Tapiwa Chirume
CHINA and Zimbabwe have pledged to deepen their historical ties during celebrations marking the Communist Party of China (CPC)’s 105th anniversary in Harare.
The high-level roundtable discussions hosted at the Chinese Embassy in Harare on Friday drew top Zanu PF officials, including secretary for information and publicity Christopher Mutsvangwa, alongside lawmakers to reflect on a unique, decades-old geopolitical alliance.
Ambassador Zhou Ding lauded the enduring partnership, noting it stretches back over six decades to the liberation struggle.
“When the people of Zimbabwe fought valiantly for independence and freedom, China under CPC leadership stood firmly in solidarity with you, providing military training, material supplies and unwavering diplomatic support,” Zhou said proudly to the delegates.
Emphasising this deep historical connection, Zhou invoked a classic local Shona proverb.
“We will never cast aside or forget the revolutionary kinship built through our shared liberation fight,” he said, citing ‘Ziva kwawakabva, mudzimu weshiri uri mudendere’ to urge both nations to remain completely mindful of their historical origins.
Zhou conveyed gratitude for the solidarity message sent by President Emmerson Mnangagwa to President Xi Jinping.
He noted that to truly comprehend China’s “two great miracles” of sustained rapid economic growth and long-term social stability, one must understand the ruling party.
“To truly understand China, one must first understand the CPC,” Zhou said.
The envoy traced the CPC’s remarkable evolution from just 50 members in 1921 to the world’s largest ruling party today, leading 1.4 billion people.
He introduced the newly formalised “Fourteen Insistences” of Xi Jinping Thought on Party Building, focusing on the absolute necessity of rigorous internal self-reform.
“To govern well, a party must first strengthen itself,” Zhou said.
“Corruption represents the most malignant tumour eroding the party’s vitality and competence, and anti-corruption work constitutes the most thorough form of the party’s self-reform.”
Highlighting President Xi’s uncompromising stance against internal decay, Zhou added: “Failing to stand up to hundreds of corrupt officials would mean betraying 1.4 billion Chinese people.”He pledged that the CPC maintained relentless pressure by “targeting tigers, flies and foxes simultaneously” to eliminate graft at all levels. Zhou revealed that over 100 Zanu PF cadres travel annually to China or Tanzania for professional capacity building.
“The CPC is always ready to share its experience in party building, grassroots governance and cadre training,” he noted, hoping the dialogue would “lift our respective governance capabilities side by side”.
Turning to economic cooperation, Zhou highlighted China’s recent zero-tariff treatment rolled out for 53 African partners, which brings tangible benefits to Harare.He assured the gathered delegates that Beijing does not impose external mandates or political conditions on its sovereign allies.
“China never export development models or attach political strings to cooperation, and fully support Zanu PF in blazing an independent development path tailored to Zimbabwe’s own conditions,” he affirmed, pushing back against unilateral global pressures.