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How State Council Decree 492 Affects the Earthquake Aftermath

The Chinese government’s decision to allow the seemingly unrestricted flow of information out of Sichuan this week in the aftermath of the devastating earthquake has surprised many. However, the general assumption that the Chinese government ‘all of the sudden’ decided to pursue a policy of transparency and openess is incorrect. This decision was in fact made last year when the State Council passed the People’s Republic of China Ordinance on Openness of Government Information.  Article I in the ordinance succinctly sums up the purpose of the ordinance:

This ordinance is instituted in order to ensure that citizens, legal persons and other organizations may obtain government information in accordance with the law, to raise the transparency of government work, promote legal governance, and thoroughly bring into play the service function of government information in the productivity and lives of the masses and in economic and social events.

Much of the ordinance deals with directing the various levels of government to “set up comprehensive systems for carrying out the work of openness of government information” as well as specifying what information should be released.

Since the ordinance did not go into effect until May 1st, 2008, the earthquake in Sichuan this week was the first real test that the new policy has faced.  Article 9 in the ordinance seems to have the most bearing on Monday’s tragedy:

Article 9: State organs should take the initiative in releasing government information that meets any one of the criteria listed below [IE: as a matter of course]:
1. Concerns the vital interests of citizens, legal persons or other organizations;
2. Requires the broad knowledge or participation of the public;
3. Concerns the organizational setup, duties, or administrative procedures of State organs;
4. Other information that must be released as a matter of course according to other laws, regulations or national regulations.

So far, it would seem that the government is abiding by this new ordinance. CCTV has been providing 24/7 indepth coverage of the earthquake’s aftermath in China and there seems to be little dispute over the government’s casualty figures. The reaction from within China and around the world to the Chinese government’s handling of the crisis in Sichuan has been very positive. Perhaps the CCP is learning that being honest and upfront with its people and with the world is key to building trust and gaining credibility.

Will this new ordinance open up a new chapter in the CCP’s ongoing struggle to control and suppress information in China? No one knows for sure. Releasing information about an earthquake is one thing; releasing information about what happened in Tibet in March or what ocurred at Tiananmen Square in 1989 is quite another. Only time will tell if this new ordinance is simply ‘words on a piece of paper’ or a lasting policy change that will allow Chinese citizens to be more aware of what has and what is taking place within their government.

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