Breaking: Central Official leads Sichuan Mission to Strengthen Petition Governance and Legalize Public Appeals

From December 17 to 19, Li Wenwen, the vice Minister of the Central Ministry of Social Work and Director of the National bureau of Letters and Calls, conducted a field study in Sichuan Province focused on strengthening the legalization of petition work and addressing root causes of petition issues. She also led targeted study sessions for provincial agencies to advance reform and governance.

On the morning of December 18, a dedicated study session was convened to boost understanding of the Fourth Plenary Session of the 20th CPC Central Committee and to align Xi Jinping’s guidance on improving petition work with local governance. The visit included visits to key institutions and officials to assess progress and identify next steps.

during the inspection,Li wenwen visited the sichuan Provincial Letters and calls Bureau,the Chengdu Wuhou District Letters and Calls Bureau,and the Chengdu Mass Visitor Reception Center,engaging with petition cadres and reviewing how departments at multiple levels promote petition legalization,address “four responses and four no” issues,and strengthen source management to prevent and resolve disputes. She held in-depth exchanges with Sichuan’s top leaders and petition managers to discuss handling petitions under new conditions.

Li Wenwen lauded Sichuan’s ongoing efforts in petition work, noting the province’s strong political emphasis on petitions and leaders’ direct involvement in grassroots petition reception. She described a collaborative, top-to-bottom governance pattern where upper and lower levels are linked and jointly managed. Local departments were commended for enforcing the Regulations on Letters and Calls, advancing petition legalization, tightening source management of petition issues, and resolving conflicts at the grassroots level, contributing to social harmony and stability.

In the afternoon, li Wenwen announced that the team would continue to study and implement General Secretary Xi Jinping’s instructions and the Fourth Plenary Session’s deployments. The aim is to tightly integrate these directives with efforts to strengthen petition governance, understand responsibilities and reform tasks, and pursue new ideas and methods to enhance governance capabilities. She underscored the need to standardize the acceptance and processing of appeals according to a clear road map and to ensure every mass appeal is assigned and advanced under the law.

The official stressed a concerted push to resolve petition-source conflicts and the backlog of cases, preserve the Maple Bridge Experience in the new era, and ensure ongoing effectiveness of source-control measures over a three-year horizon. She urged robust leadership engagement in petition visits, activation of the joint petitions mechanism, and strengthening industry authorities’ responsibilities. She also called for expanding channels that involve social groups in petition work and for early resolution of conflicts at the grassroots level.

She emphasized safeguarding public order and stability by conducting regular reviews of petition dynamics, promptly identifying emerging issues, and ensuring petitions and visits proceed in an orderly manner.Strengthening the petition cadre team and the overall capacity of petition departments was highlighted as essential to high-quality petition progress.

During the visit, Li Wenwen delivered a briefing for a provincial-agency special study meeting themed “In-Depth study and Implementation of Xi Jinping’s Thought on Strengthening and Improving People’s Petition Work to promote High-Quality Development of Petition Work in the New Era.” She noted the party’s enduring emphasis on petitions and the need to fully grasp the core tenets of Xi Jinping’s “Nine Persistences.” The briefing also called for the full implementation of the Regulations on Letters and Calls, reinforcing party leadership over petition work and advancing a new petitioning pattern. The goal is to raise the five legalization levels-prevention, acceptance, handling, supervision, and accountability-and to maintain order and meet the public’s expectations while clarifying rights and responsibilities.

Li Wenwen concluded that understanding the current petition landscape is crucial to advancing legalization, resolving disputes, and ensuring that leading cadres continue to engage in petition reception while strengthening petition departments and personnel to support the ongoing development of petition work.

Key Facts at a Glance

Evergreen Insights: What This Signals for petition Governance

The visit underscores a sustained push to normalize petition handling within a formal legal and institutional framework. By tying local efforts to national directives and the Maple Bridge Experience, authorities aim to prevent disputes before they escalate and to ensure predictable, lawful processing of public appeals. The emphasis on “five legalization” dimensions-prevention, acceptance, handling, supervision, and accountability-offers a scalable blueprint for other provinces seeking to institutionalize petition work without compromising responsiveness to the public.

Long-term governance gains hinge on continuous training, stronger leadership involvement, and broader participation by social forces in petition processes. As petition work becomes more standardized and transparent, communities can expect more timely resolutions and greater confidence in local governance-an outcome that supports social stability alongside economic development.

what do you think are the most effective ways to balance fast resolution of petitions with rigorous legal processing? how can provincial authorities sustain momentum in petition governance after such high-level visits?

Share your thoughts and perspectives below.