'Passage interviews' bridge officials, media

A series of interviews on the sidelines of the two sessions have served as bridges of understanding between officials, legislators, political advisers and reporters.

The so-called passage interviews got their name because they often take place in corridors, or passages, leading to the main meeting room of the Great Hall of the People, either before or after plenary meetings of the National People's Congress and National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference.

Previously, reporters would wait on a long red carpet in a side corridor, hoping to encounter various ministers to get comments on their walk to or from meetings. It was nicknamed the "ministers' passage".