Beijing's municipal government yesterday asked the city's top
legislature to give it the power to take whatever temporary
measures are necessary to respond to unexpected problems before and
during the Olympic Games.
Speaking at the 37th session of the 12th Standing Committee of
the Beijing Municipal People's Congress, Zhou Jidong, director of
the legal affairs office of the Beijing municipal government, said
the city had started to contemplate the legislative work needed to
accommodate the Games as soon as it won the hosting right in
2001.
The city has mulled or revised numerous regulations, ranging
from protecting Olympic intellectual property rights to the
environment and sanitation.
However, as the preparatory work got underway, the government
realized that the work involves every aspect of the operation and
management of the city, he said.
"Even though we have done everything we can to make forecasts
and carry out analysis and research, we may still encounter some
individual cases that are not covered by law," he said.
"Thus, we suggest the Standing Committee grant the municipal
government the power to address these problems without
contradicting the principles of local regulations," he said.
Zhou said such authority could be confined to key areas, such as
public security, traffic, workplace safety, environment protection
and food safety.
Wang Jiayan, director of the legal affairs office of the
Standing Committee, said the request was justified.
"The preparations for the Olympics, which are now the paramount
work of Beijing, need a sound legal environment," he said.
Meanwhile, the Standing Committee yesterday urged the municipal
government to alleviate the city's notorious traffic
congestion.
The city should optimize its roads, encourage more people to
take buses and assess the impact of large-scale building projects
on transportation, said Zhao Fengshan, deputy director of the
Standing Committee.
Zhao said an inspection this year showed that traffic safety
conditions were poor, and that the crowding situation was little
improved.
People still violate traffic rules. More than 9 million
violations were punished in the city last year, he said.
And traffic jams remain serious. Congestion is spreading and
jams last longer, especially during rush hours and bad weather, he
said.
Zhao added that the traffic situation near the airport is
worrying.
He also said the city should continue to encourage people to
take public transportation by optimizing bus routes and creating
special bus lanes.
(China Daily July 27, 2007)