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China urges judiciary to better handle unrest

02 Feb 2007 04:22:23 GMT
Source: Reuters

BEIJING, Feb 2 (Reuters) - China's security chief has warned judicial departments to stand firm in the face of what he described as "hostile forces" of reform, but also urged the judiciary to improve its handling of social unrest.

In a wide-ranging essay published in Seeking Truth, the Communist Party's journal, Luo Gan dampened reformists' hopes for moves toward an independent judiciary and reaffirmed the party's guiding role in law enforcement.

"Hostile forces have been trying their best to attack and fundamentally transform our judicial system," Luo wrote in the essay seen on Friday.

"All law enforcement activities should be led by the party. All reform measures should be conducive to the socialist system and the strengthening of the party leadership," wrote Luo, one of the nine-member Politburo Standing Committee that rules China.

But Luo also displayed sensitivity toward social unrest -- fuelled by corruption, illegal land grabs and a rising gap between rich and poor -- that has challenged the party's efforts to maintain stability and its own grip on power.

In some protests, participants did not have a direct interest in the cause but were venting accumulated anger, he said, adding judicial departments should "reflect on this phenomenon" and "safeguard social justice and fairness".

"Mass incidents" across China's vast countryside fell in 2006 to about 23,000 from 26,000 in 2005, but Luo said the leadership could not afford to be complacent.

"In handling mass incidents, we should not be satisfied with the fact they are subsiding, but rather we should work to pacify the feelings of the masses," he wrote.

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Last updated:Fri Feb 2 04:24:22 2007