Constitution of the Chinese Communist Party

The Chinese Communist Party (CCP)'s 1945 constitution described Mao Zedong Thought as the party's working compass.{{Cite book |last=Cabestan |first=Jean-Pierre |title=The Chinese Communist Party: a 100-Year Trajectory |date=2024 |publisher=ANU Press |isbn=9781760466244 |editor-last=Doyon |editor-first=Jérôme |location=Canberra |chapter=Organisation and (Lack of) Democracy in the Chinese Communist Party: A Critical Reading of the Successive Iterations of the Party Constitution |pages=17–45 |doi=10.22459/CCP.2024.01 |editor-last2=Froissart |editor-first2=Chloé |doi-access=free}}{{Rp|page=23}} It also discusses democracy in the context of New Democracy.{{Rp|page=22}}

The constitution adopted during April 1969 at the CCP's 9th National Congress named Lin Biao as Mao Zedong's "close comrade in arms and successor".{{Cite book |last=Hammond |first=Ken |title=China's Revolution and the Quest for a Socialist Future |publisher=1804 Books |year=2023 |isbn=9781736850084 |location=New York, NY |pages=}}{{Rp|page=142}}

The constitution currently in force was adopted at the CCP's 12th National Congress in September 1982. In accordance with the changing situation and tasks, revisions were made in some of the articles at the 13th National Congress in November 1987 and in the General Program and some of the articles at the 14th National Congress in October 1992, and a few revisions were made in the General Program at the 16th National Congress of the CCP in November 2002.{{citation needed|date=August 2023}} The constitution can be amended once every five years.{{Cite book |last=Hou |first=Xiaojia |title=China under Xi Jinping: A New Assessment |publisher=Leiden University Press |year=2024 |isbn=9789087284411 |editor-last=Fang |editor-first=Qiang |pages=92 |chapter=China's Shift to Personalistic Rule: Xi Jinping's Centralization of Political Power |jstor=jj.15136086 |editor-last2=Li |editor-first2=Xiaobing}}

The 1992 revision of the constitution noted the importance of policy experimentation, incorporating language that the CCP "must boldly experiment with new methods, ... review new experience and solve new problems, and enrich and develop Marxism in practice."{{Cite book |last=Heilmann |first=Sebastian |title=Red Swan: How Unorthodox Policy-Making Facilitated China's Rise |date=2018 |publisher=The Chinese University of Hong Kong Press |isbn=978-962-996-827-4 |doi=10.2307/j.ctv2n7q6b |jstor=j.ctv2n7q6b |s2cid=158420253 |author-link=Sebastian Heilmann}}{{Rp|page=65}}

The CCP's 16th National Congress in November 2002 included the incorporation of the Three Represents.{{Cite book |last=Huang |first=Yibing |url= |title=An Ideological History of the Communist Party of China |date=2020 |others=Qian Zheng, Guoyou Wu, Xuemei Ding, Li Sun, Shelly Bryant |isbn=978-1-4878-0425-1 |edition= |volume=3 |location=Montreal, Quebec |pages=474–475 |oclc=1165409653}} The CCP's 18th National Congress in November 2012, saw the inclusion of the concept of ecological civilization.{{Cite book |last=Rodenbiker |first=Jesse |title=Ecological States: Politics of Science and Nature in Urbanizing China |date=2023 |publisher=Cornell University Press |isbn=978-1-5017-6900-9 |series=Environments of East Asia |location=Ithaca, NY |jstor=10.7591/j.ctv310vjnd}}{{Rp|page=1}} The CCP's 19th National Congress in October 2017 ratified amendments including the incorporation of Xi Jinping Thought. Xi Jinping thus became the first leader since Deng Xiaoping to append his name into party ideology; the change also led to many international media outlets calling Xi the "most powerful leader since Mao."{{Cite news |last=Phillips |first=Tom |date=24 October 2017 |title=Xi Jinping becomes most powerful leader since Mao with China's change to constitution |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/oct/24/xi-jinping-mao-thought-on-socialism-china-constitution |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171024053607/https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/oct/24/xi-jinping-mao-thought-on-socialism-china-constitution |archive-date=24 October 2017 |access-date=24 October 2017 |work=The Guardian |language=en-GB |issn=0261-3077}} The Belt and Road Initiative was also added to the party constitution.{{Cite news |last=Goh |first=Brenda |last2=Ruwitch |first2=John |date=October 24, 2017 |title=Pressure on as Xi's 'Belt and Road' enshrined in Chinese party charter |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/idUSKBN1CT1H9/ |access-date=July 27, 2024 |work=Reuters}}{{Cite book |last1=Shinn |first1=David H. |author-link=David H. Shinn |title=China's Relations with Africa: a New Era of Strategic Engagement |last2=Eisenman |first2=Joshua |date=2023 |publisher=Columbia University Press |isbn=978-0-231-21001-0 |location=New York}}{{Rp|page=58}}

The CCP's 20th National Congress in October 2022 saw several amendments to the party constitution. Additions included opposition to Taiwan independence,{{Cite news |last= |date=2022-10-22 |title=Factbox: China's Communist Party amends its charter, strengthens Xi's power |url=https://www.reuters.com/world/china/chinas-communist-party-amends-its-charter-strengthens-xi-power-2022-10-22/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221023100717/https://www.reuters.com/world/china/chinas-communist-party-amends-its-charter-strengthens-xi-power-2022-10-22/ |archive-date=23 October 2022 |access-date=2022-10-24 |work=Reuters |language=en}} developing a "fighting spirit" and strengthening fighting ability, as well as additions of goals related to Xi, including gradually achieving common prosperity, promoting Chinese-style modernization and developing a "broader, fuller and more robust" whole-process people's democracy. The status of Xi and the CCP were further strengthened with the amendments, with the amended constitution naming the CCP as the "supreme political leadership force". The Two Upholds was added, thereby cementing the "core" status of Xi Jinping.{{Cite news |last=Grzywacz |first=Jarek |date=26 January 2023 |title=How Xi Jinping Used the CCP Constitution to Cement His Power |url=https://thediplomat.com/2023/01/how-xi-jinping-used-the-ccp-constitution-to-cement-his-power/ |access-date=27 July 2024 |work=The Diplomat |language=en |archive-date=July 12, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240712144013/https://thediplomat.com/2023/01/how-xi-jinping-used-the-ccp-constitution-to-cement-his-power/ |url-status=live }}

The constitution states that Marxism–Leninism and Mao Zedong Thought are the party's official ideology. The constitution emphasizes the party's role in promoting socialist democracy, in developing and strengthening a socialist legal system, and in consolidating public resolve to carry out the modernization program.{{Country study|date=July 1987|country=China|abbr=cn}}

The constitution states that the interests of the people and the party are paramount over the interests of party members.{{Cite book |last1=Marquis |first1=Christopher |url= |title=Mao and Markets: The Communist Roots of Chinese Enterprise |last2=Qiao |first2=Kunyuan |date=2022 |publisher=Yale University Press |others=Kunyuan Qiao |isbn=978-0-300-26883-6 |location=New Haven |doi=10.2307/j.ctv3006z6k |jstor=j.ctv3006z6k |s2cid=253067190 |oclc=1348572572 |author-link=Christopher Marquis}}{{Rp|page=112}} The constitution states that in emergencies and urgent situations, members are encouraged to contribute to special funds (as in the case of the special fund for the 2008 Sichuan earthquake).{{Rp|page=|pages=111–112}}

Since 1945, the party's constitution has defined the party's view of democratic centralism as "centralism based on democracy and democracy under centralized leadership."{{Rp|page=23}} Academic Jean-Pierre Cabestan writes that this approach defines and limits democracy within the party, indicating that central leadership prevails over the rights of party members to challenge leadership.{{Rp|page=23}}

{{Portal|Communism|Law}}

• Chinese Communist Party Admission Oath

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{{wikisource|Constitution of the Communist Party of China (2017)}}

• [https://english.news.cn/20221026/d7fff914d44f4100b6e586372d4060a4/c.html Text of the Constitution of the Chinese Communist Party as of October 22, 2022] {{In lang|en}}

{{Communist Party of China}}

China

Category:Rulebooks of communist parties