Party crashers

2 November 2012 By John Foley Follow @johnsfoley

Flying pigeons, opening taxi windows and buying knives are among the activities banned in Beijing during China’s leadership handover. The anxiety shows cracks in the system, but what’s remarkable is how China remains basically stable, and not all because of heavy-handed measures.

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Pigeon flying and opening the rear windows of taxis are among activities banned as potential threats to stability during China’s 18th Party Congress, which begins on Nov. 8.
Police presence was also stepped up around the city ahead of the week-long event, at which General Secretary Hu Jintao is expected to hand his party leadership over to Vice President Xi Jinping. Dissidents had been placed under house arrest or told to leave Beijing, according to Chinese Human Rights Defenders.
Li Zhonghe, a retired construction worker, told Reuters he would have to keep his 40 to 50 pigeons in coops when the congress starts, adding “it’s this way every time there is a congress”.
China’s risk rating, according to the Economist Intelligence Unit, was 41 out of a potential 100 in October. The index comprises political, economic and liquidity risk. In October 2002, when China’s last leadership transition took place, the reading was 45.

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