The document endows government bodies with power and citizens with rights. It has supreme legal force, said Li Peng, chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress.

Li's comments came at a seminar on the country's first day for promoting its legal system nationwide, which is today.

The Chinese Government decided in April that every December 4 is the day for promoting the nation's legal system as part of efforts to raise the public awareness.

The theme of this year's day is "enhancing awareness of abiding by the Constitution and pushing forward the process towards the rule of law."

The current Constitution resulted from the efforts of several generations and was not easy for them to establish, Li said.

He said the current Constitution not only embodies what the Chinese Communist Party stands for but also the will of the Chinese people. It includes a series of the guidelines and policies adopted since the Third Session of the 11th Plenary of the Party in late 1970s.

Li especially stressed the importance of the prelude to the Constitution, saying it captures the spirit of the basic law.

To disobey the prelude of the Constitution is to disobey the most important part of the Constitution itself, he said.

Li said the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress as well as the National People's Congress, which are prescribed by the Constitution as the top national power body, must follow the rules of the Constitution when they undertake their law-making and supervisory functions.

As the National People's Congress and its Standing Committee supervise the implementation of the Constitution itself, Li vowed that the Congress and its Standing Committee will continue to strengthen such a duty.

(China Daily December 4, 2001)