| The right to criticize is one of the basic rights of citizens stipulated in our constitution.Protecting citizens’ right to criticize has a positive role in promoting socialist democratic politics,building a legal system for citizens’ supervision,and forming a good atmosphere for caring about current politics.Our constitution stipulates in article 35 that citizens enjoy political freedoms such as speech,and article 41 establishes citizens to have the right to supervise,such as right to criticize,which shows that the legislature attaches great importance to the protection of citizens’ right to supervise,such as right to criticize.Every basic right stipulated in the constitution has dual attributes,both positive and negative.Positive rights require certain protection from the state,and negative rights also require the state not to intervene at will.Safeguarding citizens’ right to criticize requires strengthening work in these two areas.According to the observation of the status,on the one hand,our country has set up a variety of methods for citizens to exercise their right to criticize,such as thesystem of representatives contact the masses,the system of public complaints and proposals,and the system of government information disclosure,but the channel is not smooth enough;on the other hand,public power suppresses critical speech,and citizens exercise right of criticize accused by criminal charged from time to time,crime of defamation is a common form.In the long run,the people’s enthusiasm for caring about political life and discussing public affairs will be frustrated.In terms of criminal law system,amend the provisions of the crime of defamation and the crime of retaliation and frame-ups to prevent improper violation of public power.In terms of law enforcement protection,government allocate funds to establish liaison agency for people’s congress representatives,implement the work of public complaints and proposals,strengthen the work of information disclosure,to ensure the smooth channels for citizen exercise right to criticize.In terms of judicial protection,court can provides protection for critical speech through the methods of measuring interests,distinguishing nature of speech.In terms of social supervision,government can set up mass criticism programs in news agencies,and guide grassroots self-governing organizations and social organizations to encourage supervision.In terms of legal consciousness,the legal awareness of citizens and cadres should be enhanced through publicity such as the rule of law to open up a new situation for the protection of citizens’ right to criticize. |
