Open house raises awareness of counselors office

The Counselors Office of the State Council and the China Central Institute for Culture and History hosted their first open house on Monday to raise public awareness of the advisory body and welcome cooperation from the world.

About 150 people, including ambassadors from 20 countries and representatives of six international organizations, participated in the open house.

By September, the office and institute had developed partnerships with about 90 governmental and nongovernmental think tanks in over 50 countries to conduct joint research.

This year marks the 70th anniversary of the founding of the office, said Wang Zhongwei, head of the council.

“We came up with the idea of an open house to increase public knowledge in what we do here and encourage interactions,” Wang said.

Appointed by the premier of the State Council, the counselors and researchers of the two bodies are influential scholars and academics who represent a certain field of study. Over the past 70 years, 243 counselors and 313 researchers have been appointed.

About 70 percent of the members of the two bodies are from democratic parties or have no party affiliation, according to Wang.

“It provides a unique channel for giving advice to the premier and government departments,” Wang said. “The opinions of the counselors and researchers can even be directly sent to the premier.”

“Counselors are all outspoken and dare to speak up,” said Xu Xianping, a counselor who once served as deputy director of the National Development and Reform Commission.

Xu once advised the premier on pollution regulation along the Yangtze River. To protect the river, some departments proposed closing all chemical plants within a kilometer of the river.

“After the survey, we advised the premier that closings should be based on whether the companies meet environmental standards instead of just distance,” he said.

Set up in 1949, the office carries out research, solicits public opinion and provides suggestions on the priorities of the national development commission, contributing to the democratic decision-making of the government.

Launched in 1951, the culture institute, which shares a space with the counselor’s office, has organized cultural and historical studies and artistic activities, offering policy advice and fostering friendships with various groups in the cultural community.