Harmonious society concept draws world attention

The concept of building a harmonious society, initiated and promoted by Chinese leaders and viewed as a revolutionary change in the country's development mode, has attracted growing interest from governance experts from the Asia-Pacific region.

A conference that ended here two days ago attracted nearly 200 experts from 24 Asia-Pacific countries to explore the theoretical depth of the harmonious society concept and discuss its implementation.

According to the experts, the concept may provide solutions to problems their own countries are experiencing.

At a Sept. 15 event marking the 60th anniversary of the United Nations, Chinese President Hu Jintao defined a harmonious society as one that development in a comprehensive way, which gives full play to modern ideas like democracy, rule of the law, fairness, justice, vitality, stability, orderliness and harmonious co-existence between the humankind and nature.

"Actually, the features are inherently interactive, integrated and linked to each other," said Bo Guili, professor of public administration with the China National School of Administration (CNSA).

He said the building of a harmonious society would not only reflect the basic interests and desires of the people, but also lead to immediate benefits for them.

Comprising the world's most economically promising region, Asia-Pacific countries have greatly fuelled the world's prosperity while experiencing problems such as expanding poor-rich gaps, environmental degradation and a grave shortage of natural resources.

The harmonious society idea could, according to experts, offer fresh suggestions for other countries.

Raza Ahmad, capacity development/governance specialist with the Asian Development Bank, said effective public administration and good governance will play a central role in creating societal harmony while promoting poverty reduction and inclusive economic growth.

"The need for a competent, responsible and responsive public administration for poverty reduction services can't be underestimated," he said.

All countries, especially developing ones, must face up to the common tough task of building harmonious societies within their own territories, said Professor Rekha Jain with the Indian Institute of Management.

"Common goals and challenges have brought us together to work to achieve the great undertaking of building a harmonious society in the world," said Hu Jintao earlier.

"While advancing their economies, Asia-Pacific countries should also stress coordinated development of different sectors of their societies," said CNSA vice president Yuan Shuhong.

At the conference, experts from India, Philippines, Pakistan and China agreed that the grave shortage of medical services for the poor and outdated medical practices are a common phenomenon in those countries.

"The establishment of an effective medical security system for the poor should therefore be taken as a key issue in the process of building societal harmony," said Jain.

A harmonious society should also be one with fair administration practices and governments playing an irreplaceable role, said Yuan.

Local media proclaimed that the fact that experts from different countries sit together can adequately serve as a symbol that China's idea of building harmonious society has won nods from other countries.

"They may have different perspectives on the idea, but that won't render any impact on their exchanges to that effect," said Chen Junxing, a teacher with CNSA's Fujian branch.

With the growing attention being given to harmonious development, people can expect improvements in their lives, he said.

Source: Xinhua