Citizens' orderly political participation should be expanded and people's democratic election, democratic decision-making, democratic management and democratic supervision in line with laws should be guaranteed, said Hu Jintao, leader of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Monday.

Hu, general secretary of the CPC Central Committee, made the call Monday afternoon at the 12th group study session of the CPC Political Bureau on improvement of the legal system and the socialist market economic system.

Governing the country according to law, administrating by law as well as safeguard of unity and dignity of the legal system are vital especially when the tasks for reform, development and stability are onerous, Hu said.

Adherence to the rule of law and administrating by law are of great importance to the realization of the goal of building an all-round well-off society, the balanced socialist material, political, cultural and ethical progress, and the long-term prosperity and stability, Hu said.

He underscored the improvement of various systems guaranteeing socialist democracy, diversification of forms for democracy and development of grassroots democracy.

He specifically mentioned improvement of laws and regulations on economic organizations and agencies, property rights, business deals, credit and social security.

Hu, underlining the importance of Constitution, said "the more important the work is, the more urgent the situation is, and the more prominent the contradiction is, the more we should stick to administrating by law."

(Xinhua News Agency April 27, 2004)