Adopted at the 5th Meeting of the Standing
Committee of the Ninth National People's Congress on November 4,
1998 and promulgated by Order No. 9 of the President of the
People's Republic of China on November 4, 1998
Article 1? This Law is enacted in accordance
with the Constitution with a view to ensuring self-government by
the villagers in the countryside, who will administer their own
affairs according to law, developing democracy at the grassroots
level in the countryside, and promoting the building of a socialist
countryside which is materially and ethically advanced.
Article 2? The villagers committee is the
primary mass organization of self-government, in which the
villagers manage their own affairs, educate themselves and serve
their own needs and in which election is conducted, decision
adopted, administration maintained and supervision exercised by
democratic means.
The villagers committee shall manage the public
affairs and public welfare undertakings of the village, mediate
disputes among the villagers, help maintain public order, and
convey the villagers' opinions and demands and make suggestions to
the people's government.
Article 3? The primary organization of the
Communist Party of China in the countryside shall carry out its
work in accordance with the Constitution of the Communist Party of
China, playing its role as a leading nucleus; and, in accordance
with the Constitution and laws, support the villagers and ensure
that they carry out self-government activities and exercise their
democratic rights directly.
Article 4? The people's government of a
township, a nationality township or a town shall guide, support and
help the villagers committees in their work, but may not interfere
with the affairs that lawfully fall within the scope of the
villagers self-government.
The villagers committees, on their part, shall
assist the said people's government in its work.
Article 5? The villagers committee shall
support the villagers and assist them in their efforts to set up
various forms of co-operative and other economic undertakings in
accordance with law, provide services and coordination for
production in the village, and promote the development of rural
production and construction and the socialist market economy.
The villagers committee shall respect the
decision-making power of the collective economic organizations in
conducting their economic activities independently according to
law, safeguard the dual operation system characterized by the
combination of centralized operation with decentralized operation
on the basis of operation by households under a contract, and
ensure the lawful property right and other lawful rights and
interests of the collective economic organizations, villagers,
households operating under a contract, associated households, and
partnerships.
The villagers committee shall, in accordance with
the provisions of laws, administer the affairs concerning the land
and other property owned collectively by the peasants of the
village and disseminate knowledge among the villagers about
rational utilization of the natural resources and protection and
improvement of the ecological environment.
Article 6? The villagers committee shall
publicize the Constitution, laws, regulations and State policies
among the villagers; help them understand the importance of
performing their obligation as proscribed by law and cherishing
public property and encourage them to do so; safeguard the
villagers' lawful rights and interests; develop culture and
education, and disseminate scientific and technological knowledge
among the villagers; promote unity and mutual assistance between
villages; and carry out various forms of activities for the
building of advanced socialist ethics.
Article 7? In a village where people from more
than one ethnic group live, the villagers committee shall help the
villagers understand the importance of enhancing unity, mutual
respect and mutual assistance among the ethnic groups and give them
guidance in this respect.
Article 8? The villagers committee shall be
established on the basis of the residential areas of the villagers
and the size of the population and on the principle of facilitating
self-government by the masses.
The establishment or dissolution of a villagers
committee or a readjustment in the area governed by it shall be
proposed by the people's government of a township, a nationality
township or a town and submitted to a people's government at the
county level for approval after it is discussed and agreed to by a
villagers assembly.
Article 9? A villagers committee shall be
composed of three to seven members, including the chairman, the
vice-chairman(vice-chairmen) and the members.
The members of a villagers committee shall include
an appropriate number of women. In a village where people from more
than one ethnic group live, they shall include a member or members
from the ethnic group or groups with a smaller population.
Members of a villagers committee shall not be
divorced from production but may be provided with appropriate
subsidies, where necessary.
Article 10? A villagers committee may, on the
basis of the residential areas of the villagers, establish a number
of villagers groups, the leaders of which shall be elected at the
meetings of the groups.
Article 11? The chairman, vice-chairman
(vice-chairmen) and members of a villagers committee shall be
elected directly by the villagers. No organization or individual
may designate, appoint or replace any member of a villagers
committee.
The term of office for a villagers committee is
three years; a new committee shall be elected at the expiration of
the three years without delay. Members of a villagers committee may
continue to hold office when reelected.
Article 12? Any villager who has reached the
age of 18 shall have the right to elect and stand for election,
regardless of his ethnic status, race, sex, occupation, family
background, religious belief, education, property status and length
of residence, with the exception of persons who have been deprived
of political rights in accordance with law.
The name list of the villagers who have the right
to elect and stand for election shall be made public 20 days prior
to the date of election.
Article 13? Election of a villagers committee
shall be presided over by a villagers electoral committee. Members
of the electoral committee shall be elected by a villagers assembly
or by all the villagers groups.
Article 14? For election of a villagers
committee, the villagers who have the right to elect in the village
shall nominate candidates directly. The number of candidates shall
be greater than the number of persons to be elected.
The election of a villagers committee shall be
valid if more than half of the villagers who have the right to
elect cast their votes; a candidate shall be elected only if he
wins more than half of the votes cast by the villagers.
The election shall be by secret ballot and open
vote-counting; the outcome of the election shall be announced on
the spot. During election, booths shall be installed for voters to
write their ballots in private.
Specific electoral measures shall be prescribed by
the standing committees of the people's congresses of provinces,
autonomous regions and municipalities directly under the Central
Government.
Article 15? If a person, by threatening,?
bribing, forging ballots or other illegitimate means, interferes
with the villagers in the exercise of their rights to elect and to
stand for election, thus disrupting the election of a villagers
committee, the villagers shall have the right to report against him
to the people's congress, the people's government of the township,
nationality township or town, or to? the standing committee of
the people's congress and the people's government at the county
level or the competent department under the latter, which shall be
responsible for investigating the matter and handling it in
accordance with law.??If a person is elected by
threatening, bribing, forging ballots or other illegitimate means,
his election shall be invalid.
Article
16? A group of at least one-fifth of the villagers who have
the right to elect in the village may propose the removal from
office of members of the villagers committee. In the proposal, the
reasons for the removal shall be stated. The member of the
villagers committee proposed to be removed from office shall have
the right to present a statement in his own defence. The villagers
committee shall convene a villagers assembly without delay, at
which the proposal for the removal shall be voted. The removal from
office of a member of the villagers committee shall be adopted by a
simple majority vote of the villagers who have the right to
elect.
Article
17? A villagers assembly shall be composed of villagers at or
above the age of 18 in a village.
The villagers assembly shall be convened with a
simple majority participation of the villagers at or above the age
of 18 or with the participation of the representatives from at
least two-thirds of the households in the village, and every
decision shall be adopted by a simple majority vote of the
villagers present. When necessary, representatives of the
enterprises, institutions and mass organizations located in the
village may be invited to attend the villagers assembly without the
right to vote.
Article 18? The villagers committee shall be
responsible to the villagers assembly and report on its work to the
latter. The villagers assembly shall deliberate on the work report
of the villagers committee every year and appraise the performance
of its members.
The villagers assembly shall be convened by the
villagers committee. When proposed by one-tenth of the villagers,
the villagers assembly shall?be convened.
Article 19? When the following matters that
involve the interests of the villagers arise, the villagers
committee shall refer them to the villagers assembly for decision
through discussion before dealing with them:
(1) measures for pooling funds for the township,
and the percentage of the funds raised by the village to be
retained and used by it;
?(2) the number of persons who enjoy subsidies
for work delayed and the rates for such subsidies;
(3) use of the profits gained by the collective
economic organizations of the village;
(4) proposals for raising funds for running
schools, building roads and managing other public welfare
undertakings in the village;
(5) decision on projects to be launched by the
collective economic organizations of the village and the contracts
proposed for the projects as well as contracts proposed for
building public welfare undertakings in the village;
(6) villagers' proposals for operation under a
contract;
?(7) proposals for the use of house sites;
and
?(8) other matters that involve the interests
of the villagers and on which the villagers assembly considers it
necessary to make decisions through discussion.
Article 20? A villagers assembly may formulate
and revise the villagers charter of
self-government, rules and regulations for the village and
villagers pledges, and submit them? to the people's government
of the township, nationality township or town for the record.
No villagers charter of self-government, rules and
regulations for the village, villagers pledges or matters decided
through discussion by a villagers assembly or by representatives
of? villagers may contravene the Constitution, laws,
regulations, or State policies, or contain such contents as
infringing upon villagers' rights of? the person, their
democratic rights or lawful? property rights.
Article 21? In a village with a larger
population or with the inhabitants scattered here and there,
villagers representatives may be elected, and the villagers
committee shall? convene a meeting of the villagers
representatives to decide on matters through discussion with the
authorization of the villagers assembly. One villagers
representative shall be elected by every five to fifteen
households, or a certain number of villagers representatives shall
be elected by all the villagers groups.
Article 22? The villagers committee shall
apply the system of open administration of village affairs.
The villagers committee shall accept supervision by
the villagers through publicizing the following matters without
delay, of which the matters involving financial affairs shall be
publicized every six months at least:
(1) matters decided on through discussion by the
villagers assembly as provided for in Article 19 of this Law,
and? implementation of the decisions;
(2) plans for implementing the State policy for
family planning;
(3) handing out of relief funds and goods; and
(4) collection of charges for the supply of water
and electricity, and other matters that involve the interests of
the villagers and that all the villagers are concerned about.
The villagers committee shall guarantee the
truthfulness of what is publicized and subject itself to inquiry by
the villagers.
Where a villagers committee fails to publicize the
matters as is required to without delay or if the matters it
publicizes are not true to facts, the villagers shall have the
right to report the matter to the people's government of the
township, nationality township or town or the people's government
at the county level and the competent departments under it, which
shall be responsible for investigation and verification and order
that the matters be publicized; where unlawful acts are verified
through investigation, the members concerned shall bear the
responsibility according to law.
Article 23? The villagers committee and its
members shall observe the Constitution, laws, regulations and State
policies, and they shall be impartial in handling affairs, honest
in performing their duties and warmhearted in serving the
villagers.
Article 24? In making decisions, a villagers
committee shall apply the principle whereby the minority is
subordinate to the majority.
In its work the villagers committee shall adhere to
the mass line, give full play to democracy, carefully heed
dissenting opinions, and unremittingly exercise persuasion; it may
not resort to coercion, commandism or retaliation.
Article 25? A villagers committee shall, when
necessary, establish sub-committees for people's mediation, public
security, public health, etc. Members of the villagers committee
may concurrently be members of the sub-committees. The villagers
committee of a village with a small population may dispense with
the sub-committees; instead, members of the villagers committee
shall have a division of responsibilities with respect to people's
mediation, public security, public health, etc.
Article 26? A villagers committee shall assist
the relevant departments in giving ideological education and help
to and exercising supervision over the villagers who have been
deprived of political rights in accordance with law.
Article 27 Members of government departments,
public organizations, units of the armed forces, and enterprises
and institutions owned by the whole people, who are located in the
countryside, shall not join organizations of the villagers
committees; members of collectively-owned entities that are not run
by the villages may choose not to join the organizations of the
villagers committees. However, all of them shall abide by the rules
and regulations for the villages and the villagers pledges related
to them. When the villagers committees, villagers assemblies or
villagers representatives of the villages, where these units are
located, discuss and deal with problems related to the units, they
shall solve the problems through consultation with them.
Article 28? The local people's congresses at
all levels and the standing committees of the local people's
congresses at or above the county level shall see that this Law is
implemented within their administrative regions and guarantee that
the villagers exercise their right of self-government in accordance
with law.
Article 29? The standing committees of the
people's congresses of provinces, autonomous regions and
municipalities directly under the Central Government may, in
accordance with this Law and in light of the conditions in their
own administrative regions, formulate measures for the
implementation of this Law.
Article 30? This Law shall go into effect as
of the date of promulgation. The Organic Law of the Villagers
Committees of the People's Republic of China (for Trial
Implementation) shall be annulled at the same time.
Source: NPC