Reform and Opening Up

Propaganda poster regarding "Reform and Opening Up"

Reform and Opening Up (Pinyin: gǎigé kāifàn; Simplified Chinese: 改革开放) is a policy of internal reform and external opening that China began to implement at the Third Plenary Session of the Eleventh Central Committee in December 1978 . China's internal reforms started with the rural areas. In November 1978, Xiaogang Village, Fengyang County, Anhui Province implemented the household contract responsibility system (Lump Sum Contract Responsibility system ) of "dividing land to households and responsible for their own profits and losses ".

On July 15, 1979, the central government officially approved the implementation of special policies and flexible measures in foreign economic activities in Guangdong and Fujian provinces, which marked a historic step towards reform and opening up. Opening up to the outside world has become a basic national policy of China. The road is a powerful driving force for the development of the socialist cause. Reform and opening up established a Socialist Market Economy. In 1992, the Southern Talk announced that China's reform had entered a new stage. Reform and opening up have brought about tremendous changes in China. The 14th National Congress of the Communist Party of China held in October 1992 announced that the most distinctive feature of the new era is reform and opening up, and China's reform has entered a new reform period. In 2013, China entered a new era of comprehensively deepening reforms . Deepening reform and opening up requires adhering to the direction of socialism.

Reform and opening up is one of the two basic points of the basic line of the Communist Party of China in the primary stage of socialism . Since the Third Plenary Session of the Eleventh Central Committee of the Communist Party of China, the general principles and policies for socialist modernization are the road to a strong country and the source of vitality for the development and progress of the party and the country. Reform, that is, internal reform, is to consciously adjust and reform the aspects and links between production relations and productive forces, superstructure and economic base that are not compatible with each other under the premise of adhering to the socialist system, so as to promote the development of productive forces and various undertakings. progress in all aspects and better realize the fundamental interests of the broad masses of the people. Opening up, that is, opening up to the outside world, is an inevitable choice to accelerate my country's modernization drive, conforms to the characteristics of the current era and the general trend of world development, and is a basic national policy that must be adhered to for a long time.

Historical Background

Precursor

The first economic reforms took place in 1972 with the implementation of the 43 Plan proposed by Zhou Enlai. Roughly 4.24 billion US dollars worth of financial investment from over 20 countries from Capitalist countries, primarily Japan and the USA. However, in 1978, in accordance to the 82 Plan proposed by Hua Guofeng, 7.8 Billion US dollars worth of financial investment of roughly around 22 projects. The 43 Plan implemented under Mao and 82 Plan implemented under Hua Guofeng differed only in amount. The contents were consistent, even as early as the 1972, reform was the inevitable path forward for the CPC.

Political Background

The resolution of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China on certain historical issues of the party since the founding of the People's Republic of China (unanimously adopted at the Sixth Plenary Session of the Eleventh Central Committee of the Communist Party of China on June 27, 1981) reviewed the history of the 28 years before the founding of the People's Republic of China, and completed the 30-year history of the founding of the People's Republic of China. The seven years of socialist transformation and the ten years of building socialism in an all-round way have made basic estimates and evaluations.

Regarding the 10 years of the "Cultural Revolution", the document mentioned:

The 10 years of the Cultural Revolution caused the party, the country and the people to suffer the most serious setbacks and losses since the founding of the People's Republic. History has proved that the thesis of the "Cultural Revolution" did not conform to China's reality and did not conform to Marxism-Leninism. These theories were completely wrong in their estimation of the class situation in China and the political situation of the party and the country at that time. Practice has proved that the "Cultural Revolution" was not and could not be a revolution or social progress in any sense . It does not "disorder the enemy" at all, but disrupted China. Therefore, it was never been possible to achieve this supposed social progress in the first place. History has proven that the "Cultural Revolution" was a civil strife wrongly launched by leaders and exploited by counter-revolutionary groups, which brought serious disasters to the party, state and people of all ethnic groups. It was a social regression. In October 1976, the conspiracy of the Lin Biao and Jiang Qing Ultra-Leftist counter-revolutionary clique was smashed, the party was saved from danger, the revolution was saved, and China entered a new period of historical development.

Turning Point

From December 18 to 22, 1978, Deng Xiaoping held the Third Plenary Session of the Eleventh Central Committee of the Communist Party of China. It is a great turning point with far-reaching significance in the history of our party:

1. The Third Plenary Session of the Eleventh Central Committee is a meeting that continues the past and ushers in the future. Specifically, it re-established the Marxist ideological line of seeking truth from facts, downplayed the slogan "class struggle as the key link" that is not applicable to the current socialist society, and decided to shift the focus of the work of the whole party to socialist modernization.

2. The Third Plenary Session of the Eleventh Central Committee is a meeting that creates the future. The plenary session clearly pointed out that the party's historical task in the new era is to build China into a modern socialist country, which opened the prelude to socialist reform and opening up.

3. Starting from the Third Plenary Session of the Eleventh Central Committee, the Chinese people have entered a new era of reform, opening up and socialist modernization. Starting from the Third Plenary Session of the Eleventh Central Committee, the Party Central Committee with Deng Xiaoping at its core gradually opened up a road of building socialism with Chinese characteristics. Over the past 40 years, the Chinese people have made remarkable construction achievements along this road. The meeting opened the prelude to China's socialist reform and opening up. In December 1978, China began to embark on the road of reform and opening up.

Deng Xiaoping said: "Any nation or country must learn from the strengths of other nations and countries, and learn from other people's advanced science and technology." So he took the lead in proposing to implement reform and opening up in China, and contributed to China's reform and opening up. He has made indelible contributions and is known as the chief architect of China's socialist reform, opening up and modernization.

Economic Background

Economically, as of 1978, although China's gross national product reached 362.4 billion renminbi, more than double the 171.6 billion renminbi in 1965, with an average annual growth rate of 6.8%, and established an independent, categorically complete industrial system. But the people are still poor, the technology is relatively backward, and after the Cultural Revolution, the CPC has a certain degree of governance crisis and crisis of trust.

In order to accelerate economic development as soon as possible, the Party Central Committee with Deng Xiaoping at the core began to solve these problems one by one, and tried to change the deep-rooted image of the Communist Party and socialism in the people's minds. The purpose of this reform movement was to maintain the socialist system as the premise and change the management system and policies that are not suitable for production development, and the establishment of a Socialist Market Economy. The economic aspect of this reform made the first breakthrough in the countryside, and then quickly implemented reforms in various economic fields across the country.

Deng Xiaoping came to power for the third time, trying to carry out all-round reform of the domestic economic system at that time, and trying to transfer China's economic system to the Socialist Market Economy. Deng Xiaoping's efforts and reform attempts were enthusiastically supported by the people.

The Only Way

1. The status quo of the country needs to be changed

The " Cultural Revolution " left a serious situation for the country: the slow development of productive forces, the lack of food and clothing for the people, and backwardness in science and technology and education. This situation cannot be changed. How to change? There is only one answer: reform.

2. China needs a second revolution

New China was established and the new democratic revolution was completed. However, after the founding of New China, the highly centralized planned economic system established by blindly imitating the Soviet Union and China's isolationist policies had seriously hindered the development of China's productive forces. China needs a second revolution to unleash the productive forces. This situation cannot be changed. How to change? There is only one answer: reform.

3. The socialist system needs self-improvement and development

At each historical stage of socialist society, it is necessary to continuously promote the self-improvement and development of the socialist system in a timely manner according to the requirements of economic development, so that the socialist system is full of vigor and vitality. Where does vitality and vitality come from? There is only one answer: reform.

4. Realizing socialist modernization requires new thinking

The new idea is to establish and continuously improve the socialist market economic system, actively and steadily promote the reform of the political system, develop socialist democracy, build a socialist political civilization, and promote the reform of the cultural system. Where are the new ideas? There is only one answer: reform.

Formation Process

The Reform Begins

Before 1978, Xiaogang Village , Fengyang County, Anhui Province was a well-known "three-dependence village" in the county where "edible food depends on resale, money depends on relief, and production depends on loans". Every year after the autumn harvest, almost every family goes out to beg for food. On November 24, 1978, 18 peasant households in Xiaogang Village, with the courage to be the first in the world, pressed 18 fingerprints and set up a production responsibility system, which opened the prelude to China's rural reform. Perhaps it was a coincidence of history—shortly after these farmers pressed their fingerprints, the Third Plenary Session of the Eleventh Central Committee of the Communist Party of China was grandly opened in the Great Hall of the People in Beijing. At a critical historical juncture that concerns the fate and future of the country, China's top politicians represented by Deng Xiaoping and the peasants jointly turned a new page in history. Xiaogang Village thus became the birthplace of China's rural reform.

Emancipate the Mind

On May 11, 1978, "Guangming Daily" published a special commentator's article "Practice is the only criterion for testing truth" on the front page, triggering a nationwide discussion on the issue of truth standards. Under the leadership and support of the older generation of proletarian revolutionaries such as Deng Xiaoping, relying on the close cooperation of the theoretical circles, the press, and comrades engaged in practical work, this discussion finally broke through the shackles of the "two whatevers" The Central Plenary Session re-established the ideological line of Marxism and made theoretical and public opinion preparations, which had a significant and far-reaching influence in the historical process of the party and the country.

To speed up China's economic development, we must further emancipate our minds, accelerate the pace of reform and opening up, and not be bound by some abstract debates about "social" and "capital". If socialism wants to gain an advantage over capitalism, it must boldly absorb and learn from all advanced management methods and management methods that reflect the general laws of modern socialized production and commodity economy from all countries in the world. Foreign capital, resources, technology, talents and the market economy as a beneficial supplement should all be and can be used by socialism. Power is in the hands of the people, and there is a strong public economy. Doing so will not harm socialism, but will only benefit the development of socialism.

Deng Xiaoping and his successors and other reformers withstood the onslaught of domestic conservatives and succeeded in making reform and opening up one of the cornerstones of the People's Republic of China's policy and irreversibly bringing China into the world economy , closely integrated with the world economy. From 1978 to 2000, the People’s Republic of China transformed from an isolated country with 200 million people living below the poverty line into a prosperous economy and reduced a fifth of the entire world's population living below the poverty line.

China is also advancing rapidly on the road to industrialization, becoming the new factory of the world. China has successfully realized the Socialist Market Economy and has become an important driving force for China's economic growth. The introduction of foreign capital has also become an important way to fuel China's economic growth, and China is the country that attracts the largest amount of foreign capital in the world (the introduction of funds from Hong Kong, Macao, and Taiwan is also counted as foreign capital).

Policy Formation

In 1978, the Third Plenary Session of the Eleventh Central Committee of the Party made a major decision to implement reform and opening up.

In 1979, the Party Central Committee and the State Council approved Guangdong and Fujian to implement "special policies and flexible measures" in foreign economic activities, and decided to pilot special economic zones in Shenzhen , Zhuhai , Xiamen , and Shantou . One of the open provinces. On April 13, 1988, the Seventh National People's Congress passed a resolution on the establishment of the Hainan Special Economic Zone, establishing the Hainan Special Economic Zone . The successful creation of Shenzhen and other special economic zones has accumulated experience for further opening up, and has strongly promoted China's reform, opening up and modernization process.

After the Third Plenary Session of the Eleventh Central Committee in 1978, the national economy entered a period of adjustment. The Fourth Plenary Session of the Eleventh Central Committee in September 1979 passed the "Decision on Several Issues Concerning Accelerating Agricultural Development", allowing farmers to adapt to local conditions under the guidance of the unified national plan, guaranteeing their management autonomy and giving full play to their enthusiasm for production.

On August 18, 1980, Deng Xiaoping delivered a speech entitled " Reform of the Party and State Leadership System " at the enlarged meeting of the Political Bureau of the Central Committee , which pointed out the direction for the reform of China's political system in the new era.

In September 1980, the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China issued "Several Issues Concerning Further Strengthening and Improving the Agricultural Production Responsibility System", which affirmed the socialist nature of household production contracting .

By the beginning of 1983, the rural household contract responsibility system had been fully promoted across the country.

In April 1984, the Party Central Committee and the State Council decided to further open the 14 port cities of Dalian, Qinhuangdao , Tianjin, Yantai, Qingdao, Lianyungang, Nantong, Shanghai, Ningbo, Wenzhou, Fuzhou, Guangzhou, Zhanjiang, and Beihai . Gradually set up economic and technological development zones.

In October 1984, the Third Plenary Session of the Twelfth Central Committee of the Party systematically raised and clarified a series of major theoretical and practical issues in the reform of the economic system, and confirmed that China’s socialist economy is a planned commodity economy based on public ownership . It is a programmatic document for carrying out comprehensive economic system reform. The reform of the political system and the reform of the economic system are basically carried out simultaneously.

In the mid-1980s, China's reforms in various fields such as science and technology, education, and culture also started.

Since 1985, economic open zones have been successively opened up in the Yangtze River Delta , Pearl River Delta , southeastern Fujian and the Bohai Rim .

In 1988, the Hainan Special Economic Zone was added, making Hainan the largest special economic zone in China.

In 1990, the Party Central Committee and the State Council made a decision to develop and open the Shanghai Pudong New Area from the perspective of the long-term strategy of China's economic development. A new situation has emerged in China's opening up.

Opening Up Pattern

1. China's opening-up pattern

China's opening to the outside world has developed from the coast to the inland, forming a special economic zone-coastal open city- coastal economic open zone -inland, such an all-round, multi-level and wide-ranging opening pattern.

2. China's 6 Special Economic Zones

Shenzhen (327.5 square kilometers)

Zhuhai City (121 square kilometers)

Xiamen City (131 square kilometers)

Shantou City (2064 square kilometers)

Hainan Island (33920 square kilometers)

Kashgar

After Shenzhen was established as a special economic zone , it became a modern and prosperous city in just a few years, becoming a representative of China's special economic zones and known as the "window" of China's opening up to the outside world.

The Hainan Special Economic Zone is the only provincial-level special economic zone in the country and the largest special economic zone in China. On April 13, 1988, the First Session of the Seventh National People's Congress passed a resolution on the establishment of Hainan Special Economic Zone, designating Hainan Island as Hainan Special Economic Zone, implementing a more open and flexible system and policy than other special economic zones in China, and authorizing the Hainan government to be more Great autonomy.

3. China’s ports open to the outside world

Ports are ports, airports, stations, passages, etc. for people, goods and vehicles to enter and exit the country. Ports are divided into first-class ports and second-class ports .

1. Class I ports:

Class I ports refer to ports approved to be opened by the State Council (including ports managed by the central government and some ports managed by provinces, autonomous regions, and municipalities directly under the central government); Class II ports refer to ports approved to be opened and managed by provincial people's governments;

2. Second-class ports:

1. Relying on other ports to send people to the loading and unloading point, starting point, and delivery point of national ship foreign trade transportation for entry-exit inspection and inspection procedures;

2. Ports for small border trade and personnel exchanges with local governments of adjacent countries;

3. Ports of entry and exit for border residents only.

There are mainly three types of ports open to the outside world in China, namely water transport (sea transport) ports, land transport (railway, public transport) ports and air (airport) ports.

Airports:

Lhasa, Tianjin, Dalian, Shenyang, Changchun, Mudanjiang, Hangzhou, Fuzhou and Qingdao

Wuhan, Shenzhen, Meizhou, Sanya, Hailar, Nanchang, Guiyang, Shantou, Harbin, Wuyi Mountain, Luoyang, Hohhot, Hefei, Changsha, Zhangjiajie, Guangzhou and Zhanjiang

Haikou, Nanning, Chengdu, Kunming, Shijiazhuang, Xi'an, Lanzhou, Wenzhou, Guilin, Beihai, Chongqing, Xishuangbanna Urumqi, Qiqihar, Jiamusi, Jinan and Yantai

Kashi, Yanji, Shanghai, Ningbo, Huangshan, Xiamen. Weihai, Yichang, Yinchuan, Beijing and Nanjing

Rail ports:

Tumen, Dongguan, Guangzhou, Dandong, Suifenhe, Pingxiang, Alashankou, Manzhouli , Shenzhen, Foshan, Zhaoqing, Hunchun, Ji'an , Erenhot , Harbin and Zhengzhou

Highway port:

Quanhe, Huanggang, Dongning, Wenjindu, Hengqin, Friendship Pass, Shuikou, Ruili, Wanding, Ganqimao Road, Linjiang, Nanping, Mishan, Geelong, Turgat, Gongbei, Heyuan. Dongxing, Jinshui river, Alashan Pass and many more.

The Ten Combinations

Since Reform and Opening up, the CPC and China have created and accumulated rich practical experience while making remarkable achievements in socialist modernization. On the basis of summarizing the staged experience of reform and opening up at the 13th, 14th, 15th, and 16th National Congresses of the Party, the 17th National Congress of the Communist Party of China focused on summarizing the entire historical process of reform and opening up in the past 30 years, closely linked to the How can a large developing country with a population of more than one billion get rid of poverty, accelerate the realization of modernization, consolidate and develop socialism, comprehensively and vigorously summarize the valuable experience of the "ten combinations".

The first combination said that the key to the success of China's reform and opening up is not to lose the "old ancestors", but also to develop the "old ancestors"; not only to constantly create new prospects for career development, but also to constantly open up new realms of Marxist theory. Such a combination promotes the emancipation of people's ideas and concepts and the emancipation of social productivity.

The second combination says that Chinese socialism can show vigor and vitality in the new era because it is a socialism that implements reform and opening up; the reason why China's reform and opening up can develop healthily is that it is conducive to the consolidation and development of socialism. Socialist reform and opening up. Such a combination has created a truly active socialism and created a socialism that further benefits the people.

The third combination is that in the process of reform and opening up, we not only rely on the strong leadership of the party and the government, but also respect the pioneering spirit of the people at the grassroots level, especially the localities . This kind of combination enables China to effectively maintain the harmony and unity of the country and the integration of society under the circumstances of diversification of interests caused by reform and opening up.

The fourth combination is that the new system of Socialist Market Economy, as an unprecedented creation, is closely linked with the basic system of socialism. Such a combination makes the socialist market economy an institutional model that not only meets the general requirements of a market economy, but also conforms to the essence and direction of socialism .

The fifth combination is that we attach importance to both economic system reform and internal superstructure reform including political system reform; while promoting political system reform, we also combine the expansion of democracy with the improvement of the legal system. Such a combination has created a political system model that combines the strengths of both democracy and centralization.

The sixth combination is that in China's reform, opening up and modernization drive, it not only attaches importance to the development of "things", that is, the development of social productive forces, but also pays attention to the development of "people", that is, the improvement of the civilized quality of the whole people. Such a combination unifies the all-round development of human beings and the all-round progress of society in the practice of modernization construction.

The seventh combination refers to the fact that in leading the reform, opening up, and modernization drive, the Party timely combines promoting development and improving efficiency with emphasizing social fairness and promoting social harmony. This kind of combination not only makes Chinese society full of creative vitality continuously, but also helps to avoid polarization and achieve common prosperity.

The eighth combination is that China, a large developing country with a population of more than one billion, cannot develop without participation in economic globalization , let alone independence. This kind of combination enables us to make good use of both domestic and international markets and resources at the same time, and achieve mutual benefit, universal benefit, and win-win results in equal competition that seeks advantages and avoids disadvantages .

The ninth combination is that in the process of reform and opening up, China pays attention to the coordination of the relationship between the intensity of reform, the speed of development and the degree to which the society can bear. This combination not only avoids the severe economic recession and social shocks that have occurred in many countries in transition, but also enables the fruits of reform and development to truly benefit all the people.

The tenth combination is that our party combines the transformation of the objective world with the transformation of the subjective world to provide a strong political and organizational guarantee for reform, opening up and modernization. This combination not only promotes the great cause of socialism with Chinese characteristics, but also advances the new great project of party building , thus continuously improving the party's leadership level, governance level and ability to resist corruption and prevent change.