On July 27, China Arab TV in Dubai broadcast a documentary on the Centenary of the Communist Party of China. In an exclusive interview, Consul General Li Xuhang interpreted in detail the spirit of President Xi Jinping’s important speech at a ceremony marking the Centenary of the Communist Party of China, the achievements of the CPC in the last 100 years and its historical experience. The link of the documentary and the full transcript of the interview are as follows:
Full transcript of the interview:
CATV: Hello, Consul General. July 1 of this year marks the centenary of the Communist Party of China. Having watched the live streaming of the ceremony celebrating CPC’s founding, I, as an Arab, felt very impressed, in particular by the speech delivered by President Xi Jinping. What is your feeling about this speech?
Li Xuhang: President Xi Jinping's speech is substantial, profound, and inspiring. It has received positive responses and won wide praise from people in China and all over the world. The speech not only summarizes the great achievements and valuable experience of the journey the CPC has traveled over 100 years, but also mobilizes the whole Party and all the Chinese people to forge ahead in a new journey of the next 100 years.
In his speech, President Xi Jinping summarized the great achievements of the CPC in the past 100 years: Over the past hundred years, the Party has united and led the Chinese people in writing the most magnificent chapter in the millennia-long history of the Chinese nation. Over the past hundred years, the Party has united and led the Chinese people in establishing the People’s Republic of China, and we thus secured our nation’s independence and liberated our people. By carrying out socialist revolution, we established socialism as our basic system. The Party started the great journey of reform and opening up and founded socialism with Chinese characteristics. It led the Chinese nation in achieving the tremendous leaps of standing up, growing prosperous and becoming strong. China’s national rejuvenation has become a historical inevitability.
The historic achievements of the Party and the Chinese people are inseparable from the care and support of people from all over the world, including the UAE. Therefore, President Xi Jinping expressed heartfelt gratitude to people and friends from around the world who have shown friendship to the Chinese people and understanding and support for China’s endeavors in revolution, development, and reform.
In his speech, President Xi Jinping summarized the successful experience of the CPC over the past 100 years: Over the past hundred years, the Party has accumulated many successful experiences, such as its great founding spirit, the people-centered philosophy of governance, and the socialism with Chinese characteristics that suits China’s actual conditions. Among them, standing firmly with the people is the bedrock that underpins all work of the Party. President Xi Jinping said that history is created by the people. This country is its people; the people are the country. As we have fought to establish and consolidate our leadership over the country, we have in fact been fighting to earn and keep the people’s support. The Party has in the people its roots, its lifeblood, and its source of strength. The Party has always represented the fundamental interests of all Chinese people. In this regard, the leaders of China and the UAE have similar philosophies of governance.
In his speech, President Xi Jinping issued a mobilization order to march on the new journey of the next hundred years: President Xi Jinping, looking ahead to the bright prospects for the rejuvenation of the Chinese nation, systematically elaborated on the requirements faced by us in learning from history to create a bright future and set the direction for all Party members and Chinese people of all ethnic groups around the country to march toward the second centenary goal. To put it simply, taking the centenary as the starting point for its new journey, the CPC will focus on two aspects. At home, the Party will stay true to its original aspiration and founding mission of working hard to realize people’s aspirations for a better life. Globally, the Party will promote building a new type of international relations and a community with a shared future for mankind.
The UAE is the Middle Eastern country whose cooperation with China is the deepest in degree, widest in scope and most fruitful in achievements. While the Party leads the Chinese people to embark on the new journey, there will be broader development space for the comprehensive strategic partnership and pragmatic cooperation between China and the UAE. I am convinced that China and the UAE working together will make greater contributions to building a community with a shared future for mankind.
CATV: This year marks the centenary of the CPC. Would you please briefly introduce to the Arab audience the history of the CPC over the past hundred years?
Li Xuhang: Over the past hundred years, the Communist Party of China has been pursuing our nation’s independence, our country’s prosperity, and our people’s wellbeing. The history of the hundred years can be divided into four stages. The first stage is the new-democratic revolution from the founding of the CPC in July 1921 to the founding of People’s Republic of China in October 1949. In this stage, the People’s Republic of China was founded, which made the people masters of the country. We thus secured our nation’s independence and liberated our people. The second stage is the socialist revolution and construction from October 1949 to the Third Plenary Session of the Eleventh Central Committee of the CPC held in December 1978. In this stage, we established socialism as our basic system. In the process of socialist construction, we established a fairly complete national economy, which laid down the fundamental political conditions and the institutional foundations necessary for realizing national rejuvenation. The third stage is the reform, opening up, and socialist modernization from December 1978 to the 18th National Congress of the CPC in November 2012. In this stage, China was enabled to transform itself from a highly centralized planned economy to a socialist market economy brimming with vitality, and from a country that was largely isolated to one that is open to the outside world across the board. China was also enabled to make the historic transformation of raising the living standards of its people from bare subsistence to an overall level of moderate prosperity, and then ultimately to moderate prosperity in all respects. In the fourth stage starting from the Party’s 18th National Congress in November 2012, socialism with Chinese characteristics entered a new era of pursuing the “two centenary goals” to fulfill the Chinese Dream of national rejuvenation.
What I want to emphasize here is that the one-hundred-year history of the CPC has seen the persistence of the Party in pursuing the progress for mankind and in carrying out friendly exchanges with other countries. Over the past hundred years, China’s revolution has received the understanding and support of progressive forces from other countries. China’s reform and opening up has been continuously promoted through mutually beneficial cooperation with other countries. At the same time, the CPC has made important contributions to the victory of the World Anti-Fascist War, the independence of the colonized countries in Asia, Africa and Latin America, the liberation of people and the world peace and development. History tells us that only by embracing the world can we embrace the future and only by working together can we steadily reach far. The Communist Party of China will always stand on the progressive side of mankind, always work to safeguard world peace, contribute to global development, and preserve international order. It will make greater contributions to promoting the building of a community with a shared future for mankind and building a better world.
CATV: Over the past 100 years, the Communist Party of China has overcome countless difficulties and obstacles in leading China’s revolution, socialist construction, and reform and opening up. Now it has become the largest ruling party in the world. What underpins the longevity of the CPC?
Li Xuhang: This question is very representative. What make the Communist Party of China achieve such brilliant and great achievements? The CPC has accumulated many successful experiences over the past hundred years. Here I can share three "secrets". The first one is scientific theory and innovation in practice. Actions and practice must be guided by ideas and theories. Only the ideas and theories of scientific and advanced nature can set the correct direction for actions and practice to achieve successes. Beginning with the Opium War launched by Western powers in 1840, the Chinese people had tried many times to fight bravely against invasion, colonization, and oppression. However, huge sacrifices did not bring them success. China’s revolution remained hopeless until the founding of the Communist Party of China in 1921 by a group of forward-thinking people in China. Since then, the CPC has combined the tenets of Marxism with China’s realities and kept adapting Marxism to the Chinese context and the needs of our times. China’s revolution, construction and reform could not make such glorious achievements without the guidance of theories that keep pace with the times. The second secret is standing firmly with the people and implementing the mass line The Party believes that it is the people who create the history and people have infinite wisdom and strength. The Communist Party of China was born for the people and prospered because of the people. It always believes that it is our people who run the country and has made seeking happiness for the people its aspiration and mission. Moreover, the Party’s mass line has won it support and endorsement by our people who come together as a mighty force. The third secret is a tight organizational system and self-reform. Someone joked that the bones of the Chinese Communists are particularly hard like being made of special materials. What this expresses indeed is that the Communist Party of China is a well-organized and strict-disciplined political party. Through all-round efforts to see the Party’s political building enhanced, its theory strengthened, its organizations consolidated, its conduct improved, and its discipline enforced, we have fostered a competent team who are loyal to the Party, have moral integrity, and demonstrate a keen sense of responsibility. Meanwhile, this team has been keeping making progress. The Party believes that we must advance the great social reform through self-reform. Therefore, the CPC has made continuous effort to remain pure and to improve, renew, and surpass itself in practice. With the courage to face mistakes, it adopts a problem-oriented approach to carry out self-reform. It is the advanced nature and purity of the Party that enables it to lead the Chinese people to create one after another great achievements.
CATV: There is an old Chinese saying. Distance cannot divide true friends who feel close even when thousands of miles apart. During your years as a diplomat in Africa and the UAE, in your opinion, what is the approach of the CPC toward the international world?
Li Xuhang: The Communist Party of China has a profound love of the world since its very founding. The aspiration and mission not only consist of seeking happiness for the Chinese people and realizing the rejuvenation for the Chinese nation, but also include pursuing the common good of the world. As President Xi Jinping said: "The CPC is a political party that strives for both the wellbeing of the Chinese people and for the advancement of humankind, and to make new and greater contributions to humanity is its abiding mission." President Xi Jinping has set out a great vision for major-country diplomacy with Chinese characteristics by proposing the lofty goal of building a community with a shared future for mankind. He has revealed a new direction for the future for mankind and for the world, which is the Xi Jinping Thought on Diplomacy that reflects the CPC’s approach toward the world. Following Xi Jinping Thought on Diplomacy, China has proposed visions on development, security, cooperation, civilization, and global governance that are in line with the common interests of all countries in the world, which are the solutions and wisdom contributed by China to resolving global challenges. The Communist Party of China not only offers solutions, but also takes actions. It has proposed the great Belt and Road Initiative to build the shared future for mankind in practice, which has received positive responses from the international community. Many projects under the BRI have been launched and have delivered, bringing tangible benefits to people of many countries. Dubai is an important hub along the Belt and Road. There are many cooperative projects under the framework of the BRI taking place in Dubai. Facing the sudden shock of Covid-19, the Chinese Consulate General in Dubai has actively guided enterprises to take measures to control the epidemic in order to ensure the progress of these key projects. By solving practical difficulties, the Consulate General helped the enterprises resume their operations. Hassyan Clean Coal Project is a major BRI cooperative project between China and the UAE. Its Unit 1 and Unit 2 have been connected to the grid in May 2020 and May 2021 respectively. Being capable of full-load operation with both natural gas and coal, it has become the world’s first power station with dual-fuel generator unit, making an important contribution to the construction of the first clean coal power station in the Middle East.
CATV: The world has been experiencing a once-in-a-century pandemic since 2020. Do you think Covid-19 is under control in the UAE?
Li Xuhang: Dubai has taken quick and strong measures to prevent and control Covid-19 since its outbreak early last year and has achieved remarkable results. This reflects a highly responsible attitude of Dubai to “put people’s lives and health at the center” as stated by His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum. Dubai is the world’s busiest international transportation hub, and 90% of its residents are expatriates from all over the world, thus making it difficult to prevent and control the pandemic. Nevertheless, Dubai has taken a series of targeted measures to curb the pandemic by taking advantage of its efficient government management team, advanced medical resources, and abundant capital investments. Currently, the UAE is leading the world in Covid-19 vaccinations. It is one of the best performers in the Bloomberg’s Covid Resilience Ranking and the number 1 among Arab countries. As the pandemic is under control and infection rates are declining in the UAE, the country’s economy is well recovering with its foreign trade, witnessing the fastest rebound from the impact of Covid-19 in the region. Therefore, I’m fully confident in Dubai’s ability to prevent and control the pandemic, and I look forward to Dubai’s further development in the post-pandemic era.
CATV: How do you see the cooperation between China and the UAE in the fight against the pandemic?
A: Since the outbreak of Covid-19, China and the UAE have been helping and supporting each other and have carried out a series of close cooperation. After a short time when Covid-19 broke out, His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the Crown Prince Abu Dhabi had a phone call with President Xi Jinping, expressing firm support for China’s fight against the epidemic. The materials provided by the two countries to each other and the shining words “Wuhan Jia You” (Wuhan, come on) on the Burj Khalifa brought strength and courage to the people of the two countries to fight the epidemic together. Chinese medical experts have shared their experience in epidemic prevention and control, testing, and treatment with their counterparts in the UAE in many cases. It took only 14 days for China and the UAE to build a Fire Eye laboratory in Abu Dhabi with a daily testing capacity of tens of thousands of people. The two countries together carried out the world’s first Phase III clinical trial for an inactivated Covid-19 vaccine and the UAE was the first country to approve the emergency use of China’s inactivated vaccine. The two countries also jointly built a production line to manufacture Chinese COVID vaccine, which further helped the UAE to fight the epidemic. The UAE supported China’s vaccination program called Spring Sprout Action and established a regional vaccination site in Dubai for Chinese citizens coming to the UAE temporarily, reflecting the high-level comprehensive strategic partnership between the two countries. In a word, the pandemic has made the friendship between China and the UAE even stronger. The two countries have also helped other countries to battle against the pandemic. By making concrete efforts to promote the building of a global community of health for all, China and the UAE have set a good example for the rest of the world to conquer the pandemic through international cooperation.
CATV: Chinese School Dubai, the first Chinese curriculum school outside China, opened last year. What difficulties did you encounter during the process? How is the school doing after running for almost a year?
Li Xuhang: Chinese School Dubai is the first full-time school adopting Chinese academic system. We came across many unexpected difficulties during its establishment, especially when we had to overcome the impact of Covid-19 while the task was hard, and we were pressed for time. We started to build the school in February last year, with the goal of enrolling students in April and opening the school in September. It was a really tight schedule. However, the Chinese institutions and overseas Chinese in the consular district made a quick response to our call and formed a preparatory committee. Generous Chinese companies donated money, equipment and materials for decoration, and enthusiastic overseas Chinese volunteered to participate in building the school. It was not an easy job to register the school, open its bank account, rent and renovate school buildings, and recruit foreign teachers. All of these required strict protective measures against the pandemic. I would like to take this opportunity to thank His Highness the Ruler of Dubai for his care, and the Knowledge and Human Development Authority (KHDA) and the Community Development Authority (CDA) for their support to Chinese School Dubai. Though the Dubai government agencies were required to work from home due to the pandemic, they gave the green light to the school and streamlined all procedures so that the Chinese School Dubai was able to open in less than six months. Once again, this was a Dubai miracle.
Chinese School Dubai has made remarkable achievements in teaching and facility development over the past year. During a visit to the school, officials from the KHDA said it was unbelievable that the school was running so well despite its short history. The main achievements of the school are as follows:
First, it is doing a good job in the pandemic prevention and control. It has taken strict prevention and control measures to meet the expectations of students’ parents to have their children study at school. Over the past year, the Chinese School Dubai has been the only school in Dubai that provides uninterrupted face-to-face teaching. The director general of the KHDA said the school was “an exemplar of teaching and learning during the pandemic” and invited Mr. Yin Liping, the principal of Chinese School Dubai, to share the school’s success story at an international principals’ conference in Dubai. “The worse the pandemic is, the more we want to send our children to school, because they are safer at school than at home”, said some parents of Chinese School Dubai students.
Second, the faculty is strong. Chinese School Dubai has 27 excellent teachers from Hangzhou and 11 locally recruited teachers with international backgrounds. The teacher-student ratio is about 1:6, the highest in Dubai and a lot higher than that in many other famous schools in Hangzhou and other Chinese cities. A strong faculty means that teaching is more individualized and more capable of addressing students’ specific needs as more attention can be paid to each student in the same amount of time. In a typical school, the parent-teacher conference is usually a meeting between one teacher and parents of all students. However, at Chinese School Dubai, the parent-teacher conference is a meeting between all teachers plus the grade supervisor of a student and the student’s parents. As a result, the parent-teacher conference is held student by student and can last for a week. In the next semester, ten more excellent teachers will be arriving from Hangzhou as student enrollment is to be increased.
Third, the students have many course options to choose from. In addition to the mandatory curriculum of the Chinese academic system and local courses, Chinese School Dubai also provides international courses and extension courses, including traditional Chinese culture, art, sports, and science exploration. In the recent Measures of Academic Progress (MAP) tests taken in Dubai, Chinese School Dubai students scored well above average in math and on par with the average in English.
Fourth, the campus is beautiful. Chinese School Dubai attaches great importance to its campus culture and unique characteristics, making full use of fences, classroom walls, halls, libraries, corridors, gymnasiums, and other common spaces to demonstrate in various forms the traditional Chinese culture, famous quotes, school mottoes, and student codes of conduct, etc. Thanks to the teachers’ contribution to the design of an environmentally friendly campus, the school now takes on a new look.
The achievements of Chinese School Dubai are fully recognized by parents and this is reflected in student enrollment this year. While other international schools in Dubai are having a difficult time enrolling students due to the pandemic, Chinese School Dubai has not only achieved its goal for the enrollment of Grade 1 students, but also expanded classes in all other grades with an increase of 50% in student enrollment.