White Paper on Regional Autonomy for Ethnic Minorities in China

The Information Office of the State Council of the People's Republic of China issued on February 28, 2005. The full text consists of five parts, which comprehensively introduces the establishment, development and historic achievements of the system of regional autonomy for ethnic minorities in China.

The “White Paper” points out that in September 1949, at the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference held on the eve of the founding of New China, the “Common Programme of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference”, which had the nature of provisional constitution at the time, was adopted. A special chapter elaborates on the ethnic policy of new China, and regional autonomy for ethnic minorities was clearly defined as a basic state policy. Under the guarantee of the “Constitution of the People's Republic of China” and the “Law of the People's Republic of China on Regional Autonomy for Ethnic Minorities”, the autonomy of China's ethnic autonomous regions was fully guaranteed. They autonomously manage the internal affairs of their own nationality and region, enjoy the right to enact autonomous regulations and single regulations, enjoy the right to use and develop their own language and script, the state respects and guarantees the freedom of religious belief of minority nationalities, and each minority nationality has the right to maintain or reform its own customs and traditions, and can independently arrange, manage and develop economic construction projects, and independently develop education, science and technology, culture and other social projects.

The “White Paper” emphasizes that it is a legal obligation of the State to support and help ethnic autonomous regions to accelerate their development. In order to implement the “Constitution” and the “Law on Regional Autonomy for Ethnic Minorities”, the Chinese Government has taken a series of initiatives, for example, in order to accelerate the development of western regions and ethnic autonomous regions, the Chinese Government began to implement the Western Development Strategy in 2000, give prominence to accelerating the development of ethnic autonomous regions; prioritize and reasonably arrange infrastructure construction projects in ethnic autonomous regions. and appropriately increase the proportion of investment and policy bank loans; increase financial support to ethnic autonomous areas; attach importance to ecological construction and environmental protection in ethnic autonomous regions; take special measures to help ethnic autonomous areas develop education; increase support for poor ethnic minority regions; increase investment in social undertakings in ethnic autonomous regions; support ethnic autonomous regions to expand their opening to the outside world; organize developed regions to carry out counterpart support with ethnic autonomous places, and be committed to the principle that those who become prosperous first helping those who lag behind among regions and nationalities and eventually achieve common prosperity; and take care of the special production and living needs of ethnic minorities.

“The White Paper” points out that after the founding of New China, especially since the Reform and Opening-up, the people of all nationalities in national autonomous regions have exerted their own advantages, made great efforts to improve themselves and continuously strengthen their self-development capabilities with the vigorous help and support of the state and developed areas. After more than 50 years of hard work, the people of all nationalities in China's national autonomous regions have improved their living environment, developed rapidly in economy and social undertakings, together with the people of the whole country, the people of all nationalities in the national autonomous regions share the development achievements brought about by the modernization of the country.

The “White Paper” points out that the practice over the past 50 years has proved that China's system of regional autonomy for ethnic minorities and its practice have achieved great success. The adoption of regional autonomy for ethnic minorities to solve China's ethnic problems is the right choice in line with China's national conditions and the common interests of all nationalities.