CHINA> Human Rights Progress
White paper on political democracy
(china.org.cn)
Updated: 2005-10-19 11:01

(3) Expanding Democracy in Cadre and Personnel Work

Over the years, the CPC has continuously reformed its cadre and personnel system and intensified efforts to make its cadre and personnel work more scientific, democratic and institutionalized.

First, establishing and improving a scientific mechanism for selection, appointment, management and supervision of cadres. In 2002, the CPC Central Committee issued the Regulations on the Work of Selecting and Appointing Leading Party and Government Cadres, which contained comprehensive provisions on all links in selecting and appointing leading cadres, thus further improving work in this regard.

Second, introducing the system of open selection and competition for leading posts. The Regulations on the Work of Selecting and Appointing Leading Party and Government Cadres, as well as the Provisional Regulations on the Open Selection of Leading Cadres of the Party and Government and the Interim Provisions on the Work of Competition for Posts in the Party and Government, both of which were issued by the General Office of the CPC Central Committee in 2004, all included clear provisions on the scope of application, procedure of selection, and methods of examination and review, discipline and supervision regarding open selection and competition in this field, thus making the work more regularized and institutionalized.

Third, improving the mechanism of democratic decision-making by Party committees regarding the selection and appointment of cadres. On the basis of summing up past experience, the Voting Methods for the Plenum of CPC Local Committees Concerning Candidates Nominated and Recommended as Head of a Party Committee or Government of an Immediate Lower Level, issued by the CPC Central Committee in 2004, clearly stipulates that the would-be head of a Party committee or government of a city (prefecture, league) or county (county-level city, district or banner) shall be, in usual circumstances, nominated by the standing committee of the Party committee at a higher level and submitted to the plenum of the said Party committee for a secret vote. If an urgent appointment is needed while the plenum concerned is not in session, the plenum members shall be consulted.

Fourth, introducing the civil service system. Since the Provisional Regulations on Civil Servants of the State was put into effect in October 1993, a large number of outstanding young talented people with higher education have been recruited as civil servants through open examination and selection. In April 2005, the Law of the People's Republic of China on Civil Servants was deliberated and adopted by the NPC Standing Committee, and announced to take effect as of January 2006. The implementation of this law symbolizes an important step forward in pursuit of a scientific, democratic and institutionalized practice for cadre and personnel work, and has a great bearing on the execution of the strategy of ruling the country by law and the building of socialist political democracy.

(4) Tightening Restraints and Supervision over Use of Power

With the goal of establishing a mechanism for the exercise of power featuring a rational structure, scientific disposition, rigorous procedures and effective restraint, the CPC has combined reinforcing the building of the system of restraint over power with effective supervision over cadres. First, it has augmented supervision over leading organs and cadres, especially principal ones in leading bodies at all levels. The supervision covers the implementation of democratic centralism and the rules of procedure for leading bodies, and the implementation of the system under which leading cadres report on major matters, their work and their efforts to perform their duties honestly and the system of democratic appraisal, instruction and admonishment, and the system that requires leading cadres to reply to letters of inquiry from Party organizations. Second, it has beefed up supervision over the use of power at key links and sectors, such as the selection and appointment of cadres, the operation of financial funds and the management of state-owned assets and finances. Third, it has given full scope to various supervisory bodies to raise overall efficiency. This means strengthening inner-Party supervision, and supporting and guaranteeing supervision by the people's congresses, special government organs and judicial departments, democratic supervision by CPPCC organizations and the supervision of public opinion.

After long-term unremitting efforts, the CPC has developed a set of systems, mechanisms and methods to restrict and monitor the exercise of power, build a clean government and combat corruption, that are in accord with the national conditions. In January 2005, the CPC Central Committee promulgated the Implementation Outline for Building and Improving the System to Punish and Prevent Corruption with Equal Stress on Education, System and Supervision, which represents an overall arrangement in line with the principle of addressing both the symptoms and the root causes of corruption, taking comprehensive measures to rectify both and trying both methods of punishment and prevention, with priority given to the latter.

In recent years, the CPC has, in line with the principle of democratic centralism, gradually introduced transparency into Party affairs, and set up and improved a set of systems regarding the circulation of information among Party members, soliciting opinions on important decisions and reporting on major matters and their own incomes by leading cadres, thereby making the systems play an important role in building a clean government and combating corruption. The CPC will continue to battle corruption by improving its institutional and legal instruments, improve the relevant leadership system and working mechanism, and work out overall medium- and long-term plans for the institutional building of laws and rules to build a clean government and combat corruption, so as to put the use of power under institutional and legal control. It will urge the state legislative organs to expedite the legislation procedures regarding the building of a clean government, study and formulate specific anti-corruption laws, and amend and improve relevant provisions in the Criminal Law and the Criminal Procedure Law. It will continue to deepen the reforms of the cadre and personnel system, judicial system and administrative examination and approval system, as well as the financial and monetary system, investment system, and supervision over and control of state-owned assets, so as to reduce and finally eliminate the soil for and root causes of corruption.

The CPC deals severely with Party members and cadres who violate discipline and laws, and is resolute in removing and punishing corrupt members. From December 2003 to November 2004, the Party's discipline inspection organs and the government's supervision departments at all levels had put in file 162,032 cases of corruption, wound up 160,602 cases, and disciplined 164,831 persons with Party and administrative discipline penalties. Among them, 5,916 were cadres at county (division) level, 415 at department (bureau) level, and 15 at provincial (ministerial) level. The cases of 4,775 people, or 2.9 percent of the total punished, were transferred to judicial organs for criminal investigation.