By rule of law, China on the way to improving governance

At 7:00 a.m., Shanghai-based lawyer Zhang Jie opened his computer at home, logged onto the Judicial Opinions of China website, and read a court ruling on a case he had offered legal aid to. The whole process took no more than one minute.

"It not only shows the convenience and higher efficiency of the Internet era, but also revealed a more open and transparent initiative to realize rule of law," Zhang said, recalling he had to drive miles and sometimes spent days just to read a legal document in the past.

Since Jan. 1, 2014, courts across China have had to publish judgements online within seven days after judicial decisions as required by the Supreme People's Court (SPC), a move to improve China's judicial transparency.

"Transparency is the foundation to realizing judicial justice," Zhang said.

The fourth plenary session of the 18th Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee is set to open on Oct. 20 to discuss rule of law.

The session is expected to speed up the construction of governance by law from the top level and by improving the system to promote social justice of the country.

This will be the first time for a Party session to center on rule of law. It is intended to promote the modernization of the country's governing system and capabilities. Experts believe the key to realize it is the rule of law.

The concept of the modernization of the country's governing system and capabilities was first put forward in a report released after the third plenary session of the 18th CPC Central Committee last November.

Qin Lingmei, a renowned woman judge who has long been engaged in lawsuit meditation, said as people's material life has been improving greatly over the recent years, disputes on heritage, marriage, land use and other issues are also increasing to a large extent.

The rising number of lawsuit cases has revealed people's increasing awareness on law and also challenged the country's governance capacity.

To improve the capacity, China has constantly been making experimental efforts.

The China (Shanghai) Pilot Free Trade Zone (FTZ), for example, is not only experimental field for economy but also for legislation, said Zhou Hanmin, a national political advisor and law expert based in Shanghai.

Last month, the FTZ's administrative commission published a "negative list" of 190 restrictions that limit foreign investment in such sectors as banking, insurance and the hospitality industry.

The list is actually a signal for CPC to deepen systematic reform, regulating the boundaries for government power and market operation.

Sometimes, the progress of legislation is pushed by tragedy.

In 2003, a regulation for saving beggars in cities was implemented at the price of the death of Sun Zhigang, a 27-year-old college graduate who was beaten to death in an asylum simply because he did not bring an ID card with him.

Zhou said that, given the obstacles ahead, the fifth modernization is more difficult to realize than the other four, and China has to keep exploring with more decisive mind and courage.

"The fourth plenary session of the 18th CPC Central Committee will be a new starting point on the road," he said.