We will pay close attention to the basic living problems of urban and rural
residents with financial difficulties. Development of community-based relief
systems for urban and rural residents with special difficulties needs to be
accelerated in all localities to help them pay for medical treatment, housing
and schooling for their children. The system for providing food, clothing,
medical care, housing and burial expenses for childless and infirm rural
residents will be improved. We will increase investment in poverty alleviation
to help people in poverty-stricken areas cast off poverty and become prosperous.
We will reduce or exempt taxes for disaster-afflicted areas and provide relief
to disaster victims who have difficulties in production and daily life.
3. Strengthening democracy and the legal system and safeguarding social
stability. We will energetically yet prudently promote political restructuring
and develop socialist democracy. We will further expand democracy and improve
the democratic system at the primary level. We will do our legislative work
well, focusing on strengthening legislation to improve macro regulatory
mechanisms, to respond to emergencies and to protect workers' legitimate rights
and interests. We will press ahead with reform of the judicial system and
safeguard judicial impartiality. Governments at all levels must support judicial
and procuratorial organs in exercising their respective power independently in
accordance with the law. We will increase publicity and education concerning the
law. We will do a good job of providing legal services and legal assistance. The
legitimate rights and interests of women, minors and the disabled will be
protected as prescribed by law.
We will fully implement the Party's policies on ethnic minorities. We will
uphold and improve the system of regional autonomy for ethnic minorities and
consolidate and develop socialist relations among ethnic groups based on
equality, solidarity and mutual assistance in order to promote the common
prosperity and progress of all our ethnic groups. We will fully implement the
Party's basic principles guiding our work relating to religious affairs,
conscientiously implement the Regulations on Religious Affairs and do all
related work well in the new circumstances. We will further improve our work
relating to overseas Chinese affairs.
We will pay close attention to social stability. We will handle conflicts
among the people correctly, solve problems they report promptly and
appropriately, and rectify situations detrimental to their interests in
accordance with the law. We will conscientiously implement the Regulations on
People's Letters and Visits and improve the work of handling these letters and
visits. We will develop a sound mechanism for mediating and settling social
conflicts and disputes, improve the system of early warning and the mechanism
for prompt response to emergencies to ensure social stability, and work
vigorously to forestall and properly deal with mass disturbances. We will
improve all facets of public security and vigorously carry forward the
development of a crime prevention and control system. We will severely crack
down on all kinds of crime in accordance with the law, in particular crimes
threatening state security, violent crimes, crimes committed by Mafia-like
gangs, drug-related crimes and frequently occurring crimes against property to
give people a stronger sense of security. We will improve our ability to
safeguard public security and deal with emergencies to reduce losses caused by
natural disasters, disastrous accidents and other emergencies. We will raise the
people's awareness of state security and develop a mechanism for safeguarding
state security.
Since last year many catastrophic accidents have occurred in some areas and
industries. These resulted in heavy loss of life and property. We must draw on
the bitter lesson they taught us and adopt still more effective measures to
improve our work to ensure production safety. We must strictly enforce the
system of responsibility for production safety, strengthen safety supervision,
and intensify inspection and law enforcement related to production safety to
remove all kinds of hazards and prevent and minimize the occurrence of
catastrophic accidents. We should now give top priority to coalmining safety by
improving the systems and mechanisms for ensuring coalmining safety, giving more
play to the role of workers in overseeing production safety, investing more in
coalmining safety facilities and improving coalmining safety technology. The
State Council has decided to spend 3 billion yuan this year to help state-owned
coalmines upgrade their safety technologies. Local governments and coalmines
must also invest more in coalmining safety. We must have a strong sense of
responsibility to the people and truly make coalmining safer.
