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Party Congress
The 11th Party Congress Date: August 12-18, 1977 Place: Beijing Number of delegates: 1,510 Party membership: 35 million Major contents: Hua Guofeng made a political report, Ye Jianying made a report on the revision of the Party Constitution and Deng Xiaoping delivered a closing speech. The congress summed up the struggle against the "gang of four", declared the 10-year-long "cultural revolution" ended and reiterated that the fundamental task for the Party in the new period was to make China a powerful and modern socialist state within the century. It played a positive role in criticizing the "gang of four" and mobilizing the whole Party and the nation to build China into a powerful and modern country. But as restricted by the historical conditions at that time and the influence of Hua Guofeng's wrong principle of "two whatevers" ("we will resolutely defend whatever policy decisions Chairman Mao made and unswervingly follow whatever instructions Chairman Mao gave"), the congress failed to put right, but continued to affirm instead, the erroneous theories, policies and slogans of the "cultural revolution". Consequently, the congress did not accomplish the task of setting wrong things right theoretically and in terms of the Party's guidelines. The congress elected 201 members and 132 alternate members to form the new
Central Committee. The First Plenary Session of the 11th CPC Central Committee
elected Hua Guofeng chairman, and Ye Jianying, Deng Xiaoping, Li Xiannian and
Wang Dongxing vice chairmen, of the Central Committee. These five people were
also elected to form the Standing Committee of the Political
Bureau. Date: September 1-11, 1982 Place: Beijing Number of delegates: 1,600 full delegates and 149 alternate delegates Party membership: 39.65 million Major contents: The congress was aimed at, by summing up the historical
victory since the 11th Party Congress and eliminating the negative effects of
the chaos of the "cultural revolution", defining a correct road, strategy,
principles and policies for creating a new situation of socialist modernization
construction. Deng Xiaoping made an opening speech. Hu Yaobang made a report on
behalf of the 11th Central Committee. Ye Jianying and Chen Yun both delivered
important speeches concerning the cooperation between the senior and young
officials and the replacement of senior by young officials. Li Xiannian
addressed the closing session. In his opening address, Deng Xiaoping put forward
the idea of building socialism with Chinese characteristics. The congress
outlined the general task of the Party in the new historical period as follows:
The congress elected a new Central Committee composed of 210 members and 138 alternate members, a Central Advisory Commission composed of 172 members and a Central Commission for Discipline Inspection composed of 132 members. At the First Plenary Session of the 12th CPC Central Committee, Hu Yaobang, Ye Jianying, Deng Xiaoping, Zhao Ziyang, Li Xiannian and Chen Yun were elected Standing Committee members of the Political Bureau, and Hu Yaobang general secretary of the Central Committee. Deng Xiaoping was appointed chairman of the Central Military Commission as well as chairman of the CPC Central Advisory Commission. Chen Yun was appointed first secretary of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection. The 13th Party Congress Date: October 25-November 1, 1987 Place: Beijing Number of delegates: 1,936 full delegates and 61 specially invited delegates Party membership: 46 million Major contents: The congress systematically expounded the theory about the primary stage of socialism and the basic line of the Party in this stage. It pointed out that a correct understanding of the present historic stage of Chinese society was of primary importance for building socialism with Chinese characteristics, that it was the essential basis on which to formulate and implement correct lines and policies. The congress set forth a "three-step" economic development strategy: First, to double the 1980 GNP to solve food and clothing shortages; second, to quadruple the 1980 GNP by the end of the century to achieve a relatively good standard of life for the people; and third, to basically complete the nation's modernization, raise the per capita GNP to that of intermediate-level developed countries and improve people's standard of living. The central task outlined at the meeting was to accelerate and deepen reforms. Economic restructuring was urged to focus on changing the operational mechanism of enterprises. Various supportive reforms in terms of planning, investment, materials and goods, finance, banking and foreign trade should be carried out in stages in order to gradually establish a framework for a new system of commodity economy in a planned way. At the congress, 175 members and 110 alternate members were elected to form the 13th Central Committee. The newly elected Central Advisory Commission comprised 200 members and the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection consisted of 69 members. The First Plenary Session of the 13th CPC Central Committee elected Zhao Ziyang, Li Peng, Qiao Shi, Hu Qili and Yao Yilin to form the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau. It elected Zhao Ziyang general secretary of the Central Committee, Deng Xiaoping chairman of the Central Military Commission. The session also approved Chen Yun as chairman of the CPC Central Advisory Commission and Qiao Shi as secretary of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection. The 14th Party Congress Place: Beijing Number of delegates: 1,989 full delegates and 46 specially invited delegates Party membership: 51 million Major contents: The congress was held taking into account that China's reform and opening-up and modernization drive has stepped into a new era. It was a democratic and unified meeting, imbued with the spirits of reforming, opening up, advancing with a down-to-earth approach. Jiang Zemin, on behalf of the 13th CPC Central Committee, delivered a report titled Accelerating the Reform, the Opening to the Outside World and the Drive for Modernization, So As to Achieve Greater Successes in Building Socialism with Chinese Characteristics. The meeting acknowledged the substantial achievements made in reforming and opening-up as well as in the modernization drive since the end of 1978, systematically summarized the practices and experiences over the previous 14 years, made a brilliant exposition of Deng Xiaoping Theory of building socialism with Chinese characteristics, and outlined the major tasks in the reform and economic and social development in the 1990s. It declared that the target of China's economic restructuring was to establish a socialist market economic system. The congress elected 189 members and 130 alternate members to form the new Central Committee. The new Central Commission for Discipline Inspection consisted of 108 members. At the First Plenary Session of the 14th CPC Central Committee, Jiang Zemin, Li Peng,Qiao Shi, Li Ruihuan, Zhu Rongji, Liu Huaqing and Hu Jintao were elected to form the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau. Jiang Zemin was elected general secretary of the Central Committee and also chairman of the Central Military Commission. The session also approved Wei Jianxing as secretary of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection. The 15th Party Congress Date: September 12-18, 1997 Place: Beijing Number of delegates: 2,048 full delegates and 60 specially invited delegates Party membership: 58 million Major contents: This congress which was held in the crucial period of China's reform and opening up and the drive for modernization served as a link between the past and the future. It was to mobilize the people of the country to join hands to push forward the undertaking of building socialism with Chinese characteristics into the 21st century. It will become a milestone in Chinese history of development. At the congress, Jiang Zemin, on behalf of the 14th CPC Central Committee, delivered a report titled Hold High The Great Banner of Deng Xiaoping Theory for an All-Round Advancement of the Cause of Building Socialism with Chinese Characteristics into the 21st Century. The report, which made a scientific summary of the history, prepared for the future, and drew up a cross-century blueprint for China's reform, opening and socialist modernization drive, served as the CPC's political declaration and program of action for the next century. The congress endorsed a resolution on Jiang's report and approved the reforming and development programs in economic, political and cultural fields expounded in the report. The resolution pointed out that the coming period until the first decade of the next century will be crucial for China's modernization drive, and efforts must be made relating to the following aspects: to promote the fundamental shift of the economic system and of the mode of economic growth; to establish a sound socialist market economy and to maintain sustained, rapid and sound development of the national economy so as to lay a solid foundation for achieving basic modernization by the middle of the next century; under the precondition of adhering to the Four Cardinal Principles, to continue to press ahead with the reform of the political structure, further extend the scope of socialist democracy and improve the socialist legal system, governing the country according to the law and making it a socialist country ruled by the law; to strengthen ideological and ethic building, see to it that science and technology as well as education are made a priority, and positively develop various cultural undertakings. The congress also deliberated and adopted the amendments to the Constitution of the CPC, believing that establishing Deng Xiaoping Theory as the Party's guiding ideology and stipulating in its Constitution that the CPC takes Marxism-Leninism, Mao Zedong Thought and Deng Xiaoping Theory as its guides for action is of great and far-reaching significance to guarantee that the CPC lead the Chinese people along the socialist road with Chinese characteristics to build China into a powerful, democratic and civilized modern socialist country. At the congress, 193 members and 151 alternate members were elected into the new Central Committee. A total of 115 members were elected to form the new Central Commission for Discipline Inspection. The new Central Committee was strengthened with more middle-aged and young faces, the average age being 55. The educational level of members rose notably, with 92.4 percent of them receiving university and college education, up nine percentage points than the previous committee. Of the new Central Committee members, 38 are from ethnic minorities and 25 are female, a slight increase compared with their respective figure among the pervious Central Committee members. The First Plenum of the 15th CPC Central Committee elected Jiang Zemin, Li Peng, Zhu Rongji, Li Ruihuan, Hu Jintao, Wei Jianxing and Li Lanqing members of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau. Jiang Zemin was re-elected general secretary of the CPC and also chairman of the Central Military Commission. The session also approved Wei Jianxing as secretary of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection.
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