China's legislature to meet in early March

BEIJING - China's annual legislative session will open in early March for a meeting that will likely draw an unusual level of scruinty amid concerns that worsening economic woes could lead to social unrest.

This year's meeting of the National People's Congress, which has traditionally served as a rubber stamp for previously decided policies, also comes ahead of a series of politically sensitive anniversaries for the government, including the 50th anniversary of a failed uprising in Tibet.

The central government's Web site said Wednesday that this year's legislative session would start March 5 but did not say how long the annual meeting would last. In the past it has normally gone on for about two weeks.

China's growth has plunged in recent months as a sharp decline in demand for Chinese goods overseas has forced thousands of factories to close. More than 20 million rural migrant workers are now jobless, the government said Monday, heightening concerns over unrest in the vast impoverished countryside.

Another 5 million to 6 million migrant workers are expected to enter the work force this year, along with millions of university graduates now under extreme pressure to find white collar jobs.

Growing joblessness will also likely compound simmering dissatisfaction among the poor over corruption, a widening gap between rich and poor, and a widespread lack of funding for basic services such as education and health care.

Already, some factory workers have taken to the streets demanding pay and protesting layoffs.

China has given signs it is tightening social and political controls in response to the unrest, and the government is expected to further clamp down ahead of several sensitive anniversaries.

March 10 will mark 50 years since the uprising against Chinese rule in Tibet that sent the Dalai Lama into exile. Another contentious date will be the 20th anniversary of the crackdown on the June 4, 1989, pro-democracy protests centered in Tiananmen Square. Later in the year, China celebrates its 60th anniversary on Oct. 1.

The government is rolling out a 4 trillion yuan ($586 billion) package unveiled in November in hopes of shielding China from the global slowdown through heavy spending on public works projects.

Economic growth fell in the fourth quarter of last year to 6.8 percent compared with a year earlier, down from 9 percent in the third quarter, according to the government.

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