Let experts, not political figures, draft laws
(Xinhua)
Updated: 2005-09-28 09:05

Tianjin has taken a bold step and broken with tradition by hiring a private attorneys' association to draft a local law concerning public hearings by the city's legislature.

Chen Qingfeng, a migrant worker, is assembled to attends the hearing on raising income tax threshold in Beijing September 27, 2005. [Xinhua]

It may be a first nationwide and a sign of things to come - letting legal experts, not political figures, draft laws.

In the past, the government and the standing committees of people's congresses at various levels decided on laws. Some local laws, however, were directly worked out by the province-level governments.

Other cities have solicited different points of view about proposed legislation.

The Tianjin legal association is to draft a local law titled "Measures on Public Hearings of the Tianjin Local Legislature," and will be paid 10,000 yuan (US$1,236).

This is a test for China's people's congress system, said Gao Shaolin, an official of the standing committee of the Tianjin Municipal People's Congress.

Chinese legislation comes mainly from the National People's Congress standing committee members, most of whom live in Beijing and can meet regularly.

The other NPC deputies, representing the country's 1.3 billion people and scattered across more than 30 province-level regions, only play a small role in the enactment and amendment of major laws, such as the Constitution and the Criminal Law. These must be debated and adopted by the NPC in its annual sessions.

Professor Zhu Guanglei of elite Nankai University said Tianjin's municipal people's congress' decision to hire private lawyers is a sign that China's law-making attitude is right on the professional track.

Li Haibo, a lawyer involved in the Tianjin drafting work, said lawyers are more familiar with regulations, laws and legal connections among various social conflicts and serve as links between lawmakers and citizens. "Lawyers' participation will make the law more feasible and professional," said Li.

The draft team is composed of 12 lawyers from the fields of administration law, real estate and legal affairs. They have solicited scholars' opinions, reports on public hearings concerning legislation and the practices of foreign countries.

Of course, local law-making organs have a long way to go to ensure that the "people's will is reflected in laws."

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