The importance of stability can never be overestimated. China would not have accomplished what it has without long-term political and social stability in recent decades.

Yet stability should never be at the expense of the citizens' will and freedom to express their grievances and seek channels of redress.

The efforts by Beijing's neighboring Hebei province to maintain social and political stability are praiseworthy. Its one-vote warning or veto scheme seeks to ensure that local leaders unfailingly attend to people's urgent concerns.

If it is found that most people are not satisfied with the performance of local leadership, the leaders will be warned to improve their work. If they fail to do a better job in addressing the problems, they will lose their positions.

Stability should be achieved on the basis of progressive improvement in living standards and upholding of human rights. Viewed from such a perspective, stability is not an end, but a condition for economic development and social progress. It is wrong for some local governments to make it the end and justify the means of getting there.

In an extreme case, a city in Shandong province stopped petitioners from lodging complaints with higher authorities by sending them forcibly to mental hospitals. These complainants were not let off until they gave written promises of never giving a petition to higher authorities. Some local governments send police officers to Beijing to nab the petitioners and bring them back by force. The aim is to create an impression of both order and stability.

It could be lethal to maintain an appearance of stability by concealing problems instead of solving them and suppressing petitioners rather than helping them with their concerns.

The Hebei provincial government has done the right thing in letting residents have their say about whether the leaders have done a good job in maintaining stability. By this the residents can also convey how leaders attended to their concerns.

It is natural for residents to have grievances. And, it is the responsibility of government leaders at all levels to address them. There is nothing demeaning in government leaders paying heed to grievances, but it is deplorable if they become apathetic to people's concerns.

It is easier to detain petitioners in mental hospitals than to investigate their problems and find ways to solve them. Lazy leaders tend to turn a blind eye and deaf ear to the concerns of residents.

In fact, it may be even dangerous if they stopped residents from expressing themselves by repressive tactics. By doing so they are actually undermining the basis of stability.

The solid base for real stability is consistency between the will of the government and that of the people. How can we expect those who are suppressed from expressing their concern to support the government?

Thus, making local leaders take care of people's concerns is the right approach to sustain real stability.

(China Daily June 9, 2009)