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China's 'Two Sessions' 2016
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China’s national flag flies above the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, where the annual meeting of China’s legislature and elite political advisors will take place this month. Photo: EPA

New | 5 things the world is watching at China’s biggest political show of the year

We give you the lowdown on the key issues to keep your eye on in the upcoming annual meeting of China’s legislature and elite political advisors

1. Who are the rising stars?

Political watchers will be keeping their eyes peeled to spot the rising stars at this year’s plenary sessions.

The next party congress in 2017 will see five of the Politburo Standing Committee’s seven members retire, leaving just President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Keqiang. Another six members in the 25-man Politburo will also step down next year.

The Politburo sets policies and controls legal, executive and administrative appointments; the Politburo Standing Committee – the nation’s highest decision-making body – is where power is concentrated.

READ MORE: Can Xi Jinping turn China’s political theatre into a hit one-man show?

2. What now for the People’s Liberation Army?

How has the PLA fared since Beijing restructured the military in a bid to transform it into a modern, integrated force?

The PLA has downsized its troops by 300,000 and ditched its decades-old system seven military regions, replacing them with five new theatre commands.

Differences are expected to surface among the PLA departments as military personnel adjust to the changes. The sessions will be a rare opportunity to observe the force’s morale and synergy, especially as political and geological tensions are mounting.

READ MORE: The radical plan to turn China’s People’s Liberation Army into a modern fighting force

3. How bad, really, is China’s economy?

A casual chat with the nation’s delegates across the country will shed some light on how the economy in their region is faring.

The delegates’ answers to questions such as how firms in their region are doing, how their local governments are handling the growing debt issue, and how high property vacancy rates are, will give us an idea of just how well – or badly – the Chinese economy is doing as a whole.

READ MORE: Stand aside Likonomics ... here’s Xiconomics: How President Xi Jinping is taking the reins of China’s economy

4. Will China launch a stimulus package like its 4 trillion yuan liquidity programme in the wake of the 2008-09 global financial crisis?

Remarks of senior officials and economists during the plenary sessions will give indications of the extent of Beijing’s willingness and ability to address the economic slowdown. What plans does it have and how far will it go to boost its stalling economy?

READ MORE: Good news for China’s economy ... and bad news, too: Beijing poised to increase money supply to boost growth but risks on rise

5. How are the political elites taking to President Xi Jinping’s leadership style and policies?

Three years on since he took the helm in late 2012, Xi’s strongman style has stood out among other party leaders in the history of collective decision.

It will be worth observing whether the political elites feel the need to express their appreciation and loyalty to the party – if not Xi himself – in public.

It is also an occasion to see if they are content with the changes over the past three years, such as in terms of ideological control, the army’s reforms, the corruption campaign, stricter regulation on party members’ behaviours, and whether they believe the “governance by rule of law” principle is being respected.

READ MORE: Xi Jinping’s ambitious power play

Key dates

The Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference opens on Thursday, March 3, with chairman Yu Zhengsheng to deliver a report on the top advisory body’s work in the past year.

The National People’s Congress starts on Saturday, March 5, with Premier Li Keqiang scheduled to deliver his government report.

The main purpose of the “two sessions” is to endorse the next five-year plan, which aims to double gross domestic product and per capita income from levels a decade earlier.

Other key government agencies will hold press conferences throughout the annual meeting, which will close by mid-March.

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