Hu eschews luxury and isolation of Beidaihe resort

For the past half-century, as July's sizzle gave way to August's swelter, the Communist leadership has decamped to a resort on the Bohai Sea known for its gated mansions and dense fog of political intrigue.

Mao Zedong (毛澤東) and his successors, Deng Xiaoping (鄧小平) and Jiang Zemin (江澤民), tested their vigor there by swimming in the Bohai's mud-colored surf and juggling positions in the Communist Party hierarchy, free from the sometimes cumbersome formalities of decision making in the capital.

But in a move that seems to be equal parts public relations and back-room maneuvering, Hu Jintao (胡錦濤), the newly installed president and Communist Party chief, has canceled the seaside retreat and ordered senior leaders to sweat out the summer at home.

The decision to end the secretive meetings marks Hu's most formal break with Communist tradition. It is also the strongest signal that he intends to manage party affairs differently from Jiang, his immediate predecessor.

The resort, Beidaihe, is under 300km from Beijing and is popular with sightseers and state workers on vacation. But they have long been consigned to the beaches outside the long white walls and neatly kept lawns of West Mountain Compound, China's Newport and Camp David rolled into one. Its European-influenced summer spreads were built when colonial powers controlled China's major port cities, but they have been used exclusively by the party elite since the 1950s.

Beidaihe offers an unusually conspicuous display of Communist Party perks and power, making it a target for Hu's plain-living campaign. He has already done away with the elaborate send-offs for top leaders going abroad. He has also promised openness and has begun publicizing the dates and topics for Politburo meetings, contrary to the Beidaihe tradition of secrecy.

In a front-page commentary last week, the state-run Science and Technology Daily expected a popular response: "The decision sets a new example for the whole party and is a populist measure for clean government that will stir people's hearts. It is sure to win applause."

It could also have the practical effect of limiting the leeway that Jiang and other retired party leaders have to meddle in politics. Beidaihe provided elders who had given up formal titles with a casual setting to exchange gossip, hobnob with rising officials, and help set the agenda for China's annual plenum, or planning session, which generally takes place in the early fall.

Hu may have seen the retreat as unlikely to offer him many advantages. Hu, 60, holds China's most important positions but is still trying to build political heft to match Jiang, who remains China's military chief and counts many members of the Politburo Standing Committee as close allies.

Hu and Jiang both have assigned homes at Beidaihe, but Jiang's, by tradition, is grander.

"Beidaihe was most popular among the old cadres because it is not always easy for them to participate in decision making in Beijing," said Wu Jiaxiang, a political analyst and former party official. "Doing away with it is mainly about how the new leadership wants to manage party affairs internally."