China Outlines Measures to Ensure Food Safety
Chinese authorities on Dec. 19, 2013 unveiled a package of measures to ensure food safety in 2014, as the more affluent public shows greater care in what they eat.
The measures drawn up by the executive office of the food safety commission under the State Council, China's Cabinet, range from legislation amendments to measures against violations of food safety.
The office called for more rigorous checks, in particular during holidays like New Year and Spring Festival, to prevent major food safety incidents in 2014.
From: Xinhua
China to Revise Law to Make It Easier to Sue Government
A draft amendment to the Administrative Procedure Law, submitted to China's top legislature for a first reading on Dec. 23, 2013, should make it easier for citizens to take the government to court.
The Administrative Procedure Law, which went into effect in October 1990, is a major guarantee of citizens' rights to pursue the government through the courts, and this first revision to the law should alleviate "petition pressure".
From: Xinhua
China Builds More Affordable Housing
China's government has stepped up efforts to make housing accessible to low-income earners as property prices have sky-rocketed, new data from the country's housing authorities revealed on Jan. 9, 2014.
The country started the construction of 24.9 million affordable housing units from 2011 to 2013, accounting for nearly 70 percent of the construction target of 36 million affordable units during the 2011-2015 period, according to the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development.
From: Xinhua[page]
Procuratorate Stresses Privacy for Minor Criminal Defendants
China's Supreme People's Procuratorate (SPP) on Jan. 6, 2014 stressed measures to protect the privacy of juvenile criminal defendants and other minors involved in criminal cases.
The SPP last week issued a revised version of a regulation on prosecutors' handling of criminal cases that involve juveniles, highlighting the "special protection" of juvenile criminal defendants, the SPP said in a statement.
According to the new regulation, names, residences and photos of minors implicated in criminal cases, as well as other information that implies their identity, should not be made public.
Juveniles' reputations should be protected and their personal dignity should be respected, the regulation said.
From: Xinhua
China Boosts Informatization for Better Livelihood
The National Development and Reform Commission on Jan. 14, 2014 said it will boost informatization in eleven sectors to boost people's livelihood.
The eleven sectors include education, employment, medical services, social security, pensions, food and drug safety, community services, domestic services and public security, said a statement on the commission's website.
China will work to build an efficient social service system through promoting social security cards that can integrate various services, according to the statement.
From: Xinhua
Higher Targets Set for Emission Reduction
The 2014 target for reduction of nitrogen oxide in the air has been set at 5 percent, a level much more aggressive than in 2013, Minister of Environmental Protection Zhou Shengxian said at a national environmental conference on Jan. 9, 2014.
Targets for reducing the other three major pollutants — sulfur dioxide, ammonia nitrogen and chemical oxygen demand (which measures the amount of organic compounds in water) — are set at 2 percent for 2014, Zhou said.
The level of nitrogen oxide was expected to fall by more than 3.5 percent in 2013, coming to the 2010 level for the first time in three years, he said.
From: China Daily[page]
Xi Stresses Vitality-Order Balance in Rule of Law
President Xi Jinping called for a greater role of the Communist Party of China (CPC) in guiding the country's political and legal affairs, urging a balance between "vitality and order".
Xi made the comments during a central political and legal work meeting held from Jan. 7 2014 to Jan. 8, 2014.
"The Party should lead legislation, ensure law enforcement and set an example in abiding the law," Xi said, adding that political and legal work should be conducted with an aim to safeguard Party policies and the authority of the law.
According to Xi, ensuring social stability is the basic task of the country's political and legal work, and promoting social justice and equality its core value.
From: Xinhua
540 Mln Chinese Have Social Security Cards
By the end of 2013, 540 million Chinese people, or roughly 40 percent of China's population, had social security cards, which are issued to facilitate medical and other social security services, new data showed on Jan. 21, 2014.
Hu Xiaoyi, vice minister of human resources and social security, revealed the data at a seminar on Jan. 21, 2014, adding that the number is expected to reach 650 million by the end of 2014.
The country aims to issue 800 million social security cards by the end of 2015, covering about 60 percent of its total population, according to China's 12th Five-Year Plan (2011-2015).
From: Xinhua
No.1 Central Document Targets Rural Reform
Chinese authorities on Jan. 19, 2014 issued their first policy document of 2014, underscoring the importance of rural reform, developing modern agriculture and maintaining agriculture as the foundation of its economy.
The policy document is issued by the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China and the State Council every year and has been dubbed the "No.1 Central Document".
This is the 11th consecutive year in which the document has focused on rural issues.
From: Xinhua[page]
China to Delist Poverty Counties
China plans to cut the number of counties eligible for state poverty relief, an official said on Jan. 27, 2014.
There are 832 counties that receive relief and preferential policies, said Wang Guoliang, deputy director of the State Council Leading Group Office for Poverty Alleviation and Development.
The list was first introduced in 1986, when 331 counties were on it, Wang said.
From: Xinhua
China Spends More on Special Education
Chinese government on Jan. 27, 2014 promised to increase the education budget for disabled children and welcomed private funds.
A proper special education system is of great significance to equality of disabled people in social affairs, to improve the happiness of disabled families and to safeguard social justice, said Chinese Premier Li Keqiang in a written instruction to a national conference on special education held here Monday.
All levels of government must improve the special education system so that disabled children receive as good an education as others. An inclusive special education system without discrimination is a must, according to Vice Premier Liu Yandong's address to the conference.
From: Xinhua
China to Ensure Rights of Poor State Compensation Applicants
China's Supreme People's Court (SPC) and Ministry of Justice have issued a guidance to make it easier for the poor to apply for state compensation for wrongful detention, the SPC said Jan. 26, 2014.
The guidance stipulates that courts should notify people in writing of their rights to apply for state compensation. Legal aid institutions should expand channels for people to apply for the compensation and help them seek legal aid.
People who have been wrongfully arrested and have been verified to have no income may apply for state compensation, said the guidance.
From: Xinhua[page]
Xi Stresses Ethnic Unity in Development
Chinese President Xi Jinping stressed ethnic unity for the economic and social development in minority areas, while extending New Year greetings to people of all ethnic groups.
Xi made the remarks during a tour of north China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, calling people of all ethnic groups to unite to defend the country's northern border.
Xi gave affirmation to the economic and social development through ethnic unity in the region after hearing its government report.
From: Xinhua
China Increasing Coverage of Serious Illness Insurance
China would expand a program that enables people with serious illnesses to get more compensation from medical insurance schemes to all the country's regions in 2014.
According to a statement issued by the State Council medical reform office on Feb. 8, 2014, pilots of such programs should be launched in all the country's provincial-level regions by the end of June in 2014.
The new move is aimed at reducing the number of cases in which people are reduced to poverty by the burden of medical fees, the statement said.
From: Xinhua
China to Build Unified Pension System
China would integrate the basic old-age insurance systems for rural and urban residents to allow people to have equal access to the pension scheme, according to an executive meeting of the State Council on Feb. 7, 2014.
China's separate systems for rural residents and retired company employees in urban areas had basically included everyone in the country, according to the meeting.
From: Xinhua
