Understanding China Through Keywords

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Understanding China Through Keywords

Learning keywords is one of the best ways to keep abreast of the latest developments in a country. The China Academy of Translation， a research institute affiliated with the China International Publishing Group， the country's leading international publisher， regularly analyzes prevailing Chinese terms in various sectors and translates them into a number of foreign languages ranging from English to Arabic. In each issue， Beijing Review presents a selection of these keywords to help readers know more about China.

Community-level self-governance

China's increasing prosperity and progress have been accompanied by greater democracy at the community level in both urban and rural areas throughout the country，increased orderly participation of its citizens in political life，and a multiplication of democratic practices. Communitylevel democratic self-governance involves， inter alia， a network of rural villagers' committees， urban residents' committees and workers' congresses. Within these organizations people can directly participate in elections， policymaking， management and oversight. They are responsible for the public affairs and non-proft undertakings of their organizations. Community-level self-governance has become the most direct and extensive form of democracy in China today.

The United Front

The United Front is an essential tool that the Communist Party of China （CPC） uses to pool the strength of the whole of Chinese society to build a prosperous socialist country with Chinese characteristics. It helps forge partnerships and build harmonious relations among political parties， among ethnic and religious groups， among different regions， and among people from all walks of life， including overseas Chinese. The United Front has further evolved in this new century into the broadest alliance of all actors who contribute to the socialist cause and patriots who support socialism or national reunifcation. It is characterized by its unrivaled reach， inclusiveness and diversity， and its strong commitment to social progress. To advance China's socialist cause and realize the Chinese dream of national renewal， it is essential to strengthen and expand the Patriotic United Front to bring about extensive，powerful and sustained support.

Consultative democracy

China's socialist democracy finds expression in two processes: electoral democracy， which allows the people to exercise their rights through elections， and consultative democracy， which ensures that consultations are conducted with the people before major policy decisions are made. Both processes are designed to achieve the broadest possible consensus on issues of common concern. Socialist consultative democracy is a form of democracy developed by the CPC and the Chinese people by taking into account China's realities and its political and cultural traditions. It focuses not only on outcomes of decision-making but also on broad participation in this process. It emphasizes not only the importance of respecting the opinions of the majority， but also the need to ensure that minority voices are heard. It broadens the scope of democracy， so that people can enjoy democracy to the greatest extent possible. China will continue to develop an extensive， multilevel institutional framework for consultative democracy informed by wide-ranging deliberations on legislation，government programs， issues related to democracy， state affairs and social issues.

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