On July 1st this year, China’s Communist Party of China marked 100 years making it the world’s longest party. The party which started in 1921 with its first meeting on a small lake in a boat with its focus on socialism, communism and revolutionary ideas started with a few people but now has 89 million members.
However from its success also comes the puts and downs. Mr Xi, who spoke for around an hour, reiterated the role of the party in modern China, saying that it has been central to the country’s growth and that attempts to separate it from the people would “fail”.
“Only socialism can save China, and only socialism with Chinese characteristics can develop China,” he said.
He added that “we will never allow anyone to bully, oppress or subjugate China”.
“Anyone who dares try to do that will have their heads bashed bloody against the Great Wall of Steel forged by over 1.4 billion Chinese people,” he said.
At one point military jets flew over the crowd in formation of the number 100; flown by pilots loyal to the Party and the people.
It’s easy to forget when you live here but a key part of the Communist Party strategy has been to try to morph the Party and the machinery of government and the perception of the nation of China into one.
They attribute any success, progress, advancement – and there has been phenomenal economic advancement – to the people and the government but most of all the Party.
Just to make sure the message went out loud and clear, at the end of the ceremony, the crowd sung a song called “Without the Communist Party There Would Be No New China”.
China is considered as the second strongest economy in the world after the United States of America and is projected to on on top in the next few years
