CPC key plenum elevates social harmony to more prominent position

The 6th plenary session of the 16th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC), which concluded in Beijing on Wednesday, highlighted the issue of social harmony and elevated the construction of a socialist harmonious society to a "more prominent position" on its work agenda.

Communique of the Sixth Plenum of the 16th CPC Central Committee

Chinese President Hu Jintao, who is also general secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC), addresses the Sixth Plenum of the 16th CPC Central Committee in Beijing on Oct. 11, 2006. The Sixth Plenum of the 16th CPC Central Committee was held in Beijing on Oct. 8-11.

Notion of the harmonious socialist society

The harmonious socialist society is a democratic society under the rule of law, a society based on equality and justice, an honest and caring society, and a stable, vigorous and orderly society in which humans live in harmony with nature.

The CPC pledged to shape a "more harmonious" society in its 16th National Congress in November 2002. The Fourth Plenary Session of the 16th Central Committee of the CPC, held in September 2004, first explicitly made the call to "put building a harmonious society in a more prominent position". Hu Jintao and other CPC leaders have since underscored the theme on many occasions.

The principles of building a harmonious socialist society:

--adhering to putting people first;

--adhering to development in a scientific way;

--adhering to reform and opening up;

--adhering to democracy and the rule of law;

--adhering to properly handling the relationships between reform, development and stability;

--adhering to participation of the whole society under the leadership of the Party.

Objectives for building of a harmonious society by 2020:

--The socialist democratic and legal system is further improved; the fundamental principle of administering the country according to law is implemented in an all-around way; people's rights and interests enjoy concrete respect and guarantee;?

--widening of gap between urban and rural development and development between different regions is gradually reversed; a reasonable and orderly income distribution pattern takes shape in general; wealth of households increase universally and people lead more affluent lives;?

--employment rate is relatively high and a social security system covering both urban and rural residents is established in general;?

--basic public service system is further improved and the government attains relatively big improvements in administrative and service levels;?

--the ideological and moral qualities, scientific and cultural qualities and health qualities of the whole nation are improved markedly and further progress is made in fostering a sound moral atmosphere and harmonious interpersonal relationship;?

--creativity of the whole society is enhanced markedly and an innovation-based country is established in general;?

--public administration system is further improved and social order is in good condition;?

--efficiency of utilization of resources is enhanced markedly and visible improvement in ecological environment is achieved;?

--the objective of building a moderately prosperous society of a higher level and in an all-around way to benefit the Chinese people of more than 1 billion is realized and striving to attain a situation in which all people do their best according to their abilities, everyone is provided for and people live together in harmony.

Measures for building a harmonious socialist society:

-Construction of social cause should be strengthened through adhering to coordinated development; new socialist countryside construction should be earnestly pushed forward; the general strategy of regional development should be implemented; active employment policies should be carried out; education should be topped the agenda of development; health care services should be enhanced; development of cultural cause and cultural industries should be speed up; environmental protection and pollution control should be strengthened; institutional construction should be enhanced and social equality and justice should be safeguarded.

-The system of safeguarding democratic rights, the legal system and judicial system and mechanism, as well as systems of public finance, income distribution and social security should be improved.

-Harmonious culture should be built. Ethnic foundation for social harmony should be consolidated. Socialist core value system should be upheld. Socialist concept of honor and disgrace should be established. Civilized public morality should be fostered. Active and healthy ideological atmosphere should be built. A movement of creating harmonious society should be widely launched.

-Social administration should be improved and good public order should be maintained. Service-oriented government should be established, community construction should be pushed forward and social organizations should be healthily developed. Interests of various sides should be coordinated in an overall manner. Emergency response system and overall management of public order should be improved. National security and national defense work must be strengthened.

-Social vigor should be stimulated and social unity and harmony be enhanced. People's creative spirit should be brought into play and the broadest patriotic united front be consolidated. The long-term prosperity and stability of Hong Kong and Macao should be maintained, the great cause of national reunification should be pushed forward and the peaceful development road be adhered to.

Eight challenges for China in building harmonious society: experts

The growing gap between rich and poor, corruption, and a lack of protection mechanisms for some social groups, unemployment, an inadequate social security system, unsustainable economic growth twinned with environmental pollution, backwardness in science, education, culture, medical care and sports, and a general lack of management skills.>>Full Text

Opinions:

People's Daily editorial stresses importance of building harmonious socialist society

People's Daily issues an editorial on Thursday to hail Wednesday's conclusion of the Sixth Plenary Session of the 16th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC), calling it "a very important conference in a crucial period of China's reform and development."

Harmonious culture and harmonious society

In China it is impossible to ignore the inheritance of the harmonious notion that was such a big part of traditional Chinese culture.

Keeping up building of harmonious society along road of peaceful development

It is essential to persevere in the construction of a harmonious world. China should work wholeheartedly to co-exist with other countries politically, seek common growth economically, make each other's deficiency culturally and increase mutual understanding in security.

By People's Daily Online