Beidaihe meeting on leadership succession ends, say analysts

The secretive party conclave in the beach resort of Beidaihe is widely believed to have come to an end last weekend, setting the tone for the once-in-a-decade leadership succession later this year, according to political analysts.

Although state media and mainland officials have remained tight-lipped about the existence of such a meeting, the analysts said all signs pointed to the conclusion of this year's seaside gathering, where the most important personnel and policy issues were expected to be finalised ahead of the 18th party congress this autumn.

The most telling evidence was said to be a state television report yesterday that Premier Wen Jiabao had embarked on an inspection trip to the eastern province of Zhejiang on Tuesday.

"We knew that the conclave may have been under way when state leaders, including Vice-President Xi Jinping , began showing up in Beidaihe for various public functions late last month, according to state media reports," veteran China watcher Johnny Lau Yui-siu said.

Both Lau and Professor Hu Xingdou , a Beijing-based analyst, said CCTV's coverage of Wen's trip to Zhejiang was an unequivocal sign that the Beidaihe meeting, which usually lasted about 10 days to two weeks, had ended.

They noted that several other recent events, such as the trial of Gu Kailai, wife of the disgraced former Chongqing party chief Bo Xilai , also showed that the nation's top incumbent and retired leaders had reached a broad consensus on the central government's future leadership, through behind-the-scene negotiations.