Door to secretive China Congress opens by a crack

By Benjamin Kang Lim and Lindsay Beck

BEIJING (Reuters) – In Mao Zedong’s day, the world was not even aware China’s ruling Communist Party was holding one of its agenda-setting congresses until the whole event was over.

When the meeting packed up, firecrackers lit up the sky over Beijing and state television announced its great success, with no one outside of the Party’s inner circle any the wiser about what went on behind closed doors.

The Mao era is long over, but the Party is still firmly in charge, and with its 17th Congress under way, the door to its secretive meetings is opening — if only by a crack.

胡锦涛 Hu Jintao

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http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20071020/wl_nm/china_party_openness_dc_1