The general offices of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and the State Council have jointly published three documents to encourage government officials to listen to complaints from the people and reduce disputes that damage the country's efforts to build up a harmonious society.

The three new policy papers are Comments on the Regular Reception of the Masses by Leading Officials, Comments on the Regular Organization of Officials from Central Departments to Visit Localities, and Comments on the Systematization of the Efforts to Sort out, Check and Resolve Contradictions and Disputes.

Under the newly-issued guidelines, leading officials of all levels of government are urged to open their offices to complaints from visitors on a regular, transparent and orderly basis.

The central authorities will send officials to local governments to boost the implementation of central policies, assess public opinion, supervise the resolution of outstanding problems, and promote social harmony, according to the documents.

Local authorities are urged "to sort out, check and resolve contradictions and disputes in an effective way to deal with the people's internal contradictions in the new period," according to the documents.

In recent years, the country has witnessed a series of major unrests and violent protests in some cities and counties, mostly as a result of malfeasant local officials' ignorance and mishandling of people's complaints.

(Xinhua News Agency April 15, 2009)