Stronger Intra-Party Governance

The Sixth Plenary Session of the 18th Communist Party of China （CPC） Central Committee， held in Beijing on October 24-27 with a focus on strengthening Party discipline， has drawn intense attention. The meeting deliberated and passed new norms of intra-Party political life as well as intra-Party supervision regulations.

As Chinas ruling party， the CPC has recognized that strengthening Party regulations is key to facilitating national governance. It has attached great importance， therefore， to Party building. The norms for intra-Party political life， first adopted at the Fifth Plenary Session of the 11th CPC Central Committee in 1980， specified the basic rules for Party members to follow in political activities within the Party.

On the whole， Party members have observed the rules and regulations over recent decades. Corruption and other malpractices， however， have emerged amid Chinas rapid social and economic development. To tackle problems within the Party， President Xi Jinping， who is also General Secretary of the CPC Central Committee， has intensified efforts to overhaul the Partys code of conduct， fight corruption and toughen Party discipline.

Since becoming the Partys top leader in 2012， Xi has overseen investigations into discipline violations such as bribery， embezzlement and abuse of power. A large number of unscrupulous officials once holding Party， government or state-owned enterprise posts have been brought to justice. Moreover， he is ensuring that the Party establishes effective rules to codify its conventions and deter misconduct. According to a plan issued in 2013， the CPC aims to set up an intraParty regulation framework covering all main sectors of the Partys work by 2017. The moves have achieved significant success and won public acclaim.

The meeting called on all Party members to “closely unite around the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping as the core.” It stressed the importance of adherence to the collective leadership system.

Two documents were deliberated and adopted， namely the Norms of Political Life Within the Party Under the New Situation and the Provisional Intra-Party Supervision Regulation， according to a communique released right after the session. The session also passed a resolution on convening the 19th CPC National Congress in the latter half of 2017.

Formulating new rules for Party governance that accord with the expectations of contemporary society is therefore essential for pushing forward institutional reform of the Party and will help regulate and enrich intra-Party life.

The Sixth Plenary Session signifies that the CPC is facing up to and solving its own problems through institutional reform. It is widely believed that the Party will govern even more capably under the new rules and lead Chinas citizenry to fulfill the Chinese dream of national rejuvenation.