At the same time, we have to make it clear that this system does not mean to encourage mistakes. While the supervision over decision-making is still inadequate, any reform attempt should be based on extensive feasibility studies and conform to the country's basic legal principles. To our delight, Chongqing has published rigid measures to prevent irresponsible officials from abusing the fault-tolerance system.

Accountability essential

Li Zhenzhong (hlj.rednet.cn): In the past 30 years, China has achieved much and has also undergone many frustrations. Governments at various levels have already paid a high price for various errors they made in the process of development. After many years' practice, these officials must have learned how to avoid mistakes. Even if they do make mistakes, they won't be of the serious kind.

The biggest problem in the process of reform and opening up is that some officials, in the name of reform, have wasted a lot of money and made many mistakes. If the fault-tolerance system were implemented, more big losses would follow.

Big mistakes made by forward-thinking reformers in the early years of reform and opening up are forgivable. However, no more big mistakes should be allowed nowadays and even small mistakes should be avoided. No official is supposed to claim innocence even if they initiate reform programs in accordance with the law and do not aim at personal gains. It's unacceptable for a new system to tolerate the repetition of mistakes.

Qiao Xinsheng (Legal Daily): The new fault-tolerance regulation in Chongqing is inconsistent with China's Criminal Law, which stipulates that those officials who are accountable for huge losses of state assets and/or public interests will be imprisoned. But Chongqing's regulation seems to tell officials that they are safe no matter what losses they've caused.

Though individuals' interests are infringed upon in some cases because local officials want to protect what they claim to be public interests, it's also unacceptable as far as the country's laws are concerned. Why are there so many housing demolition disputes in China in recent years, with so many citizens' interests being sacrificed? It is mainly because some decision-makers believe, as long as "public interests" are ensured, citizens' individual interests can be neglected. However, if officials really put people's interests first, fault tolerance will not be an issue.

Worse still, local governments in some other regions are also considering copying Chongqing's practice. This is a dangerous trend. This phenomenon shows that in order to achieve the economic growth target, some local decision-makers are becoming so excited that they are ignoring citizens' individual interests. Therefore, it's better to keep vigilant of the fault-tolerance system.

Xie Yuhang (China Youth Daily): The fault-tolerance system should work in this way: When a new reform policy fails and causes losses, competent officials can only be exempted from accountability if they can prove that they were really trying to solve problems in an innovative manner. But the precondition is a scientific and well-developed accountability system. If there is no strict accountability system, the fault-tolerance system is undoubtedly adding to the protection of officials who act irresponsibly.

In real life, is the accountability system so strict that officials' creativity is restricted? If there is no strong accountability system, we don't know whom the fault-tolerance system will protect.

Dear Readers,

"Forum" is a column that provides a space for varying perspectives on contemporary Chinese society. We invite you to submit personal viewpoints on past and current topics (in either English or Chinese).

E-mail us at byao@cipg.org.cn

Please provide your name and address along with your comments.