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Sustaining Revolutionary Legacy and Building Excellent Urban Area - An Interview with Yu Yong, Secretary of CPC Jing’an District Committee, by Xinhua

Released on:2022-09-07 Views:

In July 1922, the Second National Congress of the Communist Party of China passed the first Party Constitution. The Memorial Site of the Second National Congress of the CPC is located in Jing’an District, Shanghai. This year marks the centenary of the Second National Congress and first Party Constitution, which are the Party’s endless revolutionary traditions and legacy.

As the core area of the Party’s early activities in Shanghai, Jing’an has abundant revolutionary resources. How to sustain the revolutionary legacy and carry forward the great founding spirit of the Party? How to lead Jing’an residents to work with full strength and pool great strength for innovative development at a new starting point? Around these issues, Yu Yong, Secretary of the CPC Jing’an District Committee, was interviewed by Xinhua.

Immersing in Revolutionary Jing’an

In the bustling city, a row of hoary Shikumen buildings looks solemn and quiet against the backdrop of green trees. The buildings are silent, but magnificent revolutionary memories are hidden in every room and corridor.

On July 19, students and their parents visited the Memorial Site of the Second National Congress of the CPC. (Photo by Liu Ying/Xinhua)

Here is the Memorial Site of the Second National Congress of the CPC, once known as No. 625 of Fudeli. From July 16 to 23, 1922, the Second National Congress of the CPC was held here to discuss and study a series of major issues in the early days of the founding of the CPC.

“As an important milestone in the history of the CPC, the Second National Congress adopted the first Party Constitution and finished the founding of the CPC with the First National Congress, during which the Party’s democratic revolution program and united front idea were put forward for the first time,” Yu Yong said.

Nowadays, many touching revolutionary stories are told at the Memorial Site of the Second National Congress of the CPC. The Memorial Site includes the Party Constitution Hall, where the red Party Constitution Wall displays different versions of the Party Constitution of different periods; interactive devices “light up” a number of records created during the Second National Congress; the century-old Shikumen that has been renovated allows visitors to explore its historic appearance.

With the Memorial Site of the Second National Congress of the CPC as the center, revolutionary landmarks are scattered all over Jing’an, including Mao Zedong’s Former Residence Exhibition Gallery in Shanghai, the Former Site Memorial of the CPC Central Military Commission, the Former Secretariat Site of the CPC Central Committee and the Former Site of the Office of the CPC Central Intelligence Agency…

Yu Yong said that Jing’an now has 105 revolutionary sites, which is the leader among all districts in Shanghai. On the occasion of celebrating the centenary of the founding of the CPC, Jing’an has set up monuments for the first batch of important revolutionary resources, including 11 monuments and four commemorative plates.

“Jing’an with abundant revolutionary resources is the area where Marxism was spread, the revolutionary leaders stayed, the early organs of the CPC Central Committee gathered, the first Party Constitution was born, and the mass movements began.” Yu Yong said that Jing’an has always attached great importance to these precious revolutionary resources. The Repair and Transformation Leading Group for the Excavation and Publicity of the Party’s Birthplace in Jing’an, and the Joint Meeting System for the Protection and Utilization of Revolutionary Resources in Jing’an are established to strengthen the organization and leadership for carrying forward the revolutionary culture.

Since July 2019, Jing’an has launched three major actions of “Red Heritage Protection, Red Gene Inheritance and Red Brand Building” to promote the construction of the red cultural brand. From exhibitions to venues and from books to routes, the red gene of Jing’an will be more carefully guarded to get the deeper inheritance.

Telling Revolutionary Stories of Jing’an

As the curtain fell on the stage, the audience burst into tears with thunderous applause. In 2021, Jing’an created Fudeli, a revolutionary drama about the history of the Second National Congress, which has finished the tour in ten cities in five provinces and gained numerous fans. The young audience said: “I see those passionate lives with absolute sincerity in the history of the CPC.”

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A Still of Fudeli (shot on April 22, 2021). (Photo by Liu Ying/Xinhua)

Innovating situational Party lectures is also a major feature for Jing’an to spread the revolutionary culture. Jing’an has successfully created immersive situational Party lectures such as Footprints: Revolutionary Overture - Starting Point • Cradle, Marks • Cyan Dream, Imprints • Revolutionary Mission, and Footprints • Revolutionary Dawn, which were staged at the Former Site of the China Labor Union Secretariat Department, Mao Zedong’s Former Residence Exhibition Gallery in Shanghai, the Former Residence of Liu Changsheng, the Historical Memorial Hall of the Central Bureau after the Third National Congress of the Communist Party of China and other revolutionary landmarks, respectively, creating a model of tracing the revolutionary footprints that integrates visit, experience and education.

Yu Yong said that since 2020, Jing’an has successively launched five excellent revolutionary tourist routes, connecting multiple revolutionary landmarks in Jing’an, so that participants will have a more vivid and profound understanding of the revolutionary heritage of Shanghai and Jing’an by visiting along the routes.

“This year, we will launch a series of videos such as the feature documentary Fudeli 1922, the high-definition drama image Fudeli, and Forever Flag - Revolutionary Journey of Century-old Party Constitution, a documentary themed on the Party Constitution. The Party School of the CPC Jing’an District Committee will also produce 20 micro Party lectures to tell the knowledge and stories about the Party Constitution attentively, and create the classroom and interactive courses themed with Party Constitution education.” Yu Yong said.

Completing Tasks of Jing’an

is Best Inheritance

Completing the tasks of Jing’an is important for passing down revolutionary traditions and sustaining the revolutionary legacy. The Party building carried out for the workers in buildings in Shanghai started very early, and Jing’an is one of the birthplaces of this kind of Party building.

“Relying on resource advantages and first-mover advantages, we continue to focus on the most active economic and social channels, explore revolutionary resources, pass down revolutionary traditions, activate strong revolutionary productivity, constantly create a fresh experience in practices, and promote Jing’an to achieve new results in Party building,” Yu Yong said.

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Shot in Jing’an District on July 4. Photo by Xiao Mingliang

In 2021, the annual tax revenue of the Hang Lung-owned Plaza 66 on West Nanjing Road, Jing’an, reached RMB 10 billion. This achievement is rare in China, which injects new vitality into the development of Shanghai’s building economy and headquarters economy. Yu Yong said that this is a vivid case of leading the high-quality development of building an economy with the high level of Party building.

Now, the Party organizations of new economic organizations and new social organizations in Plaza 66 have been upgraded to the Building Joint Party Committee, and the Building Affairs Committee has been set up to help the governance of business communities and blocks. The community service center is set up at the landscape location on the 22nd floor of Plaza 66. A mutually symbiotic relationship is established between the Party building carried out for the workers in buildings and the building economy, which becomes a “gilded signboard” for attracting, securing, and stabilizing investment. At the end of May this year, Plaza 66 took the lead in opening an offline business, thanks to the coordination and assistance of the Building Joint Party Committee and the Party Working Committee of West Nanjing Road Sub-district.

In the fight against the epidemic in Shanghai, there are community-level officials with gray hair and losing weight, responsible officials sent to work in communities who win praise from residents, and Party member volunteers who rise to the occasion whenever the country and the people need them.

“We come together with the same purpose to form strong synergy against the epidemic. Jing’an builds a strong line of defense against the virus with the leadership of the Party organization at the core. Relying on the advantages of the gridded Party building system and mechanism, 255 temporary Party branches were set up and 197 mobile members were sent to key areas to overcome difficulties and protect people’s health and safety during the epidemic,” Yu Yong said.

“Efforts must be made to make up for the time lost and restore development,” he added. At present, Jing’an is effectively coordinating the COVID-19 response with economic and social development. Solid progress has been made in focusing on seven key fronts and ensuring stability on seven key fronts, such as focusing on projects, stabilizing investment, focusing on the market, stabilizing consumption, focusing on transformation and stabilizing benefits. Jing’an continues to deepen the “demonstration area for international consumer city”, which was vividly illustrated by the settlement of other international famous brands in Jing’an.

The Party’s united front idea was put forward for the first time at the Second National Congress. Jing’an has been doing a good job in united front work. Yu Yong said that Jing’an gives full play to its advantages of the united front in gathering talent to provide strong support for the Party Committee and government to make scientific decisions and implement precise policies. For example, the practical innovation base of the united front work for the new social stratum nationwide, “Shanghai Jing’an New Social Stratum Association”, is set up, which is the first move in Shanghai to include ethnic and religious affairs into the “One-network-wide Unified Management” platform. In order to make financing for private enterprises, especially micro and small businesses easier and affordable, Jing’an has established a four-party cooperation mechanism between the government, the chamber of commerce and association, the bank and enterprises, rolling out a slew of financing services to help private enterprises cope with the epidemic and tide over difficulties.

At present, Shanghai is carrying forward the great founding spirit of the Party, putting into practice the concept of a “People’s City”, and accelerating the construction of a modern socialist international metropolis with global influence. Yu Yong said that Jing’an should always sustain the revolutionary legacy, make solid efforts to ensure the success of various endeavors with the target of building “International Jing’an: An Outstanding Urban Area”, and make a due contribution to the overall development of Shanghai.