Judicial protection of individual rights

Freedom of speech is an essential part of an individual's rights and a supporting pillar of democracy. In April 2009, a National Plan for Human Rights Action (2009-10) was released, which stressed that the State should develop the publishing industry and better protect citizens' rights of expression.

Actually, considering that we are in the information age, the State took a further step by developing the Internet and making it accessible to ordinary people. This has revolutionized freedom of speech in China; a simple glance at media reports shows what an essential role the Internet plays in supervising the government and striking at corruption.

Equal suffrage was another needed progress. On March 14, the National People's Congress passed an essential amendment to the Election Law, which stated that urban and rural areas should have the same number of NPC deputies. Now every region, every ethnic group has a guaranteed voice on national decisionmaking concerning their daily lives.

Special attention was paid to women's suffrage. The amendment to the Election Law reinstated gender equality and required that the percentage of women members should be gradually promoted in the NPC.

These advancements owe thanks to the social development and economic sustainability of China; however, more are needed in the coming years, when more conflicts are expected to occur as China continues implementing reforms. As people might express their anger at infringements on their rights through more diversified means, the State needs to be creative in interacting with them.

That requires us to accelerate judicial reform and establish rule of law, which is, after all, the only proved effective mechanism governing modern societies.

The author is director of the Research Center for Human Rights, Shandong University. This piece first appeared in Chinese in People's Daily.