{"id":199860,"date":"2017-04-05T16:25:17","date_gmt":"2017-04-05T23:25:17","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/chinadigitaltimes.net\/?p=199860"},"modified":"2017-04-05T16:30:51","modified_gmt":"2017-04-05T23:30:51","slug":"chinese-academy-social-sciences-four-great-critiques","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/chinadigitaltimes.net\/2017\/04\/chinese-academy-social-sciences-four-great-critiques\/","title":{"rendered":"Chinese Academy of Social Sciences’ Four Big Critiques"},"content":{"rendered":"

In June 2014, a senior inspector from the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection\u00a0(the Party’s top graft watchdog) warned that\u00a0the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (CASS) (an influential government think tank) had been\u00a0“infiltrated” by “foreign forces.”<\/a>\u00a0This accusation came as two hallmark campaigns of the Xi Jinping administration were gaining momentum:\u00a0Xi’s\u00a0ongoing Party corruption cleanup<\/a>, and a\u00a0drive to enforce ideological orthodoxy<\/a>\u00a0throughout both the Party and society.\u00a0The warning of infiltration at CASS came after\u00a0a\u00a0leaked internal Party memo known as “Document No. 9”<\/a>\u00a0exposed Xi’s ideological priorities: to resist “false ideological trends, positions, and activities,” including “Western constitutional democracy,” “universal values,” “Western ideas of journalism,” and\u00a0“historical nihilism.” (Journalist Gao Yu was sentenced to seven years in prison in 2015 for allegedly leaking the document<\/a>, but has since been granted medical release<\/a>\u00a0to serve the remainder of a\u00a0reduced\u00a0sentence\u00a0under house arrest.) Earlier, as he\u00a0was in the middle of his gradual accession to top Party and State leader, Xi had\u00a0warned that a\u00a0primary reason for the collapse of the USSR<\/a>\u00a0was due to “their ideals and beliefs having been shaken.”<\/p>\n

Since the revelation of Document No. 9, Xi has overseen many related campaigns aimed at preserving Party ideas and beliefs.\u00a0Xi has\u00a0reinforced Mao-era Party views on the role of the media<\/a>,\u00a0cracked down on liberal microbloggers<\/a>, and subjected Chinese reporters to\u00a0mandatory training in the “Marxist view of journalism.”<\/a>\u00a0Meanwhile, the nation’s\u00a0institutes of higher learning have seen a campaign against “Western values,”<\/a>\u00a0and a series of\u00a0legislation has been passed in effort to maintain “ideological security.”<\/a><\/p>\n

Since CASS saw its ranks questioned, the think tank has been hard at work promoting the ideological orthodoxy that Xi’s policies have aimed at. On Weibo last month, user @TongZongjin (@<\/em>\u4edd\u5b97\u9526) shared images and prefaces to CASS essay anthologies rallying against some of the undesirable ideological trends<\/strong><\/a> outlined in Document No. 9. The first CASS volume, published in December 2015, focuses on essays critiquing\u00a0“historical nihilism<\/a>.” The\u00a0term, which came into favor in China after the pro-democracy movement of\u00a01989,\u00a0essentially means<\/a>\u00a0any telling of history that could challenge the “inevitability” of Chinese socialism or\u00a0China’s correct place along that trajectory. CDT\u00a0has translated the preface:<\/p>\n

\n

Chinese Academy of Social Sciences<\/h2>\n

Critical Essays on Historical Nihilism<\/h2>\n

Edited by the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences<\/p>\n

Chinese Social Science Press<\/p>\n

Preface<\/h3>\n

The leadership of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (CASS) places the highest degree of importance on the analysis, research, and critique of the current intellectual trend towards historical nihilism, and strives to actively engage in an unyielding struggle against this mistaken historical nihilist trend. Every year, in dealing with the problem of mistaken historical nihilism, my department takes the initiative on official media channels to make use of our willingness to speak out, and our aptitude for speaking out. At the same time, we make use of our full array of theoretical academic publishing and broadcasting platforms (newspapers, journals, websites, conferences and roundtables) to continue to put out a series of critical theoretical essays: This year alone we have completed more than one hundred works on this topic, setting the stage for a large-scale and influential public debate, and confirming our unequivocal opposition to mistaken historical nihilism. Using a critical approach, we have systematically exposed and profoundly explicated the fundamental character, danger, and means of expressing of historical nihilism, while establishing correct historical perspectives and ceaselessly strengthening the freedom of expression and freedom of influence of Marxist ideology and philosophy within the sphere of social science research. We have firmly asserted our right not only to engage in ideological work, but to manage and speak out on the work of others. These efforts have been met with widespread support from academic circles and individuals high and low, earning the overwhelming approval and praise of cadres of every rank.<\/span><\/p>\n

In the struggle against historical nihilism and many other mistaken intellectual trends, the leadership of my department places the highest degree of importance on the cultivation of Marxist ideology for our leading cadres, in addition to the political studies and theoretical ideological education for our researchers and staff. To this end, we have organized annual book clubs for local leading cadres; implemented education courses for management level and above cadres; required ideological studies and Marxist theory composition courses for our entire staff; ideological research think tanks; and Marxist internet armies. These efforts form the basis of a nascent vanguard of Marxist and Party ideological workers. <\/span><\/p>\n

Many of the essays in this collection were written and published by comrades from our organization or professional scholars from affiliated work units; others were composed by external scholars. Our goal in editing this book was to help strengthen our cadres\u2019 grasp of historical materialism and make clear the fundamental character and danger of the intellectual trend, dispelling doubts and explaining away confusion, sorting sources, unifying our thinking, and improving our cognitive goals.<\/span><\/p>\n

End of preface. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

[Name Unclear]<\/span><\/p>\n

Director and Party Secretary, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences<\/span><\/p>\n

December 8, 2015<\/span><\/p>\n

[Chinese<\/a><\/strong>]<\/p>\n\n\t\t