Exploring practical value in the birthplace of the "Pujiang Experience" Interview with the masses and experience

Jiang Xingjian, a villager from Hangping Village in Hangping Town, returned to his former interview location with reporters. Shared Alliance · Photo by Xu Hanxin from Pujiang

Editor's note: This year marks the 20th anniversary of the birth of the "Pujiang Experience".Pujiang County is a small and medium-sized county in Zhejiang Province, named after the Puyang River within its jurisdiction.

The Pujiang experience gradually took shape and spread throughout the country.

"To do a good job in the work of letters and visits from the source, the key is to change the petitions of the masses into the petitions of the leaders, to truly visit the people's sentiments, to act sincerely, and to implement the essential requirements of building the party for the public and governing for the people." Comrade Xi Jinping's words during his visit not only opened a new page in the history of letters and visits, but also began to change Pujiang, which was called "the largest county of letters and visits in Zhejiang.

With the development of the times, the "Pujiang Experience" still demonstrates strong vitality and continuously demonstrates its timeless value.This year, General Secretary once again issued important instructions on the "Pujiang Experience".

After a gap of 20 years, the reporter came to Pujiang and followed the footsteps of General Secretary to revisit this path of petitioning, experiencing the vibrant and infinite vitality of the "Pujiang experience".

Go to places with many contradictions and burrow into the "nest" of contradictions

In June this year, when Xi Jinping decided to visit the county, he clearly pointed out that there were many problems in letters and visits in Pujiang, the contradictions were concentrated, and the opinions of the masses were relatively large, so he went there.

——Excerpted from the front page report of Zhejiang Daily on September 19, 2003

The Pujiang River in July exudes tranquility and poetry. The reporter walked into the petition joint hall of Pujiang County and saw that the hall was clean and tidy, with few figures of petitioners, appearing somewhat desolate.

The reporter looked around the hall and saw that it was like a clearly divided supermarket, with over 20 reception rooms with different functions arranged in an orderly manner. "As long as the masses come in, they can find the corresponding departments and receive timely answers," said He Haishen, the petition supervision commissioner of Pujiang County's petition bureau.

Behind the quiet "petition supermarket" lies the impressive achievements of Pujiang's petition work: the total number of petitions in the county has sharply decreased from 10307 in 2002 to 629 in 2022. It has been rated as an advanced collective in the national petition system and the "three no counties" in petition work by the National Bureau of Letters and Visits. From 2018 to 2020, it has successfully established the province's "no petition backlog county" for three consecutive years.

Upon seeing this scene, who would have thought that at the turn of the century, Pujiang was once listed as a "key county for handling petitions" in the province due to the large number of elderly households who submitted petitions, the number of petitions at higher levels, and the frequent disturbance of petitions.

In fact, not only in Pujiang, but also in various parts of Zhejiang at that time, due to the early market-oriented reform, they not only had the advantage of being the first mover, but also caused some contradictions and problems to emerge early and show signs, which were reflected in large numbers through petition channels. In this situation, it is very important and urgent to actively go deep into the masses, carry out work face-to-face, and properly solve problems related to the vital interests of the people.

On September 18, 2003, he took the lead and chose Pujiang, where the issue of petitions was most prominent, to personally receive visits from the masses.

In just one day, 14 reception groups received a total of 436 batches of 667 visitors and solved 91 long-standing problems on the spot.

Among them, Comrade Xi Jinping received 9 groups of more than 20 visitors, and solved the long-delayed livelihood problems on the spot, including the widening and reconstruction of 20 provincial roads, the demolition and resettlement of pre-school buildings, and the livelihood security of landless farmers.

Zhang Guoqiang, former director of the Pujiang County Petition Bureau, still remembers this special experience vividly. "The three details that left the deepest impression on me were the clear requirements of the province at that time: firstly, it was required to select difficult and representative petition materials with high public demand as reception materials; secondly, it was required that the capacity of the waiting area should be as large as possible, and temporary visitors should also be invited in and received well; thirdly, it was required to issue a large-scale petition announcement 10 days in advance, and another announcement 3 days before the petition to make the whole county well-known and well-known." Zhang Guoqiang explained that at that time, Pujiang took advantage of the leadership's petition to conduct a thorough investigation of petition problems over the years, effectively resolving a large number of long-standing cases. Promoted various tasks.

The work of letters and visits is known as "the most difficult thing in the world", but Comrade Xi Jinping's spirit of taking the lead in drilling into the "nest" of contradictions has been deeply affecting and changing the Pujiang River.

Yu Peifen, Secretary of the Pujiang County Party Committee, received petitioners at the Pujiang County Petition Bureau. Shared Alliance · Photo by Feng Yangkang from Pujiang

Over the past 20 years, the leading cadres of Pujiang County have been replaced one after another, but the practice of the Standing Committee of the County Committee to listen to reports on petition work and study the situation of petition work on a quarterly basis has never changed; The reception day for county leaders to visit on the 15th of each month has remained unchanged. For difficult petition cases, the county innovatively establishes and improves the "chief official handling letters" mechanism. The county party secretary reads and approves letters from the masses and regularly assigns them for supervision and handling; The department and township leaders track the entire process to ensure that there is always a response when there is a letter and an answer when there is a visit.

"Where the contradiction lies, the pace of leading cadres will go." He Haishen told reporters that in view of the accumulated cases of letters and visits and the outstanding problems of letters and visits, Pujiang has also innovated and launched the system of "special class resolution of leading cases". According to the requirements of "one case, one leader, one team, one plan, one grasp to the end", Pujiang has set up special classes on a case-by-case basis, striving to effectively resolve the "old accounts" of letters and visits, and visits, and visits will no longer accumulate outstanding problems.

"I am very satisfied with this result and can finally breathe a sigh of relief," said Jiang, a petitioner, with a long lost smile on his face. In recent years, Jiang has petitioned multiple times due to dissatisfaction with the compensation and resettlement for the construction of ecological corridors in central Zhejiang. After the county leadership supervised the handling of the petition, they coordinated and discussed multiple times, had heartfelt conversations with the petitioner, and formulated practical and feasible solutions in accordance with the law and policies, ultimately successfully resolving this backlog of cases.

The core essence of the "Pujiang experience" is to transform petitions from petitions by the masses to petitions by leaders, truly understand the people's situation, and act with sincerity, which is also the key to the evolution of the Pujiang petition over the past 20 years.

In response, Professor Jing Yuejin from the Department of Political Science at Tsinghua University pointed out that the county party committee and government in Pujiang have implemented the system of receiving visits from leading cadres with the determination and perseverance of "one after another" and "success does not depend on me". As a result, the petition work in Pujiang has achieved great results, forming a set of interconnected network systems and practical and effective institutional mechanisms, and moving from local practice to the whole country.

Be sure to work with deep emotions

During the interview for more than an hour, Xi Jinping and the heads of relevant departments patiently and meticulously preached relevant policies and regulations to them, discussed with them problem by problem, understood the reason, understood the law, and did the work repeatedly.

——Excerpted from the front page report of Zhejiang Daily on September 19, 2003

"Counting it all up, it's been a full 20 years."

Upon arriving at the former reception location - Pujiang Middle School, looking at the unchanged furnishings in front of him, Jiang Xingjian, a villager from Hangping Village in Hangping Town, suddenly recalled his thoughts from 20 years ago. On that day, Jiang Xingjian was among the first batch of visitors.

"After I walked into the reception room, the general secretary cordially waved to me to sit down, and I was sitting directly opposite him." Pointing to a row of tables and chairs in front of him, Jiang Xingjian excitedly told reporters about the scene at that time. "At that time, the general secretary was like an old friend and asked me where I came from and what kind of work I did. My nervous mood suddenly relaxed."

Subsequently, Jiang Xingjian recounted a prepared issue: the expansion and renovation of the Pujiang section of Provincial Highway 20. Previously, Jiang Xingjian, as a member of the County Political Consultative Conference, proposed the issue of renovating 20 provincial roads at the CPPCC meetings for 13 consecutive years, but it has not been resolved.

After listening carefully to their demands and soliciting the opinions of the person in charge of the Provincial Department of Communications, Comrade Xi Jinping said: "The 20 Provincial Highway is of great significance to the economic development of Pujiang. I agree with the Provincial Department of Communications to strive to start construction before the end of this year. I wish the road will enter construction as soon as possible, and thank you for your comments and suggestions for the decision-making of your superiors."

Current status of the Pujiang section of the 210 Provincial Highway. Sharing Alliance · Photo by Dai Tian in Pujiang

In October 2005, the 19.8 km long second-class highway from Maling to Puyang of Pujiang, the 20 provincial highway, was completed. The once rugged mountain road has become a flat and spacious road to get rich. The local people and past businessmen affectionately call this road "near average road" - through this road, the road for people to get rich and get well-off along the road is smoother, and the distance from the party and government is closer.

This spring, in Wujiang Village, Hangping Town, Pujiang County, Xue Yong led the villagers to organize, package, and pick peony flowers. The "flower economy" drove the villagers to work together towards prosperity. Shared Alliance · Jinhua Center Photo by Hu Xiaofei

Xue Yong, the person in charge of Zhejiang Danhuazhe Horticulture Co., Ltd., is a beneficiary of the expansion and renovation of the 20 provincial roads. Xue Yong, who returned to his hometown to start his own business, built a hundred acre flower field in Wujiang Village. "General Secretary has created a path for us to achieve common prosperity, and we have a greater responsibility to make our hometown more beautiful."

"We must work with deep feelings." Comrade Xi Jinping's instructions at that time have been engraved in the hearts of Party members and cadres in Pujiang, and have become the endogenous driving force for the continuous improvement of "Pujiang experience.

In the mediation room on the first floor of the Pujiang County Petition Bureau, the reporter opened the interview log of staff member Zhang Zhiming, and saw that it was densely filled with the demands and feedback of the masses, with neat and clear handwriting, and the content was detailed in every detail.

Appeal to emotions, explain to reason, and understand by law. For the past 20 years, Pujiang has always followed the requirements of General Secretary, insisting on making petition work an important task of understanding the people's situation, gathering people's wisdom, safeguarding people's interests, and consolidating people's hearts. Efforts have been made to safeguard, implement, and develop the interests of the people, and turn the "list of problems" into a "list of satisfaction".

To this end, Pujiang has established 224 "4+2" joint service teams composed of county government leaders, government officials, political and legal officials, disciplinary inspection and supervision officials, township leadership, and resident cadres. They go to the village on the 20th of each month to alleviate public concerns, resolve a large number of conflicts and disputes at the grassroots level, and eliminate them in the bud.

We have launched the "Warm Sentinel for the People" project, improved the mechanism for online petition work, timely handled various demands reflected by the masses on online platforms, actively guided and eased the emotions of the masses, and achieved the goal of saying things when there is something, and resolving things when there is nothing. At present, the "People's Warmth Sentry" platform receives more than 50 various appeals every day, with information completion rates and satisfaction rates reaching over 99% and 96%, respectively.

Pujiang also focuses on strengthening the construction of the rule of law, creating a petition ecosystem of "not wanting to visit, not needing to visit, and visiting at most once". Establish judge studios and lawyer mediation rooms in various township governance centers, adhere to the full process of coordination and resolution before litigation, during litigation, and after judgment, and fully leverage the power of communities, social workers, and associations to participate in the resolution of difficult letters and visits, fully bridging the last mile of conflict resolution.

In recent years, the county has repeatedly set new records for new litigation cases and civil and commercial cases. In 2018, Pujiang was awarded the title of "exemplary organization of National Legal County Establishment".

The "4+2" joint service team visited the Convenience Service Center in Guangfang Village, Zhengzhai Town, Pujiang County. Sharing Alliance · Pujiang Zheng Jiandong Photography

Break through at the root and establish at the institutional level

Xi Jinping stressed: in order for the work of letters and visits to be in place, the focus must be shifted downward, go deep into the grass-roots level, and organically combine perennial visits with regular appointments, key visits, and visits by leaders, so as to form a network system and a practical and effective working mechanism for the work of letters and visits.

——Excerpted from the front page report of Zhejiang Daily on September 18, 2003

"At that time, I heard that the county party secretary was receiving a visit on the street, so I went with a try and see attitude. I didn't expect that my big problem had really been solved," said Aunt Feng, who lives in Punan Street, happily.

People who are familiar with Aunt Feng are also happy for her because the top priority that has troubled her family for many years has been settled - the homestead has entered the approval stage.

Originally, at the end of last year, Yu Peifen, the Secretary of the Pujiang County Party Committee, went to Punan Street to receive a visit. Aunt Feng went to report that her homestead was requisitioned a long time ago due to road widening. At that time, the village committee promised to relocate, but due to years of time, missing records, and policy changes, the approval of the homestead encountered difficulties. After understanding the situation, Yu Peifen convened relevant departments on site to discuss and judge, and proposed a resolution plan.

At that time, after listening to the report on the entire interview activities, Comrade Xi Jinping emphasized that it is necessary to proceed from reality, establish and improve relevant work systems and work procedures, and use the standardization and improvement of the system to promote the standardization and improvement of the work of visits. This work is carried out in an all-round way and persevered well without being a mere formality.

Over the past 20 years, on the one hand, Pujiang has always adhered to the basic requirements of "county-level leaders opening doors for visits, township level leaders receiving visits at any time, and village level cadres visiting at home", ensuring that the system of follow-up visits is truly implemented and promoting the transformation of work style.

"Previously, it was' fear 'for cadres to visit and receive visits, but now it is' hope'. This change in mentality is due to the fact that it has been fully proven that receiving visits from the masses is conducive to further opening up channels for communication and exchange with grassroots people, promoting the Party's line policies and relevant laws and regulations face-to-face to the masses, effectively solving practical problems for the masses, and better studying, exploring, and grasping the laws of petition work and other work." Luo An, Executive Deputy Minister of the Organization Department of the Pujiang County Party Committee, told reporters, "As more cadres go down, fewer people come up. Now, cadres in Pujiang like to take the initiative to go down to the grassroots, and it has become a trend."

On the other hand, Pujiang closely follows the changes of the times and social changes, insists on "breaking" from the root, "establishing" from the system, shifting the "center of gravity" downward, and moving the "pass" forward, and constantly improving the long-term mechanism for preventing and resolving contradictions and disputes at the grass-roots level.

Grassroots are the source of petition problems and the main body in solving them. For the past 20 years, Pujiang has adhered to the principle of "solving the most prominent problem with all its might". Here, sewage has flowed horizontally and illegal constructions are everywhere, with 65% of petitions related to pollution and illegal constructions. Taking this as a breakthrough point, the local government has carried out the "Five Waters Co governance", "Three Improvements and One Demolition" actions, and the "Ten Million Project" construction. Within three years, all black and odorous rivers and milk rivers have been eliminated, creating the first batch of counties without illegal construction and the first batch of beautiful rural demonstration counties in Zhejiang.

For the past 20 years, Pujiang has adhered to the principle of "discovering problems on the front line and solving problems on the front line". We will comprehensively promote the mechanism of rapid handling of initial petitions, which includes immediate handling of simple petitions, rapid handling of general petitions, real-time handling of online petitions, and supervision of difficult petitions. We will provide the public with innovative measures such as a worry free and efficient system for handling public affairs and petitions, and make every effort to resolve initial petitions in their early stages. In 2022, the on-time acceptance rate of initial petitions in the county was 100%, the completion rate was 100%, the satisfaction rate was 99.17%, the follow-up rate was 96.06%, and the average processing time was 4.80 days.

In recent years, Pujiang has actively embraced digital reform, creating a national standardized pilot and digital application scenario for the "follow-up and reception" petition work in Pujiang, improving the quality and efficiency of the standardized construction of the social governance center, and setting an exemplary "Pujiang model" for the follow-up and reception work of leading cadres in the province and even the whole country.

In 2020, the "down visit and reception" petition work in Pujiang was included in the sixth batch of comprehensive standardization pilot projects for social management and public services by the National Standardization Administration. Last year, this pilot project passed the final review and acceptance. From "bonsai" to "panoramic", it has already become a national "Pujiang experience", further elevated to a "Pujiang standard" that can be replicated and promoted nationwide.

Yu Peifen, the Secretary of the Pujiang County Party Committee, took the initiative to go to the grassroots and do a good job in mass work face-to-face. Shared Alliance · Photo by Feng Yangkang from Pujiang

As the first stop for General Secretary's visits and reception during his work in Zhejiang, Pujiang will continue to bravely shoulder the mission and responsibilities of the first stop, continuously inherit and carry forward this valuable wealth, and deepen and improve the visits and reception of leading cadres through institutional innovation.

To safeguard the security of one party through petition work, and to assist in the governance of one party through the progress of petition work. Currently, in the face of new contradictions and problems, the ideological power and practical value of the "Pujiang Experience" spanning 20 years still shine brightly, and it is even more necessary for us to continue to promote and carry forward in grassroots governance in the new era.