YOG kicks off in Nanjing
Colorful life at Youth Olympic Village of Nanjing 2014 YOG
Royal Taoist temple to open to public
Female soldiers at quake-hit area
Shocking photos of cruel battles in Ukraine
Amphibious armored vehicle unit conducts open sea drill
Water relay in Henan
Ethnic culture feasts eyes of travelers
80 security dogs assembled in Nanjing police dog training base
Graffiti artists paint on street walls in Xinjiang
BEIJING, Aug. 25 -- China's top legislature on Monday began to review a draft amendment which will make it easier for citizens to take the government to court.
The Standing Committee of the National People's Congress (NPC) on Monday started its bimonthly meeting to review a number of documents, including a draft amendment to the Administrative Procedure Law tabled for its second reading. If the amendment is passed, actionable cases will no longer be confined to "specific administrative acts".
As the law stands, citizens, companies or other organizations may file suit against "specific administrative acts" by administrative agencies or personnel which they believe to have infringed their rights.
As Articles 11 and 12 explicitly list kinds of disputes that are actionable, the amendment removes the word "specific," which in practice sometimes becomes an excuse for courts to throw out cases.
Currently, courts can only revoke an administrative act when it is deemed illegal. The draft allows the revoking of acts that are "evidently unreasonable".
The draft also compels defendants--representatives of the administrations concerned--to personally appear before the court. At present, some defendants simply ask their lawyers to represent them in court, which often does little to help settle the dispute.
Another change in the draft is that both the original department that carried out action in question and the administration that reviewed the case will be listed as joint defendants. According to current law, an administrative agency which has reviewed another agency's questionable act is only regarded as a defendant if it changed the original decision.
In practice, these stipulations have resulted in reluctance to change controversial decisions, and thereby avoid being dragged into troublesome legal wrangling, rendering the administrative review system ineffective in some situations.
The draft also extends time limits for plaintiffs to file suit and for hearings to take place.
The 1990 Administrative Procedure Law is a major guarantee of citizens' rights to pursue the government through the courts.
Special holidays
World's top 10 fighters
'Stewardesses' serve in hospital
Beautiful night scenery of Nanjing
‘Peace Mission -2014’ joint anti-terror military exercise kicks off in China
Eye-catching guides at the opening ceremony of YOG in Nanjing
A female missile launch company of PLA
China, the U.S., Britain and the Soviet Union call for Japan's unconditional surrender
Photo story: How a baby panda grows up
Star-leveled nursing home in a small county
Evidence of monstrous crime of Japanese invaders
Foreign models compete with Chinese in Cheongsam show
The beautiful pictures of ancient Chinese architecture
The Muslims involved in relief workDay|Week|Month