The government-ordered internet suspension in parts of Rakhine and Chin states has lasted a month.
President Xi Jinping will be looking for party unity on what he frames as threats from 'hostile foreign forces,' analysts say.
The vicious attacks were carried out by unidentified thugs in white T-shirts wielding wooden and metal poles feared to be members of Hong Kong's criminal underworld of triads recruited by Beijing.
Parents are looking to borrow money for bribes to bail out their children.
Tran Vu Hai, lawyer for RFA contributor Truong Duy Nhat, has been forbidden to defend him following a police raid on his office and accusations of tax evasion.
Yang Hengjun is now under criminal detention on suspicion of "endangering state security."
But an environmental watchdog says those conducting the investigation are likely complicit.
Lao residents are meanwhile increasingly abandoning state-controlled news sources to find news they can trust, sources say.
The development has been low-key, but is raising alarm bells among political commentators who fear the further erosion of Hong Kong's status as a separate jurisdiction.
Tributaries feeding Tonle Sap lake run dry, leaving villagers with no food or income.
