On the morning of September 14, the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China and the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress held a grand meeting at the Great Hall of the People to celebrate the 70th anniversary of the founding of the National People's Congress. Xi Jinping, General Secretary of the CPC Central Committee, President of the State, and Chairman of the Central Military Commission, attended the meeting and delivered an important speech. He emphasized the need to further strengthen confidence in the path, theory, system, and culture, develop whole-process people's democracy, uphold, improve, and effectively operate the system of people's congresses, and provide a solid institutional guarantee for achieving the Party and people's goals in the new era and new journey.

Li Qiang, Wang Huning, Cai Qi, Ding Xuexiang, and Li Xi, members of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee, and Han Zheng, Vice President of the State, attended the meeting. Zhao Leji, member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and Chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress, presided over the meeting.

The meeting began with the majestic national anthem. Xi Jinping delivered an important speech. He pointed out that the system of people's congresses is the result of the arduous exploration and long-term struggle led by the Communist Party of China and the Chinese people. It is a brand-new political system grown from Chinese soil and a great creation in the history of human political systems. The establishment of the people's congress system signifies a fundamental leap in Chinese politics from a system where power was held by a few and the vast majority were oppressed and exploited, to one led by the Communist Party of China with the people as masters of the country, achieving a great transformation in China's political system.

Xi Jinping emphasized that over the past 70 years, under the Party's leadership, the people's congress system has effectively ensured that China has always advanced along the socialist path. It has demonstrated significant political advantages in ensuring the Party leads the people in governing the country according to law, guaranteeing the people's mastery of the country, maintaining a vibrant yet stable and orderly political life, realizing the legalization of all aspects of national work, and ensuring long-term stability and security. It has provided an important institutional guarantee for creating the two miracles of rapid economic development and long-term social stability. Practice has proven that the people's congress system is a good system that fits China's national conditions and realities, reflects the nature of a socialist state, and can effectively unite all the people to jointly promote Chinese-style modernization.

Xi Jinping pointed out that since the 18th National Congress of the CPC, our Party, based on a new historical position, has deeply grasped the new changes in the principal social contradictions in China, actively responded to the people's new demands and expectations for democracy and the rule of law, improved the organizational and working systems of people's congresses, and promoted historic achievements in their work. We adhere to combining the basic principles of Marxism with China's specific realities and excellent traditional Chinese culture, deeply understand the development laws of socialist democratic politics, and continuously advance theoretical and practical innovations in the people's congress system. He emphasized that the people's congress system is an important institutional carrier for realizing whole-process people's democracy in China. We must uphold the leadership of the Communist Party of China, ensure the people's mastery through the institutional system, uphold comprehensive rule of law, adhere to democratic centralism, follow the path of socialist political development with Chinese characteristics, promote the modernization of the national governance system and governance capacity, fully play the role of people's congress deputies, and strengthen people's congresses at all levels according to the requirements of the "four organs." This series of new concepts, thoughts, and requirements form the Party's important thinking on upholding and improving the people's congress system and provide fundamental guidance for promoting high-quality development of people's congress work in the new era.

Xi Jinping emphasized the need to fully leverage the people's congresses' important role in ensuring the comprehensive and effective implementation of the Constitution and laws. People's congresses at all levels and their standing committees must fully perform their duties, resolutely safeguard the unity, dignity, and authority of the national legal system, ensure the effective implementation of the Constitution and laws, and ensure that all state organs perform their duties and carry out work within the scope of the Constitution and laws.

Xi Jinping pointed out the need to fully play the leading role of people's congresses in legislative work. We must uphold and improve the legislative work pattern led by the Party committee, dominated by people's congresses, supported by the government, and participated in by all parties. We should strengthen legislation in key, emerging, and foreign-related fields, improve legislative quality, and continuously improve the socialist legal system with Chinese characteristics. We should accelerate the improvement of legal systems that reflect fairness in rights, opportunities, and rules, ensuring the effective realization of citizens' rights.

Xi Jinping emphasized the need to fully play the important role of people's congress supervision within the Party and state supervision system. We should improve the supervision system of people's congresses over the "one government, one commission, and two courts," strengthen supervision over the implementation of the Constitution and laws, enhance the review and supervision of budgets and final accounts, and supervise the management of state-owned assets and government debt. We should promote the implementation of the Party Central Committee's decisions and deployments, ensure that all state organs exercise power according to law, and safeguard and realize the legitimate rights and interests of the people. Administrative organs, supervisory organs, judicial organs, and procuratorial organs at all levels must consciously accept people's congress supervision and effectively fulfill their respective supervisory responsibilities.

Xi Jinping pointed out the need to fully play the leading role of people's congresses in maintaining close ties with the people. All state organs and state staff must firmly establish the awareness of being servants of the people, place the people in the highest position in their hearts, and maintain close contact with the masses. People's congress deputies shoulder the glorious responsibility entrusted by the people, must faithfully represent the people's interests and will, and serve as a bridge connecting the Party and state with the people. All state organs should support and guarantee people's congress deputies in performing their duties according to law, improve the system and mechanisms for deputies to connect with the people, and enrich the content and forms of deputies' contact with the masses.

Xi Jinping emphasized that Party committees at all levels must strengthen comprehensive leadership over people's congress work, support people's congresses and their standing committees in exercising their powers and carrying out work according to law. The Party groups of people's congress standing committees at all levels must always uphold the centralized and unified leadership of the Party Central Committee, implement the main responsibility of strict Party governance, and, according to the requirements of the "four organs," effectively strengthen the political, ideological, organizational, work style, and disciplinary construction of people's congress organs. They should build a people's congress workforce that is politically firm, serves the people, respects the rule of law, promotes democracy, and is diligent and responsible, continuously improving the quality and level of people's congress work in the new era and new journey.

When presiding over the meeting, Zhao Leji pointed out that General Secretary Xi Jinping's important speech reviewed the glorious history of the Communist Party of China leading the Chinese people to establish and improve the people's congress system, profoundly expounded the significant political advantages of the people's congress system, systematically summarized the major achievements in theory and practice innovation of the people's congress system in the new era, and made comprehensive arrangements and clear requirements for upholding, improving, and effectively operating the people's congress system at the new historical starting point. The speech is lofty in purpose and inspiring, enriching and developing General Secretary Xi Jinping's important thoughts on upholding and improving the people's congress system. It is a programmatic document shining with the truth of Marxism, which must be earnestly studied, understood, and resolutely implemented. We must deeply understand the decisive significance of the "two establishments," consciously achieve the "two safeguards," unswervingly follow the path of socialist political development with Chinese characteristics, and uphold, improve, and effectively operate the people's congress system.

Members of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee in Beijing, secretaries of the Central Secretariat, vice chairpersons of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress, State Councilors, presidents of the Supreme People's Court, procurators general of the Supreme People's Procuratorate, some vice chairpersons of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, veteran comrades who have served in leadership positions of the National People's Congress Standing Committee, and members of the Central Military Commission attended the meeting.

Main leaders of the central Party, government, military, and mass organizations and Beijing, leaders of the central committees of democratic parties, the All-China Federation of Industry and Commerce, representatives of non-party persons, members of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress, members of various special committees of the National People's Congress, leaders of people's congress standing committees of provinces, autonomous regions, municipalities, and some sub-provincial cities, some national people's congress deputies, representatives from all sectors of the capital, foreign diplomats in China, and about 3,000 people attended the meeting.