MembersoftheChinesePeople鈥檚PoliticalConsultativeConferenceNationalCommittee,China鈥檚toppoliticaladvisorybody,observetheopeningmeetingoftheFirstSessionofthe13thNationalPeople鈥檚Congress,thecountry鈥檚toplegislature,inBeijingonMarch5OnMarch4,PresidentXiJinping,alsoGeneralSecretaryoftheCommunistPartyofChina(CPC)CentralCommittee,attendedajointpaneldiscussionwithpoliticaladvisorsfromtheChinaDemocraticLeagueandtheChinaZhiGongParty,thosewithoutpartyaffiliationandthosefromthesectorofreturnedoverseasChinese,whogatheredinBeijingtoattendtheFirstSessionofthe13thNationalCommitteeoftheChinesePeople鈥檚PoliticalConsultativeConference(CPPCC),China鈥檚toppoliticaladvisorybody.
Duringthediscussion,XistressedthatChinamustconsolidateandimprovethesystemofmultipartycooperationandpoliticalconsultationundertheleadershipoftheCPC,andtaptheuniquepotentialofmultipartycooperationtoprovidepracticaladviceandpoolwisdomforadvancingsocialistdemocracy.
Distinctivefeatures
Afternearly69yearsofprogressandreformsinceitsfoundingin1949,thePeople鈥檚RepublicofChinahasdevelopedapoliticalpartysystemunlikeanyother.China鈥檚systemfeaturesmultipartycooperationandpoliticalconsultationundertheleadershipoftheCPC,inwhichtheCPCistherulingpartyandeightnon-communistpoliticalpartiesparticipateinthedeliberationandadministrationofstateaffairs.ThispoliticalpartysystemisdistinctlyChineseinitscharacteristics.
Inestablishingthesystem,Chinahasavoidedusingothercountries鈥檖oliticalpartysystemsasacriteriontorestrictitsowndevelopment,insteaddesigningonespecificallysuitedtoitsownnationalconditions.
WiththeleadershipoftheCPCasaprecondition,thesystemaimstoachieveunityandmutuallyadvantageouscooperation.China鈥檚variouspoliticalpartiesarenotincompetitionoroppositiontooneanother.TheCPChasestablishedamicablerelationswiththenon-communistpartiesovertheirlongyearsofcooperation.China鈥檚newtypeofpoliticalpartysystemavoidsthedefectswhicharisefromalackofdemocraticsupervisionunderone-partyrule,aswellasthepoliticalupheavalcausedbypowerrotationanddestructivecompetitionamongmultipleparties.TheCPC,thenon-communistpartiesandthosewithoutpartyaffiliationhaveformedaharmoniousanddemocraticpoliticalecosystemthrougheffectivecooperationandinteraction.
Thesystemhasabsorbedthefunctionalaspectsofarangeofworldcivilizations,allrichindemocraticvalues,adheringtothewillofthepeoplethroughademocraticdecision-makingmechanism.China鈥檚majorpoliciesanddecisionsarenotmadebyanysinglepoliticalparty,butaretheresultofconsultationanddeliberationbytheCPCandnon-communistpartiestogether.Theypooltheirwisdomtodevelopablueprintforthefutureofthenation,unitingtoproperlyhandlestateaffairs.
TheCPChasprovidedinstitutionalguaranteesforthisnew-typepoliticalpartysystem.AguidelineonfurtherimprovingthesystemofmultipartycooperationandpoliticalconsultationundertheleadershipoftheCPC,publishedbytheCPCCentralCommitteein2005,saidthatCPCcommitteesshouldregardtheworkofsupportingotherpoliticalpartiesinstrengtheningself-constructionasanimportantpoliticalresponsibility.Theguidelinehasprovidedinstitutionalandproceduralconditionsfornon-communistpartiestoperformtheirduties,improvingthedemocraticnatureofmultipartycooperationandgivingfullrangetodemocraticsupervision.
Thepoliticalpartysystemperfectlycombinesboththeoryandpractice.ThetheoryoftheCPC-ledmultipartycooperationandpoliticalconsultationsystemisrootedinthehistoryofmodernChina.
Harmoniousinteraction
China鈥檚politicalpartysystemperfectlycombinesboththeoryandpractice.ThetheoryoftheCPC-ledmultipartycooperationandpoliticalconsultationsystemisrootedinthehistoryofmodernChina,specificallyarisingaftertheOpiumWarsinthe19thcentury.ItwasachoicemadebytheChinesepeopleinthesalvationofthenationthroughthefusionofMarxistpoliticalpartytheoriesandChina鈥檚actualconditions.
China,inthepast,copiedthepoliticalmodelsofothercountriesandfailedintheprocess.Ultimately,thesystemofmultipartycooperationandpoliticalconsultationwaschosenbecauseofitsincorporationofthetheoriesofpeople鈥檚democracy,multipartycooperation,theunitedfrontandthemassline,representingafusionofEasternandWesternpoliticalthoughtaswellasthefruitsofmodernculturalprogress.ChinarespectsthedevelopmentmodelschosenbyothercountriesandhopesinturnthatothercountriescanrespectthepoliticalsystemchosenbytheChinesepeople.
Multipartycooperationandpoliticalconsultationintegrateanumberofelements,includingtheleadershipoftheCPC,theruleoflaw,therunningofthecountrybythepeople,community-leveldemocracyandcivilsociety.TheharmoniousinteractionoftheseelementshasdrivenChina鈥檚socialprogress.
Intheprocessofdevelopingitssystemofmultipartycooperationandpoliticalconsultation,theCPC,non-communistpartiesandpersonageswithoutpartyaffiliationhaveachievedagreatpoliticalinnovation.ThehistoryandachievementsofthePeople鈥檚RepublicofChinahaveproventhatthisnewtypeofpoliticalpartysystemthatintegratestheoryandpracticecanauthenticallyrepresentandrealizethefundamentalinterestsoftheChinesepeopleofallethnicgroups.
TheCPC-ledmultipartycooperationandpoliticalconsultationsystemrespectsthewillofthemajoritywhileupholdingtherightsoftheminority.Underthesystem,allpoliticalpartiesinChinaworktogethertowardthecommongoalofbuildingastrongercountryandrealizingtheprosperityofthepeople.Theyunderstandandcommunicatewitheachothertoeffectivelyavoidcompetition.
Uniquesystem
Chinahasbuiltamorerationalandefficientdecision-makingmechanism.Today,therearetwokindsofdemocracyintheworld-electoralandconsultative.Chinahashighlightedthelatterindecision-making,governanceandsupervision.Differentpartiesworktowardthenationalinterestandpeople鈥檚well-beingintheprocessofconsultationratherthanstrivingfortheinterestsoftheirownmembers.
Chinaneedsanefficientdecision-makingmechanismasithasahugepopulation.Politicalconsultationemphasizestheroleofinstitutionsandrespectforprocedurewhileavoidingthesocialfragmentationcausedbyideologicaldifferencesbetweenpoliticalparties.Politicalconsultationadvocatesdialogueandinclusiveness,andrepresentsanimportantcontributiontothepoliticalcivilizationofhumanity.
TheCPC-ledsystemofmultipartycooperationandpoliticalconsultationisaninnovationuniquetoChina,withitsrootsspanningthevastexpanseofthecountry鈥檚pastandpresent.Benefitingfromachievementsmadeintheprogressofhumanpolitics,itbreaksthepatternofrepetitivepartyalternationandwidensmankind鈥檚vision.China鈥檚newtypeofpoliticalpartysystemprovidesadistinctlyChinesesolutiontomankind鈥檚creationofademocraticandharmoniouspoliticalandsociallife.JiangWei
TheauthorisaresearchfellowatthePartyBuildingBaseofthePartySchooloftheBeijingMunicipalCommitteeoftheCPC