China to continue to adhere to multi-party cooperation

China will continue to adhere to multi-party cooperation and political consultation under the leadership of the Communist Party of China as the political system has proved successful, said heads of China's democratic parties on Wednesday.

"There's an old saying in China: 'Only your feet know whether the shoes are comfortable or not'," said Wan Exiang, chairman of the Revolutionary Committee of the Chinese Kuomintang, responding to a question about whether Chinese democratic parties want to participate in multi-party elections.

Eight democratic parties' leaders including Wan and the head of the All-China Federation of Industry and Commerce attended a press conference held during the ongoing two sessions.

No one can deny that the basic political system in China has contributed to the country's economic miracle as the per capita GDP in China's urban areas increased 70 times from 370 yuan ($59) to 28,000 yuan in the last three decades, said Wan, who is also the deputy head of the Supreme Court.

Wan said China's political path, which differs from Western countries' two-party or multi-party system, has been written into its Constitution.

Chen Zhu, chairman of the Chinese Peasants and Workers Democratic Party, who is also the Minister of Health, said China's current political system suits China's national conditions.

"It guarantees the solidarity of China as the world's biggest developing country with a population of more than 1.3 billion people," he said, adding that it has motivated all parties to join hands in the country's development process.

He stressed that Chinese people enjoy all kinds of freedom and rights and that China boasts about 500 million netizens.

"I've participated in China's medical reform, and the fact that China has managed to establish a basic medical system with universal coverage in such a short period of time tells you that the political system can not only support productivity but also brings huge benefits to improve people's welfare," he said.

Yan Junqi, head of the Central Committee of the China Association for Promoting Democracy, said that the CPC top leaders consult leaders of China's democratic parties on important State affairs five to six times a year.

The consultation meetings with democratic parties are usually presided by the Party chief or the Premier with relevant ministers listening to their suggestions, she said.

Chen Changzhi, chairman of the China Democratic National Construction Association, called for additional efforts to boost the democratic parties' supervision of the government's work. He suggested establishing a regular reporting policy to ensure that democratic parties are kept in the loop by different government departments regarding major projects.