Opinion

China’s sixth plenum: four insights from the Communist Party’s 100 years

The history of the Communist Party is important to decode China’s success, which means that to understand China, we must first understand the party

Choosing its own development path and putting people first are among the secrets of the party’s success

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A billboard at the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Centre in Gansu province shows President Xi Jinping with the slogan “Chinese Dream, Space Dream” on October 14. Photo: Kyodo

Liu Guangyuan is Commissioner of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the People's Republic of China in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region.

Published: 2:30pm, 16 Nov 2021Updated: 4:05pm, 16 Nov 2021

On November 11, the 19th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China concluded its sixth plenary session. The plenum, coinciding with the centenary of the founding of the party, is of historic significance to the rejuvenation of the Chinese nation.

Revisiting history helps to shed light on the future. At the plenum, a landmark resolution was passed: the Resolution on the Major Achievements and Historical Experience of the Party over the Past Century.

By reviewing the feats in the Communist Party’s extraordinary journey, the resolution reveals why China was successful in the past and how the country can continue to succeed. It sets the tone for the party to further unite and lead all Chinese people towards realising the second centenary goal of building a fully modernised socialist society, and thus the Chinese dream of national rejuvenation.

The history of the Communist Party is important to decode China’s success, which means that to understand China, we must first understand the party. Here are some insights that other countries and political parties can glean from the party’s 100-year experience.