Hu Urges Focus on Economic Gains

BEIJING, Dec. 18 -- China must firmly focus on economic development and do so "more willingly and more resolutely," President Hu Jintao said Thursday as the Communist Party marked three decades of opening up and reforming its former planned economy.

In a 1 1/2 -hour speech before ranks of officials in the Great Hall of the People, Hu spoke of the country's historic achievement in lifting millions of people out of poverty and growing China's foreign reserves to be first in the world. He did not mention growing unrest and unemployment or the social pressures that have prompted hard-liners and conservatives to push against the reforms that have helped lead to China's recent rampant growth.

The strongest applause at the invitation-only event, aimed at boosting the spirits of a domestic audience, came when he referred to a list of recent accomplishments, from the Olympic Games to China's first manned spacewalk to "dealing with the international crisis" -- feats that have cemented China's position as a world leader. He also vowed that China would fight "any foreign involvement or interference in our internal affairs."

Hu acknowledged that 14 million poor and low-income people live in both urban and rural areas and said that "it's still a tough task" to narrow the wealth gap. He did not offer prescriptions but said China would continue to advance the cause of opening up, "especially when the international financial crisis is continuously expanding."

Hu's speech commemorated a party leadership meeting on Dec. 18, 1978, that marked a turning point in ending decades of isolation and hardship under Mao Zedong.

"We must forcefully implement all the measures to further expand domestic demand and promote economic development and properly handle the international financial crisis and other risks rising from the international environment," he said.

He opened his speech by praising China's international competitiveness, saying that the country's total import-export volume ranked third in the world and that its foreign investment has sped up the country's international cooperation with other nations. Over 30 years, China's gross domestic product has gone from $5.37 billion to $3.58 trillion, with an average growth rate of 9.8 percent. (It has slowed this year.)

Despite China's increasing openness, Hu also warned that it must maintain its independence.

"We must maintain the party's leadership. . . . We must develop in line with our own situation and also learn from the experiences of other civilizations. But we will never copy the Western political system," Hu said. "We must maintain that China does its own matters in its own way."

It was significant that Hu listed the economic opening and reform policy as third among China's "three great revolutions," including the overthrow of the Qing dynasty in 1911 and the Communist Party takeover in 1949, said Wang Yukai, public policy professor at the National School of Administration in Beijing.

"This is the first time the central government has placed opening and reform at such a high level," Wang said. "Hu said there was no way out for suspending this policy or stepping backwards. This was a very clear message to those officials and intellectuals who are against reform. This will have a profound impact on China's future."