Noncommunist parties play active roles

Xinhua, China Daily, Asia News Network, Beijing

Non-communist parties in China have been playing an increasingly active role in the country's political life.

Since the 15th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC) was held in September 1997, leaders from non- communist parties have been invited to participate in 162 major foreign activities of the State and Communist Party.

Non-communist party leaders have also visited more than 50 countries in their capacity as deputy chairpersons of either the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress or the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC).

The eight non-communist parties are the Revolutionary Committee of the Chinese Kuomintang, the China Democratic League, the China Democratic National Construction Association, the China Association for Promoting Democracy, the Chinese Peasants' and Workers' Democratic Party, the China Zhi Gong Dang (Party), the Jiu San Society and the Taiwan Democratic Self-Government League.

Most of these parties were founded in the 1940s and together have 580,000 members, more than 80 percent of whom hold senior positions in Chinese organizations.

Since the fourth plenary session of the 13th Communist Party Central Committee, the Central Committee -- with Jiang Zemin at the core -- has summed up the basic experience of long-term co- operation between the Communist Party and non-communist parties and inherited and expanded the late senior Chinese leader Deng Xiaoping's theory of multi-party co-operation in accordance with the characteristics of the era and changes in the international situation, thus standardizing the system of multi-party co- operation and political consultation, said Liu.

According to Liu, over the past 13 years, the CPC Central Committee, the State Council and departments entrusted by the Central Committee and State Council to do so have held 150 meetings in which non-communist party leaders and prominent individuals with no party affiliation took part. By discussing issues ranging from politics and the economy to social development, decision-making has become more open and democratic, she said.

At present, 120,000 of the country's non-communist party members and individuals with no party affiliation have been elected as deputies to people's congresses at different levels. Another 240,000 people have been selected as members of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference at different levels.

The central committees of the non-communist parties and the All-China Federation for Industry and Commerce have submitted around 600 proposals to the meetings of the National Committee of CPPCC, most of which have been adopted and implemented.

"The system of multi-party co-operation and political consultation under the leadership of the CPC will be further improved and expanded along with the development of socialist democratic politics in China and progress in political restructuring," said Liu.