Formation process of 18th CPC Congress report revealed

The formation process of Hu Jintao's report to the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC), which ended on Nov. 14 in Beijing, was revealed on Tuesday.

The formation of the report, which reflects the will of both the Party and the people, has been a process of developing democracy and pooling the wisdom of all Party members, said sources with the CPC.

In October 2011, the 17th CPC Central Committee decided to hold the 18th CPC National Congress in the second half of 2012.

In January 2012, the Political Bureau of the 17th CPC Central Committee decided to set up a special work group headed by Xi Jinping to draft the report. Hu set down the guiding principles for drafting the report.

Members of the drafting group included leaders of the CPC Central Committee, central government departments and provincial governments.

From April 13 to 20, 2012, Hu heard reports by 38 research groups on 11 key topics and gave important suggestions on topics such as socialism with Chinese characteristics, the Scientific Outlook on Development, adjusting the economic growth pattern, deepening the reform of the economic system, and improving people's livelihood and Party building.

From May 11 to 14, 2012, Xi heard reports by research groups on four key topics and gave important suggestions on topics including China's goals in economic and social development by 2020, the construction of rural areas and urbanization, the promotion of sci-tech development and innovation and ecological progress.

From May 24 to June 25, Hu presided over two meetings of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and one meeting of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee to deliberate the draft report.

People present at the meetings agreed on the draft report's overall framework, structure and major content, and put forward important suggestions for revision.

On July 23, 2012, Hu delivered a speech on major issues concerning the draft report while addressing a senior course for ministerial officials and provincial heads.

Hu expounded on the theme of the report, saying its underlying theme is to firmly march on the path of socialism with Chinese characteristics and strive to complete the building of a moderately prosperous society in all respects.

Hu presided over a total of four meetings of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and two meetings of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee to deliberate and make revisions on the report in more than 10 months since the drafting began.

The drafting group held eight plenary sessions to give instructions on drafting the report during the same period.

From Nov. 1 to 4, 2012, the 17th CPC Central Committee discussed and approved the draft report at its 7th plenary meeting and decided to submit the report to the 18th CPC National Congress for deliberation.

On Nov. 8, 2012, Hu Jintao delivered the report at the 18th CPC National Congress, which was held between Nov. 8 and 14.

Further revisions were made to the report based on the views and suggestions of delegates to the 18th CPC National Congress.

The report was the result of careful investigations into China's actual conditions and broad consultations among people from all walks of Chinese society.

The report could only address the most important problems of China today and served as a feasible guideline for all people after careful investigation had been conducted and enough data had been collected, said a senior member of the drafting group.

From the beginning, Hu Jintao stressed that the collective wisdom of all Party members and people were needed in drafting the report.

On Jan. 6, a day after the drafting began, the CPC Central Committee distributed a notice to all provinces, ministries, the armed forces, public institutions and non-governmental organizations to solicit opinions about what should be written into the report.

In February, the drafting group sent seven teams to 12 provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities. The group held about 40 meetings and inspected more than 100 communities, enterprises and farms.

The data collected during this round of investigation laid a solid foundation for the draft report, said the source with the drafting group.

More institutions engaged in research and investigation and contributed to the drafting work before a draft was completed in mid-August.

From Aug. 27 to Sept. 4, Hu held seven meetings with provincial leaders, key military leaders, leaders of democratic parties, prominent businesspeople and celebrities to discuss the draft report.

As of Sept. 5, more than 4,500 people were consulted and 2,400 proposals were received.

At the 7th plenary session of the 17th CPC Central Committee, 200 members of the CPC Central Committee and 165 alternate members discussed the draft report, producing 196 proposals which led to 41 revisions to the report.

The final version of the report, which was delivered by Hu to about 2,300 delegates at the 18th CPC National Congress, ran 64 pages long and contained nearly 30,000 characters.

Many delegates agreed that the report thoroughly summarized the achievements made in the past decade and pointed out the targets and tasks for the coming five years and beyond, based on precise analysis and judgement on the current situation.

The report was adopted at the closing session of the 18th CPC National Congress on Nov. 14, which highlighted socialism with Chinese characteristics and listed requirements for achieving the goal of building a moderately prosperous society in all respects by 2020.

Hu Jintao said at the congress that the report would be a major political statement and guide for the country to make progress with socialism with Chinese characteristics under the new circumstances.