Majority of public call for deeper reforms: poll Nearly half of the public believe the nation's current social conditions are the main...

Majority of public call for deeper reforms: poll

Nearly half of the public believe the nation's current social conditions are the main drive for reform, and about two-thirds of them regard vested interest groups as major obstacles, according to a poll by the Global Times.

About 80.9 percent of the 1,010 respondents said reforms in the country have been successful, but 93.9 percent of them called on the government to deepen political, economical and social reforms.

About 60.2 percent of those polled agreed that reforms in the country are progressing steadily, but 71.8 percent of them do not know the real meaning of political reform.

Nearly 20 percent of the participants, mostly people between 30 and 50 with higher education, said reforms in the country have stagnated.

Vested interest groups are considered the major obstacle to reforms, according to 62.5 percent of respondents.

Half of those polled are not worried about instability if reforms deepen, and 80 percent of them have faith in future reforms.

The survey, conducted by the Global Poll Center under the newspaper, polled people over 15 years old in seven cities during an eight-day campaign starting March 4th.

National leaders stressed reforms before the beginning of the annual sessions of the National People's Congress (NPC) and Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) a week ago.

In February, during his trip to Guangdong Province aimed at soliciting opinions and feedback on government work ahead of the two sessions, Premier Wen Jiabao pledged to unwaveringly push forward opening-up and reform in the face of current challenges and difficulties.

Zhang Ming, a political science professor at Renmin University of China, told the Global Times that both the government and the public hold similar opinions on deepening reforms.

"It's difficult for the public to understand political reforms because they are mostly connected with social reforms such as healthcare and education," Zhang said.

"It's impossible for anyone or any group of people to shoulder the responsibility of keeping reforms on track because it is huge for society. It's time to hear voices from every sector of society," Zhang added.

Last month, a report jointly compiled by the World Bank and the Development Research Center under the State Council also called for authorities in China to advance reforms and listed State-owned enterprises (SOE) as one of the major obstacles.

Zhu Lijia, a professor at the Chinese Academy of Governance, told the Global Times that as reforms deepen, vested interest groups, such as some SOEs, will lose favorable policies from the government, and they are likely to resist such changes.

"But the path is very clear now. It is time for the government to initiate top-down reforms which will make public policymaking, official appointments and the public budget making process more transparent and democratic," Zhu said.

Reforms within the legislative body show major democratic progress being made with an NPC draft submitted to the ongoing legislative sessions saying there will be a decrease in the proportion of deputies to the 12th NPC who are leaders from the Communist Party of China (CPC) or government officials.

Meanwhile, four out of ten people polled said the current social conditions in the country are the main force behind reforms, followed by 26.3 percent pinning their hopes on the determination of national leaders, according to the survey.

About 79.1 of the participants favor step by step reform, but many young respondents opted for more drastic changes.

When asked about the idea of adopting Western-style democracy, 47.9 percent said they do not oppose the Western system, but the idea is simply unrealistic. About 29 percent rejected the idea, while 15.7 percent voiced support.