From farm production reform to environmental protection at the
Three Gorges, the advice of members of the Chinese People's
Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) has been seriously
considered by policy-makers when drawing up the country's development
plans.
"The relevant
State departments responded quickly to my proposals on restructuring
farm production and invited me to discuss the issues with
concerned officials," said Liu Hongbin, a CPPCC member
from Panjin, a city in Northeast China's Liaoning Province.
He made the remarks
while attending the on-going annual session of the national
committee of the advisory body.
Liu, pleased by
the progress of his ideas, is Panjin's vice- mayor in charge
of agriculture and became an expert on the problems of farmers.
Their biggest concern
is low grain prices, a market condition caused by the excess
grain supply, Liu said.
To solve the problem,
Liu suggested a production system overhaul in which some grain
production is replaced with cash crops and other non-agriculture
industries.
Liu also suggested
a practice aimed at increasing farmers' income by having farmers
produce grain on a contract basis and abolish some administrative
fees.
Liu and other CPPCC
members submitted those suggestions through the CPPCC National
Committee in the past two sessions and said they received
quick responses from the State Development Planning Commission,
drafter of the newly issued Outline of the 10th Five-Year
Plan (2001-05).
Now the essence
of his suggestions can be found in the draft 10th Five-Year
Plan.
Liu wasn't the
only CPPCC member to have been so satisfied.
A total of 3,733
proposals submitted since last year, about 98 per cent of
which have been handled seriously.
Among them were
Chen Yatang's proposal to control the water pollution at the
Yangtze River and the Three Gorges Dam construction area.
"The control
of water pollution at that area has started now," said
Chen, a CPPCC member from Southwest China's Chongqing Municipality.
After the construction
of the Three Gorges Dam, water flow in the upper reach of
the Yangtze River will slow and micro-organisms will settle,
causing water pollution, Chen said.
Large amount of
waste rock residue left from the dam construction and the
polluted water will also threaten local water quality, he
added.
His proposal garnered
attention from both the State Environmental Protection Administration
and the Three Gorges Project Construction Committee under
the State Council.
The administration
carefully studied his idea and included the opinion in the
ecological protection section of the 10th Five-Year Plan.
Common people also
have had the ear of the policy-makers.
In October, the
State Development Planning Commission announced efforts to
assess public opinion. To date, the commission has received
17,000 letters from the public.
Many opinions,
such as suggestions to increase manufacturing of large-scale
equipment and better use of marine resources, are now part
of the draft plan.
(China Daily 03/08/2001)
|