RESTRICTED
3.
At the local level, subordinate Bureaux of Supervision have been formed in Peking, Shanghai, Heilongjiang, Jilin, Guandong, Jiangxi and Tibet, and in the municipalities of Shenzhen and Dandong. Preparations are being made for such organs in nine other provinces and the State Council has issued a circular calling on all provinces and on the open cities and special economic zones to set up such bodies as soon as possible. These local bureaux will be responsible for the supervision of local government departments and personnel and officially appointed managers in local government run factories.
4.
No4. The principal tasks of the Ministry are to supervise the
implementation of strict policies, laws and regulations; to handle cases involving violations of law or policy; to deal with complaints and charges; to handle appeals against administrative penalties; and to deal with disciplinary cases involving government personnel. It is also in charge of drafting relevant legislation and is working on a law against corruption, an administrative procedure law, and regulations on rewards and penalties for government employees. One of its first tasks has been to deal with corruption, bribary and the leaking of confidential information to foreigners in cases concerning foreign economic contracts. A meeting to review progress was held under the Ministry's auspices on 10 October and was addressed by Vice Premier Qiao Shi. It transpired that Zhao Ziyang had specifically ordered this as the Ministry's first task when hearing a report from the preparatory committee on setting up the Ministry on 1 July. The meeting pledged itself to dealing firmly with corruption but did not say very clearly how successful it had been. In practise the Ministry does appear to have been having some trouble in carving out a role for itself. Its responsibilities overlap with bodies such as the Discipline Inspection Commission and the Ministry of Justice. These bodies have proved jealous of their own preserves and consequently officials of the new Ministry have found it difficult to act on their own, other than in concert with these bodies. The Ministry of Supervision, like some other innovations, is waiting on the Congress before it can properly be set going.
5.
It will clearly be some time before the Ministry is functioning properly and free of outside interference. For the moment the main methods by which the Chinese people can register any complaint against maladministration is through a letter of complaint. In China this is a fairly well developed method of complaint and can sometimes be quiete successfully used. One example that has been quoted recently in the Chinese press was that of a senior party official in Fushun, who became incensed at being asked to take a diversion because of some roadworks. He not only carried on regardless but later reported to the police that he had been held up on his way by a band of hooligans thus causing lorry loads of police to descend and those manning the diversion to be arrested. Incensed masses wrote to a central leader who had the matter investigated leading to the punishment of the official. Much more common is a letter to a newspaper and every paper has a large letters department
RESTRICTED
dealing
No comments yet.
Private notes are available after approval.