Library:The governance of China/Chapter 7: Social Undertakings

Chapter 7: Social Undertakings, Xi Jinping: The Governance of China, Volume I.

Eliminate Poverty and Accelerate Development in Impoverished Areas

December 29 and 30, 2012
Main points of the speech during an inspection of poverty-alleviation and development work in Fuping County, Hebei Province.

It is the essential requirement of socialism to eradicate poverty, improve the people's livelihood and achieve common prosperity. We should pay close attention to people in straitened circumstances, and extend care to them with respect and love. We should do our best to solve their problems and keep their needs and sufferings in mind, and bring the solicitude and concern of the Party and the government to the people in the impoverished areas.

The old revolutionary base areas and the people there made an enormous contribution to the victory of the Chinese revolution, which will never be forgotten by the Party and the people. Since the reform and opening-up policy was introduced over 30 years ago, the people's overall living conditions have been substantially improved. However, China is still in the primary stage of socialism, so the number of people living in poverty is still quite large. With regard to completing the building of a moderately prosperous society in all respects, the hardest and most arduous tasks lie in the rural areas and the poverty-stricken regions in particular. We cannot say we have realized a moderately prosperous society if the rural areas, especially the backward parts of the countryside, are left behind. The central leadership has always attached great importance to development-oriented poverty alleviation. Party committees and governments at all levels should strengthen their sense of responsibility and mission in development-oriented poverty alleviation. To free them from destitution so that they can live a better life as soon as possible, we must work diligently and effectively to map out plans, allocate funds, set targets, work out detailed measures, and carry out evaluations in this respect.

As we often say, "With confidence, even barren clay can be turned into gold." Party committees and governments at all levels should make it a priority to help people in difficulties, especially those in the old revolutionary base areas and poverty-stricken areas, to break away from poverty and achieve prosperity. To this end, we will make full use of local advantages, improve plans, and provide specific and targeted guidance. When formulating policies concerning poverty alleviation, more considerations should be given to the old revolutionary bases and the impoverished areas. At the same time, we should bolster our confidence, find the correct method, and make strenuous efforts to facilitate development in those areas. Leading officials at all levels should keep people living in deprivation in mind, help them in good time and work for them diligently.

The rural areas long for development and the farmers demand a better life. The key to their prosperity lies with the Party committees at the primary level. You local officials work in the forefront, face poor conditions, and toil all year round. It's not easy for you. I would like to express my sincere gratitude to you all. We should work together with one heart to put the Party's policies into full practice, and make every effort to ensure a better life for our fellow-countrymen in the rural areas.

Better and Fairer Education for the 1.3 Billion Chinese People

September 25, 2013
Main points of the video message for the first anniversary of the UN Global Education First Initiative.

Education is the foundation of national development in the long run. It is the fundamental way for mankind to pass on culture and knowledge, raise new generations and create a better life.

China will continue to support this initiative led by the UN. With 260 million students and 15 million teachers, the task for China to develop education is an arduous one. China will resolutely implement the strategy of reinvigorating the country through science and education, and will always give priority to education. China will increase its investment in education, promote universal and life-long education, and build itself into a society in which people enjoy learning. Moreover, the country will work hard to ensure that every child has the opportunity to go to school, and enable its 1.3 billion people to enjoy a better and fairer education, so that they can acquire the ability to develop themselves, contribute to society and help others. In addition, China will strengthen educational exchanges with other countries, open its educational field wider to the outside world, and actively support the development of education in developing countries. We are determined to work with peoples of all other countries towards a brighter future.

Accelerate the Development of Housing Security and Supply

October 29, 2013
Main points of the speech at the tenth group study session of the Political Bureau of the 18th CPC Central Committee which Xi presided over.

Accelerating housing supply is important for meeting the people's basic need for housing and ensuring that all of them have access to housing. It is a requirement for social fairness and justice as well as an important measure for the people to share the fruits of reform and development. Party committees and governments at all levels should exercise better leadership to ensure that all the relevant objectives, tasks, policies and measures are implemented, and regard housing security and supply as a project of good governance that can stand the test of practice, time and the people's expectations.

Housing is an issue related not only to the people's livelihood but also the development of our country. It concerns the people's immediate interests, determines whether they can live and work in contentment, and affects the country's overall economic and social development, as well as social harmony and stability. The Party and government have always attached great importance to the housing issue. Thanks to protracted efforts, great achievements have been made in China's housing industry. However, we must realize that we cannot solve our housing problems overnight as there is still a large number of people having difficulty getting decent housing, a general inadequate supply of basic housing, and an inappropriate and unbalanced allocation of housing resources. Many people lack their own dwelling, so we must be more resolved and make greater efforts to address all the problems standing in the way of housing supply.

In the matter of housing security and supply, we must properly handle the relationship between public services provided by the government and services provided by the market, between the economic and social functions of housing supply, between needs and possibilities, and between the need to provide housing security and the need to avoid total welfare dependence. We must carry out market-oriented reforms in order to fully enliven the market and meet the multilevel needs for housing. However, there are always people who have housing difficulties due to labor skill mismatch, being out of a job or low income, so the government must step in to provide them with basic housing.

As conditions stand in China, we in general should build a housing supply system for the government to provide basic housing security and for the market to satisfy multilevel housing demands. We should review and sum up our experience in housing reform and development, learn from other countries in solving their housing problems, study the rules of housing supply, emphasize top-level design, and speed up the establishment of a uniform, standardized, mature and stable housing supply system. While making every effort to increase the housing supply, we must also do our best to satisfy the people's demands for better housing, establish a sound system of housing standards so that houses are economical, affordable, eco-friendly, energy-conserving and safe, and advocate a housing consumption mode fitting China's conditions.

According to the 12th Five-year Plan (2011-2015), the number of basic-need housing units built and houses in run-down areas rebuilt will be 36 million, and by 2015 the basic-need housing coverage will hit around 20 percent. This is a commitment made by the government to the people, and we should do whatever we can to fulfill this promise. We should focus on the development of public-rental housing, build low-rent housing more quickly, and accelerate the rebuilding of houses in all the run-down areas. In carrying out this project, we must do our best according to our abilities, and endeavor to meet the people's basic need for housing. A residence is home to a family, so its quality and safety are essential. We must improve the planning, accompanying facilities and design of housing to meet the basic need.

We should improve supporting policies for housing, give full play to the supportive, guiding and leading roles of such policies, and maximize the enthusiasm and initiative of all sectors. We should improve the land policy, give priority to ensuring that land is used to enhance the people's well-being, develop a balanced land supply plan, increase residential land supply, and give priority to allocating land for constructing basic-need housing. We should improve our fiscal policy and use more public funds to build such housing. We should adopt policies and measures to encourage enterprises and other institutions to build and manage public-rental housing. We should also actively explore systems and mechanisms for non-profit organizations to build and manage basic-need housing, so that all sides involved can join forces in this endeavor.

Building basic-need housing is a great endeavor that benefits both the country and the people, but to accomplish this task and ensure that those in need get housing we must strengthen management, and establish procedures for entry, use and exit of such housing, so as to ensure that people have fair access to public resources. We must make sure that basic-need housing is fairly allocated, and that the people who are entitled to it get it. We must stop illegal acquisition of basic-need housing, and block institutional loopholes in this regard. Those who acquire basic-need housing illegally must be punished in accordance with laws and regulations.

Always Put People's Lives First

November 24, 2013
Main points of the speech in the Huangdao Economic and Technological Development Zone of Qingdao when assessing the relief effort following an oil pipeline leak explosion.

This accident has sounded an alarm for us once more. We must maintain constant vigilance against workplace accidents, pay close attention to this problem, and guarantee without fail workplace safety, otherwise accidents will cause irreversible damage to the country and the people. We must establish a sound workplace safety responsibility system, highlight the key responsibilities of enterprises, enhance workplace safety inspections, apply lessons learned to analogous situations, and strengthen workplace safety.

This heart-rending accident has caused grave loss of lives and severe damage to property. Now, through the joint efforts of the relevant departments under the State Council, Shandong provincial committee of the CPC and Shandong provincial people's government, Qingdao municipal committee of the CPC and Qingdao municipal people's government, we have achieved preliminary results. Next, we should direct all our attention to treating the injured, making proper arrangements for the funerals of the deceased, consoling their families, and seeing to bringing the people's life back to normal. We should conduct a prompt investigation into the accident and hold those involved accountable in accordance with the law.

Party committees, governments and officials at all levels should be keenly aware of the importance of safety issues, and always put people's lives first. All regions, government departments, and enterprises should be relentless in applying the highest standards of workplace safety, stringently supervise workplace safety when pursuing investment and implementing projects, increase the weighting of workplace safety in performance indicators, and follow the approach of "one vote against meaning veto" for ensuring workplace safety and guarding against the risk of major work-related accidents.

The responsibility of ensuring workplace safety is paramount. To reinforce the workplace safety responsibility system, senior Party and government officials should be personally involved. We must make sure that responsibility for workplace safety is assigned to relevant government departments and officials. Officials in charge of industrial sectors and officials responsible for businesses must ensure workplace safety. We should strengthen supervision and inspection concerning workplace safety, strictly implement the assessment, reward and punishment system, and constantly promote workplace safety.

Every enterprise must fulfill its principal responsibility for workplace safety with absolute dedication, and guarantee funding, training, basic management measures, and emergency rescue provisions to ensure workplace safety. Central-government-owned enterprises should take the lead and set a good example in this regard. Governments at all levels should perform their due responsibilities in places within their jurisdiction, and exercise strict supervision over workplace safety in full accordance with laws and regulations.

To ensure workplace safety, we should forestall any possible work-related risk. We should continue with large-scale workplace safety inspections that cover all workplaces, defuse all risks with zero tolerance, strictly enforce laws and regulations, and ensure substantial results. In conducting inspections we should neither give prior written or verbal notice, nor listen to second-hand reports, nor accept escort or reception. Instead, we should go directly to the front line and conduct confidential investigations, especially in terms of concealed risks like underground oil pipelines. We should intensify our efforts in addressing potential safety risks, establishing an inspection accountability system for workplace safety in which whoever conducts the inspection must take full responsibility by signing his name on the inspection report, making no accommodations, leaving no place unchecked, and not going through formalities. We must see actual results.

We should see to it that when an accident occurs in one factory, every other factory learns the hard lesson; when a potential risk is identified in one locality, the whole country goes on the alert. All regions and industries should learn their lesson from workplace accidents, enhance workplace safety accountability and oversight, and take preventive measures against any work-related accident.

Winter has already come. At the turn of the year, there is a greater risk of accidents. I hope that you all enhance your awareness of your weighty responsibility to the Party and the people, remain vigilant against potential accidents, conscientious and meticulous in ensuring workplace safety, resolute in preventing major and serious accidents, and steadfast in improving workplace safety across the whole country.

Build China into a Cyberpower

February 27, 2014
Main points of the speech at the first meeting of the Central Leading Group for Cyberspace Affairs.

Cyber security and information technology application are major strategic issues concerning the security and development of the country, and the work and life of the people. We should, based on both the international and domestic situations, make overall plans, coordinate all related parties, promote innovative development, and work hard to build China into a cyberpower.

In the world today the IT revolution is making rapid advances, exerting a profound influence on politics, economy, culture, society and the military in all countries. IT application and economic globalization stimulate each other. The Internet has already been integrated into all aspects of social life worldwide, even going so far as to change the mode of production and way of life. China is going along with and being profoundly influenced by this trend. China has made remarkable achievements in the development of the Internet and IT application. Numerous households in China now have access to the Internet, and China ranks first in the number of netizens in the world. However, we should also be aware that China lags behind in cyber innovation; the gaps in Internet use between regions and between urban and rural areas within China are still wide, and there is a profound gap in per capita bandwidth between China and the advanced level of the world. All in all, the bottlenecks constricting China's Internet development are still prominent.

Cyber security and IT application are closely interconnected with many other fields in any country. We should be fully aware of where we stand and what we should do. We must understand that it is vital for us to act right now. We must make plans accordingly and carry them out as the conditions permit. Cyber security and IT application are as important to China as wings are to a bird. We must, therefore, make coordinated plans for both, and implement them in a unified way. To promote cyber security and IT application, we should balance security and development, and ensure that the two proceed in tandem and stimulate each other to secure long-term development.

It is a long-term task to ensure that online public opinion is healthy and sound. We should innovate and improve online publicity, and use Internet communication rules to advocate things wholesome and positive, and disseminate and put into practice the core socialist values. We should properly handle timing, extent and efficiency so as to make our cyberspace wholesome and clean.

Online information knows no national boundaries. The flow of information assists that of technology, capital and talent. Information resources have become important factors of production and social wealth. The amount of information a country possesses has become a major indicator of its soft power and competitiveness. The development level of a country's IT and information and communications technology industry decides the level of its IT application. We should enhance the innovation of core technology and improve core technology infrastructure, and become better able to collect, process, disseminate and utilize information and ensure information security, in order to better benefit the people's well-being.

Without ensuring cyber security, we cannot safeguard national security; without promoting IT application, we cannot realize modernization. To build China into a cyberpower, we should have exclusive and powerful information technologies, rich and comprehensive information services and a thriving cyber culture. We should have a good information infrastructure and a strong information economy. We should have high-caliber cyber security and IT application professionals. In addition, we should carry out bilateral and multilateral Internet exchanges and cooperation with other countries. The strategy for building China into a cyberpower should be carried out at the same time as we work to accomplish the Two Centenary Goals. We should keep making progress in making the Internet infrastructure basically universal, improving our innovation capacity, developing the information economy, and ensuring cyber security.

We should formulate comprehensive research and development strategies for information and cyber technology, and make great efforts to turn research findings into practical applications. We should promulgate policies to support the development of enterprises, and encourage them to make technological innovations and become the main developers of the IT industry.

We should lose no time in formulating plans for improving the laws and regulations on managing Internet information and protecting the key information infrastructure. We should supervise cyberspace in accordance with the law to safeguard our citizens' legitimate rights and interests.

To build China into a cyberpower we should pool all our resources of talent and train them to become a powerful force with political integrity, top-flight expertise and fine conduct. "It is easy to muster a 1,000-man army, but hard to find a capable general." We should train globally renowned scientists, leading Internet sci-tech figures, outstanding engineers and high-level innovation teams.

The Central Leading Group for Cyberspace Affairs should provide centralized leadership, coordinate major issues concerning cyber security and IT application in all fields, formulate and implement development strategies, overall planning and major policies on cyber security and IT application, and enhance security guarantees in this regard.

A Holistic View of National Security

April 15, 2014
Main points of the speech at the first meeting of the National Security Commission.

We need to acquire an accurate understanding of new developments and trends of the situation of national security, adhere to a holistic view and develop national security with Chinese characteristics.

In running the Party and the country, one of our basic principles is to remain keenly alert to potential dangers and on guard against adversity in times of peace. To secure its leadership role and unite the country in upholding and developing socialism with Chinese characteristics, our Party should make national security its top priority.

The Third Plenary Session of the Party's 18th Central Committee decided to establish the National Security Commission (NSC). This is a pressing requirement for modernizing the national governance system and enhancing our governance capacity, and for achieving long-term political stability. This will provide a strong guarantee for building a moderately prosperous society in all respects, and for fulfilling the Chinese Dream of the rejuvenation of the Chinese nation. The aim of the establishment of the commission is to better handle new developments and new tasks in the realm of national security, and build a national security system which is centralized, integrated, highly efficient, and authoritative, so as to improve leadership over the work of national security.

At present, the national security issues facing China encompass far more subjects, extend over a greater range and cover a longer time scale than at any time in the country's history. Internally and externally, the factors at play are more complex than ever before. Therefore, we must maintain a holistic view of national security, take the people's security as our ultimate goal, achieve political security as our fundamental task, regard economic security as our foundation, with military, cultural and public security as means of guarantee, and promote international security so as to establish a national security system with Chinese characteristics.

To implement a holistic view of national security, we should attach equal importance to internal and external security – promoting development, reform and stability and building China into a safe country domestically, while seeking peace, cooperation and mutual benefits and building a harmonious world internationally. Homeland security and the people's security are equally important. We must follow the principle of people first, insist that everything done for national security is for the sake of the people, should rely on the people, and gain the support of the people. We must pay close attention to both traditional and non-traditional security, and build a national security system that integrates such elements as political, homeland, military, economic, cultural, social, science and technology, information, ecological, resource and nuclear security. We should pay close attention to both development and security. The former is the foundation of the latter while the latter is a precondition for the former. A wealthy country may build a strong army, and a strong army is able to safeguard the country. While paying close attention to our own security, we must also pay attention to the common security of the world, and contribute our effort to turning the world into a secure place for all nations. We should urge all parties to work hard for the goals of mutual benefit and common security.

The NSC should abide by the principles of centralized leadership, scientific planning, exercising power in both centralized and separated ways, coordinated actions, and high performance and efficiency. It should focus its efforts, follow the key guidelines, and vigorously implement the overall strategy of China's national security.

Safeguard National Security and Social Stability

April 25, 2014
Main points of the speech at the 14th group study session of the Political Bureau of the 18th CPC Central Committee which Xi presided over.

At a time when we are confronted with new situations and challenges, successfully safeguarding national security and social stability is particularly important for furthering the reform, achieving the Two Centenary Goals and realizing the Chinese Dream of the rejuvenation of the Chinese nation. All regions and government agencies should perform their functions and duties, assume their responsibilities, fully cooperate with each other, and work together to maintain national security and social stability.

Since the reform and opening-up policy was adopted in 1978 our Party has paid close attention to correctly balancing reform, development and stability, and made safeguarding national security and social stability a basic task of the Party and the central government. We have maintained overall social stability in China, thereby providing a favorable environment for reform, opening up and socialist modernization. "One should be mindful of possible danger in times of peace, downfall in times of survival, and chaos in times of stability."

However, we should be aware that in our efforts to safeguard national security and social stability in these new circumstances we are confronted with increasing threats and challenges. And, more importantly, these threats and challenges are interlocked and can be mutually activated. We must remain clear-minded, stay true to our principles, effectively avert, manage and respond to risks to our national security, and take up, cope with and resolve challenges to our social stability.

All regions and government agencies should implement China's holistic view of national security, and acquire an accurate understanding of the new characteristics and trends of our national security. We should attach equal importance to external and internal security, homeland security and the people's security, traditional and non-traditional security, development and security, our own security and the common security of the world, and carry out to the full all our work related to national security. We should promote national security education among all the Chinese people and enhance their awareness in this regard.

Countering terrorism has a direct bearing on national security, the people's immediate interests, and reform, development and stability. The battle against terrorism safeguards national unity, social stability and the people's well-being. We must take decisive measures in deterring terrorism and keep up the pressure to thwart terrorism. We should work out a sound anti-terrorism work pattern, improve our anti-terrorism work system and build up our anti-terrorism strength. We should enlist both professional forces and the public in the fight against terrorism, get the general public to carry out different forms of activities against terrorism, build an impregnable anti-terrorism network, and ensure that terrorists are hunted down like rats. We should also let patriotic religious personages play a role, enhance positive guidance for religious believers, meet the latter's normal religious needs, and effectively resist the infiltration of religious extremism.

Terrorism denies basic human rights, tramples on humanitarian justice and challenges the shared norms of human civilization. It is not an issue of ethnicity, nor an issue of religion. Terrorists are the common enemy of people of all ethnic groups. We should firmly trust and rely on the officials and the general public of all ethnic groups, and unite with them in safeguarding ethnic unity and social stability.

We should increase our efforts to combat separatist activities in the new circumstances, promote ethnic unity, ensure that all ethnic groups work together for common prosperity and development, enhance publicity for and education in ethnic unity, consolidate the theoretical foundation of ethnic unity, and maximize our efforts to unite with the people of all ethnic groups. We should enhance the building of community-level Party organizations and governments, and carry out educational work thoroughly and meticulously among the people. We should acquire a correct understanding of the Party's policies regarding ethnic and religious affairs, promptly and properly resolve all conflicts and disputes undermining ethnic unity, and contain and crack down on separatist, infiltration and sabotage activities by domestic or foreign hostile forces on the pretext of ethnic issues.

To safeguard national security we must maintain social harmony and stability, prevent and resolve social conflicts, and improve our institutions, mechanisms, policies and practical endeavors to make this happen. We should make China's development more comprehensive, coordinated and sustainable, work harder to ensure and improve the people's well-being, and tackle social conflicts at the source. We should make promoting social fairness, justice and the people's well-being our ultimate goal, and increase our efforts in balancing the interests of all sectors, so that all the people can increasingly share in the fruits of development in a fairer way. We should implement and improve the institutions and mechanisms for protecting the legitimate rights and interests of the people, and the mechanism for assessing potential risks, so as to reduce and prevent conflicts of interest. We should comprehensively promote law-based governance, and better safeguard the people's lawful rights and interests. We should encourage all the people to resolve all social conflicts through legal procedures and by legal means, and ensure that people do things in accordance with the law, examine the law provisions in case of conflict, and use laws to solve problems and conflicts.