China launched an all-out propaganda offensive on Sunday as the ruling communist party sought to drown out online calls for a democracy movement in the country.
State media blanketed the nation via the internet, television and radio on Sunday morning with two hours of remarks by Wen Jiabao, the premier, in response to questions posted by internet users.
t was the third time Mr Wen held such a web chat, and it is not unusual ahead of the annual sessions of the National People's Congress and the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, the two organs through which the ruling Communist party demonstrates that it is taking bottom-up input for its policies.
But Mr Wen's latest web chat was announced abruptly late on Saturday and came as anonymous bloggers were calling for low-profile, non-violent gatherings in 22 Chinese cities on Sunday afternoon.
Mr Wen repeated pledges to rein in inflation and soaring property prices - two issues that have triggered widespread concern and dissatisfaction among Chinese citizens. "Rapid price rises have affected public and even social stability," Mr Wen said.
He added that China would set its target for average annual economic growth at 7 per cent in its next Five-Year Plan, markedly lower than for the past five years, and would not sacrifice social justice and environmental protection for rapid growth.
Mr Wen also pledged that the government would take steps to fight corruption. "The main leaders in our government have too much power, power is too concentrated, and there are no limits to it," he said. Mr Wen promised "systemic reforms" to allow the people to supervise their political leaders.
Mr Wen's remarks were in line with similar pledges about political reform he made last year. The premier frequently makes appearances designed to demonstrate the leadership's concern for ordinary people and their grievances, but many government critics reject this as mere propaganda moves.
The first anonymous online attempt at triggering pro-democracy protests in China mirroring those in the Middle East had failed on February 20 - instead leading to a crowd in downtown Beijing that day that appeared to consist almost exclusively of foreign journalists, police and some curious onlookers.
A week-long crackdown, which started after the first online calls for a 'Jasmine Revolution' in China on February 19 and has resulted in the restriction of personal freedom for more than 100 people, continued at the weekend.
Ai Weiwei, the prominent artist and government critic, said on Twitter he had also been put under surveillance overnight. Some activists said they had signed a paper promising not to attend the planned gatherings.
The security forces have ramped up countermeasures.
A section of Wangfujing, the central Beijing shopping street, where the gatherings are to be held, has been divided in two by a construction fence. Police officers and and plainclothes security swarmed the pedestrian street and the surrounding areas all weekend.
On Saturday, groups of tall, well-trained young men clad in new bright orange street cleaners' uniforms lingered in the street. They did not sweep the streets but watched pedestrians and could be seen talking to police officers and walking in and out of the Wangfujing police station nearby.Â
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