The decision of China’s ruling Communist Party to stick with the political theories of Karl Marx remains “totally correct”, President Xi Jinping said. Since coming to power in 2012, Xi, widely seen as the most powerful Chinese leader since Mao Zedong, has said the party must not forget its socialist roots as it works to attain the”great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation”. At the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on Friday (May 4), Xi said, “Writing Marxism onto the flag of the Chinese Communist Party was totally correct… Unceasingly promoting the sinification and modernisation of Marxism is totally correct.” Xi also instructed all party members to adopt the reading of Marxist works and the understanding of Marxist theories as a”way of life” and a “spiritual pursuit”.
Xi’s speech came near the end of a week-long propaganda blitz by state media, with chat shows saying “Marx was Right”and cartoons of his wild youth aiming to show his theories remain relevant to modern China and the next generation. Today, China, the largest self-identified socialist country, outwardly displays all the trappings of a modern capitalist society, from rampant consumption to a massive gap between the urban elite and rural poor.The apparent contradiction between party rhetoric and appearance has prompted many analysts to suggest the party is no longer really motivated by Marxism but puts practical and economic concerns above all else.
