Constitutional revision protects human rights

cctv.com 03-08-2004 13:02

Proposed constitutional revisions mark the biggest change to China's Constitution since it was adopted more than two decades ago. The amendments include former Chinese President Jiang Zemin's Three Represents Theory, as well as clauses that protect human rights and private property.

If approved by the legislature, the Constitutional revision will be the fourth in 16 years. But this time, its impact will be of greater significance.

People will also be able to have their private property legally protected. The revision provides citizens' lawful property must not be violated. In the case of a government requisition for the sake of public interest, compensation is a must.

Another proposed revision strengthens the legal protection of the private sector. It says the government encourages and supports the private sector; while in the past the wording was to guide and supervise.

Observers say the revisions are important for building a society ruled by law. But they say there is still a lot to do and the more important task after the ratification will be to build an effective mechanism to guarantee their enforcement.

Editor:Sun  Source:CCTV.com