Analysis | Socialism with Chinese characteristics | 24 Sep 2017

Communist Party of China studying Mao Zedong’s essays ‘On Contradiction’ and ‘On Practice’ ahead of Party Congress

One of the more inaccurate ideas in the ‘Western’ media is that China is a capitalist country in which socialism and Marxism is just for show – a hangover from the past. This error is echoed in some ‘leftist’ circles in the West.The economic error in such analysis, and the mistakes it leads to in predictions regarding China’s economy has been analysed numerous times on this website – see for example ‘Deng Xiaoping &John Maynard Keynes’.

However, another insight into the real situation in China come from the fact that the Communist Party of China (CPC) is preparing its 19th Party Congress later this year by studying two of Mao Zedong’s most famous articles – ‘On Contradiction’ and ‘On Practice’. What ‘capitalist’ country instructs its ruling party to study Mao Zedong?

Anyone who has read Xi Jinping’s The Governance of China will also understand that Xi is a sophisticated Marxist.

The information in the following article from Global Times therefore gives a more accurate insight into the real political dynamics in China.

Party committees study Mao’s books ahead of 19th congress
By Zhao Yusha

Communist Party of China (CPC) committees in many cities are studying the books of Chairman Mao Zedong, a move hailed by experts as part of the momentum leading up to the 19th National Congress of the CPC that will help implement future Party policies.CPC committees in several provinces and municipalities, including East China’s Fujian, South China’s Hainan and Guangdong, Southwest China’s Sichuan and North China’s Tianjing are studying On Contradiction and On Practice, which were written by Mao, new China’s founding father, in 1937 after the War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression began in 1931, Shanghai-based Jiefang Daily reported Wednesday.

This year marks the 80th anniversary of the publication of these two books.

Mao wrote these books because China entered a “news stage” with the war, the newspaper said, adding that the books aimed to provide officials a world view and methodology of Marxism, and to form a new consensus within the Party.

Zhang Xixian, a professor at the Party School of the CPC Central Committee, told the Global Times that this is meant to welcome the forthcoming 19th National Congress of the CPC. “Looking back at history is also important for the building of a better society,” Zhang said.

The 19th National Congress is important to the key stage of “building a moderately prosperous society in an all-around way and socialism with Chinese characteristics,” thus unifying the Party members’ thinking is vital at the moment, he said.

“Theories written in the books say that specific conflicts should be analyzed to identify the major conflicts in our society, and lay the philosophical foundation for the contemporary world,” Zhang said.

CPC members and government officials around China, especially those at the grass-roots level, are also studying Xi Jinping: The Governance of China, in preparation for the national congress.