Teaching Comparative Government and Politics

Friday, May 08, 2015

Philosophy or constitutionalism?

Addressing the question of seeming contradictions between the concept of rule of law and authority of Communist Party leadership, Chinese President Xi Jinping asserts a very non-Madisonian solution.

Xi's speech rejects contradiction between CPC leadership, law

In a newly published speech, Chinese President Xi Jinping criticized questions about whether Communist Party of China (CPC) leadership or the rule of law should be overriding…

"Comprehensively advancing the rule of law requires following the right direction with firm political assurance," Xi was quoted as saying…

"As I have noted, whether the CPC's leadership or the country's law should have primacy is not really a question but a tricky political pitfall, and we must give a clear response to that without equivocation," Xi said.

Xi Jinping

Xi said that every individual Party organization and Party member must abide by the country's constitution and laws and must not take the Party's leadership as a privilege to violate them.

"The Party's say in certain matters is due to its political responsibilities and should not be regarded as the power to intervene out of personal interest," Xi said.

These comments came after doubts among some members of the public and academia about whether the CPC's leadership or the rule of law would outweigh the other if the two conflict.

Experts said that Xi's comment rejects the idea that CPC leadership and the rule of law are incompatible, adding that the statement is meant to urge Party members to respect the law…

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Just The Facts! is a concise guide to concepts, terminology, and examples that will appear on May's exam.

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