President Xi Jinping may rule indefinitely
CHINA’S lawmakers adopted draft amendments to the country’s constitution yesterday, paving the way for President Xi Jinping to rule indefinitely.
Xi, who took office in 2012, was scheduled to step down at the end of his second term in 2023, but with the new amendments, he will remain president for several more years.
Among the 21 amendments was the removal of a clause which stated the president of the People’s Republic of China and his deputy “shall serve no more than two consecutive terms”.
Also approved by members of the National People’s Congress (NPC) – the country’s parliamentary body – were changes to add Xi’s thoughts on “socialism with Chinese characteristics for a new era and the scientific outlook on development”.
Addressing journalists at a press conference held at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing yesterday, Shen Chuanyao, chairperson of the legislative affairs commission of the NCP standing committee, stressed that the 21 amendments were done “in strict accordance with legal procedures”.
“Constitutional amendments are very important to our political life. It benefits our country and our people. It is an important progress in our legal development. It is also a very important product of the first session of the 13th National Congress. It is a very important occasion, which is reason for celebration. I congratulate everyone who participated in this progress,” he said.
Adopted in 1982, the country’s constitution was amended in 1988, 1993, 1994 and 2004, with the last amendment (2004) adding provisions for the protection of human rights as well as compensation for land expropriated.
The latest draft was placed before the NCP sitting last Monday, with 2 400 delegates discussing it and making suggestions, said Shen.
“This morning (Sunday), the delegation, based on the deliberations, submitted the draft for voting. Draft amendments have been amended. Over 200 people supervised the voting process.
“I’m very happy with the results. This time around, in the constitutional amendments, the principal purpose is to write the important philosophies into the constitution, especially Xi Jinping’s thoughts on socialism with Chinese characteristics for a new era.
“This involved the requirements for our socio-economic development. We continue to promote the progress of the constitution in line with recent times.”
He said parliamentarians, by giving a nod to a clause reading “the leadership of the Communist Party of China is the defining feature of socialism with Chinese characteristics”, have “improved leadership of the Communist Party in China”.
Added to the constitution is a clause on supervisory commissions, a new anti-corruption state body aimed at intensifying the government’s work to root out corruption.
Over the last five years alone, 38 state officials were expelled for corruption, said Yu Zhengsheng, chairperson of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference while addressing an open NCP sitting on March 3.
In a story Independent Media published previously, a professor of international relations at Renmin University of China, Wang Yiwei, said the amendments were vital for China’s economic growth, as a longer term of office for the president would boost investor confidence and guarantee economic stability.