Teaching Comparative Government and Politics

Tuesday, July 15, 2008

Preservice training

Here's more evidence of the recognition by the Party and the government that local officials need better training for the rule of law to work. It reminds me of the statistic I read 30 years ago, just after the Cultural Revolution, that on average, cadres had an 8th grade education. I wonder if it's better now?

Of course, if the citizens don't know what the rules, regulations, and proper procedures are, better-educated cadres can still skim graft off the top, demand bribes for official services, and throw people in jail for publicly complaining.

It also reminds me that this is centuries-old problem. Have you heard the old Chinese saying, "The mountains are high and the emperor is far away"?

This report comes from Xinhua, the Chinese news agency.

Cadres to be gauged by grasp of law

"Potential government hires will be required to demonstrate a greater understanding of the legal system to improve administration by law, especially at the city and county levels, a senior official said Thursday.

"'Government employees are expected to carry out statutory governmental functions, so they must be familiar with the relevant restrictions, regulations and procedures,' Zhao Zhenhua, deputy director of the government legal institution research center under the State Council's Legislative Affairs Office, said in an online interview with www.gov.cn.

"Being accountable for the examinations would also expand their legal awareness, he said...

"In 2004, the State Council issued an implementation guideline and announced the goal of achieving a government ruled by law within a decade.

"'However, the goal of administrating according to law in China will be a long-term and complicated one because of a variety of difficulties arising from the management mentality cultivated by decades of operating under a planned economy,' Zhao said.

"And problems are progressively magnified toward the base of the pyramid of power.

"'Research has suggested the strength of administration according to law diminishes from the level of central government to provincial, municipal and county governments,' Zhao said.

"For example, some cadres have never really fused administration according to law with economic development and practical work.

"'Some grassroots law enforcement staff are of low quality, and they are barbarous and violent in their work, sometimes creating difficulties for common people and disturbing the public,' the official said."




See also Martin Wolf's commentary on China's bureaucratic regime from The Financial Times (London).



And here's the latest crop of well-trained CPC cadres.

CPC Party school holds ceremony for graduates

"A total of 633 officials of the Communist Party of China (CPC) graduated from the Party School of the CPC Central Committee on Thursday.

"Chinese Vice President Xi Jinping, also president of the Party School, attended the ceremony and awarded certificates to the graduates..."



Photo caption: Chinese Vice President Xi Jinping (L front), also president of the Party School of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, shakes hands with the graduates prior to the graduation ceremony of the Party School in Beijing July 10, 2008. Xi attended the ceremony and awarded certificates to the graduates here on Thursday.


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