Source document: https://docs-lawep.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com/1697731576155.pdf (China)
NPC VOL.59 ISSUE 4 · 2022 《中国人大》对外版 National People’s Congress of China XI JINPING LEADS CHINA ON NEW JOURNEY 2 NATIONAL PEOPLE’S CONGRESS OF CHINA ISSUE 4 · 2022 Delegates attend the closing session of the 20th National Con- gress of the Communist Party of China at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, capital of China, on October 22.
Shen Hong 3 目录 6 Xi Jinping leads China on new journey Contents 20th CPC National Congress 6 Xi Jinping leads China on new journey 16 Xi Jinping attends group discussion with Guangxi delegates to 20th CPC National Congress 20 Li Zhanshu joins discussion with Sichuan delegates to 20th CPC National Congress 21 Li Zhanshu stresses improvement of people’s congresses Special Report 24 Xi Jinping stresses rural revitalization in Shaanxi and Henan International Exchange 28 Li Zhanshu calls for enhanced parliamentary exchanges with ASEAN 29 Cao Jianming attends Global Bamboo and Rattan Congress 30 Shen Yueyue reiterates China’s commitment to wetlands conservation 31 Chen Zhu addresses high-level dialogue of Paris Peace Forum 4 NATIONAL PEOPLE’S CONGRESS OF CHINA 21 Li Zhanshu stresses improvement of people’s congresses 32 Role of Constitution strengthened 38 NPC Standing Committee provides interpretation of provisions in the national security law in Hong Kong Opinion 32 Role of Constitution strengthened 34 Law revised for better protection of women Legislation 36 Law on Yellow River conservation adopted 38 NPC Standing Committee provides interpretation of provisions in the national security law in Hong Kong ISSUE 4 · 2022 40 The revised law on wildlife protection adopted Whole-Process People’s Democracy 42 9,203 suggestions by national lawmakers under review 43 Whole-process people’s democracy brimming with dynamism in China 45 VOL.59 ISSUE4 December 2022 Administrated by General Office of the Standing Committee of
 National People’s Congress Chief Editor: Wang Yang General Editorial Office Address: 23 Xijiaominxiang, Xicheng District, Beijing 100805, P.R.China (86-10)5560-4181 (86-10)6309-8540 zgrdnpc@npc.gov.cn Tel: E-mail: Central Economic Work Conference convened to plan for 2023 COVER: Xi Jinping, general secretary of the Com- munist Party of China Central Committee, waves to journalists at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, capital of China, on October 23.
Pang Xinglei ISSN 1674-3008 CN 11-5683/D Price: RMB 35 Edited by The People’s Congresses Journal Published by The People’s Congresses Journal Printed by Beijing Zhong Ke Printing Co., Ltd. in China ISSUE 4 · 2022 5 20TH CPC NATIONAL CONGRESS Xi Jinping leads China on new journey Xi Jinping delivers a report to the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC) on behalf of the 19th CPC Central Committee at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on October 16.
The 20th CPC National Congress opened on the same day.

Ju Peng 6 NATIONAL PEOPLE’S CONGRESS OF CHINA A fter 10 years at the helm of the Communist Party of China (CPC), Xi Jinping, 69, once again stood in front of reporters as the Party’s top leader, vowing to lead the country in pursuing national rejuvenation through a Chinese path to modernization.
“We shall keep in mind the Party’s nature and purpose and our own mission and responsibility, and work diligently in the performance of our duty, to prove worthy of the great trust of the Party and our people,” Xi said on October 23, 2022, as he led his colleagues to meet the press, fresh from a Party plenum that elected him general secretary of the CPC Central Commit- tee.
In 2012, after assuming the Party’s top job, Xi said that he and his colleagues would lead the CPC in striving for national rejuvenation, pursuing a better life for the people and address- ing problems within the Party.

In the past decade, China under his leadership has witnessed historic changes, with its economy more than doubling to 114 trillion yuan (16 trillion U.S. dollars), absolute poverty wiped out and moderate prosperity attained for the country’s 1.4 bil- lion people.
It was also a decade of severe challenges.

The COVID-19 pan- demic, a trade war with the United States and the downward pressure on the economy all posed hurdles for China’s develop- ment and tested the strength of Xi and the Party he leads.

Bringing about milestone transformations and ushering in a “new era” for socialism with Chinese characteristics, Xi is re- garded as the helmsman capable of leading the country in over- coming difficulties and pursuing full modernization.
Stephen Perry, chairman of the 48 Group Club in the UK, said everything he has seen of President Xi tells him that Xi’s motivation is the people of China, which is very important for China’s development at its current stage.

Robert Kuhn, a U.S. scholar who authored the book, “How China’s Leaders Think,” said Xi has an objective and compre- hensive understanding of China’s current situation, as well as detailed and rational thinking of its future.
Son of Loess Plateau Xi was born in June 1953 into a revolutionary family.

His father, Xi Zhongxun, was a revered CPC leader.

Describing his father as “someone who had devoted himself wholeheartedly to the Chinese people,” Xi said he was greatly inspired by the elder Xi and pledged to follow in his footsteps.
At 15, as an “educated youth,” Xi left Beijing for a village called Liangjiahe in an arid part of northwest China’s Shaanxi Province, carrying with him a small sewing bag embroidered with the Chinese characters “mom’s heart” by his mother Qi Xin.

Xi would spend seven years in the countryside, working and living alongside farmers.

He called himself a farmer as he re- called his Liangjiahe years.
He was separated from his family, slept in cave dwellings, suffered from flea bites and worked as hard as fellow villagers to tend crops, herd sheep, carry manure and haul coal.

He joined the CPC there and later became the village Party chief -- the beginning of his political career.
Xi recalled his ear- nest wish at the time was “to make it possible for the villagers to have meat and have it often.” He led them in digging wells, building dams and terrace hills, and setting up the province’s ISSUE 4 · 2022 7 20TH CPC NATIONAL CONGRESS first methane-generating pit.

This experience meant a lot to Xi and he often talks about it, even after becoming top leader.
During a state visit to Costa Rica in 2013, he visited the home of a farming family and talk- ed about his experience in the countryside.

“It is extremely rare for a president to speak so passionately and with such pride about being a farmer.

Some people may downplay that aspect, but he does not; he emphasizes it,” said Alberto Zamora, whose family owns the coffee plantation Xi visited.
Xi said he gained his understanding of the meaning of the word “people” through his experience in Liangjiahe, and it strengthened his determination to “serve the people,” a princi- ple he has adhered to over the decades.

In the late 1970s, after graduating from Tsinghua Universi- ty, Xi served as a secretary to the minister of defense.

In 1982, he volunteered to work at the grassroots level and moved to Zhengding, a poor county in north China’s Hebei Province.
Peng Liyuan, his wife, later said that many of Xi’s classmates went abroad, something he could have easily done.

But Xi stayed and chose a much harder path: to be a servant to the people.

In his three years in Zhengding, Xi served as deputy Party chief and then Party chief.

He rode a bicycle to all the county communes and production teams to inspect work.

Sometimes, he arrived when villagers were tilling the fields, where he would join them in the farm work.
He then spent over 17 years in Fujian Province and nearly five years in Zhejiang Province.

He served multiple roles in the two coastal provinces including vice mayor, prefecture Party chief, municipal Party chief, provincial governor and provincial Party chief.

In 2007, he worked in Shanghai as its Party chief before ascending to the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee.
Xi kept a close bond with the people wherever he worked, even after he was promoted to work at the apex of the Party.

He made it a tradition to visit people’s homes ahead of every Spring Festival.

Xi’s early experiences with hunger and toil- ing on the farms may help explain why he checks the kitchen, bathroom and cellar in ordinary people’s homes.

He also kept the habit of corresponding with the people.
Those who have received Xi’s letters include farmers, entrepreneurs, students, grassland art troupe members and soldiers guarding the bor- ders.

In 2013, Xi initiated a “targeted poverty alleviation” drive and made plans for its implementation.

Altogether, over 255,000 work teams and more than 3 million cadres were sent to the countryside to help villagers shake off poverty household by household.

As a result about 100 million people were lifted out of extreme poverty over the past decade.
Being with the people through thick and thin has strength- ened his conviction to strive for happiness for the people and rejuvenation for the nation.

In the past decade, Xi initiated five Party-wide education campaigns to remind CPC members of their original aspiration and the Party’s founding mission.

Xi is very familiar with the plight of the nation after the Opi- um Wars brought by Western colonialists in the 19th century.
In 2018, he visited the ruins of a cannon fort on Liugong Island in east China’s Shandong Province.

More than a century ago, the island bore witness to the crushing defeat of China’s first modern navy in the First Sino-Japanese War.

Xi paused at the ruins, while inside the war museum he read aloud a patriotic poem deploring the foreign invasion.
As the first CPC chief born after the founding of the Peo- ple’s Republic of China in 1949, Xi shared pride in a string of achievements that manifested that “the Chinese people have stood up.” This includes the victory in the War to Resist U.S.

Aggression and Aid Korea, the establishment of a relatively complete industrial system and the manufacture of nuclear bombs and satellites.

He commended the achievements.

“Only socialism could save China; only socialism could develop Chi- na,” he said.
After reform and opening up was launched, Xi showed great passion for it and devoted himself to the cause.
From relatively poor inland regions to the country’s affluent eastern coast, Xi took the lead in boosting foreign trade and investment, as well 8 NATIONAL PEOPLE’S CONGRESS OF CHINA Xi Jinping, general secretary of the CPC Central Committee, delivers an important speech after visiting an exhibition on the 13 years of the CPC Central Committee in Yan’an at the Yan’an Revolutionary Memorial Hall in Yan’an, northwest China’s Shaanxi Province, on October 27.
Yan Yan as the common development of both public and private busi- nesses.

As the Party’s top leader, Xi convened a high-profile meeting of private businesses, stating that private businesses and entrepreneurs are “our own people.” He also said China’s private sector can only be strengthened, not weakened.

Xi is regarded by his comrades, both at the local and central levels, as being good at long-term planning.
In 2020, his stra- tegic planning was demonstrated in mapping out the country’s 14th Five-Year Plan and long-term objectives through 2035.

To make a good plan, Xi chaired meetings and listened to the views and opinions of experts, business people, scientists and grassroots cadres.

He called for carrying out online suggestion gathering, resulting in Chinese internet users giving over 1 mil- lion comments.

In the past decade, Chinese people’s wealth grew steadi- ly.
In 2021, the per capita disposable income of the Chinese reached 35,128 yuan (about 5,125 U.S. dollars), growing nearly 80 percent from 2012.

The urban-rural income ratio was nar- rowed to 2.5:1.

In Xi’s words, all he has done is essentially for the better- ment of the people.
He once penned a memoir in which he wrote, “We must love the people like we love our parents, work for their wellbeing and enable them to lead a better life.” After becoming the general secretary of the CPC, he said, “The peo- ple’s aspiration for a better life is what we are striving for.” When he met the press on October 23, 2022, after the First Plenary Session of the 20th CPC Central Committee, Xi said the people will “always have our back and give us confidence,” and the Party will always ride out the storm with the people and stay heart-to-heart with them.
ISSUE 4 · 2022 9 20TH CPC NATIONAL CONGRESS The Party and the government enjoy good ratings.

A Har- vard University survey found that Chinese citizens’ satisfaction with the government has increased across the board, with the central authorities receiving the highest level of approval at 93 percent.

The Edelman Trust Barometer also found that trust among Chinese citizens in their government reached 91 per- cent in 2021, the highest in the world.
For a strong China Xi inherited a mission to achieve China’s modernity, which was a dream fought for by generations of Chinese people.

In 2020, he paused before an exhibit at a museum in Guangdong Province displaying a grand plan Sun Yat-sen de- signed to modernize China a century ago.

Sun successfully led the Revolution of 1911 to end China’s last imperial dynasty and founded a republic.

But it did not last; the grand plan failed to materialize.
“Only we Chinese Communists can make it hap- pen,” Xi said before the exhibit.

According to Xi, all efforts the Party has led the nation in pursuing over the century are to turn China into a great mod- ern country and realize the Chinese Dream of national rejuve- nation.

Ten years ago, when Xi ascended to the Party’s top post, China was already the world’s second-largest economy and top manufacturer.
But the economy faced increasing downward pressure and the need for transforming the economic structure was pressing.

Other tough issues also needed to be resolved, such as corruption, pollution and the rich-poor income gap, which all posed grave challenges to the Party.

All eyes were on Xi; people expected him to bring real changes.

And changes had to begin with the Party itself.


Xi said it takes a good blacksmith to forge good steel, calling for the self-reform of the Party and “full and rigorous” self-gov- ernance.

He unleashed the largest anti-corruption campaign in the Party’s history.

“We must do the things that need to be done...If we let a few hundred corrupt officials slip through the cracks, we would let down all 1.3 billion Chinese people,” Xi said.
In the past decade, fallen crooked officials included “tigers” such as Zhou Yongkang, Bo Xilai, Guo Boxiong, Xu Caihou, Sun Zhengcai and Ling Jihua, as well as many top officials of central government departments, state-owned companies and provinces.

There were also numerous cadres in much lower positions in the governance hierarchy.

In early 2022, Xi declared that there had been an over- whelming victory in the fight against corruption, which was consolidated across the board.
But he warned Party cadres that they must be sober-minded and aware that the anti-corruption campaign will never end.

Xi wants to ensure that the CPC’s over 96 million members and 4.9 million primary-level organizations maintain their purity and strength.

Xi considers the Party’s overall leadership the key to building China into a great modern socialist country.

The Party must “be the strong backbone that the Chinese peo- ple can lean on at all times,” he said.
He repeatedly told Party cadres to learn from the collapse of the Soviet Union and reiterated the importance of having firm convictions in communism and strengthening Party discipline.

Xi led the formulation of the game-changing eight-point deci- sion on improving work conduct.

He ordered leading officials to regularly report their personal and family matters such as marriage status, personal finances and business involvement.
The Party regulated the business involvement of spouses, chil- dren and children’s spouses of over 4,700 officials between 2015 and 2021.

Xi led the efforts to promulgate and revise a series of Party regulations, improve the mechanism to conduct discipline inspections and establish the National Commission of Supervi- sion that places everyone in public office under oversight.

Observers note that Xi has played a key role in reshap- ing the CPC.
Liu Jingbei, a professor at the China Executive Leadership Academy in Pudong, said Xi further strengthened the unity in thinking, political orientation and action of Party members.

He reversed the trend that the Party’s leadership was being weakened and marginalized in some localities and departments.

Xi called on the public to respect and learn from heroes.

A national law on respecting heroes was promulgated.

A sound system of granting awards and honors was set up.
He also put forward a set of core socialist values, the essence of which, he said, is patriotism.

Xi has fostered the concept of “whole-process people’s de- mocracy,” calling for greater efforts to develop socialist democ- racy.

He said democracy is an instrument for addressing the issues that concern the people.

If the people are only awakened at election time but go into hibernation afterward, then this kind of democracy is a mere formality.
The law-based governance in all fields Xi has advanced is considered a profound revolution in governance.

The rule of law for the country, the government and society must be comprehensively in place by 2035, according to Xi.

He is the first Chinese president to swear allegiance before the country’s Constitution.

Xi said the Constitution enjoys supreme legal status, authority and force.

In the past decade, China’s national legislature adopted 70 laws and revised 238 laws.
Many of the legislations are groundbreaking, including the Civil Code adopted in 2020 and the Foreign Investment Law adopted in 2019, which is the ba- sic law governing foreign direct investment in the country pro- moting the high-level liberalization and facilitation of foreign investment.

These efforts have helped create more favorable conditions for development.

Xi raised the notion of an economic “new normal,” stating that China’s reform has entered a deep-water zone.
He personally chairs a number of central commissions to strengthen the Party’s leadership over economic work as well as reform and opening up.

He led the efforts to streamline gov- ernment and reduce taxes and fees for enterprises.

Since the third plenum of the 18th CPC Central Committee in 2013, more than 2,000 reform plans have been implement- ed, covering almost every aspect of economic, political, social and cultural undertakings, as well as people’s everyday life.
Xi has put forward a new development philosophy that promotes innovative, coordinated, green, open and inclusive development for all.

Peter Koenig, a former senior economist at the World Bank, said the new development philosophy is probably the core of what has been called “Xiconomics.” “This is very typical and I think it well describes what is happening now in the Chinese economy,” he said.
Xi often goes to companies, factories, shops and stalls to 10 NATIONAL PEOPLE’S CONGRESS OF CHINA China’s ranking in the Global Inno- vation Index, released by the World Intellectual Property Organization, rose from 34th place in 2012 to 11th place in 2022. feel the pulse of economic activity.

On a visit to a carmaker workshop, he got into a Chinese-made sedan for first-hand experience.
If China wants to upgrade from a big car-manufac- turing country to a strong one, it needs to develop new energy cars, he said, calling for making the new energy vehicles sector a new growth point.

But it has not been just big companies that command Xi’s attention.

He also has discussed with villagers the sales of their ham and liquor, walked into community workshops, visited livestreaming platforms and dropped by roadside food stalls.
Under his leadership, China has consolidated its position as the world’s second-largest economy.

In the past decade, the share of China’s gross domestic product (GDP) in the global economy grew from 11.3 percent to 18.5 percent.

On average, the Chinese economy contributed more than 30 percent of global economic growth in recent years.

It was the first major economy to register growth after the COVID-19 pandemic wreaked havoc around the world.
In 2021, China’s foreign trade exceeded 6 trillion U.S. dollars.

Its trade with the United States grew by nearly 30 percent and amounted to 755.6 billion U.S. dollars.

According to a 2022 survey by the American Chamber of Commerce in China, 66 percent of respondents said their companies plan to increase investment in China this year.

China remains among the top three global investment destinations for about 60 per- cent of member companies.
Stressing a people-centered approach to development, Xi rolled out a slew of policies that bring tangible benefits to the people.

China has established the world’s largest social secu- rity system, with 1.04 billion people covered by basic old-age insurance and 95 percent of the population covered by basic medical insurance.

Fiscal spending on education accounted for over 4 percent of GDP for 10 consecutive years.
China has also introduced the three-child policy, and rolled out measures to reduce homework and after school tutoring burdens on stu- dents.

Xi has placed common prosperity on the agenda, stating that it is the essential requirement of socialism.

Xi’s common prosperity drive aims to narrow the rich-poor gap, address regional and industrial disparity, and improve both the ma- terial and cultural-ethical life of the people, thus achieving balanced development and social equality.
Zhejiang, where Xi once served as provincial Party chief, is designated as a pilot zone for advancing common prosperity.

Statements on “grad- ually realizing the goal of common prosperity for all” were enshrined in the Party Constitution at the just-concluded 20th CPC National Congress.

In the past decade, China witnessed holistic and historic improvements in environmental protection.
Xi declared at a virtual United Nations gathering that China will strive to peak carbon dioxide emissions before 2030 and achieve carbon neutrality before 2060.

He called for imposing a 10-year fish- ing ban in the Yangtze River.

In addition, every river in China now also has a river chief in charge of its ecological protection.

Endangered species such as giant pandas, Tibetan antelopes and snow leopards have been brought back from the brink of extinction thanks to improved conservation efforts.
For some time, air pollution was terrible in Beijing.

Xi once said the first thing he did in the morning was to check Beijing’s air quality.

He led the nation in engaging in an unprecedented fight against pollution, notably air, water and soil pollution.

Years of tenacious efforts paid off.

Air quality has significantly improved in Beijing, as elsewhere across the country.
A report by the University of Chicago’s Energy Policy Institute said the density of harmful particulates in the air in China fell 40 percent between 2013 and 2020.

If sustained, this would add about two years to the average life expectancy of Chinese citi- zens, it said.

Xi places scientific and technological innovation at the core of overall national development and issued the call to build greater sci-tech strength.
He chaired group study sessions of the Party leadership and invited experts to brief him and his colleagues on artificial in- telligence, big data, quantum technology and blockchains.

He visited satellite launching sites, chip labs and high-speed train workshops to learn about the latest sci-tech developments.

“You can’t ask, buy or beg for core technologies in key fields from other countries.

They must be kept firmly in our own hands,” Xi said.
China’s ranking in the Global Innovation Index, released by the World Intellectual Property Organization, rose from 34th in 2012 to 11th in 2022.

Between 2012 and 2021, China’s research and development spending increased from 1 trillion yuan to 2.8 trillion yuan.

It now ranks second in the world.

Moreover, Xi has close ties with the military and knows its operations well.
He initiated the earth-shattering military re- form, in a bid to build the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) into world-class armed forces.

Xi reiterated the principle that the Party commands the gun.

A number of high-ranking military officers were punished for violating Party discipline and the law.

Xi improved the sys- tem of the Central Military Commission (CMC) as chairman, assuming overall responsibility.
A new military structure was established with the CMC exercising overall leadership, the theater commands responsible for military operations and the services focused on developing capabilities.

The PLA was steered to concentrate on strengthening its combat capability.

It also improved command systems and ca- pacity for joint operations, working hard to address “peacetime ills.” As the top commander, Xi reviewed the armed forces at grand parades five times, two of which were in the sea.
Over the past decade, China unveiled two homegrown aircraft carri- ers, while the fifth-generation stealth fighter aircraft, J-20, was commissioned.

China also took the lead in hypersonic weapon research.

The Chinese military today has the determination and ability to safeguard China’s sovereignty, unification and territorial integrity, provide strategic support for national reju- venation and make even greater contributions to world peace and development, according to Xi.
Media outlets describe Xi as the leader making China ISSUE 4 · 2022 11 20TH CPC NATIONAL CONGRESS strong.

They say he has solved a great number of problems that had long gone unsolved and secured many accomplish- ments of major significance for the future.

Xi’s contributions are groundbreaking and unique, exerting a global influence, they say.
In October 2017, Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era was officially instituted at the 19th CPC National Congress as a guiding principle.

The thought was enshrined in the CPC Constitution and China’s Constitution.
David Ferguson, who edited the English translation of four volumes of “Xi Jinping: The Governance of China,” said poverty alleviation, the Belt and Road Initiative and the en- vironmental cleanup all fit in Xi’s thought and they fit at the grassroots level where ideas become action, driving the histor- ic changes over the past decade.

In 2016, Xi’s core position on the Party Central Committee and in the whole Party was established at the sixth plenum of the 18th CPC Central Committee.
“To me, this means responsibility,” Xi said, pledging to de- vote all his time and energy to the job so that he can live up to the trust the Party and the people have placed in him.

In 2021, the Party’s third historical resolution said Xi’s core position and the guiding role of Xi’s thought are of decisive significance for driving forward the historic process of national rejuvenation.
A resolution adopted at the 20th CPC National Congress said that the establishment of Xi’s core position and the guid- ing role of Xi’s thought has enabled the Party to successfully resolve the acute problems and challenges undermining its long-term governance, the security and stability of the coun- try, and the wellbeing of the people, as well as remove serious hidden dangers in the Party, the country and the military, and ultimately set the rejuvenation of the Chinese nation on an ir- reversible historical course.
Theorists say Xi has provided answers to the questions of China, the world, the people and the times.

He has further drawn the blueprint for China’s development and his thought is considered a new breakthrough in adapting Marxism to the Chinese context and the needs of the times.
Volker Tschapke, honorary president of the Prussian Soci- ety in Germany, said Xi’s thought is “fascinating.” Xi is lead- ing China toward modernity, which is very different from the Western model, Tschapke said, adding that people may one day realize that China’s path would take humanity to a better future.

A tough man with a tender heart Xi has a strong track record as a crisis manager.
Bat- tle-hardened by years of handling tough situations, Xi has the experience, courage and tenacity needed to cope with the tests and challenges China faces today.

While working in the coastal regions of Fujian, Zhejiang and Shanghai, Xi led local response efforts to multiple powerful ty- phoons.

During these times, he spent whole nights overseeing the evacuation in an effort to minimize casualties and damage.
When he served as China’s vice president, Xi oversaw the preparations for the Beijing 2008 Summer Olympics and Paralympics, under tremendous pressure in a year overshad- owed by the devastating Wenchuan earthquake and the riots in Lhasa.

Yet Beijing 2008 is remembered as one of the best Olympic Games in history.
Nearly 14 years later, under Xi’s leadership, China presented the world a streamlined, safe and splendid Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics and Paralympics de- spite the COVID-19 pandemic and the so-called “diplomatic boycott” by some Western countries.

“We must be prepared to carry out a great struggle with many new historical features,” Xi said referring to the fact that China in the new era faces more challenges and uncertainties.
While overseeing the drafting of the report to the 18th CPC National Congress, Xi demanded this statement be included.

“Achieving national rejuvenation is no easy task.

It will take more than drum-beating and gong-clanging to get there.

Realizing this great dream demands a great struggle.

The tests we face on the way forward will only become more complex as we press on, and we must be prepared to crest unimaginable waves,” Xi told officials.
In 2015, when Yemen descended into chaos, Xi directed the PLA Navy to evacuate hundreds of stranded Chinese nationals.

This inspired “Operation Red Sea,” a box office hit that ignited patriotic fervor.

Also in 2015, Xi led a series of rescue efforts to address China’s stock market fluctuations, avoiding systemic risks.
In response to severe situations in Hong Kong, Xi rolled out a package of measures, including the enforcement of the Hong Kong National Security Law and the improvements to the electoral system of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, to ensure that the central government exercises overall jurisdiction over Hong Kong and that the city is administered by patriots.

Order was restored in Hong Kong.


Xi said there is no reason to change such a good policy as “one country, two systems,” and stressed adhering to it in the long run.

In addition, Xi met with Ma Ying-jeou in Singapore in 2015, marking the first meeting between the leaders of the two sides of the Taiwan Strait since 1949.

The cross-Strait relations dete- riorated after the Democratic Progressive Party came to power in Taiwan in 2016.
Xi proposed a series of measures, including a “two systems” solution to the Taiwan question, to “maintain the initiative and the ability to steer in cross-Strait relations.” But he said, “We will continue to strive for peaceful reunifica- tion with the greatest sincerity and the utmost effort, but we will never promise to renounce the use of force, and we reserve the option of taking all measures necessary.” In August 2022, in disregard of China’s stern warning, U.S. House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi went ahead with a visit to Taiwan, causing escalating tensions across the Taiwan Strait.
The PLA conducted joint combat training ex- ercises of an unprecedented scale around the Taiwan Island, effectively deterring “Taiwan independence” separatist forces and foreign interference.

Meanwhile, the one-China principle has become a more prevailing international consensus.

Xi often stays up late working.

On the eve of the Lunar New Year in 2020, with COVID-19 clouding festivities, Xi revealed he had had a sleepless night.
The next day, he convened a Party leadership meeting to discuss the country’s response.

Before the meeting, Xi had made a critical decision to tighten restrictions on the movement of people and channels of exit in central China’s Hubei Province and its capital city Wuhan.

On March 10, 2020, Xi visited Wuhan to inspect COVID-19 prevention and control on the frontline.
At a hospital specially built for treating COVID-19 patients, he spoke to a patient via 12 NATIONAL PEOPLE’S CONGRESS OF CHINA video link, voicing his encouragement.

Xi has likened China’s COVID-19 fight to a war.

Under his leadership, China has led the world in getting COVID-19 under control and restarting work and production.
After the severe outbreak in Wuhan and Hubei was brought under control, Xi led China in implementing a dynamic zero-COVID policy, maintaining the country’s COVID-19 infection and fatality rates at a very low level.

Given its huge population, if China adopted prevention and control policies such as herd immunity or a hands-off ap- proach, the consequences would be unimaginable, Xi said.
“We would rather suffer temporary losses in economic de- velopment than harm people’s lives and health, particularly the elderly and children.

Judged from the effects in all aspects, our COVID-19 response measures are the most economical and effective,” he said.

Handling China-U.S. relations was one of Xi’s priorities in the past decade.
When the United States initiated a trade war against China, he devised the strategy that said that China does not want a trade war but is not afraid of one and will fight one if necessary.
In his meetings with former U.S. President Donald Trump and incumbent U.S. President Joe Biden, Xi said that China and the United States should not fall into a so-called trap of conflict and confrontation, since cooperation is the best op- tion; the two countries should respect each other, coexist in peace and pursue win-win cooperation.

He also urged the U.S. side to respect China’s core interests and act prudently.
Faced with external suppression, China must, Xi said, “stay committed to running its own affairs well.” Under his leader- ship, China has steadily promoted reform and opening up, tak- en reciprocal countermeasures and promoted multilateralism and economic globalization on the international stage.

During a visit to Italy in 2019, Xi was asked how he felt about being Chinese president.
He told Roberto Fico, then the president of the Italian Chamber of Deputies, that governing such a huge country requires a strong sense of responsibility and hard work.

“I am willing to be selfless and devote myself to China’s de- velopment,” Xi said.

“I will not let the people down.” A tough man in the face of challenges and crises, Xi also has a tender side.

He replied to letters from people in the United States, including young students.
He said he hoped that the students would become young ambassadors for friendship be- tween the Chinese and U.S. peoples.

Xi is open to diverse opinions and even criticism.

During his tenure as a county Party chief, he received a letter from a young man who criticized the county’s work in boosting the production of commercial goods.

Without being offended by the criticism, Xi acknowledged the young man’s talent and decided to send people to interview him for a potential job.
As the Party’s top official, Xi also stressed that criticism and objections are allowed in intra-Party discussions and the deci- sion-making process.

He likes making friends with intellectuals, writers and art- ists.

When he was a county official in Hebei, he enjoyed many inspirational discussions with the writer Jia Dashan.

Some- times, the two would meet in Xi’s office and talk well into the night, only to find themselves locked in the compound.
He has described intellectuals as “precious assets of the country,” ex- changed letters with professors and artists, and interacted with intellectuals during university visits.

Xi is also an avid sports fan.

He enjoys soccer, ice hockey, boxing and swimming, often taking time out of his busy sched- ule to swim.

He uses sports to learn how to deal with challeng- es.

“What makes sports competitions fascinating, especially soccer matches, is their unpredictability,” Xi said.
“Just as athletes focus on cooperation during great soccer matches, we The 20th CPC National Congress concludes in Beijing, capital of China, on October 22.

Shen Hong ISSUE 4 · 2022 13 20TH CPC NATIONAL CONGRESS should focus more on cooperation than on individual skill,” Xi once told cadres who were in charge of economic work.

Striving for a better world As a young man, Xi was already fascinated by the rich diver- sity of the world.
In rural Shaanxi, he devoured international literary classics, such as Faust and William Shakespeare.

He read “Das Kapital” three times, with his reflections filling 18 notebooks.

“Marxism, though wide-ranging and profound, can be summed up in one sentence: the pursuit of the emancipa- tion of humanity,” he later observed.

All the early reflections on the world and humanity have contributed to “a community with a shared future for humani- ty,” a vision Xi raised in 2013.
“By living in the same global village in the same era where history and reality meet, humanity has increasingly emerged as a community of common destiny in which everyone has in himself a little bit of others,” Xi said.

Xi also appreciates the diversity of civilization.

“There would be no human civilization without diversity,” he said.

The CPC must keep in mind the future of humanity and contribute to human progress and world harmony, Xi said.
In 1979, Xi traveled to the Nordic countries as part of the entourage of a vice premier.

In Norway, he was quite im- pressed by the social welfare system.

In 1985 as a county-level official, Xi traveled as part of a Chinese delegation to the United States on an agricultural research trip.

He homestayed in rural Iowa, sleeping in the bedroom of his host family’s son, who was away at college at the time.

The room was decorated with novelties such as “Star Trek” action figures.
Recalling this trip to the United States nearly three decades later, Xi said the Chinese and U.S. peoples have many things in common, and can become good friends and partners for mutu- ally beneficial cooperation.

Xi has visited the United States eight times.

He was the first Chinese leader to watch an NBA game in a U.S. arena.
When visiting Cuba, he paid a special visit to the breakwater in Co- jimar where Ernest Hemingway wrote “The Old Man and the Sea,” and dropped by the bar Hemingway frequented to order a mojito.

He said he wanted to feel for himself what was in the writer’s mind and what the place was like when he wrote those stories.

Xi and Russian President Vladimir Putin have had approxi- mately 40 meetings since 2013, charting the course of bilateral ties.
China and Russia have forged a comprehensive strate- gic partnership of coordination for a new era.

Bilateral trade has increased from 88.1 billion U.S. dollars in 2012 to 146.8 billion U.S. dollars in 2021.

The two countries have cooperat- ed on major energy projects such as the eastern route of the China-Russia natural gas pipeline.

They have also launched cooperation in such frontier fields as the International Lunar Research Station project.
Xi advocates the creation of a new model for relations be- tween major countries.

Transcending the outdated notions of confrontation and alliance, China has been building a network of global partnerships.

“One cannot live in the 21st century with outdated thinking from the age of the Cold War and ze- ro-sum games,” Xi said.

China has more neighbors than any other country in the world, and Xi has visited almost all of them.
He has stressed the principles of amity, sincerity, mutual benefit and inclusive- ness in forging friendships with China’s neighbors.

He calls for more win-win cooperation to ensure that China’s development will bring even greater benefits to its neighbors.

Xi cherishes China’s friendships with other developing countries.

At meetings with African leaders, he has announced a series of initiatives for pragmatic cooperation.
Xi has urged BRICS countries (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Af- rica) and other emerging economies to pursue openness and innovation.

A BRICS Partnership on New Industrial Revolu- tion innovation center has been established in Xiamen, Fujian Province.
The vision of building a community with a shared future for humanity, which proposes building an open, inclusive, clean and beautiful world that enjoys lasting peace, universal securi- ty and common prosperity, was enshrined in the Party’s Con- stitution and the country’s Constitution, and was incorporated into important documents of the UN and other international organizations and multilateral mechanisms.
Xi’s vision of building a community with a shared future for humanity is “the only future for humanity on this planet,” said Peter Thomson, president of the 71st Session of the UN Gener- al Assembly.

Xi likes to use analogies to illustrate the relationship be- tween China and the world.
He said China is a “peaceful, amia- China’s path to modernization is not only a source of pride for the Chinese people, but also offers a new option for nations who want to accelerate development while pre- serving their independence.

ble and civilized lion,” and a “big guy,” but not “Mephisto.” He added, “All countries are welcome to get on board the express train of China’s development.” According to Xi, China always aims to be a builder of world peace.
“Only when we all cherish and uphold peace and nev- er forget the painful lessons of war can there be the hope of peace,” he said.

An active participant of and important con- tributor to UN peacekeeping operations, China is the largest troop-contributing country among the permanent members of the UN Security Council.

After the Ukraine crisis erupted, Xi spoke with leaders of relevant countries via phone at the earliest time to promote peace.
He also actively promoted the settlement of regional flash points such as the Palestine-Israel conflict and the situa- tion on the Korean Peninsula.

Since the COVID-19 pandemic, Xi has engaged in intensive “cloud diplomacy.” In 2021, he conducted more than 100 dip- lomatic activities via phone, letter or video link.

He attended anti-pandemic virtual meetings including the Extraordinary G20 Leaders’ Summit and the 73rd World Health Assembly.
Following Xi’s instruction, China has sent anti-virus supplies to more than 150 countries, and its homegrown vaccines – a global public good as Xi promised – reached many areas of the 14 NATIONAL PEOPLE’S CONGRESS OF CHINA world.

An even greater global public good is the Belt and Road Ini- tiative, which Xi proposed.

About three-quarters of the coun- tries in the world have signed cooperation documents with China to jointly build the Belt and Road.
The initiative has be- come a widely welcomed international cooperation platform.

Xi is seen as a key figure in pushing forward some initiatives and measures for dealing with global issues, including climate change.

“Had it not been for President Xi Jinping’s initiative, we would not have the Paris Agreement.

Not even now,” said Ban Ki-moon, former UN secretary-general.

Xi said China has the ability and responsibility to play a big- ger role in global affairs.
Championing the shared human values of peace, develop- ment, fairness, justice, democracy and freedom, Xi proposed the Global Development Initiative and the Global Security Initiative.

The two initiatives call for more cooperation in areas such as poverty reduction, climate change, food security and green development, and have received positive responses from more than 100 countries.
China has a wonderful opportunity to take on the leader- ship role in creating a shared future, said British sociologist Martin Albrow.

“This isn’t leadership in a military sense.

This is leadership in a moral and value sense.” President of Pakistan Arif Alvi said he agreed with the mes- sages Xi conveys, that the world needs better cooperation and understanding, and more peace.

New model of civilization “Our understanding of time is measured in centuries or mil- lennia,” Xi said.
He draws strength from history and China’s fine traditional culture to govern China and lead the country toward modern- ization.

“History should not encumber memory.

It should enlighten common sense,” Xi once said, quoting German writer Gotthold Ephraim Lessing.

An avid reader of history books from a young age, Xi told officials to have a “historical perspective” when they think and make decisions.

He has also praised China’s fine traditional culture as the “root and soul” of the Chinese nation.
Ahead of the 20th CPC National Congress, writing a fore- word to the Revitalization Library, a book series themed on China’s national revival, Xi once again highlighted the signifi- cance of documenting historical records.

Xi stressed confidence in four spheres: in the path, theory, system and culture of socialism with Chinese characteristics.

Among the four, confidence in one’s culture is a broader, deep- er and more fundamental form of self-confidence, he said.
Xi has visited numerous cultural sites in the past decade.

Without the 5,000 years of Chinese civilization, there would be no Chinese characteristics; without Chinese characteristics, there would be no success in the path of socialism with Chi- nese characteristics, he said.

Xi champions the exchanges and interactions between civ- ilizations to debunk the “clash of civilizations,” and stresses carrying forward the shared values of humanity that Chinese civilization epitomizes.
“Mutual respect, solidarity and har- monious coexistence are the right path for the development of human civilization,” he noted.

“China is not just a nation state, it is a civilization state.

And if you don’t understand that, I don’t think you really under- stand anything about China,” said British scholar and political commentator Martin Jacques.

Xi is leading China on a uniquely Chinese path to modern- ization, which analysts say, is creating a new model for human civilization.
According to Xi, China’s modernization must cover a massive population, lead to common prosperity, deliv- er material, cultural and ethical progress, promote harmony between humanity and nature, and proceed along a path of peaceful development.

China’s modernization not only has the common characteristics of modernization in other countries, but also has Chinese characteristics based on national condi- tions.
In pursuing a CPC-led socialist modernization, Xi said, “we must neither retrace our steps to the rigidity and isolation of the past, nor take the wrong turn by changing our nature and abandoning our system.” “We must stress reliance on our own efforts to drive the nation’s development, and make sure the future of China’s de- velopment and progress remains firmly in our own hands,” he said.

By 2035, China will have basically achieved modernization.
This will mark the first time in human history that an entire population of over 1 billion people achieve modernization as a whole.

The great achievements China has made in the process of world modernization represent the greatest contribution made by the CPC to the cause of human progress.

By then, China’s per capita GDP will reach the level of mod- erately developed countries and the size of the middle-income group will be significantly expanded.
China will be a global leader in innovation, and its carbon dioxide emissions will steadily decline after reaching its peak.

China’s high-speed railway system, already the world’s largest, will almost be dou- bled in total length.

China’s path to modernization is not only a source of pride for the Chinese people, but also offers a new option for nations who want to accelerate development while preserving their in- dependence.
Humphrey Moshi, director of the Center for Chinese Stud- ies at the University of Dar es Salaam of Tanzania, said China’s development story has shown that poverty and backwardness can be overcome, and with the right path, African countries can also achieve prosperity and development.

China’s success story, achieved by adapting the basic tenets of Marxism to China’s specific realities and its fine traditional culture, is also a story of the revival of socialism.
More than 500 years after its birth, socialism has survived and thrived despite setbacks and the noise of naysayers, revitalized by the Chinese Communists in the new era.

A new journey has begun.

Xi will lead China to pursue na- tional rejuvenation by following the uniquely Chinese path to modernization and continue striving for a shared future for humanity.

While meeting the press on October 23, 2022, Xi said that Chinese modernization is a great yet enormous undertaking.
The enormity of the task is what makes it great and infinitely glorious.

“The journey ahead is long and arduous, but with deter- mined steps, we will reach our destination,” Xi said.

(Xinhua) ISSUE 4 · 2022 15 20TH CPC NATIONAL CONGRESS Xi Jinping joins a group discussion with delegates from south China’s Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region who are attending the 20th CPC National Congress in Beijing, capital of China, on October 17.
Ju Peng Xi Jinping attends group discussion with Guangxi delegates to 20th CPC National Congress Comrade Xi Jinping joined a group discussion on October 17 with delegates from Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region attending the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC).
During the discussion, he stressed that the report to the Party’s 20th National Congress further charted the way for- ward for the cause of the Party and the country and served as a political manifesto and guide for the Party to unite and lead the Chinese people of all ethnic groups to uphold and Xi said that to study and implement the spirit of the Par- ty’s 20th National Congress, everyone needed to have a good command of the importance of the work of the past five years and the great changes in the first decade of the new era, along with the worldview and methodology of the Thought on So- cialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era and the mission to advance the great rejuvenation of the Chinese na- develop socialism with Chinese characteristics on the new journey in the new era.
16 NATIONAL PEOPLE’S CONGRESS OF CHINA tion through a Chinese path to modernization.

They should keep firmly in mind the important requirement of using the great Chinese transformation to navigate the great social transformation and the call of the times to strive in unity.
The entire Party and all the Chinese people need to unite as “one piece of adamantine iron” under the Party banner, stay com- mitted to the same goal in mind, and take concrete actions to steer the giant ship of great rejuvenation, while braving winds and waves, toward its destination.

Five Guangxi delegates -- Liu Ning, Lan Tianli, Zhou Ji- abin, Zhu Xuelan and Zheng Zhiming -- gave their opinions on the report to the congress based on reality and their own experiences.
They gave speeches on issues of striving to fol- low the Chinese path to modernization in Guangxi, fostering a strong sense of community for the Chinese nation, preserv- ing the landmark natural landscape in Guilin, developing agricultural industries with local characteristics, and deep- ening independent innovation efforts.
They all said that they believe that the report to the 20th CPC National Congress, from a commanding height in considering both China’s na- tional rejuvenation and global changes of a magnitude not seen in a century, scientifically laid out goals, tasks and major policies for developing the cause of the Party and the country in the next five years or even longer, and put forward a series of new approaches, strategies and measures.
It will serve as a guiding document to build China into a modern socialist country in all respects and realize the second centenary goal.

They expressed unanimous support for the report.

Xi exchanged views with delegates in a lively atmosphere.

After listening attentively to them, Xi said that he was hap- py to join the discussion as a fellow delegate of the Guangxi delegation.
He extended his sincere greetings to all delegates present and over 2.5 million Party members, as well as 57 million officials and residents of different ethnic groups in the region.
Xi noted that since the 18th CPC National Congress in 2012, the CPC Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Regional Com- mittee and regional government have implemented the CPC Central Committee’s decisions and plans, and united and led the people of all ethnic groups in the region in promot- ing the Five-Sphere Integrated Plan and the Four-Pronged Comprehensive Strategy in a coordinated manner.
Facing the grave challenges of global changes of a magnitude not seen in a century and the COVID-19 pandemic, the regional Party committee and government have led the region in winning the critical battle against poverty, building a moderately pros- perous society in all respects along with the rest of the nation and bringing the comprehensive strength of the region to new heights.
As a result, reform and opening up in the region has deepened comprehensively, the ecological system has continuously improved, people’s living standards have grown considerably, and both urban and rural areas have taken on a new look.

Great changes have taken place in Guangxi, which can find expression in strengthened Party governance, solid ethnic unity, sound social stability and border security.
These achievements represent successful practices of the Party’s eth- nic policies and the system of regional ethnic autonomy in the southern border region, vividly reflecting the great transfor- mation over the past 10 years of the new era in the country.

The past five years and the first decade of the new era have been truly momentous and extraordinary in the devel- opment of the Party and the country, Xi stressed.
He quoted a Chinese saying, “One can’t tell how hard it is to get things done unless he is fully engaged; a success may look easy but it takes painstaking efforts.” In the past 10 years, by over- coming various hardships as if wading across treacherous waters, climbing over steep slopes and breaking through tough barriers, the CPC has made a series of breakthroughs and milestone achievements in the cause of the Party and the country.
Practices have proven that the CPC Central Com- mittee’s major principles and policies since the Party’s 18th National Congress are absolutely correct, and the path of so- cialism with Chinese characteristics is a correct way leading to sound and steady progress.

It conforms to the realities of China, reflects the will of the Chinese people, and meets the requirements of the times.
Everyone must gain confidence and initiative from history, and present an “excellent answer sheet” to the people and the future on the new journey ahead.

Xi pointed out that in order to implement the Party’s in- novative theories, everyone needs to gain a good command of their worldviews and methodology, as well as make good use of their stances, viewpoints and methods.
The report to the 20th CPC National Congress stressed that the Party should always put the people first, maintain self-confidence and stand on its own feet, constantly upholding fundamen- Practices have proved that the CPC Central Committee’s major principles and policies since the Party’s 18th Na- tional Congress are absolutely correct, and the path of socialism with Chinese characteristics is the right way leading to sound and steady progress.

tal principles and breaking new ground.


Everyone should also adhere to a problem-oriented approach, apply thinking systems and maintain a global vision.

Only through consci- entious study and implementation of the above six points can the Party obtain a deep understanding of the reason, ra- tionale and philosophy governing these innovative theories.
Everyone should not only know their meaning, but also grasp their essence and carry them out in the whole process of the Party and the country’s work on all fronts, Xi noted.

He also stressed that in the new era, the Party has devel- oped a deeper understanding, more mature strategies and richer practices for building a modern socialist country, and thus it has successfully advanced and expanded the Chinese path to modernization.
The report to the 20th CPC Nation- al Congress elaborated on the characteristics and essential requirements of the Chinese path to modernization, Xi said.

Taking deep root in China, the Chinese path to moderniza- tion is in line with national conditions.
The Party must al- ways pursue the development of the country and the nation by relying on itself, take the country’s destiny of development and progress firmly in its own hands, strengthen confidence, uphold fundamental principles and break new ground so as to write a new chapter of building China into a modern so- cialist country in all respects.
ISSUE 4 · 2022 17 20TH CPC NATIONAL CONGRESS Xi Jinping joins a group discussion with delegates from south China’s Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region who are attending the 20th CPC National Congress in Beijing, capital of China, on October 17.

Xie Huanchi The most important task at hand is to roll up our sleeves and work hard to put into action the major decisions and arrangements made at the 20th CPC National Congress and produce tangible results.
Xi pointed out that since the 18th CPC National Congress, the CPC Central Committee has maintained its resolve and exercised full and rigorous self-governance in the spirit of “spending 10 years grinding a sword.” Driven by a strong sense of mission, the Party has resolved to “offend a few thousand rather than fail 1.4 billion” and has waged an un- precedented battle against corruption, thus forging a syn- ergy in the Party’s self-reform, Xi explained.
Exercising full and rigorous self-governance is a journey to which there is no end; the Party’s self-reform is a ceaseless pursuit.

Every member must persist in carrying out Party self-reform so as to ensure that it will never change its nature, its conviction or its character, and that the Party is always the firm core lead- ership guiding the cause of Chinese socialism.

Xi stressed that only in unity and through strenuous effort can the Party succeed.
Since the 18th CPC National Con- gress, the Party has firmly relied on the people to stabilize the economy, boost development, fight absolute poverty, build a moderately prosperous society, contain COVID-19 and resist other major disasters, as well as tackle challenges and defuse crises.

The Party has overcome seemingly insurmountable obstacles and created impressive miracles one after anoth- er.
The most important task at hand is for everyone to roll up their sleeves and work hard to put into action the major decisions and arrangements made at the 20th CPC National Congress and produce tangible results.
Xi said he hopes that under the guidance of the spirit of the 20th CPC National Congress, Party committees and gov- ernments at all levels in Guangxi will unite and lead officials and the people of all ethnic groups to fully and faithfully ap- ply the new development philosophy on all fronts, resolutely implement the decisions and plans of the CPC Central Com- mittee and do a better job in promoting high-quality devel- opment of the ethnic border area.
They should make greater breakthroughs in serving and integrating into the new devel- opment pattern, achieve greater progress in pursuing green development, contribute more to safeguarding national secu- rity, bring about more results in exercising full and rigorous Party self-governance and strive to open up new prospects for building a magnificent Guangxi in the new era.
(Xinhua) 18 NATIONAL PEOPLE’S CONGRESS OF CHINA Xi’s conversation with fellow delegates from Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region During the discussion of the Guangxi Zhuang Auton- omous Region delegation to the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC) on October 17, Xi Jinping, general secretary of the CPC Central Commit- tee, called on all Chinese people to stay united as “one piece of adamantine iron” for national rejuvenation.
ing golden carp were “too good to be true,” and he has always cherished the importance of nature.

Over the past decade, historic changes have taken place in ecological and environmental protection.

Across the nation, people enjoy bluer skies, greener mountains and cleaner waters.

However, the discussion was not only about grand strategies to rejuvenate China, it also covered details of the region.
For example, Xi offered his advice on a tea plantation, inquired about the ticket policy of a well- known park and wondered how much a master techni- cian earns.

As casual as the discussion may have appeared, it focused on a key aspect of the report Xi delivered to the congress: the CPC’s commitment to achieving common prosperity, which is an essential requirement of Chinese modernization.
Zhu Xuelan, Party chief of a Yao ethnic village, told Xi how the development of the tea industry transformed her village, which was once impoverished.

In the report to the Party congress, Xi also said that China’s modernization will boast harmony between hu- manity and nature.

“We shall not only set our mind on developing the economy.

Protecting the Guilin mountains and waters will be a deed truly worthy of the country,” Xi said in the group discussion.
Subsequently, Zheng Zhiming, a fitter-turned-mas- ter-technician, drew Xi’s attention to the manufacturing sector.

Zheng said his company, Guangxi Auto, began by learning from Japanese car makers, but today, Japanese automobile manufacturers have started to pay attention to Guangxi Auto’s products.

Zhu, who comes from a family of master tea makers, led the villagers in boosting their average annual income to more than 20,000 yuan (about 2,778 U.S. dollars).
“This demonstrates the development and transfor- mation of China,” Xi said, expressing his delight in the progress.

“The tea industry is very promising,” Xi said, before offering his counsel.

“In the next step, you will need to build your brand and make the business thrive.” Zhu’s fellow villagers in Shanping were among the nearly 100 million Chinese who were lifted out of poverty over the past decade.
Under China’s targeted poverty alleviation campaign, the achievement is considered a feat unparalleled in human history.

“We are fully confident in and committed to attaining common prosperity under the CPC’s strong leadership,” Zhu said.

Zhou Jiabin, Party chief of Guilin, home to one of the most picturesque mountains in the world, briefed Xi on the city’s efforts to preserve environment while improving people’s livelihoods.
Zhou told Xi that the city has done away with entry tickets for the iconic scenic spot Xiangbi Shan, or Ele- phant Trunk Hill, as part of the city’s efforts to become a global tourist destination.

“Is the ticket exemption policy temporary or long- term?” Xi asked.

“It will be free for good,” Zhou replied, as Xi nodded in approval.

“The scenic beauty of Guilin is the best in the world,” Xi said, citing the catchphrase for the city.
“Guilin shall thrive on its natural endowment.” The Lijiang River, which flows through the city, holds a special place in Xi’s heart.

He had visited the city when he was 13 years old.


In his mind, pristine rivers and a profusion of jump- Zheng, who now runs his own workshop in Guangxi Auto and helps develop machinery and train technicians for the company, is one of the grassroots delegates from the “frontline of production and work,” which account for more than one-third of the 2,296 elected delegates to the congress.
Demonstrating his curiosity about the benefits of in- dustrial workers, Xi asked for more details about Zheng’s professional life.

Zheng explained that without the country’s favorable policies, vocational school-trained workers like himself would never have the chance of becoming senior techni- cians.

“How is your income?” Xi went on to ask.

“Very satisfactory,” Zheng replied.

The quick answer drew hearty waves of laughter from fellow delegates.
While he did not reveal the actual figure, China’s over- all per capita disposable annual income has risen from 16,500 yuan (about 2,407 U.S. dollars) to 35,100 yuan (about 5,121 U.S. dollars) over the past decade.

The country has over 400 million middle-income earners, the largest in the world.

China’s manufacturing sector is also the largest in the world.

And Xi has a particular interest in further boosting the sector.
“For China to achieve modernization, we must devel- op the manufacturing industry and the real economy,” he said.

“We must change our mindset and nurture more industrial workers.” (Xinhua) ISSUE 4 · 2022 19 20TH CPC NATIONAL CONGRESS Li Zhanshu joins discussion with Sichuan delegates to 20th CPC National Congress Li Zhanshu participates in a group discussion with delegates from southwest China’s Sichuan Province who are attending the 20th CPC National Con- gress in Beijing, capital of China, on October 17.
Pang Xinglei L i Zhanshu, chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress, participated in a group discussion with delegates from southwest China’s Sichuan Province attending the 20th Na- tional Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC) on October 17.
While discussing the report of the 19th CPC Central Com- mittee to the congress with his fellow delegates of the Sich- uan delegation, Li said that he gave unequivocal support to the report delivered by Xi Jinping, general secretary of the CPC Central Committee, at the opening of the congress on October 16.

The report serves as a clarion call for building a modern socialist country in all respects and advancing national reju- venation on all fronts, Li noted.
Hailing the work of the past five years and the great changes in the first decade of the new era as remarkable, Li said that never before has China been so close to, confident in and capable of achieving the goal of national rejuvenation.

Li said the cause of the Party and the country has secured historic achievements, seen historic changes and made a se- ries of breakthroughs and landmark advances since the 18th CPC National Congress.
All these accomplishments, at the fundamental level, are due to the fact that the Party has established Xi Jinping’s core position on the Party Central Committee and in the Party as a whole, and defined the guiding role of Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, Li said, calling this the most significant political achievement in Party building since the 18th CPC National Congress.
The CPC Central Committee with Xi Jinping at its core has navigated China on a new journey to build itself into a mod- ern socialist country in all respects, Li said.

He noted that amid a critical juncture of great struggles and social transformations, Xi has played and continues to play a key role in steering the Party and the country.
General Secretary Xi Jinping and Chinese Communists with Xi Jinping as their chief representative have established Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Character- istics for a New Era, Li said, underlining the importance of upholding the thought over the long term.

Li called for efforts to turn into reality the grand blueprint for the future of the country sketched out at the 20th CPC National Congress.
(Xinhua) 20 NATIONAL PEOPLE’S CONGRESS OF CHINA Li Zhanshu stresses improvement of people’s congresses By Lu Yan T he NPC Standing Committee voted to adopt a re- vised Wildlife Protection Law on December 30, 2022.

In the same month, a draft law on ecological conservation on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau was submitted to the NPC Standing Committee for a second reading.

As one of the people’s top concerns, environmental pro- tection has become one of the main focuses of the work of the NPC Standing Committee.
For years, it has inspected the implementation of laws and decisions in the field of ecological and environmental protection, listened to and deliberated on work reports from local people’s congresses and carried out special inquiries and investigations, as part of its effort to fight against pollution.

Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC) and im- proving the system of people’s congresses in the new era.

“We have done a lot of work in environmental protection.
Where the focus of the work of the Party and the state is, the work of the NPC follows,” Li said.

Greater responsibility, improved work At a meeting about studying the important ideas on up- holding and improving the system of people’s congresses put forward by Xi Jinping, general secretary of the CPC Central Committee, Li called for the profound understanding and implementation of Xi’s ideas on the system of people’s con- gresses.
Li Zhanshu, chairman of the NPC Standing Committee, stressed on December 26 the importance of studying and implementing the guiding principles of the 20th National He stressed that the Party’s leadership must be upheld in all aspects and during the whole process of people’s con- gresses, while Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Li Zhanshu, chairman of the NPC Standing Committee, speaks at a meeting about studying and implementing the guiding principles of the 20th CPC National Congress, and studying the important ideas on upholding and improving the system of people’s congresses put forward by Xi Jinping, gener- al secretary of the CPC Central Committee, in Beijing, capital of China, on December 26.
Gao Jie ISSUE 4 · 2022 21 20TH CPC NATIONAL CONGRESS Characteristics for a New Era must be used to guide and pro- vide unified leadership for this work.

People’s congresses should play an important role in de- veloping whole-process people’s democracy, perfecting the socialist system of laws with Chinese characteristics at the heart of which is the Constitution, and pushing forward the thorough and effective implementation of the Constitution and laws, Li said.
The report to the 20th National Congress of the CPC deliv- ered on October 16, 2022, stated that China will improve the socialist legal system with Chinese characteristics with the Constitution at its core.

“We will step up legislation in key, emerging and for- eign-related fields and advance the rule of law in domestic and foreign-related affairs in a coordinated manner, so that good laws are made to promote development and ensure good governance,” the report said.
In his report on the work of the NPC Standing Committee at the Fifth Session of the 13th NPC on March 8, 2022, Li said that the Constitution carries within it the Party’s major achievements and historical experience from the past centu- ry, and bears the great dream of over 1.4 billion Chinese peo- ple to realize national rejuvenation.

“For the Standing Com- mittee, ensuring the full implementation of the Constitution is both a legal duty and an honorable mission,” Li added.
The 13th NPC and its Standing Committee formulated and revised a large number of laws and made legal breakthroughs in various fields including the economy, politics, society, culture and ecological progress.
In addition to the long antic- ipated Civil Code (effective as of January 1, 2021) which lays out the fundamental principles and regulations regarding civ- il activities and relations, legislation and relevant decisions in specific areas have also been put in place, including the deci- sion on banning illegal trade and the consumption of wildlife adopted in 2020 and an anti-food waste law that came into force in 2021.
“The NPC should not only formulate and revise laws, but also supervise the effective implementation of laws, and pro- mote all state organs to exercise their functions and powers according to law,” Li said on December 26, 2022.
Moreover, the NPC Standing Committee has strengthened self-improvement efforts in line with the requirement to up- hold its “four-fold role.” The term refers to the fundamental identity of the people’s congresses and their standing com- mittees as political institutions that unswervingly uphold the CPC’s leadership, institutions of state power that ensure the running of the country by the people, working institutions that assume functions conferred in the Constitution and the law, and representative institutions that always maintain close ties with the people.
Answering people’s concerns Whole-process people’s democracy, a creation of the CPC in leading the people to pursue, develop and realize democ- racy, embodies the Party’s innovation in advancing China’s democratic theories, systems and practices.

The NPC has implemented whole-process people’s democ- racy in its work.

“We are acting for the people and relying on the people in everything we do,” Li said.
“Striving to realize, safeguard and advance the fundamental interests of all peo- People’s congresses should play an important role in developing whole-process people’s democracy, perfecting the socialist system of laws with Chinese characteristics at the heart of which is the Con- stitution, and pushing forward the thorough and effective implementa- tion of the Constitution and laws.

ple is the goal of NPC work.


To this end, we listen to the voice of the people, gather their wisdom and respond to their ex- pectations and concerns.” For example, since November 2022, China has enforced a new law on fighting telecom and online fraud, which has been a rampant crime causing people’s property loss.
The law stip- 22 NATIONAL PEOPLE’S CONGRESS OF CHINA Li Zhanshu, chairman of the NPC Standing Committee, presides over the first plenary meeting of the 37th session of the 13th NPC Standing Commit- tee at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, capital of China, on October 26.
Ma Zengke ulates that police departments should work with government departments and businesses to put in place a fraud warning and dissuading system, while also taking timely actions to dissuade potential victims from falling into telecom and on- line fraud traps.

Last September, Chinese lawmakers voted to adopt a revised Agricultural Products Quality and Safety Law.
The revised law includes stipulations ensuring that the country’s quality and safety standards for agricultural products are ful- ly implemented.

New quality and safety requirements regard- ing the transportation and storage of agricultural products were also added.

According to the revised law, governmental departments in charge of rural and agricultural affairs should enhance coordination with market supervision authorities to better ensure the quality and safety of agricultural products.
“In the future, we will continue to strengthen the protec- tion of human rights by the rule of law…and safeguard the interests of the people and improve their wellbeing,” Li said.

Over the years, the NPC Standing Committee has created a set of relatively effective online and offline public opinion platforms, where people can express their ideas on draft laws, submit their complaints and proposals, and contact NPC deputies.
The Standing Committee also connects with the people through onsite research, discussion and questionnaire surveys.

In recent years, stations and offices have been established where NPC deputies regularly work and await the people to communicate with them.

After problems are compiled, dep- uties begin investigating through research, field visits and further communication with the community, after which they produce a formal document with issues and suggestions for submission to the NPC.
After the NPC receives the document, it delegates each issue to the relevant government body, which will then provide feedback to the deputy who proposed it.

“Currently, we have nearly 3,000 deputies in the country.

Each representative has connections to a number of house- holds.

In this way, all households are covered and they always have a deputy to reach out to.
This is what whole-process people’s democracy really means,” said Cui Jiuxiu, a deputy to the 13th NPC from Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region.

“It becomes increasingly convenient for people to have these channels to participate in NPC work and put forward opinions and suggestions,” Li said.
“Practice has proven that the higher the people’s participation in our work, the more fully their opinions and suggestions are adopted…and the more support we receive.” ISSUE 4 · 2022 23 SPECIAL REPORT Xi Jinping stresses rural revitalization in Shaanxi and Henan Xi Jinping visits an exhibition on the 13 years of the CPC Central Committee in Yan’an at the Yan’an Revolutionary Memorial Hall in Yan’an, northwest China’s Shaanxi Province, on October 27.
Ju Peng “The most challenging and arduous tasks we face in building a modern socialist China in all respects re- main in rural areas,” stressed Xi Jinping, general sec- retary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, during his recent inspection tours to Shaanxi Province’s Yan’an and Henan Province’s Anyang.
Xi, also President of the PRC and chairman of the Central Military Commission, urged solid steps to comprehensively study and implement the spirit of the 20th CPC National Congress and continue prioritizing the development of ag- riculture and rural areas.

The Yan’an Spirit and the Hongqi Canal Spirit should be carried forward, and achievements in poverty alleviation should be consolidated and expanded, Xi said.
He also called for efforts to advance rural revitalization across the board and ceaselessly strive for the modernization of agriculture and rural areas.

Xi visited the rural area and a school in Yan’an of Shaanxi Province and then visited Anyang in Henan Province where he inspected a revolutionary education base and a cultural relics protection unit.

An old revolutionary base, Yan’an used to suffer en- trenched poverty.

Xi was concerned about the people in northern Shaanxi.
In February 2015, Xi presided over a sem- inar on eliminating poverty for a better life in the old revo- lutionary bases of the provinces of Shaanxi and Gansu, and Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region.

He delivered an important speech that charted the course for the critical battle against poverty in these regions.

Yan’an was Xi’s first destination for his inspection tour after the conclusion of the 20th CPC Na- tional Congress.
He wanted to see how people were doing af- ter being lifted out of poverty and learn about the difficulties they face and their views on rural revitalization.

On the afternoon of October 26, Xi traveled to the Nangou village of Gaoqiao town in Ansai district of Yan’an as soon 24 NATIONAL PEOPLE’S CONGRESS OF CHINA ucts were on display.

He listened to the briefing carefully.


Xi recognized what the locals have done in developing modern agriculture and rural tourism and cultivating and boosting the collective economy, and said these efforts have helped villagers increase their incomes and become well-off.

Outside the workshop, villagers gathered to greet Xi.

Xi chatted with them and recalled the years he spent as an ed- ucated youth in northern Shaanxi.

He said to them, “I once lived in northern Shaanxi for seven years.
During that time, when I saw people were leading a hard life, I thought about what could be done to make their lives better.

This time, I saw a bumper harvest, well-improved transportation condi- tions as well as other fundamental changes.” In the past, vil- lagers in northern Shaanxi had to reclaim terraces and plant crops, with their feet firmly planted in the soil.

Carrying hoes into the field and farming all day long, they lived a tough life as their work hardly paid off.
Now, with the efforts to convert farmland on the mountains to forest, apple trees have been planted on the hillsides.

Villagers have work with stable in- come, children enjoy good education and the elderly benefit from medical insurance.

Their lives are getting better day by day.


The achievements made in northern Shaanxi are a vivid epitome of the great changes taking place in China, Xi said, pointing out that China has achieved the first centenary goal of building a moderately prosperous society in all respects, the problem of absolute poverty has been solved and the vil- lagers now enjoy good living conditions, but everyone should continue to work hard and make their lives even better.
The climate, sunlight, latitude, altitude and other factors in northern Shaanxi shape it into a suitable place for developing the apple industry.

Moreover, equipped with advanced tech- nologies such as drip irrigation, dwarf planting and produc- tion lines for sorting fruits, apples can be sold locally with a vast market awaiting.
Shaanxi embraces its favorable timing, geographical and human conditions to vigorously develop the apple industry, which is the perfect, most suitable and prom- ising industry for the region, Xi said.

Xi stressed that the CPC is a Party of the people and for the people.

As the ruling Party, the CPC is committed to serv- ing the people and doing a good job for their benefit.

Empty talk will do nothing for the country; only solid work will make it flourish.
Everyone must gain a full understanding of and apply the spirit of the 20th CPC National Congress, advance rural revitalization across the board, implement one policy after another for the prosperity of the people, speed up the modernization of agriculture and rural areas, so that all the rural people can live a more prosperous life.

Afterward, Xi traveled to the Zaoyuan campus of Yan’an Middle School, which was the first school of its kind set up by the CPC.
With great care and attention from revolutionaries of the older generation, educators and leaders of the Party and country, Yan’an Middle School has a glorious history and fine revolutionary traditions.

It has also fostered many talent for the old revolutionary base areas.

Xi walked into the school’s education history museum to learn more about how the school is run and operated.
He expressed his hope that the school should follow the Yan’an Spirit in imparting knowledge and educating students, deliver an education that the people are satisfied with, carry forward the fine revolu- tionary traditions and cultivate the talent of the new era.

A variety of tasty dishes were on offer at the student din- as he got off the train.

An apple orchard in the mountain was enjoying a bumper harvest.

Xi went to the orchard and chatted with the growers who were picking apples.
He asked about this year’s harvest and picked a big red apple.

He also learned about apple-growing techniques, picking methods, apple variety and quality, prices and villagers’ income, as well as how to further promote apple-growing and other indus- tries.

Xi showed great concern for irrigation and water use.

Local villagers told him that they had effectively solved the problem by building dams, as well as adopting drip irrigation and fine management.
Xi recognized their efforts, saying, “This is what we call agricultural modernization.

And you have found the right path to industrial development.” At an apple washing and selecting workshop, Xi was briefed on the development of the local apple industry and checked the production line for sorting and packaging apples.
A variety of locally-grown apples and deep-processed prod- ISSUE 4 · 2022 25 SPECIAL REPORT President Xi Jinping, also general secretary of the CPC Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, chats with local villagers in an orchard in Nangou Village of Yan’an, northwest China’s Shaanxi Province, on October 26.

Ju Peng ing hall.
Ju Peng ing hall.

Xi checked on the dishes and asked the cooks about the prices and flavors, urging them to ensure food quality and pay special attention to food hygiene, so as to provide safe and delicious meals for the students.

Xi stepped into the classroom of Class 2, Grade 10, where he had a cordial conversation with the teacher and stu- dents.

He asked the students about their ideals and what they wanted to be when they grew up.
One of the students told Xi that she wanted to be a doctor like Li Shizhen, the renowned Ming Dynasty herbalist.

Another student said he wanted to study pharmacology at university in the future, while another student said she would like to learn foreign languages and become an interpreter for diplomatic affairs.

Xi was delighted to hear their answers and praised them for having clear life goals and lofty aspirations.
He encouraged the students to establish great ideals at an early age, aspire to become capable young people of a new generation who will contribute to the development of socialism and carry forward the socialist cause, so that the revolutionary tradi- tions and heritage can be passed down from generation to generation.

Night fell as the leaders were leaving.

The students left their classrooms, clapping as they saw the general secretary off.

Xi also waved to bid farewell to them.


lived completely at the mercy of scant rainfall, the local peo- ple built a water conservancy project on the mountainside of Taihang with the support of the Party and the government.

The project, which diverts water from the Zhanghe River to the area, is called a “man-made river from Heaven.” Xi ob- served different exhibits in the exhibition hall one by one.
He noted that the Hongqi Canal is a monument inscribing the heroic spirit of the unyielding and valiant local people who dared to fight to change their fate.

“We need to educate peo- ple, especially the youth, with the Hongqi Canal Spirit that China’s socialism is won by hard work, struggles and even sacrifice of lives,” Xi said.

This was not only true in the past but also true in the new era.
Without the arduous work of the older generation, or without the blood and even lives they devoted, there would be no happy life today.

Everyone must always remember them.

Today, the material life is greatly improved, but the spirit of perseverance like “the bullheaded old man removing the mountain” and the hard-working style must not change, Xi said.

The Hongqi Canal is of so much educational significance that everyone should come to visit.
Xi then inspected the operation of the canal’s water diversion sluice gate onsite and learned about the functions of the gate in water diversion, irrigation and environmental improve- ment.

On the morning of October 28, Xi arrived at the Memorial Hall of the Hongqi Canal in Linzhou of Anyang.
In the 1960s, in order to deal with the harsh local environment where they During the construction of the Hongqi Canal, 300 young people formed a commando team, and after 17 months of hard struggle, tunneled through the hard rock on the 26 NATIONAL PEOPLE’S CONGRESS OF CHINA President Xi Jinping, also general secretary of the CPC Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, views the Hongqi Canal in Linzhou city, central China’s Henan Province, on October 28.
Ju Peng dangerous terrains for a stretch of the canal.

The tunnel they made was named “The Youth Tunnel.” Xi walked up the steps to The Youth Tunnel, inspecting the canal along the way.

He stressed that the Hongqi Canal Spirit and the Yan’an Spirit are coherent and create continuity, while both are indelible historical memories of the Chinese nation.
He said the younger generation must carry forward the spirit of staying tough and diligent, self-reliant and hard-working, and abandon a finicky lifestyle and complacent attitude, and, like their parents’ generation, leave a memorable leg- acy in history with their youthful enthusiasm.

The onus is on these generations to realize the second centenary goal, Xi said.

“We are living in a remarkable time and must make our own contributions so as to live up to people’s expecta- tions,” he said.
On the afternoon of October 28, Xi made an inspec- tion tour of the Yinxu Ruins situated on both banks of the Huanhe River in the northwest suburbs of Anyang.

The 3,300-year-old Yinxu Ruins have been confirmed by histor- ic documents and archaeological excavations as the capital site of the late Shang (Yin) Dynasty, the first ruins of their kind confirmed in Chinese history.

Walking into the Yinxu Museum, Xi observed the bronze ware, jade ware, oracle bone inscriptions and other unearthed relics.
Then, Xi vis- ited the Exhibition Hall of Chariot Pits where he observed the original-sized samples of animal-driven carts and re- mains of a Shang Dynasty road.

He pointed out that oracle bone inscriptions unearthed at Yinxu Ruins are evidence of the Chinese written language from 3,000 years ago, and helped to bring recorded Chinese history nearly 1,000 years earlier than previously believed.

“I have long been yearning to visit this site.


This time I come for a deeper study and understanding of the Chinese civilization so that we can make the past serve the present, and draw inspiration for better building modern Chinese civilization,” he said.

The Chinese characters are extraordinary and serve as a link in the forming and development of the Chinese nation, and the archaeologists have done a great job in this regard.
Every- one should attach more importance to and put more efforts on archaeological research to carry forward the project of tracing the origins of the Chinese civilization.

With a long and continuous history stretching back to antiquity, Chinese civilization shaped the great nation, and this nation will continue to be great, he added.

Xi urged efforts to carry forward the fine traditional cul- ture through discovery, research and conservation of cul- tural relics.
He stressed that fine traditional Chinese culture is the root of the Party’s new theories.

The proper approach of adapting Marxism to the Chinese context and the needs of the times is to integrate the basic tenets of Marxism with China’s specific realities and fine traditional culture.

China should stay confident in its culture and be more confident and proud to be Chinese.
(Xinhua) ISSUE 4 · 2022 27 INTERNATIONAL EXCHANGE Li Zhanshu, chairman of the NPC Standing Committee, delivers a video speech at the closing ceremony of the 43rd General Assembly of the ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Assembly (AIPA) at the invitation of Cambodian National Assembly President Samdech Heng Samrin, also the chair of the 43rd AIPA General Assembly, on November 24.
Wang Ye Li Zhanshu calls for enhanced parliamentary exchanges with ASEAN Li Zhanshu, chairman of the NPC Standing Commit- tee, said on November 24, 2022, that China is will- ing to promote friendly parliamentary exchanges at various levels and through multiple channels with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).
Li delivered a video speech at the closing ceremony of the 43rd General Assembly of the ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Assembly (AIPA) at the invitation of Cambodian National Assembly President Samdech Heng Samrin, also the chair of the 43rd AIPA General Assembly.

Noting that this year marks the 55th anniversary of ASE- AN and the 45th anniversary of the AIPA, Li said China is pleased with the achievements of ASEAN’s community build- ing and the development of the AIPA.
Under the strategic guidance of leaders of China and ASE- AN countries, the development of China-ASEAN relations has entered a fast lane and the China-ASEAN comprehensive strategic partnership has gotten off to a good start, Li said.
He also commented that the Chinese path to moderniza- tion is a path of peaceful development and that China re- mains committed to upholding world peace, promoting com- mon development, following the principle of amity, sincerity, mutual benefit and inclusiveness, and pursuing friendship and partnership in its diplomacy with its neighbors.

China believes that China-ASEAN cooperation will con- tribute to the peace and development of the Asia-Pacific re- gion, Li said.
He added that China and ASEAN share some similar ideas and concepts of development, such as the people-centered philosophy, which has further facilitated the cooperation.
Stressing that legislative exchanges mark an important part of China-ASEAN relations, Li said China’s NPC will continue to carry out friendly exchanges with the AIPA and parliaments of ASEAN countries, enhance capacity build- ing, strengthen the comprehensive strategic partnership be- tween China and ASEAN, and make contributions to build- ing a closer China-ASEAN community with a shared future.
(Xinhua) 28 NATIONAL PEOPLE’S CONGRESS OF CHINA Cao Jianming attends Global Bamboo and Rattan Congress Cao Jianming, vice chairman of the NPC Standing Committee, speaks at the Celebration of International Bamboo and Rattan Organization’s 25th Anni- versary and the Second Global Bamboo and Rattan Congress in Beijing, capital of China, on November 7.
Cao Jianming, vice-chairman of the NPC Standing Committee, attended the Celebration of Interna- tional Bamboo and Rattan Organization’s (INBAR) 25th Anniversary and the Second Global Bamboo and Rattan Congress in Beijing, on November 7.

Cao said that the Chinese government has always attached great importance to the development of bamboo and rattan.
He mentioned that China and the INBAR decided to joint- ly launch the Bamboo as a Substitute for Plastic Initiative in June of 2022 to reduce plastic pollution and respond to cli- mate change.

As the host of the INBAR, China will continue to provide strong support for the organization, work with member countries to further strengthen the cultivation, conservation and utilization of bamboo and rattan resources, and advance the implementation of the initiative, Cao said.
More efforts will be made to enhance scientific and tech- nological innovation, deepen international cooperation and China will continue to provide strong support for the organization, work with member countries to further strengthen the cultivation, conserva- tion and utilization of bamboo and rattan resources, and advance the implementation of the initiative.
exchanges, and give full play to the ecological, economic, so- cial and cultural benefits of bamboo and rattan in making the world clean and beautiful, according to Cao.

(NPC) ISSUE 4 · 2022 29 INTERNATIONAL EXCHANGE Shen Yueyue reiterates China’s commitment to wetlands conservation Aerial photo taken on November 14 shows the scenery of Jiyuan section of the Yellow River Wetland National Nature Reserve in central China’s Henan Province.
Miao Qiunao Committee, reiterated China’s commitment to glob- al wetlands conservation on November 5, 2022.

Shen Yueyue, vice chairperson of the NPC Standing Shen made the remarks in a speech at the open- ing ceremony of the 14th Meeting of the Conference of the Contracting Parties to the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands (COP14).
Since its accession to the convention in 1992, China has faithfully fulfilled its due responsibilities, taken part in inter- national exchanges and engaged in extensive cooperation with contracting parties.

It has become a firm supporter of and active participant in global wetlands conservation, as well as a significant champion, Shen said.

She noted that China will join hands with all contracting parties and make greater contributions to the construction of a community for all life on Earth.
The meeting kicked off on November 5 in Wuhan, central China’s Hubei Province, and Geneva, Switzerland, simultane- ously.

(Xinhua) Shen Yueyue, vice chairperson of the NPC Standing Committee, address- es the opening ceremony of the 14th Meeting of the Conference of the Contracting Parties to the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands (COP14) in Wuhan, central China’s Hubei Province, on November 5.
Wu Zhizun 30 NATIONAL PEOPLE’S CONGRESS OF CHINA Chen Zhu addresses high-level dialogue of Paris Peace Forum Chen Zhu (2nd, L), vice chairman of the NPC Standing Committee, delivers a keynote speech during a high-level dialogue of the Paris Peace Forum in Paris, France, on November 11.

Gao Jing Chen Zhu, vice chairman of the NPC Standing Committee, delivered a keynote speech during a high-level dialogue of the Paris Peace Forum on November 11, 2022.
At France’s invitation, Chen attended the opening ceremo- ny of the fifth edition of the forum.

Noting that public health is the language of peace tran- scending national boundaries, Chen said Chinese President Xi Jinping’s call for building a global community of health for all shows China’s approach on how to prevent and respond to global public health crises.
Facing public health emergencies, all parties should seek truths from facts and prevent the politicization of the pan- demic and stigmatization of the virus, he said.

Chen said that China always advocates true multilateral- ism and supports the leading role of the United Nations and the World Health Organization in improving global health governance.
During his stay in France, Chen also met with first vice president of the French Senate Roger Karoutchi, vice presi- dent of the French National Assembly Naima Moutchou, for- mer French prime minister Jean-Pierre Raffarin and former president of the French National Assembly Richard Ferrand.

(Xinhua) ISSUE 4 · 2022 31 OPINION Students from No.
39 Middle School in Zaozhuang, east China’s Shandong Province, participate in a series of activities to learn the Constitution on December 2, two days ahead of China’s ninth national Constitution Day.

Ji Long Role of Constitution strengthened China’s current Constitution, which was promul- gated on December 4, 1982.
December 2022 marks the 40th anniversary of Throughout the past four decades, the Consti- tution has been revised and improved in keeping with the times, and implemented to play its important role in the country’s governance.

Particularly since the 18th National Congress of the Com- munist Party of China (CPC) in 2012, under the strong lead- ership of the CPC Central Committee, the theories, systems and practices of the Constitution have seen sustained prog- ress through innovative development.
Efforts have been made to strength- en oversight to ensure compliance with the Constitution and improve the system for ensuring its full enforce- ment, in order to better safeguard the authority of the Constitution.

32 NATIONAL PEOPLE’S CONGRESS OF CHINA Advancing with the times In the report to the 20th National Congress of the CPC held in October 2022, plans for improving the socialist legal system with Chinese characteristics with the Constitution at its core were laid out.
In March 2018, the latest amendments to the Constitution were adopted at the first session of the 13th National People’s Congress (NPC).

These amendments received support from various sectors of society.

Following the guidance of the Constitution, a wide range of laws in key, emerging and foreign-related fields, including the Civil Code, the Foreign Investment Law, the National Se- curity Law and the National Supervision Law, were formulat- ed in the past decade.
legislators decided to designate December 4 as the country’s National Constitution Day.

To further promote the spirit of the Constitution among the people, the country has held a weeklong Constitution publicity campaign every year since 2018.

Extensive activities have been conducted during this cam- paign, such as pledging allegiance to the Constitution, car- rying out reading programs and lectures on the Constitution and launching Constitution-themed trains.
Along with publicity for the Constitution, the past decade has also seen the country redoubling its efforts to enhance people’s awareness of studying and abiding by the law, while providing essential support in building a socialist country based on the rule of law.
(Xinhua) Many laws and legal documents embedded the exact wording of “enacted in accordance with the Constitution,” which demonstrated the leading role of the Constitution in the socialist legal system with Chinese characteristics, and also the distinctive fea- tures of promoting the Constitution’s enforcement through an improved legal system, said Zang Tiewei, spokesperson for the Legislative Affairs Commission of the NPC Standing Committee.
Upholding Constitution’s authority Efforts have been made to strengthen oversight to ensure compliance with the Constitution and im- prove the system for ensuring its full enforcement, in order to better safeguard the authority of the Con- stitution.

The NPC established the Constitution and Law Committee, while the Legislative Affairs Commission of the NPC Standing Committee set up a Constitu- tion office.
Concerning legislation, the highlights include amending the Legislation Law, formulating the Na- tional Anthem Law and revising laws on the national flag and the national emblem.

The Law on Safeguarding National Security in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) was enacted and the electoral system of the HKSAR was improved to ensure the steady and sustained implementation of “one country, two systems.” The system of pledging allegiance to the Constitu- tion was implemented.
In accordance with the Con- stitution, national medals and honorary titles were conferred on certain individuals.

Meanwhile, legislative bodies have been review- ing regulations and judicial interpretations to see if they comply with the Constitution and laws.

Over the past decade, the NPC Standing Com- mittee has received more than 19,200 suggestions on the review work from citizens and organizations, leading to the revision or abolishment of more than 20,000 normative documents.
Enriching the constitutional spirit At an NPC Standing Committee session in 2014, ISSUE 4 · 2022 The police officers answer Constitution-related queries raised by passersby during an activity marking China’s ninth national Constitution Day in Pingliang city, northwest China’s Gansu Province, on December 3.
Zheng Bing A staff member explains knowledge of the Constitution to the staff from the recon- struction and expansion project in Sunshine Pumps (Tianjin) Base of MCC Tian- gong Group Co., Ltd. on December 1.

Zhong Yanming 33 OPINION The 17th China Young Women Scientist Award ceremony is held in Beijing, capital of China, on July 15, with 20 China Young Women Scientist Awards and 5 team awards presented.

After the ceremony, some representatives took a group photo.
Zhang Yuwei Law revised for better protection of women Chinese lawmakers have voted to adopt a revised law to better protect women’s rights and interests in areas such as education, employment, property ownership and personal rights.

The newly-revised Law on the Protection of Rights and Interests of Women, passed at the closing meeting of the 37th session of the 13th National People’s Congress Standing Committee, will take effect on January 1, 2023.
Improving holistic framework The law stipulates that the state shall take necessary mea- sures to promote gender equality, eliminate discrimination of all forms against women and prohibit exclusion or restriction of women’s legitimate rights and interests.

It also requires local governments at all levels to place more emphasis on women’s rights protection.

To that end, the newly-revised law formulates an array of measures.
For example, it mandates that gender equality, one of China’s basic state policies, be incorporated into the coun- try’s education system.

The provisions comprise two tasks, namely, enhancing awareness of the concept of gender equality and ironing out gender discrimination in real terms, said Jiang Yue, professor at the School of Law, Xiamen University.
“In particular, they clarify the basic criteria for identifying gender discrimination, which will facilitate the implementa- tion of the law,” Jiang added.

Addressing difficulties, challenges The newly-revised law prohibits gender discrimination in the workplace and mandates that gender discrimination in job recruitment, admission, promotion and dismissal be in- 34 NATIONAL PEOPLE’S CONGRESS OF CHINA Law revised for better protection of women cluded in the supervision of labor rights protection.
To guarantee that women enjoy equal rights with men to property, the law stipulates that women’s rights and inter- ests in rural collective economic organizations shall not be infringed upon on the grounds that they are unmarried, mar- ried, divorced, widowed or have no men in their households.
The revised law includes provisions on women’s land rights and related rights and interests, which address long-standing problems in the area and will effectively ensure rural women’s fundamental rights to survival and develop- ment, said Li Mingshun, professor at China Women’s Univer- sity.

The law strengthens the protection of women’s personal security.
It specifies the responsibilities of governments and public security, civil affairs, human resources and social se- curity, and health departments at all levels against the abduc- tion, trafficking and kidnapping of women, as well as other acts that violate their rights and interests.

Those who fail to report such offenses as required will be held accountable, according to the newly-revised law.
Care for women living in disadvantaged conditions is also highlighted in the revision, including providing impover- ished, elderly or disabled women with assistance, employ- ment and entrepreneurship support and other services.

The law also stipulates that mental health support should be provided to those in need.

Building a family-friendly society Analysts believe that several measures in the newly revised law will encourage the building of a family-friendly society.
These measures include the gradual establishment of a comprehensive healthcare system for women, the improve- ment of childcare services for infants and young children, and the optimization of the maternity leave system.

To eliminate discrimination, China must expand access to high-quality and affordable childcare services for families, Jiang said.
Employers should provide conveniences for employees with children to fulfill their family obligations, and the gov- ernment can then grant tax reductions or exemptions to the employers to reduce their operational costs, Jiang added.
(Xinhua) To better protect women’s rights and interests in more areas The newly-revised Law on the Protection of Rights and Interests of Women Taking effect on January 1, 2023 Xu Jun Basic info on the Law on the Protection of Rights and Interests of Women By Lu Yan The Law on the Protection of Rights and Interests of was first adopted on April 3, 1992, and took effect on October 1, 1992.

It was amended twice in August 2005 and October 2018 respectively.
On October 30, 2022, the Standing Committee of the 13th National People’s Congress (NPC) passed a revised law.

The law is in line with the Outline of Women’s De- velopment in China (2021-30), a medium- and long- term plan for implementing the basic national policy of gender equality.

The outline aims at advancing wom- en’s lives and improving women’s health-- the primary field of development.
Since the implementation of the law about three decades ago, it has effectively promoted the improve- ment of women’s rights and interests in all aspects.

At the same time, it is undeniable that some old problems in the field of women’s rights protection have not been resolved, such as abduction and trafficking, sexual abuse, domestic violence and sexual harassment, as well as difficulties faced by underprivileged groups including rural women, disabled women and single mothers.
Moreover, with economic and social development, some new situations and problems have emerged.

For example, after the adjustment of China’s birth policy, the contradiction between birth and employment has intensified, and gender discrimination in the field of employment has become prominent.

The protection of rural women’s property rights and interests faced new challenges after the changes in the form and distribu- tion of rural property rights.
The stability of the family continues to decline, which can be seen in the rise of the divorce rate and marital conflicts and disputes.

To target these issues, the revised law comes at a good time.

Since the first session of the 13th NPC in 2018, hun- dreds of NPC deputies have proposed bills on revising the law, calling for further optimizing the basic institu- tional design for promoting gender equality by amend- ing the law so as to create conditions for women’s all- round development.
By soliciting opinions in writing from local people’s congresses, convening expert symposiums, conducting field research and entrusting local research, the NPC Standing Committee worked hard on improving the draft revision before passing the revised law.

ISSUE 4 · 2022 35 LEGISLATION Law on Yellow River conservation adopted Aerial photo taken on October 17 shows a bend of the Yellow River in Ruoergai county of Aba Tibetan and Qiang Autonomous Prefecture, southwest China’s Sichuan Province.
Wang Xi Chinese lawmakers voted on October 30, 2022, to adopt a law on the conservation of the Yellow Riv- er, as the country ramps up efforts to protect the major river.

The law, passed at the 37th session of the 13th National People’s Congress (NPC) Standing Committee, will take ef- fect on April 1, 2023.
As China’s second piece of legislation on a specific river basin after the Yangtze River Protection Law, the new law targets key problems of the Yellow River basin, including wa- ter shortages, ecological fragility and flooding.
To bolster ecological protection and restoration, the law stipulates that the country will put the restoration of nature first, while combining natural restoration with artificial restoration, and intensify the comprehensive, systemic and source management of pollution in the Yellow River basin.
The law states that China will make economical and in- tensive use of water resources in the Yellow River basin, with efforts made to promote water-efficient agricultural and in- dustrial production, as well as water-saving in urban areas.

According to the law, the country will coordinate the con- struction of flood-control systems in the main stream and tributaries of the Yellow River to bring about the synergy of flood-control systems between basins.
It also stresses efforts to accelerate the green shift in de- velopment, and optimize regional economic structures and the distribution of productive forces on the condition of eco- logical protection, to boost the high-quality development of the Yellow River basin.
As a landmark piece of legislation in river-basin protec- tion, the new law will provide solid support for promoting the ecological protection and high-quality development of the Yellow River basin in line with the rule of law, said Yuan Jie, an official with the Legislative Affairs Commission of the NPC Standing Committee.
(Xinhua) To provide solid support for promoting the ecological protection and high-qual- ity development of the Yellow River basin in line with the rule of law L a w o n t h e C o n s e r v a t i o n o f t h e Ye l l o w R i v e r Ta k i n g e f f e c t o n A p r i l 1 , 2 0 2 3 Xu Jun 36 NATIONAL PEOPLE’S CONGRESS OF CHINA Basic info on Yellow River Protection Law By Lu Yan The Yellow River, the nation’s second longest river, is known as the Cradle of Chinese Civilization.
From its source on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, the country’s Moth- er River winds through the Inner Mongolia Plateau, the Loess Plateau and the North China Plain before reach- ing the coast at the Bohai Sea after a journey of 5,464 km.

It is also a vast ecological corridor that has support- ed the flourishing of plants, animals and humans since prehistory.
After thousands of years of utilization and exploita- tion, the Yellow River basin now faces environmental challenges including soil erosion, pollution and periods of insufficient flow alternating with periods of flooding.

The impacts of these challenges are felt by everyone who calls the basin home.

These challenges also have broader impacts on China’s environment, society and economy.
To overcome these issues, the Standing Com- mittee of the National People’s Congress (NPC) voted to adopt the Yellow River Protection Law.

The law came on the heels of the Yangtze River Pro- tection Law, which took effect in March 2021.

Both laws were passed as part of national efforts to manage water resources on a river-by-river basis.
The new law on Yellow River protection stipulates that industries and the basin’s development model as a whole must be commensurate with the carrying capacity of the ecological system, and strict restrictions will be placed on the presence and activities of these industries along the main river and its tributaries.
Company-specific clean production initiatives that minimize waste and emissions will be introduced in the basin’s industries, including coal, thermal power, iron and steel, coking, chemical and nonferrous metal indus- tries.
The law further states that government at or above the county level must promote high-quality development within the manufacturing industry and resource-based industries, develop more modern industries and pro- mote cleaner and lower-carbon development in line with national carbon peaking and neutrality goals.

As demand for water increases with economic devel- opment, protection of the Yellow River’s limited water will now be guaranteed by law.
Planning for urban devel- opment, land use, population, industry and agriculture will be legally required to adhere to sustainable water use limits.

The law also encourages the adoption of water-saving technologies and lifestyle practices.

In addition to saving water, the legislation makes pro- visions for the prevention and control of water pollution, codifying standards for the transport and treatment of agricultural and industrial pollutants.
It emphasizes the improvement of the water and sedi- ment control system, with a focus on major water proj- ects such as key reservoirs.

Also included in the law are provisions for coordinated water and sediment control between agencies and administrative regions.

Aerial photo taken on May 9 shows a section of the Yellow River in Heishanxia (Black Mountain Gorge) of Zhongwei, northwest China’s Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region.
Feng Kaihua ISSUE 4 · 2022 37 LEGISLATION NPC Standing Committee provides interpretation of provisions in the national security law in Hong Kong The Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress (NPC) adopted an interpretation of Arti- cle 14 and Article 47 of the Law of the People’s Re- public of China on Safeguarding National Security in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) on December 30, 2022.

The interpretation was adopted at the 38th session of the 13th NPC Standing Committee.
Lawmakers at the session deliberated a State Council proposal for giving the interpre- tation.

The proposal was submitted in response to a report by the HKSAR chief executive to the central government.
A leading official of the Legislative Affairs Commission of the NPC Standing Committee took media questions on the interpretation, saying that there is a major disagreement in 38 NATIONAL PEOPLE’S CONGRESS OF CHINA It is necessary and viable to give an interpretation of related provi- sions in the national security law in Hong Kong, clarify their meanings, and define the means of and paths to solving related questions.

solving related questions, the official said.


Further clarifying Article 14 of the law, the interpretation says that, the Committee for Safeguarding National Security of the HKSAR assumes the statutory duties for safeguarding national security in the HKSAR and has the power to make judgements and decisions on whether national security is involved.

Information relating to the work of the committee shall not be subject to disclosure.
Decisions made by the committee shall not be amenable to judicial review and shall have enforceable legal force, accord- ing to the interpretation.

No administrative, legislative or judicial institution, orga- nization or individual in the HKSAR shall interfere with the work of the committee.

The decisions of the committee shall be respected and enforced, according to the interpretation.
Further clarifying Article 47, the interpretation says that HKSAR courts, when facing such questions in the adjudica- tion of a case concerning offense endangering national secu- rity as to whether an act involves national security or whether the relevant evidence involves state secrets, shall request and obtain a certificate from the chief executive to certify the questions.

The certificate shall be binding on the courts, ac- cording to the interpretation.
In addition, questions of whether foreign lawyers without full local qualifications in the HKSAR can serve as defense counsels or legal representatives in cases concerning offense endangering national security belong to questions stipulated in Article 47, and must obtain a certificate from the chief ex- ecutive.
If HKSAR courts fail to request and obtain a certificate from the chief executive to certify the questions, the Commit- tee for Safeguarding National Security of the HKSAR shall, in accordance with Article 14, perform its statutory duties to make related judgements and decisions on the circumstances and questions, according to the interpretation.
The interpretation has the same effect as the Hong Kong national security law, said the official, who added that the in- terpretation is retroactive to the date of the law’s enactment.
The NPC Standing Committee interpretation will help resolve major disputes in enforcing the Hong Kong national security law, and will have positive effects on Hong Kong residents’ lawful and proper exercise of the right to choose lawyers, as well as on the HKSAR’s lawful and proper exer- cise of its independent judicial power, including that of final adjudication, the official added.

It will not undermine the HKSAR’s high degree of autono- my, the official reassured.
(Xinhua) Aerial photo taken on December 8 shows the Tseung Kwan O Cross Bay Bridge in Hong Kong, south China.

Yan Jinwen Hong Kong society over whether foreign lawyers without full local qualifications can handle national security cases, and how the national security law in Hong Kong should be ap- plied under such circumstances.
It is necessary and viable to give an interpretation of re- lated provisions of the national security law in Hong Kong, clarify their meanings and define the means of and paths to ISSUE 4 · 2022 39 LEGISLATION The revised wildlife protection law adopted The photo taken on March 24 shows Tibetan wild donkeys, a species under first-class national protection, in Naqu city, southwest China’s Tibet Auton- omous Region.
Zhou Dixiao the Protection of Wildlife on December 30, 2022, which will take effect on May 1, 2023.

Chinese lawmakers voted to adopt a revised Law on The revised law was passed at the 38th session of the 13th National People’s Congress (NPC) Standing Com- mittee, which was held from December 27 to 30, 2022.

It strengthens the protection of wildlife habitats and re- fines measures for the regulation of wildlife populations in detail.
The revised law explicitly prohibits consumption of wild animals under special state protection as well as terrestrial wildlife of important ecological, scientific and social value and others on the list of national protection.

Any acts of hunting, trading or transporting for meat of terrestrial wild animals that grow and reproduce naturally in the wild shall be forbidden, according to the revised law.

It also intensifies punishment for related offenses.
The existing law on wildlife protection was formulated in 1988 and since then has had three amendments and a revi- sion, according to Yue Zhongming with the Legislative Affairs Commission of the NPC Standing Committee.

It has helped step up the protection of wild animals and their habitats and strengthened the rescue and breeding of The revised law strengthens the pro- tection of the habitats of wildlife and refines measures for the regulation of wildlife populations in detail.
endangered wildlife, Yue said, adding that it has also played an active role in preserving biodiversity and pushing forward ecological conservation in China.

Yue noted that wildlife populations have recovered effec- tively as the ecological environment continues to improve in China.

But some regions have been overrun with wildlife such as wild boars, posing potential danger to people’s safety, and agricultural and animal husbandry production.
In response, the revised law stipulates detailed measures for regulating and controlling wildlife populations that ex- ceed the environmental capacity.

It also makes stipulations on national subsidies for losses caused by wild animals and on the management of artificially bred species.

(Xinhua) 40 NATIONAL PEOPLE’S CONGRESS OF CHINA More info on revised Wildlife Protection Law By Lu Yan The current Wildlife Protection Law was adopted in 1988.
Before the latest revision at the end of 2022, it had been revised in 2016 and amended in 2004, 2009 and 2018.

The revised law lays down requirements which have to be met by ordinary people.

It says the public shall raise awareness on protecting wildlife and maintaining public health safety, prevent the spread of infectious diseases of wildlife origin, resist the illegal use of wildlife as food and develop a civilized and healthy lifestyle.
According to the revision, any organization or indi- vidual has the right to report any behavior that violates the law.

The department of wildlife protection under the people’s government at the county level and above, and other departments receiving the report shall respond in a timely manner.

The previous edition of the law stipulated that anyone introducing non-native wildlife species shall take appro- priate measures to prevent their entering the wild and avoid harm to ecosystems.
As an addition, the revision says that if it is found that wildlife from outside Chinese borders causes harm to ecosystems, relevant govern- ment departments at the county level and above shall take corresponding safety control measures.
The people’s government at and above the provincial level shall designate the important habitats of wildlife as natural protected areas such as national parks and nature reserves in accordance with the law, and shall protect, restore and improve the environments in which wildlife live.

Since 2015, China has launched 10 pilot national parks to protect the natural environment and biodiversi- ty.
In October 2021, the country officially designated five of these pilot projects as national parks, including the Sanjiangyuan National Park, the Giant Panda National Park, the Northeast China Tiger and Leopard National Park, the Hainan Tropical Rainforest National Park and the Wuyishan National Park.

Totaling 230,000 square kilometers and covering nearly 30 percent of the key terrestrial wildlife species found in China, these parks further improved the national park system.
In December 2022, China took another step, setting out a plan that envisages the creation of the world’s larg- est national park system by 2035.

The parks in the plan will feature various ecosystems, spanning from forests and grasslands to wetlands and deserts, involving over 700 existing nature reserves, as well as 10 world natural heritage sites.

Liu Lijun, a veterinarian, checks the condition of rep- tiles at Beijing Wildlife Res- cue and Rehabilitation Center on April 20.
Ju Huanzong ISSUE 4 · 2022 41 WHOLE-PROCESS PEOPLE'S DEMOCRACY 9,203 suggestions by national lawmakers under review By Cao Yin A total of 9,203 suggestions made by national lawmakers have been sent to 208 relevant departments for further review and handling, according to a report submitted to a session of the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress (NPC) for review on December 28.
The suggestions were collected from more than 2,200 deputies to the NPC, China’s top legislature, when it held its annual plenary session in March, Guo Zhenhua, deputy secre- tary-general of the NPC Standing Committee, said while explaining the report.

After the NPC closed its plenary meeting, a number of deputies provided an additional 146 suggestions through an online platform, which have also been transferred to related authorities to deal with, he added.
More than half of the total suggestions focus on the country’s development strategies in aspects such as science, technology, and culture, with some also focusing on people’s livelihood, including education, healthcare, and the protection of women’s rights, he said.

He highlighted the importance of receiving suggestions from deputies, as the advice and opinions from those who come from the people could truly reflect public concerns and urgent demands.
“The collection of suggestions is a process of implementing the whole-process people’s democracy, which contributes to identifying problems, ensuring public voices can be heard and helping solve difficulties by the rule of law,” he added.

The NPC Standing Committee called for government departments to take measures, including using online platforms and onsite inspections, to increase communication with deputies.
He commended that some departments accept deputies’ suggestions by making or re- vising regulations and guidelines.

For example, the China National Intellectual Property Administration adopted 13 piec- es of suggestions from deputies when drafting 12 IP-related regulations, according to the report.
To improve the quality of suggestions from deputies who are not familiar with legal terms, such as farmers, workers and technicians, the NPC Standing Committee has also provided training to help them understand more about their duties, Guo said.

In addition, the departments responsible for suggestion handling have been required to give feedback to deputies, he added.
42 NATIONAL PEOPLE’S CONGRESS OF CHINA Gubei Civic Center, a grassroots example of whole-process people’s democracy, in Hongqiao subdistrict, Changning district, Shanghai, on July 24, 2021 Geng Xinning Whole-process people’s democracy brimming with dynamism in China As 2022 draws to an end, one thing is likely to re- main in the memory of the Xiaobailou neighbor- hood in Tianjin Municipality: the adoption of the revised Law on Physical Culture and Sports on June 24.
The revised law incorporated six of the neighborhood’s suggestions on sports.

A year earlier, a local legislative out- reach office was established in the neighborhood.

Since then, residents’ opinions have been recorded and sent directly to the top legislature, the National People’s Congress (NPC).

This offers a glimpse into how Chinese citizens are en- gaged in the country’s whole-process people’s democracy.
As China continues to pursue a path to democracy that suits its reality, Chinese Communists in the new era have de- veloped whole-process people’s democracy, advanced social- ist consultative democracy by way of extensive participation, reinforced the foundations that underpin people’s running of the country and injected fresh vitality into democracy at the community level.
Legislation on our doorstep “Taking advantage of its proximity to residents, our leg- islative outreach office is able to carry out its work at their doorsteps, listen to their most authentic voices and achieve democratic legislation in a more profound, proactive and ex- tensive manner,” said Yang Yi, who is in charge of the legisla- tive work of the Xiaobailou neighborhood.
As of September 2022, the Legislative Affairs Commis- sion of the Standing Committee of the NPC has set up 32 national-level legislative outreach offices, covering all provin- cial-level regions on the Chinese mainland.

Known as “direct trains,” they serve as a direct link be- tween ordinary people and China’s top legislature, making it more convenient for the people to reach lawmakers and con- tribute their wisdom to legislation.
ISSUE 4 · 2022 43 WHOLE-PROCESS PEOPLE'S DEMOCRACY The NPC’s move has inspired standing committees of pro- vincial and municipal people’s congresses to establish more than 5,500 legislative outreach offices of their own.

Governance powered by public will “The wind was so strong and it took forever for the bus to come.
I couldn’t feel my feet in the freezing weather,” a res- ident of Miyun district in suburban Beijing said when they called the 12345 local citizen hotline to complain about their long wait for buses in winter.

“I waited for the bus for an hour in the snow yesterday and I caught a cold when I got back,” another said.

The platform operators sent these messages to the dis- trict’s transportation bureau based on their classification and location.
Following in-depth research and resident in- terviews, the bureau responded by cooperating with a well- known tech company to develop a real-time update system for the district’s buses in a mobile map app, allowing passen- gers to wait indoors until their bus is near.

The city has turned the big data collected by the ho- tline services center into a gold mine that can aid its deci- sion-making.
By screening the data, Beijing added 17 major frustrations experienced by local residents to its priority list of issues to address in 2022, which included the lack of elevators in old buildings and substandard residential property services.

So far, nearly 100 policies have been introduced and more than 400 key tasks have been completed as part of the pro- gram, including installing 1,322 new elevators.
“The people have a channel to express themselves--their words are listened to, acted upon and given feedback.

They are also empowered to judge the performances of related parties.

This practice of handling public complaints has brought people’s democracy to a new height,” said Shan Ai- hong, a researcher on leadership science at the Party School of the Beijing Municipal Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC).
Close consultations Walking into a consultation room in Hengbei village of Yancheng in east China’s Jiangsu Province, people first see a display board covered with pictures showing efforts to solve issues that were discussed by villagers and local political ad- visors, such as improving the village’s environment and mak- ing villagers richer by developing local industries.
The village is planning its last 2022 meeting of its consul- tation council, where villagers and members of the city and district committees of the Chinese People’s Political Consul- tative Conference (CPPCC) will sit together to discuss enrich- ing rural cultural life, said Li Xiaoxia, Party chief of Hengbei village and a member of the CPPCC district committee.
This is a relatively welcoming practice recently developed for the city’s CPPCC members to perform their duties at the township and village levels, said Chen Honghong, chairper- son of the Yanch eng CPPCC committee, noting that people at the grassroots level rarely thought to express their prob- lems through political advisors before.

In Yancheng, political advisors at all levels are encouraged to join 2,693 consultation councils like that in Hengbei.
Each political advisor is expected to visit and contact at least 30 local residents every year, participate in at least two consulta- tions and undertake one practical task for residents.

“Now CPPCC members are at a distance of zero, serving the people and getting to know their everyday concerns,” Chen said.
To ensure consultation results are duly transformed into feasible solutions, the Yancheng CPPCC committee has inno- vated ways to conduct democratic oversight and joint consul- tations with related authorities, thus resolving a number of outstanding problems concerning people’s livelihoods.
In a report delivered at the 20th CPC National Congress, the CPC vowed to give play to the CPPCC’s role as a special- ized consultative body and see that it coordinates efforts to promote democracy and unity, while making proposals on state affairs and building consensus.

(Xinhua) The staff from the legislative outreach office of the Xiaobailou neighborhood in Tianjin Municipality listen to local residents’ opinions on a draft law on December 1.
Zhao Zishuo 44 NATIONAL PEOPLE’S CONGRESS OF CHINA FOCUS timized to facilitate the transformation and upgrading of tra- ditional industries, and the cultivation and growing of strate- gic emerging industries, as well as to shore up the weak links in industrial chains and forge new competitive advantages in the country’s pursuit of carbon peaking and neutrality goals.
In terms of science and technology policies, China will carry out an array of national-level major science and tech- nology projects, giving full play to the role of government in leading the work on making breakthroughs in key and core technologies and highlighting the principal role of enterpris- es in technological innovation, the meeting said.
Social policies should ensure people’s livelihood, promote the employment of young people, especially college gradu- ates, and strive to mitigate the impacts of structural price rises on some of those in difficulty in a timely and effective manner.

The country will optimize childbirth support policies and seek to gradually postpone the statutory retirement age when the time is right and take the initiative to cope with popula- tion aging and a low fertility rate, it noted.
The meeting stressed coordinating better epidemic pre- vention and control with economic and social development, urging efforts to optimize epidemic response based on time and situation, and focus on the elderly and those with under- lying diseases.

Stronger coordination should be achieved between qual- itative and quantitative growth, between supply-side struc- tural reform and domestic demand expansion, as well as be- tween economic policies and other policies, the meeting said.
To foster a new development paradigm, the endogenous dynamics and reliability of domestic circulation should be strengthened, while the quality of international circulation should be elevated.

The meeting stressed the need to handle current work well and at the same time take future development into consider- ation.

Pointing out that there are a multitude of tasks in the economic work in 2023, the meeting underlined moves to improve public expectations and boost confidence for devel- opment.
The country will focus on boosting domestic demand in 2023 by prioritizing the recovery and expansion of consump- tion, increasing urban and rural personal income through multiple channels and encouraging more private capital to participate in the construction of key national projects, the meeting said.

China will accelerate the building of a modern industrial system.
Efforts will be made to identify the weak links in key and core technologies as well as components and parts in the country’s major manufacturing industrial chains, and pull to- gether resources to tackle the problems so that the industrial system is independent, controllable, safe and reliable.
Efforts will be made to speed up the planning and con- struction of a new energy system, enhance the global com- petitiveness of traditional industries, accelerate the research and application of cutting-edge technologies and vigorously develop the digital economy.
The meeting urged efforts to deepen the reform of state- owned enterprises (SOEs) while improving their core com- petitiveness, stating that legal and institutional arrangements must be made to ensure the equal treatment of private enter- China will make greater efforts to attract and utilize foreign capital, widen market access, promote the opening-up of modern service in- dustries, and grant foreign-funded enterprises national treatment.

prises and SOEs.
prises and SOEs.

In addition, law-based protection will be provided to the property rights of private enterprises and to the interests of entrepreneurs.

The country will make greater efforts to attract and utilize foreign capital, widen market access, promote the opening up of modern service industries and grant foreign-funded enter- prises national treatment, according to the meeting.
China will actively seek to join high-standard economic and trade agreements such as the Comprehensive and Pro- gressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership and the Digital Economy Partnership Agreement.

The meeting stressed effectively forestalling and defusing major economic and financial risks, promoting the steady development of the property market, ensuring timely deliv- eries of pre-sold housing and meeting the sector’s reasonable financing demand.
Efforts need to be made to effectively prevent and defuse risks of high-quality and industry-leading developers and improve the debt-to-asset ratio of the real estate sector, the meeting noted.

People’s basic housing needs and the need for improved housing conditions should be met, while a long-term rental housing market will be explored.
Sticking to the principle that “housing is for living in, not for speculation,” the country is seeking to promote a smooth transition of the real estate industry to new development models, according to the meeting.

The conference stressed the necessity to adhere to the cen- tralized and unified leadership of the CPC Central Committee over financial work and called for efforts to prevent and de- fuse local government debt risks.
Rural revitalization will be advanced across the board, en- suring that people do not return to impoverishment in large numbers.

The high-quality development of the Belt and Road Initiative will also be further advanced.

For an economy of China’s size, it is vital to maintain a stable economic performance.

Efforts will be made to stabi- lize growth, employment and prices so that major economic indicators will stay within an appropriate range, the meeting noted.
The innovative and creative potential of the entire society should be unleashed to the greatest extent, according to the meeting.

The potential of the domestic market should be fully tapped so that domestic demand can play a stronger role in driving economic growth.

The construction of major projects will be pushed forward, with a focus on economic development and the urgent needs of the people.
(Xinhua) 46 NATIONAL PEOPLE’S CONGRESS OF CHINA The fifth China International Import Expo is held from November 5 to November 10 at the National Exhibition and Convention Center (Shanghai), in east China’s Shanghai.

Fang Zhe ISSUE 4 · 2022 47