People's Daily:

General Secretary Xi Jinping recently visited an exhibition on CPC history themed "staying true to the founding mission" and stressed bearing in mind the course of the Party's struggles, shouldering the historic mission and drawing strength from the Party's history to forge ahead. May I ask, what strength can we draw from the century-long history of the CPC to forge ahead? Thank you.

Qu Qingshan:

Let me answer this question. The People's Daily reporter raised a very good question. General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized this when he visited the exhibition on CPC history themed "staying true to the founding mission." I think it is very important for us to comprehend this question when carrying out the Party history study and education.

As General Secretary Xi Jinping has repeatedly emphasized, the Party's history is the most vivid and convincing textbook. Carrying out the Party history study and education is to use the Party's course of struggles and great achievements to inspire a fighting spirit and define the country's direction; use the Party's glorious tradition and fine work style to strengthen faith and gather strength; use the Party's practice and creations as well as historical experience to enlighten wisdom and temper the character; educate and guide the whole Party to learn CPC history in order to know the reasoning behind decisions, enhance conviction, advocate morality, and make actions through practice; and, finally, draw wisdom and strength from the Party's century-long history of struggle to forge ahead.

Since I have been engaged in the study of Party history for many years, my own experience is that there are two main realms in the study of Party history. The first is to study the Party history and know what it is. To know what it is, is to gather knowledge of the Party's history. The second level is to learn the Party's history and to know why it is like it is. We can get inspired through the process of pursuing knowledge. The CPC history research is a very useful discipline. Some people think it is not practical or that it is useless, but I think it is very important. You need to learn Party history to get to the second level and to acquire wisdom. General Secretary Xi Jinping has repeatedly emphasized that the Party's history is the most vivid and convincing textbook. Studying Party history will draw the wisdom and strength to forge ahead, which I believe is the purpose of carrying out the Party history study and education.

The "four learnings" are demands of the CPC history learning and education. General Secretary Xi Jinping said that learning CPC history to know the reasons, learning the CPC history to enhance conviction, learning CPC history to advocate morality, and learning CPC history to make action into practice. My understanding of these four respective learnings is: to draw the power of ideas through learning CPC history; to draw the power of faith through learning CPC history; to draw the power of morality through learning CPC history; and to draw the power of practice through learning CPC history. Therefore, I think when we carry out the study of Party history, we draw four kinds of wisdom and strength from the Party via study and education.

First, we draw wisdom and strength from ideology through learning the Party's history. On Feb. 20, during his speech at the launch meeting of the campaign on Party history learning and education, General Secretary Xi Jinping stressed that ideology is strength. Over the past 100 years, the CPC continuously integrated Marxism-Leninism with China's realities, adapted Marxism to the Chinese context, and achieved many theoretical innovations, including Mao Zedong Thought, Deng Xiaoping Theory, the Theory of Three Represents, the Scientific Outlook on Development, and Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era. Our Party's century-long history is a history of continuously integrating Marxism with China's realities and creating and developing new theories by adapting Marxism to the Chinese context. Our theoretical innovations build on past achievements and move with the times, demonstrating a unique advantage of our Party.

The Party's history has made it clear that a strong and innovative theory makes for a strong and innovative party. While carrying out the Party history learning and education campaign, we should learn from its significant achievements, arduous journey, historical experience, and good traditions to have a profound understanding of why the CPC is so capable. I think the guiding ideology of the CPC offers a powerful intellectual tool that distinguishes our Party from other political parties. During his days in Yan'an, Comrade Mao Zedong reiterated in his speeches and articles that Marxism represents the supreme wisdom of humankind. Our Party represents the working class, and is also the vanguard of the Chinese people and the Chinese nation. Marx and Engels stressed that as philosophy finds its material weapon in the proletariat, so too the proletariat finds its spiritual weapon in philosophy — that is, Marxist philosophy's dialectical and historical materialism. Marxism represents the supreme wisdom of humankind, and the working class became the most promising class with the emergence and development of large-scale mechanized industry. So, in my opinion, our Party boasts powerful thoughts and theories superior to those of other political parties. This is why the CPC is so capable. 

After the Revolution of 1911, party politics were introduced to China, which resulted in two upsurges in the establishment of political parties. How many political parties and organizations were set up at most? The day before yesterday, the State Council Information Office released a white paper titled "China's Political Party System: Cooperation and Consultation," which cited a conclusion universally recognized by researchers that more than 300 parties and party-like political groups were set up in China at that time. While another popular theory says the figure is 680. Among the several hundred political parties, the CPC is the only one that made significant achievements in the end. The CPC, founded in 1921, was quite a "small" organization at that time. Just now, Ms. Jiang Shuping quoted a saying from Chinese ancient philosopher Zhuangzi: "All great things have simple beginnings." The saying was also quoted by Comrade Mao Zedong during his speech at the preparatory meeting of the 7th CPC National Congress. How "simple" it is when the CPC was established, with only 50-plus Party members and more than a dozen delegates. Among the 13 delegates, of whom the average age was 28 — the oldest was 45-year-old He Shuheng from Hunan province, and the youngest was Liu Renjing, a 19-year-old student from Peking University. Comrade Mao Zedong was 28 years old at the time. The first CPC National Congress was convened in a building in the French concession area of Shanghai. After being harassed by a police spy, the delegates moved to a boat on Nanhu Lake in Jiaxing, in Zhejiang province, where they concluded the meeting. As "simple" and "small" as this beginning was, the Party has since achieved epic accomplishments in China. On Sept. 16, 1949, 28 years after the initial meeting, Comrade Mao Zedong wrote an article titled "The Bankruptcy of the Idealist Conception of History," part of a series of articles he wrote to criticize Dean Acheson's white paper on China. In this article, he reviewed the Party's 28-year-long journey during which the CPC united and led the Chinese people to make unprecedented achievements. Fifteen days before the founding ceremony of the PRC, he drew the conclusion that the founding of the CPC was an epochal event in China's history. Over 28 years, the CPC had grown from a "small" organization to a party that united and led the Chinese people to overthrew the rule of imperialism and feudalism and realized China's independence and the people's liberation. 

Therefore, we should draw wisdom and strength from ideology through learning the Party's century-long history. What's more, we should understand why Marxism works and how it was introduced to China. The Communist Manifesto published in February 1848 marked the birth of Marxism. From then on, a half-century passed before the name and academic viewpoints of Karl Marx were reported in the press in China. According to research, the name of Marx was first translated into Chinese in 1899 by a British missionary Timothy Richard in an article published in Wanguo Gongbao (The Review of the Times), a monthly publication run by Christian Literature Society for China in Shanghai. The article, titled "Da Tong Xue (A Study of Common Good for All)," was jointly written by Timothy Richard and a Chinese editor named Cai Erkang. We still use his version of the translation to this day. Later, between 1903 and 1905, some Chinese scholars such as Liang Qichao also wrote articles to introduce Marx. Liang fled to Japan after the "Hundred Days' Reform" was defeated. There, he produced a journal called Xinmin Congbao (New Citizen), in which he wrote short articles to introduce some of Marx's viewpoints. He wrote excellent articles with solid Chinese writing skills but his translation skills were not as good as Timothy Richard's. It's for this reason that we don't use Liang's version of the translations today. If I didn't explain it here, you might not have even known that the name "Maikashi" in Liang's version represents Karl Marx.

When the first CPC National Congress was convened in 1921, the Party only had more than 50 members. This small party held a secret meeting and took Marxism-Leninism as its guiding ideology. It had been more than 20 years between 1899 to 1921, and it took over 70 years from the birth of Marxism to its acceptance and application by the Chinese people. The reason why Marxism could come to China and be accepted by the Chinese people is that the Chinese people need it and it has indeed played an important role in leading China to make fundamental achievements in socialism with Chinese characteristics. The past 100 years have proved that Marxism works well in China and it's a powerful ideological tool and banner of the CPC.

Another question is why socialism with Chinese characteristics works well in China. This is a big question. Why can the CPC succeed, why can Marxism work, and why can socialism with Chinese characteristics do well? These three questions are interrelated and of great significance. Figuring them out can provide profound historical inspiration and powerful strength in thinking and spirit to motivate the Chinese people and the Chinese nation to move forward. This is amid our embarking on a new journey toward the second centenary goal of fully building a modern socialist country, striving for the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation after having fulfilled the first centenary goal. 

Second, the wisdom and power of faith. General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out that Communists' faith in Marxism, socialism, and communism is their political soul and sustains them in all tests. The reason why the CPC has stood up in the face of many setbacks and made great achievements boils down to its noble ideals and lofty pursuits. It was also thanks to a large number of revolutionary martyrs who faced death unflinchingly, heroes who struggled tenaciously, and role models of selfless dedication in the endeavor of the Party. This is also a glorious page in the history of our Party.

Let me give you some examples. The first is Xia Minghan, who you surely know, and who wrote a poem before his execution. Xia was only 28 years old when he sacrificed his life in 1928. Both his father and grandfather had been officials in the Qing Dynasty, meaning that Xia came from an affluent family. He joined the revolution not to earn a living but because of his faith. After the failure of the Revolution in 1927, the CPC Central Committee sent Xia to Hubei province for his duties. He was arrested by the enemy shortly after his arrival in Wuhan, Hubei, and put to trial and killed three days later. After he was escorted to the execution ground, the executioner asked if he had anything more to say. He asked for a writing brush and paper, and wrote down four lines in one go, which is the famous poem: "Let them cut off my head, I will not abandon my faith. Though you kill Xia Minghan today, numerous will follow my way."

Another example is Yang Jingyu, who was sent by the CPC Central Committee to northeast China to fulfill his duty in 1929. He led the establishment of the Northeast Anti-Japanese United Army where he served as the commander and political commissar of the First Route Army. Later, after the encirclement and suppression of the Japanese army and its puppet army for five days and nights, Yang's brigade was heavily outnumbered by the enemy, and he became the only soldier left to fight to the end. Facing numerous opponents, Yang was persuaded by a villager to surrender in order to survive. Actually, if Yang had surrendered, the Japanese would have not only spared his life but also offered him a higher rank and asked him to eliminate the anti-Japanese forces. However, Yang said, "My fellow villager, if the Chinese people all surrendered, would China still exist?" Therefore, he fought to the end. The Japanese army were very puzzled by how Yang sustained himself in the deep mountains and forests in extremely cold weather, since the enemy besieged him for five days and nights and isolated the villagers from him, with no one bringing him food on the mountains. The Japanese army decided to dissect Yang's body to figure out what had given him strength. After the dissection, they surprisingly found that there was no grain in Yang's stomach, but instead, only undigested wild vegetables, bark, and cotton.

Another is Guo Yonghuai. As we all know, Guo was a scientist who contributed to China's development of atomic and hydrogen bombs, missiles, and manmade satellites. Guo Yonghuai, Yang Chen-Ning, and Deng Jiaxian were schoolmates at the National Southwest Associated University and all went to the United States for further study. Later, Yang Chen-Ning won the Nobel Prize in Physics and stayed in the U.S. Deng Jiaxian returned to China after receiving his doctorate degree. In December 1968, Guo Yonghuai flew back to Beijing from the west of China after important breakthroughs were made in thermonuclear explosion tests. The plane which Guo was aboard deviated from the runway while trying to land at Beijing Xiyuan Airport, and exploded, killing everyone on board. When the staff were cleaning up the site of the accident, they saw a number of charred bodies. Two bodies clung together so closely that they could not be easily separated. After the bodies were separated, a leather bag was found, in which there was a complete set of experimental data. Guo Yonghuai's work at that time was highly confidential and a security guard was assigned to protect him. During the air crash, Guo and his security guard hugged each other and protected the data. This is the story of Guo Yonghuai. 

On the north shore of the Qinghai Lake in the 1930s, the Chinese composer Wang Luobin drew inspiration and created a popular song "In a Faraway Place," which is one of the best-known Chinese songs of the 20th century. Later, an enterprise called Factory 221, which is China's nuclear weapons development base, was set up in Qinghai province. There were two tenets central to the work of the factory: doing earth-shattering research while concealing the existence of the research and researchers. The explosion of atomic and hydrogen bombs was world-shaking but the people behind the explosions lived in obscurity and even under assumed names. You may be familiar with the scientist Wang Ganchang. When he returned from the Soviet Union, he took up a research position at the factory. To keep his work a secret, he changed his name to "Wang Jing" and disappeared from the physics circle for 17 years. It was the dedication of these people that led to the development of China's atomic and hydrogen bombs, missiles, and manmade satellites. The development of these bombs, missiles, and satellites under such harsh conditions established China's status as a major country in the world.

There are many such figures in the history of our Party. The Institute of Party History and Literature of the CPC Central Committee conducted research into the spiritual pedigree of the CPC. We identified more than 100 kinds of spirits in different historical periods of the Party, involving various fields, places, and departments. The latest spirit is the "spirit of poverty alleviation," summarized by General Secretary Xi Jinping at a grand gathering to mark the country's accomplishments in poverty alleviation and honor its model poverty fighters, held by the CPC Central Committee and the State Council this February. Since reform and opening-up, more than 700 million people have been lifted out of poverty thanks to poverty alleviation efforts. Since the 18th CPC National Congress, nearly 100 million people have shaken off poverty and the Chinese nation has bid farewell to thousands of years of poor life. Nevertheless, over 1,800 comrades sacrificed their lives in fighting against poverty in grass-root units. They used their life, hard work, and sweat to accomplish the undertaking of eliminating poverty. 

Therefore, to conduct Party history learning and education is to strengthen the noble ideal of communism and the shared ideal of socialism with Chinese characteristics and to better uphold and develop socialism with Chinese characteristics under the new historical conditions. Only by learning the Party's history can we firmly keep in mind where our red political power came from and how the People's Republic of China was founded as well as better cherish socialism with Chinese characteristics pioneered by our Party and strengthen the "Four-sphere Confidence," namely, the confidence in the path, theory, system, and culture of socialism with Chinese characteristics. Socialism with Chinese characteristics is a fundamental achievement made through the united efforts of our Party and people over the past 100 years. It is the lifeblood of the Chinese people and the Chinese nation and we must always uphold it unswervingly, cherish it all the more, and constantly enrich and improve it.

Third, the wisdom and power of the spirit. I've already talked about this and I won't repeat what I said previously.

Fourth, the wisdom and strength of practice. General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out that the century-long history of the CPC is a history of acting on the Party's original aspiration and mission, and a history of the CPC being of one mind with the people, breathing the same breath as the people, and sharing weal and woe with the people. The state is the people and the people are the state. From Shikumen (a typical Shanghai house where the first CPC National Congress was held) to Tian'anmen Square, from Xingye Road (where the first CPC National Congress was held) to Fuxing (rejuvenation in Chinese) Road, all the efforts, struggles, and sacrifices made by the CPC over the past 100 years have been for the well-being of the people and the rejuvenation of the nation. By carrying out Party history learning and education, we need to combine the study of the Party's history and theories with the summarizing of experience, observing realities and advancing work so as to translate the results of the study into the driving force and achievements of our work.

We should also work diligently to solve real problems for the people, intensify the consciousness of public servants and devotion to the people, and continuously deliver solid results to and solve problems for the people in order to constantly enhance their sense of happiness and security. Comrade Mao Zedong said in Yan'an in the 1940s, that freedom is knowledge of necessity-this is the proposition of the philosophers of the past; freedom is knowledge of necessity and the transformation of the world-this is the proposition of Marxism. I agree with him. We Communists must walk the walk instead of just talking the talk. The ultimate purpose of understanding the world for us is to transform the world. We can obtain wisdom and strength from Party history learning and education. We should study the Party's history and grasp its thoughts to deliver real results and break new ground. I'll stop here. Thank you!

Xing Huina:

Thank you, Mr. Qu. Due to the time limit, today's press conference is hereby concluded. Thank you to our speakers and friends from the media.

Translated and edited by Zhang Liying, Zhang Junmian, Guo Yiming, Yang Xi, Lin Liyao, Zhang Rui, Liu Jianing, Fan Junmei, Zhu Bochen, Wang Yanfang, Li Huiru, Li Xiao, Xu Xiaoxuan, David Ball, Jay Birbeck, and Tom Arnstein. In case of any discrepancy between the English and Chinese texts, the Chinese version is deemed to prevail.