Report on the Work of the Government (full text)
(Xinhua)
Updated: 2005-03-15 10:42

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.