Party delegates entrusted with stronger role, more tasks

Delegates to the Communist Party of China's (CPC) congresses at all levels will no longer be able to simply sit through meetings, but instead required to conduct in-depth research and raise formal proposals that can help improve the Party's work.

Scholars said the new move, announced by General Secretary of the CPC Central Committee Hu Jintao at the opening of the 18th Party congress, is a step forward in intra-Party democracy, which is a vital part of the CPC's exploration of political reform.

With the proposal system expected to take effect at the next national congress, delegates will stay busy contacting local Party members and ordinary people to find out issues they want to bring to the top authorities, and there will be a better chance the national congress addresses issues of concern to the general public, said Zhang Xixian, a professor with the Party School of the CPC Central Committee.

In the past, the title of delegate was more of an honorary one than a position of real power that could influence the decision-making process.

The introduction of tougher elections and a tenure system for delegates to the Party congress in recent years has changed the situation. Delegates' votes count for more and they play a bigger role in local Party organizations' decision-making.

"The proposal system is a tool to achieve better democracy within the Party, as the delegates will collect voices and opinions from grass-roots Party members and even ordinary people," said Chen Jiaxi, an associate professor at the Contemporary Chinese Politics Research Institute of Shenzhen University.

The system will also have a supervisory function, as delegates can question improper decisions made by local or national Party organs.

According to Xinhua, delegates in 2011 raised 229 proposals in the provincial congress of Hunan, where the proposal system was piloted. A total of 181 proposals were accepted, and more than 70 percent of the issues raised have been addressed.

Trial programs have been carried out at provincial-level Party congresses in seven places, including Guangdong, Shanghai, Hunan and Zhejiang. More experiments took place even earlier in lower-level Party congresses.

In Zhejiang, the provincial Party congress this June received more than 180 proposals, with topics ranging from the protection of the sea to plans for financial innovation, the Zhejiang Daily reported.

Scholars said the Party congress proposal system can also serve a purpose different from that of the annual National People's Congress, during which deputies from across the country bring proposals about economic, social and cultural issues. Of the 37 proposals the Shanghai Party congress received this year, 15 were about issues in the Party system.

"The Party congress system lagged behind the People's congress system in the past when it came to its proposal system, now it has to catch up," said Zhang. "Party members must help the public express their views and address their concerns."