Core Tip The report of the 19th National Congress of the Communist Party of China pointed out that Socialism with Chinese characteristics’s entering a new era "means that Socialism with Chinese characteristics’s roads, theories, systems and cultures are constantly developing, expanding the way for developing countries to move toward modernization, providing new choices for countries and nations in the world who want to speed up their development and maintain their independence, and contributing to the solution of human problems with China wisdom and China’s plan". This judgment broke the development theorem imposed by the west on the whole world, declared the bias of "modernization = westernization" and revealed the world historical significance of the Chinese modernization road.
First, the certainty of modernization direction and the selectivity of modernization road
It is certain that the development direction of modernization cannot be bypassed; But the road to modernization is optional, which is also certain. Western-style modernization is only one version of modernization, not the only version, and cannot be fixed on one statue. Every country should take the road of modernization with its own characteristics according to its own national conditions.
How to realize modernization? What kind of modernization will be realized? China had his own independent judgment from the beginning, and never simply copied the western development model, never entered the historical track set by the west, and never simply applied the western development logic. Comrade Deng Xiaoping pointed out: "Our modernization is Chinese-style. The socialism we are building is socialism with China characteristics. " General Secretary of the Supreme Leader also emphasized that "we are willing to learn from all the achievements of human civilization, but we will not copy the development model of any country". To modernize China, we must take the road of China, which is the road of Socialism with Chinese characteristics. Both history and reality tell us that only socialism can save China and only Socialism with Chinese characteristics can develop China. This is the conclusion of history and the choice of the people. The history since the Opium War has proved that socialism is the only feasible and good way, and only socialism and no other socialism can save China. The history of the socialist construction period proves that the traditional planned economy mode will stifle the vitality of socialism, and China and socialism cannot be developed by taking the closed and rigid old road. The historical lessons of the drastic changes in the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe prove that connecting with the West is not the development direction of socialism, and taking the evil road of changing the flag will definitely ruin socialism; Practice since the reform and opening up has proved that Socialism with Chinese characteristics Road is the only way to realize the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation.
The road to modernization with China’s characteristics is not a side road divorced from the world development trend, but a development road with "socialism" as its background, "China’s characteristics" as its symbol and "modernization" as its goal. China’s independent road is a great pioneering work completely different from the western model. It got rid of the western institutional framework, political model and civilization system, the development logic of colonization, expansion, plunder and confrontation, the historical fate of dependent development and gradient evolution, and successfully rose by "going its own way", opening a more magnificent road to modernization.
Second, the success of China means the success of the modernization road independently opened up.
Since the founding of New China, especially since the reform and opening-up, China’s development achievements have been amazing in the world, and it has completely got rid of the danger of being expelled from football. From a backward agricultural country to the second largest economy in the world; From the era of "foreign font size" to the most complete industrial chain in the world; From the lack of food and clothing for the people to the successful leap from low-income countries to middle-income countries; From the shortage of materials to the top spot in global trade in goods; From isolation to leading the development direction of globalization, China experienced phoenix nirvana and completed a magnificent turn from the edge of the world to the center of the world stage. In terms of wealth growth, China has created a miracle in the history of human development in the past few decades.
The success of China means the success of China’s modernization road and Socialism with Chinese characteristics’s success. This "China characteristic" stems from the value standpoint of Marxism, from the value pursuit of socialism, from the high-quality genes of traditional culture, from the active sublation of western-style modernization, and ultimately from Socialism with Chinese characteristics’s historical practice, which is externalized in Socialism with Chinese characteristics’s road, theoretical system, system and culture. It can be said that if China didn’t dare to question the uniqueness and supremacy of western-style modernization, reflect on its disadvantages and write the "China version", human beings might really sink into the powerful thinking inertia of "western centralism" and lose the ability of independent thinking and independent towards the distant.
The success of China’s independent modernization road has great and far-reaching world significance, which has reversed the prestige of socialism in the world and held high the great banner of Socialism with Chinese characteristics in the world. It has shaken the supreme position of the development model supported by western experience, and also shaken the universal position of institutional civilization and values based on western experience, rewritten the development formula of "modernization = westernization", and injected confidence and confidence into the vast number of developing countries to follow their own path.
Third, the world civilization effect of Chinese modernization: the bankruptcy of western centralism
The world today is facing unprecedented changes, one of which is the bankruptcy of western centralism. Western centralism is the philosophical basis of the exportable theory of western model, and the final conclusion of history, the theory of civilization superiority and the universal theory of value can all be said to be variants or external manifestations of western centralism.
The bankruptcy of western centralism and the end of the final conclusion of history is a chain reaction caused by the revival of China, and it is also a major change related to the reconstruction of world civilization order. It is an indisputable fact that China Road has succeeded, and it is more legendary and successful than the experience of the rise of the West. Moreover, the key point is that we have taken the road and constructed the system model and values that are not recognized by the west in a way that is not recognized by the west. It took decades to take the road of the west for hundreds of years, paid less than the west and achieved greater results than the west. This proves that the modernization road in the west is by no means the only way for mankind to achieve modernization, the privatization model in the west is by no means the only choice, and the form of value realization in the west is by no means a universal scheme. The western centralism that has ruled the world history for hundreds of years is facing the crisis of bankruptcy and the choice of exit for the first time.
For hundreds of years, no developing country has succeeded in getting closer to the center of the world stage, and China is the only exception. Because of China’s success, it proves that the western centralism is wrong, the final conclusion of history is wrong, the theory of superiority of civilization is untenable, and the theory of universal values is unworkable; It proves that China’s system is superior, China’s development model is effective, and China’s civilization system and values are advanced.
Of course, our firm road confidence, theoretical confidence, institutional confidence and cultural confidence are not based on the premise of belittling the West. General Secretary of the Supreme Leader said that we will not "import" foreign models or "export" China models, and we will not ask other countries to "copy" China’s practices. This is the philosophical logic contained in Chinese modernization, and this is the philosophical wisdom of the Communist Party of China (CPC) people.
Fourth, the China Road has expanded the way for developing countries to move toward modernization.
Modernization is an unfinished business, and developing countries are still on the way to modernization. How to take the road to modernization? This has become a major test for the vast number of developing countries. Looking around the world, the west is the first to complete the task of modernization and enjoy the fruits of modernization. The west seems to have mastered the only key to open the door to modernization. It has become an irresistible temptation for many developing countries to worship the west as a teacher, move closer to the west and "take the road of the west". Western countries also claim to be the originator of modernization, frequently pointing out other countries’ modernization.
Since modern times, almost all developing countries have been unable to get rid of the dilemma of "attachment" or "decoupling" in their modernization. Faced with the strong inertia of western development logic, the strong dominance of western powers and the attractive achievements of western modernization, the vast number of developing countries either choose dependent development or choose poverty after decoupling. "Attachment" can bring development, but it will lose autonomy; "decoupling" can bring autonomy, but it will lose development. Do developing countries really have no choice between "attachment" and "decoupling"? China told the world with his own practical actions that China has neither "decoupled" from the West nor attached to it; Not only choose to integrate into the international community, but also not slide to the western development track; It not only boldly draws lessons from the achievements of civilization in capitalist countries, but also does not lose its autonomy. Otherwise, it is impossible for China to avoid the economic crisis in the capitalist world again and again, to be "immune to it" in the frequent economic, political and social crises in the western world, and to successfully get rid of the fate of "vassal" in the process of leaping over and catching up and rapidly rising for 40 years.
China’s modernization road emphasizes practice first and prospering the country by hard work; Emphasize road self-confidence and strategic determination; Emphasize the views of the masses and take the people as the center; Emphasize emancipating the mind and seeking truth from facts; Emphasize internal reform and get rid of chronic diseases; Emphasize opening to the outside world and integration into the world; Emphasize independence and self-reliance; Emphasize the advantages of system and governance … These are development wisdom. The successful opening of China Road has expanded the way for developing countries to move towards modernization, provided new choices for countries and nations in the world who want to speed up their development and maintain their independence, and contributed China wisdom and China’s plan to solving human problems.
(The author is a researcher at the New Era Socialism with Chinese characteristics Thought Research Center, the supreme leader of the Party School of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China)