Uncertainty Surrounds the Holding of China's 'National People's Congress' Amid the Spread of Novel Coronavirus

[Image source=EPA Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Beijing=Special Correspondent Park Sun-mi] The spread of the novel coronavirus infection (Wuhan pneumonia) has cast doubt on the holding of China’s largest annual political event, the Two Sessions (Lianghui: National People's Congress and Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference), originally scheduled for early March. Local governments across China are extending the Lunar New Year holiday to fully focus on preventing the virus spread.

According to the South China Morning Post (SCMP) on the 29th, local governments in China are postponing internal meetings held ahead of the Two Sessions one after another.

Yunnan Province has indefinitely postponed the Yunnan Provincial People's Congress (parliament), which was originally scheduled for the 3rd of next month. The Yunnan government explained that the postponement was to prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus. More than ten local governments, including Sichuan Province, have also taken measures to postpone internal meetings one after another, some without disclosing the reasons.

This movement by local governments came after Chinese Premier Li Keqiang ordered all meetings and regional events to be postponed to fully focus on preventing the spread of the novel coronavirus. SCMP assessed that before the Two Sessions in March, local government-level meetings and internal opinion-gathering processes usually take place first, but with local government meetings nationwide being suspended one after another, the holding of the Two Sessions is also uncertain.

Professor Gu Su of the Department of Political Science at Nanjing University said, "The Chinese central government is likely considering postponing the Two Sessions scheduled for March. Although there is still more than a month left until the Two Sessions, they will likely make a cautious decision considering the novel coronavirus incubation period of up to two weeks."

Generally, China’s Two Sessions last about two weeks, with more than 5,000 participants gathering in Beijing from all over the country. It is the largest political event symbolizing China’s 'unity,' where annual policies such as this year’s economic growth targets and national budget are discussed and decided.

However, this year’s Two Sessions do not involve urgent political tasks like cabinet reshuffles, so if the novel coronavirus situation does not calm down, the central government may find it more burdensome to gather politicians from local governments.

Local governments believe that controlling population movement is effective in preventing virus spread, and after extending the Lunar New Year holiday, originally until the 30th of this month, by three more days until February 3rd, they are now considering further extensions. Several local education authorities in China have already tentatively postponed the start of elementary, middle, and high schools until after February 17th.

Shanghai City was the first to ban companies from resuming work until the 9th of next month, and Jiangsu Province, Guangdong Province, and Chongqing City have also extended their companies’ holidays until the 9th of next month, following Shanghai’s example. As a result, general workers in these regions will have a long 17-day holiday from the 24th of last month until the 9th of next month.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.