The Practice of Rule of Law in China

by Dr. Dong Dasheng

Deputy Auditor General of National Audit Office of China

Ever since the end of 1970s when China initiated its reform and opening up policy, profound changes have taken place in economic, political and social aspects。The socialist market economy has taken shape 。At the same time, China has pressed on with political system reform including to improve socialist democracy and to establish socialist political civilization. Entering the new century, China has also set down a magnificent objective of building a well-off society in an all-round way in the first twenty years of 21st century.

The rule of law is the main content of the socialist democracy。So it is one core task of the reform of political system。 The full implementation of rule of law also serves the solid foundation for maintaining socialist market economy。 Over the past two decades since the initiation of reform and opening up policy, with the objectives of “there are laws to go by, the laws are observed and strictly enforced, and law-breakers are prosecuted”, China has intensified its efforts in the road to the implementation of the rule of law and scored notable progress. In 1999, at the 2nd Session of the 9th National People’s Congress, one section about the concept of rule of law is approved to be added to Article Five of the Constitution of the People’s Republic of China, namely: “The People's Republic of China practices ruling the country in accordance with the law and building a socialist country of law.” This new provision has clearly defined ruling the country by law as the basic principle。China has been doing hard to carry out this principle。It can be seen from following 5 aspects。

1. The socialist system of laws with Chinese characteristics has takenupinitially.

The principle of ruling the country in accordance with the law calls for the strengthening of legislation and formulation of a comprehensive and clear-cut system of laws. According to the stipulations by the Constitution and Law on Legislation of the People’s Republic of China, the National People’s Congress and its Standing Committee are entitled to enact statues; the State Council exercises the power to adopt administrative rules and regulations;the people's congresses of provinces and municipalities directly under the Central Government, and their standing committees, may adopt local regulations;the people's congresses of national autonomous areas have the power to enact autonomy regulations and specific regulations; the ministries and commissions under the State Council, the people’s governments of provinces and municipalities directly under the Central Government also issue orders, directives and regulations.

Ever since the initiation of reform and opening up policy, China has taken effective measures to enhance legislation work by adopting new laws and regulations。We believe that our law system has taken up initially。 By far according to my statistics, if counting all laws and regulations in effect, besides the Constitution and its four amendments, there are more than 200 statues by the National People’s Congress and its Standing Committee, over 650 administrative rules and regulations by the State Council, about 7500 local regulations by the local people’s congresses and their standing committees, as well as approximately 600 autonomy regulations and specific regulations by the people's congresses of national autonomous areas. so there are laws to go by in main aspects of political, economic and social life.

All these noticeable achievements in the legislation work of China are important guarantees for the implementation of reform and opening up policy and socialist modernization, as well as being the solid legal foundation for building a well-off society in an all-round manner. China has further sped up the legislation work and will strive for the formulation of a socialist system of laws by the year 2010.

2. Law-based Administration by people’s governments at various levels has yielded notable progress

The principle of rule of law requires governments should act in accordance with law and in this regard, law-based administration is an indispensable part of ruling the country by law. In China, administrative bodies are responsible for the execution of a majority of laws and regulations and they are required to take the lead in observing laws, strictly enforce laws and impel the whole society to respect, observe and safeguard laws.

Since the initiation of reform and opening up policy, especially in recent 10 years, people’s governments at various levels as well as their departments have managed to score a magnificent upsurge of China’s law-based administration. The State Council has attached great importance to the promotion of law-based administration. As early as in 1999, the State Council issued the decision on the promotion of law-based administration in an all-round manner and called for people’s governments at various levels as well as their departments to fully implement this decision and perform all of their official duties according to law. In order to completely implement the basic principle of ruling the country by law, the Chinese government in 2003 nailed down law-based administration as one of the three fundamental guidelines for performing official duties. In March 2004, the State Council issued the Implementing Outlines for Promoting Law-Based Administration in an All Round Way. As a detailed outline for guiding the people’s governments at various levels in the road to law-based administration, this document has set down the objective of building the government up into one that is ruled by law in ten years’ time, and framed guidelines, targets, basic principles, requirements。The main tasks of law-based administration in the future ten years are：to transfer the function of government and reform administrative management system，to establish and improve the decision making system based on science and democracy，to raise the quality of laws and regulations，to standard the administrative acts of law enforcement，to explore the efficient and convenient and low-cost system to prevent and to deal with social contradictions，to strengthen the supervision to administrative behavior，to raise the capability of officers to perform administration in accordance with laws and regulations。

To build the government up into one that is ruled by law, it is required that the power of administrative bodies should be authorized by law, administrative actions should be in compliance with law, violation of law by administrative bodies should be corrected and punished and administration should target at providing high quality service. At present, people’s governments at various levels have been exerting efforts to implement law-based administration in an all-round manner according to the requirements set in the Implementing Outlines for Promoting Law-Based Administration in an All Round Way, aiming at building the government up into one that is ruled by law in ten years’ time by their unremitting endeavor.

3. Steady progress has been made in the reform of the judicial system.

The current judicial system of China，enacted by the Constitution and law, is in accordance with the basic national conditions for the primary stage of socialism in general. Judicial organs in China have been powerful guarantees for the implementation of reform and opening up policy as well as the smooth progress of socialist modernization, by performing their duties according to law, punishing crimes, protecting people, defusing conflicts and contradictions, and safeguarding national security and social stability.

However with the political, economic and social development, profound changes have taken place in the judicial environment of China and some new problems arise from the judicial work such as some judgers are not qualified, trial running in a routine administrative way，local protection in terms of judicial power, etc。these problems ，to some extent, have obstructed the improvement of the quality of judicial officers, barred the realization of targets of judicial independence and judicial fairness, and connived at the breeding of judicial unjustness and judicial corruption.

In order to implement the basic principle of ruling the country by law and guarantee fairness and justice in the whole society, China is pushing forward steadily in the reform of the judicial system to establish and improve a socialist judicial system with Chinese characteristics step by step. To carry out the reform of the judicial system, we should, in accordance with the requirements of judicial justice and strict law enforcement, furtherimprove the setups of judicial organs, the delimitation of their functions and powers and their management systems so as to form a sound judicial system featuring clearly specified powers and responsibilities, mutual coordination and restraint and highly efficient operation. We should institutionally ensure that the judicial and procuratorial organs are in a position to exercise adjudicative and procuratorial powers independently and impartially according to law so as to safeguard the social equity and justice. In recent years, China has been moving at an accelerated pace towards the turning of current judicial officers into professional judges, giving further attention to the fairness of judicial proceedings and scoring steady progress in the reform of judicial organization system and judicial modes. In addition, modern judicial concepts like judicial fairness, judicial efficiency and independent trial, etc. have been planted in people’s minds progressively。 As the reform of the judicial system advances, judicial organs shall play a bigger and more important role in protecting citizen’s human rights and property rights, maintaining social order and ensuring the realization of building a well-off society in an all-round manner.

4. Supervision system over law enforcement by administrative bodies has been improved gradually

Absolute power shall lead to absolute corruption. Whether we could exercise effective supervision over law enforcement by administrative bodies has direct influence and constraints over the process towards the full implementation of the rule of law in a country. Giving high priority to the establishment of a mature supervision system over law enforcement by administrative bodies, China has built up an all-embracing, multi-level and multi-angle supervision system over law enforcement by administrative bodies and instituted a corresponding system of responsibility for law enforcement. At present, the supervision framework for law enforcement by administrative bodies in China could be classified into supervision by legislature, supervision by judicial organs, internal supervision inside administrative bodies and social supervision by social organizations, media and the citizens. Each body for the supervision over law enforcement by administrative bodies shall see to affairs fall within its limits of functions and powers, and meanwhile enhance coordination with other supervisory organs in order to create resultant force and build an overall supervision network with a view to exercise panoramasupervision over validity, rationality and performance of administrative actions taken by administrative bodies and their officers, and promote law-based administration.

As the supervision over law enforcement by administrative bodies has been matured and law enforcement actions carried out by administrative bodies and officials have all been incorporated into the scope of supervision, great achievements have been taken in this regard.

I am from the national audit office of china。our office was established according to the constitution in 1983。It is a institution under the leadership of the state council。To take supervision through auditing as an example, audit institutions of China as a specialized supervisory organs of the State, have been performing their supervision duties according to law in an all-round manner, and offering impressive contributions to the enhancement of supervision for law enforcement by administrative bodies, the promotion of law-based administration and the building of a government ruled by law. According to statistics, during the period of 2001 to 2005, audit institutions at various levels, have disclosed funds totaling over 2000 billion RMB in violation of laws or regulations, made suggestions about correcting nearly 30000 departmental stipulations, referred about 40000 clues of cases in the criminal nature to judicial organs and transferred more than 10000 individuals in violation of laws or regulations to disciplinary inspection and supervisory organs.

5. More publicity has been given to the legal system and marked achievements have been made

To call a country ruled by law in a full sense into existence, we should not only need to establish a comprehensive legal system, a complete system of law enforcement organs, but also have to create a legal environment in which all society members worship and abide by laws. Ever since the initiation of reform and opening up policy, the Chinese government has realistically and progressively given more publicity to the legal system so as to build up a favorable legal environment. During the period of 1986 to 2005, the Chinese government has formulated in series 4 Five-year-plan and carried out accordingly to promote publicity of the legal system among all citizens. The publicity of the legal system in China has combined the work of improving the common people’s awareness of law and the rectification in accordance with law. So on one hand, targeted at each citizen susceptive to education, the work of improving the common people’s general knowledge of law has been push forward so that the public are better educated in law and endowed with legal consciousness. On the other hand, rectification has been carried out in state organs at various levels, social organizations and legal entities so that their competency in law-based administration, management and business running could be continuously promoted.

Through more than 20 years’ untiring efforts, citizens’ awareness of the Constitution and law has been greatly enhanced, competency of leading cadres in law-based administration and decision-making improved, public servants’ sense of law-based administration and judicial justice further locked in and self-knowledge of enterprise managers in running and managing business according to law promoted. In the whole society, the level of law-based management has been raised to a new record and a legal environment in which law is worshipped and abided by has come into being initially. from this year，emphasizing the combination of legal education with the practice of the rule of law as well as moral education, the Fifth Five-year-plan of Promoting Publicity of the Legal System and Rectification has started up and China shall enter into a new stage in its drive towards better publicity of the legal system.

It is a complicated and enormous task to move towards the implementation of the rule of law。China has been moving fast towards the full implementation of the rule of law and fulfilled the initial success in this fields。But we still have a long way to go。The legal system or the legal environment is still yet to be further improved 。it is our hard task even generations’ efforts are needed。 In order to create a benign legal environment in which the sound operation of socialist market economy, improvement of socialist democracy and building of a harmonious society could be guaranteed, the Chinese government and the Chinese people, shall press ahead in the road of ruling the country by law.

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