Meet challenges bravely
There was no lack of words of praise in Communist Party of China (CPC) General Secretary Hu Jintao's speech commemorating the Party's 90th birthday.
The CPC does have plenty to be proud on such an occasion, especially for what Hu described as "having done three big things" achieving national independence and founding the People's Republic, establishing the socialist system, and masterminding reform and opening up.
Things have become so much better particularly over the past more than three decades that few would argue against Hu's conclusion that "socialism with Chinese characteristics" is a fundamental achievement the Party and the people should cherish, sustain and develop. Nor would people feel otherwise when Hu said it rests ultimately on the CPC to manage things well in China.
Not just because the old horse knows the way. The CPC's readiness and aspiration to learn, in addition to Hu's renewed commitment to the course of reform and opening-up, transmits a consoling message to all who are concerned about the Party's and country's next steps.
Yet what truly distinguished Hu's speech rests somewhere else the sense of urgency for refining governance was rare, if not unprecedented.
Enumerating the challenges, or tests, facing the CPC, Hu identified "the danger of slacking off spiritually, the danger of becoming incompetent, the danger of breaking away from the masses, the danger of getting dispirited and corrupt", admonishing that the task of self-regulation is more strenuous for the Party than ever.
The emphasis on relations with the masses was heavy. "Keeping close ties with the masses is our party's biggest political advantage," said Hu. "Breaking away from the masses is the biggest danger to our party." "Only when we put the masses in our mind, will the masses put us in their mind," he warned his comrades. "Only when we take the masses as our dear ones will the masses take us as their dear ones."
His emphasis on fighting corruption was equally strong: "If corruption cannot be punished and addressed efficiently, the Party will lose people's trust and support."
Hu and the CPC's other top leaders have appealed for self-discipline inside the party on numerous previous occasions. But never before has there been such a comprehensive review of the threats to the CPC's governing status, at least not in public and in such high profile. That such challenges were discussed in such candidness bodes well for the CPC and the country and its people. To get rid of the problems and obstacles which Hu put as "inescapable and cannot be skirted around", there is no choice but to face them squarely.
Such adherence to deeper reform might prove to be the best insurance against committing major new blunders. And that defines the nation's journey ahead.
Ignore not media's role
Officials rarely used to criticize the media in the country, for they knew journalists played a constructive role in society. But times seem to have changed.
A media official with the Ministry of Health has made himself known to every journalist, if not every citizen, overnight by threatening reporters that the ministry would blacklist those that publish or broadcast "phony" food-scare reports. By doing so, the official has made public the mindset of many officials vis--vis "trouble making" journalists.
The General Administration of Press and Publication (GAPP) stepped in on Monday to clean up the mess created by the official. The media watchdog announced that no organization or individual is allowed to stop journalists from doing their job or blacklist them. The GAPP conceded, though, that media supervision plays an indispensable part in promoting civil society and improving social management.
On Wednesday, members of the National People's Congress Standing Committee opened the issue of food safety to greater supervision by citizens, and suggested food safety level be upgraded to become part of national security.
Poor food quality raises some important issues on the relationship between the media and government organizations. Investigative journalism, though in its infancy in China, has made some officials uncomfortable. When reporters dig up the truth about social problems, some government departments and officials try to cover it up and blame journalists.
But the media are becoming a force for social good. Officials have realized that transparency is required during emergencies because journalists persistently filed detailed reports on the SARS epidemic in 2003.
The system to push back migrants to their home province - an arbitrary form of administrative detention - was abolished in 2003, because Guangzhou-based Southern Metropolis News carried the story of migrant worker Sun Zhigang's death. Sun was detained by police for not having proper identity papers and died in custody three days later. The story was all over the Internet and sparked heated debates on the treatment of migrant workers and police brutality.
Public participation in environmental protection has increased also because of media reports. The Fujian provincial government bowed to public pressure and halted construction on a paraxylene petrochemical plant in Xiamen city thanks to media and public pressure. And in 2006, the State Council announced that public consultations should be held before work is started on a project that will have an impact on the environment.
These are the results of the media's hard work. Since the central government is trying to build a society ruled by law, it's legislators' responsibility to devise a legal framework that would allow journalists to practice their profession properly.
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