For the past two weeks, the National People’s Congress (NPC) has been in session in Beijing. This body is China’s top parliamentary body made up of delegates from all the provinces, municipalities and special adminstrative regions. Alongside the Congress meeting, another group meets, called the China People’s Political Consutative Congress. This group is made up of delegates from various segments of society (education, the arts, sports, etc.). It’s main function is to make suggestions to the NPC regarding laws and regulations. Every year, there are some interesting new suggestions put forth by delegates. Here are some interesting ones to emerge from this year’s meeting, from an article titled, "Fun at the CPPCC" from danwei.org.
§ "Chinese Yuan" proposal: Replace Mao’s image on Chinese banknotes with Sun Yatsen and Deng Xiaoping. The official name of the money could be changed to "Chinese Yuan" from "Renminbi."
Related: "Small Change" proposal: Eliminate small denominations of money.
§ "Urban Shower" proposal: Promote the construction of low-cost bathhouses in cities to serve the people.
§ "CCTV Anchor" proposal: Swap the current Evening News anchors, who are getting along in years, with younger, fresher faces.
§ "Official Weight" proposal: To cut down on government officials wasting public money on lavish banquets, create an Administrative Ethical Code that includes a weight limit for public servants.
§ "Peasant TV" proposal: Zhao Benshan thinks that the current national rural TV channel is not enough to satisfy the entertainment needs of China’s non-urban population.
§ "College Admission" proposal: Sure, there’s good reason to reform the college entrance exam system. But Yin Hongfu has very specific suggestions: 60-70% from the exam, 20% from social service, 5-10% from creativity (which under special circumstances – champions, inventors, and such – may weigh as much as 50%).
§ "Child Actor" proposal: Ban children from acting in commercials.
§ "Beauty Economy" proposal: Regulate beauty contests to limit the value society places on outward appearance.
My personal favorite is the proposed weight limit for public servants.
