For a better, shared future for the peoples of the world

by New Worker correspondent

NCP leader Andy Brooks, along with Robert Laurie and John Maryon from the Central Committee of the New Communist Party, joined hundreds of other representatives from political parties and movements from around the world last week at an online seminar organised by the Communist Party of China in Beijing.
`    The meeting was opened by Xi Jinping, the General Secretary of the Communist Party of China and President of the People’s Republic of China. He was then followed by other leaders of the Global South including President Daniel Ortega of Nicaragua, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa and Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro as well as the presidents of Serbia and South Sudan and senior government figures from Grenada, Kazakhstan, Mongolia, Papua New Guinea, Russia, Timor Leste and Togo,
    Leaders of over 500 political parties and organisations from more than 150 countries attended the Communist Party of China in Dialogue with World Political Parties High-Level Meeting on 15th March. Together, they discussed the important theme of the Path Towards Modernisation: the Responsibility of Political Parties.
    The initiative calls for respect for the diversity of civilisations, upholding the common values of humanity in pursuing peace, development, equity, justice, democracy and freedom, and promoting robust international people-to-people exchanges and cooperation.
    In his opening remarks Comrade Xi Jinping gave Chinese answers to a series of thought-provoking questions such as "what kind of modernisation do we need and how can we achieve it”.
    "As our own future is closely connected with that of other countries and peoples, we will strive to provide new opportunities for world development, add new impetus to humanity's exploration of paths towards modernisation and make new contributions to the theory and practice of humanity's modernisation as we make new progress in Chinese modernisation", Xi said.
    Noting that the history of human development is full of twists and turns and that the path to modernisation is also arduous, Xi said that “in today’s world, multiple challenges and crises are intertwined. The global economic recovery remains sluggish, the development gap is widening, ecological environment is deteriorating, and the Cold War mentality is lingering,” meaning that we are once again at a crossroads of history.
    We must put the people first and ensure modernisation is people-centred. The ultimate goal of modernisation is the people’s free and well-rounded development. “Modernisation is not only about indicators and statistics on the paper but more about the delivery of a happy and stable life for the people.”
    We must uphold the principle of independence and explore diversified paths towards modernisation. Each country must consider its own national conditions and unique features. “It is the people of a country that are in the best position to tell what kind of modernisation best suits them. Developing countries have the right and ability to independently explore the modernisation path with their distinctive features based on their national realities.”
    We must uphold fundamental principles and break new ground. “We should work together to reform and develop the global governance system and make the international order more just and equitable as we advance humanity’s modernization in an environment of equal rights, equal opportunities and fair rules for all.” Xi added that we must help others to succeed while seeking our own success. “We stand firmly opposed to the practice of preserving one’s own development privilege by suppressing and containing other countries’ endeavour to achieve modernisation”.
    The Chinese leader noted that “the journey of over 100 years that the Party has traversed to unite and lead the Chinese people in pursuing national rejuvenation is also an exploration of a path towards modernisation.
    “Chinese modernisation is one of a huge population, of common prosperity for all, of material and cultural-ethical advancement, of harmony between humanity and nature, and of peaceful development,” adding: “We will stay committed to the right direction, right theories and the right path. We will not veer off course by changing our nature or abandoning our system...
    “China will neither tread the old path of colonisation and plunder, nor the crooked path taken by some countries to seek hegemony once they grow strong… we firmly oppose hegemony and power politics in all their forms…
    “The world does not need a new Cold War. The practice of stoking division and confrontation in the name of democracy is in itself a violation of the spirit of democracy…
    “no matter what level of development China achieves, it will never seek hegemony or expansion...there are bound to be setbacks on humanity’s journey to modernisation, but the future is bright”.
    In the history of humanity, over thousands of years, various civilisations have come into being, developed, and have in return promoted the overall development of human society. Diversity has been a prominent feature of civilisations.
    In spite of differences in histories, cultures, political systems and development phases, countries around the world share the common aspiration for peace, development, equity, justice, democracy and freedom – the common values of humanity.
    People need to keep an open mind in appreciating how different civilisations perceive values, and refrain from imposing their own values or models on others, and from stoking ideological confrontation.
    As the world is facing old and new challenges, there are more reasons for us to promote dialogue and consultation when addressing international issues, and to let cultural exchanges transcend estrangement, mutual learning transcend clashes, and coexistence transcend feelings of superiority.
    Spanning thousands of miles, the ancient Silk Road embodied the spirit of cooperation, mutual learning and mutual benefit. The year 2023 marks the 10th anniversary of a new “Silk Road” – China's Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), another project for the benefit of the masses which has brought tangible benefits to the people of the participating countries and promoted people-to-people exchanges.
    The diversity of civilisations is in nature a source of vitality and momentum in human development. Promoting people-to-people exchanges and mutual learning is of great value in summoning the enormous wisdom and energy needed to advance the progress and development of human civilisations.
    The BRI has delivered fruitful outcomes and won widespread support and participation. It has created jobs, improved infrastructure and promoted common development, especially in the developing countries.
    Security is the precondition for development. The Global Security Initiative calls for peacefully resolving differences and disputes between countries through dialogue and consultation, and supporting all efforts conducive to the peaceful settlement of crises.
    The recent Saudi Arabia-Iran dialogue in Beijing is a successful case of the practice of the Global Security Initiative, leading to the resumption of diplomatic ties between the two countries.
    The future of all countries are closely and increasingly connected. And tolerance, coexistence, exchanges and mutual learning among different civilisations play an irreplaceable role in advancing humanity's modernisation process.
    To realise a world with lasting peace and ever-improving welfare, we should embrace the Global Civilisation Initiative and draw on it to jointly create a better, shared future for humanity.
    Or as Xi Jinping says “a single flower does not make spring, while one hundred flowers in full blossom bring spring to the garden. Together, we can make the garden of world civilisations full of colours and life”.

A call to the world from Beijing

by New Worker correspondent

British communists attended a special screening of the Communist Party of China and World Political Parties Summit online event at the Chinese Embassy in London on 6th July, with Theo Russell representing the NCP as a Central Committee member.
     This major global event was joined by leaders of over 500 political parties and movements, over 10,000 representatives from more than 160 countries, and with parallel sessions in the Chinese cities of Shanghai, Yan'an, Shenzhen, Ningde and Anji.
     The highlight of the summit was the keynote address, delivered live from Beijing, by Xi Jinping. General Secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) entitled Strengthening Cooperation Among Political Parties to Jointly Pursue the People's Wellbeing. President Xi stayed with the meeting throughout, which by the time it finished was midnight in Beijing.
     President Xi's address was a tour de force laying out a vision for the whole world, “seizing and shaping a shared future for mankind” in which the interests of all countries would be aligned with those of all others.
     Xi addressed the need to build consensus by upholding and promoting the common values of humanity for peace, development, equity, justice, democracy and freedom, to promote development by bringing greater benefits to all peoples in a fairer manner, to enhance cooperation by working together to address global risks and challenges, and to improve governance by enhancing the capacity to ensure the people's wellbeing.
     He declared: "it is the unswerving goal of the CPC to run our own house well, ensure a happy life for the 1.4 billion plus Chinese people, and advance the lofty cause of promoting peace and development of all mankind".
     Comrade Xi also said that the CPC "will unite and lead the Chinese people in taking comprehensive steps to deepen reform and opening up, to make new contributions to the shared development and prosperity of all countries of the world", and work towards "steering economic globalisation towards greater openness, inclusiveness, balance and win-win results".
     Other key contributors to the summit were Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam Nguyen Phu Trong, Deputy Chair of Russian Security Council Dmitry Medvedev, Cambodian Prime Minister Samdech Techo Hun Sen, Zimbabwean President Emmerson Mnangagwa, Kazakhstan leader Nursultan Nazarbayev, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, former Bolivian President Juan Evo Morales Ayma, Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic, Pakistani premier Imran Khan, Mozambiquan President Filipe Nyusi, President of Congo Brazzaville Denis Sassou-N'guesso, Argentine President Alberto Fernandez, and Sri Lankan premier Mahinda Rajapaksa.
     In his intervention, the Cuban leader Miguel Díaz-Canel congratulated the Chinese people, "and in particular to you and the more than 95 million militants," on the centenary of the founding of the Communist Party of China, and said that "today the revolutionary, progressive and left forces have a great nation that has made important theoretical and practical contributions to Marxism-Leninism, raising the flag of socialism, tempered to its historical-concrete conditions".
     Díaz-Canel pointed out that "the People's Republic of China does not impose a model; does not adopt unilateral coercive measures; and does not apply extraterritorial laws".
     He also noted that "No other process of building socialism has successfully exceeded seven decades, and no other Communist Party has led a country for so long", and predicted that "in the year 2049 the world will contemplate, even more admired, the first modern socialist country that reaches, under the leadership of its political vanguard, the centenary of its foundation".
     A Joint Statement of Proposals of the CPC and World Political Parties Summit was published following the event, expressing the shared aspiration of all the political parties taking part for maintaining world peace and development, and improving people's lives.

 

• Joint Statement of Proposals of the CPC and World Political Parties
  

Meeting to tackle global poverty

by New Worker correspondent

 NCP leader Andy Brooks went online to take part in a seminar on how political parties could help poverty eradication, which kicked off on Monday in Eastern China's Fujian province.
    Ambassadors to China from more than 30 countries, including Pakistan, Egypt and Argentina, joined in the seminar in Fuzhou, the capital city of Fujian, whilst delegates from more than 100 political parties worldwide attended via video link.
    The seminar, organised by the International Department of the Communist Party of China (CPC) and the Fujian Party provincial committee, was attended online or offline by nearly 400 participants from more than 100 countries, including representatives of political parties, diplomatic envoys to China, representatives of international organisations in China, media representatives of developing countries, and think-tank scholars.
    `Heads of some foreign countries expressed via video or in writing their appreciation of China's historical achievements in poverty reduction and emphasised the necessity for political parties to play a leading role in building a consensus and promoting co-operation in global poverty eradication.
    Chinese President Xi Jinping delivered a message of congratulations to the seminar calling on the international community, including political parties in all countries, to work together to accelerate the process of global poverty reduction because difficulties and challenges in this regard are still severe.
    Xi was a communist leader in Fujian in the past and he elaborated his thoughts on poverty eradication through his experiences in the province. Practices in Fujian such as officials being stationed in villages, sending technicians to poor areas, targeted measures and close monitoring to avoid returning to poverty were subsequently adopted nationwide.
International delegates learned about the poverty eradication experience of Fujian, and shared challenges and efforts of their own countries as the International Day for the Eradication of Poverty, which falls on Saturday this year, approaches. Attendees said this forum was timely in exchanging ideas and practices on poverty alleviation, especially at a time when the COVID-19 pandemic makes the task even more difficult.
    “To eliminate poverty, to improve people's livelihoods and achieve common prosperity are the essential requirements of socialism with Chinese characteristics and important missions of the CPC," Xi said.
    Xi, who is also the General Secretary of the CPC, said that since the 18th National Congress of the CPC, China has made poverty eradication a key task in achieving its first centenary goal, and it has made a series of major plans and arrangements to fully launch the poverty reduction battle. The issue of absolute poverty, which has plagued the Chinese nation for thousands of years, is about to be solved historically.
    “China has the confidence and ability to resolutely win the battle against poverty and realize the poverty reduction goals of the United Nations (UN) 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development 10 years ahead of schedule,” said Xi.
    “Global poverty alleviation efforts have scored huge progress, but the difficulties and challenges are still severe,” he said, calling on the international community, including political parties of all countries, to build a consensus and work together to uphold multilateralism, and maintain peace and stability.
    “It is hoped that through sharing experience and summarising rules, seminar participants can discuss ways to advance the cause of global poverty reduction, enhance confidence in fighting poverty, and contribute to the realisation of the goals of the UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development,” the Chinese leader said.