National legislators began on Sunday to amend a basic law that defines China's legislative system and regulates its legislative activities to promote whole-process people's democracy and strengthen the implementation of the Constitution.
The draft amendment to the Legislation Law was submitted at the opening meeting of the first session of the 14th National People's Congress, the country's top legislature, for deliberation on Sunday morning.
"This piece of legislation has played a big role in improving the legislative system and standardizing legislative activities," Wang Chen, vice-chairman of the 13th NPC Standing Committee, said while explaining the amendment to national lawmakers on Sunday.
"It also contributed to forming the socialist legal system with Chinese characteristics with the Constitution at its core and advancing law-based governance in an all-around way," he said.
Considering the new work methods and demand for legislation in recent years, it is necessary to amend the law to provide strong institutional support for improving the quality and efficiency of lawmaking, as well as for comprehensively building a modern socialist country based on rule of law, Wang said.
The 37-article draft amendment emphasizes that legislative activities should be conducted in line with the Constitution and its principles and spirit, and it calls for strengthening the review of related documents to ensure that they do not contradict the Constitution.
It requires the NPC's Constitution and Law Committee to provide reports with opinions after reviewing draft laws or revisions, adding that in these reports, the committee needs to explain whether the draft laws or revisions are consistent with the Constitution. It added a clause that the concept of whole-process people's democracy should be implemented in legislation to protect human rights as well as social fairness and justice.
"It will also institutionally ensure that legislation is for, depends on, benefits and protects the people," said Wang.
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