China party praises Hu's harmony doctrine

BEIJING, Oct 11 (Reuters) China's Communist Party lauded President Hu Jintao's doctrine of creating a harmonious society today, underscoring his growing strength as the party announced plans for a key congress next year.

A four-day session of the ruling party's Central Committee -- a panel of some 350 members -- ended by approving a decision ''on constructing a socialist harmonious society'' and saying the 17th Party Congress would convene later next year, the official Xinhua news agency reported.

''There are quite many contradictions and issues that impair social harmony,'' Xinhua quoted the statement as saying.

Hu, who was appointed party general secretary at the previous congress in 2002, is expected to consolidate his grip on power and ideology at the 2007 meeting.

Hu has summed up his agenda by calling for a society that narrows social inequality. The Central Committee's decision will further overshadow the legacy of Hu's predecessor, Jiang Zemin, who ushered capitalists into the Communist Party.

The party will focus on improving China's legal system, narrowing the gap between rich and poor, and improving government services, Xinhua said.

But initial Chinese media reports left unclear whether the closed-door meeting had made any decision on Chen Liangyu, the sacked Shanghai party boss, whose downfall last month highlighted concerns about widespread corruption and official abuse.

Chen also lost his seat in the party's 24-member Politburo, the first member of the decision-making body to be sacked since 1995 when Jiang purged and jailed Beijing party boss Chen Xitong. The two Chens are not related.

Shanghai Mayor Han Zheng has been named the city's acting party chief, and some party insiders had said Hu might use the Central Committee session to appoint a protege to run the financial metropolis, consolidating his power in the run-up to next year's Party Congress.

If Han stays on, analysts said, it would be a sign there would be no major government personnel shake-up in Shanghai.

REUTERS PDM PM1625