Channels to solicit opinions expanded

China's channels for gathering public opinion and suggestions have become more diverse over the past five years, contributing toward the enhanced implementation and development of socialist democracy, officials said on Monday.

During the 14th Five-Year Plan period (2021-25), the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress, China's top legislature, set up a specialized committee to strengthen the connection with deputies, ensuring they could more effectively serve as a bridge between the people and the country, said Song Rui, deputy secretary-general of the NPC Standing Committee.

In China's political system, the people exercise State power through the NPC and people's congresses at the provincial, city, county and township levels, ensuring that their interests are reflected in the decision-making process.

Deputies in China's people's congress system are tasked with engaging and interacting with local residents and communities to understand their needs and seek their suggestions on a range of issues, so that deputies can present their views in the congress.

Noting that the people's congress system is an important institutional guarantee for realizing whole-process people's democracy, Song emphasized that the newly established committee has played a big role in supporting deputies in listening to and gathering suggestions from the people.

He cited data that showed that the NPC and its standing committee have formulated 35 new laws, amended 62 existing pieces, and approved 34 binding resolutions since March 2021, with 1.19 million public suggestions received during the process.

"Many of the opinions have been incorporated in legislation," he added.

Wang Yongcheng, a visually impaired NPC deputy from Fujian province, focused on issues related to education, employment, and creating a barrier-free environment for disabled individuals. In 2023, he proposed that educational authorities provide larger print textbooks for visually impaired students in regular schools. The NPC took his suggestion seriously, sending staff to Fujian in May that year to discuss his ideas further. Wang was also invited to Beijing to contribute to a draft law aimed at improving barrier-free living environments for the disabled and elderly. In June 2023, the NPC Standing Committee adopted the law, incorporating Wang's recommendations. The law, which came into effect on Sept 1, 2023, encourages the publication of Braille textbooks for students with impaired eyesight, addressing their reading needs.

Song revealed that the Legislative Affairs Commission of the NPC Standing Committee has built 54 outreach offices nationwide to collect suggestions from the public, enabling more people to engage in the legislative process and convey their ideas to the country's top legislative body more directly.

"These offices function like express lanes that also allow lawmakers to gain deeper understanding of the public's challenges in work and life, and pushes them to resolve the problems through legislation," he said.

Additionally, the NPC Standing Committee has launched digital platforms to make it easier for people to voice their difficulties, with more legal oversight and opinion solicitation on issues of public concern, such as domestic violence, adolescent mental health and elderly care, he added.

Over the past five years, the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, the country's top political advisory body, has also stepped up efforts to foster stronger ties with the people by various means.

"We organized visits by political advisers to businesses and schools, encouraging them to promote employment, donate for education, support vulnerable groups, offer technical training and enhance legal awareness," said Hu Henglu, deputy secretary-general of the CPPCC National Committee.

"We also asked CPPCC members to give lectures, such as on science, technology, history and culture, to residents, with the aim of making the people truly feel that the political advisers are close to them and are right by their side," he added.

To ensure central policies are crafted in a more evidence-based manner, Ma Lihuai, deputy director of the United Front Work Department of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, said that he and his colleagues have sought input from the eight non-CPC parties on major significant legal amendments, long-term social development plans, economic conditions and environmental issues.

He added that the participation and opinion solicitation of the non-CPC parties in the decision-making have advanced the Chinese path to modernization and highlighted the advantages of the socialist democracy system.