For the first time since the founding of the People's Republic of China in 1949, the country's 900 million farmers can expect to be protected by a law that specifically targets their rights and interests.

In the middle of June, the teams drafting the Law on the Protection of Farmers' Rights and Interests opened their first session. According to the National People's Congress (NPC) legislative schedule, the first draft will take shape by the end of the year.

Despite continuous, growing pro-farmer cries, legal efforts to protect the country's largest disadvantaged group have lagged.

"The ultimate purpose for designing this law is to get rid of it in the end," said one of the drafters, who described putting the law on the nation's legislation schedule as a matter of great significance.

"The fact that farmers' rights and interests have not been effectively protected is the real cause of many problems," said 66-year-old Professor Wang Weizhong, of northeast China's Jilin University. Wang is the NPC representative who first submitted a legislative suggestion to that effect in 1999.

In a proposal to the legislative authority this year, Wang emphasized the protection of farmers-turned-migrant-workers. He suggested that "they should be treated the same as [urban] residents in such aspects as personal safety, work injury, salary payment, children's education and access to state-sponsored training."

For decades, farmers working in cities have been suffering abuses like delayed payment of wages or fraud.

"The legislation is necessary, appropriate and timely," said Professor Ren Dapeng of China Agricultural University. "We are now discussing the scope and subjects of the law, and household registration is one of the core issues."

Ren said that rights and interests related to land, property, democracy, participation in social affairs, land requisition, medical care, education, social security, employment and other issues will be included.

Even with the law, however, problems will remain.

"Their awareness of protecting themselves with the law is rather poor," said Ren. "The government should raise their awareness of legal rights and ensure they are fully protected by law."

Economist He Xinggang says that there are two main issues to resolve with regard to farmers. "One is to protect their interests related to agricultural production, and the other is to give them equal status with city residents during the urbanization process."

(Xinhua News Agency July 13, 2004)