Ismail Amat, vice chairman of the National People's Congress (NPC) Standing Committee, was the keynote speaker at a symposium held in Beijing Sunday to mark the 20th anniversary of the implementation of the Law on Regional Autonomy for China's Minority Nationalities. He said that the law has played an exceedingly important role in safeguarding national unity, guaranteeing the equal rights and autonomy of ethnic minorities, promoting the rapid economic and social development of the minorities and autonomous areas, and harmonizing relations among all ethnic groups.

However, he also called for stronger enforcement of the law, which was adopted in May 1984 at the Second Session of the Sixth National People's Congress, China's top legislature.

Before the law's promulgation, China had begun implementing the regional ethnic autonomy system and had established a number of autonomous areas.

By the end of 1998, five autonomous regions, 30 autonomous prefectures and 120 autonomous counties and banners had been established, as well as 1,256 ethnic townships. Of the 55 ethnic minorities, 44 had their own autonomous areas, inhabited by 75 percent of the ethnic minority population. The total area occupied 64 percent of the country.

Autonomous areas have the rights to make laws, develop specialized education and ethnic culture and use their own language, among many others. All these ethnic autonomous areas are subject to the unified leadership of the state.

(Xinhua News Agency June 21, 2004)