The Whole-Process People’s Democracy Opens Up New Realm of Human Political Civilization

Yu Hongjun

Socialism with Chinese characteristics is a great cause full of vigor and vitality. The democratic politics with Chinese characteristics is a development process of constant exploration and innovation， both in theory and in practice. Since the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China （CPC）， the building of Socialism with Chinese characteristics has ushered in a new era. General Secretary Xi Jinping has vigorously advocated and promoted the building of the whole-process peoples democracy， which has made remarkable achievements in terms of theoretical exploration and institutional innovation， greatly enriched the Marxist theories on democratic politics and the political and democratic practice of Socialism with Chinese characteristics. This new format of democracy has opened up a new realm of human political civilization and attracted considerable attention from the international community.

Chinas Revolution and Socialist Construction are the Democratic Cause of the Chinese People

Socialism and democracy are not only two political concepts that differ yet closely relate， but also complementary social practices and mutually-propelling institutional arrangements. When Proletarian revolutionary instructors Karl Marx， Frederick Engels and Vladimir Lenin used and scientifically interpreted the classic concept of socialism， they often related socialism with democracy. The majority of the working-class political parties founded at the initial stage of the international communist movement were called Social Democratic Party and Social Democratic Workers Party. While these revolutionary parties strove for the ideal of achieving socialism， they also fought for the democratic rights of themselves and their societies.

Lenin led the founding of the Bolshevik Party， a new working-class political party that was initially called the Russian Social Democratic Workers Party （Bolshevik）. In 1895， Lenin wrote the Draft and Explanation of the Program of the Social-Democratic Party， which elaborated in details the nature， purpose and goals of the Partys striving for socialism， and put forward a series of very specific requirements for democracy， such as “the convening of a Zemsky Sobor made up of representatives of all citizens so as to draw up a constitution，” “universal and direct suffrage for all citizens” and “complete equality of all citizens before the law”.

After the October Revolution triumphed in 1917， the primary task of the ruling Bolshevik Party was to build a democratic regime of workers and peasants. In his report on the Party Program delivered in 1919， Lenin stated for the first time that “account must be taken of the stage” reached by the given nation on its way towards democracy when conducting national building and social governance. When elaborating on the democracy of a regime of workers and peasants and its features， Lenin sharply analyzed that “the Soviet power had in principle provided an immensely higher proletarian democracy， creating a model of such democracy for the whole world”， but “l(fā)ack of culture was reducing the significance of Soviet power and reviving bureaucracy”. Therefore， to deliver the true Soviet democracy， “a vast amount of educational， organizational and cultural work was required”. Regrettably， Lenins thought， believing socialist democratic politics had to be in line with the all-round social development if it was to be truly delivered， failed to be fully implemented. This stands as one of the principal reasons behind the crisis of Soviet-style socialist democracy and the ultimate disintegration of the Soviet Union.

In 1911， China abolished the feudal monarchy and became a republic. The lofty aspiration for “Democracy” and “Science” became the mainstream mindset and fundamental demands of the Chinese nation. The CPC， inspired by the May Fourth spirit of patriotism， progress， democracy and science and born in 1921， introduced Marxist theories and Russian socialist revolutionary experience into China and started the “unremitting efforts to unite and lead Chinese people of all ethnic groups to strive for national independence， liberation， prosperity and peoples well-being. The Second CPC National Congress held in 1922 clearly adopted the slogan of unifying China as a “true democratic republic” and unprecedentedly put forward an explicit program of democratic revolution.

The New Democratic Revolution led by the CPC is essentially to overthrow the rule of imperialism， feudalism and bureaucratic capitalism in China and establish a peoples democratic regime. In 1945， Mao Zedong introduced the new concept of “the democratic cause of the Chinese people” in his article titled The Current International Situation and the Basic Principles of the CPCs Foreign Policies. He emphasized that Chinas revolution aimed to “build a new democratic state politically， economically and culturally” and that the revolutionary forces represented by the CPC were the “peoples democratic forces”.

In June， 1949 when Chinas Revolution was to sweep to victory， Mao Zedong wrote a masterpiece titled On Peoples Democratic Dictatorship， in which he expounded on the CPCs nation-building approach as it would soon become the ruling party and highlighted the historic significance of the democratic nature of the new regime. He pointed out： “The national system of peoples democratic dictatorship was a powerful weapon to safeguard the outcomes of the peoples revolution and thwart the plots of domestic and foreign enemies for restoration.”

This period coincided with the end of the Second World War. A number of socialist countries were born on the Eurasian continent. Many of them directly adopt the word “democracy” in the names of their countries， such as “German Democratic Republic” and “Peoples Democratic Republic of Korea”. Mao Zedong hailed them as “the worlds democratic forces for the people” and firmly believed that “adhering to the peoples democratic dictatorship and standing in solidarity with international friends would make our nation-building achieve rapid success”.

The peoples democratic dictatorship advocated by Mao Zedong is an integration of democracy and dictatorship. It mainly exercises the following functions： The first is， internally， to suppress the reactionary classes that have been overthrown and counter-revolutionary activities launched by individual reactionaries， crack down on all kinds of criminals and remold them into new people that are self-reliant; and externally， to fight against imperialist aggression and subversion and to safeguard national independence and security; The second is to protect the people， carry forward the socialist democracy， enable the people to educate and remold themselves by democratic methods on a country-wide scale with everyone taking part， get rid of the bad habits and ideologies left over by the old society， and truly exercise their rights as masters of the state; The third is to reform the private ownership of the means of production， establish socialist public ownership， develop and grow the socialist economy， tremendously improve labor productivity and gradually improve peoples material and cultural standards of living.

Evidently， the CPC， ever since the inception of its ruling， has adopted the state-of-art philosophy that China should carry forward socialist democracy “on a country-wide scale and with everyone taking part”， engage the people to reform and govern society “in democratic means” and thus “exercise their rights as the masters of the country”. After the founding of New China， the CPC zigzagged its way of exploring a socialist path suited to Chinas national conditions and the socialist democracy suffered setbacks， but the Party firmly believes that the revolution victory is “secured by the solidarity and unity of all ethnic groups， democratic classes， democratic parties， peoples organizations and all patriotic Democrats under the leadership of the working class and the CPC.”

As the ruling party， the CPC has always taken the united front as one of its “magic key to revolution” and underscored the unique role of the Political Consultative Conference， achieving what Soviet Russia， the first socialist country in the world and later Soviet Union， failed to achieve. As mentioned in the Resolution of the CPC Central Committee on the Major Achievements and Historical Experience of the Party over the Past Century， “under the Partys leadership， China established the system of peoples congresses， the system of CPC-led multiparty cooperation and political consultation， and the system of regional ethnic autonomy， providing institutional guarantees for ensuring that it is the people who run the country.”

Whole-Process Peoples Democracy is a Brand-New Development Stage of Socialist Democracy with Chinese Characteristics

It is fully demonstrated in the Constitution of the Peoples Republic of China that socialism and democracy are inseparable and that all state power belongs to the people. Since Chinas reform and opening-up， socialist democracy with Chinese characteristics has advanced in lockstep with Chinas modernization drive. It has been explicitly stated in the Report to the 18th CPC National Congress that “we should work harder to enhance socialist democracy in a systemic way by adopting due standards and procedures， expand peoples orderly participation in governance at all levels and in all fields”. Based on the overall layout and goals set by the great cause of socialism with Chinese characteristics， making peoples democracy more extensive， fuller in scope and sounder in practice and upholding CPC leadership， guaranteeing the position of the people as masters of the country and law-based governance have been identified as priorities for the political advancement of socialism with Chinese characteristics and the reform of Chinas political structure.

The 18th CPC National Congress highlighted that to guarantee the fundamental position of the people as masters of the country and to reach the goal of enhancing the vitality of the Party and country and keeping the people fully motivated， we should expand socialist democracy， improve the system of socialist consultative democracy， improve community-level democracy， promote law-based governance of the country， optimize the mechanism for conducting checks and oversight over the exercise of power and develop socialist political civilization. These tasks and objectives indicates that the political preparations are ready for advancing the whole-process peoples democracy of socialism with Chinese characteristics

Ever since， peoples democracy with Chinese characteristics has seen ever deeper development in terms of form and content. “People practice democratic elections， consultations， decision-making， management， and oversight according to laws”; “Democratic elections， consultation， decision-making， management and oversight are closely linked and integrated. There is a unity of democratic processes and democratic results， procedural democracy and substantive democracy， and direct democracy and indirect democracy， and the peoples rights to be informed， to participate， to express views， and to supervise the exercise of power are protected”. New formats of community-level democracy keep emerging， such as democratic forums， hearings， online deliberation on politics， remote consultation and “through-trains” to legislation.

When General Secretary Xi Jinping made a feild trip to a civic center of the Law Committee of the National Peoples Congress Standing Committee in Hongqiao Sub-district， he pointed out： “We are sticking to the path of socialist political progress with Chinese characteristics and peoples democracy is a whole-process democracy”. The brand-new concept of “whole-process democracy” was formally put forward. It has been included in the revised Organizational Law of the National Peoples Congress and the Rules of Procedure of the National Peoples Congress， both of which were adopted in March 2021.

In his speech at the Ceremony Marking the Centenary of the Communist Party of China on July 1st， 2021， General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out that “this country is its people; the people are the country”; “the Party has in the people its roots， its lifeblood， and its source of strength”; and “The Party has always represented the fundamental interests of all Chinese people”. He also emphasized to “practice a people-centered philosophy of development and develop whole-process peoples democracy”. In the Central Conference on Work Related to the Peoples Congress convened in October 2021， General Secretary Xi Jinping expounded in a systematic way on the requirement for practicing the whole-process peoples democracy. Subsequently， the Sixth Plenary Session of the 19th CPC Central Committee adopted the Resolution of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China on the Major Achievements and Historical Experience of the Party over the Past Century， in which “developing the whole-process peoples democracy” has been identified as an important aspect of Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era.

The 20th CPC National Congress convened in October， 2022 has taken China on a grand journey toward Chinese modernization. General Secretary Xi Jinping solemnly declared in the Report to the 20th CPC National Congress that “Peoples democracy is the lifeblood of socialism， and it is integral to our efforts to build a modern socialist country in all respects”. He also emphasized that “the whole-process peoples democracy is the defining feature of socialist democracy and it is democracy in its broadest， most genuine， and most effective form”. To firmly stay on the path of socialist political advancement with Chinese characteristics， we must “uphold the unity between Party leadership， the running of the country by the people， and law-based governance， and ensure the principal position of the people， so as to give full expression to their will， protect their rights and interests， and spark their creativity”.

The 20th CPC National Congress made comprehensive arrangement for “advancing whole-process peoples democracy and ensuring that the people run the country”， covering four general aspects including strengthening the institutions through which the people run the country， fully developing consultative democracy， actively developing democracy at the primary level and consolidating and developing the broadest possible patriotic united front. The Congress raised specific requirements with salient features of our times and Chinas national conditions. All-round and full-coverage whole-process peoples democracy with Chinese characteristics has entered a new stage of development. The whole-process peoples democracy has come into shape and been solidified and full exemplified in the statement that “we will improve the system of institutions through which the people run the country. We will encourage the peoples orderly participation in political affairs and guarantee their ability to engage in democratic elections， consultations， decision-making， management， and oversight in accordance with the law. We will inspire the peoples motivation， initiative， and creativity， so as to consolidate and develop a lively， stable， and united political atmosphere”.

The Whole-Process Peoples Democracy Provides New Experiences and Alternatives for Inter-Civilization Mutual Learning

It is well known that the word “democracy”， which was phonetically translated or nicknamed as “Mr. D”， originated from ancient Greece. Its literal meaning is “peoples rule” or “people as masters”， indicating a means of governance and institutional arrangement for public affairs in the principle of relative equality and majority rule. Greek philosophers including Herodotus， Perikles and Aristotle all used and interpreted the concept of “democracy” or “institution for democracy”. Needless to say， this historic treasure of the ancient Greek city-states system has made considerable contribution to human civilization process， which should never be underestimated.

“Democracy” or “institution for democracy” has completely different implications in modern times from that in ancient Greece. The Western democratic systems marked by “separation of powers”， “multiparty politics”， “checks and balances”， “taking turns to govern”， “direct and universal suffrage” and “referendum” are particularly relevant to the bourgeois revolutions and the development of capitalist systems in European and American countries. From a historical perspective of the development and progress of human civilization， varied and complicated Western-style democratic procedures featuring “system of representation”， “universal suffrage”， “referendum”， “accountability” and “impeachment” marks historical progress compared with the dark feudal autocracy and theocracy in medieval Europe.

However， as time goes by and our times go through changes， the deficiencies of capitalist societies and the inherent limitations of Western-style democracy have gradually emerged. Western-style democracy， essentially serving as the tool of bourgeois rule， exposes its obvious hypocrisy and hazard. Adolf Hitler， the culprit of the Second World War， stepped on the German political arena through “direct elections”. Works of Western scholars fully elaborate on the limitations， hypocrisy and danger of the Western-style democracy， such as Capitalism， Socialism and Democracy by Joseph Schumpeter， Wars， Guns and Votes： Democracy in Dangerous Places by Paul Collier， From Voting to Violence： Democratization and Nationalist Conflict by Jack Snyder and Asymmetric Politics： Ideological Republicans and Group Interest Democrats by Matt Grossmann and David Hopkins.

After the Second World War， narrowing and weakening of the democratic process become the defining feature of the new trend of Western-style democracy. Democracy has become synonymous with “competitive elections”. People are powered on in the election season and remain powered off in the rest of the time. The Western countries have embraced so-called “deliberative democracy” since 1970s. However， in practice， such deliberative democracy is nothing more than “elite dialogue” and “exchange of ideas” between different political factions， representing a means of compromise and cooperation between the ruling and opposition parties. Vladimir Lenin once criticized the Western-style democracy by saying： “The bourgeoisie in the most liberal and democratic countries have resorted to outrageous and shameless means that have never been heard before to deceive workers.” This remains to be seen in the West even today！

The United States， regarded as “beacon of democracy”， is witnessing its democracy becoming more about form than practice like an empty shell and even more violent. The so-called universal suffrage and checks and balances of power have evolved into out-and-out political polarization intensified by bitter partisan fights， which keep the whole society hijacked. Such democracy has sharply intensified the inherent social contradictions and even triggered serious ethnic conflicts. The international community， especially developing countries， has long been soberly aware of the nature and trend of Western-style democracy， especially American-style democracy， and the pain inflicted on these countries and even on human civilization in the process of copying or transplanting such democracy.

As a Chinese poem reads， “Past a fallen ship， one thousand sail onward; for a sick tree， ten thousand thrive by spring.” The socialist democracy， which develops on the basis of drawing merits of all civilizations， represents a new-type and higher-level democracy compared with the capitalist democracy. The whole-process peoples democracy with Chinese characteristics， which was formed on the premise of adhering to Chinas basic national conditions， has shown unparalleled competitive advantages and inestimable significance when inter-civilization exchanges and mutual learning become the mainstream of the times.

To strengthen the institutions through which the people run the country， we must make sure that people participate in various ways in the management of state， economic， cultural， and social affairs in accordance with the law. To fully develop consultative democracy， we must promote consultations carried out by political parties， peoples congresses， government departments， committees of the Chinese Peoples Political Consultative Conference （CPPCC）， peoples organizations， communities， and social organizations， and improve various institutional consultative platforms; To develop democracy at the primary level， we must improve the institutional and working systems for direct democracy at the primary level， increase transparency in government affairs， establish more channels for people from various sectors to participate in community-level governance in an orderly way， ensure that the people manage public affairs and run public-interest programs at the primary level in accordance with the law. To consolidate and develop the broadest possible patriotic united front， we must forge great unity and solidarity， and we will encourage all the sons and daughters of the Chinese nation to dedicate themselves to realizing the Chinese Dream of national rejuvenation.

In conclusion， the whole-process peoples democracy taking shape is a full-chain， all-round and full-coverage democracy. The fundamental principles to be followed in developing the whole-process peoples are remaining committed to the leadership of the CPC， the peoples status as masters of the country， law-based governance and the Chinese path. Such peoples democracy integrates all the political elements of democracy， including electoral democracy， consultative democracy， social democracy， community-level democracy， citizen democracy. Such true democracy with solid foundation is welcomed and supported by all walks of life in Chinese society.

In late February， 2023， on the eve of the upcoming National Peoples Congress and the election of a new central government， General Secretary Xi Jinping presided over the Democratic Consultation Meeting. During the meeting， he informed the representatives of the democratic parties， the All-China Federation of Industry and Commerce and personages without party affiliation of the proposed list of candidates to serve as leaders of the state institutions and CPPCC recommended by the CPC Central Committee to the NPC and CPPCC and listened to their opinions. The Consultation Meeting was attended by all the members of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee. It fully demonstrates that the CPC， as the ruling party， attaches great importance to democratic parties， the All-China Federation of Industry and Commerce and personages without party affiliation and that Chinas whole-process peoples democracy is authentic， important and effective.

Yu Hongjun is Vice President of the Chinese Peoples Association for Peace and Disarmament and Distinguished Expert of Chinese Peoples Political Consultative Conference for Participation in Politics