Photo of the Day: A man walks with his bicycle in front of a screen showing propaganda displays near the Great Hall of the People at Beijing’s Tiananmen Square.

Just days before the party’s all-important congress opens, China’s stability-obsessed rulers are taking no chances and have combed through a list of all possible threats, avian or otherwise.

Their list includes bus windows being screwed shut and handles for rear windows in taxis - to stop subversive leaflets being scattered on the streets - plus balloons and remote control model planes. The goal is to ensure an image of harmony as President Hu Jintao prepares to transfer power as party leader to anointed successor Vice President Xi Jinping at the congress, which starts on Thursday. (Photo: REUTERS/Carlos Barria)