BEIJING: With stringent anti-epidemic measures, political advisors in Beijing kicked off their annual meeting to pool wisdom for the city’s development in the coming year. The meeting came at a time when a string of locally transmitted COVID-19 cases have been reported in the national capital, sounding the alarm bell in epidemic prevention and control. A total of 609 political advisors attended the meeting in person, while 116 others joined the discussions virtually. The in-person attendees were asked to take nucleic acid tests after checking into the hotel and were forbidden from leaving their rooms before receiving negative results. They were also advised to have meals at staggered timings. Physical barriers using transparent panels were erected on dining tables as part of prevention measures. The municipal legislative meeting will open on Saturday. Both the political consultative and legislative meetings, collectively known as “two sessions,” have been slashed to four and a half days, compared with six and seven days last year. Li Wenjun, a political advisor in Beijing and chairman of pharmaceutical company Shouyao Holdings, said convening the “two sessions” after an epidemic-ravaged year can help stabilize social development and public sentiment in Beijing. “China effectively contained the spread of the virus early on and became the only major economy to achieve positive growth in 2020,” Li said, adding that he hopes the “two sessions” in Beijing will be able to inject new impetus into the city’s development in 2021.
– The Daily Mail-People’s Daily News exchange item
