More than 90 citizens in Changchun, capital of northeast China's Jilin Province, showed up at a meeting on Monday afternoon following an unprecedented initiative by the local government to make its affairs more transparent to the public.

Seventy-two-year-old Zhang Chunren was the first approved to take part in the activity.

"Most of the citizens feel it very fresh and mysterious to attend a government meeting," the old man said.

All people who have an ID card and who are registered as a permanent resident of Changchun are qualified to participate.

Ninety-two people, 12 more than the government's set goal of 80, listened while top officials from the city met and discussed the city's blueprint for this year.

The citizens were not supposed to ask questions during the meeting, but they could air their views on government work or issues concerning their daily life on paper supplied for feedback.

Sun Changrong, a 50-year-old laid-off worker, said before the meeting: "I am a local citizen of Changchun, It is the first time for me to see the city leaders at such a short distance. I hoped I could get some useful information for laid-off workers from the meeting."

Those who participated come from all walks of life such as retired workers, teachers, private enterprise owners, laid-off workers and farmers in the suburbs with an age span between 20 and 70, according to He Qun, an official with the city government.

Commenting on newspaper reports about the lukewarm response from local residents at an early stage, He said that this might be because people who care about government affairs missed the invitations released on TV and newspapers before the meeting.

Only a relatively small number of people applied in the beginning.

The situation became much better after local government officials went to sub-district offices and communities to spread the message, he said.

(China Daily January 19, 2005)