People living in a central Beijing residential area cast their
votes on Saturday in the first ever democratic multi-candidate
election of a local community chief and officials.
More than 2,700 residents from 1,145 households in the Jiudaowan
Community of Beijing's Dongcheng District gathered at a nearby
school playground early Saturday morning to elect a new director of
the neighborhood committee and also deputies to the community
congress, both self-governing bodies for Chinese citizens.
Neighborhood committees in cities have similar roles and functions
to the village committees in China's vast rural areas. However,
while the government has exerted efforts to promote free and direct
village elections in the past dozen years, some representatives of
residents usually conducted the election of urban community
officials.
Officials with the Dongcheng District Civil Affairs Department said
that Jiudaowan was selected as a trial area before the adoption of
such elections citywide.
The 120-strong migrant population in the community also
participated in the election. Two migrant residents were candidates
for the community congress deputyship and 74 people who are more
than 18 years old and have resided in Jiudaowan for more than one
year were given voting rights.
"I
was surprised and honored. Beijing people really don't regard us as
outsiders," said 33-year-old Liu Guijiao from Central China's Henan
Province, after winning a seat in the election.
Liu has been running a grocery store in the community for nine
years, and her husband and mother both cast their votes on
Saturday.
(China Daily August 19,
2002)