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Leadership: Beijing May Hold “Lianghui” (“The Two Conferences”) in Late April or Early May

The “Lianghui,” or the “Two Conferences,” is a common Mandarin Chinese abbreviation for the national or local People’s Congress and the national or local committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference. It’s a rubber stamp process to show that representatives of the people in the country or in a local region review and approve of the work of the central or local government and make decisions about the personnel in the committees of the People’s Congress and the People’s Political Consultative Conference.

The national level of the “Lianghui” was scheduled to be held in Beijing in early March, but due to the outbreak of the coronavirus, Beijing suspended it.

Lianhe Zaobao, a newspaper in Singapore, reported that, according to insider information, Beijing is temporarily planning to hold the two conferences at end of April or early May. It mentioned that Reuters reported that the date has not been yet been set but that the number of people attending might be reduced and people outside of Beijing attending the conference will go through quarantine.

Lianhe Zaobao commented that it may be a key indicator if the two conferences can take place in two months. It will mean that the China’s leaders are thinking that everything is getting back to normal.

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Excerpt in Chinese:

随着中国冠病疫情受控,知情人士透露,中国暂时计划4月底或5月初在北京召开今年的全国两会(人大与政协年会)。

据路透社报道,会议召开日期尚未敲定,但其中一名参与筹备工作的消息人士透露,出席人数可能会减少,而从北京以外的地区参会的人员也需要接受隔离。

中国如果可以在未来两个月内召开两会,将是一项重要指标,因为这意味着中国领导层认为,情况正在恢复正常。

按照惯例,全国两会每年3月举行,期间会有5000名来自各地的代表和委员齐聚北京人民大会堂。为了全力防控疫情,人大常委会上个月决定推迟召开全国人大会议,全国政协主席会议也建议推迟全国政协会议,具体时间另行确定。

Source: Lianhe Zaobao, March 17, 2020
https://www.zaobao.com.sg/realtime/china/story20200317-1037904