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Beijing party boss demands tightened pre-congress order

The leading Chinese Communist Party (CCP) official has called for a tight lid on social unrest in the capital to prevent anything from tarnishing a major party meeting here next week, state press said yesterday.

"Maintaining stability is the No. 1 political task of the capital," the Beijing Daily quoted Liu Qi (劉淇), Beijing's CCP head, as saying at a meeting addressing social stability on Sunday. "Safeguarding a secure and stable social environment in order that the Communist Party's 17th Congress can open in a good social atmosphere is the most important task facing our work."

Chinese President Hu Jintao (胡錦濤) is expected to receive a second term at the five-yearly congress, which convenes in Beijing on Monday.

The meeting, which is expected to usher in a new blueprint for political and economic development, is also likely to reveal Hu's successor to take over China's reins of power in 2012.

Liu ordered city officials to resolve "contradictions among the people," referring to social unrest and groupings opposed to the ruling party.

"We must strengthen our work at preventing domestic and overseas hostile forces from carrying out activities aimed at infiltration and sabotage," Liu said. "We need early discovery, early reporting, early preemption and early resolution. We must raise our capability to preempt and reduce threats to their lowest limit."

Large-scale political events such as the party congress are often accompanied by police crackdowns.

Several leading rights activists and dissidents said police supervision had been stepped up in recent days, with AIDS campaigner Hu Jia (胡佳) saying that up to 14 police followed him when he left his home over the weekend.

Leading human rights lawyer Li Heping (李和平) last week said he was beaten by unidentified thugs after he refused police demands that he leave Beijing.

Prominent rights lawyer Gao Zhisheng (高智晟) and Ye Guo-qiang, an activist fighting against forced evictions, have also disappeared into police custody.
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