China’s new security chief said Monday that the country will end its system of forcing petty criminals and government critics to perform manual labor for up to four years without trial, South China Morning Post reported. The halting of the “re-education through labor” practice is subject to approval by the National People’s Congress in March, Meng Jianzhu, the newly appointed secretary of the Political and Legal Affairs Committee, said at a law conference. State media was divided on its analysis of Meng’s remarks, with Xinhua reporting only a “reform” of the system and some analysts highlighting Meng’s use of the word “halting” rather than “abolishing,” which may indicate a continuation of the practice in some form. The system was established in the 1950s under Mao Zedong as a means to control “class enemies” and has continued to be used to silence government critics.