Qiushi Journal, the flagship magazine of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, has called for conforming with the country's top leader, Xi Jinping. [Special coverage]
To promote the core leadership of the Party, the priority is to "conform with the CPC Central Committee, with General Secretary (of the CPC Central Committee) Xi Jinping as well as with the Party's theories, guidelines, principles and policies," according to a recent commentary under the byline "Qiushi."
It urged enhancing "consciousness of the ideology, the whole, the core and the line."
The "four consciousnesses" were raised earlier this year at a high-level meeting of the CPC Central Committee and have been frequently invoked since then.
The article was published ahead of the annual sessions of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference National Committee, China's top political advisory body, and the National People's Congress, China's top legislature.
Together dubbed the "two sessions," the meetings are the most important political events in China, where political and economic development measures are discussed and key policies are adopted.
Party advocacy of China's development must be ensured in all processes and aspects of building socialism with Chinese characteristics, it said.
It calls for unifying the thinking of all people with a series of important speeches by Xi amid efforts to realize the Chinese dream of national rejuvenation.
The article stresses advancing the "Four Comprehensives," the overarching strategy for China's long-term development. The phrase was first coined by Xi in 2014.
It also called for upholding and implementing the five development concepts of innovation, coordination, green development, opening up and sharing. These have become key words in guiding the country's development since they were raised at a key CPC meeting last October.
On the same day when the Qiushi article was published, Liu Yunshan, member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee, said conforming with the line is a significant political principle. It is where the Party's strength and advantage lie.
"The fundamental principle of strengthening the consciousness of the line is to conform with the CPC Central Committee, with Xi as general secretary, in ideology, political thinking and deeds," he said while speaking at the spring semester opening ceremony of the Party School of the CPC Central Committee.
