On the afternoon of Oct 28, the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee held its 17th group study session. The topic was on developing a strong culture in China. General Secretary of the CPC Central Committee Xi Jinping, while presiding over the session, emphasized the importance of sticking to the strategic goal of developing a strong culture in the country by 2035. He highlighted the significance of upholding Marxism as the fundamental guiding ideology, drawing inspirations from the rich heritage of Chinese civilization while also emphasizing the need to keep abreast of trends in information technology development and to continuously foster a socialist culture with Chinese characteristics in the new era that offers strong theoretical guidance, spiritual cohesion, value appeal, and has global influence. It is essential to enhance the spiritual strength of the people, thereby laying a robust cultural foundation for building a strong country and realizing the rejuvenation of the Chinese nation, he said.

Wang Bo, vice president and professor of Peking University, gave a lecture on this issue and put forward suggestions. Members of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee listened carefully to the lecture and held discussions. 

Xi delivered an important speech after listening to the lecture and discussions. He pointed out that since the 18th CPC National Congress, we have persisted in placing cultural development in a prominent position in the governance of the country, made a series of major arrangements, and formed the thought on socialist culture with Chinese characteristics for the new era. We have worked to make historical achievements in cultural development through thoroughly overhauling cultural concepts and cultural theories as well as in upholding fundamental principles and breaking new ground. As a result, we have gained great strides in building a strong socialist culture.

Xi stressed the need to develop a socialist culture with Chinese characteristics, as well as to uphold the Party’s leadership, enhance governance capacity in cultural sector in the information age, and consolidate the foundation of the Party’s governance and public support for the Party in terms of ideology, ethos and culture. The fundamental system for ensuring the guiding role of Marxism in the ideological domain must be upheld, Xi said, calling for efforts to fully implement the thought on socialist culture with Chinese characteristics for the new era and develop a sound, people-oriented socialist culture that embraces modernization, the world, and the future. He also highlighted the importance to adhere to the guidance of core socialist values, continuously bolster the Chinese spirit, Chinese values, and Chinese strength, and develop and strengthen mainstream values, mainstream public opinion, and mainstream culture.

Xi emphasized the need to stimulate the cultural innovation and creativity of the entire nation. He advocated for a people-centered approach to creation that prioritizes social benefits while integrating social and economic outcomes. He identified the stimulation of innovative and creative vitality as a central element in deepening reform of cultural system and mechanisms, calling for accelerated improvements in cultural management systems as well as production and operational mechanisms. To enhance originality in creating cultural works, he called for efforts to improve the mechanisms for providing services, guidance, and organization work for artistic creation and production, and thus make it possible to nurture a batch of deeply resonant contemporary classics, so as to attain a new zenith of Chinese culture. He noted the need to actively create a favorable cultural environment, promote academic and artistic democracy, and support writers, artists, and experts in getting what they need for creation from life and dedicating themselves to their creations so that they will continuously maintain their vitality for cultural innovation and creativity. Furthermore, he urged the exploration of effective mechanisms for integrating culture and technology, achieving digital empowerment and information transformation in cultural development, so as to convert advantages in cultural resources into strengths for cultural development.

Xi stressed the principle that cultural development must be for the people and of the people. To satisfy the people’s diverse, multilevel and multifaceted cultural needs, efforts must be made to advance the capabilities of providing cultural services and products, so as to ensure that the people have a stronger sense of fulfillment and happiness in terms of culture. We should attach importance to the role of culture in fostering will and virtue, so as to foster a higher level of morale throughout the nation. We should also respect the way talent develop, and improve the mechanisms that comply with the characteristics of the cultural sector to select and cultivate talent, put them to proper use and motivate them, so as to make sound policies that will help to recognize, attach importance to and cherish talents. In this way we will be able to build a strong and well-structured team of high-caliber cultural talents who are bold to innovate in creating excellent works.

Xi urged continued effort to carry on China’s cultural tradition through creative transformation and innovative development. Stressing the need to leverage the Chinese nation’s cultural initiative, he underlined the necessity to conserve, promote, and develop the treasures of Chinese culture that have been left after vicissitudes. It is a must to further explore and explain the values of traditional Chinese culture, as well as activate their excellent elements with Marxism and update their connotations, in order to develop a socialist culture with Chinese characteristics for the new era. Urging respect for history and passion for culture, Xi called for efforts to promote systematic conservation and unified regulation of cultural heritage, upholding the principles of conservation first, reasonable utilization and minimum intervention. Xi also emphasized continued efforts to build sound institutions and mechanism for cultural heritage conservation and inheritance, and fast-track the drive to improve the system of regulations and institutions in this regard.

Xi highlighted the need to continuously enhance China’s cultural soft power and Chinese culture’s influence. It is imperative to promote the restructuring of the international communication framework, innovate the approach to conduct online international publicity, and create a multi-channel and full-dimensional framework for international communication. It is a must to more proactively promote China’s stand, spread Chinese culture, and showcase China’s image. It is imperative to carry out extensive and diverse international cultural exchanges and cooperation. It is essential to learn from all the outstanding achievements of human civilization, so as to achieve cultural outcomes that integrate the past and present, and connect China with the rest of the world. 

Xi finally stressed that building China into a country with a strong culture is the common task of the whole Party and the whole society. It is necessary to strengthen the centralized and unified leadership of the CPC Central Committee over the work of publicity, ideology, and culture, and optimize the leadership and management system and mechanism for cultural development. Party committees and governments at all levels should effectively strengthen organization and leadership, do a good job in assignment of officials, cultivation of talent, and investment of resources, and stimulate the enthusiasm, initiative, and creativity of all sectors to form a powerful synergy for building up China’s cultural strength.