(1)外文名称: National People's Congress
    (2)中文名称: 全国人民代表大会
    (3)内容:
                      National People's Congress
   The National People's Congress (NPC) of the People's Republic of China (PRC) is the supreme organ of state power. Its permanent body is the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress.
   The National People's Congress and its Standing Committee exercise the legislative power of the state.
   The NPC is composed of deputies elected by the provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities directly under the central government, and the armed forces. All the minority ethnic groups are entitled to appropriate representation.
   Election of deputies to the NPC is conducted by the Standing Committee of the NPC.  The Number of deputies to the NPC and the manner of their election are prescribed by law.
   The NPC is elected for a term of five years. Two months before the expiration of the term of office of a National People's Congress, its Standing Committee must ensure that the election of deputies to the succeeding NPC is completed. Should exceptional circumstances prevent such an election, it may be postponed by decision of a majority vote of more than two-thirds of all those on the Standing Committee of the current NPC, and the term of office of the current NPC may be extended. The election of deputies to the succeeding NPC must be completed within one year after the termination of such exceptional circumstances.
   The National People's Congress meets in session once a year and is convened by its Standing Committee. A session of the NPC may be convened at any time when the Standing Committee deems this necessary, or when more than one-fifth of the deputies to the NPC so propose. 
   The NPC performs the following functions and powers:
   (1) To amend the constitution;
   (2) To supervise the enforcement of the constitution;
   (3) To enact and amend basic statutes concerning criminal offences, civil affairs, the state organs and other matters;
   (4) To elect the president and the vice-president of the PRC;
   (5) To decide on the choice of the premier of the State Council upon nomination by the president of the PRC, and to decide on the choice of the vice-premiers, state councilors, ministers in charge of ministries or commissions and the auditor general and the secretary general of the State Council upon nomination by the premier;
   (6) To elect the chairman of the Central Military Commission and, upon nomination by the chairman, to decide on the choice of all the others on the Central Military Commission;
   (7) To elect the president of the Supreme People's Court;
   (8) To elect the procurator-general of the Supreme People's Procuratorate;
   (9) To examine and approve the plan for national economic and social development and the report on its implementation;
   (10) To examine and approve the State budget and the report on its implementation;
   (11) To alter or annul inappropriate decisions of the Standing Committee of the NPC;
   (12) To approve the establishment of provinces, autonomous regions, and municipalities directly under the Central Government;
   (13) To decide on the establishment of special administrative regions and the systems to be instituted there;
   (14) To decide on questions of war and peace; and
   (15) To exercise such other functions and powers as the highest organ of state power should exercise.
   The NPC has the power to recall or remove from office the following person:
   (1) The president and the vice-president of PRC;
   (2) The premier, vice-premiers, state councilors, ministers in charge of ministries or commissions and the auditor-general and the secretary-general of the State Council;
   (3) The chairman of the Central Military Commission and others on the commission;
   (4) The president of the Supreme People's Court; and
   (5) The procurator-general of the Supreme People's Procuratorate.
   Amendments to the Constitution are to be proposed by the Standing Committee of the NPC or by more than one-fifth of the deputies to the NPC and adopted by a majority vote of more than two-thirds of all the deputies to the Congress.
   Statutes and resolutions are adopted by a majority vote of more than a half of all the deputies to the NPC.   
The Standing Committee of the NPC is composed of the following:
   The Chairman;
   The Vice-Chairmen;
   The secretary-general; and
   members.
   Minority ethnic groups are entitled to appropriate representation on the Standing Committee of the NPC.
   The NPC elects, and has the power to recall, all those on its Standing Committee.
   No one on the Standing Committee of the NPC shall hold any post in any of the administrative, judicial or procuratorial organs of the State.
   The Standing Committee of the NPC is elected for the same term as the NPC; it performs functions and powers until a new Standing Committee is elected by the succeeding NPC.
   The chairman and vice-chairmen of the Standing Committee shall serve no more than two consecutive terms.
   The Standing Committee of the NPC performs the following functions and powers;
   (1) To interpret the Constitution and supervise its enforcement;
   (2) To enact and amend statutes with the exception of those which should not be enacted by the NPC;
   (3) To enact, when the NPC is not in session, partial supplements and amendments to statutes enacted by the NPC provided that they do not contravene the basic principles of these statutes;
   (4) To interpret statutes;
   (5) To examine and approve, when the NPC is not in session, partial adjustments to the plan for national economic and social development and to the state budget that prove necessary in the course of their implementation;
   (6) To supervise the work of the State Council, the Central Military Commission, the Supreme People's Court and the Supreme People's Procuratorate;
   (7) To annul those administrative rules and regulations, decisions or orders of the State Council that contravene the Constitution or the statutes;
   (8) To annul those local regulations or decisions of the organs of state power of provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities directly under the Central Government that contravene the Constitution, the statutes or the administrative rules and regulations;
   (9) To decide, when the NPC is not in session, on the choice of ministers in charge of ministries or commissions or the auditor-general and the secretary-general of the State Council upon nomination by the Premier of the State Council;
   (10) To decide, upon nomination by the Chairman of the Central Military Commission, on the choice of others on the Commission, when the NPC is not in session;
   (11) To appoint and remove vice-presidents and judges of the Supreme People's Court, members of its Judicial Committee and the president of the Military Court at the suggestion of the president of the Supreme People's Court;
   (12) To appoint and remove the deputy procurators-general and procurators of the Supreme People's Procuratorate, members of its Procuratorial Committee and the chief procurator of the Military Procuratorate at the suggestion of the Procurator-General of the Supreme People's Procuratorate, and to approve the appointment and removal of the chief procurators of the people's procuratorates of provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities directly under the Central Government;
   (13) To decide on the appointment and recall of plenipotentiary representatives abroad;
   (14) To decide on the ratification and abrogation of treaties and important agreements concluded with foreign states;
   (15) To institute systems of titles and ranks for military and diplomatic personnel and of other specific titles and ranks;
   (16) To institute State medals and titles of honor and decide on their conferment;
   (17) To decide on the granting of special pardons;
   (18) To decide, when the NPC is not in session, on the proclamation of a state of war in the event of an armed attack on the country or in fulfillment of international treaty obligations concerning common defense against aggression;
   (19) To decide on general mobilization or partial mobilization;
   (20) To decide on the enforcement of martial law throughout the country or in particular provinces, autonomous regions or municipalities directly under the Central Government; and
   (21) To exercise such other functions and powers as the NPC may assign to it.
   The chairman of the Standing Committee of the NPC presides over the work of the Standing Committee and convenes its meetings. The vice-chairmen and the secretary-general assist in the work of the Chairman.
   Executive meetings with the participation of the chairman, vice-chairmen and secretary-general handle the important day-to-day work of the Standing Committee of the NPC.
   The Standing Committee of the NPC is responsible to the NPC and reports on its work to the Congress.
   The NPC establishes an Ethnic Affairs Committee, a Law Committee, a Financial and Economic Committee, an Education, Science, Culture and Public Health Committee, a Foreign Affairs Committee, an Overseas Chinese Affairs Committee, a Committee for Internal and Judicial Affairs and Environmental and Resources Protection Committee, and such other special committees as are necessary. These special committees work under the direction of the Standing Committee of the NPC when the Congress is not in session.
   The special committees examine, discuss and draw up relevant bills and draft resolutions under the direction of the NPC and its Standing Committee.
   The NPC and its Standing Committee may, when they deem it necessary, appoint committees of inquiry into specific questions and adopt relevant resolutions in the light of their reports.
   All organs of state, public organizations and citizens concerned are obliged to supply the necessary information to those committees of inquiry when they conduct investigations.
   Deputies to the NPC and all those on its Standing Committee have the right, in accordance with procedures prescribed by law, to submit bills and proposals within the scope of the respective functions and powers of the NPC and its Standing Committee.
   Deputies to the NPC during its sessions, and all those on its Standing Committee during its meetings, have the right to address questions, in accordance with procedures prescribed by law, to the State Council or the ministries and commissions under the State Council, which must answer the questions in a responsible manner.
   No deputy to the NPC may be arrested or placed on criminal trial without the consent of the presidium of the current session of the NPC or, when the NPC is not in session, without the consent of its Standing Committee.
   Deputies to the NPC may not be called to legal account for their speeches or votes at its meetings.
   Deputies to the NPC must play an exemplary role in abiding by the Constitution and the law and keeping State secrets and, in production and other work and their public activities, assist in the enforcement of the Constitution and the law.
   Deputies to the NPC should maintain close contact with the units which elected them and with the people, listen to and convey the opinions and demands of the people and work hard to serve them.
   Deputies to the NPC are subject to the supervision of the units which elected them. The electoral units have the power, through procedures prescribed by law, to recall deputies whom they elected.
   The organization and working procedures of the NPC and its Standing Committee are prescribed by law.
   The first NPC was held in 1954. The first session of the 4th NPC was postponed due to the "Cultural Revolution" to the year 1975.