The current session of the 10th National People's Congress (NPC)
is unprecedented in several regards. For 12 consecutive days, the
NPC deputies have reviewed and debated in earnest some of the most
crucial issues related to China's long-term development and
stability.
Major documents include the long-awaited drafts of the property
law and corporate income tax law. Both are under parliamentary
deliberation and likely to be passed at this NPC session. They will
exert a fundamental and far-reaching impact on China's transition
toward a mature, full-fledged market economy as well as her ongoing
integration into the global economic system.
Moreover, Premier Wen Jiabao's government work report is a
refreshing and indeed encouraging indicator of the deepening
commitment and determination on the part of the Chinese leadership
to develop a harmonious society based on sustaining economic
prosperity and socio-political stability.
Premier Wen's work report does not toe the line of conveying
good tidings while ignoring bad ones, instead, it chooses not to
gloat over past achievements. It provides an unusually sobering
survey of the deficiencies and ineffectiveness in such pivotal
policy areas as economic restructuring, agricultural development,
environmental protection, the healthcare system and education.
By calling a spade a spade, the Chinese leadership demonstrates
a remarkable willingness to allow for more solid, substantive
policy discussions on the basis of greater transparency and
accountability. It also demonstrates a firm commitment to tackle
and resolve the multiplying problems confronting China.
True, the NPC deputies - the people's representatives - have
become increasingly vocal in expressing their opinions. They have
become sufficiently empowered to roll back key legislation items on
the NPC agenda.
Meaningful participation in policymaking does not merely denote
the right to say "yes" or "no". It means being involved in an
entire process built on formal institutional arrangements, with
abiding rules, compliancy procedures, and standard operating
practices.
Only through these institutionalized mechanisms can the policy
process become a truly inclusive and transparent one that best
serves the interests of people from all walks of life.
Thus, the NPC still faces the formidable task of further
institutional innovation to ensure a more fruitful and constructive
participation in policymaking. The formal institutional
arrangements must be structured to embody a system of checks and
balances in political affairs.
Only with institutionalized participation by the NPC deputies in
the policymaking process can we expect to secure policy
transparency and inclusiveness while effectively preventing abuse
of power in decision-making. Ultimately, developing new political
institutions is necessary not just for public participation in
policymaking but for coping with the fundamental changes caused by
China's unprecedented transition so as to sustain China's
socio-political stability and economic growth.
The author is a senior fellow with the Foreign Policy
Studies, the Brookings Institution
(China Daily March 15, 2007)