Learning the basic theory of Marxism is a compulsory course for communist party people.
Today, the 19th the Political Bureau of the Central Committee held the fifth collective study, the content of which was the communist party Declaration and its significance. This year marks the bicentennial of Marx’s birth and the 170th anniversary of the communist party Declaration. The CPC Central Committee has made arrangements for commemorating the 200th anniversary of Marx’s birth, and a commemorative meeting will be held in early May. At this time node, it is of great significance for the Political Bureau of the Central Committee to study the communist party Declaration collectively.
学习马克思主义基本理论是共产党人的必修课。党的十八大以来，中央政治局集体学习多次以马克思主义理论为题，先后学习了历史唯物主义、辩证唯物主义、马克思主义政治经济学的基本原理和方法论。这次中央政治局集体学习《共产党宣言》，目的是通过重温经典，感悟马克思主义的真理力量，坚定马克思主义信仰，追溯马克思主义政党保持先进性和纯洁性的理论源头，提高全党运用马克思主义基本原理解决当代中国实际问题的能力和水平。
在座的同志都读过《共产党宣言》，今天我们重温这一经典，依然深受教育、深受启发。结合这次学习，我谈3点认识。
一、深刻认识《共产党宣言》的重大理论贡献
《共产党宣言》的问世是人类思想史上的一个伟大事件。《共产党宣言》是第一次全面阐述科学社会主义原理的伟大著作，“向全世界公开说明自己的观点、自己的目的、自己的意图”，矗立起一座马克思主义精神丰碑。《共产党宣言》的重大理论贡献主要有以下几个方面。
2018年5月2日，中共中央总书记、国家主席、中央军委主席最高领袖来到北京大学考察。这是最高领袖在北京大学马克思主义学院，与正在就“解读新时代”进行座谈交流的中外学生亲切交谈。 新华社记者 李涛/摄
First, profoundly expounded the scientific world outlook of Marxism. The communist party Declaration describes a new world view, that is, historical materialism, in a thorough and vivid language, and provides people with a scientific ideological weapon for understanding nature and human society. In the history of human thought, idealism used gods, humanity and ideas to explain everything, which once dominated people’s understanding of social phenomena for a long time. Before the birth of Marxism, utopian socialism lashed out at capitalism and sketched out the prospect of the future society, but it could not find the right way and social force to realize its social ideal. In the communist party Declaration, Marx and Engels scientifically expounded the inherent contradictions of capitalism and the historical mission of the proletariat, and revealed the historical inevitability of socialism replacing capitalism. This paper brilliantly discusses the nature, characteristics, basic program and strategic principles of Marxist political parties, and draws a clear line between scientific socialism and other various socialist schools. Some important ideas put forward in the communist party Declaration, such as historical materialism, class struggle, historical mission of the proletariat, new communist society, all-round development of human beings, world market, etc., are revolutionary, groundbreaking and breakthrough in the history of human thought. The communist party Declaration profoundly reveals that the history since the slave society is the history of class struggle. It reveals the general law of human social development that productivity determines the relations of production, economic base determines the superstructure, and the contradictory movement between productivity and relations of production, economic base and superstructure promotes the orderly replacement of social forms.Reveals the internal contradiction between capitalist production socialization and private possession of means of production; It reveals the historical laws of the inevitable demise of capitalism and the inevitable victory of communism. As Engels said: "This principle seems simple, but if you look closely, you will immediately find that the initial conclusion of this principle is a blow to all idealism, even the most hidden idealism." He also said that "this fact is the most revolutionary conclusion not only for theory but also for practice". After the publication of the communist party Declaration, Marx and Engels developed their thoughts and finally formed a systematic and complete ideological and theoretical system. The communist party Declaration is a classic book with scientific insight into the development law of human society, a classic book full of the spirit of struggle, criticism and revolution, and a classic book that upholds the people’s position, strives for the interests of the people and strives for the liberation of all mankind. The scientific and revolutionary nature of Marxist theory stems from the scientific world outlook and methodology of dialectical materialism and historical materialism, which provides us with a powerful ideological weapon to understand and transform the world and points out the correct direction for world socialism.
Second, it profoundly expounded the advanced character of Marxist political parties. The communist party Declaration expounded the advanced nature of Marxist political parties, pointing out that communist party is not a special political party opposed to other workers’ parties, and they have no interests different from those of the whole proletariat. In practice, communist party is the most determined and always promoting part of the workers’ political parties in various countries; Theoretically, communist party is superior to the rest of the proletariat in that they understand the conditions, process and general results of the proletarian movement, and represent the future of the movement at the same time in the current movement. Marxist political parties must be composed of the most thorough and determined advanced elements, and communist party people should be the most tireless, fearless and reliable advanced fighters. These thoughts provide a fundamental basis for Marxist political parties to maintain their advanced nature and purity.
Thirdly, the political stance of Marxist political parties is profoundly expounded. The communist party Declaration made no secret of the class nature of Marxist political parties, took a clear-cut stand on the side of the proletariat and the broad masses of the people, enthusiastically eulogized the great role of the masses in promoting historical progress, regarded the proletariat as the representative of advanced productive forces, the grave digger of the capitalist system and the creator of the new social system, and emphasized that all the movements in the past were for or for the benefit of a few people, and the proletarian movements were for and for the benefit of the overwhelming majority. This clear political stance fully affirms the people’s historical dominant position and fully embodies the fundamental nature and purpose of Marxist political parties.
Fourthly, the lofty ideals of Marxist political parties are profoundly expounded. The communist party Declaration establishes that the highest goal of Marxist political parties is to realize communism, and regards the free and all-round development of human beings as the essential feature of communism. This lofty ideal has stood at the commanding heights of human morality, and has become the firm belief of generations of communist party people, the spiritual pillar of not fearing any risks and overcoming all difficulties, and the spiritual banner of Marxist political parties uniting the broad masses of people to smash the old world and create a new world.
Fifth, profoundly expounded the Marxist revolutionary program. The communist party Declaration pointed out that the first step of the workers’ revolution was to make the proletariat rise to the ruling class, strive for democracy, and use its own political rule to increase the total productivity as soon as possible. The communist party Declaration also puts forward concrete measures on how to develop the productive forces. Although some specific contents are no longer applicable today, the spirit contained in it is still of positive significance. These thoughts are of great and far-reaching guiding significance for Marxist political parties to lead the people in revolutionary struggle and seize power by force, to strengthen political power construction, especially the construction of the ruling party, to develop socialist democracy, develop social productive forces and promote all-round social progress after Marxist political parties seize power.
This is the interior of the White Swan Cafe, which was shot in the center of the Belgian capital Brussels on February 7, 2018, when Marx and Engels wrote the communist party Declaration. Xinhua News Agency reporter Ye Pingfan/photo
Sixth, profoundly expounded the internationalism spirit of Marxist political parties. The communist party Declaration made a profound analysis of capitalist production crossing national boundaries and constantly exploring the world market, scientifically predicted the universal trend of material production and spiritual and cultural production in the world, and further pointed out that communism is not a narrow geographical movement, and the proletariat must liberate all mankind in order to be completely liberated, and called on the proletarians all over the world to unite. This provides a scientific theoretical basis for Marxist political parties to embrace the whole world, benefit mankind and jointly create a better world.
The communist party Declaration is a rich theoretical treasure-house, which has made many theoretical contributions, and it is worthy of our repeated study and in-depth study, and constantly draw ideological nutrition from it.
Second, deeply understand the far-reaching influence of the communist party Declaration on world socialism.
Once the communist party Declaration was published, it promoted the development of world socialism in practice and profoundly changed the course of human history. Engels said that the communist party Declaration is "the most widely spread and international work in all socialist documents, and it is recognized by millions of workers from Siberia to California as a common program". Shortly after the publication of the communist party Declaration, a massive revolutionary movement broke out in Europe. In 1864, after the establishment of International Working Men’s Association (known as the "First International" in history), under the leadership of Marx, it supported the working class of all countries in their struggle and the oppressed nations in their struggle for national liberation. The Paris Commune Revolution, which broke out in 1871, was the first great attempt to overthrow bourgeois rule and establish a regime in which the people were the masters of the country. Through struggle, the working class of all countries have achieved great victories that could not have been achieved in the past, such as political voting rights, eight-hour working system and labor legislation.
In November 1917, Lenin led the October Revolution to success, which opened a gap in the weakest chain of capitalism, established the first socialist country in the world, and achieved a great leap from theory to practice. The success of the October Revolution proved the truth of the communist party Declaration and gave hope to proletarian revolutions and national liberation movements in various countries. After the end of the Second World War, a number of countries have successively embarked on the socialist road, and socialism has developed from one country to many countries, and the power of world socialism has been greatly enhanced.
The older generation of revolutionaries of our Party were all influenced by the communist party Declaration and embarked on the revolutionary road. Our party’s first party program was formulated in accordance with the spirit of the communist party Declaration. The new-democratic revolutionary road, socialist revolutionary road, socialist construction road and Socialism with Chinese characteristics road pioneered by our Party are all great creations that combine the basic principles of Marxism with the concrete reality of China. The Communist Party of China (CPC) is a faithful inheritor of the spirit of the communist party Declaration.
The communist party Declaration is the most influential work in modern times. Over the past 170 years, the communist party Declaration has been translated into more than 200 languages and published in thousands of editions, making it one of the books with the largest circulation in the world. In the past 20 years, various western institutions have selected "thousand-year thinkers" and "most influential scholars", and Marx is among the best, even at the top. Since the international financial crisis in 2008, "Marx fever" has risen again in the world, and the research on communist party Declaration and Das Kapital has become hot again. Facts have proved that the truth power of the communist party Declaration is eternal, and it has deeply influenced and will continue to profoundly influence the course of world history.
Third, adhere to the scientific principles and spirit of the communist party Declaration.
When Marx and Engels were alive, they said that some parts of the communist party Declaration "can be modified" or "written in different ways", but it "expounds the general principles that are completely correct until now". Although the communist party Declaration was born 170 years ago, its basic principles are not out of date and will not be out of date. I said, "If you feel insecure in your heart, study the classic works and read the communist party Declaration several times", which is about learning new things by reviewing old ones. Today, we review the communist party Declaration, that is, we should apply the scientific principles and spirit contained in the communist party Declaration to the practice of mastering great struggles, great projects, great undertakings and great dreams, and constantly write a new chapter in adhering to and developing Socialism with Chinese characteristics in the new era.
First, unswervingly strive for the lofty ideal of communism and the common ideal of Socialism with Chinese characteristics. The communist party Declaration revealed the inevitable trend of human society finally moving towards communism, which laid the theoretical foundation for communist party people to strengthen their ideals and beliefs and stick to their spiritual homeland. The establishment of ideals and beliefs is a rational choice, not a temporary impulse. It is far from enough to have simple feelings, and it must be supported by profound theoretical beliefs, otherwise it will be shaken at the slightest sign. As long as we master the basic principles of Marxism, we can deeply realize that the realization of communism is a long historical process that is gradually achieved by one stage goal, and it needs several generations to continue to struggle, struggle hard and struggle unremittingly; We can deeply realize that Socialism with Chinese characteristics is the only way to realize the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation, and it is also a successful way for the Communist Party of China (CPC) people to lead their people to pursue lofty ideals and open up a bright future. At the beginning of this year, I said at the seminar for leading cadres at the provincial and ministerial levels and the newly-appointed two committees: "If socialism has not achieved today’s success in China, if the Communist Party of China (CPC)’s leadership and China’s socialist system also collapsed in the domino-like changes of the disintegration of the Soviet Union, the collapse of the CPSU and the drastic changes in Eastern Europe, or failed for other reasons, then socialist practice may wander in the dark for a long time, and as Marx said, it will wander around the world as a ghost." Thanks to Socialism with Chinese characteristics’s continuous success,After the end of the cold war, the situation of world socialism has been greatly reversed, the passive situation of socialism in the competition with capitalism has been greatly reversed, and the superiority of socialism has been greatly demonstrated. We should unify the lofty ideal of communism with the common ideal of Socialism with Chinese characteristics and what we are doing, strengthen our road confidence, theoretical confidence, institutional confidence and cultural confidence, not be afraid of any risks, not be confused by any interference, always adhere to the ideals and beliefs of communist party people and live up to the glorious title of communist party people.
Second, faithfully practice the people-centered development thought. To learn and apply the communist party Declaration, we must not forget our original intention and mission, always put the people in the highest position in our hearts, better promote people’s well-being, and promote the all-round development of people and social progress. To plan development, we should focus on meeting the people’s growing needs for a better life, implement the new development concept, focus on solving the problem of insufficient development imbalance, improve the quality of development, and constantly improve people’s quality of life and taste of life. To deepen reform, we must handle major issues involving reform from the standpoint of the people, resolutely get rid of all institutional and institutional obstacles that hinder the development of productive forces, resolutely get rid of all ideological concepts that hinder the progress of social civilization, and bring more sense of gain, happiness and security to the people. To safeguard and improve people’s livelihood, we should focus on making the fruits of development more fair and benefit all the people, do our best and do what we can, promote social fairness and justice, and make continuous progress in educating young children, learning and teaching, earning income from work, getting medical care for the old, living and supporting the weak, and constantly moving towards common prosperity for all the people.
On May 9, 2018, a foreign audience was praised by Beijing for "the power of truth — — In the theme exhibition commemorating the bicentennial of Marx’s birth, more than 500 communist party Declarations published by different countries were displayed. China News Service reporter Jia Tianyong/photo
Third, conform to the general trend of world development and promote the building of a community of human destiny. At present, the multi-polarization of the world, economic globalization, social informatization and cultural diversity are developing in depth, and the degree of interdependence among countries is unprecedented, which fully confirms the scientific foresight made by Marx and Engels in the communist party Declaration. Every country has the right to development, and at the same time, it should consider its own interests at a broader level, not at the expense of the interests of other countries. Unilateralism and protectionism do not conform to the law of human social development. We must unswervingly safeguard and develop China’s development interests, at the same time, we must unswervingly open wider to the outside world, urge the international community to share the responsibility of the times, cooperate to meet the challenges brought about by economic globalization, and push economic globalization towards a more open, inclusive, inclusive, balanced and win-win direction, so that different countries, different classes and different groups can share the opportunities brought about by economic globalization.
Fourth, strengthen party building in accordance with the new requirements of the new era. The communist party Declaration laid a theoretical foundation for the Marxist theory of party building. Since the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, we have not only gained a new understanding of upholding the Party’s leadership in theory, but also made new explorations in practice, perfecting the system and mechanism of the Party’s leadership in all work. We should implement and embody the Party’s leadership in all aspects of reform, development and stability, internal affairs, foreign affairs and national defense, and managing the party, country and army, and ensure that the Party always takes the overall situation into consideration and coordinates all parties. If the Party wants to lead the people to advance the great social revolution and realize the great rejuvenation of the nation, it must carry forward the spirit of self-revolution, and its determination to further promote the comprehensive and strict administration of the Party cannot be shaken, its requirements cannot be lowered, and its strength cannot be weakened. We should conscientiously implement the general requirements and major arrangements for Party building in the new era put forward by the 19th National Congress of the Communist Party of China. While promoting Party building as a whole, we should focus on solving new problems within the Party, and strive to solve the formalism and bureaucracy problems strongly reflected by the people, the problems that some cadres dare not do, are unwilling to do and will not do, and the problems that some grass-roots Party building is weakened, blurred and marginalized, so as to ensure that our Party will always maintain its true colors as a Marxist political party and always be at the forefront of the times.
Fifth, constantly open up a new realm of Marxism in China. Keeping pace with the times, sharing the destiny with the people, and paying attention to and answering major issues raised by the times and practice are the secrets of Marxism’s eternal vitality. The general principles expounded in the communist party Declaration are correct on the whole, but the communist party Declaration cannot be required to provide ready-made answers to all the specific questions raised by the development of human society after 170 years. We should treat science with a scientific attitude, pursue truth with the spirit of truth, and constantly give Marxism a new era connotation. We should have an insight into the times, grasp the general trend of the times, stand at the forefront of human development, actively explore major issues related to the future and destiny of mankind, and contribute China wisdom and China’s solutions to the global challenges facing the world today and the common problems facing mankind. It is necessary to closely contact the creative practice of hundreds of millions of people, respect the people’s dominant position and initiative, make new generalizations, gain new understanding and form new achievements. We must adhere to the problem orientation, focus on the major practical problems, overall strategic issues and hot and difficult issues that the people are concerned about in China’s reform, opening up and socialist modernization, and provide new ideas, new ideas and new methods for solving problems. We should absorb all outstanding cultural achievements created by human beings, deepen our understanding of communist party’s laws of governance, socialist construction and the development of human society, develop Marxism in the 21st century and contemporary Marxism in China, and continue to write a new chapter of Marxism in China.
Sixth, strengthen the study and research of Marxist classics. Party member and cadres, especially senior cadres, should make good use of the classic Marxist works such as the communist party Declaration, persist in applying what they have learned to promote learning, learn from the original, read carefully and thoroughly, master the Marxist stand, viewpoints and methods skillfully, and constantly improve the theoretical quality of Marxism. It is necessary to intensify the compilation of classic works, insist on producing both achievements and talents, and cultivate a backbone team of Marxist classic works compilation in the new era. It is necessary to deepen the research and interpretation of classic works, promote the popularization of classic works, and constantly introduce various theoretical propaganda works that are loved by the masses and close to public life, so that the theory can be understood and accepted by hundreds of millions of people and draw the largest concentric circle of thoughts.
In another 30 years, that is, the 200th anniversary of the publication of the communist party Declaration in 2048, it is the time when we will build a socialist modern power in an all-round way and realize the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation. At that time, the people of the Communist Party of China (CPC) and China will further prove the scientificity, truth and foresight of Marxism with their own feats. Let’s take practical actions to welcome this great moment!
(This is the speech made by General Secretary of the Supreme Leader on April 23, 2018 during the fifth collective study in the 19th the Political Bureau of the Central Committee. )