China's ongoing annual parliamentary plenary sessions has collected growing attention from overseas media and the draft amendments to electoral laws have topped their focus list.

The centerpiece of the amendments seeks to grant equal representation to the country's legislatures at all levels, ensuring equal representation among people, regions and ethnic groups, said an article published on the US web site of the Qiaobao newspaper.

The article hailed the amendments as a way to eliminate the obsolete contents in the electoral law and realize equal voting right principle, which would demonstrate the constitutional spirit of "all people are equal before the law" and further enhance the representativeness of the people's congresses, China's fundamental political system.

The amendment to the election law of the National People's Congress would foster equality among the nation's constituencies, Agence France-Presse quoted Wang Zhaoguo, vice chairman of the NPC Standing Committee, as saying last Friday in his speech to the congress.

Wang said rural delegates now represent four times as many citizens as their urban counterparts, which effectively gives urban areas greater representation, adding that the amendment would equalize those ratios.

The Associated Press said China, once an overwhelmingly rural society, is boosting representation for its dwindling rural population in the national legislature as part of a new push to narrow the development gap between city and countryside.

The Japanese newspapers Yomiuri Shimbun and Asahi Shimbun said the amendments have reflected China's hopes to shift more attention to the rights of rural population.

South Korea's Joong Ang Daily said in an article that these amendments to equalize the ratio of China's legislature representatives among urban and rural population, if adopted, would be a great strides for its democratic politics.

Nouvelles d'Europe, one of France's foremost Chinese dailies, said balancing the urban-rural delegates will further the election's universality and equality to protect people's rights as the country's masters.

Singapore's Lianhe Zaobao said as China's NPC has begun to deliberate the electoral law amendments, which aims to give equal representation among its people living in the cities and rural areas, will end the history of unbalanced voting rights if passed.

(Xinhua News Agency March 11, 2010)