Q. Just as you have mentioned that China has made great achievements in the human rights cause since reform and opening up, but there are still some problems and difficulties that cannot be ignored. As far as the present is concerned, what problems and difficulties do you think still exist in the human rights cause? What is the prospect of the development of human rights in China?

A. Human rights are a development process. China is a developing country with a population of 1.3 billion. Due to natural, historical, cultural and economic and social factors, there are still many problems and difficulties in the development of human rights. There are quite a few things less than satisfactory in the human rights conditions in the country. For instance, the political and economic structural systems are yet to be improved; democracy and the legal system remain to be perfected; governments at all levels have to heighten their awareness about protecting human rights and about exercising administration according to law; the economic and social development is uneven and the enlarging gaps between the urban and rural areas, between different regions, and between the rich and the poor have not been brought under control; problems and difficulties are quite outstanding in such areas as employment, social security, income distribution, education, medical service, housing and production safety. All this will affect the immediate interests and rights of the people. It is, therefore, a long-term and arduous task of the Chinese government and people to continue and strengthen their efforts to promote and protect human rights.

Despite all these difficulties and problems, I am still fully confident of the prospects of human rights development. First of all, China has put human rights high on the agenda for national development. Running through the entire report to the 17th CPC National Congress are such terms as "people first," improvement of people's livelihood, expansion of democracy and protection of human rights. The report stressed the importance of respecting and protecting human rights and ensuring the rights of all members of the society to equal participation and equal development. The report made a clarion call for improving the democratic system, diversifying the forms of democracy and expanding democratic channels, and "protecting the people's right to know, right to participation, right to expression and right to oversight." It also called for acceleration of social construction focusing on the improvement of the livelihood of the people, "promoting social justice and equity, striving to enable all the people to have school to attend when in need, get due income from labor, have access to due medical treatment when falling ill, get proper care when in old age and have decent and adequate housing." The 11th five-year development program, from its guidelines, principles, goals to concrete policy measures, is a full expression of the requirements of "people first," scientific development and social harmony. This has charted a clear orientation for the all-round development of human rights. Secondly, over the past 30 years of reform and opening up, China has pioneered a new path best suited to its national conditions in human rights development, which features "people first," stability as precondition, reform as the motive force, development as the key, the rule of law as the guarantee, and comprehensive and coordinated development in the civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights. So long as we continue along this path, China's human rights cause is sure to see new progress as the modernization drive goes on.

I firmly believe that so long as we unswervingly implement the constitutional principle of respecting and protecting human rights, constantly improve democracy and the rule of law, our society will become more harmonious and people will live a still better life and enjoy human rights to the full.