Editorial from The New York Times:
The annual session of China’s National People’s Congress, now concluding, is not quite the ritual of absolute fealty it used to be. Reporters get to chase delegates in the hallways, and insiders say there have been some lively debates in the closed sessions. Still, the two-week gathering of 2,980 carefully vetted delegates remained largely a choreographed show to put the stamp of legality on decisions already made. And just so democracy didn’t get out of hand, authorities warned some dissidents to steer clear of foreign journalists while the congress was meeting and put others under house arrest.
The decisions up for ratification included a major new property law that would give private property greater security by putting it on a legal par with public ownership. If the Communist leaders are willing to put aside ideology to continue their remarkable economic boom, why not take another essential step and make the congress a real legislature that listens to the unmuzzled views of real people? And follow that up with an independent ” and uncorrupted ” judiciary that can make sure that all of China’s citizens get the benefits of the rule of law.
[Full Text]
