Last week, the slight figure of a man in a suit speaking rather bashfully to a 200-strong audience was something of an eyebrow raiser. Author of the outspoken book The Coming Collapse of China, Gordon Chang was speaking freely at a public meeting in a cafe-bar.
Chang was in Beijing to plug his latest controversial book, Nuclear Showdown, about the nuclear weapons standoff with North Korea. He used the opportunity to reiterate many of the claims made in his first book, including that China would 'collapse before the end of the decade'. What was surprising was not what he said - but that he was able to say it at all. The Coming Collapse of China was banned on the mainland on its publication in 2001.
Chang, who lived and worked on the mainland for 20 years, was dumbfounded when he was granted a visa to return on this trip. 'I got it in New York without any trouble at all,' he said. 'I was really surprised - but they do so many a day that maybe they didn't notice.' The event had been advertised weeks in advance, yet not a move was made to stop it. Is this a sign that transparency is really on the way? We've seen other signs, too.
In complete contrast to the severe acute respiratory syndrome epidemic in 2003, the media have been told they may freely report on bird-flu outbreaks, and they have done so responsibly and thoroughly.
The decision to close down the outspoken Bing Dian newspaper supplement was overturned after a letter condemning the move was sent by party elders. It has reappeared on newsstands - albeit, minus editor Li Datong .
For the first time, at the end of a National Party Congress, a Chinese premier invited foreign journalists to quiz him at a proper press conference. Unrehearsed and certainly unprimed, questions and Wen Jiabao's answers were televised live on national TV for 2? hours, covering sensitive topics such as internet censorship and rural protests.
