In China, a canceled meeting sends a message

A DAY after Chinese state media reported that key government figures were in the beach resort town of Beidaihe welcoming researchers and scholars, state media ran an article noting that the annual unofficial government meeting at Beidaihe was likely canceled. The mixed messages instantly elicited questions among China watchers abroad, raising speculation that the cancellation was related to the anti-corruption campaign, was a sign of internal political troubles, or was just anomalous but not entirely out of the ordinary. (After all, former President Hu Jintao canceled the meeting in 2003, and some Chinese media have suggested that it really hasn’t been important since then.)

The annual gathering at Beidaihe draws intense speculation in China and abroad each year. Started in the 1950s under Mao Zedong, the meetings were an opportunity for central and local Party officials and Party elders to gather in an informal setting, beat the summer heat and hash out critical government policies. Debates over key initiatives, questions concerning the efficacy of policies, and horse trading over future personnel decisions were all fair game at Beidaihe. None of this was official, and state media rarely mentioned the meetings, much less speculated on them.