DATE=3/15/2000
TYPE=CORRESPONDENT REPORT
TITLE=CHINA - CONGRESS
NUMBER=2-260213
BYLINE=STEPHANIE MANN
DATELINE=BEIJING
INTERNET=YES
CONTENT=
VOICED AT:
INTRO: China's legislature has ended its annual
meeting in Beijing, strongly endorsing the work of
Premier Zhu Rongji. But as correspondent Stephanie
Mann reports many delegates showed their
dissatisfaction with the government's handling of the
problem of corruption.
TEXT: The 11-day session of the National People's
Congress ended with the delegates voting their
approval of reports by various government leaders.
The work report by Premier Zhu Rongji was endorsed by
97 percent of the nearly 2800 delegates attending the
session in Beijing's Great Hall of the People. And
the country's budget was approved by 86 percent of the
delegates.
However, more than one-quarter of the delegates
opposed, abstained, or chose not to vote for reports
by the head of China's Supreme Court and by the
country's chief prosecutor. Those reports outlined
the government's efforts to crack down on official
corruption.
Premier Zhu later told reporters the high number of
votes against the two reports shows that people are
not satisfied with the anti-corruption campaign.
In his report on the opening day of the Congress, Mr.
Zhu vowed to punish corrupt officials no matter who
they are. Halfway through the legislative session,
China announced a former deputy provincial governor
was executed for taking 650-thousand dollars in
bribes. And a vice chairman of the Congress did not
take part in the meetings because he is under
investigation for graft.
Foreign diplomats and business executives say China
publicizes cases of people punished for corruption as
an example to others. They say the cases publicized
so far include provincial level officials, but not
people in the central government, even though some
officials in Beijing have reportedly been linked to
corruption scandals.
At his news conference after the Congress closed,
Premier Zhu said China has made progress in cracking
down on smuggling. /// OPT /// He pointed to a few
cases, including a huge scandal in the southeastern
port city of Xiamen that reportedly involves about 200
people. /// END OPT ///
Mr. Zhu, speaking through a translator, said he hopes
the Chinese people appreciate his work in fighting
corruption.
// ZHU / TRANSLATOR ACT //
I hope the Chinese people will say, "Oh, this
premier is a clean and honest premier. He's not
a corrupt premier." And that will make me very
satisfied.
// END ACT //
Official Chinese news media are reporting that
delegates to the Congress want to see even stronger
steps to curb corruption. The China Daily newspaper
says during the session, delegates submitted proposals
that would allow ordinary people to provide tips about
corrupt officials and would make public civil
servants' incomes.
The National People's Congress has been working for
several years to draft a law on supervision that would
deal specifically with government oversight and the
problem of corruption. Foreign observers say the law
is controversial and that is why it has taken so long
in the drafting stage. The China Daily says the
Congress expects to complete the supervision law by
the year 2003. (Signed)
NEB/SMN/JO
15-Mar-2000 09:36 AM EDT (15-Mar-2000 1436 UTC)
NNNN
Source: Voice of America
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