View source for Constitution of the Chinese Communist Party

{{Short description|Party constitution}}
{{Distinguish|Constitution of the People's Republic of China}}
{{Use American English|date = January 2019}}
{{Use mdy dates|date = January 2019}}
{{Infobox Chinese
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| piccap = Front cover of the Constitution of the Chinese Communist Party
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| s = {{linktext|中国共产党|章程}}
| t = {{linktext|中國共産黨|章程}}
| w = 
| p = Zhōngguó Gòngchǎndǎng Zhāngchéng
| mi = 
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{{Politics of China |expanded = Communist Party}}

The '''Constitution of the Chinese Communist Party''' has 55 articles and its contents describe the program of the party, as well as its organizational structure and party symbolism. The [[Chinese Communist Party]] adopted its first program at the [[1st National Congress of the Chinese Communist Party|1st National Congress]] and adopted its first constitution in 1945. Its current constitution was adopted in 1982; while it has since been revised, its basic content has been stable since 1982.

== History ==
The [[Chinese Communist Party]] (CCP) first outlined some of the basic elements of a constitution in its Party Program adopted during the [[1st National Congress of the Chinese Communist Party|1st National Congress]], although the Party Program itself was not a constitution. It stated that the Party's guiding ideology is [[Marxism–Leninism]], and its ultimate goal is the realization of [[communism]].<ref name=":RedInk">{{Cite book |last=Li |first=Ying |title=Red Ink: A History of Printing and Politics in China |publisher=Royal Collins Press |year=2024 |isbn=9781487812737}}</ref>{{Rp|page=116}}

The [[2nd National Congress of the Chinese Communist Party|2nd National Congress]] in 1922 adopted the Party Program. The Party's minimum program was a democratic revolution aimed at thoroughly opposing imperialism and feudalism. It stipulated the qualifications for Party membership and the procedures for joining the Party, the Party's organizational principles, organizational structure, discipline, and system.<ref name=":1">{{cite web |title=中国共产党历次全国代表大会数据库 |trans-title=Database of the National Congresses of the Chinese Communist Party |url=http://cpc.people.com.cn/GB/64162/64168/index.html |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20201109081356/http://cpc.people.com.cn/GB/64162/64168/index.html |archivedate=9 November 2020 |accessdate=25 July 2020 |website=[[Chinese Communist Party News Network]] |publisher=}}</ref>

The [[3rd National Congress of the Chinese Communist Party|3rd National Congress]] in 1923 amended the program to stipulate the rights and obligations of alternate and full members.<ref name=":1" />

The [[4th National Congress of the Chinese Communist Party|4th National Congress]] in 1925 amended the program to stipulate that Party branches are the basic units of the Party, change the title of [[Chairman of the Chinese Communist Party|Chairman of the Central Committee]] to [[General Secretary of the Chinese Communist Party|General Secretary]], and change the title of chairman of the executive committee of the Party at all levels to Secretary.<ref name=":1" />

The [[5th National Congress of the Chinese Communist Party|5th National Congress]] in 1927 amended the program to stipulate that the Party's organizational principle is [[democratic centralism]], that the age for joining the Party is 18 years or older, that the relationship between the Party and the [[Communist Youth League of China|Youth League]] must be defined, and that in addition to electing one formal member of the Central Committee as General Secretary, the Central Committee must also elect several formal members of the Central Committee to organize the Politburo to guide all political work nationwide.<ref name=":1" />

The [[6th National Congress of the Chinese Communist Party|6th National Congress]] in 1928 amended the program to emphasize that the CCP was a branch of the [[Communist International]], highlighting the leading position of the Communist International.<ref name=":1" />

The CCP's 1945 constitution described [[Maoism|Mao Zedong Thought]] as the party's working compass,<ref name=":22">{{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 |pages=17–45 |chapter=Organisation and (Lack of) Democracy in the Chinese Communist Party: A Critical Reading of the Successive Iterations of the Party Constitution |doi=10.22459/CCP.2024.01 |editor-last2=Froissart |editor-first2=Chloé |doi-access=free}}</ref>{{Rp|page=23}} writing it into the preamble.<ref name=":RedInk" />{{Rp|page=117}} The 1945 constitution also discusses [[Democracy in China|democracy]] in the context of [[New Democracy]].<ref name=":22" />{{Rp|page=22}} Passed at the Party's [[7th National Congress of the Chinese Communist Party|7th National Congress]], it was the first independently drafted by the Party.<ref name=":RedInk" />{{Rp|page=117}}

=== People's Republic of China ===
The [[8th National Congress of the Chinese Communist Party|8th National Congress]] held in September 1956 removed Mao Zedong Thought from the guiding ideology list; declared that socialist transformation was complete and the socialist system was established; and made building a socialist economy the Party's primary task.<ref name=":1" />

The constitution adopted during April 1969 at the [[9th National Congress of the Chinese Communist Party|9th National Congress]] named [[Lin Biao]] as Mao Zedong's "close comrade in arms and successor".<ref name=":322">{{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=}}</ref>{{Rp|page=142}} The 9th Congress in April 1969 re-established Mao Zedong Thought as the Party's guiding ideology. It affirmed the [[Cultural Revolution]] and the theory of continuing the revolution under the dictatorship of the proletariat.<ref name=":1" />

The [[10th National Congress of the Chinese Communist Party|10th National Congress]] in August 1983 removed the content that mentioned Lin Biao as the successor, and continued to affirm the Cultural Revolution.<ref name=":1" />

The [[11th National Congress of the Chinese Communist Party|11th National Congress]] in August 1977 reinstated the economic construction content of the 8th National Congress, set the Four Modernizations as the Party's goal, and reinstated the Discipline Inspection Commissions at all levels. It continued to affirm the Cultural Revolution.<ref name=":1" />

The constitution currently in force was adopted at The [[12th National Congress of the Chinese Communist Party|12th National Congress]] in September 1982.<ref name=":RedInk" />{{Rp|page=117}} Although the constitution has been revised since, its basic content continues to be the 1982 constitution.<ref name=":RedInk" />{{Rp|page=117}} The constitution can be amended once every five years.<ref name=":Hou">{{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}}</ref> The 12th Congress repudiated the Cultural Revolution and the theory of continuing the revolution under the dictatorship of the proletariat. It abolished the positions of chairman and Vice Chairmen of the Central Committee, stipulating that the General Secretary of the Central Committee would be the principal leader of the Party Central Committee. It additionally established the [[Central Advisory Commission]], stipulated the [[Chinese Communist Party Admission Oath|oath of joining the Party]], and proposed the construction of [[socialism with Chinese characteristics]].<ref name=":1" />

The [[13th National Congress of the Chinese Communist Party|13th National Congress]] in October–November 1987 amended the constitution to expound the theory of the [[primary stage of socialism]] and formulated the "three-step" modernization development strategy.<ref name=":1" />

The [[14th National Congress of the Chinese Communist Party|14th National Congress]] in October 1992 established a [[socialist market economy]] system, proposed to arm the whole Party with [[Deng Xiaoping]]'s theory of building socialism with Chinese characteristics, and abolished the Central Advisory Commission. 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."<ref name=":42">{{Cite book |last=Heilmann |first=Sebastian |author-link=Sebastian Heilmann |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}}</ref>{{Rp|page=65}}

The [[15th National Congress of the Chinese Communist Party|15th National Congress]] in September 1997 established [[Deng Xiaoping Theory]] as the CCP's guiding ideology; and put forward its basic program for the primary stage of socialism.<ref name=":1" />

==== 21st century ====
The [[16th National Congress of the Chinese Communist Party|16th National Congress]] in November 2002 included the incorporation of the [[Three Represents]]. It also included the goal of building a [[moderately prosperous society]].<ref>{{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}}</ref>

The [[17th National Congress of the Chinese Communist Party|17th National Congress]] in October 2007 included the incorporation of the [[Scientific Outlook on Development]]. It also included the [[theoretical system of socialism with Chinese characteristics]].<ref>{{Cite web |date=29 August 2022 |title=中国特色社会主义理论体系的概括提出有何重大意义？ |trans-title=What is the significance of summarizing the theoretical system of socialism with Chinese characteristics? |url=https://www.12371.cn/2022/08/29/ARTI1661761939373251.shtml |access-date=2025-04-01 |website=[[Chinese Communist Party]]}}</ref>

The [[18th National Congress of the Chinese Communist Party|18th National Congress]] in November 2012, saw the inclusion of the Scientific Outlook on Development as a "guiding ideology" of the party, 'upgraded' from simply an ideology to merely "follow and implement" when it was initially written into the constitution in 2007.<ref name="dangzhang">{{cite news |date=November 28, 2012 |title=十八大对党章作了哪些修改？ |url=https://dangshi.people.com.cn/n/2012/1128/c234123-19723444.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180825075325/http://dangshi.people.com.cn/n/2012/1128/c234123-19723444.html |archive-date=August 25, 2018 |access-date=July 21, 2018 |work=[[People's Daily]]}}</ref> The affirmation of socialism with Chinese characteristics as a "[[System of socialism with Chinese characteristics|system]]" (''zhidu'') was written into the party constitution for the first time. The "construction of ecological civilization" (''shengtai wenming'') as a major goal of the party was also written into the party constitution, an extension from the previous version of the constitution which included economic, political, cultural, and social realms; this ostensibly increased the attention the party intended to focus on the environment.<ref>{{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}}</ref>{{Rp|page=1}}

The [[19th National Congress of the Chinese Communist Party|19th National Congress]] in October 2017 ratified amendments including the incorporation of [[Xi Jinping Thought]].<ref name=":0" /> General Secretary [[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."<ref name=":0">{{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}}</ref> The [[Belt and Road Initiative]] was also added to the party constitution.<ref>{{Cite news |last1=Goh |first1=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]]}}</ref><ref name=":32">{{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 |doi=10.7312/shin21000 |jstor=10.7312/shin21000}}</ref>{{Rp|page=58}} Amendments in 2017 also strengthened the role of party committees in [[State-owned enterprises of China|state-owned enterprises]].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Borst |first=Nicholas |title=The Bird and the Cage: China's Economic Contradictions |date=2025 |publisher=[[Palgrave Macmillan]] |isbn=978-981-96-3996-0 |location=Singapore |doi=10.1007/978-981-96-3997-7}}</ref>{{Reference page|pages=113-114}}

The [[20th National Congress of the Chinese Communist Party|20th National Congress]] in October 2022 saw several amendments to the party constitution. Additions included opposition to [[Taiwan independence movement|Taiwan independence]],<ref name=":6">{{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}}</ref> 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]].<ref name=":6" /> 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".<ref name=":6" /> The [[Two Upholds]] was added, thereby cementing the "[[Leadership core|core]]" status of Xi Jinping.<ref>{{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 (magazine)|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 }}</ref>

== Contents ==
The constitution states that [[Marxism–Leninism]] and Mao Zedong Thought are the party's official ideology.<ref name=":Hou" /> The constitution emphasizes the party's role in promoting [[socialist democracy]], in developing and strengthening a [[Law of the People's Republic of China|socialist legal system]], and in consolidating public resolve to carry out the modernization program.<ref name="LOC">{{Country study|date=July 1987|country=China|abbr=cn}}</ref>

The constitution states that the interests of the people and the party are paramount over the interests of party members.<ref name=":11">{{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 |oclc=1348572572 |s2cid=253067190}}</ref>{{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]]).<ref name=":11" />{{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."<ref name=":22" />{{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.<ref name=":22" />{{Rp|page=23}}

The [[Chinese Communist Party Admission Oath]] has been written into the constitution since 1982.<ref name=":RedInk" />{{Rp|page=117}}

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

== External links ==
{{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}}

[[Category:Chinese Communist Party|China]]
[[Category:Rulebooks of communist parties]]