A decision reached by the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee in early October on the issue of social harmony represents the first programmatic document on construction of a harmonious society and a great innovation in the CPC's theory of building socialism with Chinese characteristics. So it is of realistic significance and far-reaching historical significance either in theory or in practice.

Setting forth this major strategic task for building the socialist harmonious society further improves the theory on building socialism with Chinese characteristics and establishes the core ideas and goals the CPC has to persevere in governing the nation and managing state affairs during the entire course of advancing socialism with Chinese characteristics. The proposition of the theory on a building harmonious society can indeed be said to match the theses concerning the primary stage of socialism and regarding socialist market-oriented economy, and it represents another major theoretical innovation. Therefore, this theory signifies the overall definition for the construction of socialism with Chinese characteristics, if the theory on the primary stage of socialism is said to define the historical poison of the present Chinese society and the theory on socialist market economy is said to scientifically specify the objective orientation for reforming the country's economic system.

The advancement of the major strategic task for building a harmonious socialist society keeps deepening the CPC's basic policy of unifying the reform, development and stability and provides a fundamental guarantee for the construction of a society in which people will enjoy a fairly comfortable life in an all-round way. The construction of such a relatively-affluent society proposed at the 16th CPC National Congress in 2002 implies not only the "comprehensiveness" in which more than one billion people in China jointly build and share the fruits of construction but the "comprehensiveness" in coordinating the "five civilizations", namely, material civilization, political civilization, ethical and cultural civilization, social civilization and ecological civilization. Only this can be termed as the "comprehensiveness" of the relatively-affluent society and the genuine "comprehensiveness" in building a harmonious society.

The advancement of this major strategic task further affirms the strategic thought for the construction of such a society by reinforcing its foundation at the root, a substantial step forward toward a more explicit goal for the building of socialism with Chinese characteristics, which had been first raised and set forth by late senior leader Deng Xiaoping. The CPC Central Committee with Hu Jintao as the general secretary has come to understand in a still more penetrating way the thesis of socialism with Chinese characteristics and put it into practice from the political, economical and cultural perspectives and from the angle of relations between human beings and the nature.

The advancement of this major strategic task further deepens and enriches the strategic thinking for the CPC to increase its ability to resist any possible risks and enhance its position as the ruling party and for the people to live a happy and secure life, and for society to be in peace and order, thus laying down a scientific mechanism and the correct line of thought. Therefore, this vital strategic concept and task regarding the construction of a harmonious society can essentially prepare the CPC in ideology for its clear-cut stances to respond to and dissolve a whole series of contradictions, problems and risks as well as effective measures, so that it can stand severe tests in an invincible position and is be capable of leading and steering China in major historical leaps ahead.

By People's Daily Online