Civil servants chopped from hearings

GUANGZHOU - Government officials and civil servants in this capital city of Guangdong province will no longer be selected as representatives for public hearings starting September.

The trial measures are designed to ensure fairness at the hearings, which are organized when local residents have major disagreements on important city issues.

"Officials and civil servants usually have more channels to express their opinions. So non-government employees can better represent the public," said Lin Qi, deputy director of the Legislative Affairs Office of Guangzhou.