No more face masks or social distancing rules. For the first time in four years, thousands of delegates attending China's biggest political event of the year were able to mingle and sip tea like the old days in the sprawling foyer of Beijing's Great Hall of the People.
While some Covid testing requirements remain in place, on the surface, everything else seems back to pre-pandemic normal at the annual meetings of the rubber-stamp national legislature and China's top political advisory body.
But this year's event also provides a fresh window into persisting controls and increasing opaqueness of the political system under leader Xi Jinping, who has prioritized security and strengthened the ruling Communist Party's grip over everything – including the so-called "two sessions" itself.
More than ever, Xi is looming large over the gathering, which had traditionally been a stage for the Chinese premier and the central government to shine.
Beijing sent what observers say was a strong signal of that a day ahead of the opening of the National People's Congress earlier this week – announcing that it was scrapping an annual press conference led by the premier – a three-decades-old political tradition that has long been a key landmark of the meeting, typically televised and highly anticipated.
A government representative claimed the change was due to other opportunities for interviews.
But observers saw one fewer chance for the world's media, international observers, and Chinese citizens to get first-hand insight into the thinking of the country's nominal No. 2 official, who is charged with running its economy – and one more move for Xi to cement his control over the official narrative.
"The press conference is typically the only channel for any senior official in China to have a direct communication with the outside, especially with foreign media," said Liu Dongshu, an assistant professor focusing on Chinese politics at City University of Hong Kong.
"If you think about our image of past premiers, a lot of our understanding of their personality, reputation, authority is actually based on what they said in the press conference … removing this channel for the premier is consistent with the change that Xi Jinping is the only one that they want to signal to the outside (and) everyone else … is to some extent just a follower," he said.
While the press conferences themselves are carefully stage-managed, they have in the past provided moments for premiers to inject their own persona and views – or make departures from official lines, providing rare insight into thinking or even debates among China's elite leaders.
Former Premier Li Keqiang famously noted in his 2020 conference that, as Xi hailed China's efforts in in poverty alleviation, 600 million people in the country still had a monthly income of just 1,000 yuan ($137).
Current premier and Xi protégé Li Qiang, who was expected to lead the closing event this time, however, has not appeared to have such an inclination. He used his first and likely last press conference last year to highlight the prominence of the Communist Party over the state government.
And on Tuesday, Li mentioned Xi's name 16 times when delivering the government's work report to delegates. "We owe our achievements in 2023 to General Secretary Xi Jinping, who is at the helm charting the course, and to the sound guidance of Xi Jinping Thought," Li said.
Keep reading about the heavy security measures.
More on the "two sessions":
