It is an age-old stereotype that Chinese officials are reluctant to speak to the press. Although it is not easy to get sensitive information anywhere in the world, in China things are particularly difficult for reporters. However, inspiring changes have taken place during the current two sessions in Beijing.

After a group discussion with the Inner Mongolia delegation on Tuesday Morning, Wang Jun, Party chief for the autonomous region, organized an impromptu press conference between several mayors of major cities of Inner Mongolia and media outlets present at the panel. Wang said that although the Inner Mongolia delegation took questions during an open door session a few days ago, there are still many reporters asking deeper questions on the region's development, so more opportunities for communication should be provided.

The unexpected hour-long press conference spurred outspoken responses to tough questions concerning pollution in the Tengger Desert and the wrongful conviction of Huugjilt, an 18-year-old man wrongly executed for murder and rape in 1996, among other topics.

On the same day at an open door session for the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, a reporter from Hong Kong broke the convention whereby each reporter is only allowed to ask one question, asking three sensitive questions regarding violence and corruption in the region. Zhang Chunxian, Party chief of Xinjiang, answered all the questions frankly, asking jokingly at the end, "Are you satisfied?"

At least some Chinese officials are willing to take on tough questions and value the opportunity to interact with the media, despite a long history of complaints from reporters, be they from China or foreign countries, over "staged" softball queries at press conferences.

The two sessions are not a closed platform for lawmakers and political advisers to discuss and deliberate State affairs. Participants in the country's most important political conventions should face up to media inquiry, supervision and directly address problems of public concern.

It seems that deputies are trying harder to communicate better with the media.

I believe that similar impromptu press conference could herald an end to the old assumption whereby most press conferences during the two sessions are little more than scripted exchanges between State media reporters and officials with prepared answers.