China defends lifting of presidential term limit

China on Sunday defended its plan to scrap presidential term limits, which would see Chinese President Xi Jinping rule for life, as well as consolidating key leadership positions, according to media reports.

According to Zhang Yesui, the spokesperson for the National People's Congress, the constitutional amendment plans to bring the post of the president in line with other positions such as the post of General Secretary of the ruling Communist Party and the chairman of the Central Military Commission, that controls the armed forces.

"The move is conducive to uphold the authority of the (Communist Party) Central Committee with Xi at the core, and also the unified leadership. It will also be conducive to the state leadership system," he added.

While the amendment is expected to pass with near unanimous approval by the committee, it has aroused criticism among China's embattled liberal activists as a reversion to the era of former Chinese communist leader Mao Zedong, whose rule led China into famine, chaos and ultimately political stagnation.

The annual legislative session, which starts from Monday, is set to approve a proposal to scrap the presidential term limits on Xi.

Last week, the ruling Communist Party has proposed to remove the two-term restriction for the presidency from China's constitution.

According to Xinhua news agency, a proposal by the CPC Central Committee will allow the President and Vice-President of China to serve more than two consecutive terms.