China Daily:

According to the communique released yesterday, developing advanced socialist culture and pooling people's spiritual strength are a strong pillar of support for modernization of the national governance system and capacity. My question is: how to understand the relationship between culture and national governance?

Xu Lin:

Let's give the floor to Mr. Wang Xiaohui.

Wang Xiaohui:

I hold that culture has a very close relationship with national governance. As culture is the soul of a country and a nation, as well as national governance, it plays an irreplaceable and important role. First, we need to know that the national governance system chosen by a country is determined by its historical heritage, cultural traditions and economic and social development. The reason why socialism with Chinese characteristics and the country's governance system have such great vitality and superiority is that they are rooted in China with deep Chinese cultural foundations and welcomed by the people.

In the process of national governance, how to give full play to the leading role of culture, especially the core values, and how to form the influential mainstream ideology with cohesive power are always an important aspect of the modernization of the national governance system and capacity.

The fourth plenary session of the 19th CPC Central Committee laid great emphasis on system improvement in regard to culture, especially stressing that developing advanced socialist culture and pooling people's spiritual strength are a strong pillar of support for the modernization of the national governance system and capacity. The communique outlined key tasks in five aspects: first, upholding the fundamental system that stresses the guiding role of Marxism in ideological fields; second, upholding the system that underscores the leading role of core socialist values in cultural construction; third, enhancing the system for guaranteeing people's cultural rights and interests; fourth, improving and upholding the correct public opinion guidance system; fifth, establishing and enhancing a cultural creation and production system that puts social benefits in the first place and unifies social and economic benefits.

I've just mentioned we are now in a crucial period of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation, facing complications in both the domestic and international environment and unprecedented challenges and risks. The more difficult the situation is, the more efforts we need to make to uphold cultural confidence, keep to the orientation of advanced socialist culture, inspire the cultural creativity of the whole nation, and foster a Chinese spirit, Chinese values and Chinese strength. Thank you.