A sign of start to annual closed-door meetings to discuss policies
A senior Chinese official met top scientists and academics at a seaside resort in North China's Hebei Province, a sign of the start to the annual Beidaihe closed-door meetings where major policies were discussed.
Liu Yunshan, a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China's (CPC) Central Committee, met with hand-picked academics and experts for a week-long summer retreat at Beidaihe, a seaside resort, on Friday.
Liu met the scholars on behalf of the Party's Central Committee and State Council, China's cabinet, the Xinhua News Agency reported.
Liu said the Party pays great attention to the cultivation of talent, and with the deepening of reforms in the training mechanism, China will be able to provide better opportunities for them to apply their expertise.
Fifty-six scholars were chosen for the retreat in Beidaihe from August 2 to 7. Those scholars were said to come from the "10,000 Talents Plan," a talent recruitment program established by the government to attract prestigious Chinese scholars, both domestic and overseas.
Luo Yuan, a vice president of the China Strategic Culture Promotion Association and among those invited to Beidaihe this year, said the retreat includes film screenings and a visit to the Shanhai Pass on the east end of the Great Wall.
"Some scholars may be asked to talk about their work to the group," Luo told the Global Times on Wednesday.
He added that he was asked to talk about China's geopolitical environment, but declined the invitation for personal reasons.
Luo said officials from the Organization Department of the CPC Central Committee had met with academics and sought their advice on how to recruit and cultivate talent.
"[The trip] is a sign of the government's and Party's appreciation of our work," Luo said.
Beidaihe is considered China's "summer capital." Top Party leaders began holding summer retreats at the seaside resort in 1953 to escape the summer heat.
Since 2001, a select number of academics have been invited annually to spend a week at Beidaihe. Over 900 scholars have been invited over the years. The opportunity to join top leadership at the resort was commonly seen as a political honor given to those who have greatly contributed to the country's scientific and social development.
