A Chinese lawmaker from the booming eastern coastal province of
Jiangsu has called the building of new countryside an issue of
human rights in another sense.
"The new countryside should be prosperous, civilized and
harmonious, and enjoy a comprehensive development," Ding Dawei, a
deputy to the 10th National People's Congress (NPC), the Chinese
legislature now in an annual full session in Beijing, said on
Thursday.
According to Ding, also mayor of Nantong City in Jiangsu, the
building of new countryside involves many human rights issues, such
as farmers' right to subsistence and development, as well as their
rights to exercise democracy in village management.
"Just as the central government has stressed, farmers' will must
be fully respected in building new countryside. Local governments
can only guide them to do the correct thing, and must not force
them to do anything they don't want to," said Ding.
It might be easier to enrich the villages and farmers than to
"help them achieve progress in the spiritual and political areas,"
Ding noted.
"I think the most important thing is to truly strengthen the
democratic management of village affairs, which will offer a
fundamental guarantee for farmers' rights to education, culture,
entertainment, medicare and basic social security," he said.
China's 900 million farmers have gained the right to directly
elect or oust their village heads since 1988, which gives them a
bigger say in running village affairs. However, intervention in
village elections by governments at higher levels, corrupt village
heads abusing power, and the lack of transparency in village
management often undermine rural democracy and even spark rural
unrest.
(Xinhua News Agency March 9, 2006)