China's top legislator Zhang Dejiang on Wednesday lauded "full and effective enforcement" of the country's Constitution in the past year, as China presses ahead on its rule of law drive.[Special coverage]
"Ensuring the full enforcement of the Constitution represents the most important and fundamental task in building China into a socialist rule of law country," Zhang said when delivering a work report on the National People's Congress (NPC) Standing Committee.
In particular, Zhang noted that China has put into practice an allegiance pledging system to the Constitution.
According to a decision adopted by the top legislature in June last year, "all those who are elected or appointed to public office by people's congresses at all levels or by the standing committees of people's congresses at and above the county level as well as by people's governments, people's courts, and people's procuratorates at all levels shall make a public pledge of allegiance to the Constitution when they officially assume office."
Meanwhile, the NPC Standing Committee exercised constitutional stipulations on amnesty, enacted the Law on National Medals and Titles of Honor, and improved the recording and review system for normative documents, Zhang said.
The top legislator said that in 2016 China will intensify publicity and education on the Constitution, promote the spirit of the Constitution, hold activities on the National Constitution Day, and organize for government officials elected or appointed by the NPC or its Standing Committee to pledge allegiance to the Constitution.
"We will step up the recording and review of normative documents; take the initiative to review newly-formulated administrative regulations and judicial interpretations on an item-by-item basis; explore the Standing Committee-initiated review of local statutes in key areas; and carefully study, handle, and respond to suggestions from various sectors during reviews, so as to uphold the unity of our legal system and the authority of the Constitution and other laws," he said.
