China considers Taiwan its 23rd province; see separate entriesfor the special administrative regions of Hong Kong and Macau
Independence:
221 BC (unification under the Qin or Ch'in Dynasty); 1 January 1912
(Manchu Dynasty replaced by a Republic); 1 October 1949 (People's
Republic established)
National holiday:
Anniversary of the Founding of the People's Republic of China, 1
October (1949)
Constitution:
most recent promulgation 4 December 1982
Legal system:
a complex amalgam of custom and statute, largely criminal law;
rudimentary civil code in effect since 1 January 1987; new legal
codes in effect since 1 January 1980; continuing efforts are being
made to improve civil, administrative, criminal, and commercial law
Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal
Executive branch:
chief of state: President HU Jintao (since 15 March 2003) and Vice
President ZENG Qinghong (since 15 March 2003)
head of government: Premier WEN Jiabao (since 16 March 2003); Vice
Premiers HUANG Ju (since 17 March 2003), WU Yi (17 March 2003), ZENG
Peiyan (since 17 March 2003), and HUI Liangyu (since 17 March 2003)
cabinet: State Council appointed by the National People's Congress
(NPC)
elections: president and vice president elected by the National
People's Congress for five-year terms; elections last held 15–17
March 2003 (next to be held mid-March 2008); premier nominated by
the president, confirmed by the National People's Congress
election results: HU Jintao elected president by the Tenth National
People's Congress with a total of 2,937 votes (four delegates voted
against him, four abstained, and 38 did not vote); ZENG Qinghong
elected vice president by the Tenth National People's Congress with
a total of 2,578 votes (177 delegates voted against him, 190
abstained, and 38 did not vote); two seats were vacant
Legislative branch:
unicameral National People's Congress or Quanguo Renmin Daibiao
Dahui (2,985 seats; members elected by municipal, regional, and
provincial people's congresses to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held December 2002-February 2003 (next to be held
late 2007-February 2008)
election results: percent of vote - NA%; seats - NA
Judicial branch:
Supreme People's Court (judges appointed by the National People's
Congress); Local Peoples Courts (comprise higher, intermediate and
local courts); Special Peoples Courts (primarily military, maritime,
and railway transport courts)
Political parties and leaders:
Chinese Communist Party or CCP [HU Jintao, General Secretary of the
Central Committee]; eight registered small parties controlled by CCP
Political pressure groups and leaders:
no substantial political opposition groups exist, although the
government has identified the Falungong spiritual movement and the
China Democracy Party as subversive groups
International organization participation:
AfDB, APEC, APT, ARF, AsDB, ASEAN (dialogue partner), BIS, CDB,
FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO,
ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, LAIA
(observer), MIGA, MONUC, NAM (observer), NSG, OAS (observer), ONUB,
OPCW, PCA, SCO, UN, UN Security Council, UNAMSIL, UNCTAD, UNESCO,
UNHCR, UNIDO, UNITAR, UNMEE, UNMIL, UNMOVIC, UNOCI, UNTSO, UPU, WCO,
WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO, ZC
Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador YANG Jiechi
chancery: 2300 Connecticut Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008
telephone: [1] (202) 328–2500
FAX: [1] (202) 328–2582
consulate(s) general: Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, New York, and
San Francisco
consulate(s): Los Angeles
Diplomatic representation from the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Clark T. RANDT, Jr.
embassy: Xiu Shui Bei Jie 3, 100600 Beijing
mailing address: PSC 461, Box 50, FPO AP 96521–0002
telephone: [86] (10) 6532–3831
FAX: [86] (10) 6532–6929
consulate(s) general: Chengdu, Guangzhou, Hong Kong, Shanghai,
Shenyang
Flag description:
red with a large yellow five-pointed star and four smaller yellow
five-pointed stars (arranged in a vertical arc toward the middle of
the flag) in the upper hoist-side corner
Economy China
Economy - overview: In late 1978 the Chinese leadership began moving the economy from a sluggish, inefficient, Soviet-style centrally planned economy to a more market-oriented system. Whereas the system operates
