At a recent forum held in Chengdu city in Southwest China's Sichuan province, Chen Xiaoguang, vice-chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference and also executive vice-chairman of the Central Committee of the China Democratic League (CDL), called for more legal efforts to improve the public health emergency response and management system.

Chen made the statement at the 2020 China Democratic League Forum on the Rule of Law, organized by the CDL Central Committee's Committee of Legal Affairs and Health as well as the Sichuan and Chongqing committees of the CDL. 

During the forum, Chen said that safeguarding the response and management system with the rule of law is an important measure to achieve the modernization of China's system and capacity for governance, and also a natural requirement for building a country with a socialist rule of law. 

With the Fifth Plenary Session of the 19th CPC Central Committee emphasizing the need to strengthen laws and regulations on public health, it's necessary to carefully review the current legal development of the public health system and take steps to make the legal system comprehensive, rigorous and effective, Chen said. 

Chen added that promoting the rule of law in forming a resilient system against public health emergencies is of strategic importance to the country, and needs extensive efforts that are problem-oriented and well-planned. The priority should focus on both improving procedural provisions and also strengthening local legislations. 

The forum received 141 academic papers submitted by experts, scholars and researchers. Of these, 53 outstanding entries were selected to make the conference proceedings.