China Briefing | Strengthening the rule of law will be a long journey
China's own concept, vastly different from the West's, is a work in progress, but it holds the key to reducing corruption and inequality
Today, China's top officials gather in Beijing for a four-day key meeting devoted to the rule of law and to seal the fate of Zhou Yongkang, formerly one of the most powerful men in the country.
Over the past week, mainland media has been hailing the meeting's historic significance without any sense of irony in linking the two developments.
Until 2012, Zhou was the Politburo Standing Committee member in charge of the mainland's entire legal system including police, prosecutors, judges and the intelligence services. Zhou was the face and symbol of the law .
As the fourth plenum of the Communist Party's Central Committee is most likely to decide to expel Zhou from the party before turning him over to criminal prosecution when the meeting ends on Thursday, leaders will have to promise more measures to strengthen the rule of law.
On this point, the mainland leadership has repeatedly made it clear that the Chinese concept of the rule of law is very much different from the Western version that advocates separation of powers and an independent judiciary.
So what can people expect from the meeting? A lot or very little, depending on one's expectations.