Chinese President Hu Jintao, also the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee general secretary, has urged to uphold the spirit of reform and innovation in building the Party in the new era.

Addressing a workshop attended by delegates from the Party's Organization Department in Beijing on Monday, Hu urged all members to stick to the direction of reform and establish a system helpful to innovation.

Hu said the 17th CPC National Congress held in October called for strengthened governance capability of the Party to lead Chinese to social prosperity in the new era.

To do so, the Party should keep innovating the Party's theories and improving the Party's systems, said Hu, also the Central Military Commission chairman.

He urged all members to do their best to promote inner-Party democracy as the important content and condition to guarantee innovation within the Party.

Inner-Party democracy is key to stimulating innovation among Party members, and a more democratic system within the Party will invite more people to contribute their wisdom to our Party building, Hu said.

Present at the workshop were Xi Jinping and He Guoqiang, both Standing Committee of the CPC Central Committee Political Bureau members.

Xi, who presided over the meeting, said Hu's speech was important as it stood on a strategic height concerning the long-term development of the Party and the nation. He called for seriously studying, understanding and implementing Hu's instructions.

(Xinhua News Agency February 19, 2008)