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Cancellation of decree an encouraging sign
2004-04-20
China Daily
A draft regulation by the Beijing municipal government was cancelled recently because of public opposition after it was posted on the government website to solicit citizens' input.
The draft, which was on the supervision and management of construction enterprises from outside Beijing, stipulated harsher punishment for enterprises that violate relevant regulations.
For example, it specified non-Beijing enterprises' duty of preventing cases which may lead to social unrest. If they fail to abide by the rule, they would be subject to heavy fines or even deprived of their right to participate in the bidding on local projects.
The move was partially aimed at stemming the wild default of payment for farmers-turned-workers in the urban areas. Denied their due payment, some workers have resorted to extremist means to protect themselves.
Eight people, after seeing the draft on the Internet, expressed their strong opposition. They said the regulation, if implemented, would constitute a discriminatory policy toward non-Beijing enterprises. The move, they argued, was not appropriate considering China has joined the World Trade Organization (WTO) and promised to treat all enterprises equally according to the WTO rule of non-discrimination.
They also contended that since there are already laws and regulations concerning payment default, it makes no sense for the Beijing municipal government to stipulate a separate regulation targeted specifically at firms outside the capital.
The dissenters were right.
Although it would help solve the problem of payment default, the draft regulation failed to include local enterprises to put the two kinds of enterprises on an equal footing.
The government's cancellation of the draft indicates the authorities realized the indiscretion and moved to quickly rectify it.
But the case shows the local government is yet to be fully conscious of and adapted to its new role in modern times.
In a market economy it is the natural obligation of a local government to respect the interests of all market players within its jurisdiction.
And it is not only a matter of equality. Without an open attitude to embrace foreign enterprises, local economy may suffer a lack of vitality. Provincialism will not do in sustaining local development.
Although the improper regulation has been stopped, the local government still needs to seriously reflect on its role to avoid a similar mistake.
Despite this, we can still sense some progress in the management of public affairs by the Beijing municipal government.
This is the first time a local motion was stopped in such a way.
In the first place, it reflects the government's will to respect public opinion.
Since the spread of the use of the Internet, the posting of draft laws and regulations on the official website has become a routine practice, which in itself is a sign of the government's willingness to better solicit public views in deciding public affairs.
What is more arresting this time is that despite the small number of people - only eight - who expressed their opposition, the government took their views seriously.
It shows as long as opposition is on the right side, the government is willing to seriously consider dissenting opinion.
In this way, the rights of market players, no matter how small a group, can be ensured.
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