Since the founding of the People's Republic of China in 1949, four
Constitutions have been formulated, in 1954, 1975, 1978 and 1982
successively. The present 1982 Constitution contains four chapters
in addition to the Preamble. These are: "General Principles," "The
Fundamental Rights and Duties of Citizens," "The Structure of the
State," and "The National Flag, the National Emblem, the National
Emblem and the Capital," totaling 138 articles. Revisions and
amendments to some articles were made and adopted by the National
People's Congress in 1988, 1993, 1999 and 2004.
The Constitution stipulates that all citizens are equal before the
law and that the state respects and safeguards human rights. It
guarantees the basic rights and interests of citizens, including
the right to vote and stand for election; freedom of speech, of the
press, of assembly, of association, of procession and of
demonstration; freedom of religious belief; the inviolability of
the freedom of the person, the personal dignity, the residences and
the legitimate private property; freedom and privacy of
correspondence; the right to criticize and make suggestions to any
state organ or functionary and exercise supervision; the right to
work and rest and the right to material assistance from the state
and society when they are old, ill or disabled; and the right to
receive education and freedom to engage in scientific research,
literary and artistic creation and other cultural pursuits.
China's legal system consists of seven categories; Constitutional
and related law, civil and commercial law, administrative law,
economic law, social law, criminal law, and litigation and
non-litigation procedural law. Since 1979, the building of China's
legal system has developed rapidly and in an all-round way. By the
end of 2004, more than 460 laws and law-related decisions had been
made by the National People's Congress and its Standing Committee,
over 1,000 administrative regulations made by the State Council,
and more than 10,000 local regulations made by local people's
congresses, covering political, economic and social fields. A
relatively complete legal system is now basically in place.
