The Great Hall of the People where the annual two sessions take place. Photo: CFP

Deepening reform and advancing the rule of law will be key for the upcoming annual two sessions - the third session of the 12th National People's Congress (NPC) and that of the National Committee of the 12th Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC).

As two of China's most important political meetings, the two sessions, which open on March 3 and 5, will collect suggestions and proposals from NPC deputies and CPPCC members. The proposals, if decided to be practicable, are likely to become real policies. In April 2014, Yao Ming, former basketball star and also a CPPCC member, proposed to abolish commercial sports event approval procedures, which subsequently became a policy released by the State Council in September.

During the upcoming two sessions, Chinese Premier Li Keqiang will deliver a report on the government's work, typically considered one of the highlights of the sessions. Central government departments and judicial organs will also release their work reports, which will be voted on by NPC deputies, with approval rates made public.

A meeting briefer published Wednesday by the ruling Communist Party of China's flagship newspaper, People's Daily, said the two sessions be conducted in accordance with the concept of the "four all-round ways" that Chinese President Xi Jinping has mentioned on various occasions, which include "building a well-off society in an all-round way, deepening reform in an all-round way, advancing rule of law in an all-round way and ruling the Party strictly in an all-round way."

The briefer listed 10 aspects in which further reform is expected.

Key year of reform

A top Party congress in late 2013 mapped out the current reforms, with 2014 the starting year and 2015 the key year for deepening reform.

During the annual two sessions, more concrete reform policies will be released.

In 2014, some decisions passed during that Party congress, like the relaxation of the one-child policy, began to be implemented.

Will GDP growth rate be lowered? 

In fact, since May 2014 "new normal," referring to a shift from high-speed to medium-to-high-speed growth, has become the most quoted phrase when talking about Chinese economy. The phrase means not only an adjustment in the speed of Chinese economic growth but also an improvement in the quality of GDP growth.

How will the "new normal" be reflected in economic policies, and will the GDP growth rate be cut after cutting interest rates? Answers are to be expected during the two sessions.

Agricultural reforms

The central government's N0.1 policy document released in early February pledged to deepen rural reform and speed up the construction of a modern agricultural sector.

The measures listed, such as accelerating reforms in the rural collective property rights system, steadily pushing forward pilot reforms in the rural land system and carrying out rural financial system reforms, are all attempts to unleash rural resources using market methods.

Meanwhile, the rule of law will also be advanced in rural areas. These agricultural topics will be a focus of this year's two sessions, according to the People's Daily.

Regional cooperation

Regional development projects, including the "One Belt, One Road" initiatives and the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei coordinated development project, have become important national projects. During the two sessions, such projects will attract heated discussion.

Anti-corruption 

Nearly 70 officials at the vice ministerial and provincial levels have been sacked and put under investigation in the anti-corruption campaign that started in late 2012. In the "four all-round ways" concept, Xi emphasized "ruling the Party strictly in an all-round way."

In 2015, what other "big tigers" and "small flies" will be brought down and how the anti-graft campaign will advance toward building a sustainable system are questions to be answered during the two sessions.

Delivering justice

Reports by the Supreme People's Court and the Supreme People's Procuratorate released during the two sessions are must-read documents for those wanting to learn about new measures taken to prevent wrongful convictions and build confidence in the fairness and justice of the legal system. The People's Daily article also mentioned other measures to deepen judicial reform, such as encouraging "people's jurors" to participate in more court procedures including court hearings and give the jurors chances to question litigants at court.

Legislation law

China revised its Legislation Law in a bi-monthly session of NPC Standing Committee in December 2014. The Legislation Law regulates how national law, government regulations and local laws come into shape and defines the powers of China's legislatures.

The law's draft, which has been revised twice, allows local governments to issue temporary regulations if they are urgently needed and clarifies local legislation while granting lawmaking powers to more cities.

It also further defines "local affairs" as city infrastructure development, city management and environmental protection as well as public service.

As part of a push to curb so-called "red head documents," which have been abused by local government to make policies arbitrarily, and ensure lawful governance, a new article in the bill bans local governments from issuing regulations that restrain the rights of citizens or corporations, or increase their liabilities without legal foundation. The two sessions should provide further answers as to whether and how the bill will be revised.

Hukou reform

Recently 62 cities and towns have been listed as pilot areas for a system that will allow people who aren't locally registered to get a hukou, or household registration.

The hukou system separates migrant workers from locals in the cities where they work. The new system will provide migrant workers with the chance to get a hukou and enjoy the same rights as locals. In addition to hukou, education rights, medical care and property prices will also be highlights of the two sessions.

Ideological work

The "ideological field," according to the People's Daily, can be contaminated by rotten ideas if no one actively pushes "advanced" ideas. With the development of the Internet, violence, rumors and porn in cyberspace have negatively influenced Chinese people and polluted their thoughts, making it important to promote socialist values.

Environmental protection

Protecting the environment is a universal demand, with each year's two sessions seeing much discussion from delegates on topics like how to curb smog. This year's will be similar, with observers expecting measures to help transform China's economic development model by forcing different parties to shoulder their responsibility for environmental protection.