse the serious chaos caused by the "Cultural Revolution," he carried out a comprehensive rectification and fought tit-for-tat against the Gang of four. Soon he was again wrongly dismissed and criticized, but remained committed to communism and socialism.
After the end of the "Cultural Revolution", Comrade Deng Xiaoping, as the core of the party's second-generation central leadership, led the party and the people to successfully create a new era of my country's reform and opening up and socialist modernization, and create socialism with Chinese characteristics.
-- Comrade Deng Xiaoping led the great historical turning point. Shortly after the end of the "Cultural Revolution", Comrade Deng Xiaoping resumed his original position. At the important historical juncture of where the party and the country are going, he emphasized that seeking truth from facts, the mass line, and independence are the essence of Mao Zedong Thought, and he clearly opposed the erroneous view of the "two whats", and led and supported the discussion of the standard of truth. Promote all aspects to set things right, and call on the whole party and the people to unite and look forward. Under his guidance, the Third Plenary Session of the Eleventh Central Committee of the Party re-established the ideological line of emancipating the mind and seeking truth from facts, stopped using the erroneous formulation of "taking class struggle as the key link", and made the transfer of the party and the country's work center to economic construction. The historic decision to implement reform and opening up has achieved a great turning point in the party's history.
-- Comrade Deng Xiaoping promoted the realization of a new leap in the Sinicization of Marxism. He led the whole party to profoundly sum up the positive and negative experiences since the founding of New China, constantly promote theoretical innovation, and put forward many major ideas of pioneering significance. Under his auspices, the Sixth Plenary Session of the Eleventh Central Committee of the Party passed the "Resolution on Certain Historical Issues of the Party Since the Founding of the People's Republic", correctly evaluating the historical status of Comrade Mao Zedong and the scientific system of Mao Zedong Thought, and completely negating the errors of the "Cultural Revolution" Practice and theory, emphasizing the need to adhere to Mao Zedong Thought and develop Mao Zedong Thought, setting the correct direction for the development of the party and the country. At the 12th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, he clearly proposed to "take our own path and build socialism with Chinese characteristics". According to Comrade Deng Xiaoping's thought, the 13th CPC National Congress systematically discussed the theory of the primary stage of socialism and completely summarized the party's basic line in the primary stage of socialism; the 14th CPC National Congress put forward Comrade Deng Xiaoping's theory of building socialism with Chinese characteristics; the 15th CPC National Congress established Deng Xiaoping Theory as the party's guiding ideology. Deng Xiaoping Theory profoundly answers the fundamental question of what socialism is and how to build socialism, profoundly reveals the essence of socialism, and provides an action guide for my country's reform and opening up and socialist modernization. It is the foundation of the theoretical system of socialism with Chinese characteristics.
-- Comrade Deng Xiaoping led the party and the people to open up a new situation in socialist modernization. He clearly put forward the idea of "building a well-off society" and "walking out of a Chinese-style modernization road", and guided our party to formulate a "three-step" development strategy for modernization. He led our party to promptly and decisively carry out structural reforms in all aspects and bravely open the door to the outside world. He proposed that science and technology are the primary productive forces, advocated respect for knowledge and talents, and promoted the development of education, science, and culture. He attached importance to the building of democracy and the legal system, and promoted the reform of the leadership system and institutions of the party and the state. He stressed the need to build the people's army into a powerful, modernized and regularized revolutionary army and take the road of elite troops with Chinese characteristics. He clearly pointed out that peace and development are the two major issues in the contemporary world, and led our party to adjust all aspects of foreign policies in a timely manner, creating a good external environment for reform, opening up and socialist modernization. Under his guidance and promotion, China has opened a new situation from relatively backward productivity to rapid economic development, and people's life has leaped from insufficient food and clothing to overall well-off.
-- Comrade Deng Xiaoping established the correct path for the complete reunification of the motherland. Focusing on the fundamental interests, overall interests and long-term interests of the Chinese nation, he fully considered the history and current situation, creatively put forward the great concept of "one country, two systems", and opened up a new path to realize the complete reunification of the motherland by peaceful means. Under the guidance of this great concept, the Chinese government has successively resumed the exercise of sovereignty over Hong Kong and Macao, washing away the century-old shame of the Chinese nation. In response to the attempt to split China, he stressed that the use of non-peaceful means to resolve the Taiwan issue should not be abandoned and put forward a correct policy for resolving the Taiwan issue. We have strengthened cross-strait economic and cultural exchanges and cooperation, resolutely opposed and contained the "Taiwan independence" separatist forces, and firmly grasped the leadership and initiative in the development of cross-strait relations.
-- Comrade Deng Xiaoping firmly defended the glorious banner of socialism. In the process of reform and opening up, he has always taken a clear-cut stand against bourgeois liberalization. Against the background of the disintegration of the Soviet Union and the drastic changes in Eastern Europe, a serious political storm occurred in China at the turn of spring and summer in 1989. At the critical moment, Comrade Deng Xiaoping led the party and the people to oppose the turmoil with a clear-cut stand and resolutely defend the socialist state power, so that the party and the country withstood the severe test of dangerous winds and waves. After that, he profoundly summed up the experiences and lessons in the process of reform and opening up, and stressed the need to concentrate on party building, strengthen ideological and political work and fine traditional education, so as to improve the party's leadership level and ruling ability, and ensure the stability of the red country. He warned people with a deafening voice: "China's socialism cannot be changed. China will definitely follow the socialist road it has chosen to the end. No one can crush us."
Comrades, friends!
Comrade Deng Xiaoping's historical exploits are all-round and groundbreaking, and their impact on China and the world is profound and long-term. The course of his life's struggle has fully demonstrated his lofty character of incomparably firm belief in the lofty ideals of communism and socialism with Chinese characteristics, his great love for the people, his theoretical quality of always adhering to seeking truth from facts, his political courage to constantly explore and innovate, his far-sighted strategic thinking, and his magnanimous and selfless broad-mindedness. We will always remember his great historical exploits; we will always admire his lofty revolutionary demeanor!
Comrades, friends!
The most important ideological wealth left to us by Comrade Deng Xiaoping is Deng Xiaoping Theory, which was founded by him. Deng Xiaoping Theory is an important milestone in the modernization of Marxism in China. establishing deng xiaoping theory as the guiding ideology of the party and the state is an unshakable conclusion drawn by the party and the people from history and reality.
In the new era and new journey, we must continue to study and apply Deng Xiaoping Theory in depth, and fully and accurately understand its scientific connotation and core meaning. For example, Comrade Deng Xiaoping emphasized that the party's basic line must be managed for a hundred years, and that adherence to economic construction as the center, adherence to the four basic principles, and adherence to reform and opening up must be unified in the entire process of socialist modernization; emancipating the mind means seeking truth from facts and making thinking Conforming with reality, making subjective and objective consistent; deepening the reform of the party and state leadership system is not to change the socialist system and weaken the party's leadership, instead, we should better demonstrate the advantages of the socialist system and strengthen and improve the party's leadership. Democratic centralism is the most convenient and reasonable system. We should vigorously promote inner-party democracy and people's democracy, and at the same time, we should have correct centralization. The whole party should have the core and the Party Central Committee should have authority. Plans and markets are economic means, which can be used as long as they are good for the development of productive forces, at the same time, we should not close our doors and blindly exclude foreigners, but should open up to the outside world; we should encourage some regions and some people to get rich first, and finally realize the common prosperity of all the people. We should not engage in polarization; we should adhere to both material civilization and spiritual civilization, and we should be bold and steady in our reform; the key to running China's affairs well lies in the party. We must grasp reform and opening up on the one hand and punish corruption on the other. These important thoughts and judgments are full of materialist dialectics, embody the overall vision and strategic vision, grasp the main contradictions of things and the main aspects of contradictions, and demonstrate the distinctive style and unique charm of Deng Xiaoping Theory. For these important thoughts and judgments, only by combining the historical background, focusing on the overall grasp, dialectical grasp, knowing the meaning and reason, knowing the reason and knowing the reason, can they be used to guide practice correctly. If one loses sight of the other and is too light and too heavy, it will easily lead to deviations in practice and even make mistakes in principle and direction. Our Party has learned such lessons in history, and we must learn them deeply.
Like the theories of other classic Marxist writers, Deng Xiaoping Theory is used to guide practice for a long time because of its basic principles and the Marxist standpoints and methods that run through it. At all times, we must closely integrate reality and creatively study and apply Deng Xiaoping Theory. We must not only adhere to the major conclusions, basic viewpoints, and correct propositions put forward by Comrade Deng Xiaoping based on the understanding of the laws of socialism, but also be good at correctly grasping the theory based on changing conditions. The essence and essence are used to solve practical problems, so as to adhere to the truth and guide practice without deviation.
The comprehensive promotion of Chinese-style modernization has opened up a broad space for the development of the cause of socialism with Chinese characteristics, and also provided rich soil for the party's theoretical innovation in the new era and new journey. We must always adhere to Marxism-Leninism, Mao Zedong Thought, Deng Xiaoping Theory, the important thinking of the "Three Represents", and the scientific development concept, fully implement the socialist ideology with Chinese characteristics in the new era, and always adhere to the soul of Marxism and the root of Chinese excellent traditional culture. Vein, good at learning from and absorbing all the outstanding achievements of human civilization, constantly exploring the truth, and in-depth research on the practical issues of promoting Chinese-style modernization, deeply answer the questions of China, the world, the people, and the times, continue to promote the modernization of Marxism in China, and let contemporary Chinese Marxism and 21st century Marxism shine with a brighter light of truth!
Comrades, friends!
The best commemoration of Comrade Deng Xiaoping is to continue to advance the cause of socialism with Chinese characteristics initiated by him. We should closely focus on the central task of comprehensively promoting the building of a strong country and the great cause of national rejuvenation with Chinese-style modernization, carry forward the past and forge ahead into the future.
We must persist in innovation and further deepen reform in an all-round way. We must thoroughly implement the spirit of the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China and the Third Plenary Session of the 20th Central Committee, anchor the overall goal of continuing to improve and develop the socialist system with Chinese characteristics, and promote the modernization of the national governance system and governance capabilities. Reforms in all fields and all aspects, resolutely eliminate the ideological concepts and institutional mechanisms that hinder the advancement of Chinese-style modernization, and continue to provide strong impetus and institutional guarantees for Chinese-style modernization. We must adhere to the unity of integrity and innovation, unswervingly change what should be changed, and not change what should not be changed. We should pay more attention to system integration, highlight key points, pay more attention to the actual results of reform, and do a good job in the implementation of reform with the spirit of hammering nails.
We must firmly grasp the primary task of high-quality development and comprehensively promote Chinese-style modernization. We must fully, accurately and comprehensively implement the new development concept, coordinate the promotion of the "five in one" overall layout, and coordinate the promotion of the "four comprehensive" strategic layout. Efforts will be made to build a unified national market, solidly promote new industrialization, informatization, urbanization, and agricultural modernization, comprehensively promote rural revitalization, promote coordinated regional development, and accelerate the construction of a modern economic system. It is necessary to strengthen the support of education, science and technology, and talents, promote high-level scientific and technological self-reliance, and develop new-quality productive forces in accordance with local conditions. It is necessary to vigorously develop advanced socialist culture, firmly follow the path of civilized development of production development, affluent life, and good ecology, and form a good situation in which material civilization and spiritual civilization are coordinated, and man and nature coexist harmoniously.
We should adhere to the people first and promote common prosperity in a down-to-earth manner. We should develop people's democracy in the whole process, build a higher level of rule of law in China, constantly improve the social equity security system with fair rights, fair opportunities and fair rules as the main contents, and fully stimulate the historical initiative and creative spirit of all the people. We must persist in ensuring and improving people's livelihood in development, improve the basic public service system, strive to narrow the urban-rural gap, regional gap, and income gap, and promote the common prosperity of all people to continuously make more obvious and substantial progress.
We should promote a high level of opening up to the outside world and safeguard national sovereignty, security and development interests. We must implement a more proactive opening strategy, optimize the layout of regional opening, steadily expand institutional opening, promote the high-quality development of the "Belt and Road", and continue to expand the breadth and depth of Chinese-style modernization in peaceful development and win-win cooperation. It is necessary to implement the overall national security concept, coordinate opening up and security, and enhance the ability to maintain national security in opening up.
We must unswervingly promote the comprehensive and strict governance of the party and forge a stronger and stronger Marxist ruling party. We must keep in mind that the comprehensive and strict governance of the party is always on the road, and the party's self-revolution is always on the road, always remain sober and firm in rushing to the exam, implement the general requirements of party building in the new era, and deepen the new great project of party building in the new era. Adhere to the party's political construction to lead the party's construction work, improve the comprehensive and strict governance of the party system, resolutely win the anti-corruption struggle and protracted battle, and continuously promote the party's self-purification, self-improvement, self-innovation, and self-improvement to ensure that the party It will never deteriorate, never change color, and will always become the strong leadership core of the cause of socialism with Chinese characteristics.
Comrades, friends!
the people's army is the great wall of steel of the party and the state. We should implement the idea of strengthening the army in the new era, adhere to the party's absolute leadership over the people's army, comprehensively strengthen military governance, further promote the modernization of national defense and the army, achieve the centenary goal of building the army as scheduled, accelerate the building of the people's army into a world-class army, constantly improve the people's army's strategic ability to safeguard national sovereignty, security and development interests, and effectively fulfill the mission and task of the people's army in the new era.
Realizing the complete reunification of the motherland is the long-cherished wish of the older generation of revolutionaries such as Mao Zedong and Deng Xiaoping, the common aspiration of the Chinese people at home and abroad, and an unstoppable historical trend. We should continue to comprehensively, accurately and unswervingly implement the principles of "one country, two systems", "Hong Kong people ruling Hong Kong", "Macao people ruling Macao" and a high degree of autonomy, and support and promote Hong Kong and Macao to further integrate into the overall situation of national development and achieve better development. We must unswervingly implement the party's overall strategy for resolving the Taiwan issue in the new era, adhere to the one-China principle and the "92 Consensus", promote the peaceful development of cross-strait relations, and unswervingly oppose "Taiwan independence" and defend national sovereignty and territorial integrity. Any forces and acts that split the motherland and any foreign interference that undermines the process of China's reunification are bound to be dealt a head-on blow by the Chinese people!
China is a staunch force for world peace. We must always hold high the banner of peace, development, cooperation, and win-win, promote the building of a community with a shared future for mankind, promote the common values of all mankind, implement the Global Development Initiative, the Global Security Initiative, and the Global Civilization Initiative, and actively participate in the reform and construction of the global governance system. The new progress of Chinese-style modernization provides new opportunities for the world.
Comrades, friends!
Since the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, everything we have done has been to fulfill the original mission of the party, to complete the unfinished cause of the older generation of revolutionaries such as Mao Zedong and Deng Xiaoping, and to adhere to and develop socialism with Chinese characteristics under the conditions of the new era. With the continuous advancement of the times and the continuous development of the cause, theoretical innovation and practical innovation cannot be stopped for a moment. Comrade Deng Xiaoping said: "China should have something new every year and something new every day". It is the solemn historical responsibility of contemporary Chinese Communists to constantly open up a new realm of Sinicization of Marxism. In the new era and new journey, we must adhere to integrity and innovation, never forget our ancestors, always follow the right path, be good at breaking new paths, let the tree of theory and career be evergreen, and continue to comfort the older generation with new deeds and new achievements. Revolutionaries.
Comrades, friends!
At this moment, I think of two paragraphs that Comrade Deng Xiaoping said: First, "By the next 50 years, if we basically achieve modernization, then we can further assert the success of socialism". The second is that "by the middle of the next century, it will be a major change to be able to approach the level of the developed countries of the world. By then, the weight and role of socialist China will be different, and we will be able to make a greater contribution to mankind".
At present, it is only more than 10 years to achieve the basic modernization goal we have set, and it is only more than 20 years to achieve our goal of building a modern socialist power in an all-round way. Time does not wait for me, it is inspiring. We must hold high the great banner of socialism with Chinese characteristics, gather the majestic strength of hundreds of millions of people, never forget our original aspirations, keep our mission in mind, forge ahead, work in unity, and continue to write a magnificent chapter in comprehensively promoting the building of a powerful country and the great cause of national rejuvenation with Chinese-style modernization. Make new and greater contributions to the noble cause of human peace and development!

Source: "Learning Power" Learning Platform