A new edition of China's Constitution with amendments was placed on the bookshelf of Beijing-based Wangfujing Bookstore on Monday (Mar. 15), after the just-concluded annual session of the National People's Congress (NPC).

Sunday's closing meeting of the NPC, China's top legislature, adopted the amendments to Constitution with an overwhelming majority.

The amendments to the Constitution consist of 14 revisions, with the most prominent parts highlighting respect for and protection of human rights and protection of lawful private property.

Other major points of the amendments include the institution of the guiding role of the important "Three Represents" thought in the national political and social life, expressions of coordinated development of material civilization and political and cultural progress, and improvement of the land appropriation system.

The amendments were the fourth to China's Constitution, which contains 138 articles. The previous three amendments, made in 1988,1993 and 1999 respectively, highlighted the growth of the non-public economy and the market economy.

The new edition of the Constitution will soon be available to the general public in bookstores of all over the country, said its publisher, Beijing-based People's Publishing House.

Editor: Donald