Chinese officials have ruled out the possibility of independent candidates not approved by the ruling Communist Party running in elections to local and national legislatures, official media said on Thursday.
Anyone hoping to stand for elections this year to the National People's Congress (NPC), the country's parliament, will first have to clear "due legal procedures," the official Xinhua news agency reported.
The report came after a number of announcements by popular microbloggers that they intended to stand as "independent candidates."
The authorities must first approve anyone intending to stand, before they can be listed as a candidate, the agency quoted a top-level NPC official as saying.
"The Constitution and the Electoral Law grant qualified citizens the right to vote and to be elected, but election activities must adhere with the law and its specific provisions for the election procedures of lawmakers," the official said.
After winning approval as a candidate, would-be lawmakers must also receive the backing of political parties, social organizations, or more than 10 voters in one constituency.
Further endorsement was needed from "the majority of constituency opinions" before candidates could be confirmed on the final list given to voters, Xinhua said.
Opposition banned
Apart from a token group of "democratic parties" which never oppose or criticize the ruling Communist Party, opposition political parties are banned in China, and those who set them up are frequently handed lengthy jail terms.
Beijing-based rights lawyer Xu Zhiyong said current election laws, strictly interpreted, only allowed for two kinds of candidate; one that was nominated by a political party, and one that was nominated by more than 10 voters.
"There is no legal basis for independent candidates," Xu said. "[These comments] carry the hidden meaning that there is no such thing as a candidate who is independent of the current system."
Beijing-based constitutional scholar Zhang Boshu agreed. "Under the current electoral system in China, where most of the elections take place at the township and county level, the candidates are created through the internal decision-making process of various departments of the Chinese Communist Party."
"Anyone wanting to take part in the NPC elections will have to find a way to get the support of more than 10 constituents before they can put themselves forward."
Xu said the more citizens took part in elections, the better the NPC system would become.
"We need people with a sense of justice, who just get on with it and serve their constituents," Xu said. "If they find something is wrong in their constituency, they will work hard to address it."
"[They] will promote the development of the entire NPC delegate system."
Control over electoral process
All election campaigns in China are managed by the government's electoral committees at every level, from national down to township. In effect, these committees are charged with maintaining party control of the electoral process.
More than two million lawmakers at the county- and township-levels will be elected during nationwide elections, held every five years, in more than 2,000 counties and 30,000 townships, Xinhua said.
The elections began on May 7, and will give equal suffrage to rural and urban residents for the first time, it added.
Previously, a rural NPC deputy represented a population four times that of an urban deputy.
The authorities publish a final list of officially approved candidates up to one week ahead of polling day, giving candidates limited time to make themselves known to voters.
Reported by He Ping for RFA's Mandarin service. Translated and written in English by Luisetta Mudie.