Ahead of party meet,China pulls knives,toyplanes off shelves

Dont roll down the taxi windows. Dont buy a remote-controlled plane without a police chiefs permission. And dont release your pigeons.

Beijing is tightening security as its all-important Communist Party Congress approaches,and some of the measures seem downright bizarre. Kitchen knives and pencil sharpeners reportedly have been pulled from store shelves,and theres even a rumor that authorities are on the lookout for seditious messages on pingpong balls.

The Congress,which begins November 8,will name new leaders to run the worlds most populous country and second-largest economy for the next decade. Most of the security measures have been phased in in time for Thursdays opening of a meeting of the Central Committee,the roughly 370-member body that is finalising preparations for the Congress.

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China always tightens security for high-profile events,like much of the rest of the world. But many of Beijings rules seem extraordinary,perhaps in an effort to smooth a once-a-decade transition that has already been bumpy.

Human rights groups report that activists and petitioners are being rounded up ahead of the congress. But the broader security measures may best illustrate how China is trying to leave absolutely no room for disruptions.

The government has blocked searches for the phrase party congress on websites including Chinas popular Twitter-like Sina Weibo. Internet posters manage to get around that by using characters that sound like party congress.

Taxi drivers have been told to remove window handles and require passengers to sign a traveling agreement promising to avoid sensitive parts of the city and not to open their windows or doors if they pass important venues.

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The person who answered the phone at Wan Quan Si taxi company said the rule applies to all taxi companies in Beijing. An investment company worker Li Tianshu said,There were no handles for three of the four windows. The driver complained that if they dont take the handles away or the passengers throw leaflets out of the taxis,they will be fired.

A memo circulating on Weibo warned taxi drivers to be on guard against passengers who may want to cast balloons with slogans or throw pingpong balls with reactionary words.

Police are asking that Chinese show their ID cards and foreigners their passports when buying remote-controlled model aircraft over safety concerns,the official Global Times newspaper reported Tuesday. One toy store owner said authorities had told him to stop selling medium and large-sized planes. They just told me to stop selling it and I have to follow the order, said Chen Ziping.