Top Chinese officials, together with the president and the premier, are to take an oath to uphold the country's Constitution before stepping into office, China's top legislature announced on Wednesday.
The Standing Committee of the National People's Congress (NPC) started going over the draft of the constitutional oath bill on Wednesday. The bill specifies that it is compulsory for all levels of civil servants, as well as China's future presidents, vice presidents, premiers, vice premiers, chairmen and vice-chairmen of the NPC, state councilors and ministers, directly appointed by the People's Congress, including both government and judicial officials, to swear a constitutional oath before taking office.
The oath-takers will vow to abide by China's Constitution, uphold its authority, behave appropriately, follow the law, be loyal to the country and its people, and to strive for the cause of socialism, as provided in the 65-character Chinese bill.
The bill, however, does not oblige all civil servants in China's political system to take the oath.
Those whose work are under the Communist Party of China (CPC) organizations, the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, Non-Communist parties and associations of industry and commerce, are not covered by the draft bill.
There are still talks whether they should take a constitutional oath, said Han Xiawu, deputy secretary-general of the NPC Standing Committee.
"The oath shows China's growing emphasis on the rule of law," Jiang Ming'an, a law professor from Peking University, told the Global Times.
Chinese leaders agreed to a plan that promotes the rule of law, highlighting the importance of upholding China's Constitution, according to a press release given in Oct. 2014 during the Fourth Plenary Session of the 18th CPC Central Committee.
Jiang stated that the oath is currently not considered legally binding, but research institutes and the authorities are studying its legal implications.
"It could be considered a crime in the future for officials to betray a sworn oath," he said.