Chinese Parliament has abolished presidential term limits, allowing President Xi Jinping to rule the country for life. Members of National People’s Congress, today, Sunday, lifted the two five-year term limits for the presidency.
The amendment was sealed with 2,958 in favour, two against and three abstentions despite an unusual bout of online criticism that censors have scrambled to extinguish. It was the first constitutional amendment in 14 years.
The Lawmakers said that the action was taken to allow the leader, who would have had to leave in 2023 to pursue a vision of transforming the nation into an economic and military superpower.
Head of the parliament’s Standing Committee, Zhang Dejiang, said that the amendments “will ensure the constitution improves and develops in step with the times and provide a firm constitutional guarantee for upholding and developing socialism with Chinese characteristics in the new era.” [myad]
