Changes To Constitution A Step Forward: HK Deputy

A Hong Kong deputy to the National People's Congress (NPC), Peter Wong, said that the proposals to amend the Chinese constitution is not a move backward, but a step forward towards an enhanced democracy.

The Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress also proposed amending the constitution to remove the two-term limit on the president, adding President Xi’ Jinping's Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era in the document, as well as creating a new anti-graft super body calls the National Supervision Commission.

The Standing Committee has said that during consultations and studies, officials and communist party members unanimously supported the changes.

Wong said the changes are good for the country's development. "You have a supervisory committee to check on all government public servants, including the president and the vice-president. If they are not doing their job, the supervisory committee should act. So it is a more enhanced democratic system," he said.

The supervisory element will also remove fears about any individual "becoming a king", Wong said.