Two Sessions 2020 (Lianghui)

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has promised Hongkongers “one of the biggest changes in our visa system in British history” if Beijing pushes through the national security law.  In an op-ed published in the South China Morning Post and The Times of London on Wednesday, Johnson acknowledged that “many people in Hong Kong fear their way of life … is under threat” since the National People’s Congress proposed the law last month. It was his first direct message to the former British colony amid the recent political furor. “If China proceeds to justify their fears, then Britain could not in good conscience shrug our shoulders and walk away; instead, we will honor our obligations and provide

Economists, diplomats and business figures were scrambling on Thursday to quantify the effect of Washington’s decision to deem Hong Kong “no longer autonomous” from China.  The US decision came hours before China’s top legislature endorsed moves to impose national security legislation on the former British colony, which returned to Chinese rule in 1997 under the promise that it would enjoy a high degree of autonomy.  Many of the Hong Kong stakeholders gamed out the “nuclear option,” in which the United States revokes the city’s special trading status. Former White House officials said that the most likely immediate scenario is that US President Donald Trump approves a “variety” of sanctions

Chinese President Xi Jinping has told the military that it needs to become more prepared for armed confrontation and improve its ability to carry out military tasks.  On the sidelines of the annual meeting of the National People’s Congress, Xi said the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) had performed well in helping to contain the Covid-19 outbreak but should explore new ways of training during the pandemic.  “It is necessary to step up preparations for armed combat, to flexibly carry out actual combat military training, and to improve our military’s ability to perform military missions,” he was quoted by the state-run Xinhua news agency as saying.  The comments come as defense ministry spokesm

A controversial national security law concerning Hong Kong is expected to be on the agenda as China’s rubber-stamp legislative body, the National People’s Congress, began its most important annual meeting on Friday.  The law would ban all seditious activities aimed at toppling the central government and external interference in the city’s affairs, as well as target terrorist acts in Hong Kong. Beijing’s plan to make the law was announced less than a year after a proposal to allow extraditions from Hong Kong to mainland China sparked months of street unrest. Chinese officials have blamed foreign interference for fueling the protests. Critics of the expected legislation, including Hong Kong’s

China normally holds its most important annual political meetings in March, when the top political advisory body and national legislature gather. But in 2020, the meetings were postponed to May 22, 2020 because of the coronavirus pandemic. Although the “two sessions” take place only days apart on the political calendar, the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Congress (CPPCC) and the National People’s Congress (NPC) are two very distinct gatherings. Here’s a closer look at how the two sessions, known as lianghui in Chinese, shape the nation’s policies.