In the Great Hall of the People, west of Tiananmen Square, everything is ready for the opening of China’s advisory council to begin tomorrow, the prelude to the National People’s Congress (PNA) this Friday, the biggest political event in the world. year, the annual meeting of the Chinese Parliament. Much has changed the scenario from one year to the next in the second world power. In May 2020, the languid as these two legislative sessions are known in China began 78 days late due to the pandemic. It was the first time it had been postponed since Mao Zedong’s Cultural Revolution. After a seven-day conclave behind closed doors, the conclusions reached by political leaders were not very positive: for the first time, a growth target was not set because GDP contracted by 6.8% during the first quarter of the year. anus.
This time, the ANP will start with the majority of Chinese cities practically living normal lives. And with an economy that is the only one that grew among the world powers. Not forgetting that a few days ago President Xi Jinping announced the “total eradication of extreme poverty.” Beijing’s leaders to highlight their achievements in the year marking the centenary of the founding of the Communist Party of China (CCP)
The event will try to steer the course of economic recovery and will unveil the XIV Five-Year Plan, which will mark the course of the economy until 2025 and which was drafted in October by the 364 members of the CPC Central Committee, the decision-making body within of a party that has 89 million members. In theory, the 3,000 deputies from across the country who will meet for a week in the Assembly, including members of the Central Committee have the power and vote to enact laws and oversee the work of the government. Although in reality, what they do is seal and applaud some guidelines already decided in advance by the Executive.
Some generic brushstrokes are known about the new plan for the future advances towards technological self-sufficiency, designing a more innovative economy improving trade, cleaning the atmosphere, and defending the nation from external threats. This last point will cover great attention, especially while waiting to know how much the military budget will increase this year after the advance of the People’s Liberation Army in the South China Sea, the continuous dispute with Taiwan and the United States in those waters, and the clashes on the Himalayan border with India.
Also, the document to be presented by Chinese Prime Minister Li Keqiang will speak of dual circulation a new form of development that takes the domestic market as its main pillar while trying to benefit from globalization. An inward economic shift, which seeks an economy based on self-sufficiency, to promote home consumption, which is the source of 57.8% of the country’s wealth. All this, according to the official summary of the meeting for the Five-Year Plan, will be led by Xi Jinping as the navigator and main helmsman who will propel the Asian country in its new Great Leap Forward.
Another of the key issues to be discussed in the Assembly will be the situation in Hong Kong. The Chinese Parliament already approved on June 30 the National Security Law in the former British colony, by which any act of protest, or that the authorities consider independence or subversive proclamation can be considered sedition and the maximum penalty is chain life. What came next was the arrest of hundreds of activists who led the 2019 pro-democracy protests and the resignation en bloc of all MPs opposed to Beijing, many of whom have been detained in recent weeks and are on trial for subversion.
According to Chinese state media, the ANP will establish new reforms in Hong Kong to further control the territory. These changes will touch the electoral system of the city. A plan is underway to ensure that only patriots can rule Hong Kong, Xia Baolong, head of the Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office, said a week ago. The city’s electoral system has to be improved to ensure the comprehensive management of Hong Kong by the central government Xia said. What was interpreted as the intention that politicians running for a seat on the Hong Kong Legislative Council may have to first swear their allegiance to Beijing?
