中华人民共和国宪法（2018年修正文本）的英文译本

（来源：中国人大网）

The Constitution of the People's Republic of China(2018)

(Adopted at the Fifth Session of the Fifth National People's Congress and promulgated by the Announcement of the National People's Congress on December 4, 1982; amended in accordance with the Amendment to the Constitution of the People's Republic of China adopted at the First Session of the Seventh National People's Congress on April 12, 1988, the Amendment to the Constitution of the People's Republic of China adopted at the First Session of the Eighth National People's Congress on March 29, 1993, the Amendment to the Constitution of the People's Republic of China adopted at the Second Session of the Ninth National People's Congress on March 15, 1999, the Amendment to the Constitution of the People's Republic of China adopted at the Second Session of the Tenth National People's Congress on March 14, 2004, and the Amendment to the Constitution of the People's Republic of China adopted at the First Session of the Thirteenth National People's Congress on March 11, 2018)

Contents

 

Preamble

Chapter I General Principles

Chapter II Fundamental Rights and Obligations of Citizens

Chapter III State Institutions

    Section 1 The National People's Congress

    Section 2 The President of the People's Republic of China

    Section 3 The State Council

    Section 4 The Central Military Commission

    Section 5 Local People's Congresses at All Levels and Local People's Governments at All Levels

    Section 6 Organs of Autonomy of Ethnic Autonomous Areas

    Section 7 Commissions of Supervision

    Section 8 People's Courts and People's Procuratorates

Chapter IV The National Flag, the National Anthem, the National Emblem, and the Capital

Preamble

China is one of the countries with the longest histories in the world. The Chinese people of all ethnic groups have jointly created a splendid culture and have a glorious revolutionary tradition.

After 1840, feudal China gradually became a semi-colonial, semi-feudal country. The Chinese people, wave upon wave, waged heroic struggles for national independence and liberation and for democracy and freedom.

In the 20th century, China underwent earth-shaking historic transformations.

The Revolution of 1911, led by Dr. Sun Yat-sen, abolished the feudal monarchy and gave birth to the Republic of China. However, the historic mission of the Chinese people to oppose imperialism and feudalism remained unfulfilled.

In 1949, after enduring prolonged, arduous, and tortuous struggles—both armed and otherwise—the Chinese people of all ethnic groups, under the leadership of the Communist Party of China with Chairman Mao Zedong as its leader, finally overthrew the rule of imperialism, feudalism, and bureaucrat-capitalism, achieved a great victory in the New Democratic Revolution, and established the People's Republic of China. The Chinese people thus secured state power and became the masters of the country.

After the founding of the People's Republic of China, our country gradually achieved the transition from a new democratic society to a socialist society. The socialist transformation of the private ownership of the means of production was completed, the system of exploitation of man by man abolished, and the socialist system established. The people's democratic dictatorship under the leadership of the working class based on an alliance of workers and farmers—in essence a dictatorship of the proletariat—was consolidated and developed. The Chinese people and the Chinese People's Liberation Army defeated imperialist and hegemonic aggression, sabotage, and armed provocations, safeguarded national independence and security, and strengthened national defense. Significant achievements were made in economic development, with an independent and relatively complete socialist industrial system generally established and agricultural output markedly increased. Substantial advancements were achieved in education, science, culture, and other fields, and education about socialist values and ethics produced notable outcomes. The lives of the people improved significantly.

Both the victory in China's New Democratic Revolution and the successes in its socialist cause have been achieved by the Chinese people of all ethnic groups under the leadership of the Communist Party of China and the guidance of Marxism-Leninism and Mao Zedong Thought by upholding truth, correcting errors, and overcoming numerous difficulties and obstacles. Our country will long remain in the primary stage of socialism. The fundamental mission of the state is to concentrate its strength on achieving socialist modernization along the road of socialism with Chinese characteristics. Under the leadership of the Communist Party of China and the guidance of Marxism-Leninism, Mao Zedong

Thought, Deng Xiaoping Theory, the Theory of Three Represents, the Scientific Outlook on Development, and Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, the Chinese people of all ethnic groups will continue to uphold the people's democratic dictatorship, follow the socialist road, and remain committed to reform and opening up; steadily improve various systems under socialism, develop the socialist market economy, advance socialist democracy, strengthen the socialist rule of law, and implement the new development philosophy; and, through self-reliance and hard work, modernize step by step industry, agriculture, national defense, and science and technology and promote coordinated material, political, culturalethical, social, and ecological advancement. These efforts are dedicated to building China into a great modern socialist country that is prosperous, strong, democratic, culturally advanced, harmonious, and beautiful and to realizing the rejuvenation of the Chinese nation.

In our country, the exploiting class, as a class, was eliminated, but class struggle will continue to exist within a certain scope for a long time to come. The people of China must fight against domestic and foreign forces and elements that are hostile to and seek to undermine our country's socialist system.

Taiwan is part of the sacred territory of the People's Republic of China. To complete the great cause of reunifying the motherland is the sacred duty of all the Chinese people, including our fellow Chinese in Taiwan.

The cause of building socialism must rely on workers, farmers, and intellectuals and unite all forces that can be united. Through the prolonged process of revolution, development, and reform, a broad patriotic united front was formed under the leadership of the Communist Party of China, with the participation of other political parties and people's organizations. This united front includes all socialist working people, people engaged in building socialism, patriots who support socialism, and patriots who support the reunification of the motherland and are dedicated to the rejuvenation of the Chinese nation. This united front will continue to be consolidated and developed. The Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference is a broadly representative organization of the united front, and it has played a significant historical role in the past. In the future, it will continue to play an important role in the country's political and social activities and its friendly foreign activities, in socialist modernization, and in the struggles of safeguarding national unity and solidarity. The system of multiparty cooperation and political consultation led by the Communist Party of China will continue to exist and develop long into the future.

The People's Republic of China is a unified multiethnic state collectively created by its people of all ethnic groups. Socialist ethnic relations of equality, solidarity, mutual assistance, and harmony have been established and will continue to be strengthened. In the struggle to safeguard ethnic solidarity, it is imperative to oppose ethnic chauvinism, primarily Han chauvinism, as well as local ethnic chauvinism. The state makes every effort to promote the common prosperity of all ethnic groups in China.

The achievements of China's revolution, development, and reform are inseparable from the support of the people of the world. The future of China is closely connected with the future of the world. China pursues an independent foreign policy and adheres to the five principles of mutual respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity, mutual nonaggression, noninterference in each other's internal affairs, equality and mutual benefit, and peaceful coexistence. China is committed to pursuing a path of peaceful development, follows a mutually beneficial strategy of opening up, works to develop diplomatic relations and economic and cultural exchanges with other countries, and promotes the building of a community with a shared future for humanity. China consistently opposes imperialism, hegemonism, and colonialism, works to strengthen solidarity with the people of all countries, supports oppressed peoples and developing countries in their just struggles to win and safeguard their independence and grow their economies, and strives to safeguard world peace and promote the cause of human progress.

This Constitution affirms, in legal form, the achievements of the endeavors of the Chinese people of all ethnic groups and stipulates the fundamental system and the fundamental mission of the state. It is the fundamental law of the state and has the supreme legal force. The people of all ethnic groups, all state organs and the armed forces, all political parties and social organizations, and all enterprises and public institutions in the country must take the Constitution as the fundamental standard of conduct and bear the duty of upholding the sanctity of the Constitution and ensuring its implementation.

Chapter I General Principles

Article 1 The People's Republic of China is a socialist state of people's democratic dictatorship under the leadership of the working class based on an alliance of workers and farmers.

The socialist system is the fundamental system of the People's Republic of China. Leadership by the Communist Party of China is the defining feature of socialism with Chinese characteristics. It is prohibited for any organization or individual to undermine the socialist system.

Article 2 All power in the People's Republic of China belongs to the people.

The organs through which the people exercise state power are the National People's Congress and local people's congresses at all levels.

The people shall, in accordance with the law, manage state affairs, economic and cultural undertakings, and social affairs through various channels and forms.

Article 3 The state institutions of the People's Republic of China shall practice the principle of democratic centralism.

The National People's Congress and local people's congresses at all levels shall be created through democratic election, responsible to the people, and subject to their oversight.

All administrative, supervisory, adjudicatory, and procuratorial organs of the state shall be created by the people's congresses, responsible to them, and subject to their oversight.

The division of functions and powers between central and local state institutions shall be guided by the principle of fully leveraging local initiative and motivation under unified central leadership.

Article 4 All ethnic groups of the People's Republic of China are equal. The state shall safeguard the lawful rights and interests of all ethnic minorities and uphold and develop relations of equality, solidarity, mutual assistance, and harmony among all ethnic groups. Discrimination against and oppression of any ethnic group are prohibited; any act that undermines ethnic solidarity or creates ethnic division is prohibited.

The state shall, in line with the characteristics and needs of ethnic minorities, assist ethnic minority areas in accelerating their economic and cultural development.

All areas with large concentrations of ethnic minorities shall practice regional autonomy, establish organs of autonomy, and exercise the power of autonomy. All ethnic autonomous areas are inalienable parts of the People's Republic of China.

All ethnic groups shall have the freedom to use and develop their own spoken and written languages and to preserve or reform their own traditions and customs.

Article 5 The People's Republic of China shall practice law-based governance to build itself into a socialist country under the rule of law.

The state shall uphold the unity and sanctity of the socialist legal system.

No law, administrative regulation, or local regulation shall contravene the Constitution.

All state organs and the armed forces, all political parties and social organizations, and all enterprises and public institutions must abide by the Constitution and the law. Any act that violates the Constitution or laws must be subject to accountability.

No organization or individual shall have any privilege beyond the Constitution or the law.

Article 6 The foundation of the socialist economic system of the People's Republic of China is socialist public ownership of the means of production, that is, ownership by the whole people and collective ownership by the working people. Under socialist public ownership, the system of exploitation of man by man is eradicated, and the principle of "from each according to his ability, to each according to his work" is practiced.

In the primary stage of socialism, the state shall practice a fundamental economic system under which public ownership is the mainstay and diverse forms of ownership develop together, and the state shall practice an income distribution system under which distribution according to work is the mainstay while multiple forms of distribution exist alongside it.

Article 7 The state-owned sector of the economy, that is, the socialist economy under ownership by the whole people, is the leading force in the national economy. The state shall ensure the consolidation and development of the state-owned sector of the economy.

Article 8 Rural collective economic organizations shall practice a two-tiered management system that combines unified and separate operations, with household contract management as its basis. The various forms of cooperative economies in rural areas, such as production, supply and marketing, credit, and consumption, are part of the socialist economy under collective ownership by the working people. People who participate in rural collective economic organizations shall have the right, within the scope prescribed by law, to cultivate cropland and hillsides allotted to them for private use, engage in household sideline production, and raise privately owned livestock.

The various forms of cooperative economies in urban areas, such as those in handicrafts, industry, construction, transportation, commerce, and service sectors, are part of the socialist economy under collective ownership by the working people.

The state shall protect the lawful rights and interests of urban and rural collective economic organizations and encourage, guide, and assist in the development of the collective sector of the economy.

Article 9 Mineral resources, waters, forests, mountains, grasslands, unreclaimed land, mudflats, and all other natural resources shall be owned by the state, that is, by the whole people, except for the forests, mountains, grasslands, unreclaimed land, and mudflats that are owned by collectives as prescribed by law.

The state shall ensure the rational use of natural resources and protect rare animals and plants. It is prohibited for any organization or individual to seize or damage natural resources by any means.

Article 10 Land in cities shall be owned by the state.

Land in rural and suburban areas shall be owned by collectives unless prescribed as state-owned by law; residential plots and cropland and hillsides allotted for private use shall be owned by collectives.

The state may, in order to meet public interest needs, expropriate or requisition land and make compensation in accordance with the law.

No organization or individual shall illegally transfer land through seizure, sale and purchase, or in any other form. Land-use rights may be transferred in accordance with the law.

All organizations and individuals using land must use it appropriately.

Article 11 Non-public economic sectors that are within the scope prescribed by law, such as individually owned and private businesses, are an important component of the socialist market economy.

The state shall protect the lawful rights and interests of non-public economic sectors such as individually owned and private businesses. The state shall encourage, support, and guide the development of non-public economic sectors and exercise oversight and regulation over non-public economic sectors in accordance with the law.

Article 12 Socialist public property is sacred and inviolable.

The state shall protect socialist public property. It is prohibited for any organization or individual to seize or damage state or collective property by any means.

Article 13 The lawful private property of citizens is inviolable.

The state shall protect citizens' rights to private property and inheritance in accordance with the law.

The state may, in order to meet public interest needs, expropriate or requisition citizens' private property and make compensation in accordance with the law.

Article 14 The state shall continually raise labor productivity, improve economic performance, and develop social productive forces by enhancing the motivation and technical skills of working people, promoting advanced science and technology, improving the systems of economic management and enterprise operation and management, practicing diverse forms of socialist responsibility system, and improving the organization of work.

The state shall practice strict economy and combat waste.

The state shall appropriately handle accumulation and consumption, give due consideration to the interests of the state, collectives, and individuals and, based on the development of production, gradually improve the material and cultural wellbeing of the people.

The state shall establish a sound social security system commensurate with the level of economic development.

Article 15 The state shall practice a socialist market economy.

The state shall strengthen economic legislation and improve macro-regulation.

The state shall, in accordance with the law, prohibit any organization or individual from disrupting social and economic order.

Article 16 State-owned enterprises, within the scope prescribed by law, shall have the right to manage their businesses.

State-owned enterprises shall, in accordance with the law, practice democratic management through employees' congresses and other means.

Article 17 Collective economic organizations shall, on condition that they comply with relevant laws, have the right to conduct economic activities independently.

Collective economic organizations shall practice democratic management and, in accordance with the law, elect or remove their management personnel and decide on major issues concerning their operations and management.

Article 18 The People's Republic of China shall permit foreign enterprises and other economic organizations, or foreign individuals to invest in China and to conduct various forms of economic cooperation with Chinese enterprises or other economic organizations in accordance with the law of the People's Republic of China.

All foreign enterprises, other foreign economic organizations, and Chinese-foreign joint ventures in the territory of China shall abide by the law of the People's Republic of China. Their lawful rights and interests shall be protected by the law of the People's Republic of China.

Article 19 The state shall develop socialist educational undertakings to raise the scientific and cultural level of the entire nation.

The state shall run educational institutions of all types, provide universal access to compulsory primary education, develop secondary, vocational, and higher education, and also develop preschool education.

The state shall develop various educational facilities to eliminate illiteracy and provide political, cultural, scientific, technical, and field-specific education for workers, farmers, state employees, and other working people, while encouraging people to become educated through self-study.

The state shall encourage collective economic organizations, state enterprises, public institutions, and other social actors to run educational programs of various types in accordance with the law.

The state shall promote the standard spoken Chinese (Putonghua) used nationwide.

Article 20 The state shall develop the natural and social sciences, disseminate scientific and technological knowledge, and reward research achievements and technological discoveries and inventions.

Article 21 The state shall develop medical and health care, develop modern medicine and traditional Chinese medicine, encourage and support the running of various medical and health facilities by rural collective economic organizations, state enterprises, public institutions, and subdistrict organizations, and promote public health activities in order to protect the people's health.

The state shall develop sports and organize public sports activities to improve the people's physical fitness.

Article 22 The state shall develop arts, literature, the press, radio and television broadcasting, publishing, libraries, museums, cultural centers, and other cultural undertakings that serve the people and socialism and promote public cultural activities.

The state shall protect places of scenic beauty and historical interest, valuable cultural relics, and other forms of important historical and cultural heritage.

Article 23 The state shall train specialized personnel of various types to serve socialism, expand the ranks of intellectuals, and create conditions necessary for fully leveraging their role in socialist modernization.

Article 24 The state shall promote socialist cultural-ethical advancement through widely accessible education on ideals, moral values, culture, discipline, and law and through the formulation and observance of various forms of rules of conduct and public pledges among different urban and rural populations.

The state shall champion the core socialist values; advocate the civic virtues of love for the motherland, for the people, for work, for science, and for socialism; educate the people in patriotism and collectivism, in internationalism and communism, and in dialectical and historical materialism; and oppose capitalist, feudal, and other forms of decadent thought.

Article 25 The state shall implement family planning to ensure that population growth is in keeping with economic and social development plans.

Article 26 The state shall protect and improve living environments and the ecological environment and prevent and control pollution and other public hazards.

The state shall organize and encourage afforestation and protect trees and forests.

Article 27 All state organs shall practice the principle of lean and efficient administration, work responsibility systems, and employee training and evaluation systems to keep improving work quality and efficiency and combat bureaucratism.

All state organs and state employees must rely on the support of the people, maintain close ties with them, heed their opinions and suggestions, accept their oversight, and work hard to serve them.

State employees shall, upon assuming office, take a public oath of allegiance to the Constitution in accordance with the law.

Article 28 The state shall maintain public order, suppress treason and other criminal activities that endanger national security, punish criminal activities including those that endanger public security or harm the socialist economy, and punish and reform criminals.

Article 29 The armed forces of the People's Republic of China belong to the people. Their mission shall be to strengthen national defense, resist aggression, defend the motherland, safeguard the people's peaceful work, participate in national development, and work hard to serve the people.

The state shall make the armed forces more revolutionary, more modernized, and better regulated to strengthen national defense capabilities.

Article 30 The administrative divisions of the People's Republic of China shall be as follows:

(1) The country consists of provinces, autonomous regions, and cities directly under the Central Government;

(2) Provinces and autonomous regions consist of autonomous prefectures, counties, autonomous counties, and cities; and

(3) Counties and autonomous counties consist of townships, ethnic townships, and towns.

Cities directly under the Central Government and other large cities consist of districts and counties. Autonomous prefectures consist of counties, autonomous counties, and cities.

All autonomous regions, autonomous prefectures, and autonomous counties are ethnic autonomous areas.

Article 31 The state may establish a special administrative region when necessary. The systems to be instituted in a special administrative region shall, in light of its specific circumstances, be prescribed by law enacted by the National People's Congress.

Article 32 The People's Republic of China shall protect the lawful rights and interests of foreigners in the territory of China; foreigners in the territory of China must abide by the law of the People's Republic of China.

The People's Republic of China may grant asylum to foreigners who seek refuge on political grounds.