Hopes rise for party reform at a vital time
Greater government efficiency and less meddling is urged as plenum nears
Hopes are mounting that a meeting of the Communist Party leadership next month will see a renewed push for greater reforms.
The third plenary session of the 16th Party Congress is being held at a critical time as reformers face growing resistance to change from groups with a vested interest in the status quo, says a leading party theoretician.
The meeting has been compared to the landmark plenums held in 1978 and 1993 for the 11th and the 14th party congresses, but would surpass them in difficulty and complexity, said Han Baojian, a professor at the Central Party School of the Chinese Communist Party.
Mr Han made the observations in an article printed in the current issue of Outlook, a monthly publication by Xinhua.
He said the areas crying out for change included eradication of the last remnants of the planned economy, protecting private property, strengthening the financial system, redefining government functions and providing a social safety net.
He said the government must place greater emphasis on efficiency, transparency and non-interference in the economy.
The transformation of state-owned enterprises, which is far from complete, must continue in order to put an end to the wanton squandering of resources and to churning out low-quality products or services, he wrote.
Government interference in the economy had resulted in the inefficient allocation of resources, leading to duplication and waste, Mr Han wrote.
Even after 25 years of reforms aimed at adopting a market economy, the protection of private property is insufficient, according to Mr Han.
He said the taxation system and financial services for the private sector were not conducive to fostering better growth. The financial system and stock market are also sore spots and need to be reformed and placed under better regulatory supervision.
Mr Han said the party should not ignore festering social problems. Income disparity, inadequate social security and pensions, unemployment and a lack of medical insurance have contributed to an inadequate social safety net, he added.
Some well-meaning laws and regulations became distorted when implemented. As a result, the antiquated political system had been dragging down economic performance. In some of the worst cases, reforms had even been rolling back, he said.
Meanwhile, the Communist Party Politburo met yesterday and decided to submit two major documents to the meeting for deliberation.
Xinhua reported that the documents include proposals 'for the improvement of the socialist market economic system', and a proposal on revising part of the Constitution. The report did not contain any details of the proposals.
