<P> The Communist Youth League (CYL) is the CPC's youth wing, and the largest mass organization for youth in China . According to the CPC's constitution the CYL is a "mass organization of advanced young people under the leadership of the Communist Party of China; it functions as a party school where a large number of young people learn about socialism with Chinese characteristics and about communism through practice; it is the Party's assistant and reserve force ." To join, an applicant has to be between the ages of 14 and 28 . It controls and supervises Young Pioneers, a youth organization for children below the age of 14 . The organizational structure of CYL is an exact copy of the CPC's; the highest body is the National Congress, followed by the Central Committee, Politburo and the Politburo Standing Committee . However, the Central Committee (and all central organs) of the CYL work under the guidance of the CPC central leadership . Therefore, in a peculiar situation, CYL bodies are both responsible to higher bodies within CYL and the CPC, a distinct organization . As of the 17th National Congress (held in 2013), CYL had 89 million members . </P> <P> According to the Article 53 of the CPC constitution, "the Party emblem and flag are the symbol and sign of the Communist Party of China ." At the beginning of its history, the CPC did not have a single official standard for the flag, but instead allowed individual party committees to copy the flag of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union . On 28 April 1942, the Central Politburo decreed the establishment of a sole official flag . "The flag of the CPC has the length - to - width proportion of 3: 2 with a hammer and sickle in the upper - left corner, and with no five - pointed star . The Political Bureau authorizes the General Office to custom - make a number of standard flags and distribute them to all major organs". According to People's Daily, "The standard party flag is 120 centimeters (cm) in length and 80 cm in width . In the center of the upper - left corner (a quarter of the length and width to the border) is a yellow hammer - and - sickle 30 cm in diameter . The flag sleeve (pole hem) is in white and 6.5 cm in width . The dimension of the pole hem is not included in the measure of the flag . The red color symbolizes revolution; the hammer - and - sickle are tools of workers and peasants, meaning that the Communist Party of China represents the interests of the masses and the people; the yellow color signifies brightness ." In total the flag has five dimensions, the sizes are "no . 1: 388 cm in length and 192 cm in width; no . 2: 240 cm in length and 160 cm in width; no . 3: 192 cm in length and 128 cm in width; no . 4: 144 cm in length and 96 cm in width; no . 5: 96 cm in length and 64 cm in width ." On 21 September 1966, the CPC General Office issued "Regulations on the Production and Use of the CPC Flag and Emblem", which stated that the emblem and flag were the official symbols and signs of the party . </P> <P>--Jiexiong Yi, a senior Marxist researcher at Beijing University and the Central Party School . </P> <P> It has been argued in recent years, mainly by foreign commentators, that the CPC does not have an ideology, and that the party organization is pragmatic and interested only in what works . The party itself, however, argues otherwise . For instance, Hu Jintao stated in 2012 that the Western world is "threatening to divide us" and that "the international culture of the West is strong while we are weak...Ideological and cultural fields are our main targets". The CPC puts a great deal of effort into the party schools and into crafting its ideological message . Before the "Practice Is the Sole Criterion for the Truth" campaign, the relationship between ideology and decision - making was a deductive one, meaning that policy - making was derived from ideological knowledge . Under Deng this relationship was turned upside down, with decision - making justifying ideology and not the other way around . Lastly, Chinese policy - makers believe that the Soviet Union's state ideology was "rigid, unimaginative, ossified, and disconnected from reality" and that this was one of the reasons for the dissolution of the Soviet Union . They therefore believe that their party ideology must be dynamic to safeguard the party's rule . </P>

Member of the communist party of china (cpc)