National People’s Congress Chairman and PBSC member Li Zhanshu concluded a three day inspection tour to Shanxi Province on November 18. Li Zhanshu stressed that policymakers everywhere need to get to work implementing Xi Jinping Thought on the Rule of Law. He exhorted members of the Shanxi Party Congress to “use systems, mechanisms, and platforms to stay in touch with the masses, [and] unblock channels for people to express their wishes and make suggestions.”  He probably chose Shanxi as Shanxi was ground zero for the anti-corruption campaign during Xi Jinping’s first term. The province has since turned a corner, piloting strict anti-corruption supervision mechanisms while transitioning away from its previously coal-dominated economy. 

(Comment: Xi Jinping’s ideas on law-based governance were highlighted in Qiushi, the Party’s top journal in early November. The framework was also front and center at the first ever central work conference on overall law-based governance.)