CHINA: Some delegates come to China's National People's Congress wearing grey Mao suits; others sport brightly coloured ethnic costumes or smart business suits. A fair peppering of delegates at the annual parliament meeting this weekend will be in military uniform. Clifford Coonan reports from Beijing
Whatever they're wearing, all of them are expected to back an "anti-secession law" focused on Taiwan and will happily sign off on a big increase in the defence budget, which is also drawn up with Taiwan in mind.
And with a decision on who will succeed outgoing Hong Kong chief executive Tung Chee-hwa also expected at the meeting, what is generally a ceremonial event is suddenly taking on major significance.
The National People's Congress is often low on surprises and big on protocol. It's where laws drawn up behind closed doors by the Communist Party's top cadres are given the rubber stamp of approval by grassroots representatives.
But the profile of the congress has been raised this year because Taiwan will be top of the agenda when Premier Wen Jiabao makes his annual address today. He describes the anti-secession bill as a major step towards stifling growing "independence forces" on the island.
Beijing claims that Taiwan, which has been separated from the mainland since the civil war in 1949 which saw the Communists gain power, is a renegade territory and has not ruled out reunification by force.
It has hundreds of missiles stationed just across the Strait of Taiwan.
China's refusal to renounce the use of force against Taiwan will be underlined by the 2005 budget report to the NPC, presented by finance minister Jin Renqing, which calls for a 12.6 per cent rise in military spending this year.
Other senior leaders have rallied behind the proposal.
China's top legislator Wu Bangguo says the anti-secession law reflects the will of the Chinese people.
"No sovereign state will allow actions of secession, and every sovereign state has the right to take necessary means to safeguard national sovereignty and territorial integrity," said Mr Wu.
The proposal has Washington worried about raised tensions in the region and, obviously, the Taiwanese see it somewhat differently.
Taiwanese president Chen Shui-bian described the law as "a dark cloud overshadowing the atmosphere of reconciliation".
"The 'anti-secession law' is a blatant and unilateral attempt to undermine the status quo in the Taiwan Strait," he said during a video-conference with EU leaders.
Lu Ping, director of Guanghua Institute, a Taiwanese think-tank based in Hong Kong, said the resumption of cross-straits commercial flights was a sign of improved relations.
"Relations across the straits at the start of the Year of the Rooster are warmer than they have been for some time. But now Taiwanese people are worried about this anti-secession law," said Ms Lu.
"They feel for the mainland to bring in such a proposal at such a time means the mainland Chinese do not understand the hopes of most Taiwanese people, which is that relations will improve. The impact of this proposal could be profound," she said.
The law is expected to sail through the parliament at the end of its 10-day session, and delegates were already enthusing over the law in the official media.
"The anti-secession law occurs at the right time and is highly necessary. I think the proposed law aims at fighting and curbing the 'Taiwan independence' forces and promoting the peaceful reunification of the motherland," a committee member from Macau, Tina Ho Teng-iat said.
The congress will also finalise the resignation of Jiang Zemin from the post of chairman of the army and install President Hu Jintao to the job.
The NPC offers a talking shop to discuss some of the burning issues in China, including mining safety, fighting corruption and boosting the income of farmers to help offset the effects of a growing wealth gap between rural and urban China.
Other areas will include food, safety, environmental protection and job creation.
The National People's Congress brings traffic chaos, and an incredible amount of extra security measures are put in place. Around 650,000 volunteers wearing red armbands patrol the streets to keep order.
Since last week the city has banned all aerial sports involving paragliders, model aircraft and hot-air balloons to guard against possible terror attacks.
The NPC audience is made up of 3,000 handpicked delegates to the parliament and another 2,000 delegates to its advisory body, the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference.
All bills are passed, of course, but the talking shop does have its uses, and some of the legislation does reflect a broader range of interests.