III. The Work Related to NPC Deputies
Deputies to the NPC are members of the country's highest organ of state power. Doing the work related to deputies well is an important task of the Standing Committee. The Standing Committee of the Tenth NPC attached great importance to the role of deputies. The Standing Committee formed and improved a set of systems and methods to support deputies in the legal exercise of their functions and powers and ensure that they are able to do so. As a result, this work has entered a new stage. During the past five years we processed 3,772 proposals and 29,323 suggestions from deputies, and issued 663 invitations to deputies to attend meetings of the Standing Committee and 1,700 invitations to participate in inspections of law enforcement and research on legislation. We organized research on special topics involving 5,354 deputies, and inspection tours with 9,000 deputies participating. We also held 14 training sessions and special topic discussion seminars attended by 1,050 deputies.
1. We gave full play to the role of the deputies to the people's congresses as an important means of upholding and improving the system of people's congresses. The system of people's congresses is China's system of political power. The deputies to the people's congresses have a broad base among the people, enabling them to reflect the opinions and demands of the people, and they exercise state power on behalf of the people. After carrying out thorough survey and research work, we formulated some guidelines on how to give still more play to the role of the deputies and improve the standing committee system in line with the guiding principles set out at the Sixteenth National Party Congress and the Fourth Plenary Session of the Sixteenth CPC Central Committee. In May 2005 the Central Committee approved and sent out these guidelines in the form of Document No. 9, further clarifying the orientation and focus of efforts to uphold and improve the system of people's congresses and the work of the people's congresses under the new conditions. We diligently implemented the guiding principles set out in Document No. 9, further deepened our awareness of the importance of doing the work related to deputies well and confirmed that an important means of upholding and improving the system of people's congresses was to give full play to that role. As a result, we formulated work documents on the activities, proposals and suggestions of deputies to promote institutionalization and standardization of the work related to deputies and define procedures for this work, which not only further strengthened their role, but also ensured that the work of the Standing Committee remained dynamic.
2. We supported deputies in the legal exercise of their duties and ensured that they are able to do so as an important measure for giving full play to their role. To meet the requirements of Document No. 9, the organs of the NPC, which are the collective assistant and service provider for deputies, improved their service and guarantee work and created conditions to help deputies in the legal exercise of their duties and powers. First, in addition to continuing to do a good job holding meetings to report to deputies on the situation and sending them relevant bulletins, NPC organs sent many other types of printed materials to deputies to help them better understand the overall situation. Second, before NPC sessions deputies were organized to review and discuss important proposals and reports that would be presented and deliberated at the sessions so that the proposals and reports could be revised in light of their opinions. Third, participation of deputies in the activities of the Standing Committee was expanded, standardized and institutionalized. The number of deputies invited to participate in each meeting of the Standing Committee was increased from about 10 to about 40. The number of deputies participating in law enforcement inspections and legislative research activities was also expanded by a large margin. Fourth, in addition to continuing to organize inspection tours for deputies, beginning in 2005 special topic survey and research activities were also organized for deputies every year. This resulted in the generation of 490 reports on these activities, and many of the results contained in these reports played a positive role in making major state policy decisions. Fifth, training for deputies on how to carry out their duties was increased, and a book on the legal exercise of their duties was compiled. In addition, contact offices were set up for deputies at organs of the standing committees of provincial-level people's congresses and funding for deputy activities was increased, thus improving services for them.