Major political reforms should be launched in China to meet the demands of the people and to keep pace with economic developments, say pro-democracy activists in China and in exile.
The dissidents said that it was unreasonable for China to remain politically backward while its economy had improved so much.
Wan Runnan , international president of the Paris-based Federation for a Democratic China, has criticised the Chinese authorities for neglecting the country's political development.
'Those problems on the mainland now - like corruption, big disparities in wealth and damage to the environment - are due to the failure of political reforms to co-ordinate with the economic development,' said Mr Wan, who fled Beijing after the June 4 military suppression of the democracy movement in 1989.
He said the intensive crackdown on dissidents in the country last year demonstrated the fears and insecurity of the Chinese leaders in regard to their power.
Despite the arrest of most dissidents on the mainland, Mr Wan said he believed more activists would stand up for the cause as long as it was in the best interests of the people.
