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China's ruling Party opening up to the world
By Chang Weimin (China Daily)
Updated: 2005-03-22 07:19
Aware of the ever-increasing curiosity about China, the country's ruling
party has created a news briefing service to improve transparency, China Daily
has learned.
The State Council Information Office will invite heads of departments under
the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC) to press
conferences. Before it was rare for senior Party members to be made available
for media queries.
Zhao Qizheng, minister of the State Council
Information Office. [newsphoto/file] | The CPC is
currently launching a nationwide image building campaign to show as a ruling
party, it is "open-minded, progressive, responsible and democratic and
competent" to lead the nation.
"This is in response to requests for knowledge of how the Party works," said
Zhao Qizheng, minister of the Information Office, during an exclusive interview
with China Daily.
Those to be invited to news briefings will include the CPC Central
Committee's Central Discipline Inspection Commission, United Front Work
Department and International Department, Zhao said.
He added: "This will help the public learn the chemistry of the CPC Central
Committee and how it works."
The Information Office, which serves news media from home and from overseas,
will "do its best" to contribute to efforts for democracy and governance
transparency, Zhao vowed.
The move towards transparency in Party affairs was decided by a session of
the CPC Central Committee last year.
And it may see the news briefing system embrace many more CPC Central
Committee departments in the future.
News conferences for CPC Central Committee departments' heads have been rare
over the past half century, said Zhao.
But he said China's reform of government information access does not open all
for public consumption.
Those wanting access to so-called "internal" or confidential information will
continue to need to follow proper procedures.
The issue on internal or confidential information in its overall sense should
be settled by legislative means, the minister said.
"In spite of difficulties, standards on State secrets will be modified and
the bottom line for opening official information may be re-adjusted this year,"
he added.
Yardstick for new rules
"For that, related government departments and research institutes are
exploring yardsticks for new rules," Zhao said.
Experts pointed out that the readjustment and new guidelines remain a "very
complicated" matter and solutions may not be forthcoming.
The Information Office, like many other public agencies, is "looking forward
to new rules," Yang Yang, a director-general of the Information Office, said
yesterday in Beijing at a news briefing.
To improve the fledgling news briefing mechanism, some 3,000 spokespersons
for ministries and commissions under the State Council, departments under the
CPC Central Committee, provincial and municipal governments and governments of
the autonomous regions will be trained this year and next.
Since the news briefing system was adopted in other parts of government, some
2,000 spokespersons have been trained over the past two years.
Zhao revealed a nationwide crisis and emergency handling network is under
construction and can be expected to be in effect by the end of this year.
News briefings will be an integral part of the system.
Scores of departments under the State Council are involved in the making of
the crises handling system. "Responsibilities to be shouldered by government
officials for each type of crisis will be defined," Yang said.
"A database is already in place and is ready to be integrated into the
expected system," he added. In caring more about how the outside world views the
country, Zhao said he preferred to pin more importance on the opinion held by
the international community about China."In a modern society, disseminating
messages of governments and public agencies via news media is preferable, also a
must, as it costs little but spreads far," Zhao said.
"Chinese government departments have reached such a consensus, especially
after they digested the experiences and lessons they learned during the breaking
of the epidemic SARS (severe acute respiratory syndrome) in 2003," he said.
The Information Office put to the public names of 75 spokespersons for 62
ministries, commissions and administrations, all under the State Council, and
their telephone numbers at the end of last year.
Zhao said he was delighted to know that assessments of the country's news
briefing system and the Information Office's work had been appraised positively.
News media, both at home and from overseas, once complained about the lack of
transparency of State policies and governance and lack of respect for the
public's rights to know.
In response to such complaints as well as the internal needs for efficiency,
transparency and respect for public interest, some 900 news conferences were
held in the country last year, including 60 high-profiles events hosted by the
Information Office in Beijing.
"Quality of the conferences is satisfying, some beyond expectation, as
messages reached targeted receivers as designed," Zhao said.
"This year, the Information Office will give priority to news conferences on
issues that greatly concern the nation," Zhao said.
Zhao pledged that the Information Office will make persistent efforts to
perfect the news briefing and spokesperson system. However, he stressed, such an
establishment takes time.
"All good things cannot be done in a day," he said.
Zhao said his staff at the Information Office would strive to ensure the
world understands China in its role of a rapidly-developing power.
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