50 Years of Progress in China's Human Rights
BEIJING, February 17 (Xinhua) -- Following is the full text of
the white paper China issued today on its human rights progress in
the past 50 years, entitled "50 Years of Progress in China's Human
Rights":
The year 1999 witnessed the 50th anniversary of the founding of
the People's Republic of China. For the previous half century, the
Chinese people, led by the Chinese government, had unswervingly
probed into and fought for the elimination of poverty and
backwardness, the building of a rich, strong, democratic and
civilized country, and the achievement of the lofty ideal of
complete human rights. As a result, the situation of human rights
in China has seen tremendous changes.
I. A Historical Turning Point in the Progress of Human Rights
in China
In the old semi-colonial, semi-feudal China, the broad masses
were oppressed by imperialism, feudalism and bureaucrat capitalism,
and had no human rights at all. But after New China was founded in
1949, the Chinese government and people waged a series of large-
scale campaigns, rapidly sweeping away the dregs left over from
the old society, and established a basic political system which
could promote and protect human rights, so that the nation and
society took on an entirely new look and a new epoch was started
for the progress of human rights in China.
--Realizing and upholding genuine and complete national
independence, and creating the requisite premise for the progress
of human rights. Invaded and enslaved by various foreign powers,
old China lost its state sovereignty, and its people's human
rights lost their minimum guarantee. The first important
achievement of the Chinese Communist Party, which led the Chinese
people to victory in the people's democratic revolution, was to
drive the imperialist invaders out of China, paving the way for
China to realize real independence.
New China, after its founding, promptly abolished all unequal
treaties which had been imposed on China by various imperialist
countries and all the privileges they had grabbed from China,
resolutely confiscated the property of fascist countries in China,
completely uprooted the political and economic privileges of the
imperialists' colonial rule in China and realized complete state
independence.
In the early period after the founding of New China, the
Western countries, headed by the United States, carried out a
total-containment policy of political non-recognition, economic
blockade and military encirclement against China. They brazenly
waged the Korean War in 1950, which was extended to the Yalu River,
the border of China, in an attempt to strangle the newly founded
People's Republic of China (PRC) in the cradle.
In spite of great difficulties, New China defying brute force,
was compelled to wage a just war to defend the homeland and
achieved a great victory, firmly maintaining state independence
and the people's security.
Meanwhile, New China firmly followed an independent and
peaceful foreign policy, actively advocated and earnestly adhered
to the Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence, developed
relations with foreign countries based on equality, mutual benefit,
peace and friendship, successfully frustrated the isolation,
blockade, interference and aggression by international
antagonistic forces, and won wide respect from international
society.
The genuine and complete independence of China has created the
fundamental premise for the Chinese people's selection of their
own social and political systems and a path for development with
the initiative in their own hands, for China's opening to the
outside world, for steady and healthy development, and for the
uninterrupted improvement of human rights in China.
--Establishing and perfecting the people's democratic political
system, and guaranteeing their democratic rights to be masters of
their own affairs.
The Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC),
which was inaugurated in 1949, witnessed the adoption of the
Common Program of the Chinese People's Political Consultative
Conference, served as the country's provisional constitution, the
election of the Central People's Government, and the declaration
of the birth of the People's Republic of China.
The Common Program clearly stipulated that state power belonged
to the people, who, according to the law, had the right to vote
and stand for election, and had the freedoms of ideology, speech,
publication, gathering, forming associations, communication,
personal affairs, residence, change of residence, religious belief
and demonstration.
It also stipulated that all the laws, decrees and judicial
systems enacted by the reactionary Kuomintang government to
oppress the people had been abolished, that laws and decrees were
to be formulated to protect the people, and that the people's
judicial system was to be established.
In February 1953, China promulgated the Electoral Law of the
People's Republic of China. In December 1953, a general election
was held nationwide. The registered electors accounted for 97
percent of the citizens of and above the age of 18, of whom 85.88
percent participated in the election. They elected 5.669 million
grass-roots deputies, and 1,226 deputies to the National People's
Congress. These deputies featured wide representativeness.
This was the first nationwide general election in Chinese
history; it helped to realize the people's democratic right to
participate in the management of state affairs.
In September 1954, the First Session of the First National
People's Congress was held in Beijing. Based on the people's
democracy, the session adopted the Constitution of the People's
Republic of China. Before being submitted to the National People's
Congress for examination, the draft Constitution was made public
for the whole country to hold a two-month discussion. About 150
million people took part in the discussion, and put forward more
than 1.16 million questions and suggestions for amendments and
supplements.
The enacting of the national constitution on the basis of such
a broad discussion by the whole country was not only unprecedented
in Chinese history, but also rare in the history of the world. The
Constitution stated the nature of the state, the functions of
state organs, and the rights and duties of citizens, laying a
foundation for China's democracy and legal construction.
The construction and improvement of the basic political system
on the basis of people's democracy provided a fundamental
political guarantee for the realization of the right of the people
to be the masters of their own affairs.
--Carrying out the land reform and other democratic reforms,
abolishing the old systems and customs which oppressed the people,
sweeping away various social evils, and clearing away obstacles to
the development of New China's human rights.
In old China, landlords and rich peasants, who accounted for
less than 10 percent of the rural population, owned some 80
percent of the land, while poor peasants, farm laborers and middle
peasants, who accounted for more than 90 percent of the population,
owned only about 20 percent of the land.
In order to liberate the broad masses of poverty-stricken
peasants and emancipate the social productive forces, New China,
just after its founding, launched a vigorous nationwide land
reform movement.
It abolished land ownership by the feudal landlord class, and
delivered the land into the hands of the farmers. As a result,
more than 300 million peasants with no or little land got 700
million mu of land along with the means of production without
compensation, and were exempted from the heavy land rent of about
35 billion kilograms of grain, which previously had to be paid to
landlords each year, thus greatly improving the economic positions
and living conditions of the peasants.
At the same time, democratic reforms were carried out in the
production and management systems of state-run industrial, mining
and transportation enterprises.
Various old systems which had oppressed and enslaved workers, such
as the feudal boss system practised by bureaucrat-capitalist
enterprises, were annulled. The divisive feudal trade associations
and regionalism were abolished. Factory management commissions and
congresses of workers and staff members were established, which
absorbed workers into factory management so as to realize
democracy in enterprise management and make workers the real
masters of their enterprises.
Simultaneously, the old wage system was adjusted, a labor
insurance system was introduced, and workplace welfare and
employees' living standards were improved.
To liberate women and abolish the feudal marriage system which
discriminated against and oppressed women, in 1950 New China
promulgated the Marriage Law of the People's Republic of China,
which was the first such law ever enacted in China.
The law completely abolished the feudal marriage system of
arranged and coerced marriages, men's superiority to women, and
neglect of the interests of offsprings, and cleared the way for a
new marriage system of freedom of marriage, monogamy, equality
between men and women, and protection of the lawful rights and
interests of women and offsprings.
At the same time, large-scale publicity work and a mass
movement to put the Marriage Law into effect were carried out
nationwide. As a result, the ideas of the equality of men and
women and freedom of marriage became deeply rooted in the hearts
of the people, and women's status was greatly raised.
Prostitution, drug trafficking and addiction, and gambling are
social evils left over from old China, as well as chronic social
diseases endangering the people's physical and mental health. They
were resolutely prohibited right after the founding of New China.
In November 1949, the second people's congress of Beijing took
the lead in prohibiting prostitution. The city promptly closed all
brothels, and provided education and medical treatment for
prostitutes, enabling them to live off their own labor. Following
Beijing, all other large, middle-sized and small cities nationwide
successively prohibited prostitution.
In a short period of time, this hotbed of crimes, which had
seriously ruined women's physical and mental health and their
dignity for more than 3,000 years in China, was stamped out. As
for drug taking, gambling and other social evils which were
closely connected with the reactionary ruling forces and the
underworld in old China, the people's government, on one hand
mobilized the masses to struggle against and punish drug producers,
drug traffickers and gambling rings, and on the other it did
extensive publicity work so as to enhance the consciousness of the
masses, and reform drug addicts and gamblers.
After two to three years of efforts, these social plagues,
which had not vanished despite repeated prohibitions in old China,
were basically wiped out, and China's social life took a new and
healthy turn for the better.
--Opposing ethnic oppression and discrimination, developing
ethnic equality, mutual aid and unity, and carrying out the ethnic
regional autonomy system.
In old China, serious ethnic discrimination and oppression
existed for quite a long time; many ethnic minorities, which were
not recognized, were in adverse circumstances, and some ethnic
minority people had to hide themselves deep in the mountains,
living in isolation.
After the founding of New China in 1949, the Chinese government
completely abolished all ethnic oppression and discrimination, and
liberated ethnic minority people. To eliminate the estrangement
produced by ethnic oppression in old China, the Central People's
Government sent, between 1950 and 1952, groups to ethnic minority
areas to express sympathy and solicitude, and organized groups of
all ethnic minorities to visit the capital and other places in
China, thus strengthening understanding and friendship among all
ethnic groups.
In 1951, the Central People's Government promulgated the
Instructions on the Handling of the Titles, Names of Places,
Tablets and Signboards Which Are Discriminative and Insulting to
Ethnic Minorities.
To carry out the ethnic equality policy, in 1953 the Chinese
government started a large-scale program to identify all the
country's ethnic peoples. A total of 55 ethnic minorities were
identified, thus making each ethnic minority an equal member of
China's family of peoples for the first time in history.
At the same time, the Chinese government initiated a movement
to universally promote and educate Chinese citizens with ethnic
theories and policies, strongly advocated ethnic equality and
unity, and opposed nationalism, especially Han chauvinism.
Meanwhile, to change the backward economic and social situation in
ethnic minority areas, the Chinese government actively and
steadily carried out democratic reforms in the areas inhabited by
minority peoples.
On the premise of fully respecting the will of ethnic
minorities, and respecting and protecting their religious beliefs,
customs and habits, the Chinese government helped minority peoples
to reform their backward production methods and social systems,
and develop economic and cultural undertakings, thus enabling the
social development of the ethnic minorities to leap over several
historical stages.
To guarantee the special rights and interests of ethnic
minorities, the Chinese government established ethnic self-
government organs and instituted ethnic regional autonomy in the
areas where ethnic minorities live in compact communities.
In August 1952, China promulgated the Outline for the
Implementation of Ethnic Regional Autonomy in the People's
Republic of China, which specifies the details of the policy of
ethnic regional autonomy. The successful implementation of ethnic
regional autonomy has effectively guaranteed the equal rights of
ethnic minorities in the big family of China, and their right to
administer their respective ethnic and local affairs in a self-
governing manner.
--Establishing the socialist system, and promoting social and
economic development and the improvement of the people's enjoyment
of human rights.
After the founding of New China, the People's Government
carried out land reform and other democratic reforms, and adopted
powerful measures to stabilize prices and promote economic
development.
It took only three years for China to heal the wounds of war,
and build the national economy and the people's livelihood to the
highest level in history. On this basis, the Chinese government
lost no time in starting the socialist reform of agriculture,
handicraft industry and capitalist industry and commerce, thus
fundamentally eliminating the system of exploitation of man by man
and establishing basic economic system of socialism.
Since then, the Chinese people have become the masters of their
means of production and the owners of the wealth of society, thus
calling forth their enthusiasm for building a new country and
creating a new life, and promoting the rapid development of
society and the economy, and the improvement of the people's
livelihood.
According to statistics, the national total industrial output
value in 1957 had increased by 128.3 percent over that of 1952,
with an average annual growth of 18 percent; the total
agricultural output value had risen by 25 percent; and the average
consumption level of all the people in the country had grown by
more than one third.
The establishment of the socialist system has provided the
basic guarantee for the people throughout the country to
constantly improve their human rights situation on the basis of
equal participation in economic development and sharing labor
achievements.
Through these profound social reforms, involving getting rid of
the old and creating the new, New China has not only realized a
historic turning point in the development of human rights, but
also initiated a brand-new starting point for further exploration
and the progress and development of the cause of human rights.
II. Great Improvement in the Rights to Subsistence and
Development, and Economic, Social and Cultural Rights
In the past 50 years since the founding of New China,
especially since the initiation of reform and opening to the
outside world some 20 year ago, the Chinese government has always
put the people's rights to subsistence and development first,
focused on economic construction, and made efforts to develop
social productivity.
Consequently, China's economy and society have advanced by
leaps and bounds, its comprehensive national strength has been
raised, and the people's livelihood has improved by a large margin
by realizing two historic leaps -- bringing them from poverty to
having enough to eat and wear, and then to living a better-off
life.
In 1952, China's GDP was only 67.9 billion RMB yuan, a figure
which rose to 7,939.6 billion RMB yuan in 1998, with an average
annual growth rate of 7.7 percent allowing for price rises, or
over 2.5 times the average world growth rate in the same period.
From 1952 to 1998, the industrial added value increased by 159
times calculated according to the constant prices, with an average
annual growth rate of 11.6 percent; the agricultural added value
increased by 4.5 times, with an average annual growth rate of 3.3
percent; and the total foreign trade volume increased from US$ 1.
13 billion in 1950 to US$ 323.9 billion in 1998, or an increase of
287 times, with an average annual growth rate of 12.5 percent.
According to a United Nations estimate, China ranks seventh in
the world in terms of the size of its economy; 11th in total
foreign trade volume; second in foreign exchange reserves; and
ninth in comprehensive national strength.
At present, the GNP created by China within 12 days is
equivalent to the GNP of the whole year of 1952. Now China leads
the world in the output of steel, coal, cement, chemical
fertilizer, TV, crops, meat, cotton, peanuts, rapeseed, fruit and
other important industrial and agricultural products.
China's total grain output increased from 110 million tons in
1949 to 510 million tons in 1998, or an increase of over 3.5 times,
with an average annual growth rate of 3.1 percent, higher than the
world growth rate during the same period. Meanwhile, the
proportion of China's grain output in the world's total increased
from 17 percent to 25 percent.
At present, China ranks first in the world in terms of total
grain output, and the average per-capita amount of grain, meat,
eggs and aquatic products exceeds the world level. Hence China has
thoroughly changed the situation which prevailed in old China in
which the majority of the Chinese population lived in a state of
hunger or semi-starvation, and has created the miracle of
supporting 22 percent of the total population of the world on only
7 percent of the world's total cultivated land.
The livelihoods of both urban and rural people have leaped
several stages in succession, and the consumption level has
improved remarkably.
In 1949, the average annual income per urban resident was less
than 100 RMB yuan, and that per rural resident, less than 50 RMB
yuan. In 1978, the average annual income per urban resident came
to 343 RMB yuan, and that per rural resident, 134 RMB yuan.
Between 1978 and 1998, the average annual income per urban
resident increased to 5,425 RMB yuan, or an increase of 3.3 times
allowing for price rises, with an average annual growth rate of 6.
1 percent, and that per rural resident, to 2,162 RMB yuan, or an
increase of 4.6 times allowing for price rises, with an average
annual growth rate of 7.9 percent.
The annual net consumption level of the people increased from
80 RMB yuan per capita in 1952 to 2,972 RMB yuan in 1998, and the
savings deposits of both urban and rural residents grew from 860
million RMB yuan to 5,340.8 billion RMB yuan. In the early days of
New China, 80 percent of urban residents' income was used to buy
food and clothes, and 90 percent in rural areas, which dropped to
55.6 percent and 59.6 percent, respectively, in 1998.
The Engel coefficient (the proportion of food expenditure in
consumer expenditure) of urban residents was always over 57
percent before the policy of reform and opening to the outside
world was introduced, a figure which dropped to 44.5 percent in
1998, and consumption has reached the well-off level as a whole.
In 1954, the Engel coefficient of rural residents was as high as
69 percent.
By 1998, the consumption structure of rural residents had been
greatly improved, with the Engel coefficient decreasing to 53.4
percent; their cultural, recreational and service expenditures had
risen up to 25.4 percent; and the proportions of accommodation and
clothing expenditures were 15.1 percent and 6.2 percent,
respectively. This indicates that in consumption the proportion
dedicated to mere means of subsistence has remarkably decreased,
and that dedicated to development and enjoyment has greatly risen.
At present, over 95 percent of rural people in China have
enough to eat and wear, and about 25 percent of them live well-off
lives.
While making great efforts to develop the economy and improve
the living standards of the people throughout the country, China
has spared no effort to help poverty-stricken people have enough
to eat and wear. Especially since the adoption of the policy of
reform and opening to the outside world, the Chinese government
has regarded it as a most urgent task to help poverty-stricken
people have sufficient food and clothing.
According to the government's unified plan and arrangements, a
large-scale help-the-poor drive has been started throughout the
country in a planned way. Over the past 20 years, the Chinese
government has helped more than 200 million rural people get
enough food and clothes, and has reduced the number of poverty-
stricken rural population from 250 million in 1978 to 4.2 million.
The proportion of poverty-stricken people in the total rural
population has decreased from 30.7 percent to 4.6 percent. The
average annual net income of poverty-stricken people increased
from 206 RMB yuan in 1985 to 1,318 RMB yuan in 1998, and the
production and livelihood levels of poverty-stricken areas have
greatly improved.
In the past 20 years, the poverty-stricken population worldwide
has risen year by year, and the poor have become poorer. In China,
however, the number of poverty-stricken people has been decreasing
by 10 million every year on average, making China lead the world
in the speed of reducing the number of poverty-stricken people.
In 1999, the World Bank and the UNDP issued a report after a
comprehensive survey of China's help-the-poor work, which points
out: "The number of poverty-stricken people is increasing in many
places in the world, but China is an exception." And "China has
achieved world-renowned progress in solving the poverty problem."
In old China, whenever serious disasters befell, the exposed
bodies of those who had died from starvation could be found
everywhere. In 1931, when eastern China was affected by floods,
145,000 people died as a result.
But New China pays great attention to relief work, and makes
every effort to protect and save people's lives and property, and
ensure the basic needs of life of people in disaster-stricken
areas.
According to preliminary statistics, in the past 50 years since
the founding of the People's Republic of China (PRC), the Central
Government has allocated more than 30 billion RMB yuan as relief
funds for serious natural disasters, solving the problem of
provisions in 2.2 billion cases, helping over 800 million people
rebuild their homes, rebuilding more than 100 million collapsed
houses, providing billions of items of clothing for 200-odd
million people and curing a billion cases of disease or injury
resulting from disasters.
The rights of workers have been realized to the full. In 1949,
the number of unemployed workers was 4.742 million, with an
unemployment rate of 23.65 percent. In addition, millions upon
millions of peasants were bankrupt.
In 1998, the number of employed people nationwide totaled 699.
57 million, and the number of registered unemployed persons was 5.
71 million, with a registered unemployment rate of 3.1 percent.
Three security systems--the basic living security system for
people laid off by state-owned enterprises, unemployment insurance
and the basic living security system for residents of cities and
towns--have been established, and thus the basic needs of life of
laid-off and unemployed people have been effectively guaranteed.
Meanwhile, wages have been rising rapidly; the average annual
income of employees in cities and towns increased from 445 RMB
yuan in 1952 to 7,479 RMB yuan in 1998, or an increase of 3.8
times based on comparable prices.
According to the law, the working time has been shortened from
eight hours a day and 48 hours a week in the past to the present
eight hours a day and 40 hours a week. Before the founding of the
PRC, there were only a few small training schools for technicians
in the whole country.
But now, a multi-form and multi-layer vocational education and
training system has been established, basically meeting the needs
of economic construction. The proportion of new employees in
cities and towns receiving various types of training has reached
70 percent.
There was no social security system for employees in old China,
but in New China a comprehensive and well-funded social security
system has gradually emerged. At present, except for some ex-
employees whose pensions are still paid by their old enterprises,
the number of people participating in the basic retirement
insurance policy is 94.33 million, a coverage rate of 84 percent.
Among them, there are more than 28 million retired people.
At the end of 1999, a total of 99.12 million employees were
covered by unemployment insurance, more than 15 million unemployed
were receiving relief funds and 7.5 million unemployed people had
been re-employed.
Since the founding of New China, the state has set up free
medical services and a labor-protection medical care system at
public expense, and at the end of 1998, 177.81 million persons
were benefiting from these services.
Insurance against injury at work is now practised in more than
1,700 cities and counties throughout the country, covering over 37.
8 million employees, and childbirth insurance is available in 1,
412 cities and counties, covering 27.77 million women employees.
By the end of October 1999, 668 cities and 1,638 counties in the
country had established systems for ensuring basic living needs,
benefiting two million residents living in poverty.
In old China there was not even the most basic medical and
health service for ordinary people. But nowadays, medical
institutions can be found everywhere, and a comprehensive medical
and health service system has begun to emerge.
In 1949, China had only 3,670 medical institutions, 84,600
hospital beds and 505,000 medical and health personnel, and there
were only 0.15 hospital bed, 0.93 medical and health personnel, 0.
67 doctor and 0.06 nurse (paramedic) per thousand people. In 1998,
China had 314,100 health institutions, 3.143 million hospital beds
and 4.4237 million medical and health personnel, and there were 2.
4 hospital beds, 3.64 medical and health personnel, 1.65 doctors
and one nurse (paramedic) per thousand people.
The people's health has greatly improved. The incidence of
acute epidemic diseases has decreased from 20,000 per 100,000
people before the founding of the PRC to 203.4 per 100,000 people;
the death rate, from 33 per 1,000 people to 6.49 per 1,000 people
in 1994.
The average life expectancy of Chinese people has increased
from 35 years in 1949 to 70.8 years at present, 10 years longer
than that of the developing countries and the same as that of the
medium-developed countries.
Culture and education in old China were extremely backward.
Most working people had almost no opportunity to receive education.
However, the right to receive education in New China is
guaranteed and realized. In 1998, nine-year compulsory education
was practised in areas where 73 percent of the population live.
The enrollment rate for primary school-age children has increased
from 20 percent before 1949 to 99.3 percent, and for junior middle
school-age children, 87.3 percent.
These figures exceed the average figures for developing
countries in the corresponding period. Over the past 50 years, 230
million illiterates have been taught to read and write, the
illiteracy rate has decreased from 80 percent of the total
population to 14.5 percent; adult illiteracy rate has decreased
below 5.5 percent.
In 1998, the numbers of students enrolled in institutions of
higher learning and middle schools had increased by 22.99 and 41.
11 times, respectively, compared to the highest figures before
1949; the educated population was close to 300 million persons,
and the number of students enrolled reached 230 million persons.
Between 1949 and 1990, the total number of postgraduates and
graduates from universities and colleges was 7.6082 million,
nearly 40 times the total for the years 1912 to 1948.
China has made universally acknowledged achievements in
realizing its people's rights to subsistence and development, and
economic, social and cultural rights over the past 50 years.
Articles published in October 1999 in the New York Times and in
September 1999 in the International Herald Tribune, published in
the United States, point out: "The great achievement made by China
of solving the problems of food, clothing and housing for one
quarter of the world's population will be written in the annals of
history." "Today, ordinary Chinese citizens enjoy better health,
nutriment, education and living standards than in any period in
the Middle Kingdom's long history."
III. Civil Rights and Political Rights of Citizens Ensured
Since the founding of the People's Republic, China has made
great progress in its efforts to build its democratic and legal
systems, and people's civil rights and political rights are
maintained and guaranteed according to law.
China's Constitution clearly states that "All power in the
People's Republic of China belongs to the people." The organs
through which the people exercise state power are the National
People's Congress (NPC) and local people's congresses. Deputies to
the people's congresses at all levels are elected, and are
responsible to and accept supervision from the people.
In China, except for those who have been deprived of their
political rights, all citizens aged 18 or above, irrespective of
ethnic status, race, sex, occupation, family background, religious
belief, education, property status or length of residence, have
the right to vote and stand for election.
At present, 99.97 percent of China's citizens aged 18 or above
enjoy the right to vote and stand for election. According to
statistics, the voting rate all over the country has maintained a
level of over 90 percent. Every region, ethnic group, social
stratum, organization and group has its proportion of
representatives in the people's congresses at all levels.
Of the 2,979 deputies elected to the Ninth National People's
Congress in 1998, 18.9 percent were workers and peasants, 21.08
percent were intellectuals, 33.17 percent were cadres, 15.44
percent were representatives of various democratic parties and non-
party patriots, 9 percent were representatives of the People's
Liberation Army, 1.17 percent were representatives from the Hong
Kong Special Administrative Region, and 1.24 percent were returned
overseas Chinese.
As the highest organ of state power, the NPC is responsible for
drawing up state laws, determining important state affairs and
electing the members of state administrative, justice and
procuratorial organs, and supervising them. China runs state
affairs according to law.
Since the introduction of the policy of reform and opening to
the outside world in the late 1970s, the NPC and its Standing
Committee have enacted more than 360 laws and legal decisions, and
the local people's congresses at different levels have drawn up
more than 7,000 local regulations.
The NPC and its Standing Committee hear, examine and discuss
the work reports of the State Council and its departments as well
as the Supreme People's Court and the Supreme People's
Procuratorate, and examine the implementation of laws and legal
decisions.
The special committees of the NPC also conduct various types of
examinations of law enforcement work. In addition, the Standing
Committee of the NPC receives petitions from citizens, supervises
the work of judicial organs and safeguards citizens' legal rights
according to law.
The system of multi-party cooperation and political
consultation led by the Communist Party of China (CPC) is an
important part of China's democratic political system.
As parties friendly to the CPC, the eight non-Communist parties
participate in government and political affairs, engaging in
consultations concerning state policies and leadership candidates,
management of national affairs, and the drawing up and
implementation of state policy, laws and regulations.
On key state issues, the CPC--the party in power--always
consults the other parties, solicits their suggestions and
negotiates with them.
At the Ninth National People's Congress, representatives from
the non-Communist parties and non-party personages accounted for
30 percent and 21.9 percent of the Standing Committee and
permanent special committees of the NPC, respectively.
At present, in the departments of the State Council, the
Supreme People's Court and the Supreme People's Procuratorate,
members of the non-Communist parties and non-party personages
occupy some senior positions.
At the same time, in the country's 31 provinces, autonomous
regions, municipalities directly under the Central Government and
15 cities at sub-provincial level, members of the non-Communist
parties and non-party personages hold the posts of deputy governor
of a province or deputy mayor or assistant to the governor of a
province or to a mayor.
The people's political consultative conferences at different
levels consist of members of all political parties and people's
organizations, and non-party personages, with a widespread
representation.
The members of the National Committee of the Ninth People's
Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) come from 34 circles,
among them, the non-Communist parties, the All-China Federation of
Industry and Commerce and non-party personages, accounting for 59.
5 percent of the CPPCC National Committee members and 63.4 percent
of the CPPCC National Committee Standing Committee members.
The political consultative organizations play an important
role in the state's political life by means of political
consultation, democratic supervision and participation in the
administration and discussion of state affairs.
Since 1990, more than 100 consultation meetings and forums have
been held between the Central Committee of the CPC, the State
Council and the central committees of the non-Communist parties
and non-party personages.
Between 1992 and 1998, the central committees of the eight
democratic parties and the All-China Federation of Industry and
Commerce put forward more than 100 important suggestions
concerning reform and opening up, economic construction,
democratic and legal system building, anti-corruption efforts and
the promotion of honesty to the Central Committee of the CPC, the
State Council and relevant departments. Many of these suggestions
have been adopted by the Central Committee of the CPC and the
State Council.
Democracy at the grass-roots level is an important means for
ensuring that citizens directly exercise their democratic rights.
By directly electing members of villagers' committees and
deciding upon major affairs of their villages through democratic
discussions, the rural masses fully exercise their rights of
democratic election, democratic policy-making, democratic
management and democratic supervision.
Since 1988, rural areas throughout China have already carried
out three or four elections of new villagers' committees. Most of
the villagers' committees have established villagers' congresses
and representative conferences and the system of making public
village affairs.
Since the promulgation of the new Organic Law on Villagers'
Committees in 1999, nearly half of the provinces, municipalities
directly under the Central Government and autonomous regions have
published their own rules and regulations on the election of
villagers' committees.
The election of villagers' committees has been increasingly
standardized, and villagers' right to nominate candidates is
respected.
The election procedure, which guarantees the rights of voters,
has been gradually regularized.
The procedure involves the methods by which villagers select
formal candidates through preliminary elections, formal candidates
run for the election on an equal footing, voters choose from among
a large number of candidates, candidates make speeches, voters
mark their ballots in specially-designated rooms, ballots are
counted openly, and the election results are announced on the spot.
Statistics show that in provinces where elections of members
for a new term of office on the villagers' committees were
completed in 1999, the proportion of peasants taking part in the
elections reached more than 90 percent in most cases and more than
85 percent in other cases.
In urban areas, residents elect by secret ballot directors,
deputy directors and members of neighborhood committees, and the
election procedure is being standardized.
China guarantees, according to law, that citizens enjoy
extensive basic freedoms and rights.
The Constitution clearly states that citizens enjoy freedom of
speech, of the press, of assembly, of association, of procession,
of demonstration and of religious belief. Freedom of the person
and personal dignity, and the residences of citizens are
inviolable. Freedom and privacy of correspondence of citizens are
protected by law.
The state has made vigorous efforts to develop press and
publications undertakings, creating favorable conditions for
citizens to enjoy freedom of speech and the press.
Statistics show that 1998 witnessed the publishing of 30.04
billion copies of newspapers of 1,053 titles, 2.54 billion copies
of magazines of 7,999 titles and 7.24 billion copies of books of
more than 130,000 titles.
There were 294 radio stations, 560 cable and wireless TV
stations at the central and provincial levels, 1,287 broadcasting
and TV stations at the county level and 75 educational TV stations.
The national TV network covered over 89 percent of the
population, with an audience of more than one billion.
By June 1999, some 1.46 million computers in China had been
connected with the Internet, with the Internet users totaling four
million.
In China, all social organizations that meet the regulations of
the Constitution and other laws and are formed through necessary
registration procedures are protected by the state.
By the end of 1998, China had a total of 165,600 social
organizations. These organizations and their activities are
subject to the protection of the Constitution and other laws.
The state protects the freedom of religious belief and the
normal religious activities of citizens.
No State organ, social organization or individual may compel
citizens to believe in, or not to believe in, a religion, nor may
they discriminate against citizens who believe in, or do not
believe in, any religion.
Incomplete statistics show that China now has more than 100
million religious believers and 85,000 venues for religious
activities that have been registered, with some 300,000
professional religious personnel.
There are more than 3,000 national and local religious
organizations and 74 religious colleges. Various religions publish
their scriptures, and religious books and journals. Of them, 20
million copies of the Bible have been printed.
Chinese religious organizations have established contacts with
religious organizations and personnel in more than 70 countries
and regions.
Both the National People's Congress and the Chinese People's
Political Consultative Conference include people who have
religious beliefs and who come from various social groups and
organizations.
More than 17,000 religious personnel have been elected deputies
to the people's congresses and members of the people's political
consultative conferences at various levels.
Public security and judicial organs crack down on crimes
according to law, and protect citizens' legitimate rights and
interests from being infringed.
According to statistics, in 1998, however, they handled 5.4
million first instance cases, including 480,000 criminal cases, 3.
37 million civil cases, 1.45 million cases of economic disputes
and nearly 100,000 administrative cases.
The public security and judicial organs cracked down on serious
crimes related to murder, explosion, poisoning, robbery, large-
scale theft, rape, kidnapping, gangs, and guns, effectively
protecting the safety of people's lives and property.
Meanwhile, the legitimate rights of criminal suspects and the
accused were protected according to law.
Since 1983, people's courts have pronounced more than 40,000
people not guilty according to law because of lack of evidence of
crimes.
Over the past few years, in a bid to strictly enforce laws and
strengthen the protection of human rights during the judicial
process, people's courts have carried out an in-depth reform of
adjudication methods.
Efforts have been made according to law to promote public
adjudication in an all-round way, and strengthen the supervision
of adjudication by society and public opinion so as to ensure
judicial fairness.
Except for those unsuitable for public hearing as prescribed by
the law, all first instance cases are now subject to public trial.
The rate of open court sessions for second instance cases has also
been raised gradually.
Judgments in all cases, whether subject to public hearing or
not, are announced openly.
While court sessions are opened for case hearing, evidence,
cross-examination, attestation and debate have been conducted on
the spot, thus increasing the rate of judgment announcements in
court.
Procuratorial organs have intensified the supervision of law
enforcement by redressing according to law the problems of failure
to observe the law, weak law enforcement and miscarriages of
justice.
In 1998, the procuratorial organs demanded that public security
organs give reasons as to why 9,335 cases had not been filed, of
which 5,207 cases were finally designated to be placed on file.
They put forward suggestions for correcting the extended
detention of 70,992 people, and raised for correction 9,964 cases
which involved violation of the law during investigation.
They approved the arrest of 582,120 of the 689,025 suspects
transferred by public security and state security organs for
examination and approval of arrest, and issued additional warrants
for the arrest of 6,957 people and the prosecution of 3,904 people.
They filed public charges against 557,929 of the 668,425
suspects transferred for approval of prosecution, and decided not
to arrest 93,218 people and not to prosecute 11,225 people.
They protested 3,791 criminal judgments they deemed wrong, and
raised 1,211 cases for correction, which involved violations of
the law in the trial procedure.
They also raised 9,672 cases for correction, which involved
violations of the law by related departments for approving the
reduction of a sentence term, release on parole, and temporary
serving of sentences outside the prison.
Prison authorities insist on administering prisons according to
law. They have devoted great efforts to carrying out the practice
of making public prison affairs to inmates, raising the
transparency of law enforcement and conscientiously guaranteeing
the legitimate rights of convicts.
Statistics show that in 1998, some 361,000 convicts were given
reductions of sentence or released on parole, accounting for 25
percent of the total imprisoned population.
The establishment and development of the lawyer and legal aid
systems are playing an increasingly important role in protecting
the legitimate rights and interests of citizens, and maintaining
the correct enforcement of the law.
Currently, China has nearly 9,000 law offices, and the number
of licensed lawyers exceeds 100,000. Between 1979 and 1999,
lawyers in China pleaded for the accused in three million criminal
cases. In 1998 alone, they pleaded for the accused or acted as
attorneys in 296,668 criminal cases. As a result, the legitimate
rights and interests of the suspects and accused were effectively
safeguarded.
Since the Legal Aid Center of the Ministry of Justice and the
China Legal Aid Foundation were established in 1996 and 1997,
respectively, more than 800 legal aid institutions have been set
up. This enables an increasing number of poor citizens to benefit
from legal services free or at a reduced charge, according to law.
Incomplete statistics indicate that in 1997, legal aid
institutions at various levels and personnel engaged in legal
services handled some 50,000 cases requiring legal aid, and
provided legal advice to more than 400,000 people.
According to 1998 statistics, relevant institutions and
personnel in 20 provinces and municipalities handled more than 60,
000 cases requesting legal aid, and offered legal advice to 800,
000 people. And another survey shows that in the first half of
1999, more than 40,000 such cases were handled in 24 provinces.
Citizens have the right to criticize and make suggestions to
government institutions and their staff members. They also have
the right to complain, bring lawsuits against or report law-
breaking activities and dereliction of duty on the part of
government officials.
To guarantee these rights of citizens, government institutions
at all levels have set up offices receiving petitions and personal
visits.
And the people's procuratorial organs and administrative
supervisory systems at central to local levels have established
offense-reporting organs.
The news media have also strengthened supervision of cases
involving dereliction of duty, abuse of power and infringement
upon citizens' legitimate rights and interests by government staff
members.
Those who have suffered losses due to the infringement upon
citizens' rights by government institutions or staff members, have
the right to compensation according to law.
China specially formulated the Administrative Procedure Law in
1991 and the State Compensation Law in 1995.
To date, nearly 440,000 administrative cases and 2,566 state
compensation cases have been handled by people's courts,
effectively safeguarding the legitimate rights and interests of
citizens.
IV. Protection of the Rights of Women and Children
In old China, women did not have any right at all to
participate in public affairs.
But since the establishment of the People's Republic of China
in 1949, women's right to participate in the administration of
state and social affairs has been protected according to law, with
the level of their involvement in public affairs rising constantly.
When the First National People's Congress (NPC) was held in
1954, women deputies only accounted for 11.9 percent of the total,
while in 1998, when the Ninth NPC was convened, women deputies
numbered 650, constituting 21.81 percent of the total.
Women made up 6.6 percent of the total members of the First
National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative
Conference (CPPCC).
At the Ninth National Committee of the CPPCC, women accounted
for 341 of the members, making up 15.54 percent of the total.
The 15th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC)
had 344 women delegates, constituting 16.8 percent of the total.
Currently, four of the state leaders are women, and 18 women
serve as ministers and vice-ministers in charge of various
ministries and commissions under the State Council.
The Party and government leading bodies of the country's 31
provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities all have women
officials, with their number rising by 46.47 percent over that
five years ago.
By the end of 1997, women made up 13.838 million of the
government staff members, and managerial, professional and
technical personnel of state-owned enterprises and institutions,
accounting for 34.4 percent of the total.
In old China, women had few employment opportunities. Today,
women enjoy equal rights with men to work, as well as the right to
acquire equal pay for equal work and special labor protection.
In 1949, there were only 600,000 women workers and staff
members in China, accounting for 7.5 percent of the total
workforce.
In 1998, women employees numbered 340.67 million, constituting
48.7 percent of the total employees, higher than the world's
average of 34.5 percent.
Of the 450 million rural laborers in China, 320 million, or 71
percent, are engaged in agricultural production, of whom, 210
million are women, forming 65.6 percent of the total.
There are only five countries in the world, where women's
salaries equal 80 percent or more of men's, while the income of
Chinese women is equivalent to 80.4 percent of that of their male
counterparts.
Women employees enjoy special care during menstruation,
pregnancy, childbirth and lactation periods, and child-bearing
women employees enjoy a three-month paid maternity leave.
In old China, 90 percent of women were illiterate, whereas in
1997, the female illiteracy rate dropped to 23.2 percent, with the
illiteracy rate for young and middle-aged women down to 8.5
percent.
In 1998, the primary school attendance rate for girls across
the country rose from 15 percent in 1949 to 98.86 percent,
basically guaranteeing the right of girls to receive compulsory
education.
Since 1990, the gap between the school attendance rates for
boys and girls has narrowed from 1.28 percentage points to 0.1
percentage point.
By 1998, Chinese women had received 6.5 years of education on
average.
The proportion of women students in regular institutions of
higher learning rose from 19.8 percent in 1949 to 38.3 percent in
1998.
The proportion of girl students in junior middle schools
increased from 26.5 percent in 1950 to 46.5 percent in 1998, and
that of girls in primary schools grew from 28 percent in 1951 to
47.6 percent in 1998.
By the end of 1998, the Chinese Academy of Sciences and the
Chinese Academy of Engineering had a total of 62 women
academicians, accounting for 6 percent of the total, higher than
the rate in any other country.
The physical conditions of women have greatly improved.
In 1949, China had only nine maternity and child care centers,
with limited numbers of beds and medical workers.
But in 1998, there were 514 maternity and child care hospitals
and hospitals for gynecology and obstetrics, with 87,000 beds and
82,000 medical personnel, and 2,724 health care centers for women
and children, and 88,000 medical personnel.
A national health care network for women and children has been
initially formed.
During the early years of the People's Republic, due to poor
health care conditions, old methods prevailed in deliveries, and
the mortality for pregnant and lying-in women was as high as 1,500
per 100,000.
By 1998, China had 47 hospitals for gynecology and obstetrics,
with 108,634 gynecologists and obstetricians trained in Western
medicine.
The number of midwives rose from 13,900 in 1949 to 48,696 in
1998, and that of rural midwives exceeded 310,000.
Some 66.8 percent of women gave birth in hospital, modern
methods were adopted for 94.5 percent of deliveries in rural areas,
and the mortality of pregnant and lying-in women dropped to 56.2
per 100,000.
The average life expectancy of Chinese women rose from 36 years
in 1949 to 73.2 years in 1997.
This is 4.5 years higher than the figure for men and eight
years higher than the average life expectancy of 65 years set as a
goal by the United Nations for women all over the world by the
year 2000.
China has adopted practical measures to develop hygienic and
health care undertakings for children, protecting the life and
health of children.
In 1949, there were only five children's hospitals in China,
with 139 beds. By 1998, children's hospitals numbered 37
throughout the country, with 9,808 beds and 60,446 pediatricians
trained in Western medicine.
In addition, more than 15,000 hospitals at or above the county
level had set up departments of gynecology, obstetrics and
pediatrics.
The incidence of tetanus among the newborn dropped to 0.27 per
thousand. Infant mortality declined from 200 per thousand in the
early years of New China to 33.2 per thousand in 1998, and the
mortality of children under the age of five was down to 42 per
thousand.
Meanwhile, the physical conditions of children have improved
noticeably.
In 1997, the mortality rate of children under five caused by
diarrhea had fallen by 67.8 percent compared with that in 1991,
and that caused by pneumonia was down 44.6 percent.
The incidence of measles and mortality for Chinese children had
dropped by 98.1 percent and 99 percent, respectively, from the
figures for 1978.
When implementing the universal immunity program for one-year-
old children in 1997, 96 percent of children were inoculated with
BCG vaccine, and 96 percent were inoculated against whooping cough,
diphtheritis and tetanus 97 percent against polio, and 95 percent
against measles.
Early education for children has improved rapidly in China. In
1990, only 32 percent of children from three to six years old
entered kindergartens, while by the end of 1998, China had had 180,
000 kindergartens with an enrollment of 24 million and about 70
percent of children attend kindergartens for one year before they
go to school.
A sample survey shows that 94.8 percent of new pupils in grade
one of primary schools across the country have received preschool
education.
V. Equal Rights and Special Protection for Ethnic Minorities
Since the founding of the People's Republic of China, ethnic
minorities, along with the majority Han ethnic group, have been
the masters of the state, equally enjoying all of the civic rights
granted by the Constitution and laws, and in addition enjoying the
special rights of ethnic minorities according to law.
The right of the people of the ethnic minorities to participate
on an equal footing in state administration is guaranteed.
In all the previous National People's Congresses and the
Chinese People's Political Consultative Conferences, the
percentage of ethnic minority delegates and members has exceeded
the proportion of the ethnic minority population in the national
population.
Ethnic-minority delegates accounted for 14.37 percent of the
Ninth National People's Congress delegates selected in 1998, and
for 11.7 percent of the committee members of the Ninth Chinese
People's Political Consultative Conference, both surpassing the 8.
9 percent proportion of the ethnic minority population in the
national population.
Each of the 55 ethnic minorities has its own delegates and
committee members. There are over 2.7 million ethnic-minority
cadres throughout China, and a fairly large number of ethnic-
minority personnel working in central and local state organs,
administrative organs, judicial organs and procuratorial organs.
China practices ethnic regional autonomy in areas where ethnic
minority people live in compact communities.
According to the relevant laws, among the chairman and vice-
chairmen of the standing committee of the people's congress of an
autonomous area there must be one or more citizens of the ethnic
group or groups exercising regional autonomy in the area concerned.
The head of an autonomous region, autonomous prefecture or
autonomous county should be a citizen of the ethnic group
exercising regional autonomy in the area concerned, and the other
members of the people's governments of these regions, prefectures
and counties shall include members of the ethnic group exercising
regional autonomy as well as members of other ethnic minorities as
far as possible.
The people's congresses of the autonomous areas have the right
to enact regulations on the exercise of autonomy and separate
regulations in light of local political, economic and cultural
characteristics.
By the end of 1998, 126 regulations on the exercise of autonomy
and 209 separate regulations had been enacted by the autonomous
areas. If resolutions, decisions, orders and instructions from the
higher-level state organs are not suited to the actual conditions
of the autonomous areas, the organs of self-government of these
areas may be flexible in carrying them out or may decide not to
carry them out after gaining approval from the higher state organs.
Furthermore, in accordance with state laws and regulations,
organs of self-government in autonomous areas also enjoy the right
to control their economies and local finances, the right to
develop educational, scientific, technological and cultural
undertakings, and the right to use and develop the local spoken
and written languages.
Before the founding of the People's Republic in 1949, economy,
culture and social development were very backward in its ethnic
minority areas. People of ethnic minorities, mainly engaged in
agriculture and animal husbandry, lived in poverty.
Since 1949, the state has adopted special policies and measures
to assist and support the economic development and social progress
of the ethnic minority areas in the aspects of capital, technology
and personnel.
According to statistics, the total industrial and agricultural
output value in autonomous areas grew from 3.66 billion yuan in
1949 to 852.35 billion yuan in 1998.
The output of pig iron, raw coal, crude oil and generated
energy in these areas increased respectively from 9,000 tons, 1.78
million tons, 52,000 tons and 80 million kilowatt/hours in 1952 to
7.02 million tons, 175.69 million tons, 20.47 million tons and 132.
11 billion kilowatt/hours in 1998.
The railway traffic mileage, highway traffic mileage and
postal routes totaled respectively 17,100 kilometers, 376,400
kilometers and 1.14 million kilometers, or 4.5 times, 12.8 times
and 8.6 times the 1952 figures.
The grain output grew from 15.82 million tons in 1952 to 71.5
million tons in 1998, and the total number of large livestock from
24.39 million head to 55.65 million head.
Remarkable improvements have been made in the lives of the
minority peoples.
In 1997, the net income per peasant in ethnic-minority
autonomous areas had reached 1,633.11 yuan, or 21.5 times the 1980
figure; the per capita possession of grain came to 424.4 kilograms,
or 1.5 times the 1978 figure; and the average salaries of
employees in the ethnic-minority areas amounted to 5,593 yuan, or
7.9 times the 1981 figure.
In old China, the illiteracy rate among ethnic minorities was
often over 95 percent.
Only 10 percent of school-age children attended school in the
Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, 97 percent of the people in the
Tibet Autonomous Region were illiterate, and there were only 16
secondary schools in the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region.
Since the founding of the People's Republic, the educational
situation in ethnic-minority areas has been improved remarkably,
and the illiteracy rate has been reduced by 68 percentage points.
By 1998, there were 94 institutions of higher learning and 226,
400 students in these institutions in ethnic autonomous areas, 13,
466 middle schools with 5.2964 million students, and 90,704
primary schools with 12.409 million pupils.
To date, the state has independently founded 12 specialized
ethnic universities and institutes, 59 ethnic teachers' training
schools, 158 ethnic secondary vocational schools, 3,536 ethnic
middle schools, and 20,906 ethnic primary schools.
Since 1990, the gap between the school attendance rate in the
areas inhabited by ethnic minority peoples and the average
national level has been reduced from 3.7 percentage points to 0.7
percentage point.
The cultures of ethnic minorities are being preserved. Chinese
law provides that all ethnic groups have the freedom to use and
develop their own spoken and written languages.
The organs of self-government in ethnic autonomous areas all
use one or more languages of their areas to carry out their
responsibilities.
When several languages are current, they may mainly adopt the
language of the ethnic minority which set up the regional autonomy.
Since the 1950s, the Chinese government has helped a dozen
ethnic minority peoples create or improve 13 scripts.
The state has established special bodies to organize the
editing and publishing of ancient writings of ethnic minorities.
More than 120,000 titles of such works have been collected, of
which over 110,000 have been edited and 5,000 published.
More than 3,000 experts and scholars organized by the state
have completed the editing and publishing of five series of books
on ethnic-minority issues, including A Brief History of China's
Ethnic Minorities, Brief Records of Ethnic Minorities' Languages
and A General Survey of Ethnic Autonomous Areas, comprising over
400 titles with 90 million words.
Now each of the 55 ethnic minority groups has a brief written
history. The Chinese government has set up special institutions
for the preservation, translation and research of the three major
epics of ethnic minorities: Gesar, Jianggar and Manas.
The three epics and treatises concerning them have been
published in the appropriate ethnic-minority languages, in Chinese
and in other languages.
The state respects the folkways and customs of ethnic minority
peoples in such aspects as diet, burial, festivals and marriage.
Ethnic minority peoples also enjoy freedom of religious belief,
supported by specific state policies.
To date, there are more than 18 million believers in Islam
among ethnic minorities, over 30,000 mosques and 40,000 imams and
ahungs.
The Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region has more than 8.1 million
religious believers, accounting for over 56.3 percent of its total
population, 23,000 places for religious activities (over 20,000
mosques included), 29,000 religious personnel and over 80
religious groups.
In Tibet, there are more than 1,700 places for Tibetan Buddhist
activities, and 46,000 lamas and monks. In old China, the medical
and health conditions in ethnic minority areas were extremely
backward. Local and epidemic diseases ran rampant, and the
population declined steadily.
Since the founding of New China, medical and health conditions
in such areas have been remarkably improved, the populations have
increased rapidly and the standard of health has risen greatly.
According to statistics, medical and health institutions in
ethnic autonomous areas grew from 361 in 1949 to 16,724 in 1998,
the number of hospital beds grew from 3,310 to 392,671 and the
number of medical personnel from 3,531 to 605,255.
In 1998, the Tibet Autonomous Region had more than 1,300
medical and health institutions, or 21 times the 1959 figure, and
over 6,700 hospital beds, or 17.6 times the 1959 figure.
The population of ethnic minorities in China was only 34.013
million according to the first national census of 1953, but it had
reached 108.46 million in 1995.
In the ethnic-minority areas, the death rate and infant
mortality rate keep going down. For example, in the Tibet
Autonomous Region the mortality rate of women in pregnancy and
childbirth decreased from five percent in 1959 to 0.7 percent in
1998, and the infant mortality rate from 43 percent in 1959 to 3.
677 percent in 1998.
Meanwhile, the average life expectancy of Tibetan people has
been prolonged from less than 36 years before 1949 to the current
65 years.
VI. The Cross-Century Development Prospects for Human Rights
in China
Fifty years is but a moment in human history. Nevertheless, in
the past 50 years the Chinese people have made a great historic
leap in the development of human rights.
In safeguarding and promoting human rights, although setbacks
occurred, one indisputable basic fact is that after unremitting
efforts over half a century, the poverty-stricken, weak and
humiliated old China has become an independent New China in the
early stage of prosperity, and the 1.25 billion Chinese people
have become the masters of their own fates.
They have changed the terrible situation of chronic hunger,
cold and ignorance, rid China of the label of "The Sick Man of
East Asia," lead a civilized and healthy life of plenty, and enjoy
unprecedented democracy and freedom.
We can say that the human rights situation in present-day China
is totally different from that of the old China -- even compared
with the years before the initiation of reform and opening-up, the
great progress that has been made in this respect is universally
acknowledged.
Nevertheless, it must be admitted that China is still a
developing country. Limited by impediments of natural, historical
and economic development, there is still room for improvement with
regard to the levels of China's democratic and legal construction,
the degree of social civilization and people's living standards.
However, on the basis of 50 years of development, especially
with the successful experiences accumulated in the past 20 years
of reform and opening-up, the Chinese government and people are
capable of solving the problems on the road of advance, and will
make constant progress in their endeavors to improve human rights.
First, to fully realize human rights is a basic goal of China's
cross-century development.
After China adopted the policy of reform and opening-up, it
worked out a cross-century economic development strategy to
realize modernization in three stages, each stage being aimed at
enhancing China's overall national strength and improving the
Chinese people's living standards.
This inevitably entails improving the human rights situation.
The goals of the first and second stages -- to solve the problems
of food and clothing of the entire Chinese people and to enable
them to live a relatively comfortable life -- have already been
basically achieved; the goal of the third stage -- to reach the
level of the medium-developed countries in the mid-21st century,
so that the entire Chinese people can realize common prosperity -
already has a relatively good foundation.
At the 15th National Congress of the Communist Party of China
held in 1997, on the basis of summing up experiences, and from the
height of China's cross-century development, while reiterating the
three-stage development strategy, emphasis was placed on the
construction of a democratic and legal system.
The congress stressed the continuance of political
restructuring, the further expansion of democracy, the perfection
of the legal system, "governing the country according to law, to
build a socialist country ruled by law," and making "governing the
country according to law" a basic state policy.
In March 1999, the Second Session of the Ninth National People'
s Congress included "governing the country according to law, to
build a socialist country ruled by law" in the Constitution,
making "governing the country according to law, to build a country
ruled by law" a basic goal of the political restructuring and the
construction of a democratic and legal system, which is fixed in
the form of the fundamental law of the state.
The essence of "governing the country according to law, to
build a country ruled by law" is guaranteeing that the Party and
the government control political power and administer the state
according to law, that the law-enforcement departments work in
accordance with the law, and that the citizens exercise their
rights and perform their duties in accordance with the law.
In short, we must guarantee human rights in the country's laws
and systems. Therefore, the implementation of the strategy of
governing the country according to law and the realization of the
goal of building a country ruled by law possess important and
essential significance in guaranteeing human rights and promoting
China's cross-century development of human rights.
Second, since China introduced the policy of reform and opening-
up, it has found a road for the promotion and development of human
rights that suits its reality.
China is a developing country in the East with a long history
and a huge population, but with a relative shortage of resources
and wealth. To promote human rights in such a country, China
cannot copy the mode of human rights development of the developed
Western countries, nor can it copy the methods of other developing
countries.
China can only start from its own reality and explore a road
with its own characteristics.
Since the introduction of the policy of reform and opening-up,
China has, on the basis of summing up its historical experiences
and drawing lessons from them, found a road to building socialism
with Chinese characteristics, and therefore has found a road to
promoting and developing human rights which is in line with the
country's reality.
This means putting the rights to subsistence and development in
the first place, under the conditions of reform, development and
stability, and thus promoting human rights development in an
overall way.
The characteristics of this road are, in terms of the basic
orientation of developing human rights, that we stick to the
principle of developing the productive forces and promoting common
prosperity, based on the improvement of the living standards of
the entire people and promoting the human rights of the entire
people; in terms of the order of priority, the top priority is
given to the rights to subsistence and development, while taking
into consideration the people's political, economic, social and
cultural rights and the overall development of individual and
collective rights; in terms of the methods of promoting and
guaranteeing human rights, we stress that stability is the
prerequisite, development is the key, reform is the motive power,
and government according to law is the guarantee.
Over the past 20 years, China has stuck to this correct road of
development. As a result, not only have the living standards and
mental outlook of the Chinese people changed greatly, but a set of
relatively complete political and legal systems that guarantee the
people's democratic rights have been formed.
Thus, great progress has been made in putting human rights into
a legal and institutional framework, and China's human rights
development has been improving constantly.
Practice has proved that building socialism with Chinese
characteristics is a road of development that is in accordance
with the fundamental interests of the Chinese people, and also the
only road which can effectively promote human rights in China.
We can say that China's cross-century development objective in
the sphere of human rights has been set, the foundation has been
laid, and the road has been opened.
Looking forward to continuous progress in the 21st century, we
have every reason to believe that as long as we follow the plans
laid down at the Party's 15th National Congress, while continuing
to carry out the three-stage economic development strategy,
earnestly implement the general plan of governing the country
according to law, and strive to build a socialist country ruled by
law, China's human rights situation will see steady improvement.
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