On February 1, the Central Committee of the CPC (CCCPC) and the State Council printed and distributed the Several Opinions on Accelerating Agricultural Modernization through Intensified Reform and Innovation, which was the 12th No.1 document issued by the central government in the new century to guide work related with “agriculture, rural areas and farmers”. The Several Opinions consists of five parts - working faster to transform the model of agricultural development with the aim for developing modern agriculture; implementing more policies to benefit farmers with the aim for increasing their income; advancing the construction of the new countryside with the aim for integrated urban-rural development; comprehensively deepening rural reform with the aim for invigorating the development of the countryside; and intensifying the rule of law in the countryside with the aim for improving the work on “agriculture, rural areas and farmers”.

 

From: The Journal of Human Rights

 

 

On Feb.2, 2015, a Chinese academic urged Human Rights Watch to be rational over China's human rights record after the latter published its "World Report 2015" last week.

 

Human Rights Watch turned a blind eye to China's judicial reform to better protect human rights, said Li Daojun, professor of the Research Center for Human Rights of Shandong University. 

 

He detailed China's achievements in advancing human rights protection through judicial reform in an article entitled "The Human Rights Watch should keep rational."

 

From: Xinhua 

 

 

On February 3, CNNIC issued the 35th Statistical Report on China’s Internet Development in Beijing, according to which China had 649 million netizens and its internet penetration rate reached 47.9% as of December 2014. China’s internet sector has made considerable progress in terms of overall environment, popularization of internet application and development of hot-spot industries. 

 

From: The Journal of Human Rights[page]

 

 

On February 4, 11 state departments including the National Development and Reform Commission recently issued the notice to print and distribute the National Plan for Comprehensive Trial of New-type Urbanization, which listed Jiangsu and Anhui provinces and 62 cities (towns) including Ningbo to carry out such comprehensive trial. According to the Plan, the trial started before the end of 2014, and interim results will be achieved in all pilot projects and duplicable and promotable experience will be accumulated in 2017. The successful experience in those pilot provinces and cities (towns) will be promoted across the nation step by step from 2018 to 2020. The trial is aimed to carry out the following main tasks - establishing the cost sharing mechanism for turning agricultural population into urban residents, establishing diversified and sustainable investment and financing mechanisms for urbanization, reforming and improving the rural homestead system, exploring to set up a new-type management model featuring administrative innovation and administrative cost reduction, and comprehensively pushing systematic and institutional reform and innovation.

 

From: The Journal of Human Rights

 

 

On February 5, the State Council printed and distributed the Opinions on Accelerating Wellbeing of the Disabled, which made arrangements to ensure and improve the livelihood of the disabled , help them share the results of development and enjoy moderate prosperity. According to the Opinions, measures in four aspects shall be taken to ensure the livelihood, employment and income increase for the disabled. The measures are establishing the mechanism to guarantee basic living needs of the disabled, making every effort to help them and their families find jobs and increase income, strengthening and improving basic public services for them, and giving greater play to social forces and market mechanism. 

 

From: The Journal of Human Rights

 

 

On February 9, the CCCPC printed and distributed the Opinions on Strengthening Development of Socialist Consultative Democracy, which made all-round arrangements for implementing consultation among political parties, in the People’s Congress, in the government, in the CPPCC, among people’s groups, on the grassroot level and among social organizations under new circumstances. It is an overarching guideline that instructs the development of socialist consultative democracy.

 

From: The Journal of Human Rights  [page]

 

 

China will deepen mutually beneficial ties with the African Union (AU), a senior Chinese official said here on Feb. 9.

 

After meeting Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe who assumed the AU chairmanship in January, Chinese State Councilor Yang Jiechi told reporters that China was keen to further engage with the AU for greater bilateral socio-economic benefits.

 

Expressing optimism about China-Africa relations, Yang described the ties as an exemplar of mutual trust, equality and concerted efforts for win-win cooperation, adding the relationship enjoyed great prospects.

 

"China will continue its mutually beneficial cooperation with the AU. We are well connected with the AU and all its members and we believe that there is a lot more that we can discuss in terms of economic and social progress in collaboration with each other," Yang said.

 

He said China paid great attention to Africa's development efforts, including its 50-year development strategy dubbed Agenda 2063.

 

"We think that it is a very ambitious program and it will materialize given the resourcefulness of African people, the strategic vision of African leaders and the many friends that Africa has in the world with one of them being China," he said.

 

On China-Zimbabwe relations, Yang hailed the fraternal political and socio-economic ties between the two countries, noting that cooperation still needed to be enhanced in such areas as agriculture, energy, infrastructure, human resources training and tourism sectors, among others.

 

China valued the backing of Zimbabwe on issues that concern its core interests and also affirmed its support for Zimbabwe's efforts to safeguard its independence, sovereignty and dignity, he said.

 

"We believe that each country has the right to choose its own path of development," he said.

 

Yang, who is on a three-day official visit to the southern African country, said he agreed with Mugabe that much progress had been made in implementing consensus between Zimbabwe and China on various cooperation agreements signed by the two leaders in 2014.

 

"China is ready to work with Zimbabwe to further deepen their political mutual trust and expand their cooperation in various areas," he said.

 

From:Xinhua[page]

 

 

 On the regular briefing of the State Council, vice president of the China Disabled Persons’ Federation Cheng Kai announced that roughly eight thousand and five hundred disabled persons entered the ordinary higher institutions successfully in 2014. If another one thousand disabled persons who have been educated in special educational colleges are counted in, there will be over ten thousand disabled persons realized their university dreams in the past one year.

 

There are mainly two choices for disable persons to receive higher education, one is to attend ordinary college entrance exams, the other is to attend independent exams for independent recruitment which is a specialized exams for disabled persons to enter higher special education colleges or ordinary higher institutions which established independent colleges and classes for disabled persons.

 

Established in 1987, Special Education College of Changchun University was the first comprehensive higher special education college to recruit the blind, the deaf-mute and the lame nationwide. With twenty-seven years passing, majors of special education colleges have increased to sixteen and over one thousand disabled students are recruited every year. Besides, postgraduate level has been added to the independent exam for disabled persons, which as experts said was a great progress of education for disabled persons.
 

From:chinahumanrights.org

 

 

On February 15, the Framework Opinions on Several Major Issues Concerning Comprehensively Deepening Public Security Reform and related reform schemes were reviewed and passed by the central government.

 

Chinese police will establish an accountability system for officers in light of high profile cases, according to a policy paper issued recently.

 

The paper, which focused on public security reform, vowed to improve law enforcement responsibility; the correction system; and establish life-long accountability for erroneous cases.

 

It added that, to ensure accountability, investigators should take responsibility for the cases they investigate.

 

Some measures have drawn extensive attention, such as “abolishing the system of temporary residential permit, comprehensively implementing the residential permit system, and putting in place a sound basic public service provision system linked with the period of residence and other conditions.”

 

In addition, it called for changes to the way in which police handled cases, to prevent miscarriages of justice and the use of torture to secure confessions.

 

From: The Journal of Human Rights[page]

 

 

China plans to abolish its controversial temporary residence permit and push forward reform of the household registration system, according to a public security reform plan released on Feb.15, 2015.

 

Permanent residence permits will be adopted to replace the much-criticized temporary residence permit, according to the plan approved by central authorities.

 

From: Xinhua

 

 

China will provide clean drinking water to 58.67 million rural residents, including 7.04 million teachers and students, by the end of 2015 to achieve its target for 2011-2015.

"Safe drinking water in rural areas is a government priorities and we must achieve this goal," said Minister of Water Resources Chen Lei.

 

From: Xinhua

 

 

On February 17, the CCCPC and the State Council held the 2015 Spring Festival Gala, at which Xi Jinping, general secretary of the CCCPC, Chinese President and chairman of the Central Military Committee, delivered an important speech, in which he emphasized how the Chinese nation has valued family and kinship since ancient times. He pointed out that no matter how significantly the time and our life changes; we shall always value family development, family members, family education and family tradition. We shall combine that with fostering and advancing the socialist core values, carry forward traditional family virtues of the Chinese nation, promote family harmony, affection, and healthy growth of the next generation, and care for the elderly. In that way family will become a key cornerstone for state development, national progress and social harmony. 

 

From: The Journal of Human Rights[page]

 

 

Chinese lawmakers began reviewing draft legislation for the country's first anti-terrorism law on Feb. 25, to better counter terrorist activities while protecting citizens' rights.

 

The draft proposal, which comes weeks after fatal attacks this year in Paris, France, and Copenhagen, Denmark, is China's latest attempt to address terrorism at home and help maintain world security.

 

From: Xinhua

 

 

On February 26, the Supreme People’s Court held a press conference on the Opinions on Comprehensively Deepening Reform of People’s Court, which, with 65 reform measures, is a major outline that guides court reform in the next five years. The Opinions laid down the main tasks of comprehensively deepening the reform of people’s court in the next few years. They include establishing a judicial jurisdiction system appropriately separated from administrative division; establishing the litigation system centered on judgment; optimizing the function and power inside the People’s Court; improving the mechanism of exercising judicial power; forming an open, dynamic, transparent and people-friendly judicial system; making efforts to staff the court with specialized and professional employees; and ensuring that the People’s Court exercises its judicial power independently, justly and according to law. The Opinions specifically listed “strengthening the judicial mechanism to guarantee human rights” as an imminent task in judicial reform. E.g. defendants in criminal custody shall be forbidden to wear identifiable uniform, vest, prisoner’s uniform or other uniforms with identifiable marks of regulatory bodies on trail

 

From: The Journal of Human Rights

 

 

On Feb.27, Chinese President Xi Jinping told a meeting of the top reform planning committee that concrete reform measures are needed so the people "feel" the progress.

 

Xi, speaking during the tenth meeting of the Central Leading Group for Comprehensively Continuing Reform, pledged to organize all the reform efforts adopted by the third and fourth plenary sessions of the Communist Party of China's (CPC) Central Committee.

 

The measures must target important issues and the public must feel the benefits, he said.

 

The meeting reviewed and passed the General Plan for Football Reform in China, Regulations on Recording, Reporting and Responsibility Investigation of Leaders’ Interference with Judicial Activities and Meddling in Specific Cases, Plan on Deepening Reform of the People’s Supervisor System, and Opinions of Shanghai on Further Regulating Leaders’ Spouses, Children and Children’s Spouses in Doing Business and Running Enterprises. The meeting pointed out that establishing the system of recording, reporting and responsibility investigation of leaders’ interference with judicial activities and meddling in specific cases is of institutional significance for promoting judicial justice and curbing judicial corruption. The purpose of issuing the Regulations on Recording, Reporting and Responsibility Investigation of Leaders’ Interference with Judicial Activities and Meddling in Specific Cases is to draw a “red line” to keep leaders from interfering in judicial activities, set up the “firewall” and “isolation belt” to prevent judicial interference, and provide the institutional guarantee for judicial organs to exercise their power independently, justly and according to law. The meeting also stressed that the purpose of deepening the reform of the people’s supervisor system is to further broaden the channel for the masses to participate in the judicial process in an orderly way and to improve the external supervisory and restrictive mechanism that ensures the independent, just and law-based exercise of procuratorial power. It is of great significance for guaranteeing the masses’ right to know, participate in, express opinions about and supervise procuratorial work. 

 

From: The Journal of Human Rights[page]

 

 

Despite there being no change in government on the agenda, China's routine March meetings -- dubbed the "two sessions" -- are set to be closely watched as the country's political and economic dynamics are changing significantly.

 

Attention will be focused on China next week as lawmakers and political advisors attend the annual full sessions of the National People's Congress (NPC), the top legislature, and the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, the top political advisory body.

 

The two sessions are held to discuss political and economic developments, and adopt policies to deliver the reform promises and economic growth targets set by the Chinese authorities.

 

Over the years, the sessions have helped navigate the development of China, which is not only very important to the country itself, but also matters much to the world.

 

From: Xinhua

 

 

 

On March 1, several important regulations officially came into effect, including Provisional Regulations on Real Estate Registration, Regulations on Account and Name of Internet Users and Implementing Regulations on Government Procurement Law. 

 

From: The Journal of Human Rights

 

 

A moderately prosperous society, reform, rule of law, Party discipline -- these "Four Comprehensives" are Xi Jinping's blueprint for China's future.

 

The "Four Comprehensives" are tasks raised at Communist Party of China (CPC) meetings over the last two years, since President Xi Jinping took office.

 

The concept of "Four Comprehensives" is first mentioned by Xi in December 2014, which includes that "comprehensively build a moderately prosperous society, comprehensively deepen reform, comprehensively implement the rule of law, and comprehensively strengthen Party discipline."

 

From: Xinhua[page]

 

 

The Third Session of the 12th National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), the country's top political advisory body, opened in Beijing on March 3, kicking off the most important two weeks on China's political calendar this year.

 

A total of 2,153 members of the CPPCC National Committee will discuss major issues concerning the country's development during the annual session.

 

From: Xinhua 

 

 

China's Supreme People's Procuratorate (SPP) is planning a 22 month crackdown on food and drug, and environmental crimes amid heightened public concern.

 

The campaign will run from March to December 2016, and will see supervision agencies reviewing the case records of administrative and law enforcement organs, the SPP said on March 4.

 

The campaign will target offenses including environmental resource harm, as well as the sale and promotion of fake food and drugs, according to the SPP.

 

From: Xinhua

 

 

The public are most concerned that income distribution and countercorruption are discussed at the ongoing two sessions, online polls have shown.

 

The annual sessions of the top legislative and political advisory bodies are being closely followed by the public, as issues relating to their quality of life are expected to be on the agenda.

 

From: Xinhua

 

 

The 12th National People's Congress (NPC), China's national legislature, opened its third annual session at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on the morning of March 5.

 

Premier Li Keqiang delivers his annual government work report at the opening meeting, chaired by Zhang Dejiang, chairman of the NPC Standing Committee and executive chairperson of the session's presidium.

 

The session passed the Amendment to the Legislation Law, which was the first revision of the Legislation Law since it was promulgated 15 years ago. The revision is of great realistic and long-term significance for improving China’s legislative system, raising the quality and efficiency of legislation and building a law-based socialist country. The revised Legislation Law contains new regulations in a number of aspects, including legislative system, participation, openness, consideration and supervision. The improvement of this law is conducive to making legislation in China more open and operable and consolidating people’s right to know, participate in and supervise legislation. 
 

From: The Journal of Human Rights[page]

 

 

The 28th session of the UN Human Rights Council on March 5 held a General Segment, in which representative from China stressed China's four basic viewpoints on human rights.

 

"The politicization of human rights issues and double standards in this regard are still prominent," Said Fu Cong, deputy head of the China Mission to UN at Geneva.

 

Fu told the session that four major things need to be stressed in terms of international human rights cooperation: to reaffirm the solemn commitment to the United Nations Charter, to respect diversity including cultural diversity in human rights, to respect the model of human rights protection chosen by States, and to treat all human rights equally.

 

From: Xinhua

 

 

A campaign spearheaded by procuratorial agencies, targeting crimes committed by officials that directly affect the rights of citizens, has resulted in 20,403 officials being investigated.

 

On March 6, The Supreme People's Procuratorate (SPP) announced in a statement that 14,521 cases of misconduct were processed from January 2013 to November 2014.

 

The statement said the campaign focused on misappropriation of government funds and dereliction of duty that resulted in damage to the environment, food and drug safety or legal justice.

 

From: Xinhua

 

 

Chinese female lawmakers called Saturday for more help for women to defend themselves against domestic violence.

 

China needs to introduce a law covering domestic violence as quickly as possible, so as to protect more women from abuse at home, said Fu Lijuan, a deputy to the National People's Congress (NPC) who is from the Hunan provincial justice department.

 

From: Xinhua

 

 

China plans to develop national legislation to fight corruption, according to a report delivered by top legislator Zhang Dejiang on March 8.

 

The country will also work out revisions to the Law on Administrative Supervision, said Zhang, chairman of the National People's Congress (NPC) Standing Committee, while delivering a work report at the annual session of the top legislature.

 

Making an anti-graft law is in line with a decision on rule of law adopted by the Communist Party of China Central Committee in October in 2014.

 

From: Xinhua[page]

 

 

On March 8, Chinese President Xi Jinping and other leaders urged more efforts to be made on poverty eradication, faster development in areas with concentrations of ethnic minorities, implementing the "Four Comprehensives" and economic restructuring.

 

While speaking with lawmakers from south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region in a panel discussion during the annual session of the National People's Congress (NPC), Xi said targeted measures should be taken to help people lift themselves out of poverty and poverty alleviation work should be done in a timely and down-to-earth manner.

 

From: Xinhua 

 

 

On March 10, China's Supreme People's Court (SPC) published a white paper on judicial transparency that said new measures introduced over the past two years have expanded both the scope and depth of judicial openness.

 

It was the first time in the history of the Supreme People’s Court to introduce what it has done and achieved in promoting judicial openness in the form of a white paper. Published in both Chinese and English, the White Paper comprehensively introduces the progress on promoting judicial transparency, and uses a lot of figures, charts and cases to showcase the achievements made by the People’s Court in that respect since the third plenary session of the 18th CCCPC. The White Paper consists of several parts, including preface, basic information on the People’s Court’s efforts to promote judicial transparency, transparency in trial process, openness of judgment document, openness of implementation, and broadening and innovating ways of judicial transparency. 

 

From: The Journal of Human Rights

 

 

Abandoning the use of organs harvested from executed prisoners for organ transplants is a symbol of China's progress in human rights, as well as in medical and health services, a senior health official said on March 11. 

 

China has made progress in human rights and judicial reform during recent years, with courts acting with more caution in handing down the death penalty, Huang Jiefu, head of the national organ donation and transplant committee and former vice-minister of health, said on March 11. 

 

From: Global Times[page]

 

 

On March 10, China's judicial authorities promised an active offensive on terrorism in the wake of ever-growing threats from terrorist activities.

 

Chinese courts will play an active role in the fight against terrorism and secessionist activities, and crack down on violence and terrorism and crimes that would severely undermine public security, read a work report of the Supreme People' s Court (SPC) to be delivered by Chief Justice Zhou Qiang.

 

"We will resolutely safeguard national security, ethnic unity and social stability," the report said.

 

From: Xinhua

 

 

On March 11, the General Office of the State Council printed and distributed the Guiding Opinions on Developing Mass Innovation Space to Boost Popular Innovation and Entrepreneurship, which made arrangements to achieve that end. According to the Guiding Opinions, adapting to the new trend of popular entrepreneurship and innovation in the internet age, developing mass innovation space and other new-type startup service platforms at a faster pace and creating a favorable eco-environment for innovation and business startup are important steps to more quickly implement the innovation-driven development strategy, and adapt to and lead the new normal of economic development. It is of great importance for stimulating the innovativeness of the general public and fostering new engines for economic growth. 

 

From: The Journal of Human Rights

 

 

China's quality supervision authorities organized a national rehearsal of "12365" administrator hotlines in a bid to deal with complaints, reports and consultations from the public regarding product quality.

 

The rehearsal was held jointly by the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine(AQSIQ) and its local branches on March 11, just before World Consumer Rights Day on March 15, known as "3.15" in China.

 

From: Xinhua[page]

 

 

The 12th National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), China's top political advisory body, began the closing meeting of its annual session on March 13.

 

Yu Zhengsheng, chairman of the CPPCC National Committee, presided over the closing meeting held in the Great Hall of the People.

 

From: Xinhua

 

 

As China's annual parliamentary session draws to an end, President Xi Jinping is again in the spotlight with the world watching how the Chinese leadership would lift the country's economy amid the "new normal" of slower growth.

 

Although Xi has not openly spelled out a full master plan for the road ahead in the most important two weeks in the country's political calendar this year, the interactions between Xi and lawmakers and political advisors could offer a glimpse.

 

From: Xinhua

 

 

Some foreign experts have pointed out that while China has made tremendous effort in environmental governance and sustainable development, it still faces many environmental challenges and has a long and bumpy road to travel.

 

The scale of China's economy is one of the biggest challenges China has to deal with in environmental protection nowadays, said Isabel Hilton, director of China-dialogue, a non-governmental organization based in London and Beijing promoting nature conservation and business cooperation.

 

From: Xinhua[page]

 

 

Synchronizing rule of law with human rights protection is significant in current China according to Blue Book of Rule of Law jointly released by Research Institute of Law Studies of Chinese Academy of Social Science and Social Sciences Academic Press on the conference of March 18.

 

President of Social Sciences Academic Press Xie Shouguang presided over the conference. Joint CPC Secretary of Research Institute of Law Studies of CASS and Research Institute of International Law of CASS Chen Su, Study Center member of CASS and head of Research Institute of Law Studies Li Lin, and Chairman of Academic Community of Law School of Renmin University of China Zhu Jingwen attended the conference and delivered speeches.

 

From:chinahumanrights.org

 

 

on March 19,Global research report on China’s image in 2014 was released in Beijing. Jointly organized by China International Publishing Group, Millward Brown ACSR and Lightspeed GMI, this report was the third global research on China’s image showing that international acknowledgment of China’s image improved steadily and Chinese leaders and their governance ability employed great international approval.

 

This report contains nine parts, covering assessment on China’s overall image, politics, economy, foreign affairs, military, culture and technology as well as new assessment on Chinese leaders and large events was added.

 

From: chinahumanrights.org

 

 

China's maternity death rate fell to 21.7 per 10, 000 with infant death rate and children (below 5 years old) death rate down to 8.9% and 11.7% respectively. All have realized the UN Millennium Development Goals in advance according to the reporter from National Maternal and Child Health Work Conference 2015.

 

Deputy of National Health and Family Planning Commission of the PRC, also director of State Administration of Traditional Medicine of PRC Wang Guoqiang said National Maternal and Child Health Work Conference 2015 stressed comprehensively strengthened the management of human assisted reproduction technology, specify the management of birth certificate and endeavor to achieve national network of management information system of birth certificate.

 

From:chinahumanrights.org

 

 

Ambassador Fu Cong, deputy of Permanent Mission of the People's Republic of China to the United Nations Office in Geneva and Other International Organizations in Switzerland made a joint statement on behalf of 129 countries. He encouraged the international community to better develop sports and utilize important events such as Olympics to enhance peace, development and human rights and strengthen international cooperation and dialogues.

 

From:chinahumanrights.org[page]

 

 

Chinese President Xi Jinping stressed that public confidence in the judicial system should be the ultimate gauge of the effectiveness of reform in this sector.

 

The president was speaking during a collective study session of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee's Political Bureau on deepening judicial reform on the afternoon of March 24.

 

Xi said that building a fair, efficient and authoritative judicial system is integral to the modernization of the state governance and governance capabilities.

 

From: Xinhua

 

 

United Nations Human Rights Council unanimously passed the presidential declaration to approve China’s representatives’ motion to commemorate the 4th World Conference on Women & the 20th anniversary of Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action on 28th meeting of United Nations Human Rights Council on March 25.

 

From:chinahumanrights.org

 

 

On March 25, the General Office of the State Council printed and distributed the Notice on Conducting the First National Survey of Government Websites, which made arrangements for this survey from March to December 2015. The purpose of this survey is to have a clear idea of the basic situation of government websites nationwide, effectively solve a number of issues existing in some of them that the public has strongly complained about, such as “untimeliness, inaccuracy, irresponsiveness and impracticality”, and eliminate the phenomenon that some of them are zombie or sleeping websites. The focus of this survey is the usability, information update, responsiveness, practical service and other features of government websites. 

 

From: The Journal of Human Rights[page]

 

 

Celebrations of the seventh Serfs' Emancipation Day were held in southwest China's Tibet Autonomous Region on March 28.

 

Some 3,000 people gathered at Potala Palace Square in the regional capital of Lhasa to watch a national flag raising ceremony on the morning of March 28.

 

In 2009, the regional legislature established March 28 as a day to commemorate Tibetan democracy, which ended the feudal serf system in 1959, freeing 1 million serfs; 90 percent of the region's population at that time.

 

From: Xinhua

 

 

Public satisfaction with and confidence in the country's food safety has dropped compared with last year, according to a research center attached to the China Food and Drug Administration.

 

Food safety experts said that despite the drop in consumer confidence, overall food safety in China improved in recent years because of stricter law enforcement and increasing company awareness of the issue.

 

From: China Daily

 

 

China has for the first time set a goal for hospital beds per 1,000 citizens, a key indicator measuring a country's medical service level.

 

According to a healthcare service plan (2015-2020) published by China's cabinet on March 30, the country will aim to provide six hospital beds per 1,000 of its citizens by 2020. This compares to 4.55 in 2013.

 

The goal has taken into account several factors, including an aging population and the level of members of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.

 

From: Xinhua[page]

 

 

On March 30, the General Office of the CCCPC and the General Office of the State Council released the Regulations on Recording, Reporting and Responsibility Investigation of Leaders’ Interference with Judicial Activities and Meddling in Specific Cases. According to the Regulations, judicial organs shall exercise their power independently, justly and according to law, and shall not carry out any requirement by any leader that violates legal duties or procedures or obstructs judicial justice. The Regulations demands that should leaders interfere in judicial activities and meddle in specific cases, judicial staff shall make complete and truthful records so that everything is recorded and traceable. 

 

On the same day, the Central Committee of Political and Legislative Affairs also published the Regulations on Recording and Responsibility Investigation of Interference in Cases by Judicial Staff. This Regulations demands judicial staff to perform their duties according to law and strictly abide by disciplines. They shall not inquire about or interfere in cases handled by other staff against the rule, or pass relevant materials or inquire about details of a case for involved parties, or intercede or ask favors for them in any way. 

 

From: The Journal of Human Rights