1. China
China is one of the biggest countries in the world. It has an area of about 9.6 million
square kilometres which comprises about 6.5 per cent of the world total land area. Its
population of more than one billion accounts for 23 per cent of the world's population. China
is the world's oldest continuous civilization. World Travel Organization predicts that by year
2020, China will become the number one travel destination in the world.
China is situated in the eastern part of Asia on the west coast of the Pacific Ocean. It is the
third largest country in the world (after Canada and Russia). The distance from east to west
measures over 5,200 kilometres and from north to south, over 5,500 kilometres. When the sun
shines brightly over the Wusuli River in the east, the Pamir Plateau in the west is in the very
early morning. When blizzards wrap the north along the Heilongjiang River in the winter,
spring sowing is underway on Hainan Island in the south.
China has a land border of 22,143.34 kilometres long and is bordered by twelve countries:
Korea in the east; Russian in the northeast and the northwest; Mongolia in the north; India,
Pakistan, Bhutan and Nepal in part of the west and southwest; Burma, Laos and Vietnam in
the south.
Beside a vast land area, there are also extensive neighbouring seas and numerous islands. The
coastline extends more than 14,500 kilometres. Across the East China Sea to the east and
South China Sea to the southeast are Japan, the Philippines, Malaysia, and Indonesia. More
than 5,000 islands are scattered over China's vast territorial seas; the largest being Taiwan and
the second largest, Hainan. One territorial sea and three neighbouring seas altogether
constitute 4.73 million square kilometres.

2. Chinese culture
China Culture/Chinese Culture is among the worlds oldest and
most complicated. The location through which the culture is
dominant handles a huge geographical region in eastern Asia with
customs and traditions varying significantly between towns,
metropolitan areas and provinces.
Calligraphy has traditionally been regarded as China's highest form
of visual art - to the point that a person's character was judged by
the elegance of their handwriting! Decorative calligraphy is found all over China, in temples
and adorning the walls of caves and the sides of mountains and monuments. The basic tools of
calligraphy - brush and ink - are also the tools of Chinese painting, with line work and tone the
all-important components.
Despite the ravages of time, war and ideology, there's still a lot to see architecturally. Traces of
the past include the imperial structures of Beijing, the colonial buildings of Shanghai, the
occasional rural village and Buddhist, Confucian and Taoist temples. Funerary art was already a
feature of Chinese culture in Neolithic times (9000-6000 BC), ranging from ritual vessels and
weapons to pottery figures, jade and sacrificial vessels made of bronze. Earthenware production
is almost as ancient, with the world's first proto-porcelain being produced in China in the 6th
century AD, reaching its artistic peak under the Song rulers.
China's language is officially Mandarin, as spoken in Beijing. The Chinese call it
Putonghua. About 70% of the population speak Mandarin, but that's just the tip of the linguistic
iceberg. The country is awash with dialects, and dialects within dialects - and few of them are
mutually intelligible. Of the seven major strains, Cantonese is the one most likely to be spoken
in your local Chinese takeaway. It's the lingua franca of Guangdong, southern Guangxi, Hong
Kong and (to an extent) Macau which is the casino capital of China..

3. China's literary heritage is huge, but unfortunately its untranslatability makes much of it
inaccessible to Western readers. Traditionally there are two forms, the classical (largely
Confucian) and the vernacular (such as the prose epics of the Ming dynasty). Chinese theatre is
also known as opera because of the important role played by music, and has spawned such
diverse arts as acrobatics, martial arts and stylised dance. Many Western film-lovers are fans of
Chinese cinema, with releases enjoying success at film festivals and art-house cinemas. Recently
there has been an emergence of talented 'fifth-generation' post-Cultural Revolution directors,
including Zhang Yimou (Red Sorghum, Chen Kaige (Farewell, My Concubine), Wu Ziniu and
Tian Zhuangzhuang. Add to them Hong Kong's East-meets-West action directors John Woo
(Hard Boiled) and Ringo Lam (Full Contact) and you have a full-fledged, extremely successful
film industry.
Chinese cuisine is justifiably famous, memorably diverse - and generally not for the
squeamish. The Chinese themselves like to say they'll eat anything with four legs except a table.
For the most part, however, it's a case of doing ingenious things with a limited number of basic
ingredients. The cuisine can be divided into four regional categories: Beijing/Mandarin and
Shandong (with steamed bread and noodles as staples), Cantonese and Chaozhou (lightly
cooked meats and vegetables), Shanghainese (the home of 'red cooking' and wuxi spare ribs)
and Sichuan (spicy, with lots of chilli). Tea is the most common non-alcoholic beverage on sale,
although Coca-Cola (both original and bogus) is making inroads, while beer is by far the most
popular alcoholic drink. 'Wine' is a loose term which can cover oxidised and herb-soaked
concoctions, rice wine and wine containing lizards, bees or pickled snakes. Another favourite is
mao-tai, a spirit made from sorghum which smells like rubbing alcohol and makes a good
substitute for petrol or paint thinner.

4. 1.Chinese Festivals and Holidays
January 1st This day is not celebrated as much as it is in other parts of the world because it is
overshadowed by the Chinese New Year (Lunar Festival).
Spring Festival - Chinese New Year
In year 2000, it starts on 5th of February, which is
the 4697th Chinese year.
Chinese believe that the first king of China was King
Yellow (he was not the first emperor of China who
completed the Great Wall). King Yellow became a
king in 2697 B.C. , therefore year 2000 is the 4697th Chinese year.
The Chinese New Year is now popularly known as the Spring Festival because it starts from the
Beginning of Spring (the first of the twenty-four terms in coordination with the changes of
Nature). Its origin is too old to be traced. Several explanations are hanging around. All agree,
however, that the word Nian, which in modern Chinese solely means "year", was originally the
name of a monster beast that started to prey on people the night before the beginning of a new
year (We are talking about the new year in terms of the Chinese calendar).
One legend goes that the beast Nian had a very big mouth that would
swallow a great many people with one bite. People were very scared.
One day, an old man came to their rescue, offering to subdue Nian.
To Nian he said, "I hear say that you are very capable, but can you
swallow the other beasts of prey on earth instead of people who are by
no means of your worthy opponents?" So, swallow it did many of the
beasts of prey on earth that also harassed people and their domestic animals from time to time.
After that, the old man disappeared riding the beast Nian. He turned out to be an immortal
god. Now that Nian is gone and other beasts of prey are also scared into forests, people begin
to enjoy their peaceful life. Before the old man left, he had told people to put up red paper
decorations on their windows and doors at each year's end to scare away Nian in case it
sneaked back again, because red is the colour the beast feared the most.

5. From then on, the tradition of observing the conquest of Nian is carried on from generation to
generation. The term "Guo Nian", which may mean "Survive the Nian”, becomes today
"Celebrate the (New) Year" as the word "guo" in Chinese having both the meaning of "pass-over"
and "observe". The custom of putting up red paper and firing fire-crackers to scare away Nian
should it have a chance to run loose is still around.
However, people today have long forgotten why they are doing all this, except that they feel the
color and the sound add to the excitement of the celebration.
The biggest and most celebrated festival in China and south east Asia. New Year's Eve dinner is
the most important event when the whole family is present. Special foods are served and more
meat than the usual is prepared. Fireworks will break the night, scaring the demons and bad
luck away. Pictures of the Door Gods will be posted on the outside door with couples limned
in bright red. Folk art poster, paper cutting and lucky wordings on bright red paper will be
posted on the wall and windows.
The Lantern Festival
15th of 1st month of Chinese Calendar
It marks the end of the Chinese New Year Season, always 15 days
after Lunar New Year Day. Lantern exhibits, lion and dragon
dances, and eating Tang Yuan (ball-shaped boiled sweet rice
dumplings with delicious stuffings) are events today. It is very much
celebrated in the rural areas by farmers.
The Eve of the New Year is very carefully observed. Supper is a
feast, with all members coming together. One of the most popular
courses is jiaozi, dumplings boiled in water. "Jiaozi" in Chinese
literally mean "sleep together and have sons", a long-lost good wish
for a family. After dinner, it is time for the whole family to sit up
for the night while having fun playing cards or board games or
watching TV programs dedicated to the ocassion. Every light is
supposed to be kept on the whole night. At midnight, the whole sky will be lit up by fireworks
and firecrackers make everywhere seem like a war zone. People's excitement reaches its zenith.
Very early the next morning, children greet their parents and receive their presents in terms of
cash wrapped up in red paper packages from them. Then, the family start out to say greetings
from door to door, first their relatives and then their neighbors. It is a great time for
reconciliation. Old grudges are very easily cast away during the greetings. The air is permeated

6. with warmth and friendliness. During and several days following the New Year's day, people are
visiting each other, with a great deal of exchange of gifs. The New Year atmosphere is brought
to an anti-climax fifteen days away where the Festival of Lanterns sets in. It is an occasion of
lantern shows and folk dances everywhere. One typical food is the Tang Yuan, another kind of
dumplings made of sweet rice rolled into balls and stuffed with either sweet or spicy fillings.
The Lantern Festival marks the end of the New Year season and afterwards life becomes daily
routines once again. This description is based upon the recollection of my own experience.
Customs of observing the New Year vary from place to place, considering that China is a big
country not only geographically, but also demographically and ethnically. Yet, the spirit
underlying the diverse celebrations of the Chinese New Year is the same: a sincere wish of
peace and happiness for the family members and friends.
Women's Day
March 8 International Women's Day
Women employees will get a whole or an half paid day-off on the day.
Chinese Qing Ming
5th of 3rd Month of Chinese Calender Qing Ming
A day when people visit cemeteries to pay respect to their departed ancestors.
Water Splashing Festival
Mid April Chinese Calender
The most important festival of the year for the
Dai people in Xishuangbanna, Yunnan
Province. A festival that washes away the
demons of the old year and welcomes the joy
of the new.
May 1 Labour Day
Employees will enjoy a paid day-off. Celebration parties in parks took place as parades on the
day.
May 4th Chinese Youth Day
Commemorating the 1919 student demonstration against foreign aggression.
Dragon Boat Festival
5th of 5th Month of Chinese Calender

7. It is in memory of a great patriot poet of the State of Chu during the warring States period (475-
221 B.C.), Qu Yuan who drowned himself to protest his emperor who gave in to the bully State
of Chin. To avoid the fish to consume his body, people of Chin launched their boats and threw
rice dumplings wrapped in bamboo leaves into the river where he was drowned to feed the fish.
People today still eat the bamboo-leaf rice dumplings (zong zi). Teams of dragon boats, similar
to long canoes, train for weeks for the contests in this day, not only in China, but also in other
Asian countries with Chinese populations.
Chinese Mid-Autumn Festival
15th of 8th month of Chinese Calender
Mid-Autumn Festival
This is a festival for people who love to
admire the full moon, while the moon on
this day is the fullest and largest to the eye.
The whole family gather together, feasting
in good wine, fruits, nuts and cakes.
As in most ethnic holidays, there are legends to honour. The most popular legend for this
holiday is traced to the year 2000 B.C. This is the story of Hou Yih, an officer of the imperial
guards.
One day, ten suns suddenly appeared in the sky. The emperor, greatly perturbed and fearful
that this occurrence presaged some great evil to his people, ordered Hou Yih, an expert archer,
to shoot nine of the suns out of the sky. The great skills with which Hou Yih accomplished this
feat impressed the Goddess of the Western Heaven.
Since Hou Yih was also a talented architect, the Goddess commissioned him to build her a
palace made of multicoloured jade. His work so pleased the Goddess that she rewarded him
with the possibility of everlasting life. She gave him the elixir of immortality in the form of a
pill. He was not to swallow the pill until he had undergone a year of prayer and fasting. Hou
took the pill home and hid it.
Hou's wife was a divinely beautiful woman named Chang Oh. One day she discovered the
hidden pill and she swallowed it. The resulting punishment was immediate and Chang Oh
found herself airborne, bound for eternal banishment on the moon. As she soared upwards,
her husband, Hou Yih, desperately tried to follow but was swept back to earth by a typhoon.
Chang Oh's divine beauty enhanced the brilliance of the moon with her own radiance. Now,
Chinese people gather each Moon Festival to admire
her.
Nadam Fair
July / August Nadam Fair
A seven-day Mongolian festival featuring horseback
riding, archery and wrestling.

8. National Day
October 1
It is the anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China in 1949. Employees
enjoy two paid-
2. China Language
These two characters read Hua Xia, another name for China
People often have the impression that Chinese characters are extremely difficult to learn. In
fact, if you were to attempt to learn how to write Chinese characters, you would find that they
are not nearly as difficult as you may have imagined. And they certainly qualify as forming one
of the most fascinating, beautiful, logical and scientifically constructed writing systems in the
world. Each stroke has its own special significance. If you are familiar with the principles
governing the composition of Chinese characters, you will find it very easy to remember even
the most complicated looking character and never miss a stroke.
The earliest known examples of Chinese written characters in their developed form are carved
into tortoise shells and ox bones. The majority of these characters are pictographs.
Archaeologists and epigraphers of various countries have learned that most early writing
systems went through a pictographic stage, as did the Egyptian hieroglyphics. Most writing
systems, however, eventually developed a phonetic alphabet to represent the sounds of spoken
language rather than visual images perceived in the physical world.
Chinese is the only major writing system of the world that continued
its pictograph-based development without interruption and that is still
in general modern use. But not all Chinese characters are simply
impressionistic sketches of concrete objects. Chinese characters

9. incorporate meaning and sound as well as visual image into a coherent whole.
In traditional etymology, Chinese characters are classified into six different methods of
character composition and use these six categories are
called the Liu Shu.
The Liu Shu categories are:
(1)pictographs xiang xing;
(2)ideographs ji shi;
(3)compound ideographs hui yi;
(4)compounds with both phonetic and meaning
elements xing sheng;
(5)characters which are assigned a new written form to better reflect a changed
pronunciation quan qu;
(6)characters used to represent a homophone or near-homophone that are unrelated in
meaning to the new word they represent jia jie.
There is a theoretical total of almost 50,000 written Chinese characters; only about 5,000 of
these are frequently used. Among these 5,000, if you learn about 200 key words that are most
often repeated in daily use, then you can say you know Chinese. Really learning to read and
write Chinese is not nearly so formidable a task at all.
Dialects
Because there has long been a single method for writing Chinese and a common literary and
cultural history, a tradition has grown up of referring to the eight main varieties of speech in
China as dialects'. But in fact, they are as different from each other (mainly in pronunciation
and vocabulary) as French or Spanish is from Italian, the dialects of the southeast being
linguistically the furthest apart. The mutual unintelligibility of the varieties is the main ground
for referring to them as separate languages. However, it must also be recognized that each
variety consists of a large number of dialects, many of which may themselves be referred to as
languages. The boundaries between one so-called language and the next are not always easy to
define.
The Chinese refer to themselves and their language, in any of the forms below, as Han - a
name which derives from the Han dynasty (202 BC-AD 220). Han Chinese is thus to be
distinguished from the non-Han minority languages used in China. There are over 50 of these

10. languages (such as Tibetan, Russian, Uighur, Kazakh, Mongolian, and Korean), spoken by
around 6% of the population.
100% Han Chinese and some non-Han minority Chinese write and read the same Chinese,
unlike the situation with dialects in China.
3. The Education System in China
The education system in China is somewhat different than we are used to in the western world
and we will in this article guide you through the various steps that is the Chinese school.
Every Chinese has a nine year long compulsory education which consists of six years in Junior
school and three years in Middle school. After you’ve completed these levels you have the
possibility to attend High school or, alternatively, an occupational training. A good score on a
national entrance exam is required if one wishes to go on with higher learning’s. The better
results, the better are the possibilities to get accepted at a prestigious university.
Higher learning’s
Degree of Bachelor
The Degree of Bachelor stretches over a period of five to six years. More than half of the
studies consist of mandatory courses even though the students of today, compared to 10-20
years ago, have greater possibilities to themselves combine courses to create their own
education. Combinations of English, economics and technology are for example very popular.
You can still though sense a touch of the “old China” as many students take part in ideological
courses which are meant to create a national identity.

11. Second Bachelor
Post finishing their Bachelor studies, the students have the possibility to deepen themselves by
taking a new course related to their first Degree of Bachelor. These studies usually last for two
years.
Degree of Master
Students can also deepen their Degree of Bachelor and obtain a Masters. This is only possible
at around 500 universities – put this is relation to the fact that China has a population of over 1
billion. The Degree of Master lasts between two and three years and mainly consists of
composing and upholding an essay.
To get accepted to this education it takes that the student passes an English test as well as tests
in politics and political science – this can vary a bit depending on the intentions of the student.
Education undergoing changes as well
Just as the economy of China is undergoing changes so is the education. Nowadays, there are
more and more universities that are not directly governed by the Ministry of Education and
universities themselves have a chance to steer the course content and teaching materials, etc.
Private educations are also allowed even though there are very few private institutions. On the
whole, the Chinese education system is attempting to meet the needs of the labor market –
which we know is constantly changing.
4. National Flag, National Emblem and National Anthem
The national flag of the PRC is a red rectangle emblazoned with five stars.
The red of the flag symbolizes revolution; the stars are yellow so that they will stand out brightly
against the red ground. The larger star represents the CPC and the four smaller ones, the
Chinese people. This expresses the great unity of the Chinese people under the leadership of
the CPC.

12. The national emblem of the PRC features Tiananmen Gate beneath the five shining stars,
encircled by ears of grain and with a cogwheel at the bottom. The ears of grain, stars,
Tiananmen and cogwheel are gold; the field within the circle is red, as are the ribbons
festooning the bottom of the circle. These two colors traditionally represent auspiciousness and
happiness.
Tiananmen symbolizes the unyielding spirit of the Chinese people in their fight against
imperialism and feudalism; the cogwheel and ears of grain represent the working class and the
peasantry, respectively; the five stars, as above, stand for the great unity of the Chinese people
under the leadership of the CPC.
The national anthem was written in 1935, with lyrics by the noted poet Tian Han and music by
the famous composer Nie Er. The lyrics are as follows:
Arise, ye who refuse to be slaves;
With our very flesh and blood
Let us build our new Great Wall!
The peoples of China are at their most critical time,
Everybody must roar defiance.
Arise! Arise! Arise!
Millions of hearts with one mind,
Brave the enemy's gunfire,
March on!
Brave the enemy's gunfire,
March on! March on! March on, on!
This song, originally named March of the Volunteers, was the theme song of the film, Sons and
Daughters in a Time of Storm. The film tells the story of those who went to the front to fight

13. the Japanese invaders in northeast China in the 1930s, when the fate of the nation was hanging
in the balance.
Moving and powerful, the March of the Volunteers gave voice to the Chinese people's
determination to sacrifice themselves for national liberation, expressing China's admirable
tradition of courage, resolution and unity in fighting foreign aggression. It was for this reason
that the CPPCC on September 27, 1949 decided to adopt the song as the provisional national
anthem of the PRC, and the NPC on December 4, 1982 officially decided to adopt the song as
the national anthem of the PRC.
5. Climate
China has a marked continental monsoonal climate characterized by great variety.
Northerly winds prevail in winter, while southerly winds reign in summer. The four seasons are
quite distinct. The rainy season coincides with the hot season. From September to April the
following year, the dry and cold winter monsoons from Siberia and Mongolia in the north
gradually become weak as they reach the southern part of the country, resulting in cold and dry
winters and great differences in temperature. The summer monsoons last from April to
September.
The warm and moist summer monsoons from the oceans bring abundant rainfall and high
temperatures, with little difference in temperature between the south and the north. China's
complex and varied climate results in a great variety of temperature belts, and dry and moist
zones. In terms of temperature, the nation can be sectored from south to north into equatorial,
tropical, sub-tropical, warm-temperate, temperate, and cold-temperate zones; in terms of
moisture, it can be sectored from southeast to northwest into humid (32 percent of land area),
semi-humid (15 percent), semi-arid (22 percent) and arid zones (31 percent).

14. 6. Fauna and Flora
China is one of the countries with the greatest diversity of wildlife in the world. There are
more than 4,400 species of vertebrates, more than 10 percent of the world's total. There are
nearly 500 animal species, 1,189 species of birds, more than 320 species of reptiles and 210
species of amphibians. Wildlife peculiar to China includes such well-known animals as the
giant panda, golden-haired monkey, South China tiger, brown-eared pheasant, white-flag
dolphin, Chinese alligator and red-crowned crane, totaling more than 100 species. The giant
panda is an especially attractive sight. Heavily built, it has a docile disposition, and is delightfully
adorable. The 1.2-m-tall red-crowned crane is a snow-white migratory bird. A distinctive patch
of red skin tops its grey-brown head, hence its name. The white-flag dolphin is one of only two
species of freshwater whale in the world. In 1980, a male white-flag dolphin was caught for the
first time in the Yangtze River, which aroused great interest among dolphin researchers
worldwide.
China has some of the most abundant plant life in the world. There are more than 32,000
species of higher plants, and almost all the major plants that grow in the northern hemisphere's
frigid, temperate and tropical zones are represented in China. In addition, there are more than
7,000 species of woody plants, including 2,800 tree species. The met sequoia, Chinese cypress,
Cathay tree, China fir, golden larch, Taiwan fir, Fujian cypress, dove-tree, encomia and
camplotheca acuminata are found only in China. The met sequoia, a tall species of arbour, is
considered as one of the oldest and rarest plants in the world. The golden larch, one of only
five species of rare garden trees in the world, grow in the mountain areas in the Yangtze River
valley. Its coin-shaped leaves on short branches are green in spring and summer, turning yellow
in autumn. China is home to more than 2,000 species of edible plants and 3,000 species of
medicinal plants. Ginseng from the Chinghai Mountains, safflowers from Tibet, Chinese
wolfberry from Ningxia and not ginseng from Yunnan and Huizhou are particularly well-known
Chinese herbal medicines. There is a wide variety of flowering plants. A flower indigenous to
China, the elegant and graceful peony is treasured as the "colon of the nation and the scent of
heaven." Three famous species of flowers--the azalea, fairy primrose and rough gentian--grow in
southwest China. During the flowering period, mountain slopes covered with flowers in a riot
of colours form a delightful contrast with undulating ridges and peaks.

15. In a concerted effort to protect the nation's zoological and botanical resources, and save species
close to extinction, China has established 1.146 nature reserves to protect forests and wildlife,
with a total area of 88.13 million ha. The 15 nature reserves in China, namely, Sichuan's
Wolong and Jiuzhaigou, Jilin's Changbai Mountains, Guangdong's Dinghu Mountains,
Guizhou's Fanjing Mountains, Fujian's Wuyi Mountains, Hubei's Shennongjia, Inner
Mongolia's Xilingol, Xinjiang's Mt. Bogda, Yunnan's Xishuangbanna, Jiangsu's Yancheng,
Zhejiang's Tianmu Mountains Nanji and Islands Guizhou's Maolan and Heilongjiang's Fenglin,
have joined the "International People and Bio-sphere Protection Network." Heilongjiang's
Zhalong, Jilin's Xianghai, Hunan's Dongting Lake, Jiangxi's Poyang Lake, Qinghai's Bird Island,
Hainan's Dongzhai Harbor and Hong Kong's Mai Po have been included in the listing of the
world's important wetlands.
7. Cooperation and Political Consultation
China is a country of many peoples and many political parties. Before the state adopts
important measures or makes decisions on issues having a bearing on the national economy
and the people's livelihood, the CPC, as the party in power, consults with representatives of all
ethnic groups, political parties and non-Party personages, and all other social sectors, in order
to reach a common understanding. This system of multi-party cooperation and political
consultation led by the CPC is a basic political system in China.Multi-party cooperation and
political consultation take two principal forms: (1) The Chinese People's Political Consultative
Conference (CPPCC); (2) consultative conferences and forums participated in by non-
Communist parties and unaffiliated democrats at the invitation of the CPC Central Committee
and local Party committees. The CPPCC is neither a state organ, nor an ordinary mass
organization. It is a widely representative, patriotic united front organization of the Chinese
people, first established in September 1949. The CPPCC has a national committee and local
committees established in the provinces, autonomous regions, municipalities directly under the
Central Government and counties (cities). The CPPCC consists of representatives of the CPC,
the non-Communist parties, unaffiliated individuals, people's organizations, ethnic minorities
and other social strata, compatriots from Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macao, returned overseas
Chinese, and specially invited individuals. The committees at various levels hold plenary
sessions once a year. When the committee is not in session, special activities for the committee
members are organized, including inspection tours of various localities. Consultative

16. discussions are held on significant issues relating to major state policies, important local affairs,
the people's livelihood and united front work. Democratic supervision is exercised over the
work of state organs and the fulfilment of the Constitution and laws through the offering of
opinions, proposals and criticisms. When the people's congresses are convened, CPPCC
committee members are invited to attend and fully air their views. The current chairman of the
CPPCC National Committee is Li Ruthann. Once a year, the leaders of the CPC Central
Committee invite the leaders of the non-Communist parties and representatives of non-Party
democrats to meetings for consultation; forums are held every other month. The former focus
on major state policies; the latter on information exchanges, reception of policy proposals and
discussion of certain special issues.