Full text: New Progress in the Legal Protection of Human Rights in China (4)

China has expanded the auditing of all aspects of government affairs, especially in areas like public funds, state property, national resources, and how officials in leading positions fulfill economic duties. It has published the audit results regularly, so as to give a full play to the role of audit in scrutinizing and checking the exercise of power.

The Chinese government has strengthened the accountability investigation for administrative errors. To build a responsible government, it has set up a mechanism of internal legitimacy review of major decisions, and explored the means to establish and implement a lifelong liability accounting system for major decisions and a retrospective mechanism to hold people accountable for wrong decisions. Abiding by the principle that the decision-maker assumes the responsibility, anyone who causes heavy losses by exceeding his/her competence or infringing the decision-making procedure must be held accountable.

In order to raise officials' awareness of responsibilities for protecting the ecological system and people's environmental rights, the Measures for Liability Investigation of Party and Government Officials for Damage to Ecological Environment (trial) stipulate that both senior Party officials and leading government officials will have lifelong accountability for 25 specified types of damage to the ecological environment.

Safeguarding in accordance with the law the citizens' right to participate in administrative decision making. The government has improved decision-making procedures, which define public participation, expert evaluation, risk assessment, legality review, and collective discussion and decision as the legal procedures for making major administrative decisions.

The central government has encouraged local governments at or above the county level to employ legal advisers and lawyers to provide legal opinions for major administrative decisions and actions.

China has also explored to set up a consulting expert database for administrative decisions. The governments invite experts and specialized institutes to discuss on those decision matters of strong professional or technological nature, so as to increase their capabilities in law-based administration.

When making decisions on people's livelihood like E-hailing and express delivery services, the related departments of the Chinese government solicited opinions from a wide range of circles to balance the interests and requests of different groups.

Protecting in accordance with the law the citizens' right to scrutinize the exercise of administrative power. In the context of the Regulations on the Disclosure of Government Information and adhering to the principle that information is to be withheld only in exceptional circumstances, the government prioritizes for information disclosure in such fields as administrative approval, fiscal budget and final accounts, basic need housing, food and drug safety, land requisition and resettlement of displaced residents.

New channels of disclosure have been created. The government has improved online government information services and online administrative services, giving a greater role to IT in the disclosure of government information and making public access to such information more convenient. The websites of 126 government departments have been upgraded for the benefit of people with disabilities.

The government has set up a registration system that allows complaints and reports of illegal conduct by administrative departments to be made via mail, email, hotlines and other channels of supervision. It also attaches importance to the supervisory role of traditional media like newspapers, periodicals, broadcasters and television, and regulates and accepts online oversight.

Tackling in accordance with the law the serious issues that infringe the citizens' rights of life, health and property. The government takes a zero-tolerance attitude toward environmental pollution. In accordance with the law, the government has closed or rectified small, poorly-managed and heavily-polluting enterprises, and enterprises that illegally discharge pollutants.

The government has strengthened inspection and law enforcement in the catering industry, encouraging open restaurant kitchens.

In order to ensure workplace safety, the government has enhanced supervisory inspections to seek out hidden hazards and dangers through regular open and secret visits, unannounced investigations, and random checks.

China prioritizes the fight against telemarketing scams and internet fraud. The Ministry of Public Security, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, and other 21 ministries and institutions have established an interdepartmental meeting mechanism on fighting new forms of telemarketing scams and internet fraud, and the Supreme People's Court, the Supreme People's Procuratorate, the Ministry of Public Security, and several other departments have jointly issued the "Notice on Deterring and Combating Crimes of Telemarketing Scams and Internet Fraud". Through investigation, punishment and prevention of crimes, the related departments have improved the relevant law-enforcement mechanisms, stopped the spread of such crimes, and safeguarded the people's security and property.

The government has strengthened social governance and fostered innovation in this regard. By strengthening and innovating governance of a safe society, integrating such governance with the systemic, comprehensive and law-based governance, and addressing the root causes of problems, China has resolved a number of serious problems that threatened the social peace and order. The public's sense of security has been further reinforced.

III. Effectively Enhancing Judicial Protection of Human Rights

The judicial system plays a significant role in human rights protection. Since the 18th CPC National Congress, China has put people first in its judicial system, integrated criminal punishment with human rights protection, pressed ahead with judicial system reform, continuously developed and improved a socialist judicial system with Chinese characteristics, and endeavored to embody fairness and justice in each and every legal case.

Guaranteeing independent and impartial enforcement of judicial and procuratorial authorities as per the law. Thanks to comprehensive implementation of judicial accountability reform, improvement of the classified management system of judicial personnel, and full adoption of judge quota system reform, the number of judges has been streamlined from 198,800 to 120,000, and procurators from 158,000 to 86,000. Further progress has been made in standardization, specialization and professionalization. According to the principle that those who review a case pass judgment, and those who pass judgment are held accountable, judges and procurators are subject to life-long accountability for cases they handle during their service. Based on strict implementation of judicial accountability, a career security system in line with professional characteristics of judicial personnel has been established. (more)