Ethnic groups with a population of more than one million have members in the NPC Standing Committee, it adds.

For example, in the Tenth National People's Congress, there are415 deputies of ethnic minorities, accounting for 13.91 percent ofthe total number of deputies, 5.5 percentage points higher than the proportion of their populations in the nation's total population, it says.

Since the First National People's Congress, the white paper says, the proportion of deputies of ethnic minorities among the total number of deputies in every NPC has been higher than the proportion of their populations in the nation's total population in the corresponding periods.

According to the white paper, ethnic people are elected among the chairmen or vice-chairmen of the standing committees of the people's congresses in all 155 autonomous areas.

The heads of all autonomous regions, autonomous prefectures and autonomous counties are all citizens of the ethnic groups, exercising regional autonomy in the areas concerned, it says.

The Law on Regional Ethnic Autonomy also gives the legislature in autonomous areas the right to formulate self-government regulations and other separate regulations in light of particular political, economic and cultural conditions of the ethnic group.

According to the white paper, by the end of 2003, ethnic autonomous areas had formulated 133 self-government regulations and 384 separate regulations.

In light of the particular situation in each area, ethnic autonomous areas have made flexible alterations or provide supplementary regulations to 68 provisions in such laws as the Marriage Law, Inheritance Law, Election Law, Land Law and Grassland Law, it says.