Zhang Wenxian: Building a Higher-Level Rule-of-Law China
Core Perspectives
- A "Higher-Level Rule of Law China" is a Chinese image generated in the era of globalization; thus, a "Rule of Law Power" is both an internal and an external concept.
- A Rule of Law Power is a higher-level Rule of Law China empowered by technology. Modern digital technology has become an important engine and tool for leading and supporting the modernization of the rule of law, forming a magnificent century-long vision where "Rule of Law China" and "Digital China" complement and illuminate each other.
The Decision of the Third Plenary Session of the 20th CPC Central Committee proposed for the first time the construction and reform task of "attaining a higher level in the construction of a socialist rule of law country." On August 22, 2024, at the symposium commemorating the 120th anniversary of Comrade Deng Xiaoping's birth, General Secretary Xi Jinping explicitly proposed to "construct a higher-level Rule of Law China." Viewed through the theoretical logic of a "higher-level Rule of Law China," the "attainment of a higher level in the construction of a socialist rule of law country" is essentially the "construction of a higher-level socialist rule of law country." The "higher level" in these terms is centrally embodied in three progressive tiers: first, comprehensively advancing the law-based governance of all aspects of national work; second, constructing a Rule of Law China characterized by good laws and good governance [1]; and third, implementing the strategy of becoming a Rule of Law Power to promote the construction of a Chinese-path modernization Rule of Law Power.
Comprehensively Advancing the Law-Based Governance of All Aspects of National Work
In constructing a higher-level socialist rule of law country, the primary task is "comprehensively advancing the law-based governance of all aspects of national work." For this task, the goal lies in "law-based governance" (法治化) and the key lies in "comprehensive"; this expresses the inherent meaning of constructing a "higher-level rule of law country." Following the 20th CPC National Congress's proposal of this strategic task, the Third Plenary Session of the 20th CPC Central Committee emphasized it once again. Its basic tasks are:
First, to bring all work of a global nature—such as national reform, opening up, development, and security—and all constitutive undertakings—such as economic, political, cultural, social, and ecological civilization construction [2], as well as national defense and military construction—into the orbit of the rule of law, and to comprehensively build a socialist modern country on the track of the rule of law.
Second, to bring national governance work—including party governance, government governance, military governance, social governance, economic governance, internet governance, AI governance, public health governance, biosafety regulation, ecological environmental protection, "One Country, Two Systems," the governance of Hong Kong and Macao, and foreign affairs—into the orbit of the rule of law, and to promote the modernization of the national governance system and governance capacity on the track of the rule of law.
Third, to bring specialized rule of law work—such as national and local legislation, law enforcement, justice, and the promotion of legal literacy [3]—into the orbit of the rule of law. This involves achieving constitution-based governance, law-based legislation, strict law enforcement, impartial administration of justice, and precise legal literacy promotion, supporting and guaranteeing high-level modernization through a high-quality rule of law track.
Fourth, to coordinate the advancement of domestic rule of law and foreign-related rule of law [4]. We must promote high-level opening up, maintain world peace and development, actively participate in global governance, promote the rule of law in international relations, and promote the building of a community with a shared future for humanity, all on the track of the rule of law.
Constructing a Rule of Law China of Good Laws and Good Governance
In human history, the rule of law has taken various forms and models. By comprehensively examining the patterns of rule of law civilization in human society, profoundly reflecting on the instrumentalist rule of law culture of ancient China and the formalist rule of law culture of the modern West (and their influence on contemporary China), and scientifically summarizing the experiences and lessons of rule of law construction since the founding of the People's Republic of China, the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core has proposed a new model of the rule of law. This model, "good laws and good governance" (liangfa shanzhi), is adapted to Chinese-path modernization and integrates the essence of both Chinese and foreign rule of law cultures.
This form of rule of law is inseparable from the institutional and political civilization of modern society. "Good laws" means, first, that the law conforms to the laws of humanity, nature, economy, society, and politics; law should be scientific and embody truth. Second, the law embodies the values of social goodness; that is, the law respects and guarantees human rights, maintains fairness and justice, promotes social harmony, ensures economic development, protects the ecological environment, and maintains world peace. Third, the laws are well-drafted; they must have clear value orientation, be reasonable and fair, not demand the impossible, and be capable of being observed, enforced, and applied. Fourth, the law is well-implemented; the rules, procedures, and techniques written in legal texts are translated into the vivid practice of the entire population observing the law and the law ensuring peace under heaven [5].
Since the start of the New Era, we have undergone a transformation from "having laws to follow, ensuring they are followed, enforcing them strictly, and prosecuting violations" to "scientific legislation, strict enforcement, impartial justice, and universal law-abidance." We have moved from the constitutional amendment of "improving the socialist legal system" (法制) to "improving the socialist rule of law" (法治) [6]. Chinese rule of law has achieved a transformation from formal rule of law to "good laws and good governance" characterized by the organic coordination of formal and substantive rule of law, leaping from the "law-based governance of all aspects of national work" toward a "Rule of Law China of good laws and good governance."
Implementing the Strategy of a Rule of Law Power, Promoting the Construction of a Chinese-Path Modernization Rule of Law Power
The ultimate goal of constructing a higher-level socialist rule of law country and a higher-level Rule of Law China is to build a socialist modern Rule of Law Power [7]. This is an inherent part of comprehensively building a socialist modern powerful country. To realize the great dream of national prosperity and ethnic rejuvenation, since the founding of the PRC and especially since the reform and opening up, our Party has successively proposed a series of "Power Strategies," such as "Industrial Power," "Agricultural Power," "Transportation Power," "Manufacturing Power," "Science and Technology Power" (科技强国), "Quality Power," "Talent Power," "Education Power," "Cultural Power," "Sports Power," "Cyber Power," "Maritime Power," "Trade Power," and "Aerospace Power." Although the CPC Central Committee has not yet explicitly proposed the concept of a "Rule of Law Power," the concept, propositions, and strategies for a "Rule of Law Power" are already systematic and mature within Xi Jinping Thought on the Rule of Law.
In terms of intellectual origins, "Rule of Law Power" can be traced back to the concept of "strengthening the state by upholding the law" (fengfa qiangguo), which has existed in Chinese history for nearly three thousand years. Han Fei, a representative figure of the pre-Qin Legalists [8], once said: "A state has no constant strength and no constant weakness. When those who uphold the law (fengfa zhe) are strong, the state is strong; when those who uphold the law are weak, the state is weak." Under the direct influence of Legalist thought during the Spring and Autumn and Warring States periods, the State of Qin rose among the contending powers, creating a paradigm for a great power ruling the state by law and strengthening the state by upholding the law. After centuries of practice, the "ruling the state by law" ideas of pre-Qin thinkers continuously integrated with governing concepts such as "governance by virtue" and "benevolent governance," profoundly influencing the national governance methods of later generations. In particular, with the codification and spread of the Tang Code with Commentaries (Tanglü Shuyi), the Chinese nation's concept of "strengthening the state by upholding the law" produced a broad and far-reaching influence on the national governance of East Asia and other neighboring countries. The Chinese Legal System [9] thus became a unique system in the history of world legal systems.
Based on these historical truths, Xi Jinping has repeatedly cited the Legalist classic "When those who uphold the law are strong, the state is strong; when those who uphold the law are weak, the state is weak" to illustrate the necessary connection between the rule of law and becoming a powerful state. Meanwhile, combining this with the history of our country's socialist rule of law construction, he pointed out: "When the rule of law flourishes, the state flourishes; when the rule of law declines, the state falls into chaos. Whenever the rule of law is valued and transparent, the country is peaceful and the people are secure; whenever the rule of law is ignored and lax, the country is in chaos and the people are resentful." It is evident that "upholding the law" and "strengthening the state" are linked; the "Rule of Law Dream" and the "Strong Nation Dream" are interconnected. The rule of law is an indispensable and important "magic weapon" for building a socialist modern powerful country.
The Basic Standards and Form of a Socialist Modern Rule of Law Power
First, the rule of law becomes the core value of the state and society. The whole society believes in, respects, and strictly practices the rule of law. Modern rule of law concepts regarding rights and obligations, freedom and equality, democracy and the rule of law, fairness and justice, honesty and credit, and the combined governance of law and virtue are deeply rooted in people's hearts. A trend of rationally exercising rights, faithfully fulfilling obligations, assuming responsibilities according to law, and resolving contradictions and disputes peacefully and rationally becomes the norm. A rule of law country, government, and society are comprehensively established, and rule of law culture and civilization reach the highest level.
Second, the rule of law becomes the basic strategy and basic method for the Party and government to govern the country. It becomes a decisive force supporting the modernization of national governance and high-quality economic and social development, a systemic resource for creating a better life for the people, and an essential indicator for measuring a country's level of civilization. In other words, the rule of law releases powerful energy in every link and field of national governance. Law-based governance, law-based exercise of state power, law-based administration, and grassroots governance achieve excellent results. The rule of law comprehensively supports the construction of a prosperous, strong, democratic, civilized, harmonious, and beautiful socialist modern powerful country.
Third, the Constitution, as the fundamental law of the country and the general charter for governing the state, possesses supreme authority, and laws have universal effectiveness. National administrative organs, supervisory organs, and judicial organs are all subject to the supervision of the People's Congress in accordance with the Constitution. Administrative regulations, supervisory regulations, administrative rules, judicial interpretations, and other normative documents must not conflict with the Constitution and laws and must undergo filing and review as well as constitutionality review. All political parties, social organizations, and individual citizens must operate within the scope of the Constitution and laws. The ruling party governs according to the law; state power organs exercise power, legislate, and supervise according to the law; the People's Government administers and enforces the law strictly; supervisory organs supervise according to laws and regulations; judicial organs practice impartial justice and handle cases in a civilized manner; and all the people act according to the law.
Fourth, human rights and civil rights are tangibly respected and guaranteed, and national public power is effectively restrained and supervised. As a major instrument for the protection of human rights, the Constitution and laws adhere to being people-oriented, taking the people as the main body, being people-centered, and taking human rights as the fundamental basis. They protect citizens’ personal rights, personality rights, property rights, and basic political rights from infringement, and ensure that citizens' economic, cultural, and social rights are implemented. Correspondingly, as a "divine tool" for the restraint of power, the Constitution and laws draw boundaries for power, ensuring that power always operates on the track of the rule of law.
Fifth, China stands on the moral high ground of the rule of law and justice, possessing sufficient discourse power, decision-making power, and rule-making power in global governance. A "higher-level Rule of Law China" is a Chinese image generated in the era of globalization; thus, a "Rule of Law Power" is both an internal and an external concept. Becoming a socialist modern Rule of Law Power means our country possesses strong rule of law "soft power" and influence in the international community and on the world stage, with the executive and coercive power to implement international law.
Sixth, the rule of law is combined with the most advanced productive forces, realizing the modernization of the rule of law itself at a higher dimension. A "higher-level Rule of Law China" is not only consistent with the era of globalization but also bonded with digitalization. Thus, a Rule of Law Power is a higher-level Rule of Law China empowered by technology. Modern digital technology becomes an important engine and tool for leading and supporting the modernization of the rule of law. Emerging technologies such as big data, cloud computing, artificial intelligence, the internet, the Internet of Things, and instant communication technology are widely applied in all fields of rule of law work, forming a magnificent century-long vision where "Rule of Law China" and "Digital China" complement and illuminate each other.
If measured by the above standards, our country is still far from the goal of being a Rule of Law Power; there is still much room for improvement. In terms of the quantity of legislation and the completeness of the legal system, our country has already become a "Great Country of Laws" (法律大国). Starting from the "Seven Laws in One Day" on July 1, 1979, our country has covered the legislative journey that took Western developed countries hundreds of years in just 45 years, establishing a system of legal institutions that meets the needs of a market economy, democratic politics, human rights protection, social development, environmental protection, and peaceful development. However, to seek truth from facts, our country is not yet a "Rule of Law Power" (法治强国). The transformation from a "Great Country of Laws" to a "Rule of Law Power" will inevitably be a historical transformation of the rule of law development strategy and an inevitable trend in the high-quality development of China's rule of law. This requires arduous efforts. As Professor Hu Jianmiao stated: "Establishing, stabilizing, saving, and strengthening the country through the rule of law is the summary of the experience of the development of human civilization." "The rule of law is China's path to becoming a power, and becoming a Rule of Law Power is China's strategic goal." Only by achieving the sublimation from a "Great Country of Laws" to a "Rule of Law Power" can China truly rank among the world's powerful nations, and only then will the "Rule of Law Dream" and the "Strong Nation Dream" "bloom on the same stalk."
(The author is a Senior Professor of Philosophy and Social Sciences at Jilin University and Director of the Academic Committee of the China Law Society)
Source: Beijing Daily, January 27, 2025