PEOPLE’S DEMOCRACY

By+Yin+Pumin

On September 5， China held a conference to celebrate the 60th anniversary of establishing its National Peoples Congress（NPC）， the countrys top legislature. President Xi Jinping addressed attendees of the event. While reiterating the role of the peoples congress as Chinas fundamental political system， he called on the whole nation to continue to hold high the banner of democracy.

“In new situations， we should adhere to and further improve the system of the peoples congress as required by the times，” he said.

Chinas peoples congress system was established in 1954. On September 15 that year， the First NPC convened its First Plenary Session， declaring the official formation of the system. After 60 years of development， the system has evolved into a mature legislative mechanism， governing the countrys socialist democracy.

A legal framework

According to Chinas current Constitution， the NPC and its Standing Committee exercise the legislative power of the state. The peoples congress has played a significant role in uniting China under the rule of law.

In 2011， Wu Bangguo， then Chairman of the NPC Standing Committee， declared that a comprehensive socialist system of law with Chinese characteristics had been established in China as of 2010. Under the system， the Constitution is the most fundamental law of the country.

In the initial years of the Peoples Republic of China （PRC）， the Common Program of the Chinese Peoples Political Consultative Conference （CPPCC）， adopted by the First Plenary Session of the First CPPCC in September 1949， served as a temporary constitution for the country.

In September 1954， right after the Peoples Congress was established in China through election， the First Session of the First NPC adopted the PRCs first Constitution. It established democracy， basic socialist principles， the Partys general political line in the countrys transitional period， as well as the state system and the basic rights and obligations of citizens.

In the following years， the NPC and its Standing Committee formulated a series of laws and regulations， such as the Marriage Law， Trade Union Law and the Electoral Law， all of which ensured the smooth operation of the state and society.

However， during the two decades from 1957 when the country launched the “anti-rightist movement” through the “cultural revolution”（1966-76）， Chinas drafting of legislation slowed down， even halting for periods of time. In 1975， China enacted its second Constitution during the First Session of the Fourth NPC. In 1978， the Third Plenary Session of the 11th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China opened the door again for the development of the countrys legal system.

In 1979， seven laws including the Criminal Law， Criminal Procedure Law， Organic Law of the Local Peoples Congresses and Local Peoples Governments of the PRC， Electoral Law for the National Peoples Congress and Local Peoples Congresses， Organic Law of the Peoples Courts， Organic Law of the Peoples Procuratorates， and Law on Chinese-Foreign Equity Joint Ventures were passed at the Second Session of the Fifth NPC. Since then， laws and regulations have been passed at every NPC session and plenary meeting of its Standing Committee.

In 1978， China had its third Constitution， which， however， soon proved inconsistent with social changes in the country after the implementation of the reform and opening-up policy.

In 1980， the NPC set up a Constitutional Amendment Committee， starting the amendment work to the Constitution. In April 1982， a draft of the new Constitution was released for a four-month-long nationwide debate， which eventually involved nearly 80 percent of Chinese citizens and resulted in around 100 changes.

In December 1982， the Fifth Session of the Fifth NPC passed the revised Constitution， popularly known as the 1982 Constitution.

“In the 1982 Constitution， the chapter on the fundamental rights and duties of citizens is put ahead of the chapter on the structure of the state，” said Han Dayuan， President of the Constitutional Law Institute of the China Law Society and Dean of the Law School of Beijingbased Renmin University of China.

Han said that the Constitution adds some new stipulations regarding the fundamental rights and duties of citizens that were not included in the 1975 and 1978 constitutions.

“The change in the sequence of chapters suggests that state power is subordinate to citizens rights， that is， the state cannot infringe upon citizens rights，” said Guo Daohui， a consultant at the Jurisprudence Research Association of the China Law Society.

In addition， the 1982 Constitution terminated the lifelong tenure of top state leaders.“Regular leadership reshuffles ensure overall social stability，” Han commented.

In the following years， Chinese society underwent dramatic changes. Correspondingly， the text of the 1982 Constitution was revised respectively in 1988， 1993， 1999 and 2004 to keep up with the rapidly changing times.

In 1988， the private sector was officially acknowledged. The first amendment to the Constitution reads： “The state permits the private sector of the economy to exist and develop within the limits prescribed by law ... The state protects the lawful rights and interests of the private sector of the economy， and exercises guidance， supervision and control over the private sector of the economy.”

In 1993， as China transformed from a planned economy into a market economy， the Constitution was again amended to declare，“The state has put into practice a socialist market economy.” In addition， the national goal described in the preamble of the Constitution， to “turn China into a socialist country with a high level of culture and democracy” was amended to “turn China into a socialist country that is prosperous， powerful， democratic and culturally advanced.”

In 1999， “rule of law” was added to the Constitution. Article 5 was thus amended to read， “The Peoples Republic of China governs the country according to law and makes it a socialist country under the rule of law.”

In the most recent amendment in 2004， the concept of “human rights” was included. Article 33 provides， “The state respects and protects human rights.”

“The explicit recognition of the constitutional status of ‘human rights is generally seen as significant progress in the development of Chinese constitutional values and ideas，”said Zhang Qianfan， a law professor at Peking University.

Meanwhile， such clauses as “lawful private property is inviolable” was also added to the Constitution. “The amendments will eliminate entrepreneurs hidden worries about the security of their assets and boost their confidence in long-term investment，” said Tang Haibin， an official with the All-China Federation of Industry and Commerce.

Along with the changes of the Constitution， many practical laws were also adopted by the NPC to reflect the distinct characteristics of the times and social changes in China.

In 1986， the NPC adopted the Law on Enterprise Bankruptcy on a trial basis. To the surprise of many Chinese people， the law allowed state-run companies to file for bankruptcy even though China is a socialist country.

Later， the top legislature issued laws on securities， trademarks， intellectual property rights and many others aimed at promoting the countrys economic reform and establishing a socialist market economy.

The NPC also enacted many other laws based on Chinese peoples practices in social and economic administration such as the Law on Land Contract in Rural Areas， which grants farmers long-term and guaranteed land-use rights， and the law to supervise and prevent loss of state-owned assets.

In 1989， the NPC passed the Administrative Procedure Law， which challenges all illegal administrative acts.

According to statistics from the Supreme Peoples Court （SPC）， Chinese courts accepted more than 1.4 million administrative procedure lawsuit cases from 1989 to 2008， many of which were suing governments.

Between 2000 and 2010， Chinas legal system gradually became complete. Many important support laws， such as the Property Law， Social Insurance Law， Tort Liability Law and Food Safety Law， were enacted by the NPC.

The Social Insurance Law， which was passed by the NPC on October 28， 2010， is an important sign of China establishing its social laws， said Zheng Gongcheng， a professor at Renmin University of China.

“Social law is a new legal concept， mainly dealing with affairs concerning social security， social assistance， public welfare and community special care，” said Zheng.

“The Social Insurance Law is the first law in Chinas social laws. It is a basic law，” said Zheng.

“We now have a complete set of laws covering all aspects of social relations， with basic and major laws of each type already in place， together with comprehensive corresponding administrative regulations and local statutes，” said Wu， then Chinas top legislator， at a plenary meeting of the NPCs annual session in 2011.

According to him， by the end of 2010， China had enacted 236 laws， more than 690 administrative regulations and more than 8，600 local statutes， and reviewed all current laws， administrative regulations and local statutes.

“The formation of the system has solved the problem by having laws for all government departments and people to guide their behavior，” said Li Lin， Director of the Institute of Law of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences （CASS）.

The electoral system

In 1979， the NPC revised the Electoral Law of the National Peoples Congress and Local Peoples Congresses. The law was then amended five times in 1982， 1986， 1995， 2004， and 2010， respectively.

According to the amended Electoral Law， political parties and peoples organizations may either jointly or separately recommend candidates for deputies， and a joint group of at least 10 voters or deputies may also recommend candidates， which undoubtedly enhances voters nomination rights.

In view of the sharp gap between rural and urban populations in the early years of the PRC， the population ratio based on which NPC deputies were elected between rural and urban areas was 8 to 1， but in the most recent NPC， deputies were elected based on their make-up of the population， so as to guarantee equal rights for all citizens.

In addition， deputies to peoples congresses at and below county level are now elected di- rectly by their constituents. Previously， the rule was only practiced at lower levels such as urban towns or rural townships. “The change enables the people to better exercise their right to govern the state，” Li with the CASS said.

Another major breakthrough regarding the electoral system for deputies to the peoples congresses is a shift from non-competitive to competitive elections. “This not only enables voters and deputies to better exercise their rights to vote， but also encourages candidates to better perform their duties and represent the interests of their constituents， so as to realize the ultimate goal of elections—selecting the most capable，” Li said.

The NPC and local peoples congresses at different levels are constituted by deputies elected via democratic election. Along with the diversification of Chinas economic entities and society， deputies to peoples congresses at all levels have also seen a tendency to become more diverse.

In 1983， Bai Shiming， who operated a private photo studio in Harbin of northeast Chinas Heilongjiang Province， was elected a deputy to the Sixth NPC， a significant breakthrough in an era when the private economy was relatively new to the country.

In 1993， Liu Guansong， a private entrepreneur in south Chinas Guangdong Province， was elected an NPC deputy. According to the Constitution amended later， non-public sectors of the economy were placed at a higher position， becoming an “important component of the socialist market economy.” From that point on， more and more private entrepreneurs have been found amongst NPC deputies.

The social identities of NPC deputies are increasingly diversifying， with three migrant workers being elected NPC deputies in 2008. The amended Electoral Law states that among deputies to the peoples congresses at all levels，“there shall be an appropriate number of grassroots deputies， especially from among workers， farmers and intellectuals.”

Moreover， increasing numbers of young people born in the 1980s and 1990s have become deputies to peoples congresses at every level.

Statistics show that 74 deputies to the 12th NPC were born in the 1980s in addition to two born in the 90s. Despite their lack of social and political experience， these young deputies have shown great interest in state affairs and impressed veterans with their creativity. For instance， Sun Xiaolei， a 1990s-born senior at Fudan University who was elected a deputy to the Shanghai Municipal Peoples Congress， impressively gathered public opinion via microblogging platforms.

“Along with Chinas social progress， the peoples congress system is improving accordingly and will serve as a solid foundation for realizing the peoples dream of national rejuvenation，”said Li.