Study Times - July 1, 2026

Important Remarks

For 105 years, our Party has united and led the Chinese people of all ethnic groups in unremitting struggle, creating great achievements worthy of history and the people. Now, we are striding forward on the new journey of comprehensively building a modern socialist country. We must work with one heart and one mind to walk the new Long March, open up an even brighter future, and continuously satisfy the people's yearning for a better life.

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The great founding spirit of the Party is the spiritual source of the Communist Party of China.

By: 中央党史和文献研究院院务会理论学习中心组

The long river of history rolls forward, and there are always some spiritual coordinates that transcend time and space, illuminating the path forward for a political party, a country, and a nation. General Secretary Xi Jinping profoundly pointed out at the ceremony marking the centenary of the Communist Party of China: "A hundred years ago, the pioneers of the Communist Party of China founded the Communist Party of China, forming the great founding spirit of the Party, which is characterized by upholding truth and ideals, staying true to the original aspiration and founding mission, fighting bravely without fear of sacrifice, and remaining loyal to the Party and faithful to the people. This is the spiritual source of the Communist Party of China." This major judgment, based on the century-long changes and tracing back to the spiritual origin, profoundly reveals the genetic code of the spiritual lineage of Chinese Communists.

Since the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, the Party Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core has, centering on the major epochal课题 of what kind of long-term Marxist governing party to build and how to build a long-term Marxist governing party, put forward a series of new concepts, new ideas, and new strategies, forming Xi Jinping's thought on Party building, achieving a new leap in the Sinicization and modernization of Marxist Party-building theory, and providing fundamental guidance for understanding the great founding spirit of the Party and carrying forward the spiritual lineage of Chinese Communists. Currently, our Party is celebrating its 105th anniversary. "Carrying forward the spiritual lineage of Chinese Communists, with the great founding spirit of the Party as its source," is not only an echo of history but also a political declaration for the new era.

Forging the Soul of the Spirit in the Great Struggle for National Salvation in Modern Times

The great founding spirit of the Party is the inevitable product of the unity of the historical logic, theoretical logic, and practical logic of modern China. It is the spiritual signpost of the combination of the basic tenets of Marxism with China's specific realities and with the fine traditional Chinese culture. It is the concentrated embodiment of the spiritual awakening achieved by advanced Chinese people through arduous exploration at the critical moment of national peril.

Looking back at modern times, the cannon fire of the Opium War dragged ancient China into the abyss of a semi-colonial and semi-feudal society. "The country endured humiliation, the people suffered, and the civilization was tarnished" became the heaviest footnote of that era. To save the nation from peril, countless people with lofty ideals stepped forward one after another to explore the path of national salvation: the Westernization Movement only focused on learning from the West at the level of implements and did not touch the foundation of the feudal system; the Hundred Days' Reform initiated by the bourgeois reformists lasted only 103 days before failing, proving that the reformist path was unworkable in modern China; the Revolution of 1911 overthrew the autocratic monarchy that had lasted for more than two thousand years, but because it failed to put forward a thorough anti-imperialist and anti-feudal program and failed to mobilize the broad masses, it did not complete the historical task of achieving national independence and people's liberation, and failed to change the semi-colonial and semi-feudal nature of Chinese society. Various plans for national salvation hit one dead end after another under the dual oppression of imperialism and feudalism. This deep predicament of "all roads being blocked" constituted the historical prerequisite for the birth of the great founding spirit of the Party and also raised the question of the times: the need to find a completely new path for national salvation.

In the darkest moment of the long night, the salvo of the October Revolution brought Marxism-Leninism to China — this truth that scientifically reveals the laws of human social development and represents the fundamental interests of the broadest masses of the people, pointing a completely new direction for a hesitant China. Li Dazhao was the first to raise the torch of truth in the Red Building of Peking University. When Chen Wangdao translated the first complete Chinese version of the Communist Manifesto in a thatched hut, he tasted the "very sweet flavor of truth." Starting in 1920, early Communist organizations were successively established in Shanghai, Beijing, Wuhan, Changsha, and other places. The pioneers did not mechanically copy theoretical dogmas but sowed the truth of Marxism among the workers, promoting the deep integration of Marxism with the Chinese workers' movement, completing the great leap from elite enlightenment to mass awakening. This was the early practice of the "two combinations," which not only adhered to the Marxist stance, viewpoint, and method but also was based on the basic national conditions of a semi-colonial and semi-feudal society, transforming abstract theory into an action program of "down with the imperialists and warlords," concretizing the lofty ideal of communism into the struggle coordinate of "transforming China and the world," turning Marxism from a doctrine in the study into a sharp weapon guiding the practice of the Chinese revolution, and solidifying the theoretical foundation of the great founding spirit of the Party from the depths of thought.

In July 1921, the First National Congress of the Communist Party of China was successfully convened, solemnly proclaiming the birth of the Communist Party of China. This "epoch-making event" completely changed the direction and process of the development of the Chinese nation in modern times: from then on, the resistance struggle of the Chinese people had a strong leading core, the Chinese revolution had a scientific guiding ideology, and the exploration of China's path had a clear direction forward. The process of founding the Communist Party of China established the Party's organization in practice and formed the great founding spirit of the Party in spirit, becoming the spiritual source of the Communist Party of China. The founding of the Communist Party of China and the formation of the great founding spirit marked the transition of the Chinese people from passivity to initiative in spirit, opening a new chapter in reshaping the national spirit and realizing national rejuvenation.

Revealing the Essence of the Spirit in the Core Essence of the Great Founding Spirit of the Party

Although the great founding spirit of the Party consists of only 32 characters, it is a systematic integration of the Party's nature, purpose, ideals, beliefs, original aspiration, mission, will, and character. It is the core coordinate of the spiritual lineage of Chinese Communists, providing the fundamental spiritual key to understanding "why the Communist Party of China can."

"Upholding truth and ideals" illuminates the political soul of Communists. General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out: "Marxism is the fundamental guiding ideology for building our Party and our country, and it is the soul and banner of our Party." This judgment fundamentally establishes the cornerstone status of truth and ideals. Looking back at history, from the pioneers' resolute choice of Marxism to the continuous promotion of the "two combinations," from Mao Zedong Thought to Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, every theoretical leap is a vivid practice of "upholding truth." This persistence is by no means rigid adherence to dogma, but rather using theory as a "thought guide" for transforming China. In the early days of the Party's founding, facing the doubt of "how long can the red flag fly," Mao Zedong wrote A Single Spark Can Start a Prairie Fire. It was precisely by believing in the truth that the Party corrected its course in the midst of storms and saw through the fog in the darkest moments.

"Staying true to the original aspiration and founding mission" clarifies the struggle theme of Communists. General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out: "From the very day of its founding, the Communist Party of China made seeking happiness for the Chinese people and rejuvenation for the Chinese nation its original aspiration and mission. All the struggles, sacrifices, and creations the Communist Party of China has undertaken for the past hundred years have been united under one theme: the realization of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation." Seeking happiness for the people is the value foundation of national rejuvenation, and seeking rejuvenation for the nation is the clear main line of the Party's century-long history. These two were forged into an inseparable organic whole at the very beginning of the Party's founding, becoming the Party's "spiritual ballast." From overthrowing the "three big mountains" and creating fundamental social conditions for national rejuvenation, to establishing the basic socialist system and laying the fundamental political prerequisite and institutional foundation, to reform and opening up to liberate and develop social productive forces and provide institutional guarantees and material conditions, and finally to comprehensively advancing the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation through Chinese-style modernization in the new era, all of the Party's struggles have revolved around this theme. This struggle theme constitutes the core anchor point of the great founding spirit of the Party, endowing it with a profound national character and historical responsibility.

"Fighting bravely without fear of sacrifice" demonstrates the tenacious will of Communists. General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized: "Daring to struggle and daring to win are the invincible spiritual strength of the Communist Party of China." This judgment profoundly reveals the logic of the transformation of spiritual strength into practical momentum. This spirit of struggle is by no means blind adventurism, but rather a strategic sobriety based on a profound insight into the laws of social development. From the hail of bullets in revolutionary wars, to the arduous exploration during the construction period, to the irresistible momentum of reform and tackling tough issues, the Party has always used tenacious struggle to resolve risks and gain the initiative. Together with the unity of purpose demonstrated in practices such as flood fighting, earthquake relief, and epidemic response, this collectively confirms the winning path of "daring to struggle" and demonstrates the Party's iron will.

"Remaining loyal to the Party and faithful to the people" embodies the distinctive character of Communists. General Secretary Xi Jinping has repeatedly emphasized that "the country is the people, and the people are the country. As we have fought to establish and consolidate our leadership over the country, we have in fact been fighting to earn and keep the people's support." This fundamentally defines the Party's political attribute: the Party has no special interests of its own apart from the interests of the working class and the broadest masses of the people. This purity determines that loyalty is not an attachment to individuals or small circles, but a faithful representation of the people's will, ultimately crystallizing into the lofty sentiment of "I will serve the people with total devotion and live up to their expectations." From Fang Zhimin's declaration that "the enemy can only cut off our heads, but can never shake our faith," to the millions of village officials stationed in villages on the front line of poverty alleviation in the new era, the Party has always used action to interpret the dialectical unity of loyalty and serving the people. This is the core code for the Party to win the people's hearts and stand firm through a century of storms.

These four dimensions each have their own emphasis yet form an integrated whole, collectively constituting the spiritual gene map of Chinese Communists: they both mark the spiritual origin of "where the Party came from" and anchor the forward course of "where the Party is going." They are the spiritual main line running through the century-long struggle, laying a solid foundation for the Party's spiritual edifice.

Continuing the Spiritual Vein in the Magnificent Course of a Century of Struggle

Where history begins, the spirit grows. The Communist Party of China's struggle of more than a century is not only a magnificent history of practical creation but also a stirring history of spiritual forging. The great founding spirit of the Party, as the "source of spirit," possesses strong openness and generativity. It has adapted to events, advanced with the times, and innovated according to circumstances in different historical periods, giving rise to a flourishing spiritual lineage.

During the period of the New Democratic Revolution, the Party faced the main task of opposing imperialism, feudalism, and bureaucratic capitalism, striving for national independence and people's liberation, and creating fundamental social conditions for realizing the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation. The great founding spirit of the Party was concentratedly embodied in the iron will of "fighting with blood and unyielding spirit." Mao Zedong pointed out: "This army has an indomitable spirit; it must overwhelm all enemies and never be overwhelmed by them." This is a vivid portrayal of the spiritual outlook of Communists during this period. The soldiers and civilians in the Jinggang Mountains, despite lacking clothing and food, still held fast to the spark of "armed independent regimes of workers and peasants." The Red Army crossed nearly a hundred rivers and climbed over forty perilous peaks to complete the epic of the Long March. The lamplight in the Yan'an cave dwellings illuminated the ideological line of seeking truth from facts. These practices fully prove that the great founding spirit of the Party ran through the entire process of the revolutionary struggle, guiding the Party to withstand tests of life and death. Looking back on these years of hardship and glory, we can more deeply appreciate that "red political power did not come easily, the new China did not come easily, and socialism with Chinese characteristics did not come easily."

During the period of socialist revolution and construction, the Party faced the main task of realizing the transition from New Democracy to socialism, carrying out socialist revolution, advancing socialist construction, and laying the fundamental political prerequisite and institutional foundation for realizing the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation. The great founding spirit of the Party was tempered into the heroic spirit of "self-reliance and hard work." Mao Zedong emphasized: "We must maintain the same drive, the same revolutionary enthusiasm, and the same desperate spirit we had during the revolutionary war years, and carry the revolutionary work through to the end." Facing the tight blockade of imperialism and a poor and blank foundation, scientists like Qian Xuesen and Guo Yonghuai worked in anonymity to forge the great national weapons of the "two bombs and one satellite." The Daqing oil battle removed the label of "oil-poor country." The people of Linxian County, with ropes tied around their waists, chiseled the 1,500-kilometer "artificial river" Red Flag Canal on the cliffs of the Taihang Mountains. These spiritual monuments confirm the profound judgment that "socialism is built, achieved, and earned with blood and sweat."

During the new period of reform, opening up, and socialist modernization, the Party faced the main task of continuing to explore the correct path for building socialism in China, liberating and developing social productive forces, lifting people out of poverty and enabling them to become prosperous as soon as possible, and providing a new and vibrant institutional guarantee and rapid material conditions for realizing the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation. The great founding spirit of the Party burst forth as the pioneering courage of "emancipating the mind and forging ahead with enterprise." Deng Xiaoping advocated "carrying forward the spirit of revolution and desperate struggle, the spirit of strict discipline and self-sacrifice, the spirit of selflessness and putting others before oneself, the spirit of overwhelming all enemies and all difficulties, and the spirit of adhering to revolutionary optimism and overcoming all difficulties to win victory." The 18 red handprints of Xiaogang Village in Anhui pulled back the curtain on rural reform. The "first blast of the mountain-opening cannon" at Shekou in Shenzhen sounded the spring thunder of reform and opening up. From the daring experimentation of special economic zones, to the iron will of "vowing to live and die with the dike" during the 1998 flood fighting, to the major breakthroughs in the manned space program, the spiritual lineage was endowed with new connotations of innovation and collaboration in peacetime. These great practices fully confirm that "reform and opening up was a great awakening of our Party, and it was this great awakening that gave birth to our Party's great creation from theory to practice."

As socialism with Chinese characteristics enters a new era, the Party faces the main task of achieving the First Centenary Goal, embarking on the new journey towards the Second Centenary Goal, and continuing to advance towards the goal of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation. The great founding spirit of the Party has been sublimated into the enterprising posture of "confidence and self-reliance, upholding fundamental principles and breaking new ground." General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized: "We must educate and guide the whole Party to vigorously carry forward the red tradition, inherit the red genes, continue the spiritual lineage of Communists, always maintain the fearless struggle spirit of revolutionaries, and muster the spirit and drive to embark on a new journey and forge ahead in the new era." Facing the sudden outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, at the command of the Party Central Committee, millions of medical personnel donned white armor and marched in the opposite direction. To realize the millennia-old dream of moderate prosperity, 255,000 village-based work teams and over 3 million First Secretaries and village officials were stationed deep in the mountains, and nearly 100 million rural poor were lifted out of poverty. These monuments of the new era fully prove that the great founding spirit of the Party still possesses strong vitality in the 21st century and is a powerful driving force for forging ahead on the new journey.

Demonstrating the Power of the Spirit in Advancing the Great Cause of Rejuvenation through Chinese-style Modernization

History flows endlessly, and the spirit is passed down from generation to generation. Currently, we are in a critical period of comprehensively advancing the building of a strong country and the great cause of national rejuvenation through Chinese-style modernization. The world is undergoing a century of accelerated changes, with development opportunities coexisting with risks and challenges. Carrying forward the great founding spirit of the Party cannot stop at historical narrative; it must be integrated into the practice of national governance and condensed into a powerful force for overcoming difficulties.

Illuminate the new journey with the light of truth, enhancing the theoretical initiative to transform the world. "Upholding truth and ideals" is the soul of the great founding spirit of the Party. On the new journey, the external environment is complex and severe, with various risks and challenges overlapping, making the extreme importance of scientific theoretical guidance even more prominent. We must make studying, understanding, and implementing Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era the primary political task, grasp the worldview and methodology of this thought, adhere to and apply the stance, viewpoint, and method that run through it, consolidate the foundation of faith, replenish the calcium of the spirit, transform the Party's innovative theory into a powerful force for strengthening ideals, tempering Party spirit, and guiding practice, maintain strategic focus amidst complex changes, and ensure that the construction of Chinese-style modernization always advances in the right direction.

Forge ahead on the new journey with the original aspiration and mission, cultivating a deep-seated sentiment of governing for the people. Currently, the study and education on establishing and practicing a correct view of political achievements being carried out across the Party is essentially a practical starting point in the new era for questioning the original aspiration and calibrating the mission. Its core is to guide Party cadres to correct the fundamental stance of "for whom, relying on whom, and who I am," and to discard deviations in the view of political achievements rooted in utilitarianism and pragmatism from the ideological root. On the new journey, the most fundamental way to cultivate a deep-seated sentiment for the people is to run the people-centered development philosophy through the entire process of national governance. When planning work, we must always take improving people's well-being and responding to the people's aspiration for a better life as the primary criterion. We must focus on solving problems of unbalanced and inadequate development and responding to the people's urgent concerns, while also taking a long-term view, calculating the big picture and long-term accounts, solidly advancing common prosperity, promoting people's all-round development and social fairness and justice, and ensuring that the fruits of modernization benefit all the people more and more fairly.

Advance on the new journey with tenacious struggle, forging the winning ability to break through difficult situations. General Secretary Xi Jinping profoundly pointed out: "The great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation is by no means something that can be achieved easily, with a mere clap of hands or a beat of drums." Currently, the adverse currents of unilateralism and protectionism are surging, the problem of "bottleneck" in key core technologies is prominent, and deep-seated domestic interest contradictions are intertwined. These are the "Loushan Pass" and "Lazikou" that cannot be avoided or bypassed. We must discard illusions and be brave in struggle, take the initiative in the face of opportunities, rise to the challenge in the face of difficulties, step forward in the face of risks, enhance our ability to struggle, pay attention to strategic methods, rely on the tenacity of "treading the uneven road to become a broad avenue," open up new horizons for our cause through tenacious struggle, and turn the grand blueprint into a beautiful reality.

Escort the new journey with absolute loyalty, consolidating rock-solid political steadfastness. On the new journey, facing the treacherous international situation and the arduous and heavy tasks of reform, development, and maintaining stability, we must regard loyalty to the Party as the primary political quality. This loyalty is not only an extension of simple feelings for the Party but also stems from a rational consciousness of the belief in Marxism and the conviction in socialism with Chinese characteristics. We must deeply understand the decisive significance of the "Two Establishments," enhance the "Four Consciousnesses," strengthen the "Four Confidences," and achieve the "Two Upholds." We must continuously improve our political judgment, political understanding, and political execution ability, always highly unify being responsible to the Party with being responsible to the people, take the people's heart as our own heart, and implement loyalty to the Party and the people in concrete actions, ensuring that the Party always remains the most reliable backbone of the people when storms come.

From Shikumen to Tiananmen, from Xingye Road to Fuxing Road, from a small red boat to a mighty giant ship, under the guidance of the great founding spirit of the Party, the Party has led the people to achieve a great leap from standing up and growing prosperous to becoming strong. Today, the grand blueprint of the "15th Five-Year Plan" is unfolding, and the Long March of the new era extends beneath our feet. To deeply advance the great new project of Party building in the new era, we must take Xi Jinping's thought on Party building as the fundamental guidance, and transform the great founding spirit of the Party, this source of spirit, into a mighty force for managing, governing, strengthening, and prospering the Party. Let us unite more closely around the Party Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core, deeply study and meticulously comprehend Xi Jinping's thought on Party building, forge the great founding spirit of the Party into our souls and run it through our practice, deeply advance the great new project of Party building in the new era, draw strength from looking back at history, and deliver an excellent answer sheet that stands the test of history and the people in the great examination of the times.

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The Great Personality Power of the Communist Party of China

By: 李庆刚

For 105 years, the Communist Party of China has always taken seeking happiness for the Chinese people and rejuvenation for the Chinese nation as its original aspiration and mission, leading revolution, construction, and reform forward with perseverance. The Chinese nation has achieved a great leap from standing up, to growing rich, to becoming strong, and the realization of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation has entered an irreversible historical process. Along this journey, generations of Chinese Communists have vividly demonstrated their sincere devotion, lofty sentiments, and strong moral character in their selfless dedication to the motherland and the people, manifesting great personality power. General Secretary Xi Jinping has pointed out: “Our Party, as a Marxist ruling party, must possess not only powerful truth force but also powerful personality force; truth force is concentratedly embodied in our Party’s correct theory, while personality force is concentratedly embodied in our Party’s fine work style.” In the first year of the 15th Five-Year Plan period, and at the critical juncture of comprehensively advancing the construction of a strong country and the great cause of national rejuvenation through Chinese-style modernization, Communists of the new era must all the more bear in mind their original aspiration and mission, charge forward, strive and dedicate themselves, and use great personality force to unite the Party and the people, injecting a powerful spiritual impetus into basically realizing socialist modernization.

Ideals and convictions are the foundation and soul of personality power.

The ideals and convictions of Chinese Communists are established on a profound understanding of Marxism and on a deep grasp of the laws of history. Under the guidance of the Marxist worldview, Chinese Communists have consciously set the realization of socialism and communism as their lofty ideals and goals. In 1936, when talking with Edgar Snow, Mao Zedong mentioned that once he accepted Marxism as the correct interpretation of history, his faith in Marxism never wavered. He also pointed out that when every Communist Party member joins the Party, there hangs before his mind the clear goal of “struggling for socialism and communism.” When establishing his communist faith, Zhou Enlai said: “The doctrine I recognize will certainly not change, and I am very resolute in wanting to propagate and run for it.” These solemn vows manifest the steadfastness and sincerity of Communists towards scientific truth.

The path of struggling for faith has never been a smooth one; it is full of thorns and may at any time cost blood and life. According to incomplete statistics, from March 1927 to the first half of 1928, more than 26,000 Communist Party members were killed by the Kuomintang reactionaries, including Wang Shouhua, Xiao Chunü, Xiong Xiong, Chen Yannian, Zhao Shiyan, Xia Minghan, Guo Liang, Luo Yinong, Xiang Jingyu, Chen Qiaonian, Zhou Wenyong, and others who heroically sacrificed. Before his execution, Xia Minghan wrote a stirring martyrdom poem: “Beheading is nothing, as long as the doctrine is true. If Xia Minghan is killed, there will be later generations.” This showed the absolute loyalty of Communists to their faith. In the revolutionary years, Mao Zedong’s family sacrificed six members for the revolution; Xu Haidong’s family sacrificed more than 70; among He Long’s He clan relatives, there are 2050 known martyrs. Deng Xiaoping profoundly pointed out: “Why were we able to struggle and overcome countless difficulties and dangers to win victory in the revolution in the past? It is because we had ideals, Marxist beliefs, and communist beliefs.” General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized: “Revolutionary ideals are higher than heaven. The reason the Communist Party of China is called the Communist Party is precisely because from the day of its founding, our Party established communism as its lofty ideal.” The Party’s history has powerfully proven that firm ideals and convictions and adherence to the spiritual pursuit of Communists have always been the foundation on which Communists live and build their lives. Faith in Marxism, belief in socialism and communism, are the political soul of Communists and the spiritual pillar that can withstand any test.

Whether a Party member has ideals and convictions depends crucially on whether he is loyal to the Party. Along our Party’s journey, it has endured countless perils and hardships, but no difficulty has crushed us, and no enemy has defeated us, precisely because of the loyalty of millions of Party members. Loyalty to the Party is not abstract but concrete, not conditional but unconditional; it must be embodied in loyalty to the Party’s faith, loyalty to Party organizations, and loyalty to the Party’s theory, line, principles, and policies. During the revolutionary war years, countless Communists, facing the enemy’s blade, shouted “Long live the Communist Party of China,” with righteous indignation, looking upon death as going home. In the period of peaceful construction, countless Communists charged forward, worked hard, and kept in mind and put into action their loyalty and love for the Party and the people. Lei Feng said: “I have only one mind; I am single-heartedly toward the Party, toward socialism, toward communism.” Gu Wenchang said: “I am a person who has gone through many pitfalls, but I have always been steadfast; at any time, I must believe in the Party and believe in Party organizations.” Gu Wenchang had “three fears” in his life: first, fear that the Party’s cause would not be done well; second, fear that the Party’s image would be damaged; third, fear that as a Party member he would be cursed by the common people. It is precisely millions of Communists like them, cherishing lofty ideals, sharing the Party’s worries, daring to bear hardship, difficulty, heavy burdens, and danger, who have interpreted loyalty to the Party and the most simple yet most substantial personality power of Communists with practical actions.

Great personality power is fundamentally rooted in taking truth as the soul, strengthening the foundation with faith, and consolidating the foundation with practice. When Party cadres and members have firm ideals and convictions, their standpoint is higher, their hearts are more open, and they can adhere to the correct political direction, achieving “unshakable as a mountain in wind and rain.” The new era ushers in new great endeavors; new thought guides the new journey. Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era is the Marxism of contemporary China and Marxism of the 21st century. It not only contains the important thought of the Party governing the country but also runs through the political character, value pursuit, spiritual realm, and conduct integrity requirements of Chinese Communists. Communists in the new era must tirelessly use Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era to consolidate the soul, adhere to the integration of learning, thinking, and application, and the unity of knowledge, belief, and action, consciously transforming the Party’s innovative theory into a powerful ideological weapon for transforming the subjective and objective worlds, and into a powerful force for strengthening ideals, tempering loyalty, guiding practice, and promoting work, continuously opening up new prospects for the development of the cause.

Fine work style is the concentrated manifestation of personality power.

The personality power of Communists is not abstract moral preaching but concrete practical force; it means that what is demanded of the masses must first be done by oneself, influencing and driving people through exemplary actions. Fine work styles such as integrating theory with practice, maintaining close ties with the masses, and engaging in criticism and self-criticism are externalized through the words and deeds of Communists into a real force perceptible to everyone.

Integrating theory with practice and seeking truth from facts are the fundamental viewpoints of Marxism and the Party’s basic methods of thought, work, and leadership. Communists must grasp objective laws and carry out work while recognizing and following the laws. During the Daqing oil battle, Wang Jinxi organized workers to study On Practice and On Contradiction, using dialectical materialism to analyze and solve construction problems, blazing China’s own path of oil field development. In combating sand in Lankao, Jiao Yulu summarized effective methods: “Turning over silt to press sand yields immediate results; growing grass to seal sand is effective within the year; afforestation to prevent sand is a long-term plan; if all three measures are taken together, the effect is good.” These examples show that true Communists never aim too high but overcome difficulties and undertake endeavors by grasping laws.

The core of work style construction is maintaining the Party’s flesh-and-blood ties with the masses. Whether the Party can maintain these ties determines the success or failure of the Party’s cause. The story of “Half a Quilt” (半条被子) during the Long March of the Red Army is a vivid illustration. General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out: “When the Red Army itself lacked food and clothing and was at a critical moment of life and death, it still had the warmth and cold of the common people in its heart,” and “The feeling between us Communists and the common people is the feeling of sharing a quilt.” This genuine sentiment is a true portrayal of the Party and the people sharing hardships and life-and-death trials together. It is precisely this daily relationship of sharing hardships that forged the key force of sharing life and death, becoming the fundamental guarantee for the Long March’s victory and the Party’s overcoming of all difficulties. As the “chief steward” of the Chinese people, Zhou Enlai won the people’s love with his selfless and impartial sentiment for the people and his public servant spirit of bending his back to the task (jū gōng jìn cuì - “bow and exhaust one’s strength,” to work with utter devotion). He said: “We come from the people; our past victories were all achieved with the people’s support; we cannot forget our roots.” This “root” is the people. Whoever puts the people in his heart, the people will lift him high. Maintaining close ties with the masses is the Party’s greatest political advantage; being divorced from the masses is the greatest danger after the Party assumes governance. Chinese-style modernization is the cause of hundreds of millions of people. Communists must charge forward, forget themselves in dedication, rely closely on the people, and gather the wisdom of all the people, only then can they continuously advance Chinese-style modernization.

Criticism and self-criticism are a distinctive sign distinguishing the Party from other political parties, a basic method for resolving contradictions within the Party, upholding truth, correcting errors, and a powerful weapon for clearing away political dust. The greatness of the Party lies not in never making mistakes, but in never concealing its ailments and fearing treatment, daring to face problems and engage in self-reform. The Yan’an Rectification Movement thoroughly liquidated “left” and right errors through criticism and self-criticism, and the Party style took on a new look. Mao Zedong pointed out: “As long as our Party’s style is completely correct, the people of the whole country will learn from us” and “it will influence the entire nation,” and “any strong enemy can be knocked down by us.” The facts were exactly so. Carrying out criticism and self-criticism achieved the goal of extracting combat effectiveness from work style, providing a strong guarantee for the victory of the War of Resistance against Japan. General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized that criticism and self-criticism are a sharp weapon for ideological struggle within the Party and also an effective method for leading cadres to manage themselves well. Party members, cadres, and especially leading cadres must put themselves into it, put their responsibilities into it, and put their work into it, conduct Party-nature analysis against the problems examined, earnestly carry out criticism and self-criticism, so as to see the persons, see the matters, and see the thoughts, focusing on solving problems from the ideological root.

Hard struggle is the Party’s political essence and glorious tradition. “Hardship and difficulty, jade you into success” (jiān nán kùn kǔ, yù rǔ yú chéng - “hardship and difficulty, jade you into success,” adversity makes one stronger) was a saying Mao Zedong often used. He emphasized that hard struggle is “the style of every Communist Party member, every revolutionary.” Outstanding Party members such as Jiao Yulu, Wang Jinxi, Lei Feng, Gu Wenchang, and Yang Shanzhou all embody the spirit of hard struggle. Hard struggle and integrity are two sides of the same coin. When Gu Wenchang served as Party secretary of Dongshan County, if his family took a little extra dish from the canteen or watched a movie without buying a ticket, he demanded they immediately make up the cost, never “sponging off public property.” General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out: “To grasp the improvement of work style, all aspects are important, but the most fundamental is to uphold and promote the spirit of hard struggle.” Frugality, simplicity, and abstaining from extravagance are the Party’s heirloom. Party cadres in the new era should purify their original aspirations through hard struggle, guard their true colors with integrity, and ensure that every political achievement can withstand the test of sunlight and the scrutiny of the people.

Daring to take responsibility is the touchstone of personality power.

Since ancient times, the Chinese nation has had a fine tradition of daring to take responsibility, and the Communist Party of China is even more a Marxist political party with a spirit of responsibility. From the day of its birth, the Party has consciously shouldered the historical responsibility of achieving national independence, people’s liberation, national prosperity, and people’s happiness. One of the Party’s founders, Li Dazhao, called out: “The rise and fall of the nation is the responsibility of every individual,” and “The youth of the new Chinese nation should soar and leap forward to shoulder this great responsibility.” He bore the heavy burden on iron shoulders (tiě jiān dān dào yì - “with iron shoulders bear moral duty,” to undertake a heavy responsibility) and wrote fine articles with his skillful hand. Under his influence, Mao Zedong, Cai Hesen, and others initiated the organization of the Xinmin Society (新民学会), “pointing at the landscape, stirring up words and phrases, counting the lords of ten thousand households as nothing.” Mao Zedong exclaimed: “The world is our world. The country is our country. Society is our society. If we do not speak, who will? If we do not act, who will?” This demonstrated a strong sense of responsibility.

The sense of responsibility of Chinese Communists is first manifested in daring to step forward at critical moments. After the Nanchang Uprising in 1927, when the army was defeated on its way south, morale was low and on the verge of disintegration; Zhu De, who was not a core leader of the uprising, resolutely stood up and shouldered the heavy responsibility of leading the troops out of difficulties. Without Zhu De stepping forward, there would have been no subsequent meeting of the Zhu-Mao Red Army, and the Party’s history would have been rewritten. Chen Yi later pointed out: “Commander-in-Chief Zhu De, in the darkest days, when the masses’ morale was as low as zero and they were disheartened, pointed out a bright future and increased the people’s revolutionary faith; this is the greatness of the Commander-in-Chief.” Zhu De’s greatness came from the strong personality power manifested by his daring to take responsibility. Responsibility is also manifested in daring to offer advice on major issues. At the beginning of 1948, regarding the “left” errors that emerged in land reform, Xi Zhongxun proposed the opinion of formulating policies that distinguished between old, semi-old, and new liberated areas, which was affirmed by the Party Central Committee and Mao Zedong. In the same year, Su Yu received three orders to lead his troops across the Yangtze River, but after careful analysis, he suggested to the Party Central Committee that the strategic deployment be adjusted and the action be delayed; his suggestion was finally adopted, earning him “first merit” for the victory of the Huaihai Campaign. Responsibility is further manifested in daring to confront difficulties head-on. When Deng Xiaoping resumed his post in 1977 at the age of 73, he said: “When coming out to work, there are two possible attitudes: one is to be an official, the other is to do some work. I think, who told you to be a Communist Party member? Since you are, you cannot be an official, you cannot have selfish thoughts, you cannot have any other choice; you must honestly fulfill the responsibilities of a Party member.” Starting from the field of education, he dared to tackle tough issues, made a decisive decision, and restored the college entrance examination that had been suspended for ten years, changing the fate of countless people.

“Daring to take responsibility” and “daring to struggle” mutually support each other and are inherently unified, jointly forming the spiritual core of Communists in overcoming difficulties. General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out: “Responsibility and struggle are a spirit; what is most needed is the quality of selflessness and the courage of fearlessness.” The selfless are fearless; only the fearless can take responsibility and struggle. After the victory of the War of Resistance against Japan in 1945, Chiang Kai-shek invited Mao Zedong by telegram to Chongqing for negotiations. Comrades within the Party, concerned about his safety, opposed his going, but Mao Zedong prioritized the interests of the country and the nation and went without hesitation, seizing the historical initiative. After the founding of New China, when the United States brought the flames of the Korean War to the Yalu River, the Party Central Committee resolutely made the strategic decision to “resist US aggression and aid Korea, protect our homes and defend our country,” and Peng Dehuai accepted the assignment at a critical moment and led troops to fight abroad, acting righteously with righteous forces, ultimately achieving a great victory.

General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out: “Whether one dares to be responsible and takes responsibility most reveals a cadre’s Party spirit and work style.” On the new journey of the new era, comprehensively advancing the building of a strong country and the great cause of national rejuvenation through Chinese-style modernization requires Party cadres and leaders to have the courage to face contradictions and the spirit of daring to take responsibility. In the face of major issues of principle, they must dare to unsheathe their swords; in the face of contradictions, they must dare to confront difficulties; in the face of crises, they must dare to step forward; in the face of mistakes, they must dare to bear responsibility; in the face of unhealthy tendencies, they must dare to fight resolutely. At the same time, they must carry forward the spirit of struggle, enhance ambition, backbone, and confidence, not believe in evil, not fear ghosts, not fear oppression, advance in the face of difficulties, and rely on tenacious struggle to open up new horizons for career development.

Not betraying the people is the value destination of personality power.

The question of “for whom” is the touchstone for testing the nature of a political party and a regime. Serving the people wholeheartedly is the fundamental starting point and ultimate goal of all our Party’s actions, and the fundamental sign distinguishing our Party from all other political parties. The people are the creators of history, the true heroes. The Communist Party of China represents the fundamental interests of the broadest majority of the people and has no special interests of its own; this is the fundamental reason why the Party stands invincible. Not betraying the people is the core connotation and value aim of the great Party-building spirit; the final landing point of the personality power of Communists is always the word “people.”

True Communists always remember that they are ordinary members of the working people, coming from the people, taking root among the people, benefiting the people, and even dedicating everything to the people. Zhang Side went through the Long March, was wounded, served as a fighter and a cook, and was reduced from squad leader to soldier, but changes in position never affected his enthusiasm for serving the people. His name is forever linked with “serve the people.” Jiao Yulu accepted the assignment at a critical moment to control the sandstorms of Lankao; in 475 days and nights, relying on a bicycle and his iron-like feet, he went from village to village, visiting the poor and asking about their suffering. When he went to see the villagers in the wind and snow and said, “I am your son,” he revealed a sincere emotion of putting the people first. Kong Fansen said: “Every Party cadre and member should share hardships and common destiny with the people. Only then can our Party have prestige and the country have hope.” After retirement, Yang Shanzhou returned to his hometown to plant trees, turning a once barren mountain into an oasis, and finally handed over the management rights of the forest farm, worth over 300 million yuan, to the state free of charge. “As long as life does not end, service to the people does not stop” was the motto of his life. On the journey of poverty alleviation, over 1,800 Communist Party members gave their lives. Huang Wenxiu said: “There always has to be someone who comes back; I am the one who comes back,” and “Only by taking root in the soil can one understand the people.” These outstanding Communists interpreted their original aspirations and missions with practical actions, writing the most moving footnote for “not betraying the people.”

The Communist Party of China leads the people in establishing the country and governing the country; what it governs is the people’s hearts. The Party’s leaders come from the people and take root among the people, always placing the masses in the highest position in their hearts. Regardless of size, matters that concern the common people are inquired into carefully; issues related to the national economy and people’s livelihood are investigated and planned in advance. Mao Zedong called on the whole Party to “concern themselves with the people’s livelihood and pay attention to working methods,” demanding that “we should spare no effort, wind and frost, toil and hardship, day and night, diligently and earnestly study the problems of the people’s lives and production.” He personally solved the problem of villagers having difficulty getting drinking water; the story of “when drinking water, do not forget the one who dug the well” became the collective memory of several generations of Chinese. Deng Xiaoping always took the people’s interests as the highest criterion, emphasizing that the people’s support, approval, happiness, and agreement should be taken as the starting point and the end result of all work. General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out: “Loving the people is the deepest emotional sustenance of Comrade Deng Xiaoping’s life, and it will forever be the source of strength that Chinese Communists should adhere to.” General Secretary Xi Jinping’s own sentiment for the people is equally fervent. When asked how he felt about being elected President of the country, he replied: “I will serve the people without any thought of self, and I am willing to be in a state of ‘selflessness,’ dedicating myself to China’s development.” He also said: “Among the people, I feel at ease; together with the people, I have strength. I will be selfless and not betray the people; this is my lifelong conviction.” “Selfless” means holding every person in one’s heart; “not betraying the people” means benefiting every person. “Selfless and not betraying the people” combines both iron will and a tender heart; this is the political character and lofty sentiment that Chinese Communists forever pursue.

Do not forget the original aspiration, and you will achieve your ultimate goal (bù wàng chū xīn, fāng dé shǐ zhōng - “do not forget the original heart, thus attain the beginning and end,” never forget why you started, and you can accomplish your mission). Adhering to the supremacy of the people is an important component of the worldview and methodology of Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era. Communists in the new era should continue to carry forward the Party’s fine traditions, forever breathe the same breath, share the same destiny, and be heart to heart with the people, forever take the people’s aspiration for a better life as the goal of struggle, advance with a mental state of never tiring and a posture of always forging ahead, strive forward toward the grand goal of realizing the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation, continue to win the people’s praise with great personality power, and compose a more splendid chapter of socialism with Chinese characteristics in the new era.

[The author is a deputy director of the CPC History Teaching and Research Department of the Central Party School (National Academy of Governance) (中央党校（国家行政学院）).]

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Forging original aspiration and mission, writing the answer sheet of the era

The original aspiration is as firm as a rock; the mission is as blazing as a torch.
Having traversed through hardship and glory, marching toward a bright future, the century-old major party is in its prime, hundreds of millions of people are in high spirits, China in the new era stands firm and tall, and the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation is unstoppable.
General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized: "We must temper our original aspiration and mission, persevere with sustained effort, continue to answer well Yan'an's 'cave-dwelling question' (窑洞之问), and write an answer sheet of the era that is worthy of the people."
Standing at the major historical juncture of the 105th anniversary of the founding of the Party, shouldering the solemn responsibility bestowed by the era, the Chinese Communists of the new era have lofty ambitions in their hearts and are filled with pride.
The "China path" grows ever broader, and we have greater resolve.
Over the past 105 years, our Party has successfully blazed a bright path leading the Chinese people in the pursuit of a good and happy life.
From a state of fragmentation and a heap of loose sand to a high degree of unity and ethnic solidarity, from being poor and blank to leaping up to become the world's second-largest economy, the largest manufacturing country, and the largest trading country in goods, the Party has led the people in creating the twin miracles of rapid economic development and long-term social stability. The Chinese nation has achieved a great leap from standing up, to growing prosperous, to becoming strong.
Especially over the past five years, we have withstood the severe impact of the century-old pandemic, effectively responded to a series of major risks and challenges, taken new solid steps in Chinese-style modernization, and achieved a good start on the new journey toward the second centenary goal.
Chinese-style modernization "is the broad road to building a strong country and national rejuvenation, and also the only way for China to seek human progress and world harmony." This is a new path for humanity's march toward modernization, and this is a completely new form of human civilization.
Grasp the historical initiative, and firmly uphold the "four confidences." "We take our own path, which has an incomparably broad stage, incomparably deep historical foundations, and incomparably strong forward resolve."
The "China truth" radiates the light of truth, and we have greater strength.
The history of the Communist Party of China is a history of advancing the sinicization of Marxism, constantly enriching and developing Marxism, and also a history of using Marxist theory to understand and transform China.
Since the beginning of the new era, under the scientific guidance of Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, and especially Xi Jinping Thought on Party Building, the Party has become even stronger and more powerful through revolutionary tempering, leading the people to overcome one difficult barrier after another and create one miracle after another.
On the occasion of the 105th anniversary of the founding of the Party, the Party Central Committee has made arrangements for studying and implementing Xi Jinping Thought on Party Building. This thought provides the fundamental guidance and action guide for deeply advancing the great new project of Party building in the new era, and has major practical significance and long-term guiding significance for strengthening the Party and strengthening the country.
Having the guidance of Marxist scientific theory is the fundamental reason why our Party firmly believes in its faith and grasps the historical initiative.
Adhere to the "two integrations" (两个结合), scientifically answer the questions of China, the questions of the world, the questions of the people, and the questions of the era. The Party's innovative theory in the new era fully demonstrates the power of truth and the great force of practice on the new journey.
The "governance of China" writes a new chapter, and we have greater confidence.
From secretaries at five levels taking charge of poverty alleviation and the whole Party being mobilized to promote the tough battle, to deepening east-west collaboration and carrying out normalized assistance, we uphold the national chessboard concept and gather greater driving force for forward development.
From formulating and implementing five-year plans to leveraging the advantages of the new nationwide system for mobilizing resources nationwide, anchoring the goal, we "take steady steps one by one, advance stage by stage."
Moving forward amid strong winds and high waves, China's economy has withstood the wind and waves, maintained strong resilience and vitality, and jumped to a new threshold of 140 trillion yuan in total economic output. The key lies in fully, accurately, and comprehensively implementing the new development philosophy, developing new quality productive forces according to local conditions, accelerating the building of a modern industrial system supported by the real economy, constructing a new development pattern, and promoting high-quality development.
Adhere to the centralized and unified leadership of the Party Central Committee, uphold and develop the socialist system with Chinese characteristics, and better translate institutional advantages into governance effectiveness. No force can stop the forward march of the Chinese people and the Chinese nation.
History and reality eloquently prove that without the Communist Party of China, there would be no New China, no happy life for the Chinese people, and no great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation.
From "irreversible" to "unstoppable," the "two establishes" (两个确立) have fundamentally ensured that the historical trend of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation rolls forward mightily, and have decisive significance for us in responding to various risks and challenges and advancing Chinese-style modernization on the new journey.
This year is the first year of the "15th Five-Year Plan" and also the 90th anniversary of the victory of the Red Army's Long March.
"The new journey is a new Long March."
To achieve major breakthroughs in strategic tasks that concern the overall situation of Chinese-style modernization and to win new victories in the great struggle with many new historical features, there are still many new "snowy mountains" and "grasslands" to cross, and new "Loushan Pass" and "Lazikou" to conquer. On the new journey, with General Secretary Xi Jinping at the helm and with the scientific guidance of Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, we will surely "walk well our generation's Long March road."
Strengthen the conviction that the just cause will surely triumph. Our Party treads the righteous path of the world, does a just cause, and follows the historical trend. Consciously use the Party's innovative theory of the new era to observe new situations, study new circumstances, and solve new problems, and with an indomitable spirit remove all obstacles and sweep away all roadblocks — then there will be no hurdle we cannot overcome, no pass we cannot break through, and no task we cannot accomplish.
Forever preserve the original aspiration of seeking happiness for the people. Along the way, we have relied closely on the people to turn in one answer sheet after another that have been recorded in history. On the new journey, we must remember that the country is the people and the people are the country, always breathe the same breath as the people, share the same destiny, and keep hearts and minds connected with them, take the people's aspiration for a better life as our goal, and promote well-rounded development of the people and common prosperity for all.
Enhance the resilience of "do not begrudge the toil when climbing the summit." Realizing socialist modernization is a historical process of stepwise progression and continuous development and progress. Firmly establish and practice a correct view of political achievements, carry forward the spirit of "achievement need not be mine, but achievement must include me," bite the green mountain and never relax, draw the blueprint to the end, and forge ahead with concrete work and solid results — our goal will certainly be attained.
Aspire to the thousand-year great cause of the Chinese nation, devote to the lofty cause of human peace and development. The responsibility is extremely heavy, the mission is supremely glorious. Comprehensively advance Chinese-style modernization with high-quality development; the era is calling, the people are expecting.
Upholding the Party's leadership is the most essential feature of socialism with Chinese characteristics. On the new journey, let us unite more closely around the Party Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core, fully implement Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, deeply understand the decisive significance of the "two establishes," resolutely achieve the "two upholds" (两个维护), vigorously promote the great founding spirit of the Party, remain true to our original aspiration and keep our mission firmly in mind, be vigorous and enterprising, forge ahead with determination, and strive to create achievements that do not fail the era, do not fail history, do not fail the people, and create the glory of our generation for advancing the building of a strong country and the rejuvenation of the nation!
(Xinhua News Agency, Beijing, June 30)

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Coordinated efforts to advance high-quality outbound investment

By: 罗蓉

Outbound investment is an activity in which an investor, through means such as investing assets and equity interests or providing financing and guarantees, directly or indirectly obtains ownership, control, management rights, and other related rights and interests in enterprises, assets, etc., of other countries (regions). The Provisions of the State Council on Outbound Investment (hereinafter referred to as the Provisions) officially came into effect on July 1, marking a milestone in the development history of China's outbound investment. Oriented toward objectives and problems, the Provisions establish a legal framework integrating outbound investment management, services, and protection, laying the institutional foundation for the high-quality development of outbound investment.

Outbound investment enters a new stage where development and security are given equal importance

Since reform and opening up, the scale of China's outbound investment has continuously expanded, the structure has been continuously optimized, and the flow and stock of outbound direct investment have steadily ranked among the top three in the world. China has more than 50,000 overseas enterprises, spread across 190 countries and regions worldwide, serving as important carriers of the country's overseas interests. As the once-in-a-century changes accelerate and unilateralism and protectionism rise, the risks faced by investors and overseas enterprises have shifted from occasional and localized to high-frequency and multidimensional. The Provisions improve the outbound investment management, service, and protection system at the national level and build a pragmatic and effective risk prevention and control system, marking that the high-quality development of China's outbound investment has entered a new stage. This is mainly reflected in the following three aspects.

First, a new model of full-chain management of outbound investment has been initiated. Before the introduction of the Provisions, China's outbound investment was mainly managed in accordance with relevant laws, departmental regulations, and policy documents. Relevant laws mainly include the Foreign Trade Law, the Foreign Relations Law, the National Security Law, and the Data Security Law. In recent years, in response to unreasonable law enforcement such as foreign long-arm jurisdiction, discriminatory restrictions, and unilateral sanctions, China has successively promulgated the Anti-Foreign Sanctions Law (反外国制裁法) and the Regulations on Counteracting Unjustified Extra-territorial Application of Foreign Legislation and Other Measures (反外国不当域外管辖条例), forming a "three-in-one" (三位一体 - sān wèi yī tǐ, "three positions as one body," integrated) legalized institutional tool of blocking, countermeasures, and judicial claims to protect the legitimate rights and interests of enterprises in cross-border operations. Departmental regulations are mainly formulated by the National Development and Reform Commission, the Ministry of Commerce, and the State Administration of Foreign Exchange, which respectively conduct coordinated supervision of overseas projects, overseas enterprises, and outbound funds. Policy documents make arrangements for specific matters and areas. The Provisions further strengthen top-level design, constructing a new model covering the full-chain management of development and reform, commerce, foreign exchange, foreign affairs, customs, etc., promoting coordinated governance among departments, which meets the development demands of international investors for reducing institutional costs and increasing rule transparency.

Second, they align with the high-standard institutional rules of major economies. Based on national conditions, the Provisions comprehensively draw on the common practices of the world's major economies, especially in aspects such as promoting investment liberalization and facilitation, national security review, protection of investor rights and interests, compliance management, and cross-border data governance, constructing management, service, and protection rules that are aligned with international high-standard institutions. On the one hand, they fully guarantee the autonomy of enterprises in outbound investment; on the other hand, they effectively prevent and resolve overseas risks and safeguard core national interests, providing safe, efficient, and standardized institutional safeguards for Chinese enterprises to "go global." For example, in terms of investment liberalization and facilitation, the Provisions clearly state that investors have the autonomy to make outbound investments in accordance with the law, making independent decisions, bearing their own risks, and assuming sole responsibility for their profits and losses; the state actively negotiates and signs multilateral and bilateral trade and investment agreements and other international economic and trade agreements. By signing agreements, the state reduces institutional barriers for investors in areas such as market access, national treatment, capital exchange and remittance, personnel flow, and intellectual property rights. At the same time, they combine the promotion of investment facilitation with effective risk prevention, further improve the foreign investment security review mechanism, implement classified and graded whole-process supervision, and enhance the scientific and safe nature of investors' outbound investments.

Third, they consolidate the full life-cycle principal responsibility of investors. The Provisions emphasize that outbound investment must not endanger China's national security, harm national interests, or harm social and public interests. Before going abroad, emphasis is placed on fulfilling the approval and filing procedures for overseas investment in accordance with regulations, submitting truthful materials and information, and carrying out capital exchange and remittance, import and export of goods and technology, cross-border service trade, cross-border data flow, and personnel entry and exit in accordance with regulations. Overseas, emphasis is placed on complying with local laws and regulations, fulfilling social responsibilities, safeguarding the national image, continuously improving corporate governance structures, and regulating investment and business conduct. If the transfer or disposal of overseas investments and related assets, rights and interests, etc., affects or may affect national security, investors have the obligation to actively cooperate with the security review of state departments. If an overseas institution requests the provision of relevant evidence and related materials, investors shall comply with national regulations on the protection of state secrets, data security, personal information protection, technology export management, export control, judicial assistance, etc. Where it involves matters that require approval from the competent authority in accordance with the law, the relevant legal procedures shall also be fulfilled.

High-quality development of outbound investment must properly handle four pairs of relationships

The current period is a window for the transformation of outbound investment, with opportunities and challenges coexisting, and dangers and opportunities transforming into each other. This objectively requires all relevant subjects to properly handle four pairs of relationships: open development and open security, national interests and enterprise interests, overseas supervision and overseas services, and compliant operation and social responsibility.

Properly handle the relationship between open development and open security. The core of open development is domestic and international linkage. In the process of cross-border flows of technology, capital, data, etc., there are multiple risks and hidden dangers such as the disorderly outflow of core technologies, leakage of key data, and abnormal fluctuations in cross-border capital. The long-arm jurisdiction of developed economies and policy volatility in host countries can also increase the uncertainty of overseas investment operations. The more open it is, the more security must be emphasized. The Provisions establish a risk prevention and control system of "prevention beforehand, control during the process, protection afterward, and countermeasures when encountering obstruction," building a multi-level, three-dimensional security barrier, holding the bottom line of open security, calmly responding to various forms of containment and suppression, and safeguarding the high-quality development of outbound investment with high-level security.

Properly handle the relationship between national interests and enterprise interests. The state is the solid backing for enterprises' overseas operations, and overseas enterprises are important carriers of national interests. In the long run, enterprises achieving industrial upgrading, market expansion, and asset preservation and appreciation overseas are in line with the national development interests. However, if enterprises unilaterally pursue short-term profits and partial commercial returns, it can easily lead to the outflow of key technologies, loss of strategic resources, and disorderly layout in sensitive fields, seriously impacting national security and the overall development situation. If the government over-strengthens control, it will dampen the enthusiasm of enterprises to go overseas and suppress the vitality of open development. The Provisions take safeguarding national overseas interests and the legitimate rights and interests of investors as dual objectives, take not endangering China's national security, harming national interests, or harming social and public interests as a precondition, support investors in carrying out outbound investment activities in accordance with market principles, actively participate in international cooperation and competition, and coordinate all forces to provide investors with comprehensive services and protection.

Properly handle the relationship between overseas supervision and overseas services. Supervision is an important guarantee for holding the bottom line of national security, and services are a powerful support for empowering enterprises in international cooperation. The focus of overseas supervision is on the security of industrial and supply chains, technology security, and data security, while the focus of overseas services is on reducing the costs of compliance, financing, and rights protection for enterprises. The transfer of key domestic technologies and data assets to overseas by domestic entities is a form of disguised outbound investment, and the acquisition of such assets by overseas enterprises is foreign investment. Supervisory authorities, by penetrating multi-layer equity and cross-border asset chains for verification, can, in accordance with the law, make decisions to prohibit investment, require the cancellation of all merger and acquisition transactions, and order the return of technology and data assets. The Provisions embed regulatory requirements into the entire service chain and integrate service guarantees into the entire regulatory process. Through the coordinated cooperation of various departments and relevant subjects, they achieve penetrating analysis and three-dimensional assessment, ensuring national security and public interests.

Properly handle the relationship between compliant operation and social responsibility. Compliant operation is a prerequisite for the survival and development of an enterprise, and social responsibility is the value embodiment of an enterprise's long-term development. In the short term, both compliant operation and social responsibility will increase enterprise costs. But in the long run, compliant operation is conducive to avoiding legal risks in the host country, and social responsibility can better improve the local business environment, which is an inevitable requirement for the sustainable development of enterprises overseas. In a sense, the extension of compliant operation includes social responsibility. Embedding the statutory requirements related to ESG (environmental, social, and governance) into the entire process of project initiation, operation, and exit, and enabling social responsibility to empower compliant operation, can effectively reduce regulatory friction and public opinion risks. The Provisions embed the requirement to fulfill social responsibilities into the enterprise compliance system, shape a good image of Chinese enterprises through standardized compliant operation, and institutionally avoid sacrificing long-term reputation for short-term profit.

Adhere to a systemic approach, achieve "four synergies"

The high-quality development of outbound investment is a systemic project. Investors include not only domestic enterprises but also other domestic organizations and individual residents. The subjects implementing outbound investment management, services, and protection include not only investment authorities, commerce authorities, and other relevant departments, overseas diplomatic missions, relevant departments of people's governments at the provincial level and above, and public officials, but also professional service institutions, banking financial institutions, and relevant industry associations and chambers of commerce. The Provisions put forward specific requirements for all types of subjects. To promote the implementation and effectiveness of the Provisions, we must adhere to a systemic approach and achieve "four synergies."

First, synergy between central and local governments. Strengthen central coordination and vertical linkage. The Provisions clearly state that the state will proactively align with high-standard international economic and trade rules, promote high-quality Belt and Road cooperation, advance the construction of multilateral and bilateral investment cooperation mechanisms, actively participate in the formulation of international investment rules, promote international cooperation in industrial and supply chains, oppose unilateralism and protectionism, and promote the building of an open world economy. In specific tasks, this mainly includes improving the "two major systems" and "two systems," namely the overseas comprehensive service system and the outbound investment management system, the overseas investment security review system, and the investment barrier investigation system. When implementing the deployment, the people's governments at the provincial level and above and their relevant departments should focus on improving public service capacity and levels, providing investors with public goods and services in areas such as laws and regulations, policies and measures, investment guides, intellectual property rights, risk prevention and response, and rights protection.

Second, synergy among departments. Strengthen system integration and effective cooperation. In terms of strengthening services, by improving the overseas comprehensive service system and improving institutional measures from multiple dimensions, we provide strong legal guarantees for enterprises going overseas to participate in international cooperation and competition. When government departments handle cross-field, cross-link matters, departments such as foreign affairs, legal affairs, finance and taxation, finance, economics and trade, logistics, entry and exit, customs, and trade promotion should actively cooperate with the lead department, forming multi-departmental resource superposition advantages and providing investors with comprehensive public services in compliance, financing, and risk early warning. In terms of optimizing management and strengthening protection, by improving the outbound investment management system, we strengthen the principal responsibility of investors; by strengthening monitoring, early warning, and risk assessment, we guide and help investors to do a good job in security risk prevention. Investment authorities and commerce authorities have the responsibility to jointly carry out penetrating overseas verification, enforcement accountability, and rights protection with other departments, identify and prevent risks across the entire chain, and effectively safeguard the security of the country's and investors' technology, data, and industrial and supply chains.

Third, synergy between government and enterprises. The government's management and services for enterprises must not interfere with their normal market-oriented operations, and the independent operation of enterprises must not touch the red line of security or the bottom line of market competition. Relevant departments will support professional service institutions to expand their overseas service networks and improve their international service capabilities and levels; support banking financial institutions to provide financing and other financial services for enterprises' outbound investment within the scope of their business; encourage policy-based financial institutions to provide services such as overseas investment insurance for enterprises' outbound investment. Enterprises should enhance their awareness of sharing overseas operation and risk information with government departments, regularly participate in government-enterprise seminars, promptly reflect overseas operational barriers, financing blockages, and rights protection difficulties, and provide front-line "live situations" for improving relevant systems and policies. Especially when enterprises encounter unfair treatment overseas, industry enterprises need to unite to collect evidence, laying a solid foundation for evidence collection for government departments to lawfully carry out investment barrier investigations.

Fourth, synergy between domestic and international efforts. Promote connectivity, mutual promotion, and complementarity. Outbound investment must be based on coordinating both domestic and international situations, coordinating development and security, fully utilizing two markets and two resources, and accelerating the construction of a new development pattern. Consolidate the industrial, technological, and capital foundation with the domestic great circulation to support investors in carrying out outbound investment; introduce high-quality resource elements and advanced rules and standards with the international circulation to promote domestic industrial upgrading and institutional reform. When investors encounter problems such as geopolitical security risks, discriminatory policies of the host country, asset expropriation, commercial disputes, unilateral sanctions, and damage to persons or property during their overseas business activities, they should immediately report the situation to China's overseas diplomatic missions such as embassies and consulates, and simultaneously submit relevant information to domestic commerce and investment authorities, forming a domestic-international synergy rights protection chain of overseas front-end reporting and domestic back-end handling. Relevant departments organize investigations in accordance with domestic laws and regulations, take corresponding measures based on the actual situation, and effectively safeguard the security and legitimate rights and interests of investors and their outbound investment, and protect the country's overseas interests from threats and infringements.

(The author is the Director of the Institute of Foreign Economics (对外经济研究所) of the National Development and Reform Commission)

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The Great Personality Strength of the Communist Party of China

By: 李庆刚

Over the past 105 years, the Communist Party of China has consistently taken seeking happiness for the Chinese people and rejuvenation for the Chinese nation as its original aspiration and founding mission, leading the revolution, construction, and reform endeavors forward with determination. The Chinese nation has experienced a great leap from standing up and growing prosperous to becoming strong, and the realization of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation has entered an irreversible historical process. Along this journey, generations of Chinese Communists have vividly demonstrated their sincere devotion and noble sentiments of selfless dedication to the motherland and the people, revealing a great power of character. General Secretary Xi Jinping points out: "Our Party, as a Marxist governing party, must possess not only a powerful force of truth but also a powerful force of character; the force of truth is concentratedly embodied in our Party's correct theories, while the force of character is concentratedly embodied in our Party's fine conduct." In the first year of the "Fifteenth Five-Year Plan," at a critical juncture of comprehensively advancing the building of a strong country and the great cause of national rejuvenation through Chinese-style modernization, Communists of the new era must all the more bear in mind their original aspiration and mission, charge forward, strive with dedication, and use the great power of character to unite the Party and the people, injecting a powerful spiritual impetus into basically realizing socialist modernization.

Ideals and beliefs are the foundation and soul of the power of character.

The ideals and beliefs of Chinese Communists are established on a profound understanding of Marxism and on a deep grasp of the laws of history. Under the guidance of the Marxist worldview, Chinese Communists consciously set the realization of socialism and communism as their lofty ideals and goals. In 1936, when speaking with Edgar Snow, Mao Zedong mentioned that once he accepted Marxism as the correct interpretation of history, his faith in Marxism never wavered. He also pointed out that when each Communist Party member joins the Party, they have before their eyes the clear goal of "struggling for socialism and communism." When Zhou Enlai established his communist faith, he said: "The doctrine I recognize must never change, and I will very resolutely propagate and work for it." These sonorous vows manifest the steadfastness and sincerity of Communists toward scientific truth.

The path of struggling for faith has never been smooth; it is full of thorns and may at any time require the price of blood and life. According to incomplete statistics, from March 1927 to the first half of 1928, more than 26,000 Communist Party members were killed by the Kuomintang reactionaries, including Wang Shouhua, Xiao Chunü, Xiong Xiong, Chen Yannian, Zhao Shiyan, Xia Minghan, Guo Liang, Luo Yinong, Xiang Jingyu, Chen Qiaonian, Zhou Wenyong, and others who died heroically. Before his execution, Xia Minghan wrote a stirring martyrdom poem: "Beheading is no big deal, as long as the doctrine is true. Kill Xia Minghan, and there will be successors." This showed the absolute loyalty of Communists to their faith. During the revolutionary years, Mao Zedong's family sacrificed six members for the revolution, Xu Haidong's family lost more than 70 people, and He Long's clan, the Hes, had 2,050 identified martyrs. Deng Xiaoping deeply pointed out: "Why were we able to struggle forward under very difficult conditions and overcome thousands of hardships to achieve victory in the revolution? It is because we had ideals, Marxist beliefs, and communist beliefs." General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized: "Revolutionary ideals are higher than heaven. The Communist Party of China is called the Communist Party precisely because from the day it was founded, it established communism as its lofty ideal." The Party's history has forcefully proven that firm ideals and beliefs and adherence to the spiritual pursuit of Communists have always been the foundation of a Communist's standing in life. Faith in Marxism, belief in socialism and communism, are the political soul of Communists and the spiritual pillar that can withstand any test.

Whether a Party member has ideals and beliefs is measured by whether they are loyal to the Party. Throughout our Party's journey, it has experienced countless hardships and trials, but no difficulty has crushed us, and no enemy has defeated us, precisely because of the loyalty of millions of Party members. Loyalty to the Party is not abstract but concrete, not conditional but unconditional; it must be reflected in loyalty to the Party's faith, loyalty to Party organizations, and loyalty to the Party's theories, line, principles, and policies. During the revolutionary war years, countless Communists shouted "Long live the Communist Party of China" in the face of enemy blades, 视死如归 (shì sǐ rú guī - "look upon death as returning home," to face death unflinchingly). During the period of peaceful construction, countless Communists charged ahead, worked hard, and kept their loyalty and love for the Party and the people in their hearts and translated it into action. Lei Feng said: "I have only one mind; I am wholeheartedly toward the Party, toward socialism, toward communism." Gu Wenchang said: "I have been through many ups and downs, but I have always been steadfast; at any time I must trust the Party and trust the Party organization." Gu Wenchang had "three fears" in his life: first, fear that the Party's cause would not be done well; second, fear that the Party's image would be damaged; third, fear that as a Party member he would be cursed by the common people. It is precisely millions of Communists like them, cherishing lofty ideals, sharing the Party's concerns, and daring to bear hardship, difficulty, heavy burdens, and risks, who have interpreted loyalty to the Party through concrete actions, and have interpreted the most simple yet weighty power of character of Communists.

The great power of character is fundamentally rooted in taking truth as its soul, faith as its foundation, and practice as its base. When Party cadres have firm ideals and beliefs, they stand higher, their hearts become broader, and they can adhere to the correct political direction, achieving "风雨不动安如山" (fēng yǔ bú dòng ān rú shān - "unshaken by wind and rain, as stable as a mountain," to remain steadfast in adversity). The new era opens new great endeavors, and new thought guides new journeys.

Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era is the Marxism of contemporary China and the Marxism of the twenty-first century. It not only contains the Party's important ideas on governing the country but also embodies the requirements of Chinese Communists' political character, value pursuit, spiritual realm, and conduct and integrity. Communists of the new era must unremittingly use Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era to consolidate their souls, adhere to the integration of learning, thinking, and application and the unity of knowledge, faith, and action, and consciously transform the Party's innovative theories into a powerful ideological weapon for transforming the subjective and objective worlds, into a powerful force for strengthening ideals, tempering loyalty, guiding practice, and advancing work, continuously opening up new prospects for the development of the cause.

Fine conduct is the concentrated embodiment of the power of character.

The power of character of Communists is not abstract moral preaching but concrete practical strength. It means that they first do what they ask the masses to do, influencing and driving people through exemplary action. Fine conduct such as integrating theory with practice, maintaining close ties with the masses, and carrying out criticism and self-criticism is externalized through the words and deeds of Communists into a real force perceptible to everyone.

Integrating theory with practice and seeking truth from facts are the fundamental viewpoints of Marxism and the Party's basic methods of thinking, working, and leading. Communists must grasp objective laws and carry out work while understanding and following them. During the Daqing oil battle, Wang Jinxi organized workers to study "On Practice" and "On Contradiction," using dialectical materialism to analyze and solve construction problems, blazing a path for China's own oil field development. Jiao Yulu, in the sand control of Lankao, summarized an effective method: "Turning over silt to press sand gives immediate results; growing grass to seal sand shows effect within the year; afforestation to prevent sand is a long-term plan—three measures together yield good results." These role models show that true Communists never 好高骛远 (hào gāo wù yuǎn - "like the high and aim for the distant," to reach for what is beyond one's grasp) but rather tackle tough problems and engage in work and entrepreneurship while grasping objective laws.

The core of conduct improvement is maintaining the Party's flesh-and-blood ties with the masses. Whether these ties can be maintained determines the success or failure of the Party's cause. The story of "half a quilt" (半条被子) during the Long March of the Red Army is a vivid example. General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out: "When the Red Army itself was short of food and clothing and at a critical point of life and death, it still had the warmth and cold of the common people in its heart"; "The feeling between us Communists and the common people is the feeling of sharing one quilt." This genuine feeling is a true portrayal of the Party and the people sharing weal and woe, living and dying together. It is precisely this daily relationship of sharing weal and woe that forged the crucial strength of life-and-death togetherness, becoming the fundamental guarantee for the victory of the Long March and the Party's overcoming of all difficulties. As the "chief service officer" of the Chinese people, Zhou Enlai won the people's love with his selfless devotion to the people and his spirit of 鞠躬尽瘁 (jū gōng jìn cuì - "bend his back and exhaust his strength," to spare no effort in performing one's duty). He said: "We come from the people; our past victories were all achieved with the support of the people; we must not forget our roots." This "root" is the people. Whoever holds the people in their heart, the people will lift them high. Maintaining close ties with the masses is the Party's greatest political advantage, while becoming divorced from the masses is the greatest danger after the Party has taken power. Chinese-style modernization is the cause of hundreds of millions of people; Communists must charge ahead, forget themselves in dedication, closely rely on the people, and gather the wisdom of all the people to advance Chinese-style modernization continuously.

Criticism and self-criticism are a distinctive hallmark distinguishing the Party from other political parties, a basic method for resolving inner-Party contradictions, upholding truth, and correcting errors, and a powerful weapon for clearing away political dust. The greatness of the Party lies not in never making mistakes, but in never 讳疾忌医 (huì jí jì yī - "conceal illness and avoid treatment," to hide one's faults and refuse correction), daring to face problems head-on and engage in self-reform. The Yan'an Rectification Movement (延安整风), through criticism and self-criticism, thoroughly liquidated "Left" and Right errors, bringing a new atmosphere to the Party's style. Mao Zedong pointed out: "As long as our Party's conduct is completely correct, the whole people will learn from us," "and will influence the entire nation," "and any powerful enemy can be defeated by us." This is exactly what happened. Carrying out criticism and self-criticism achieved the goal of obtaining combat effectiveness from conduct, providing a strong guarantee for the victory in the War of Resistance Against Japan. General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized that criticism and self-criticism are sharp weapons in inner-Party ideological struggle and also effective methods for leading cadres to manage themselves. Party members, cadres, especially leading cadres, must put themselves in, put their duties in, and put their work in, conduct Party nature analyses in light of the problems exposed through inspection and comparison, seriously carry out criticism and self-criticism, and ensure that they see people, see events, and see thoughts, focusing on solving problems from their ideological roots.

Hard struggle is the Party's political essence and glorious tradition. "艰难困苦，玉汝于成" (jiān nán kùn kǔ, yù rǔ yú chéng - "hardship and difficulty, like jade that polishes you to completion," to be tempered by adversity into success) is an idiom often quoted by Mao Zedong. He emphasized that hard struggle is "the conduct of every Communist Party member, every revolutionary." Outstanding Party members such as Jiao Yulu, Wang Jinxi, Lei Feng, Gu Wenchang, and Yang Shanzhou all embody the spirit of hard struggle. Hard struggle and clean integrity are two sides of the same coin. When Gu Wenchang was serving as the Party secretary of Dongshan County, his family took a little more food from the government canteen or watched a movie without buying a ticket, and he demanded that the fees be repaid immediately, absolutely not "taking advantage of public resources." General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out: "In improving work style, all tasks are important, but the most fundamental is to uphold and carry forward the spirit of hard struggle." Frugality and plain living, and refraining from extravagance, are heirlooms of the Party. Party cadres in the new era should use hard struggle to purify their original aspirations and use clean integrity to guard their true nature, ensuring that every achievement can withstand the sunlight and the scrutiny of the people.

Daring to take responsibility is the touchstone of the power of character.

Since ancient times, the Chinese nation has had a fine tradition of daring to take responsibility, and the Communist Party of China is even more a Marxist political party with a spirit of responsibility. From the day it was founded, the Party consciously took on the historical responsibility of achieving national independence, people's liberation, national prosperity, and people's happiness. One of the Party's founders, Li Dazhao, called out: "Every individual has a responsibility for the rise and fall of the nation," and "The youth of the new Chinese nation should leap forward vigorously to shoulder this great responsibility." He bore righteousness with iron shoulders and wrote masterpieces with a splendid pen. Under his influence, Mao Zedong, Cai Hesen, and others initiated the New People's Study Society, 指点江山，激扬文字，粪土当年万户侯 (zhǐ diǎn jiāng shān, jī yáng wén zì, fèn tǔ dāng nián wàn hù hóu - "pointing at the rivers and mountains, stirring up words and phrases, treating the feudal lords of the past like dirt," to comment on the nation and inspire with writing, dismissing the powerful of the day). Mao Zedong cried out: "The world is our world; the country is our country; society is our society. If we don't speak, who will? If we don't act, who will?" This shows a strong sense of responsibility.

The responsibility of Chinese Communists is first manifested in daring to step forward at critical moments. After the Nanchang Uprising in 1927, the army suffered setbacks while marching south, morale was low, and it was on the verge of dissolution. At that time, Zhu De, who was not a core leader of the uprising, stepped forward resolutely and undertook the heavy responsibility of leading the troops out of difficulties. Without Zhu De's stepping forward, there would have been no later joining of forces between Zhu De's and Mao Zedong's Red Armies, and the Party's history would have been rewritten. Chen Yi later pointed out: "Commander Zhu De, in the darkest days, when the masses' morale was at zero and they were disheartened, pointed out a bright future and increased the masses' revolutionary faith—this is the greatness of the Commander." Zhu De's greatness stems from the strong power of character manifested through daring to take responsibility. Responsibility is also manifested in daring to offer advice on major issues. In early 1948, in response to the "Left" errors that appeared in land reform, Xi Zhongxun put forward the opinion of formulating policies differentiated among old, semi-old, and new liberated areas, which was affirmed by the Party Central Committee and Mao Zedong. In the same year, Su Yu received orders three times to lead troops across the Yangtze River, but after careful analysis, he suggested to the Party Central Committee that the strategic deployment be adjusted and the action postponed; this was eventually adopted, earning him "first merit" for the victory of the Huaihai Campaign. Responsibility is even more manifested in facing contradictions bravely. When Deng Xiaoping returned to work in 1977, he was 73 years old. He said: "When you come out to work, there can be two attitudes: one is to be an official, the other is to do some work. I think, who told you to be a Communist Party member? Since you are, you cannot be an official, you cannot have selfish thoughts, you cannot have any other choice; you should honestly fulfill the responsibilities of a Party member." Starting from the field of education, he dared to tackle tough issues, made a decisive decision, and restored the college entrance examination, which had been suspended for ten years, changing the fate of countless people.

"Daring to take responsibility" and "daring to struggle" support each other and are internally unified, together forming the spiritual core of Communists in overcoming difficulties. General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out: "Responsibility and struggle are a spirit; what is most needed is selfless character and fearless courage." Those without selfishness are fearless; the fearless can take responsibility and can struggle. After the victory in the War of Resistance Against Japan in 1945, Chiang Kai-shek telegraphed an invitation to Mao Zedong to go to Chongqing for negotiations. Party comrades worried about his safety and disagreed with his going, but Mao Zedong, placing the interests of the country and nation first, went without hesitation, seizing the historical initiative. After the founding of New China, when the United States spread the flames of the Korean War to the Yalu River, the Party Central Committee resolutely made the strategic decision to "Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea (抗美援朝), protect the homeland and defend the country." Peng Dehuai accepted the mission at a critical moment, leading troops to fight abroad, using a righteous army to carry out righteous actions, ultimately achieving a great victory.

General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out: "Whether one dares to take responsibility and be accountable best reveals a cadre's Party nature and conduct." On the new journey of the new era, comprehensively advancing the building of a strong country and the great cause of national rejuvenation through Chinese-style modernization requires Party cadres to have the courage to face contradictions and the spirit to dare to take responsibility. In the face of major issues of principle, one must dare to draw the sword; in the face of contradictions, one must dare to meet challenges head-on; in the face of crises, one must dare to step forward; in the face of mistakes, one must dare to assume responsibility; in the face of unhealthy tendencies, one must dare to resolutely struggle. At the same time, we must carry forward the spirit of struggle, enhance our ambition, backbone, and confidence, not believe in evil, not fear ghosts, not fear pressure, advance in the face of difficulties, and rely on tenacious struggle to open up new prospects for the development of the cause.

Not betraying the people is the value destination of the power of character.

The question of whom to serve is the touchstone for testing the nature of a political party and a regime. Serving the people wholeheartedly is the fundamental starting point and goal of all the Party's actions and the fundamental hallmark distinguishing our Party from all other political parties. The people are the creators of history and the true heroes. The Communist Party of China represents the fundamental interests of the broadest majority of the people and has no special interests of its own—this is the root of the Party's invincibility. Not betraying the people is the core connotation and value purport of the great Party-building spirit; the foothold of the Communists' power of character is always the word "people."

True Communists always remember that they are ordinary members of the working people, coming from the people, taking root among the people, benefiting the people, and even dedicating everything to the people. Zhang Side experienced the Long March, was wounded, served as a fighter, a cook, and went from squad leader to soldier, but changes in positions never affected his enthusiasm for serving the people; his name is forever linked with "serve the people." Jiao Yulu accepted the mission at a critical time to control the wind and sand in Lankao; in 475 days and nights, relying on a bicycle and a pair of iron feet, he visited villages and households, inquiring about the hardships of the poor. When he braved wind and snow to visit an old villager and said, "I am your son," it revealed a sincere emotion of putting the people above all. Kong Fansen said: "Every Party cadre and member should share the joys and hardships with the people. Only then can our Party have prestige and the country have hope." After retiring, Yang Shanzhou returned to his hometown to plant trees and build forests, creating an oasis on a barren mountain, and finally handed over the management rights of a forest farm valued at over 300 million yuan to the state free of charge. "As long as life does not end, service to the people does not stop" is the portrayal of his life. On the journey of poverty alleviation, more than 1,800 Communist Party members gave their lives. Huang Wenxiu said: "There will always be people who come back; I am one of those who come back," and "Only by taking root in the soil can one understand the people." These outstanding Communists have interpreted their original aspiration and mission through concrete actions, writing the most moving footnote for "not betraying the people."

The Communist Party of China leads the people in building the country and guarding the country, and what it guards is the people's hearts. The Party's leaders come from the people and take root among the people, always placing the people at the highest position in their hearts. No matter how big or small the concerns of the common people are, they inquire carefully; on issues concerning the national economy and people's livelihood, they take the lead in investigation and research and plan with priority. Mao Zedong called on the whole Party to "pay attention to the people's livelihood and improve working methods," demanding that "we should spare no hardship, day and night, diligently and earnestly study the people's livelihood and production issues." He personally solved the problem of the masses' drinking water difficulty; the story of "when drinking water, don't forget the one who dug the well" has become a collective memory for several generations of Chinese. Deng Xiaoping always took the people's interests as the highest criterion, emphasizing that whether the people support, agree, are happy, or consent should be the starting point and end point of all work. General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out: "Loving the people is Deng Xiaoping's deepest emotional sustenance, and it will always be a source of strength that Chinese Communists should hold fast to." General Secretary Xi Jinping's own feelings for the people are equally ardent. When asked about his feelings upon being elected President of the state, he replied: "I will serve the people with total devotion and never let them down. I am willing to be in a state of 'selflessness' and dedicate myself to China's development." He also said: "Being among the people makes me feel grounded; being with the people gives me strength. I will serve the people with total devotion and never let them down—this is my lifelong conviction." "I will serve with total devotion" means having everyone in one's heart; "never let the people down" means benefiting everyone. "I will serve the people with total devotion and never let them down" combines iron will with chivalrous tenderness—this is the political character and lofty sentiment that Chinese Communists will forever pursue.

Never forget why you started, and you can accomplish your mission. Adhering to the supremacy of the people is an important content of the world outlook and methodology of Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era. Communists of the new era should continue to carry forward the Party's fine traditions, forever breathe the same air as the people, share the same fate, and be heart to heart with them; forever take the people's aspiration for a better life as the goal of struggle; with a never-slacking state of mind and an indomitable fighting posture, advance courageously toward the grand goal of realizing the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation; and with the great power of character, continue to win the people's praise, composing a more splendid chapter of socialism with Chinese characteristics for a new era.

[The author is the Deputy Director of the Teaching and Research Department of CPC History (中共党史教研部) of the Central Party School (National Academy of Governance) (中央党校（国家行政学院）).]

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CPPCC Member Workrooms: Bringing Political Consultative Deliberation Closer to the People

By: 原瑞

General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized: “The Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference must extensively contact and mobilize the masses from all sectors, assist the Party and government in coordinating relations, smoothing emotions, and resolving contradictions. It must encourage and support members to go deep into the grassroots, go deep among the people of their sectors, promptly reflect the opinions and suggestions of the masses, and thoroughly publicize the Party and the state’s principles and policies.” At present, the CPPCC member studios (政协委员工作室) widely established across various regions of our country are grassroots performance-of-duties positions where CPPCC members contact people of their sectors, conduct consultative deliberations, and broadly build consensus. With CPPCC members as the main body, relying on relatively fixed venues or online platforms, through organizing consultative activities, carrying out policy explanations, providing professional services, and other means, they extend the institutional effectiveness of the specialized consultative body to the grassroots frontline, enabling the masses to find members, express their demands, and participate in consultations at their own doorstep.

As a specialized consultative body, the CPPCC’s institutionalized consultation platforms such as plenary sessions, standing committee meetings, and special consultation meetings constitute the main support for performing duties. These platforms operate with standardized procedures and are at a relatively high level, but they also have distinct periodic characteristics. In terms of regularly contacting people of their sectors and promptly responding to grassroots demands, more normalized institutional channels are needed as supplements. In particular, city and county CPPCC committees faced for a long time problems of weak basic work and weak personnel strength. The daily contact between members and the masses lacked regular carriers. How to effectively transmit the institutional advantages of the specialized consultative body to the grassroots is a practical issue that needs to be solved. CPPCC member studios are innovative carriers for grassroots performance of duties of the CPPCC and are vivid practices of socialist consultative democracy with Chinese characteristics at the grassroots.

In recent years, CPPCC committees in various localities have promoted the construction of member studios in light of local conditions, forming many effective experiences and practices. For example, the Zhejiang Provincial CPPCC Committee built “People’s Livelihood Discussion Halls” (民生议事堂) in townships and subdistricts across the province, embedding member studios within them, constructing a grassroots consultative platform system combining “halls and stations.” The Hunan Provincial CPPCC Committee, relying on the “CPPCC Cloud” (政协云) digital platform, built online member studios, where members can view public messages around the clock, participate in online consultations, and submit micro-proposals. The Pudong New Area of Shanghai, based on its regional industrial advantages, built member studios with distinctive professional features such as finance, law, science and technology innovation, forming teams of members with similar professional backgrounds to conduct in-depth consultations focusing on industry development and professional issues; and so on. At the same time, the construction of member studios is still in a stage of deepening advancement. Some studios have an inaccurate grasp of their functional positioning, and the boundaries with government service windows and petition reception points are not clear enough; some studios do not conduct consultative activities frequently enough, with few activities after completion, and their functions and roles have not been fully exerted; some studios have unsound operational mechanisms, with relatively arbitrary activity arrangements, unbalanced member participation, and a lack of effective organizational management and quality control. These problems have, to a certain extent, constrained the effective functioning of studios and need to be systematically addressed at the institutional level.

Consolidate the foundation of positions, highlighting sector advantages.

Studios are the physical support for members’ performance of duties. Whether the position construction is solid greatly affects the normalized conduct of consultative activities. From an organizational form perspective, studios include both physical sites set up in communities, industrial parks, and office buildings, as well as online spaces operating on digital platforms, with online and offline complementing each other and making concerted efforts. In terms of venue layout, there should be overall planning and reasonable placement of points, matching the distribution of members, population density, and the needs of the masses. Priority should be given to setting up stations and points in places such as community service centers, Party and mass service centers, and public service spaces in industrial parks, fully utilizing existing public resources to achieve co-construction and sharing. The construction of online platforms should emphasize practicality and interactivity, making them truly effective supplements to physical sites. At the same time, studios should be equipped with relatively fixed liaison personnel and funding guarantees, supporting them in conducting research and inspections and organizing consultative activities, ensuring basic support for operation. In addition, the setup of studios needs to take into account the geographical distribution of members, facilitating members to perform duties nearby and the masses to participate nearby, so that the consultation platform covers the masses’ surroundings. It is also necessary to fully utilize the sector advantages of the CPPCC. By organizing members with similar professional backgrounds through member studios to conduct in-depth consultations around specific fields, the quality and pertinence of consultations can be effectively improved. For example, the Shanghai Municipal CPPCC Committee established a medical and health sector member studio, and the Qingdao Municipal CPPCC Committee of Shandong Province established a medical and health sector member studio; these are all beneficial explorations in this regard.

Standardize operational mechanisms, ensuring consultative activities are orderly and effective.

The sustained operation of studios and the stable improvement of consultation quality rely on sound institutional norms and guarantees. In recent years, many local CPPCC committees have issued management measures and guiding opinions specifically targeting CPPCC member studios. For example, the Beijing Municipal CPPCC Committee’s detailed rules for the construction and operation of member studios and the measures for the construction and operation of member studios clarified, at the institutional level, the duty positioning, activity content, main types, establishment procedures, and exit mechanisms of member studios. The Hunan Provincial CPPCC Committee issued opinions on strengthening the construction of member studios and implementation measures for the construction of CPPCC member studios, making arrangements for institutional mechanisms such as the construction, operation, management, assessment, and organizational guarantees of member studios. The Jiangsu Provincial CPPCC Committee issued guiding opinions on building high-quality member studios to serve members’ high-level performance of duties, systematically stipulating construction layout, construction requirements, activity organization, etc. On the basis of summarizing these beneficial experiences, the normalized operation of CPPCC member studios should, in light of the actual conditions of each locality, make systematic institutional arrangements for activity frequency, consultation procedures, and transformation of results, so that the operation of studios has rules and regulations to follow and achieves sustainable development on a standardized track.

Stimulate the vitality of performance of duties, fully releasing the main role of members.

Members are the main force of studios. The quality of studio operation, in the final analysis, depends on the depth of member participation and the actual effectiveness of duty performance. CPPCC members are mostly professionals in various fields, with profound professional expertise and the ability to participate in political deliberation, which is the talent foundation for the high-quality operation of studios. However, CPPCC members are all concurrently serving in other roles and are busy with their primary work; participating in studio activities requires additional time and energy. How to use institutionalized guarantees and incentive measures to keep members’ enthusiasm for duty performance sustained and their duty performance capabilities effectively exerted is an issue that needs to be seriously addressed in studio construction. In practice, many localities have named studios after members who have strong ability to participate in political deliberation, high recognition among the masses, and representativeness and influence in the fields they contact, which has played a significant exemplary and leading role and effectively stimulated initiative and creativity in duty performance. At the same time, through assessment, clear work orientation and responsibility constraints are formed, appropriately linking studio performance effectiveness with commendations and honors, performance files, etc., to encourage members to actively act and effectively perform duties on the studio platform.

Strengthen overall coordination and integration, organically merging the operation of member studios with the overall duty performance of the CPPCC.

CPPCC member studios are part of the overall duty performance system of the CPPCC. Only by effectively connecting and deeply integrating studio operation with the CPPCC’s routine duty performance work can the institutional effectiveness of studios be maximized. In terms of consultation topics, the large amount of information on social conditions and public opinion collected by studios through daily contact with the masses can, after refinement and deepening, be transformed into consultation topics at plenary sessions, standing committee meetings, and special consultation meetings of the CPPCC. In terms of duty performance results, the consensus and suggestions formed through studio consultations, after systematic sorting and in-depth research, can be transformed into formal results of CPPCC duty performance such as member proposals, conference speeches, and information on social conditions and public opinion, entering the reference channels for Party and government decision-making. In terms of working forces, the special committees of the CPPCC can establish paired contact mechanisms with relevant sector studios, providing guidance and support in topic selection, survey organization, and result submission. When special committees conduct special investigations, they can also rely on studios to gain in-depth understanding of the actual situation at the grassroots and extensively listen to the opinions of the masses, making studios truly a platform for extending CPPCC work to the grassroots.

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Enhancing Judicial Effectiveness in Combating Telecom and Online Fraud

By: 王洁

Telecom and network fraud is one of the types of crime with the highest number of cases, the fastest increase, the widest scope, and the strongest public reaction in recent years. Relevant departments in China have continuously carried out special crackdown operations, a large number of overseas dens have been destroyed, a large number of criminal suspects have been escorted back to China to stand trial, and the work of crackdown and governance has achieved phased results. At the same time, we must also see that currently telecom and network fraud crimes are still in a high-incidence period, the stock of overseas fraud dens remains relatively large, criminal methods are constantly being updated and upgraded, and the property losses caused to the masses are still quite serious, making the anti-fraud task still arduous and complex.

Cracking down on telecom and network fraud is a systematic project, involving multiple areas such as technical interception, fund investigation and control, industry regulation, and international law enforcement cooperation, and requires the coordinated advancement of work in all aspects. For judicial authorities, prosecuting crimes according to law and precisely convicting and sentencing are basic responsibilities, while whether the property of the affected masses can be recovered and whether losses can be compensated is directly related to the masses' personal experience of fairness and justice. Faced with new types of crime like telecom and network fraud, which have a large number of victims and span multiple regions, the masses have higher expectations for using judicial means to safeguard their own rights. This requires judicial authorities, while ascertaining the facts, applying the law, and clarifying responsibility, to place the recovery of stolen goods and compensation of losses as well as the protection of rights in a more prominent position, respond to social concerns with practical results, and continuously improve judicial effectiveness.

From the perspective of judicial practice in recent years, the existing mechanism still has some incompatibilities when dealing with telecom and network fraud crimes. First, separate jurisdictions easily lead to fragmentation of crackdowns. Different members of the same criminal group are prosecuted separately by judicial authorities in multiple locations, which is not conducive to concentrating on thoroughly investigating the criminal chain, and it is also difficult to form a combined force against the group as a whole. Second, in terms of distinguishing responsibility, the organizational form of criminal groups has changed; a large number of people are lured abroad and then participate in fraud under personal coercion. How to strike a proper balance between punishing crime and treating those under coercion differently places higher demands on judicial precision. Third, in terms of returning stolen goods and compensating losses, the linkage between lenient treatment for pleading guilty and accepting punishment and restitution and compensation is not smooth, and the incentive and relief functions of the system have not been fully exerted. Fourth, victim relief channels are not smooth enough; cross-border crime leads to difficulties in obtaining evidence and recovering compensation, and domestic litigation cannot effectively cover overseas property. The existence of these problems indicates that the judicial mechanism for cracking down on telecom and network fraud still needs to be further streamlined and strengthened, so that prosecution is more coordinated and orderly, distinction of responsibility is more precise, restitution and compensation are smoother, and victim relief is more adequate.

Further improve the joint case handling mechanism to resolve contradictions brought by repeated prosecution. The crime dens for telecom and network fraud are mainly overseas, and victims are spread across multiple domestic regions. In practice, this often results in a situation where judicial authorities in different places separately file cases against the same criminal group and its members. The problem this brings is that multiple criminal acts continuously committed by a perpetrator at overseas dens may be divided and handled in different cases. After a judicial authority in one place renders a judgment according to law, prosecution procedures in other places may still be ongoing, and the perpetrator may face prosecution again for related crimes committed in the same period and within the same group. In reality, some personnel who have already been processed in one place may choose to flee again to overseas fraud dens for fear of being held accountable later. This not only weakens the educational and reformative function of punishment but is also not conducive to a comprehensive crackdown on criminal groups, increasing judicial costs. To solve this problem, the mechanism for joint case jurisdiction and handling should be further improved and implemented. If a perpetrator, when interrogated, truthfully confesses all the criminal facts committed within a certain criminal group, and the relevant confession has been recorded in the record, in principle, no other judicial authority shall repeatedly prosecute for similar criminal facts; newly discovered criminal facts later may be handled separately according to law. This arrangement is conducive to urging case-handling agencies to fully fix the entire case facts during the interrogation stage, and also facilitates information sharing and coordinated handling among judicial authorities in different places, creating more favorable conditions for dividing and disintegrating criminal groups.

Accurately apply the legal provisions on coerced accomplices to achieve unity of crime, responsibility, and punishment. In recent years, the number of people lured abroad under the pretext of legitimate work, whose personal freedom is strictly controlled, and who are forced to participate in fraud has increased significantly. Some fraud groups set up seemingly legitimate companies to recruit externally, then collectively transfer new hires to overseas dens under the guise of overseas training, study tours, etc., and after arrival, they form so-called "debts" by advancing fees, and use various coercive and abusive means to force those who refuse to cooperate into submission. In a situation where personal freedom is deprived and refusal to participate means facing serious harm, the perpetrator is in fact in a state of unfree will, and the autonomy of their behavioral choice is greatly weakened. For such circumstances, legal evaluation should distinguish from perpetrators who actively seek to join criminal gangs and actively commit fraud. The provisions of the Criminal Law of the People's Republic of China on coerced accomplices fully consider the special state of coerced will of the perpetrator, embodying the principle of imputation consistent with subjectivity and objectivity, and basing the determination of criminal responsibility on the basis of imputability. In judicial practice, factors such as the degree of coercion, the length of participation, and actual gains should be comprehensively considered. For personnel with evidence proving they were coerced into participating in fraud, a lighter, mitigated, or exempted punishment shall be given according to law. This approach not only meets the basic requirement of proportionality of crime, responsibility, and punishment, but also can form a clear policy orientation, guiding more people trapped in crime dens to abandon criminal activities and weakening the organizational foundation of fraud groups from within.

Further open the institutional channel for leniency through restitution, and strive to improve the overall effect of recovering stolen goods and compensating losses. The return of stolen goods and compensation is not only an important manifestation of the suspect's confession and repentance, but also a key way to recover the economic losses of the masses. According to the provisions of the Criminal Law of the People's Republic of China and the Criminal Procedure Law of the People's Republic of China, if a criminal suspect voluntarily returns stolen goods and compensates, and obtains the victim's forgiveness, judicial authorities may give a lighter, mitigated, or exempted punishment according to law. The original intent of this system design is to encourage suspects to repent and reform, while maximizing the compensation of victims' losses. However, in telecom and network fraud cases, due to the large number of victims, the complex chains involved, and separate case handling in different places, many cases can only verify individual victims or partial losses involved. This may lead to the following problem: after a certain suspect first surrenders and fully compensates the individual case victim's losses, subsequent co-defendants who later surrender, even if they have the willingness to compensate, cannot apply the rule of leniency through restitution because the victim's losses have already been compensated. This creates a situation of "want to compensate but cannot," while the overall low recovery rate of stolen goods and compensation remains unchanged. To resolve this contradiction, restitution work needs to be elevated from case-by-case balance to the level of overall coordination. Consideration could be given to having judicial authorities take the lead to explore the establishment of a unified victim loss compensation fund, collecting and managing funds voluntarily paid by suspects who surrender and voluntarily compensate, entrusting qualified third-party institutions to distribute compensation payments to victims who have not yet received full compensation in fair and reasonable ways such as making up the difference and distributing proportionally. At the same time, establish and improve standardized and transparent fund supervision and distribution mechanisms to ensure that every compensation fund reaches the victims in accordance with laws and regulations, in full and precisely. For those suspects who did not substantially participate in the management and operation of the fraud group, actively returned stolen goods, and have a good attitude of confession and repentance, legally recognize statutory circumstances such as accomplice, surrender, and return of stolen goods, and grant lenient treatment. This approach helps guide more investors and actual controllers of criminal groups to voluntarily accept legal sanctions, squeezing the living space of overseas criminal groups from the source.

Issue special judicial guidelines to unblock victim rights protection channels. In cracking down on telecom and network fraud, we must not only punish criminals according to law, but also effectively protect the legitimate rights and interests of victims. Whether victims can effectively protect their rights and recover losses is an important aspect of measuring the effectiveness of anti-fraud work. In reality, many people fall into financial difficulties after being defrauded; they cannot afford to hire a lawyer, nor do they fully meet the acceptance conditions of current legal aid, and they also lack understanding of how to recover losses through litigation and hold relevant persons accountable. Judicial authorities should proactively issue special guidelines to clarify the conditions, procedures, and required materials for filing lawsuits against various types of persons involved in the fraud industry chain, enabling the masses to conveniently use legal means to safeguard their rights, which can also objectively play a role in anti-fraud publicity. At the same time, for victims who intend to go abroad to file lawsuits against fraud groups and related persons, judicial authorities should rely on existing judicial assistance treaties and cross-border judicial cooperation mechanisms, distinguish the specific situations of different countries and regions, formulate targeted guidelines, and jointly with procuratorial organs provide necessary judicial assistance in evidence collection, preservation, etc., to effectively improve the practical effectiveness of the judiciary.

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Preventing Illegal Collection of Personal Information by Internet Applications

By: 钟明亮

We sometimes encounter situations like this: when scanning a QR code to pay in a public parking lot, one is forced to register, log in, and provide personal information such as a phone number; when downloading a photo-editing app, one is required to grant access to precise geographic location; after closing the location permission for a certain app, the interface repeatedly pops up requests, causing endless annoyance; and so on. While internet applications provide convenience, they also bring the problem of illegally collecting personal information, which urgently needs further regulation. Since the beginning of this year, relevant departments have been making continuous efforts to regulate the collection and use of personal information by applications. The Internet Application Personal Information Collection and Use Regulations (Draft for Comments) (互联网应用程序个人信息收集使用规定（征求意见稿）) has been publicly solicited for opinions, and the Cyberspace Administration of China (中央网信办) recently issued a circular on the collection and use of personal information by 30 applications. The illegal collection of personal information by internet applications, along with the risks of information leakage and misuse that come with it, has become a widely discussed topic.

One important reason that internet applications easily become a vehicle for infringing on personal information rights is that their operation mechanisms are not sufficiently transparent to ordinary users. According to the provisions of laws such as the Personal Information Protection Law of the People's Republic of China (中华人民共和国个人信息保护法, hereinafter referred to as the Personal Information Protection Law), the processing of personal information shall obtain the consent of the individual, and such consent shall be given voluntarily and explicitly on the basis that the individual is fully informed. However, in practice, this requirement is often difficult to implement. Most users, faced with lengthy and obscure privacy agreements, cannot use the application if they do not consent; if they do consent, it means a blanket acceptance of all terms of the agreement, without the ability to choose or negotiate on specific terms. This substantially compresses users' right to know and right to choose in practice. The Regulations on the Scope of Necessary Personal Information for Common Types of Mobile Internet Applications (常见类型移动互联网应用程序必要个人信息范围规定) clarifies the scope of necessary personal information for common internet applications, requiring that mobile internet applications shall not refuse users' use of basic function services because users do not provide non-necessary personal information. However, in reality, some applications, while completing main business functions, continuously collect user behavior trajectory data in the background under the pretext of optimizing experience, pushing information, etc. Even if the user has not actively opened the application, certain embedded software development kits are still reading the device's application list, clipboard content, or even call status. This kind of over-scope, high-frequency information collection has in fact crossed the boundary of personal privacy. To solve these problems, it is necessary to further refine institutional design under the legal framework.

Refine the rules and implement “informed-consent” in practice. “Informed-consent” is the basic rule for personal information processing. The “informed” required here should not be merely formal notification, but substantive comprehensibility. Currently, although the privacy agreements of many applications are very long, the core clauses are buried in a large number of legal terms and standardized expressions, making it difficult for users to truly understand how their data will be collected, how it will be used, and with whom it will be shared. According to relevant provisions of the Civil Code of the People's Republic of China on standard clauses, the party providing standard clauses shall “adopt reasonable means to draw the other party’s attention to clauses that exempt or mitigate its liability, or that have a material interest for the other party.” For the collection of sensitive information such as location, facial data, and contact lists, relying solely on a blanket checkbox at the end of the privacy agreement does not meet the standard of reasonable notification. In the next step, it is necessary to explore a graded and classified notification mechanism. For the collection of sensitive personal information, more intuitive methods such as pop-up windows or diagrams may be used to separately inform, and confirmation options independent of general service terms should be set up, ensuring that each use of sensitive information stems from the user's explicit authorization on the basis of full knowledge. At the same time, the specific content of the notification should be clearly defined, including the purpose of collection, method of processing, storage period, possible consequences, etc., so that users can truly understand and make judgments.

Further clarify the responsibilities of all parties involved in internet applications. The functional realization of applications often depends on the joint action of multiple third-party software development kits (SDKs), involving multiple entities such as operators, SDK providers, and distribution platforms. When users use an application, multiple embedded SDKs may be running simultaneously and collecting relevant data. In practice, when illegal collection of personal information occurs, users often find it difficult to identify which link is problematic. Chinese laws and regulations stipulate the responsibilities of data processors, but specifically in the field of internet applications, the boundaries of responsibility among participating entities are not yet clear enough. The Internet Application Personal Information Collection and Use Regulations (Draft for Comments) proposes that operators of internet applications shall perform review obligations in accordance with the law for embedded software development kits, operators of distribution platforms for distributed internet applications, and smart terminal manufacturers for pre-installed internet applications. Based on this requirement, a filing management and security certification system for SDKs could be further promoted, requiring SDK providers to publicly disclose their data collection and use rules, accept security reviews, and effectively compress the space for gray zones.

Strengthen the deterrent force of penalties. For illegal processing of personal information, or for processing personal information without fulfilling personal information protection obligations, Chinese law stipulates a maximum fine of 50 million yuan or 5% of the previous year's turnover. Although this provision is strict, looking at law enforcement and judicial practice, a large number of violations are mainly handled by means such as talks, orders for rectification, etc., and the cost of violation is often far lower than the illegal gains. At the level of administrative supervision, in addition to applying fines according to law, measures such as suspension of updates, removal from shelves, and inclusion in the list of dishonest entities should also be comprehensively applied, forming a tiered regulatory approach, and adopting more matched handling measures according to the nature and severity of the violation. At the judicial level, for large-scale, continuous infringements of personal information rights, more severe judicial sanctions should be applied so that violators bear the corresponding legal consequences for their actions. At the same time, for violations that have been investigated and dealt with, follow-up tracking should be strengthened to ensure that rectification is completed and to prevent similar problems from recurring.

Unblock channels for users to safeguard their rights. Current law grants users multiple rights such as access, copying, correction, deletion, and the right to file a lawsuit when their rights are infringed. However, in reality, due to high costs of rights protection, difficulties in obtaining evidence, and the difficulty of quantifying harm, a large number of infringement acts do not enter the legal remedy process. In personal information infringement cases, users often face information asymmetry, and it is difficult for them to prove that the application has engaged in illegal collection, or to prove a causal relationship between the act and their own harm, facing significant difficulties in producing evidence. In judicial practice of hearing civil cases related to personal information, the Supreme People's Court (最高人民法院) has explored the allocation of the burden of proof, requiring information processors to bear more of the burden of proving that their processing acts comply with legal provisions. After the user completes initial proof, the information processor is required to prove that its processing acts comply with the law. At the same time, considering that individual lawsuits often face the dilemma of high costs and low actual compensation amounts, the Personal Information Protection Law establishes a public interest litigation system for personal information protection, specifying that the people's procuratorates, consumer organizations stipulated by law, and organizations determined by the national cyberspace authority may file lawsuits in accordance with the law. In the next step, the procedural rules for relevant entities to initiate public interest litigation should be further improved, so that this system can play a greater role in the field of personal information protection, enabling users to obtain effective legal remedies at a lower cost of rights protection.

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Upgrade Yimeng rural area development to a new level

By: 张宝亮

The Fourth Plenary Session of the 20th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China proposed improving the implementation mechanism for rural construction according to local conditions, and advancing rural revitalization in a categorized, orderly, and area-based manner. Linyi, as a major agricultural city in Shandong Province, fully implements the Party Central Committee's decisions and deployments regarding work on agriculture, rural areas, and farmers, earnestly studies and implements the spirit of General Secretary Xi Jinping's important speeches and directive instructions during his inspection of Shandong, studies and applies the experience of the "Thousand-Village Demonstration, Ten-Thousand-Village Improvement" project (千万工程), deeply integrates the promotion of the Yimeng Spirit with the advancement of rural revitalization, takes area-based development as the specific pathway, coordinates the "five revitalizations," plans with one blueprint, builds with one network, manages with one system, and advances with one integrated effort, propelling rural areas from "area-based excellence" towards "comprehensive brilliance," creating an upgraded version of Yimeng rural area construction, and effectively boosting agricultural efficiency, rural vitality, and farmers' income.

Focus on upgrading area planning from "contiguous implementation" to "precise control."

Adhere to planning first, compile the "Overall Plan for Rural Revitalization Area Construction" and the "Guidelines for Rural Revitalization Area Construction," construct a three-tier planning system of "master plan – specialized plan – implementation plan," forming a pattern of tiered development, phased advancement, and full coverage. First, implement integrated layout. Adhere to the principle of "adjacent areas, similar functions, interconnected industries, and matching supporting facilities," take the county as the unit, the township as the element, and the central village as the base point, implementing overall planning at the county, township, and village levels. The city's 7,151 natural villages are scientifically divided into 639 areas, each area taking 1-2 central villages as the core and covering about 10 natural villages,统筹布局生产、生活、生态空间，打造"半小时生产生活圈"。Second, adhere to categorized implementation. Based on regional characteristics, resource endowments, and development foundations, divide the areas into four types: new construction, quality improvement, consolidation, and excellence creation. According to the "Linyi City Area Construction Standards," implement "one area, one plan," manage with checklists, advance by milestones, and implement with closed loops. For areas with weak foundations, focus on supplementing shortcomings; for mature areas, focus on improving quality; for advantageous areas, focus on creating models, avoiding "a thousand areas with one face." Currently, the city has built 283 areas, covering 57% of natural villages, of which 35 have been rated as provincial-level areas. Third, strengthen long-term management and protection. Centering on "building well and managing effectively," introduce three measures for area promotion, model rewards and subsidies, and operation management and protection, establish a regular "look-back" mechanism, avoiding planning that "flips the pancake" (changes frequently), advancement that is "hasty and superficial," and large-scale demolition and construction. Strengthen the authority and execution of planning, strictly supervise the entire process from site selection and design to construction and acceptance, ensuring that each area built is successful and serves as a demonstration. Fourth, highlight the principal role of the masses. Integrate the principal role of the masses throughout the entire process of area planning, construction, and operation. Before planning, rely on the "Four Discussions and Two Openings" (四议两公开) and villagers' councils to fully listen to the opinions of the masses. During construction, deepen models such as work-relief programs, prioritizing the recruitment of local people to participate in project construction, industrial development, environmental improvement, and facility operation and maintenance. After construction, the masses can find employment "at their doorstep," broaden income channels, and share in the fruits of development.

Focus on upgrading the rural environment from "basic remediation" to "harmonious and livable."

Adhere to equal emphasis on the "new countryside in terms of things" and the "new countryside in terms of people," highlight "refinement, precision, normalization, and long-term effectiveness," start with the improvement of the rural living environment, build livable, workable, and harmonious beautiful villages, so that the Yimeng countryside has both ecological beauty and livable warmth. Improve the overall environment. Continue to implement the "Hundred-Village Demonstration, Thousand-Village Improvement" project, focus on deepening the "four-domain" remediation of road areas, water areas, town areas, and village areas, simultaneously advance garbage treatment, sewage control, toilet renovation, and the clearing of dilapidated walls, building 969 provincial-level harmonious and beautiful villages. Optimize public services. Adhere to the direction of equalization, promote the coverage of basic public services to rural areas. Vigorously develop rural education, optimize the layout of rural education, deeply advance the "Strengthening Towns to Build Foundations" project, deepen the "Strengthening Schools to Expand Excellence" action, having cumulatively renovated and expanded 93 rural primary and secondary schools, adding 68,000 school places. Renovate and upgrade village health rooms to high standards, achieving "minor illnesses do not leave the village, common diseases are treated nearby." Adhere to "securing the bottom line, grasping industries, and expanding coverage," improve the "four systems" of civil affairs safety nets, integrated medical and elderly care, volunteer services, and the elderly care industry, solving the problem of rural elderly care, allowing the elderly in the old revolutionary base area to enjoy their later years in peace. Improve infrastructure. Build good "Four Good Rural Roads," agricultural production roads, and "household access" roads. The city's total rural road mileage exceeds 30,000 kilometers, ranking first in Shandong Province. Deeply implement rural water supply projects, achieving 100% coverage of centralized water supply, realizing the transformation from "having water to drink" to "drinking good water."

Focus on upgrading industries that enrich the people from "characteristic clustering" to "chain-based value addition."

Adhere to the path of integrating primary, secondary, and tertiary industries, vigorously develop industries that link and bring prosperity to farmers, promote the clustered, chained, and integrated development of characteristic industries, make the brand "Ecological Yimeng Mountain, High-Quality Agricultural Products" famous, drive "prosperity for the people" with "industrial prosperity," achieving full coverage of village collective economic annual income exceeding 100,000 yuan citywide. By 2025, the per capita disposable income of rural residents reached 23,127 yuan. Deeply cultivate "local specialties." Adhere to "one area, one characteristic," rely on resource endowments, build small industrial parks that link and benefit farmers, cultivate 24 "local specialty" clusters such as Mengyin peaches, Pingyi honeysuckle, and Junan peanuts, build 305 high-quality agricultural product supply bases for the Yangtze River Delta, transforming "local specialties" into "golden nuggets." At the same time, focus on breakthroughs in "deep processing," centering on "agricultural head, industrial tail; grain head, food tail," implement a revitalization action for agricultural product processing enterprises, focus on cultivating 3 signature industrial chains such as healthy meat products and green fruit and vegetable processing, cultivate and strengthen chain-leading enterprises, promoting the transformation of agricultural products from "selling raw materials" to "selling products, selling brands, selling services." By 2025, the city had 2,573 agricultural product processing enterprises above designated size, with operating revenue of 385.1 billion yuan, both ranking first in Shandong Province. Enliven "agriculture, culture, and tourism." Relying on red culture, ecological scenery, and folk characteristics, create "small but beautiful" areas and "Yimeng Nostalgia" boutique homestay clusters, cultivate new business forms such as rural tourism, leisure agriculture, cultural and creative industries, and health and wellness, promoting a change in business form from "transit check-in" to "deep health and wellness." The city has created 11 national-level key rural tourism towns and villages, built 191 "Yimeng Nostalgia" boutique homestays, receiving 45 million tourists annually, transforming ecological "good looks" into economic "high value." Improve the mechanism for common prosperity. Vigorously develop common prosperity workshops, strong village companies, and common prosperity industrial parks, construct a linkage mechanism of "enterprises + cooperatives + family farms + farmers," promoting the transformation of resources into assets, funds into shares, and farmers into shareholders, allowing the masses to have rental income from land transfer, wages from work, and dividends from shares. The city has cumulatively developed over 3,200 common prosperity workshops and over 1,200 strong village companies, achieving "build one area, prosper one industry, enrich one region."

Focus on upgrading rural governance from "joint village governance" to "comprehensive good governance."

Strengthen the leadership of Party building, adhere to the combination of rule of law, rule of virtue, and self-governance, promote the sinking of focus and the downward shift of forces, constructing a rural governance pattern of co-construction, co-governance, and shared benefits. Build strong organizational fortresses. On the basis of successfully completing the village "two committees" (Party branch and village committee) elections, strengthen the education and training of village cadres, enhance their ability to perform duties and strengthen their sense of responsibility. All "First Secretaries" from the city and county levels are stationed in key areas, jointly grasping Party building, jointly planning development, jointly discussing village affairs, and jointly solving problems, using organizational joint building to drive resource sharing, industrial joint revitalization, and governance joint action. Innovate governance mechanisms. Practice the "Four Go-Downs to the Grassroots" (四下基层), implement the "Three Links and Three Contracts" (三联三包), where city-level leaders link counties and contract townships, county-level cadres link townships and contract villages, and township-level cadres contract villages and link households, pushing cadres to the front line to solve problems on the front line. Construct a linkage mechanism of "two modernizations and one center" – grid management, informatization, and the comprehensive governance center – pushing the "four forces" of contracted village cadres, civilian police assistants, volunteers, and legal advisors down to the grassroots, opening up the "last meter" of connecting and serving the masses. Cultivate civilized rural customs. Vigorously cultivate civilized rural customs, good family traditions, and simple folkways. Taking the opportunity of hosting the China Civilized Rural Customs Conference, deepen the transformation of outdated customs, standardize red and white council affairs, and promote affordable funerals. Extensively carry out mass activities such as "Good Season in the Countryside" and "Village BA," allowing the new trend of civilization to permeate the Yimeng countryside. Make good use of the "small power list" and "sunshine village affairs," achieving transparency in village-level affairs and on-the-spot resolution of conflicts and disputes, making the countryside both vibrant and harmonious and orderly.

Focus on upgrading asset resources from "input integration" to "factor transformation."

Explore the model of "effective government + efficient market," break the scattered input like "sprinkling sesame salt," solve the problems of "where does the money come from, where do the people go, how is the land used" in rural revitalization, promoting the concentration of factors in rural areas and their transformation within areas. Activate the driving force of "people." Organizational promotion: strictly implement the responsibility of "five-level secretaries grasping rural revitalization," constructing a promotion mechanism of "city-level coordination, county-district main responsibility, departmental collaboration, and upper-lower linkage." Capable people driving: deeply implement the "Four Talents Project" (四雁工程), solidly carry out the "four major actions" of leading geese guiding the way, returning geese being recalled, swan geese spreading their wings, and the flock of geese flying in formation, having cumulatively cultivated and attracted 201,000 "Four Talents" individuals to take root in rural areas. Mass action: respect the principal status of the masses, actively guide mass participation, transforming the masses from "bystanders" into "masters." Revitalize the resources of "land." Extend contracts for "contracted land": orderly advance the pilot project of extending the second round of land contracts for another 30 years upon expiration, stabilizing farmers' expectations for land management. Regulate "transferred land": build a land transfer service platform, standardize transfer procedures, price evaluation, and risk prevention and control, develop适度规模经营. Revitalize "idle land": integrate idle resources contiguously through forms such as leasing and shareholding, activating "sleeping land." Amplify the effect of "money." Construct a diversified input pattern of "fiscal guidance, financial support, market follow-up." In recent years, the city has cumulatively coordinated 8.32 billion yuan in fiscal funds, leveraging 24.6 billion yuan in social capital, concentrating investment in the areas. Deepen the construction of the national-level pilot reform zone for inclusive financial services to support rural revitalization, innovate financial products such as "Strong Village Loans," precisely channeling financial resources to the countryside. Build Shandong Province's first "Rural Revitalization Partner" platform, facilitating 24,000 cooperation projects, promoting the precise matching of urban resources with rural needs. Strengthen the support of "technology." Explore the benefit-sharing model of "research institutes + enterprises + farmers," establish 19 experimental stations at the provincial level or above, promote 165 new agricultural technologies. The city's crop improved variety coverage rate reaches over 98%, and the agricultural mechanization level reaches 92%.

(The author is the Secretary of the Linyi Municipal Committee of the Communist Party of China)

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Building a first-class industrial financial company among central enterprises

Party leadership is the most essential characteristic of the path of financial development with Chinese characteristics, and the greatest political and institutional advantage of China’s financial development. Industrial finance, as a key strategic lever for central enterprises to integrate industrial chain resources, extend the value chain system, and enhance core competitiveness, must always be based on the fundamental purpose of financial services serving the real economy, and must carry the principle of adhering to comprehensive and rigorous Party governance and strictly enforcing the responsibility for Party governance throughout the entire process, ensuring that the direction of industrial finance development does not deviate and the intensity does not diminish. National Energy Group Capital Holdings Co., Ltd. (国家能源集团资本控股有限公司) (hereinafter referred to as Capital Holdings Company), as the industrial financial service platform of the National Energy Group, always adheres to the centralized and unified leadership of the Party Central Committee over financial work, integrates Party leadership into the entire process of corporate governance, closely aligns with major national strategic deployments, deeply cultivates the Group’s energy main business, continuously transforms the Party’s political, organizational, and institutional advantages into governance efficiency, development advantages, and competitive advantages, and focuses on building a first-class central-enterprise industrial financial company, contributing solid strength to the construction of a financial power through the practical effectiveness of industrial-financial coordination.

Uphold Party leadership, anchor the direction of development. Adhering to the centralized and unified leadership of the Party Central Committee over financial work is the fundamental guarantee for doing financial work well, and is also the most essential characteristic of a central-enterprise industrial financial company; it must be understood and advanced from a political perspective, ensuring that the positioning does not deviate, the direction does not shift, and the intensity does not diminish. Capital Holdings Company continuously improves the modern corporate governance mechanism of state-owned enterprises with Chinese characteristics, promotes the deep integration of Party leadership into all aspects of corporate governance, and transforms the Party’s political advantages into governance efficiency that drives and leads the high-quality development of industrial financial companies. The Party Committee of Capital Holdings Company fully exerts its leadership role in setting the direction, managing the overall situation, and ensuring implementation, continuously enhances the level of scientific decision-making, strictly implements the “Three Major and One Large” (三重一大) decision-making mechanism and the system of Party Committee prior study and gatekeeping, strictly controls the political direction, clarifies the strategic orientation, and ensures that all work is always advanced in the correct direction. In organizational construction, it promotes integrated advancement, strictly implements the requirements of “four simultaneous and four alignments” (四同步四对接), clarifies the boundaries of power and responsibility and the operating mode of Party organizations in all links of decision-making, execution, and supervision; in development layout, it adheres to strategic synergy and coordinated effort, always focuses on the task of industrial chain resource integration, and optimizes the efficiency of capital circulation within the industrial chain. Relying on innovation in financial products and service models to deepen industrial-financial coordination, it uses the combat effectiveness of Party organizations to continuously drive the overall improvement of the quality and efficiency of financial services, providing the Group with safe, stable, and efficient digital-intelligent financial services.

Deepen theoretical armament, consolidate the ideological foundation. The Party Committee of Capital Holdings Company has always regarded studying and implementing Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era as the primary political task, deeply studies and implements General Secretary Xi Jinping’s important discourses on financial work, and consolidates the ideological foundation and calibrates value coordinates in in-depth research and exchange. It establishes and practices a correct view of performance, resolutely and forcefully implements the major decisions and deployments of the Party Central Committee, strictly implements the Party Committee’s “first agenda” (第一议题) system, normalizes the theoretical study center group study and special seminars of the Party Committee, strictly controls the general ideological switch of Party members and cadres, continuously improves political judgment, political comprehension, and political execution ability, and ensures that Party members and cadres comprehensively, accurately, and profoundly grasp the strategic significance, functional positioning, and practical requirements of industrial finance, always keeping pace with the Party Central Committee.

Temper Party spirit cultivation, consolidate the foundation of professional conduct. To improve work style, one must first strengthen Party spirit. The Party Committee of Capital Holdings Company educates and guides all Party members and cadres to firmly strengthen their ideals and beliefs, deeply grasp the political and people-oriented nature of financial work, solidly promote the in-depth and practical implementation of the “five musts and five must-nots” (五要五不) of financial culture with Chinese characteristics, always firmly stand on the fundamental position of serving the real economy, discard the impetuous mentality, and abide by professional ethics. It takes the tempering of Party spirit as the foundation of conduct, carries the overall planning of development and security throughout, builds a solid foundation for professional conduct with excellent work style and precise services, and injects lasting financial momentum into the real economy. It strives to build a comprehensive, multi-level, and three-dimensional risk prevention and control system, strengthens bottom-line thinking and disciplinary constraints, strictly carries out work in accordance with laws, regulations, and discipline, regulates professional conduct with a strict tone and iron discipline, and firmly holds the bottom line of preventing major risks.

Perfect the supervision mechanism, consolidate political responsibility. Comprehensive and rigorous Party governance is a distinct theme of Party building in the new era; the implementation of the political responsibility for Party governance and Party management must be pushed to be in place as a major responsibility of organizational work. To build a first-class central-enterprise industrial financial company, it is necessary to guide and guarantee with high-quality Party building, strengthen the foundation with Party building, escort with discipline, and empower with responsibility. The key to comprehensive and rigorous Party governance lies in the implementation of responsibility. The Party Committee of Capital Holdings Company has always shouldered and grasped the political responsibility of implementing comprehensive and rigorous Party governance, strictly implements the “two lists” (两份清单) (list of responsibilities, list of tasks), tightens the chain of responsibility consistently to the end, continuously promotes the deepening and extension of comprehensive and rigorous Party governance to the grassroots, and promptly offers interviews and reminders for areas with frequent problems and unfulfilled responsibilities, ensuring that there are no gaps in Party governance and management and that results are achieved. It perfects the supervision mechanism for the responsibility of comprehensive and rigorous Party governance, focuses on key areas and critical links such as the “Three Major and One Large” decision-making mechanism and inspection and rectification, carries out “embedded” supervision and special supervision, and promotes effective coordination between political supervision and other types of supervision. It adheres to the combination of strict management and care, the equal emphasis on incentive and restraint, earnestly implements the “three distinctions” (三个区分开来), and forms a working mechanism of “assessments implemented layer by layer, responsibilities transmitted layer by layer, and incentives connected layer by layer,” promoting the construction of a first-class industrial financial company with new achievements in comprehensive and rigorous Party governance.

Base on national strategy, serve the development of the main business. Currently, China is in a critical period of accelerating the transformation of old and new growth drivers, and industrial development has entered an important juncture of transformation and upgrading. Cultivating new productive forces and promoting high-quality development have become the themes of the times, and the national strategic orientation has put forward higher requirements for financial services to serve the real economy. Capital Holdings Company, as a financial entity relying on the main business development of the National Energy Group, fully integrates its own development into the national strategic layout, takes serving the real economy as its core mission, and achieves the two key points of “vertical full chain, horizontal full coverage”: vertically covering the entire life cycle of the Group’s industrial development, horizontally covering all industrial fields of the Group. It builds a “investment-financing-management-exit” four-in-one whole-process management service system, integrates into the “selection-cultivation-cultivation-excellence” multi-level market, supports the full-cycle transformation of scientific and technological achievements of “production-research-application,” forms a closed loop of the entire process of “pre-investment, in-investment, post-investment,” constructs a “14315” whole-life-cycle capital operation system, and precisely empowers the real economy with financial liquidity. By constructing an embedded scenario-based financial innovation service model of “energy + finance + technology,” it sets up the energy supply chain financial service platform “National Energy e-Chain (国能e链)” based on the treasury system, deeply explores the transaction scenarios of the Group’s industrial chain and supply chain, builds a diversified and open chain-affiliated financial service system, continuously improves the ability and level of industrial financial services to serve the main business, serve the strategy, and serve the overall situation, and realizes the organic unity of political responsibility, economic responsibility, and social responsibility.

(Party Committee of National Energy Group Capital Holdings Co., Ltd.)

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Deepen social assistance reform to boost grassroots governance efficiency

By: 蔡茜

Grassroots governance is the cornerstone of national governance. Social assistance, as the basic safety-net system for ensuring the basic livelihood of the people, is an important tool for activating the effectiveness of grassroots governance and consolidating the foundation of governance, and is also an important pathway for securing the bottom line of people’s livelihood, resolving conflicts, and maintaining social stability. General Secretary Xi Jinping has repeatedly stressed that we must pay special attention, show special care, and give special concern to all types of people in difficulty. In recent years, Henan Province has solidly advanced the "Five Foundations and Four Modernizations" (五基四化), integrated social assistance work into the provincial Party committee’s governance system of Party-building leading grassroots high-efficiency governance, actively carried out actions to help the weak and relieve the needy, deepened the application of the "Party-building + grid + big data" governance model, and promoted the deep integration of social assistance with grassroots governance.

On July 1, 2026, the Social Assistance Law of the People’s Republic of China will be formally implemented. This is a milestone for the legalization, institutionalization, and standardization of China’s social assistance field. Through the rule of law, it consolidates the rights, responsibilities, and operational mechanisms of grassroots assistance, constructs a two-way supervision closed loop, and not only injects solid institutional momentum into grassroots governance but also provides solid rule-of-law support for advancing the modernization of grassroots governance and building a governance pattern of co-construction, co-governance, and shared benefits.

In the process of moving toward legalization, social assistance work is deeply integrated with grassroots governance, facing a systematic leap from "fragmented management" to "holistic governance," and the contradictions of reform and tackling tough issues are prominent. First, the adaptability between rigid design and dynamic demand is insufficient. Currently, most provinces have delegated the authority to verify and approve subsistence allowances to townships (subdistricts), but the regularized guarantee mechanism for personnel, finance, and materials has not yet been simultaneously improved, forming a structural gap of "delegation of authority downward, guarantee upward." Second, the dual constraints of digital barriers and application shortcomings exist, with problems such as insufficient depth of technology application and poor grassroots adaptability, limiting the coverage of digital assistance services. Third, there is a structural disconnect between the supply structure and the people’s needs; before the enactment of the Social Assistance Law, service-type social assistance was only piloted in some counties (cities, districts), and it could not yet meet the diverse assistance service needs of the vast number of people in difficulty. Fourth, there is a dual deficiency of coordination mechanisms and resource integration; apart from government assistance, the participation of multiple entities such as social organizations, charitable forces, and volunteers is not high, coordination mechanisms are not well-established, and resource integration capacity is insufficient. These difficulties are essentially structural imbalances between institutional supply and governance needs, and between service supply and the people’s needs. If not resolved in a timely manner through practical exploration, they will face problems such as path dependence and a disconnect between supply and demand, which will not only constrain the improvement of grassroots governance effectiveness but may also breed livelihood conflicts and affect social stability.

As a populous province and a major agricultural province in the country, Henan Province ranks second in the country in the number of social assistance recipients. The quality and substance of the safety-net guarantee directly affect the effectiveness of reforms and overall stability. Since 2016, Henan has carried out innovative practice activities in social assistance across the province, with some cities and counties taking the lead in trials and promoting the transformation of social assistance toward "providing diversified services." Over the past ten years, the province has explored and practiced 189 assistance cases, of which 34 were rated as excellent cases. For example, the new "promoting development" model of social assistance explored in Yexian (叶县), Pingdingshan City; the characteristic brand of "government-charity coordination and multi-party assistance" service-type social assistance implemented in Macun District (马村区), Jiaozuo City; and the "Party-building + social assistance" governance model carried out in Shihe District (浉河区), Xinyang City — these have formed a batch of replicable and scalable practical experiences across the province. Looking at the practices of the pioneering areas: institutional safeguards are the foundation, digital empowerment is the core, diversified assistance is the key, and multi-party coordination is the support.

First, optimize the institutional system. Henan Province has included social assistance work in the Township (Subdistrict) Duty Performance Item List (乡镇（街道）履职事项清单) and the grassroots grid governance, achieving consistent implementation from high-level promotion to the grassroots level. In the next step, it will also deeply implement the Social Assistance Law of the People’s Republic of China, improve and perfect a relief system with basic living assistance, special social assistance, and emergency hardship social assistance as the main body, supplemented by the participation of social forces, using material assistance to ensure survival, service assistance to improve quality, and spiritual assistance to shape the inner core. It will actively guide multiple entities such as social forces to participate, and by consolidating the material safety net, expanding service supply, and focusing on humanistic care, stimulate the endogenous motivation and self-reliance awareness of people in difficulty, providing institutional guarantees for maintaining social stability.

Second, deepen digital and smart reforms. Henan Province is actively promoting the iterative upgrading of the dynamic monitoring information platform for social assistance, and promoting the application of "Henan Assistance Pass" (河南救助通), realizing full process automation from assistance application and electronic authorization to online processing and cross-provincial verification, shortening processing times and reducing the burden on the grassroots. In the next step, it will also strengthen the application of big data and artificial intelligence technologies, improve the closed-loop management mechanism of cross-department information sharing, categorized assistance, and result feedback, establish a "policy list" for the people, and form a "happiness list" (幸福清单) where the weak receive support from many. Using digital and smart empowerment to improve assistance quality and efficiency, so that "data runs more, the masses run less."

Third, refine service supply. Adhere to a demand-oriented approach, make up for the shortcomings of service-type assistance, optimize the structure of service supply, precisely match the needs of the people, and resolve livelihood conflicts. Henan Province is actively conducting pilot projects for service-type assistance, exploring the establishment of a service-type social assistance list, continuously improving service supply such as daily care and psychological comfort for special groups in difficulty, including incapacitated and semi-incapacitated persons and patients with mental disorders, and introducing targeted special service content such as psychological counseling, spiritual comfort, and employment guidance for people in difficulty. Cities such as Jiaozuo and Zhumadian have broken the restrictions of household registration location and are exploring the implementation of applying for subsistence allowances at the place of residence, precisely filling the shortcomings of grassroots livelihood services.

Fourth, improve coordination mechanisms. Strengthen the government’s leading role, stimulate the vitality of multi-entity participation, integrate assistance resources, and pool assistance synergy. Henan actively guides the orderly participation of multiple entities, strengthens government procurement of services, introduces social work forces, and raises the professional level of serving people in difficulty; strengthens the effective connection between government assistance and charitable support. The province has established a total of 190 "Charitable Special Funds for Emergency Relief of People in Difficulty" (困难群众救急难慈善专项基金) at the provincial, city, and county levels, providing assistance and help to 208,000 people in difficulty. Through multi-party linkage, it strengthens publicity and guidance, breaks the mentality of "waiting, relying on, asking for" among people in difficulty, realizes the transformation from "blood-transfusion safety net" to "blood-production inspiration," and forms a virtuous cycle of "safety-net guarantee + empowerment development."

Promoting the deep integration of social assistance and grassroots governance is a persistent effort (jiǔ jiǔ wéi gōng - "long and sustained effort," requiring perseverance) that yields "latent achievements" (潜绩). It requires always adhering to the people-centered development philosophy, firmly establishing a correct view of political achievements, precisely focusing on the four dimensions of institutional improvement, technological upgrading, service optimization, and diversified coordination, consolidating the livelihood foundation of grassroots governance, making the effectiveness of assistance tangible and accessible, and writing a more warm livelihood answer sheet on the new journey of common prosperity.

(The author’s affiliation: Henan Provincial Department of Civil Affairs (河南省民政厅))

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"Awakening Age": Interpreting the Great Founding Spirit of the CPC Through Great Awakening

By: 张丹丹

2021 marked the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Communist Party of China, and a large number of literary and artistic works reflecting the theme of the Party's founding were unveiled. Among them, the TV series The Awakening Age (觉醒年代) can be said to have stirred up a red whirlwind, attracting a large number of viewers, especially young audiences. After its premiere on CCTV at the beginning of 2021, the series continued to ferment on internet social platforms. During its first round of broadcast, its ratings steadily ranked first on China's Audiovisual Big Data list, and its Douban score reached as high as 9.3, making it a tribute masterpiece that combined both critical acclaim and popularity. The Awakening Age not only gathered all three major authoritative awards for Chinese TV dramas but also received recognition from many other professional awards, becoming an important benchmark for film and television creation on the theme of Party history. This year marks the 105th anniversary of the Party's founding and is also the first year of the "15th Five-Year Plan." As we stand at a new starting point, we need all the more to draw strength from the great awakening of the "Awakening Age."

Innovative construction of historical narrative

Long Pingping (龙平平), the screenwriter of The Awakening Age, said in an interview that he began to conceive the script in 2015, but the theme the series was meant to express was not particularly clear to him. It was not until 2016, when General Secretary Xi Jinping delivered an important speech at the ceremony marking the 95th anniversary of the founding of the Communist Party of China, proposing "never forget why you started, and keep moving forward" and "as we go forward, we must never forget the path we have traveled; no matter how far we go, no matter how glorious the future we reach, we must never forget the past we have traversed, and never forget why we set out," that he felt a jolt in his heart: Wasn't this exactly the theme this TV series was meant to express? Wasn't this TV series precisely trying to clarify the origins and original aspiration of the Communist Party of China? Where did it come from? What is this original aspiration? Why is there this original aspiration? The Chinese people today should know and firmly remember this piece of history and this original aspiration. "Remain true to our original aspiration and keep our mission firmly in mind" infused the TV series with soul and vitality.

The primary breakthrough in The Awakening Age's narrative lies in its departure from the traditional narrative framework of previous Party‑founding themed film and television works, which centered on "the congress as the core," instead focusing on the process of "ideological awakening" between 1915 and 1921. This shift in narrative strategy means that the creators did not understand the historical process of the Party's founding as an isolated political event. In terms of narrative logic, The Awakening Age takes "awakening" as the origin point of the narrative and, through the narrative technique of 草蛇灰线 (cǎo shé huī xiàn - "a grass snake, a grey thread in the dust," subtle clues that hint at later developments), clearly and neatly presents the logical relationships among the New Culture Movement, the May Fourth Movement, and the founding of the Communist Party of China. This narrative method reveals a profound view of history: the founding of the Communist Party of China was not an accidental historical episode but the inevitable result of the Chinese nation's spiritual "awakening." From the perspective of ideological and cultural transformation, The Awakening Age examines the process of China's transition from the old democratic revolution to the new democratic revolution, recreates the earth‑shaking great event of the spread of Marxism in China and the founding of the Communist Party of China on Chinese soil, highlights the historical logic of the Chinese people's choice of the Communist Party of China, and vividly interprets the great Party‑founding spirit.

The Awakening Age is based on facts, reflecting the theme that the founding of the Communist Party of China was a historical necessity. Long Pingping believes that the vigorous development and tremendous achievements of socialist China today convincingly demonstrate the correctness of the choices made by our forebears 100 years ago, allowing the script to present this theme with full confidence.

Three‑dimensional and vivid portrayal of a group of characters

Film and television works on the theme of Party history, like literary and artistic creations on other themes, move people through the vividness of the story, the richness of the characters' personalities, the authenticity of emotions, and the verisimilitude of details. The reason the characters in The Awakening Age are unforgettable lies at its core in the fact that it portrays historical figures as flesh‑and‑blood "people" with both strengths and weaknesses. This makes the audience feel that these pioneers are both great figures and ordinary people who are dear and respectable. Screenwriter Long Pingping once said that when writing about great figures, one should first write them as ordinary people. The series builds a richly layered character genealogy centered on ideological pioneers of the New Culture Movement such as Chen Duxiu, Li Dazhao, Cai Yuanpei, Hu Shi, and Lu Xun, as well as young revolutionaries such as Chen Yannian, Mao Zedong, Zhou Enlai, and Deng Zhongxia. On the basis of respecting historical truth, the creators employ the Confucian concept of "harmony in diversity" (和而不同) to embody the gentlemen's magnanimity, use "establishing the mandate for the people" (为生民立命) to embody the characters' social responsibility, and use "sacrificing life for righteousness" (舍生取义) to highlight their feelings for family and country. Chen Duxiu "tricks" friends into buying his calligraphy to raise money, and during meetings he subtly pushes melon‑seed shells toward the fastidious Cai Yuanpei; Li Dazhao enthusiastically makes dumplings with the workers in Changxindian and expounds his principles; Lu Xun, to protest Zhang Xun's restoration, angrily raises a sign reading "I quit." These details full of the texture of life bring historical figures down from the altar to the human world.

What is even more noteworthy is that the series does not avoid ideological differences and personality conflicts among historical figures. The fierce debates within the New Culture Movement camp and between the old and new factions are transformed into narrative content that is both dramatically tense and historically measured. The creators reject the "tall, big, and perfect" (高大全) character image and focus instead on depicting the contradictions and multifaceted nature of the characters' personalities. The most classic scene is none other than the "Gu–Chen dispute." Gu Hongming, representing the restorationist faction, is shown in the series to possess talent that bridges Chinese and Western learning, his unyielding integrity when dismissed from his post, and his pleading for students at a critical moment. This respect for the "opponent" instead makes the new culture advocated by Chen Duxiu appear more substantial through the collision—the stronger the opponent, the more difficult the breakthrough. This approach avoids the simplistic binary opposition of "good people too good, bad people too bad," and also allows the audience to understand the complexity of history while feeling the sincerity of the pioneers in their quest for truth.

Through its careful shaping of historical figures, The Awakening Age has successfully found a new way to engage in dialogue with contemporary audiences, especially young people. It transforms the pioneers of a hundred years ago from symbols in books into "people" who are approachable, perceptible, and capable of evoking empathy.

Audiovisual language rich in Eastern connotations

The Awakening Age's innovation at the level of audiovisual language has elevated its aesthetic quality to a new height within its genre. Zhang Yongxin (张永新), the director of The Awakening Age, stated that the series strives to embed elements of traditional Chinese aesthetics, such as metaphor and Eastern aesthetic expressions like "leaving blank space" (留白), into the drama. The creators conceal historical events and the spirit of the times within the details of objects and the composition of scenes through metaphorical techniques. The repeatedly appearing camels, ants, and muddy streets are actually projections of the characters' situations. The most representative example is Mao Zedong's entrance: heavy rain is falling from the sky, and Mao Zedong, holding the latest issue of Youth Magazine (later renamed New Youth) in his arms, runs through the crowd. This scene metaphorically conveys the historical implication that "he came from the wind and rain." Additionally, the ruts in the mud symbolize the difficulty of moving forward on the old path, and running in the wind and rain implies the urgency of the era's transformation—these imagistic expressions give history a poetic texture.

In The Awakening Age, the historic scene of "Chen in the south and Li in the north, pledging to found the Party" (南陈北李，相约建党) was regarded by the creative team as "the most splendid movement" of the entire series. It does not remain a simple record in history books; instead, through a highly impactful artistic presentation, it profoundly interprets the "original aspiration" and "mission" of founding the Party. In February 1920, Li Dazhao took the risk of escorting Chen Duxiu, who was wanted by the warlords, out of Beijing. Screenwriter Long Pingping, upon consulting historical materials, discovered that that year there was a severe drought in northern China and refugees were everywhere along the Hai River, and thus found an entry point for artistic processing. When the two men, "Chen in the south and Li in the north," reached the Hai River, they witnessed the miserable condition of the refugees and heard the sorrowful questions of a "survivor of the Boxer Rebellion." For the first time, Chen Duxiu lost emotional control and broke down in tears. Faced with Li Dazhao's question, "What kind of Party do you want to build?" he pointed to the refugees and said: "So that they can live like human beings, so that they can have human rights, human happiness, and human dignity!" This scene employs oppressive images such as an overcast sky, howling cold wind, and refugees everywhere, forming a stark contrast with the solemn oath the two men take in the wind and snow—extremely evocative.

In terms of color use and camera调度, The Awakening Age is equally ingenious. The comprehensive application of audiovisual elements such as montage techniques, contrasts between different tones and colors, dynamic camera rendering, and shifts between long and close shots not only shapes three‑dimensional character images but also imbues the entire work with both epic grandeur and poetic timelessness. This creative method combining the "historical" and the "aesthetic" allows The Awakening Age to find a delicate balance between documentary realism and artistic expression.

Profound resonance among young viewers

The most striking phenomenon after the broadcast of The Awakening Age is undoubtedly the profound resonance it sparked among young audiences. Examining the reasons, the series' "youth‑oriented expression" is multi‑dimensional. At the content level, it abandons a preaching posture and engages in dialogue with young audiences from an equal narrative stance. At the formal level, the series skillfully incorporates youth subcultural forms such as bullet‑comment culture and meme culture into its dissemination system. At the spiritual level, the pioneering characters' questing spirit of "finding a way out for the nation" creates a deep emotional resonance with contemporary young people's self‑identity. Under the hashtag #觉醒年代yyds#, which had over 1.1 billion reads, netizens called it "well‑deserved" (note: "yyds" stands for "the eternal god"). Data shows that among the audience covered by The Awakening Age, the proportion of people aged 29 and under accounts for nearly 70%, meaning the series has a large number of post‑90s and post‑00s viewers. On Bilibili, a video related to The Awakening Age titled "Our exam points are their entire lives!" (我们的考点，是他们的一生！) garnered over 5 million views for a single episode. The most‑liked comment in the comment section read: "The Awakening Age has no sequel, because we are the sequel." It was this comment that made screenwriter Long Pingping sigh, "I repeatedly examined myself; I underestimated young people's political discernment and artistic appreciation."

The success of The Awakening Age is not accidental. It faithfully depicts, from the perspective of historical materialism, the historical events from the failure of the "Second Revolution" to the founding of the Communist Party of China in modern China, presenting three‑dimensionally the era‑typicality and individual personalities of historical figures. In terms of ideological content, it answers the fundamental questions of why China chose Marxism and why the Communist Party of China could be founded; in terms of artistry, it completes an aesthetic expression of enlightenment and revolution; in terms of dissemination, it breaks down generational barriers and achieves an effective convergence of mainstream values and youth culture. As the series' director Zhang Yongxin said: "Today's audiences, especially young audiences, have never rejected good works. What they reject are those rough, superficial, and insincere works." The revelation of The Awakening Age lies precisely here: it did not win over young audiences by "catering" to them, but won respect through "sincerity," earned love through "quality," and gained recognition through "resonance."

General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out at the Party History Study and Education Mobilization Conference that it is necessary to encourage the creation of literary and artistic works on the theme of Party history, especially film and television works. This has pointed the direction for film and television creation in the new era. The creative practice of The Awakening Age proves that when creators respect history with a rigorous creative attitude, express history with exquisite artistic means, and engage audiences with sincere emotional posture, film and television works on the theme of Party history can fully become cultural masterpieces that possess both ideological depth, historical thickness, and artistic height. In this sense, The Awakening Age is not only an outstanding TV drama but also provides a "methodological" answer sheet worthy of in‑depth summary for film and television creation on the theme of Party history.

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Never Forget the 'Paving Generation'

By: 李浩燃

This year marks the 105th anniversary of the founding of the Communist Party of China, and also the 90th anniversary of the victory of the Red Army's Long March. Looking back at that '无与伦比 (wú yǔ lún bǐ - "nothing to compare with," unparalleled) epic expedition,' Guizhou was one of the provinces where the Central Red Army spent the longest time, covered the widest area, and experienced the most significant events during the Long March.

Now when Guizhou is mentioned, many people think of the label 'colorful.' Indeed, as the only province in the country without plains to support it, its topographical features and climatic resources are 得天独厚 (dé tiān dú hòu - "endowed uniquely by heaven," richly endowed by nature), multiple ethnic groups coexist harmoniously, the 'cultural thousand islands' each beauty its own beauty, and its unique natural and cultural heritage is 闻名遐迩 (wén míng xiá ěr - "famous far and near"). Yet in my heart, because of the Red Army, because of the Long March, red is undoubtedly Guizhou's most profound undertone.

Each battle site, each Red Army grave and Red Army monument, each segment of red story, seems to be silently telling — the Long March, this 'red ribbon' engraved on the earth, was dyed with the blood of countless Red Army soldiers, and many did not even leave behind their exact names. Time flows, gunpowder smoke dissipates, the places where they once trudged with difficulty have long undergone great changes in mountain villages and 山河锦绣 (shān hé jǐn xiù - "mountains and rivers like brocade," beautiful landscape).

Walking among the mountains and waters of Guizhou, we both visit red landmarks and feel the changes between past and present. In new urban districts, high-rise buildings stand 鳞次栉比 (lín cì zhì bǐ - "like fish scales and comb teeth," row upon row), modern industrial parks are 星罗棋布 (xīng luó qí bù - "scattered like stars and spread like chess pieces," numerous and widely distributed), streets are wide and clean, with 车水马龙 (chē shuǐ mǎ lóng - "carriages like flowing water, horses like dragons," heavy traffic) and 川流不息 (chuān liú bù xī - "rivers flow endlessly," continuous flow). In rural villages, natural ecology is well protected, trees are lush, streams are clear, village houses are interspersed, presenting a picture of beautiful scenery, livable and harmonious. Today's Guizhou, 'lucid waters and lush mountains are invaluable assets' (绿水青山就是金山银山) is real and tangible, enriching the villagers' pockets; large bridges and highways 纵横捭阖 (zòng héng bǎi hé - "vertical and horizontal, opening and closing," to crisscross and connect strategically), nearly half of the top 100 highest bridges in the world are located here; the big data industry accumulates momentum and takes shape, modern infrastructure crosses mountains and seas... Following the revolutionary path blazed by revolutionary forebears, the cadres and masses of Guizhou hammer blow after blow, both 只争朝夕 (zhǐ zhēng zhāo xī - "seize the morning and evening," to make full use of time) and persist for a long time, forging a new path of high-quality development. The former 'no three feet of flat land, no three cents of silver' has been greatly rewritten.

Traveling between cities and countryside, 抚今追昔 (fǔ jīn zhuī xī - "caress the present, pursue the past," to reflect on the past in light of the present), two places are especially evocative: one is Kunniu Mountain (困牛山) in Shiqian County (石阡县), Tongren City (铜仁市), and the other is the Dafa Canal (大发渠) in Bozhou District (播州区), Zunyi City (遵义市).

Arriving at the Kunniu Mountain Red Army battle site, a fine rain was falling, the atmosphere solemn. Turning back the clock to October 1934, the Sixth Red Army Corps, on its western expedition, entered Shiqian and fell into a heavy enemy encirclement. To cover the main force's transfer, the 52nd Regiment voluntarily stayed behind as a rearguard, luring the enemy up Kunniu Mountain. Zhou Qibing (周其兵), a lecturer from the Shiqian County Party School who was with us, emotionally described the tragic scene of that year: 'Facing the enemy's step-by-step advance, pushing the common people to the front as human shields, more than a hundred Red Army soldiers preferred to die rather than harm the people, preferred to die rather than be taken prisoner, and collectively jumped off the cliff.' Walking step by step along the Red Army trail, down to the valley bottom, the precipitous cliffs were close at hand. Before coming to Guizhou this time, I did not know the story of Kunniu Mountain, and standing on the scene, I was deeply shocked. These Red Army soldiers were all so young. When they resolutely made the choice to leap, what were they thinking? What kind of future China did they envision?

Now look at the Dafa Canal. In recent years, there have been many news reports about the Dafa Canal, but when visiting on site, it was still deeply moving. Observing along the mountain, we saw a clear stream winding and meandering, coming from afar, descending with the terrain, moistening one area and benefiting one area. On the path, we also encountered villagers carrying bamboo baskets up the mountain, with simple smiles on their faces. Walking on the sightseeing path built beside the canal was not easy. It is hard to imagine that under such harsh conditions back then, what kind of conviction supported Huang Dafa (黄大发) in saying 'If water cannot pass, I will pave with my life,' and over more than 30 years, led the villagers to chisel out this 'life canal' on the precipice? When meeting this 'contemporary Foolish Old Man,' one truly felt a kind of spirit of gnawing at hard bones and never giving up. Now, although over ninety years old, he still insists on going to the fields to do farm work, always thinking about how to make a good article on the integration of agriculture, culture, and tourism, busy running around to increase income for the villagers. Old Party secretary Huang, wearing the 'July 1 Medal' (七一勋章), held my hand and said: 'When facing difficulties, think of the Red Army's Long March... A Communist Party member must work for a lifetime!'

Crossing the rapids of revolution, construction, and reform, is it not by the paving of generation after generation that we have come step by step to today? Liao Junbo (廖俊波), the 'woodcutter who gave his all,' served the people with the tenacity of 'carrying stones up the mountain'; 'if you can go to the site, don't stay in the meeting room'; he paid out of his own pocket to support students from financially difficult families. Leaving the mountains and returning to the mountains, Huang Wenxiu (黄文秀), after graduating with a master's degree, gave up the opportunity to work in a big city, plunged both feet into the soil, interpreted the original aspiration with her life, and her young life was forever frozen on the road to poverty alleviation. On the new journey of the new era, besides typical figures, there are no lack of selfless dedicators, persevering supporters and road-pavers, and many of them are obscure and nameless.

Points of starlight gather into the Milky Way. Unforgettable: at the Red Army martyrs' tomb on Qinggang Slope (青杠坡), bending down to touch this red earth with my hands, listening to the poetry recital 'Motherland, As Long As You Need It'; unforgettable: facing the bombing of Kuomintang aircraft, seven Red Army soldiers bravely sacrificed themselves to cover a mother and child and some civilians, still praised by the people of Xishui County (习水县) to this day... In the spiritual starry sky of a nation, the radiance of 'nameless stars' shines brightly (熠熠生辉 (yì yì shēng huī - "brightly shining," glittering)).

How can it be said there is no name? The mountains and rivers give the name; how can it be said there is no sound? The years bear witness. The passage of time may fade some traces, but the spirit precipitated within is inherited and passed on through the continuous struggle of generations. This emotion and power transcend time and space, illuminate the mountains and rivers, extend toward endless crowds and infinite distances, forming part of the national memory and the memory of family and country — no matter how far we go, we must not forget 'the generation that paved the road,' we must not forget why we set out in the first place.

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Torchlight Illuminates Policy Building, Original Aspiration Opens New Journey

By: 陈良

Mid-summer breeze is clear, all things thrive. On the eve of July 1st, with feelings of reverence and remembrance, we hasten to Chencelou Village (陈策楼村) in Huangzhou (黄州), at the southern foot of the Dabie Mountains and beside the Bashui River, to visit the former residence of Chen Tanqiu (陈潭秋), a representative of the First National Congress of the Communist Party of China.

After the rain, the village is bright with mountains and clear waters, lush with grass and trees; gusts of pine wind pass through the forest, brushing away dust from our clothes and refreshing the heart. Approaching the village entrance, the five large characters "Chen Tanqiu's Former Residence" on the gate tower catch the eye – inscribed by the older-generation proletarian revolutionary Li Xiannian. Also a revolutionary predecessor who emerged from eastern Hubei, Li Xiannian's calligraphy is filled with deep remembrance and lofty respect for his fellow townsman and comrade-in-arms, one of the founders of the Chinese Communist Party. Between the strokes lies the shared original aspiration and common mission of a generation of Communists for the family-nation sentiment.

Chen Tanqiu's former residence dates from the Qing Dynasty: one entrance, two interior sections, five bays wide. The mottled green bricks are engraved with the vicissitudes of time; the wooden beams and black tiles preserve a century of changes. After the failure of the Great Revolution in 1927, the reactionaries, in revenge against the Chen family, set fire to and destroyed the entire old house, leaving only three red stone gate pillars. In 1979 it was restored and rebuilt according to its original appearance, for later generations to view.

In January 1896, Chen Tanqiu was born into a family of farming and scholarship in Chencelou Village. The Chen family had a continuous literary tradition and a clean family ethos: self-sufficient in food and clothing, upholding culture and righteousness. As a youth, Chen Tanqiu was imperceptibly influenced, and the seed of saving the nation and the people was already planted in his heart. Witnessing the harsh governance of the late Qing, the chaos of warlord conflicts, and the suffering of the people, he was unwilling to bury himself in books and look after his own well-being alone. While studying at the Provincial First Middle School and Wuchang Higher Normal School, he extensively read Marxist books and periodicals, constantly pondering and seeking a way out for the nation.

Entering the inner courtyard of the former residence, visiting the front hall, the courtyard, and the side rooms, what we see is extremely simple furnishings, but behind the simplicity lie legendary events. After the closing of the First National Congress of the CPC, Chen Tanqiu immediately returned to his hometown to sow the sparks of revolution. Using his ancestral house as a secret base, he rushed about to contact progressive youth and took the lead in organizing the first rural Party group in the Dabie Mountains and the Huanggang Peasant Association. A small courtyard and a front hall are engraved with the original color of the Communist Party's roots in grassroots and its roots among the people, hiding the spiritual code of the century-old Party's endless vitality.

The two side rooms were the living quarters of Chen Tanqiu and his family. Viewing the relics and introductions in each room, one cannot help but be moved by the sincere loyalty of "a family of martyrs." In the chaotic era of war, eight members of the Chen family unreservedly joined the revolution, and six of them died for the country. The fifth elder brother, Chen Shusan (陈树三), was assassinated while campaigning for the Xinhai Revolution, only 21 years old. The eighth younger brother, Chen Yinlin (陈荫林), deeply engaged in the peasant movement, followed the army in the Nanchang Uprising, fell ill from overwork, and died on the revolutionary journey. His wife, Xu Quanzhi (徐全直), was also a steadfast Party member, constantly moving with her husband on the underground front; she was arrested in 1934 and bravely executed at Yuhuatai (雨花台) in Nanjing. One family, six martyrs; two generations, souls serving the nation. The Chen family dedicated their flesh, blood, and resolve to the revolutionary cause, advancing wave upon wave, worthy of song and tears.

Leaving the old residence, we step into the adjacent Chen Tanqiu Memorial Hall. The courtyard-style exhibition hall is solemn and dignified, taking time as the thread, historical materials as the foundation, and cultural relics as the carrier, spreading out in panoramic view Chen Tanqiu's magnificent, sincere and regretless revolutionary life. Yellowed photographs freeze the arduous years, precious manuscripts engrave the original aspiration of faith, weathered objects tell the journey of struggle. Each piece of historical material, each scene from the past, silently reflects in that turbulent era a Communist's unswerving and lifelong faith.

Standing in the exhibition hall, looking back a hundred years, the epoch-making feat of founding the Party unfolds vividly before our eyes. The 25-year-old Chen Tanqiu rushed to Shanghai, attended the First National Congress, boated on the Red Boat on South Lake, and together with a group of revolutionary pioneers drew the blueprint for national salvation, igniting the 星星之火 (xīng xīng zhī huǒ – "spark of fire," a small but burgeoning force) that would light up the land of China. From then on, he spent his life rushing and steadfastly practicing, not coveting fame, not fearing danger, moving across the north and south of the great river to deeply cultivate the revolutionary cause. In the tide of the Shanghai workers' movement, there was his figure 运筹帷幄 (yùn chóu wéi wò – "planning strategies within a tent," directing operations from behind the scenes); in the perilous environment of White Terror in the Northeast, there was his responsibility in hiding and persisting; on the hot soil of the red Soviet areas, there were his footprints in deep cultivation and governance. Whether in favorable or adverse circumstances, whether his post changed, he always adhered to the original aspiration of founding the Party, upheld the duty of a Party member, and with all his life's effort practiced the sonorous oath to save the nation and serve the people.

Gazing attentively, savoring the deeds, the soul is repeatedly shaken and cleansed. In 1934, when the Central Red Army was preparing for the Long March, Chen Tanqiu, then People's Commissar of Food of the Central Executive Committee of the Chinese Soviet Republic (i.e., head of the Food Ministry), was 临危受命 (lín wēi shòu mìng – "receive a mission in times of danger," be tasked with a critical assignment in a crisis) to raise provisions for 5 to 7 days of marching. Facing the dual difficulties of material scarcity and tense situation, he calmly coordinated, worked day and night, extensively mobilized the masses, precisely allocated supplies, and successfully completed the task of preparing provisions, laying a solid foundation for the start of the Red Army's Long March. He also set an example by first practicing frugality, eating only two meals a day, saving grain for the army, using small, persistent actions to interpret the Communist's selfless responsibility.

The most soul-stirring part is the Party character and integrity displayed in the final years of his life. When the War of Resistance entered the stalemate phase, the situation on the frontier was seething with undercurrents. Chen Tanqiu, 临危受命 (lín wēi shòu mìng – see above), became the representative of the CPC Central Committee in Xinjiang and the head of the Eighth Route Army Office in Xinjiang. At that time Xinjiang was on the frontier with a complex situation. He alone took root in the Tianshan region, united people of all ethnic groups, consolidated anti-Japanese forces, and fortified the Party's red bastion in the northwestern frontier. He had many opportunities to withdraw from danger and return to Yan'an, but he always chose to remain on the front line, leaving the hope of life to his comrades and the risk of death to himself.

When the storm suddenly changed, the reactionary warlord Sheng Shicai (盛世才) broke faith, turned against the Communists, and massively arrested Party members in Xinjiang. Chen Tanqiu unfortunately fell into prison. In the cell, the enemy used both 软硬兼施 (ruǎn yìng jiān shī – "use both soft and hard tactics," alternately coax and coerce) and 威逼利诱 (wēi bī lì yòu – "intimidate and lure with gain," threaten and bribe), tempting him with high office and wealth to betray the Party, and using torture to force him to submit. Physical pain can break the body, but it is difficult to shake a rock-solid faith. Even though he was covered in wounds and in desperate straits, he never wavered in his integrity or his original aspiration, defending the dignity of a Communist's faith with 铁骨铮铮 (tiě gǔ zhēng zhēng – "iron bones clanging," unyielding and resolute). On the night of September 27, 1943, the Tianshan cold moon shivered, the Gobi wind sobbed. This founding pioneer who came from the Dabie Mountains died a martyr's death at the age of 47.

The mountains and rivers remember the loyal soul; the Party history engraves the sincere devotion. When the Seventh National Congress of the CPC was held in 1945, due to wartime disruption of information, the central authorities had not yet received the news of Chen Tanqiu's heroic death, and he was still elected a member of the Central Committee. This special Central Committee member "elected after death" was the highest commendation from the entire Party for his life of loyalty, a unique red mark in the Party's century-long history, and a resonance of original aspiration across mountains and seas unto death for generation after generation of Communists. After the victory of the revolution, Chen Tanqiu's remains were buried in the Urumqi Martyrs' Cemetery. Dong Biwu personally wrote the inscription: "Tomb of Martyr Chen Tanqiu"; the brush strokes were vigorous, each character weighed a thousand jun.

Walking slowly out of the memorial hall, looking back at the towering Celou Hill and the leisurely Bashui River, thoughts surge in the heart, long unable to calm. Visiting the red historical site and tracing the footsteps of the martyrs is never merely about recalling the past and remembering the sages, but more about tracing the original aspiration and drawing strength. Standing at a new historical starting point, we of this generation must take the martyrs as a mirror, take the original aspiration as the helm, inherit the will of the forerunners, shoulder the mission of rejuvenation, let the great founding spirit of the Party take root in the land of China and shine on the journey of the times, and let the red torch be endlessly passed on, forever burning bright along the magnificent road of national rejuvenation.

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Approach the Search for Extraterrestrial Civilizations with Scientific Spirit

By: 张同杰

Recently, the International Academy of Astronautics (IAA) officially released a new version of the Declaration of Principles for the Conduct of the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence (hereinafter referred to as the Declaration). The Declaration is a strict procedural framework for handling after the detection of suspected candidate technosignatures of extraterrestrial intelligence, also known as the post-detection protocol. This milestone document is the first large-scale revision of post-detection handling norms in 15 years, spanning four years (2022–2025), gathering more than 350 global SETI researchers to participate in its compilation. The author participated in the final two revisions and votes in 2024 and 2025. Once humanity detects technosignatures of extraterrestrial intelligence, it will be a major event that changes the course of human civilization. The Declaration keeps pace with the times, establishing a set of standardized mechanisms for signal verification, information disclosure, and a comprehensive framework for global risk communication, including eight principles: handling of suspected evidence, information sharing and exchange, notification of verification results, monitoring and data archiving access openness, protection of data and observation frequency bands, post-detection handling procedures, communication rules after confirmed discovery, and ethical and legal constraints. The search for extraterrestrial intelligence (SETI) is a common exploratory undertaking for all humanity, requiring us to conduct a comprehensive review and long-term assessment from dimensions such as scientific connotation, research progress, discovery value, ethical dilemmas, and China's development layout.

What is the search for extraterrestrial intelligence? The Declaration clearly defines the concept of the search for extraterrestrial intelligence, that is, relying on astronomy and related disciplines, aiming to find technosignatures or empirical evidence left by existing or ancient intelligent life beyond Earth and its technology. Technosignatures define observable evidence of technology built or used by alien organisms, such as narrowband radio signals, laser radiation, infrared excess radiation generated by large-scale energy consumption, anomalies in astronomical observation data caused by giant artificial celestial engineering (such as Dyson spheres, etc.), or physical artificial artifacts, which can serve as indicators of the existence of extraterrestrial intelligent life. The Declaration only applies to the search for extraterrestrial intelligent life (or civilization) (ETI, also called aliens), and does not apply to the study of extraterrestrial life in a broad sense, nor to unidentified anomalous phenomena (UAP) in Earth's atmosphere, such as the relevant documents released by the U.S. government in three batches this year.

Extraterrestrial life follows a hierarchical progression rule from basic matter to complex life forms, divided into four levels: organic molecules, amino acids and proteins, lower life, and advanced civilization. This hierarchical evolutionary path is consistent with the trajectory of life evolution and provides a clear framework for research. The first three levels have all achieved milestone results, continuously expanding the cognitive boundaries of the possibility of life in the universe. (1) Organic molecules (one of the four major discoveries in astronomy in the 1960s); (2) Amino acids (the smallest unit constituting proteins, belonging to small molecules) and proteins (functional macromolecules). In 2022, Japan's Hayabusa2 for the first time discovered amino acids on the asteroid Ryugu; (3) Lower life (unicellular, simple multicellular organisms, primitive metabolic patterns, no thinking or intelligence, life forms without technological capability, such as microorganisms), with biomarkers or biosignatures as the core search handle, indirectly inferring the existence of life by identifying material signals produced by life activities. In September 2025, NASA announced that the Perseverance rover found clear potential signs of life in sediment samples from Jezero Crater on Mars, suggesting that Mars may have once nurtured ancient microorganisms; (4) Advanced life and intelligent life (or civilization): Intelligent life (or civilization) is the apex of advanced life, capable of developing technology and producing technological signals. The Declaration only applies to the search at the fourth level; the first three levels belong to the research scope of astrobiology. In October 2024, the Chinese Academy of Sciences and others jointly released the National Medium- and Long-Term Development Plan for Space Science (2024–2050), with the extraterrestrial life exploration project listed as one of 17 priority development directions.

On the question of whether extraterrestrial civilization exists, the scientific community has not yet reached a unified consensus. The theories and observational bases supporters rely on are, first, the Drake equation proposed in 1961 by Frank Drake, a radio astronomer at Cornell University and the father of SETI, which quantifies from a statistical dimension the number of civilizations in the Milky Way capable of interstellar communication. Second is the cosmological principle, which holds that the universe is homogeneous and isotropic on large scales, with no special position, so Earth humans have no special status in the universe, and the existence of ETI is reasonable. In addition, more than 6,000 exoplanets have been discovered so far, considered the most likely habitats for ETI. In terms of confidence and vision, SETI research has always been one of the six scientific questions in NASA's scientific vision. The famous astrophysicist Lin Chao believes that finding signs of extraterrestrial life may not be far off; there is hope to find it in the next few decades. The chief scientist at NASA headquarters wrote an article calling for the establishment of a framework for reporting evidence of extraterrestrial life to announce the discovery of alien life, because extraterrestrial life may indeed be discovered soon. In 2025, teams from the University of Munich and others in Germany published a paper in Science Advances arguing that the emergence of extraterrestrial intelligent life may be inevitable, not an accidental miracle. The paper uses a new paradigm of co-evolution of planetary life to reverse the old probability perception of intelligent life is extremely rare into a new judgment that intelligent life is highly likely to appear after a habitable planet matures, which is a milestone theoretical breakthrough in SETI in recent years. China's space physicist, academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences Wang Chi, wrote in People's Daily that with rapid technological development, perhaps in the near future, the search for extraterrestrial life will achieve a major breakthrough.

At the same time, there are also many scientists who hold skeptical or cautious attitudes. Their core argument is first the Fermi Paradox — if there are many advanced civilizations in the universe, why is there no solid evidence to date? The related Great Filter hypothesis holds that intelligent life must cross a series of extremely difficult evolutionary thresholds, and most life may become extinct before reaching the intelligent stage. Anders Sandberg's team at the University of Oxford in the UK believes that the probability that humans are the only intelligent civilization in the Milky Way may be as high as 53% to 99.6%. In addition, the Rare Earth hypothesis emphasizes that the emergence of life and complex evolution require a combination of astrophysical and geological conditions, and these conditions are uncommon in the universe.

Scholars from Durham University, the University of Edinburgh, and the University of Birmingham in the UK published a study in 2025 in Nature Astronomy based on 1,055 valid questionnaires, showing that 86.6% of astrobiologists acknowledge the existence of simple extraterrestrial life, 67.4% are optimistic about complex multicellular life, and 58.2% believe ETI may exist. The above judgments are only probabilistic inferences based on conditions such as the distribution of habitable planets and the widespread existence of basic life materials. There is currently no direct observational evidence to confirm the real existence of extraterrestrial life. The optimistic propaganda of mass media differs greatly from the actual cognition of the academic community, which is layered, cautious, and has obvious divergences. Whether ETI exists is still an open question, and precisely for this reason we need to search more.

Review and progress of the search for extraterrestrial intelligence. In 1959, astronomers Cocconi and Morrison from Cornell University in the United States published the first SETI scientific paper in Nature, proposing that neutral hydrogen 21 cm radiation is the most suitable carrier for interstellar communication. In 1960, Drake initiated the first SETI experiment, Project Ozma, using the 85-foot radio telescope at Green Bank. In the 1990s, astronomer Dan Werthimer at the University of California, Berkeley, led the development of the world's first distributed computing SETI project, SETI@home. Launched in May 1999, relying on the Arecibo radio telescope in the United States, it was the most successful distributed computing scientific experiment until its closure in December 2020 due to broken cables. In 2015, Russian billionaire Yuri Milner launched the Breakthrough Listen project, aiming to search for scientific evidence of the existence of extraterrestrial intelligent life. The project planned to invest $100 million over 10 years, using the 100-meter Green Bank telescope in the United States and the 64-meter Parkes radio telescope in Australia for observations. From 2025, the project headquarters moved to the University of Oxford, continuing research, demonstrating the long-term determination of Western scientific circles for SETI.

In the early 21st century, China's space astronomy field established the research strategy of two darks, one black, three origins, among which origin of life is one of the three origins, laying the disciplinary foundation for the exploration of extraterrestrial life. In 2011, Nan Rendong and others published an article in the International Journal of Modern Physics D, prospectively listing SETI as one of the five major scientific objectives of China's Five-hundred-meter Aperture Spherical Radio Telescope (FAST). FAST was completed in September 2016. In October, the National Astronomical Observatories of China (国家天文台) signed a strategic cooperation intention with the Breakthrough Listen project in the United States, forming a collaborative observation network with telescopes in the United States and Australia, opening a chapter of Sino-foreign cooperation in the search for extraterrestrial civilization. In September 2018, the Beijing Normal University SETI team (北京师范大学SETI团队), the National Astronomical Observatories, and the University of California, Berkeley jointly completed the installation and testing of a high-resolution SETI backend data processing pipeline at the FAST site. In May 2020, the three parties further signed a cooperation agreement to form a joint SETI research team, aiming to conduct SETI observations using FAST, which remains the only SETI research team in China to date. In 2020, the first SETI observation results from FAST were published in the Astrophysical Journal, officially launching China's SETI research.

The disciplinary risks of the search for extraterrestrial intelligent life are self-evident, but once successful, it will overshadow all human scientific achievements. If extraterrestrial intelligent life is successfully discovered, it will trigger extensive discussions in fields such as philosophy and ethics, affecting the future direction of human civilization.

First, it lies in answering the ultimate scientific question: Are we alone? This ultimate question that has troubled humanity for millennia will reshape Earth humans' perception of their own position in the universe, further support the cosmological principle from the perspective of the universality of cosmic life existence, and answer the Fermi Paradox. Second, it will simultaneously lock in its habitable environment, providing a new and alternative approach and scientific basis for the search for Earth 2.0, promoting in-depth research in astrobiology, planetary science, and exoplanet habitability. At the same time, it will allow a clearer understanding of the uniqueness and preciousness of Earth's environment, thereby paying more attention to ecological and environmental protection and promoting global sustainable development. The research process will also promote deep innovation and development of cross-field technologies such as interstellar communication technology, radio observation technology, and artificial intelligence interference removal technology, achieving the dual benefits of scientific research breakthroughs and technological empowerment. Ultimately, it will accelerate the construction of human lunar bases and the process of future migration to Mars or other planets, opening the door to extraterrestrial colonization.

Should humanity actively respond to alien signals? The significance of discovering extraterrestrial civilization is so profound that the subsequent question arises: Should humanity actively respond? Just as the Declaration was released in June, the American film Disclosure Day was subsequently released. Science fiction and science, one virtual and one real, form a sharp contrast: the confrontational civilian disclosure fantasy in the film contrasts with the mature, transparent, globally co-governed standardized handling system in the real SETI scientific community. The Declaration clearly delineates the essential boundary between science fiction narratives and the actual post-detection handling process for real extraterrestrial intelligent life with its realistic and rigorous scientific ethics and operational norms. The core consensus established in the Declaration of prohibition of unauthorized reply indeed achieves a deep convergence of science fiction speculation and real scientific prudence, seemingly echoing two classic interstellar risk assessments: the Don't answer warning in the science fiction work The Three-Body Problem based on the logic of cosmic civilization's law of the jungle, and the Don't answer scientific warning by the late British astrophysicist Stephen Hawking based on Earth humanity's colonial development history. The Declaration institutionalizes and standardizes the core concerns of both, avoiding the risk of unauthorized reply to interstellar signals from the level of industry rules, turning science fiction warnings and top scientist risk assessments into a globally followed ethical norm for extraterrestrial civilization detection. However, the core principles of the Declaration have systemic shortcomings; it neither specifies the implementation mechanism for consultation and assessment nor conducts in-depth systematic ethical analysis of the criteria for reply.

The core connotation of reply risk is the possibility of substantial harm or even catastrophic damage to Earth civilization, which can be divided into inherent risk (potential risk) and actual risk. The transformation from inherent risk to actual risk requires meeting specific preconditions, that is, when it is determined that ETI has been observed and a reply is made, or when direct contact with ETI occurs, the potential risk has the possibility of transforming into actual risk. Currently, there is no verifiable basis for understanding the civilization level and value orientation of ETI, which may present three forms: egoism (hostile orientation), altruism (benevolent orientation), or a reconciliatory orientation (neutral orientation) in between. None of these three possibilities can be falsified, and their civilization level is also unknown, constituting the core uncertainty of risk assessment. If high-level ETI adheres to altruism, it may promote the progress of Earth civilization through technological assistance and bring huge potential benefits; if it adheres to egoism, it may cause catastrophic damage to Earth civilization through deception, plunder, etc.; if it adheres to reconciliatory orientation, the interaction model with Earth humans will be more complex, and the uncertainty of risk and benefit will further increase.

In summary, the act of replying has four possible outcomes: pure benefit, pure risk, no impact, and risk–benefit coexistence. High potential benefits are often accompanied by high risks, so it is necessary to systematically assess the probabilities of risk and benefit under various scenarios. If reply is completely abandoned, Earth civilization may miss potential benefits that are low in probability but huge in potential, which can only be obtained under the precondition of being noticed by ETI. Scientific ethical decision-making should be based on collaborative assessment of potential benefits and potential risks, recognizing that the symbiosis of risk and benefit is an essential attribute of interstellar exploration. Carl Sagan famously said: If only Earth humans exist in the universe, that would be a tremendous waste of space. The cosmic space is far from crowded, and conditions for interstellar civilizations to plunder resources from each other do not yet exist. In fact, the core consensus established in the Declaration does not completely negate the act of replying to extraterrestrial civilization signals; rather, it advocates that after weighing two-way risks and benefits and reaching a global interstellar cooperation consensus, reply actions can be undertaken. The establishment of assessment criteria and procedures is a core topic that the SETI committee and philosophical ethics scholars need to deeply explore.

Promoting research in the search for extraterrestrial intelligence. China's layout of SETI research both meets the urgent needs of national space strategy development and directly faces the international competitive pressure in the global astronomical field. Moreover, multiple favorable conditions are emerging: the Arecibo telescope in the United States was decommissioned and retired in 2020; the Breakthrough Listen project in the United States has not made key progress; the international SKA will not be officially operational until 2029; the lunar far-side SETI observation telescope planned by the United States and the United Kingdom has not yet achieved lunar landing.

Relying on the extremely high detection sensitivity of FAST, China already possesses a unique global core competitiveness in the SETI field. To date, among FAST's five established scientific objectives, four have achieved phased major results, and SETI research has entered a critical node. At the same time, domestic artificial intelligence technology is rapidly iterating, the Tianhe and Sunway supercomputers provide top-level computing power foundation, coupled with advantages in astronomical observation hardware. Currently, it is an important window period for China to deeply cultivate the SETI field and seize the commanding heights of international astronomical research.

Based on this, China should advance SETI research from four dimensions. First, deeply conduct SETI radio research. Relying on FAST and other radio telescopes, implement a Chinese version of the Breakthrough Listen plan, that is, the Zhiyin Plan (知音计划), not only listening but also understanding, striving to achieve historic major original breakthroughs in SETI first. Second, promote and lay out future lunar far-side SETI research. The core difficulty of SETI on Earth lies in removing radio frequency interference from Earth, while the lunar far side can effectively shield Earth's interference, making it the best location for SETI observations. In January 2019, China achieved the first soft landing of a human probe on the lunar far side. The Beijing Normal University SETI team used observational data from the Chang'e-4 low-frequency radio spectrum instrument to conduct the world's first SETI research on the lunar far side, subsequently proposing the concept of China's Guanghan Mirror lunar far-side SETI telescope (GLFST) (广寒镜). Currently, China is already in a world-leading position in this field and should accelerate the advancement of the GLFST concept, achieving lunar far-side SETI observations before 2030. Third, establish a Chinese extraterrestrial life research institution, expand multi-band extraterrestrial life search methods, implement multidisciplinary, multimodal, multi-level joint search research, and introduce and cultivate high-level talent in astronomy, life sciences, and related disciplines. Fourth, increase investment in SETI research funding and encourage social and private forces to participate in research funding, breaking the funding bottleneck and injecting sustained momentum into China's SETI research.

In summary, SETI research requires scientists to have a scientific attitude of reverence for data, reverence for life, and reverence for the universe, and even more requires long-term perseverance in scientific research. The universe will eventually break its silence, and humanity will eventually find its own coordinates and answers in response.

(The author is a professor at the School of Physics and Astronomy, Beijing Normal University.)

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Extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence.

By: 平劲松

With the rapid development of astronomy, aerospace engineering, radio technology, and other fields, the search for extraterrestrial civilization is transforming from romantic fantasy into a normalized global scientific endeavor. However, issues such as inconsistent industry standards and frequent false claims are becoming increasingly prominent, and recurring observational misjudgments persistently erode scientific credibility. Once the existence of extraterrestrial civilization is confirmed in the future, whether humanity should respond, how to respond, and who will decide the response — these major issues concerning the fate of all humankind urgently require globally shared codes of conduct. To resolve current contradictions and anticipate the potential risks of contact with extraterrestrial civilization, the International Academy of Astronautics (IAA) released a new version of the guiding document, the Declaration of Principles for Conduct in the Search for Extraterrestrial Civilization (hereinafter referred to as the Declaration) in June. This is the first revision in 15 years, establishing eight core principles and defining behavioral norms for global research institutions and practitioners. As an authoritative international non-governmental aerospace organization founded in Stockholm in 1960 and headquartered in Paris, the IAA brings together 1,240 academicians from more than 90 countries and regions, has long taken the lead in setting international standards and fostering international cooperation in the aerospace field, and the norms it issues possess broad global influence and industry-binding force.

Over the past several decades, global radio telescopes, space observatories, and deep-space probes have been continuously upgraded. Humankind can now capture faint cosmic signals from tens of billions of light-years away, and the probability of detecting signals suspected to originate from extraterrestrial civilization has increased significantly. Various countries have increased investment, and the number of teams and organizations participating in the search continues to grow. However, behind this rapid development, disorder in the industry is becoming increasingly evident. Some international research teams have hastily claimed the discovery of extraterrestrial civilization without completing full verification, only to have those claims later confirmed as natural celestial radiation or equipment interference. Such frequent “scientific reversals” severely damage the industry’s credibility. At the same time, observation equipment, data formats, and evaluation standards among countries are not harmonized, data barriers are severe, and cross-regional joint verification is difficult to conduct. Additionally, with the proliferation of mobile internet and social media, rumors and conspiracy theories spread rapidly online, easily triggering public panic, and frontline researchers often encounter online harassment and personal attacks. Beyond this, interstellar civilization ethics has become a real issue. Once the existence of extraterrestrial civilization is confirmed, whether to actively communicate and how to respond cannot be decided by a single country or team. In order to unify industry standards, regulate scientific research behavior, and prevent risks related to public opinion and civilization, the International Academy of Astronautics, taking into account the technological changes, public-opinion environment, and international landscape over the past 15 years, completed this revision of the principles.

The eight core principles established in the new document cover the entire chain of signal verification, data management, information release, public-opinion response, international cooperation, decision-making on communication with extraterrestrial civilization, and protection of researchers’ rights. Each clause is logically coherent and mutually supportive, establishing a complete behavioral framework for global deep-space search. In terms of scientific evidence, the document reaffirms the classic principle that “extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence” — claiming the discovery of extraterrestrial civilization is a world-class major scientific conclusion that must be based on repeated observations with multiple types of equipment, cross-validation by multiple teams, and the formation of a complete chain of evidence before any public announcement. The “Wow! signal” that appeared in 1977 possessed characteristics of intelligent civilization signals, but due to the technological limitations of the time, repeated observation and cross-validation were impossible, and its origin remains a mystery to this day. The research team has always been cautious in drawing conclusions, effectively avoiding a public-opinion storm and confirming the necessity of this principle. In terms of information release, once the existence of extraterrestrial civilization is confirmed, the relevant team must immediately synchronize information to the entire public, the global scientific community, and the United Nations, ensuring the public’s right to know and leveraging global forces for coordinated response. In 2015, the Kepler Space Telescope discovered the habitable exoplanet Kepler-452b. After completing multiple rounds of verification, the research team comprehensively released the observational data and research results, both popularizing astronomical knowledge and promoting global exoplanet research, making it a model of information release. In terms of data protection, raw observational data must be encrypted, stored with multiple backups, and permanently archived in globally secure repositories in accordance with international agreements, breaking down regional barriers and facilitating joint research. In terms of social media response, research institutions need to establish routine public-opinion monitoring mechanisms, promptly refute rumors, actively guide public opinion, and place special emphasis on protecting researchers from online harassment. In terms of international cooperation, the exploration of extraterrestrial civilization must rely on international institutions to integrate equipment, technology, and human resources, deepen cross-border collaboration during the observation and evaluation phase, and also require global consultation and decision-making when facing major issues. In terms of response decision-making, sending a response to extraterrestrial civilization is a collective decision of all humankind, and it must be implemented only after global consultation organized through the United Nations and the achievement of a unified consensus; no organization or individual may unilaterally transmit signals into space. In 1974, the Arecibo telescope unilaterally transmitted a message representing humanity into the cosmos. Because it did not undergo global consultation, it has remained controversial in the scientific community to this day, also highlighting the bottom-line role of this principle. In addition, the signal confirmation principle and the scientific evidence principle complement each other, clearly specifying that suspected signals must go through three procedures — repeated observation, cross-team collaboration, and multi-institution cross-validation — to minimize the probability of misjudgment to the greatest extent. In 2019, the Canadian CHIME telescope captured a fast radio burst. The outside world once speculated it was an alien signal. After joint retesting and in-depth analysis by multiple national teams, it was confirmed to be natural celestial activity. The rigorous verification process prevented misinterpretation in public opinion. The scientist protection principle requires continuously strengthening data security and comprehensively preventing researchers from being subjected to cyber violence.

The above principles construct a normative system covering the entire scientific research process, which has multiple profound values for current industry governance and the long-term development of deep-space exploration. At the scientific level, the principles prioritize evidence verification and procedural norms, institutionally eliminating eye-catching false discoveries and safeguarding the scientific credibility of the field of searching for extraterrestrial civilization. At the societal level, the principles clarify the requirement for timely disclosure of major discoveries, protect the public’s right to know, use authoritative information to compress the space for rumors, and rely on regular science popularization to guide the public in rationally understanding space exploration. At the international level, the principles advocate breaking down technological and data barriers, establishing a global co-governance model, discarding unilateral thinking, and addressing the common cosmic issues of all humankind through cooperation. At the level of the research environment, multiple rules — such as data protection, personnel protection, and public opinion management — operate in parallel, providing safeguards from three dimensions: hardware assets, scientific researchers, and online public opinion, thereby laying a solid foundation for the long-term development of the field. In the long run, this set of principles will also comprehensively regulate industry behavior, promote the continuous increase of global observation networks and joint scientific research projects, facilitate the coordinated iteration of technologies such as radio astronomy, big data, artificial intelligence, and network security, gradually reduce negative mindsets such as sensationalism and panic, and foster a more rational social atmosphere for humanity’s deep-space exploration.

Although this document has established a complete institutional framework for the global search for extraterrestrial civilization, its implementation still faces multiple practical obstacles. At the technical level, it is currently difficult for humanity to distinguish natural signals from signals of intelligent life with 100% certainty. There are still shortcomings in technologies such as capturing weak signals, interstellar communication, and long-distance source tracing. The massive amount of data processing places extremely high demands on hardware computing power, exacerbating the global technology gap. At the level of international coordination, countries differ in their national interests, development philosophies, and risk perceptions. Some countries are unwilling to open up data or submit to unified decision-making due to technological secrecy or differences in positions, making it difficult to reach consensus on core issues such as whether to respond to extraterrestrial civilization. At the level of public awareness, people in different regions have different attitudes toward extraterrestrial civilization, with curiosity, fear, and resistance coexisting. Online rumors continuously interfere with public judgment, indirectly affecting research funding and policy support.

In response to the above prominent difficulties, relying on multilateral platforms, systematic measures can be implemented from three dimensions: technology, mechanisms, and science popularization. All countries should concentrate efforts on promoting joint research and development of core technologies. International institutions should take the lead in forming joint task forces to tackle technical challenges such as signal identification and data transmission, while simultaneously establishing regular technical assistance mechanisms to narrow the technology gap between countries. Continue to improve multilateral coordination mechanisms, using the United Nations and the International Academy of Astronautics as core platforms to establish routine consultation channels, balance the development demands and core interests of various countries, issue unified bottom-line implementation rules, and establish a collaborative consensus of “risks shared, achievements shared” globally. All countries should carry out regular science popularization education for the whole population. Relying on science museums, classrooms, and new media, they should launch diversified science popularization content, clearly explaining the process of searching for extraterrestrial intelligent life, potential civilization risks, and industry norms, so as to dispel public fear and suspicion and cultivate a social atmosphere that understands science and supports deep-space exploration.

This revised Declaration is a milestone industry standard in the global field of searching for extraterrestrial civilization. It directly confronts current problems such as scientific misconduct, disorder in public opinion, and interstellar civilization ethics, and comprehensively coordinates scientific spirit, public rights and interests, international cooperation, and interstellar civilization ethics. It not only defines clear behavioral boundaries for current deep-space exploration but also constructs a globally unified handling framework for the possible future discovery of extraterrestrial civilization.

(The author is a researcher at the National Astronomical Observatories, Chinese Academy of Sciences (中国科学院国家天文台).)

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Enhancing the Safe Operation of Urban Infrastructure Lifelines

By: 袁宏永

The urban infrastructure lifeline safety project is a systematic safety governance project that takes core municipal facilities such as gas, water supply, drainage, bridges, and heating, which sustain urban operations, as its objects. Relying on the Internet of Things, big data, artificial intelligence, and cutting-edge public safety technologies, it builds an integrated prevention and control system encompassing全域感知 (quán yù gǎn zhī - "domain-wide perception"), intelligent assessment, graded early warning, and coordinated response. This project is grounded in the bottom line of the safety of people's lives and property, focusing on prominent risks such as the damage and breakage of old pipelines, instability of structures, and derivative disasters in underground spaces. It is a foundational project to shore up urban safety weaknesses, prevent major and extraordinarily serious public safety accidents, and consolidate the bottom line of urban operations. It is also a key lever for the deep integration of new infrastructure and urban renewal. The State Council recently issued the "Urban Renewal '15th Five-Year Plan'" which proposes to "accelerate the construction of urban infrastructure lifeline safety projects." This has significant practical significance for improving the modern urban safety governance framework, accelerating the implementation of resilient cities, advancing the construction of a Peaceful China, and realizing the transformation of urban safety from post-event remediation to source prevention, thereby consolidating the foundation of people's livelihoods and empowering high-quality urban and rural development.

After multi-stage promotion and large-scale implementation, the construction of the national urban infrastructure lifeline safety project has continued to deepen and solidify, accumulating mature practical experience in facility surveys, project implementation, and intelligent management and control, and steadily enhancing the comprehensive support capacity for safe urban operations. First, the overall construction layout has basically taken shape, and the scope of industry coverage continues to expand. Since the state selected a batch of cities to initiate pilot construction of lifeline projects, many regions have successively issued provincial-level special implementation policies to promote the full-area rollout of projects. At the national level, national on-site promotion conferences have been organized to summarize and refine replicable and scalable construction and operation models for nationwide popularization. Currently, the vast majority of provinces and autonomous regions in the country have built provincial-level unified supervision platforms, and all prefecture-level and above cities have initiated lifeline project implementation work, covering key municipal sectors such as gas, water supply, and drainage. Relying on digital monitoring means, real-time early warning of hidden dangers and rapid handling of dangerous situations have been achieved, forming an overall construction pattern of pilot first, provincial-municipal linkage, and full-area coverage. Second, the comprehensive survey of facility baseline data is being fully rolled out, and existing safety weaknesses are gradually being addressed. Using the lifeline project as a lever, various localities have systematically carried out underground pipeline survey and archive establishment work. Many regions have completed the full-information archiving of tens of thousands of kilometers of pipelines and hundreds of bridges. The detailed basic facility data simultaneously serves various engineering projects such as urban rail transit, old urban area renovation, and water environment treatment, effectively avoiding safety risks such as pipeline damage and facility destruction caused by construction excavation. Major cities across the country, referencing standardized archiving procedures, have comprehensively sorted out the inventory of old pipeline networks and high-risk structures, implemented phased renovation and upgrading, and continuously reduced the safety hazards of existing facilities. Third, the intelligent safety prevention and control system has been implemented and proven effective, and risk management and control efficiency has been significantly improved. Various localities, referencing a round-the-clock monitoring and operation mechanism, have built localized urban safety intelligent monitoring platforms, utilizing domestically produced sensors, pipeline internal inspection, and other cutting-edge technical equipment to accurately locate hidden dangers such as pipeline network leaks and bridge deformation. Data from multiple local practices show that after the implementation of the intelligent monitoring system, the incidence of pipeline network safety accidents and the cost of manual hidden danger investigation have significantly decreased, and the efficient and intelligent management and control model is gradually being popularized and promoted to large, medium, and small cities across the country.

Currently, the construction of urban infrastructure lifeline safety projects is progressing steadily, but some phased and regional problems still exist, restricting the improvement of project construction quality and efficiency as well as the enhancement of urban safety resilience. First, regional construction progress is uneven, and development gradient differences objectively exist. Economically developed regions have sufficient financial resources and agglomeration of talent and technological factors; their lifeline safety project construction is standardized and meticulous, and the investigation and rectification of hidden risks are efficient, yielding significant results. However, some underdeveloped regions have weak factor guarantees and insufficient capital investment, leading to lagging project construction progress. Moreover, many completed projects suffer from weak quality control and lack of supporting operation and maintenance, and the closed-loop rectification of hidden dangers is not in place, making it difficult to achieve expected results. There are large gaps between different regions in construction progress, quality management, and governance effectiveness, and the intensity of overall planning and balanced promotion needs to be strengthened. Second, the construction, management, operation, and maintenance systems are mismatched, and long-term operational efficiency needs improvement. Currently, projects generally suffer from the problem of emphasizing construction over operation and maintenance, with construction and later-stage operation and maintenance being disconnected. Some newly built monitoring facilities have not implemented a normalized operation and maintenance mechanism; old facilities have long been neglected, frequently offline and failing, and equipment operation malfunctions are common. At the same time, the powers and responsibilities of various competent departments overlap, and regulatory blind spots coexist. The professional operation and maintenance team is weak, and the procedures for daily inspections, risk early warnings, and maintenance and rectification are not standardized enough to ensure the long-term safe and stable operation of infrastructure. Third, the integration of data resources is insufficient, and collaborative governance capabilities still need improvement. Infrastructure data from various industries are stored independently and managed in a fragmented manner. There are obvious data silos in fields such as gas, water supply, bridges, and fire protection, and the level of data sharing and interconnection is low. Currently, there is a lack of a unified data integration and analysis platform, the utilization rate of monitoring data is low, and the capabilities for dynamic monitoring, precise early warning, and coordinated response are insufficient. Departmental linkage and response are not timely enough, making it difficult to support intelligent and refined safety governance of urban infrastructure. In response to the above challenges, it is urgent to strengthen governance and comprehensively improve the safe operation level of urban infrastructure lifelines.

Optimize the hierarchical and categorized policy implementation system, and precisely resolve regional gradient development disparities. First, implement regionally differentiated and precise policy implementation. Based on the economic level, facility status, and hidden danger baseline of each region, divide them into key improvement zones, steady optimization zones, and demonstration leading zones, and formulate targeted construction standards and remediation plans. Tilt policy resources towards underdeveloped regions, shore up shortcomings in construction funds, technology, and talent, and accelerate the rectification of existing hazards and project implementation. For developed regions, focus on improving quality and efficiency, creating refined and standardized construction demonstration models. Second, improve the overall regional coordination and assistance mechanism. Establish a pairing assistance mechanism between developed and underdeveloped regions, using methods such as technology empowerment, talent deployment, and experience sharing to shore up the construction weaknesses of lagging regions. Coordinate special financial funds, increase financial support for weak regions, and solve the problem of insufficient grassroots capital investment. Third, unify the overall regional construction management and control standards. Standardize the construction, operation, and maintenance standards for overall regional lifeline safety projects, regularly carry out supervision and evaluation of regional construction effectiveness, dynamically narrow the gaps in regional construction progress, quality, and effectiveness, and promote the balanced and coordinated development of overall regional infrastructure lifeline safety project construction.

Improve the full lifecycle operation and maintenance system, focusing on solving the prominent problem of disconnection between construction and management. First, establish an integrated mechanism for construction, management, operation, and maintenance. Break the fragmented pattern of construction and operation and maintenance, incorporate operation and maintenance requirements into the entire project process, and fundamentally eliminate the problem of emphasizing construction over operation and maintenance. To meet the quality control needs of urban lifeline safety projects nationwide, with the support of relevant ministries and commissions, research and build a national quality control platform for urban lifeline safety projects. Conduct systematic evaluation and certification of monitoring equipment performance, practitioner capabilities, and project construction quality, establish a quality certification system for urban lifeline safety projects, and rely on a cloud platform to share advanced algorithms, mature models, and operational experience with various regions, thereby comprehensively improving the construction quality and operation level of national urban infrastructure lifeline safety projects. Second, improve the normalized operation and maintenance management system. For various types of infrastructure and monitoring equipment, formulate normalized systems for inspection, repair, calibration, and renewal. Regularly investigate problems such as old facility failures and equipment offline failures, establish problem ledgers, implement closed-loop rectification management, and ensure the continuous and stable operation of facilities. Third, consolidate the responsibility for hierarchical supervision and team building. Clarify the regulatory powers and responsibilities of industry competent departments, eliminate regulatory blind spots and overlapping powers and responsibilities, and refine the responsibilities for daily supervision, risk early warning, and emergency response. Build professional operation and maintenance teams, carry out normalized skills training, standardize operation and maintenance work procedures, and comprehensively enhance the capability for lifeline safety risk early warning and emergency response.

Build a standardized data governance system, solidifying the digital support for intelligent safety prevention and control. First, break down industry data silos. Coordinate data resources from various industries such as gas, water supply, bridges, and fire protection, sort out data lists, unify data standards, break the pattern of independent storage and fragmented management by various departments, establish cross-departmental data sharing and real-time interconnection mechanisms, and unblock data flow bottlenecks. Second, build an integrated intelligent supervision platform. Integrate infrastructure monitoring data from various fields, build a unified intelligent platform for data integration and analysis, achieve real-time monitoring of facility operation status, centralized data analysis, and automatic risk assessment, improve the utilization rate of data resources, and solve the problem of insufficient dynamic monitoring and precise early warning capabilities. Third, improve the data collaborative governance mechanism. Standardize the entire process of data collection, updating, analysis, and application, establish mechanisms for dynamic data updates and normalized analysis, and accurately identify safety risks based on platform data. Improve the departmental data linkage response mechanism, strengthen the closed-loop management of risk early warning, hidden danger handling, and collaborative control, and empower refined and intelligent safety governance of infrastructure through digitalization.
(The author is the Dean of the School of Safety Science, Tsinghua University)

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Building Rider-Friendly Communities to Warm the City’s Runners

By: 邓帅

With the rapid development of the platform economy, the scale of new employment groups such as couriers and food delivery riders continues to expand, becoming an important force in ensuring urban operation and serving residents' lives. As an important link connecting production and consumption, merchants and residents, riders shuttle through urban streets and community spaces, not only undertaking livelihood service functions but also increasingly becoming important participants in grassroots governance. The "Urban Renewal '15th Five-Year Plan'" (城市更新“十五五”规划) clearly proposes to promote the construction of rider-friendly communities (骑手友好社区) in residential quarters. In recent years, various localities have actively explored the construction of rider-friendly communities, taking the effective resolution of structural difficulties in rider delivery as an important lever to benefit people's livelihoods, stabilize employment, and strengthen governance, building a high-quality urban service system, and laying a solid foundation for "the people's city is built by the people, the people's city serves the people" (人民城市人民建、人民城市为人民).

Promoting the construction of rider-friendly communities in residential quarters has tangible positive effects on optimizing urban management, improving grassroots services, and consolidating social forces. First, optimizing the supply of livelihood services. Building rider-friendly communities is a practical measure to refine grassroots services and benefit various groups. Through specific measures such as optimizing rider passage rules in quarters, improving the delivery work environment, and implementing supporting services at rider stations, it can effectively solve practical problems such as difficulties in resting, resupplying, and passing through during rider delivery. At the same time, a standardized and efficient delivery service environment can also enhance the convenience for residents to send and receive packages and receive food deliveries, allowing both riders and community residents to enjoy the convenience brought by urban governance optimization. Second, activating grassroots governance resources. Riders travel year-round in community streets and alleys, familiar with the road conditions in their jurisdiction, frequent patrols, and wide contact with people. Promoting rider-friendly community construction, by setting up flexible mechanisms such as volunteer services, point incentives, and community deliberation participation, can guide riders to actively participate in various community affairs. Relying on the work advantage of riders 走街串巷 (zǒu jiē chuàn xiàng - "walk streets and string alleys," to go around the neighborhood), it can effectively fill community patrol blind spots, promptly discover subtle problems in grassroots governance, broaden information channels for community governance, and make grassroots governance responses more timely and services more precise. Third, building a multi-stakeholder co-construction platform. Traditional community management mostly relies on one-way control by the government and property management, with low participation from residents and external service groups. There is a lack of effective communication channels between rider delivery operations and community management and residents' lives, easily leading to friction. Rider-friendly community construction is conducive to breaking the single management model and building a communication and collaboration platform for multi-party linkage among party organizations, property management, platform enterprises, residents, and riders. In practice, through regular communication and consultation, it effectively narrows the distance between riders and residents and property management, resolving common contradictions such as delivery disturbance, disorderly parking, and access disputes, gradually forming a good atmosphere of mutual understanding and coordinated cooperation in community order.

Practical difficulties faced in the construction of rider-friendly communities. First, there is a structural contradiction between the supply of space resources and delivery demand. Many residential quarters did not fully consider the development needs of new formats such as instant delivery at the time of planning and construction, resulting in insufficient supporting space for riders to park vehicles, temporarily pick up and place items, rest and resupply. In particular, some old quarters are limited by existing spatial layout, with relatively tight public resources, facing greater difficulties in adding parking spots, smart storage facilities, and rider service stations. Second, the interest coordination mechanism among multiple subjects is not yet sound. Riders pursue delivery efficiency and passage convenience, residents focus on living environment and community safety, while property management emphasizes management order and operating costs. Due to the lack of effective interest coordination mechanisms, conflicts easily arise among parties on issues such as vehicle parking, access management, and delivery order. In some communities during construction, problems such as unclear main responsibilities, imperfect consultation platforms, and unsound interest balancing mechanisms still exist, affecting construction effectiveness. Third, the long-term operation guarantee mechanism needs improvement. The construction of rider-friendly communities is a long-term project. Currently, the responsibility and funding sources for the subsequent maintenance and management of many rider stations, charging facilities, and smart equipment are not yet clear. After some facilities are built, they face problems such as lagging operation management and insufficient service function play, affecting the sustained effectiveness of construction outcomes. How to establish a stable and sustainable operation guarantee mechanism has become a key link in promoting the high-quality development of rider-friendly communities. In the face of the above problems, to improve the quality and efficiency of rider-friendly community construction, it is necessary to adopt systematic thinking and precise policy implementation to break development bottlenecks.

Improve the coordination mechanism and build a pattern of collaborative governance. First, strengthen party-building leadership. Establish a work system of municipal-level overall planning, district/county-level organization and promotion, subdistrict-level specific implementation, and community-level coordinated implementation, incorporating rider-friendly community construction into party-building-led grassroots governance as important content. Second, build a department coordination pattern. Jointly involve multiple functional departments such as housing and construction, market supervision, social work, public security, and postal services to form a linkage pattern of 齐抓共管 (qí zhuā gòng guǎn - "jointly grasp and manage together," to work together with concerted efforts). Under the overall coordination of the party committee social work department, establish a cross-departmental regular consultation mechanism, clarify responsibility division with a "task list" (任务清单), and promote problem-solving with a "joint meeting" (联席会议), ensuring that each functional department 各司其职 (gè sī qí zhí - "each performs its own duties," to do one's part) and closely cooperates. Third, optimize the social co-construction mechanism. Guide platform enterprises, property companies, social organizations, and rider groups to jointly participate in construction. Through various carriers such as agreements, covenants, and technical platforms, clearly delineate the responsibility boundaries of each subject, ensuring that each party can both perform its own duties and supervise each other. Build a consultation and deliberation platform, hold regular joint meetings to jointly solve various problems in the construction process, achieving a pattern of co-consultation and co-construction.

Adhere to classified policy implementation and improve the level of refined governance. First, summarize construction experience and establish a standardized standards system. Systematically summarize pilot experiences from various localities, establish a practical and replicable standardized construction system around aspects such as information friendliness, facility friendliness, service friendliness, environmental friendliness, and governance friendliness. Second, design precise implementation plans based on community types. Classify communities according to standards such as public space, infrastructure, building form, property services, resident structure, and degree of openness. For different types of communities such as open old quarters, enclosed residential quarters, commercial-residential mixed communities, and smart communities, formulate differentiated construction plans based on their core characteristics and demands, promoting the transformation of rider-friendly community construction from pilot exploration to standardized development. Third, timely establish assessment and evaluation mechanisms. Jointly involve multiple subjects such as residents, riders, and property management to establish a scientific evaluation mechanism, dynamically assess construction effectiveness through indicators such as resident satisfaction, rider satisfaction, and governance efficiency.

Innovate diversified operation models to ensure long-term stable operation of services. First, explore market-oriented operation methods. Increase service functions, introduce third-party operators, and carry out supporting services such as catering and vehicle repair to maintain costs. Extend the service chain, introduce smart-related service projects, save riders' delivery time while using venue revenue for maintenance of various facilities. Second, increase the intensity of digital and smart empowerment. Promote the interconnection of community governance platforms, property service systems, and delivery platforms to achieve data sharing and resource coordination. Use big data to analyze rider delivery trajectories and residents' service needs, scientifically optimize access management rules and delivery route design. Accelerate the application of smart access control, seamless passage, and electronic maps to improve rider delivery efficiency and community management level. Third, stimulate riders' endogenous motivation to participate. Actively create a social atmosphere that respects labor and understands riders, promoting better integration of riders into community life. Improve mechanisms such as credit points and volunteer service incentives to guide riders to participate in grassroots governance work such as safety patrols, civilization publicity, and hazard investigation. Explore linking point rewards with vocational training, skill improvement, and public services to enhance riders' sense of gain and identification with community governance.

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The great founding spirit of the Party is the spiritual source of the Communist Party of China.

By: 中央党史和文献研究院院务会理论学习中心组

As the long river of history rolls forward, there are always some spiritual coordinates that transcend time and space, illuminating the path forward for a political party, a country, and a nation. General Secretary Xi Jinping profoundly pointed out at the ceremony marking the centenary of the Communist Party of China: "One hundred years ago, the pioneers of the Communist Party of China created the Communist Party of China, forming the great founding spirit of the Party that upholds truth and adheres to ideals, practices the original aspiration and undertakes the mission, fears no sacrifice and fights bravely, and remains loyal to the Party and never fails the people. This is the spiritual source of the Communist Party of China." This major judgment, based on a century of changes and tracing back to the spiritual origin, profoundly reveals the genetic code of the spiritual lineage of Chinese Communists.

Since the 18th National Congress of the Party, the Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core has focused on the major era-wide subject of what kind of long-term Marxist ruling party to build and how to build a long-term Marxist ruling party, putting forward a series of new concepts, new ideas, and new strategies, forming Xi Jinping's thought on Party building (习近平党建思想), and achieving a new leap in the Sinicization and modernization of Marxist Party-building theory, providing the fundamental guidance for understanding the great founding spirit and carrying forward the spiritual lineage of Chinese Communists. At present, our Party is celebrating its 105th anniversary. "Carrying forward the spiritual lineage of Chinese Communists, which originates from the great founding spirit" is not only an echo of history but also a political declaration of the new era.

Forging the soul of the spirit in the great struggle for national salvation and survival in modern times

The great founding spirit is the inevitable product of the unity of the historical logic, theoretical logic, and practical logic of modern Chinese history; it is the spiritual signpost of the combination of the basic tenets of Marxism with China's specific realities and with the excellent traditional Chinese culture; it is the concentrated manifestation of the advanced Chinese people's arduous search and spiritual awakening at the moment of national peril.

Looking back at modern times, the cannons of the Opium War dragged ancient China into the abyss of a semi-colonial and semi-feudal society. "The country endured humiliation, the people suffered, and civilization was tarnished" became the heaviest footnote of that era. To save the nation from peril, countless men of lofty ideals 前赴后继 (qián fù hòu jì - "advance wave upon wave," to keep pressing forward in succession) in exploring the road to save the country: the Westernization Movement only focused on learning from the West at the level of material technology, without touching the foundation of the feudal system; the bourgeois reformist movement, the Hundred Days' Reform, lasted only 103 days before failing, proving that the reformist path would not work in modern China; the Xinhai Revolution overthrew the monarchy that had lasted for more than two thousand years, but because it failed to put forward a thorough anti-imperialist and anti-feudal program and did not mobilize the broad masses, it did not accomplish the historical task of achieving national independence and the liberation of the people, and failed to change China's semi-colonial and semi-feudal social nature. All kinds of national salvation programs hit dead ends one after another under the dual oppression of imperialism and feudalism. This deep predicament of "all roads being blocked" constituted the historical premise for the birth of the great founding spirit and also raised the question of the era: the need to find a completely new road to save the country.

In the darkest moment of the long night, the salvo of the October Revolution brought Marxism-Leninism to China—this truth that scientifically reveals the laws of human social development and represents the fundamental interests of the broadest masses of the people—pointing a brand-new direction for a wandering China. Li Dazhao took the lead in raising the torch of truth in the Red Building of Peking University; when Chen Wangdao translated the first complete Chinese edition of the Communist Manifesto in a thatched hut, he tasted that "the flavor of truth is very sweet." Starting in 1920, early Communist organizations in Shanghai, Beijing, Wuhan, Changsha, and other places were established one after another. The pioneers did not blindly copy theoretical dogma but sowed the truth of Marxism among the workers, promoting the deep integration of Marxism with the Chinese workers' movement, completing the great leap from elite enlightenment to mass awakening. This was the early practice of the "two combinations" (两个结合), adhering to the Marxist stance, viewpoint, and method while basing itself on the basic national condition of semi-colonial and semi-feudal society, transforming abstract theory into an action program of "overthrow the imperialists and eliminate the warlords," concretizing the lofty ideal of communism into the battle coordinates of "remolding China and the world," turning Marxism from a doctrine in the study into a sharp weapon guiding the practice of the Chinese revolution, and from the depths of thought laying the theoretical foundation of the great founding spirit.

In July 1921, the First National Congress of the Communist Party of China was successfully convened, solemnly proclaiming the birth of the Communist Party of China. This "开天辟地 (kāi tiān pì dì - "split heaven and earth," epoch-making) great event" completely changed the direction and process of the Chinese nation's development in modern times: from then on, the Chinese people's resistance struggle had a strong leading core, the Chinese revolution had a scientific guiding ideology, and the exploration of China's path had a clear forward direction. The process of founding the Communist Party of China established the Party's organization in practice and formed the great founding spirit in spirit, becoming the spiritual source of the Communist Party of China. The founding of the Communist Party of China and the formation of the great founding spirit marked the Chinese people's transition from passive to active in spirit, opening a new chapter in reshaping the national spirit and achieving national rejuvenation.

Revealing the essence of the spirit in the essence and core meaning of the great founding spirit

Although the great founding spirit is only 32 characters long, it is a systematic integration of the Party's nature and purpose, ideals and beliefs, original aspiration and mission, will and character; it is the core coordinate of the spiritual lineage of Chinese Communists, providing us with the fundamental spiritual key to understanding "why the Communist Party of China can."

"Upholding truth and adhering to ideals" illuminates the political soul of Communists. General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out: "Marxism is the fundamental guiding ideology for founding the Party and the country, and it is the soul and banner of our Party." This judgment fundamentally establishes the foundational position of truth and ideals. Looking back at history, from the pioneers' resolute choice of Marxism to the continuous promotion of the "two combinations," from Mao Zedong Thought to Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, every theoretical leap is a vivid practice of "upholding truth." This persistence is by no means adherence to dogma, but rather using theory as a "thought guide" for transforming China. In the early days of the Party's founding, facing the doubt of "how long the red flag can fly," Mao Zedong wrote A Single Spark Can Start a Prairie Fire. It was precisely by trusting in truth that the Party calibrated its course in the midst of storms and pierced through the fog in the darkest moments.

"Practicing the original aspiration and undertaking the mission" clarifies the theme of struggle for Communists. General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out: "Since its founding, the Communist Party of China has taken the pursuit of happiness for the Chinese people and the rejuvenation of the Chinese nation as its original aspiration and mission. For a hundred years, all the struggles, sacrifices, and creations that the Communist Party of China has united and led the Chinese people in can be summed up as one theme: achieving the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation." Seeking happiness for the people is the value background of national rejuvenation, and seeking rejuvenation for the nation is the clear main line of the Party's century-long history. From the very founding of the Party, these two were forged into an inseparable organic whole, becoming the Party's "spiritual ballast." From overthrowing the "three big mountains" (三座大山) and creating fundamental social conditions for national rejuvenation, to establishing the basic socialist system and laying the fundamental political prerequisite and institutional foundation, to reform and opening up, liberating and developing social productive forces, and providing institutional guarantees and material conditions, and then to the new era of comprehensively advancing the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation through Chinese-style modernization, the Party's entire struggle has always revolved around this theme. This theme of struggle constitutes the core anchor of the great founding spirit, endowing it with a heavy national background and historical responsibility.

"Fearing no sacrifice and fighting bravely" demonstrates the tenacious will of Communists. General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized: "Daring to struggle and daring to win are the invincible strong spiritual strength of the Communist Party of China." This judgment profoundly reveals the logic of the transformation of spiritual strength into practical motivation. This spirit of struggle by no means blind adventure, but strategic sobriety based on a profound insight into the laws of social development. From the hail of bullets and rain of shells in revolutionary wars, to the difficult explorations in the period of construction, and then to the irresistible momentum of reform and tackling tough issues, the Party has always used tenacious struggle to resolve risks and gain the initiative. Together with the unity of will in practices such as flood control, earthquake relief, and epidemic response, all this confirms the winning path of "daring to struggle" and demonstrates the Party's iron will.

"Loyalty to the Party and never failing the people" embodies the distinct nature of Communists. General Secretary Xi Jinping has repeatedly emphasized that "the nation is the people, and the people are the nation. To take charge of the nation and to guard the nation is to guard the hearts of the people," fundamentally defining the Party's political attribute: the Party has no special interests of its own beyond the interests of the working class and the broadest masses of the people. This purity determines that loyalty is not attachment to individuals or small circles, but a faithful representation of the will of the people, ultimately condensing into the lofty sentiment of "I will have no self, and live up to the people." From Fang Zhimin's "the enemy can only cut off our heads, but can never shake our faith," to the millions of village-based cadres in the new era rooting themselves in the frontline of poverty alleviation, the Party has always used actions to interpret the dialectical unity of loyalty and serving the people. This is the core code for the Party to win the hearts of the people and to stand unshakable through a hundred years of wind and rain.

These four dimensions each have their own emphasis yet form an integrated whole, together constituting the spiritual genetic map of Chinese Communists: they mark the spiritual origin of "where the Party comes from," anchor the forward course of "where the Party is going," serve as the spiritual main line running through the century-long struggle, and build a solid foundation for the Party's spiritual edifice.

Continuing the spiritual vein in the magnificent course of the century-long struggle

Where history begins, spirit grows. The Communist Party of China's struggle over more than one hundred years is not only a magnificent history of practical creation but also an awe-inspiring history of spiritual forging. The great founding spirit, as the "source spirit," possesses strong openness and generative power. It adapts to events, advances with the times, and innovates with the situation in different historical periods, giving rise to a flourishing spiritual lineage.

During the period of the New Democratic Revolution, the Party faced the main tasks of opposing imperialism, feudalism, and bureaucratic capitalism, striving for national independence and the liberation of the people, and creating fundamental social conditions for the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation. The great founding spirit was concentratedly manifested as the iron will of "fighting bloody battles and being unyielding." Mao Zedong pointed out: "This army has a spirit of pressing forward without letup; it will overwhelm all enemies and never yield to them." This is a vivid portrayal of the spiritual outlook of Communists in this period. The officers and soldiers of the Jinggangshan base area, despite lacking clothing and food, still held fast to the spark of "armed independent regimes of workers and peasants"; the Red Army crossed nearly a hundred rivers and climbed over more than 40 perilous peaks to complete the epic Long March; the lamp light in the Yan'an cave dwellings illuminated the ideological line of seeking truth from facts. These practices fully prove that the great founding spirit runs through the entire process of revolutionary struggle, guiding the Party to withstand tests of life and death. Looking back on this period of bitter trials and glorious years, we can more deeply appreciate that "the red regime did not come easily, the new China did not come easily, and socialism with Chinese characteristics did not come easily."

During the period of socialist revolution and construction, the Party faced the main tasks of completing the transition from New Democracy to socialism, carrying out socialist revolution, promoting socialist construction, and laying the fundamental political prerequisite and institutional foundation for the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation. The great founding spirit was tempered into the heroic spirit of "self-reliance and striving to strengthen the country." Mao Zedong emphasized: "We must maintain that same energy, that same revolutionary enthusiasm, and that same spirit of straining every nerve that we had during the revolutionary war period, and carry the revolutionary work through to the end." Facing the imperialist blockade and the country's poverty and blankness, scientists like Qian Xuesen and Guo Yonghuai toiled in anonymity to forge the "two bombs and one satellite" (两弹一星) great national instruments; the Daqing oil battle shed the label of "oil-poor country"; the people of Lin County (林县), tying ropes around their waists, chiseled a 1,500-kilometer "man-made celestial river" — the Red Flag Canal (红旗渠) — on the cliffs of the Taihang Mountains. These spiritual monuments confirm the profound judgment that "socialism is spelled out in hard work, achieved by doing, and exchanged with lives."

During the new period of reform, opening up, and socialist modernization, the Party faced the main tasks of continuing to explore the correct path for building socialism in China, liberating and developing social productive forces, lifting people out of poverty and making them prosperous as soon as possible, and providing a more vigorous institutional guarantee and rapid material conditions for the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation. The great founding spirit burst forth as the pioneering courage of "emancipating the mind and forging ahead with keen determination." Deng Xiaoping advocated "carrying forward the spirit of revolution and straining every nerve, the spirit of strict discipline and self-sacrifice, the spirit of utter selflessness and putting others before oneself, the spirit of overwhelming all enemies and all difficulties, and the spirit of adhering to revolutionary optimism and overcoming all difficulties to win victory." The 18 red handprints in Xiaogang Village (小岗村) of Anhui launched the prelude to rural reform; the "first blast from the mountain" in Shekou (蛇口) of Shenzhen sounded the spring thunder of reform and opening up. From the daring experimentation of special economic zones, to the iron will of "vowing to stand firm with the levee" in the 1998 flood resistance, to the major breakthroughs in the manned space program, the spiritual lineage was endowed with new connotations of innovation and collaboration in peacetime. These great practices fully confirm that "reform and opening up was a great awakening of our Party, and it is this great awakening that gave birth to the Party's great creations from theory to practice."

As socialism with Chinese characteristics enters the new era, the Party faces the main tasks of achieving the first centenary goal, embarking on the new journey to achieve the second centenary goal, and continuing to advance towards the goal of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation. The great founding spirit sublimates into the striving posture of "self-confidence and self-reliance, upholding fundamental principles and breaking new ground." General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized: "We must educate and guide the whole Party to vigorously carry forward the red tradition, pass on the red gene, continue the spiritual bloodline of Communists, always maintain the fearless struggle spirit of revolutionaries, and raise the spirit and morale to march into the new journey and forge ahead in the new era." In the face of the sudden COVID-19 epidemic, at the Party Central Committee's command, millions of medical personnel put on white armor and marched in reverse; to realize the millennium dream of a moderately prosperous society, 255,000 village-based work teams, over 3 million first secretaries and village cadres rooted themselves deep in the mountains, and nearly 100 million rural poor residents were lifted out of poverty. These monuments of the new era fully prove that the great founding spirit still possesses strong vitality in the 21st century and is a powerful driving force for forging ahead on the new journey.

Demonstrating the power of the spirit in advancing the great cause of rejuvenation through Chinese-style modernization

History flows ceaselessly; the spirit is passed on from generation to generation. Currently, we are in a critical period of comprehensively advancing the building of a strong country and the great cause of national rejuvenation through Chinese-style modernization. The world's century-old changes are accelerating, with development opportunities coexisting with risks and challenges. Carrying forward the great founding spirit cannot stop at historical narration; it must be integrated into the practice of governance and condensed into a powerful force for overcoming difficulties.

Illuminating the new journey with the light of truth, enhancing the theoretical initiative to transform the world. "Upholding truth and adhering to ideals" is the soul of the great founding spirit. On the new journey, the external environment is complex and severe, with various risks and challenges overlapping, making the extreme importance of scientific theoretical guidance even more prominent. We must take learning, understanding, and implementing Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era thoroughly as the primary political task, grasp the worldview and methodology of this thought, adhere to and apply the stance, viewpoint, and method that run through it, consolidate the foundation of faith, replenish the calcium of spirit, and transform the Party's innovative theory into a powerful force for strengthening ideals, tempering Party spirit, and guiding practice, maintaining strategic resolve amid complex changes, ensuring that the construction of Chinese-style modernization always advances in the right direction.

Sharpening the new journey with the original aspiration and mission, cultivating a deep feeling of governing for the people. At present, the study and education on establishing and practicing a correct view of political achievement being carried out across the whole Party is essentially a practical grasp in the new era that questions the original aspiration and calibrates the mission. Its core is to guide Party members and cadres to correct their fundamental stance of "for whom, relying on whom, and who I am," and to discard from the ideological root the deviation of utilitarian and pragmatic views of political achievement. On the new journey, cultivating feelings for the people most fundamentally means integrating the people-centered development thought into the entire process of governance. When planning work, always take improving people's well-being and responding to the people's aspiration for a better life as the primary criterion. While focusing on solving the problems of unbalanced and inadequate development and responding to the people's urgent needs and worries, we must also take a long-term perspective, calculate broad accounts, solidly promote common prosperity, promote people's all-round development and social fairness and justice, and let the fruits of modernization benefit all the people more and in a fairer way.

Advancing on the new journey with tenacious struggle, forging the winning capability to break through and create breakthroughs. General Secretary Xi Jinping profoundly pointed out: "The great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation will not be achieved with ease, by just beating gongs and drums." At present, unilateralism and protectionism are surging, the problem of "bottleneck" in key core technologies is prominent, and deep-seated domestic interest contradictions are intertwined. These are the "Loushan Pass" and "Lazikou" that cannot be avoided or bypassed. We must cast aside illusions and be brave in struggle; take the initiative in the face of opportunities; face difficulties head-on; step forward in the face of risks; enhance the ability to struggle, pay attention to strategies and methods; with the tenacity of "treading on all rugged paths to create a broad avenue," rely on tenacious struggle to open up new horizons for the development of the cause, turning the grand blueprint into beautiful reality.

Escorting the new journey with absolute loyalty, building an unwavering political resolve. On the new journey, facing the treacherous international situation and the arduous and heavy tasks of reform, development, and maintaining stability, we must take loyalty to the Party as the primary political quality. This loyalty is not only an extension of simple emotions towards the Party but also a rational consciousness rooted in the belief in Marxism and the faith in socialism with Chinese characteristics. We must deeply understand the decisive significance of the "two establishments" (两个确立), enhance the "four consciousnesses" (四个意识), strengthen the "four confidences" (四个自信), and achieve the "two upholds" (两个维护), continuously improve political judgment, political understanding, and political execution, always highly unify responsibility to the Party and responsibility to the people, take the people's heart as our own heart, and implement loyalty to the Party and the people in concrete actions, ensuring that the Party always remains the most reliable backbone of the people when storms come.

From Shikumen to Tian'anmen, from Xingye Road to Fuxing Road, from a small red boat to a majestic giant ship, under the guidance of the great founding spirit, the Party has led the people to achieve a great leap from standing up, becoming prosperous, to becoming strong. Today, the grand blueprint of the "15th Five-Year Plan" is unfolding in detail, and the Long March of the new era stretches under our feet. To deeply advance the great new project of Party building in the new era, we must take Xi Jinping's thought on Party building as the fundamental guidance, and transform the spiritual source of the great founding spirit into the mighty force for managing, governing, strengthening, and thriving the Party. Let us unite more closely around the Party Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core, deeply study and thoroughly understand Xi Jinping's thought on Party building, forge the great founding spirit into our souls and integrate it into practice, deeply advance the great new project of Party building in the new era, draw strength from reviewing history, and in the great test of the times, deliver an outstanding answer sheet that can stand the test of history and the people.

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