GENUINE, EFFECTIVE DEMOCRACY
China practices a "whole-process people's democracy," which is "the broadest, most genuine, and most effective" democracy.
The notion, first raised by Xi during an inspection tour in Shanghai in 2019, has become a buzzword during this year's "two sessions."
Lawmakers are deliberating a draft amendment to the Organic Law of the Local People's Congresses and Local People's Governments, which will make "upholding whole-process people's democracy" a guiding principle.
Lawmakers are also mulling giving more seats in the next-term national legislature to people from the grassroots level and women, with a draft decision on the quota and election of deputies to the 14th NPC submitted for deliberation.
According to a work report of the NPC Standing Committee, all 473 proposals deputies put forward during the fourth session of the 13th NPC were reviewed by NPC special committees, and all 8,993 suggestions submitted by deputies during that session were forwarded to 194 organizations for examination and handling, which has now been completed. The proposals and suggestions covered various areas including measures to improve people's wellbeing, ecological protection and green development.
Responding to a question about whether China and the United States are vying for a greater say in democracy, Guo Weimin, spokesperson for the CPPCC session, said the United States convenes the so-called "Summit for Democracy" to suppress others and divide the world while maintaining its hegemony.
Guo said the United States uses democracy as a pretext to serve its own interests. "Democracy is diverse in its forms, and is not a patent held by a few countries," he said. "The democratic systems of countries should be chosen independently by their own people based on national conditions."
STABLE GROWTH TOP PRIORITY
Economic stability must be a top priority in the government's work in 2022, and progress must be pursued while ensuring stability, noted this year's government work report.
"In the face of new downward pressure, the task of ensuring stable growth needs to occupy an even more prominent position," the report said.
China has set its economic growth target for this year at around 5.5 percent, representing a medium-high rate of growth given the country's massive economic aggregate.
Along with the GDP target, China aims to create over 11 million new urban jobs, keep a surveyed urban unemployment rate of no more than 5.5 percent, keep grain output at over 650 million tonnes and lower the ratio of its deficit to GDP to stand at around 2.8 percent in 2022.
China will ramp up efforts to pursue prudent and effective macro policies, continuously energize market entities, and expand reform and opening-up, said the report.
