| China urges again for resumption of six-party
talks
2005-02-25 People’s Daily
China urged once again all concerned parties to make efforts
to resume the six-party talks about the Korean Peninsular nuclear
issue, said Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Kong Quan in
Beijing Thursday. Chinese
Foreign Minister Li Zhaoxing exchanged views in depth on
the latest developments of the Korean Peninsula nuclear issue
with US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice during a phone conversation
Tuesday night. Chinese Ambassador to Korean Peninsula Affairs
Ning Fukui also met on Tuesday and Wednesday with Russian Ambassador
to China Igor Rogachev, Ambassador of the Republic of Korea
to China Kim Ha Joong and Japanese Ambassador to China Koreshige
Anami. They discussed the latest developments of the situation
on the Korean Peninsular. Kong said the Chinese side said again
during these meetings that it hopes all parties stick to the
goal of a nuclear-free Korean Peninsular and strive to safeguard
the peace and stability there. ( )
EU plan to lift arms embargo on China won't harm third parties
2005-02-23 People’s Daily
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Kong Quan maintained that
the European Union's plan to lift its arms embargo on China
won't infringe upon the interest of third parties, and that
the lifting of the embargo is "irrelevant" to "the
present situation of the Asia Pacific region." Kong told
a regular press conference that the arms embargo, put in place
in 1989, is a "sequel of the cold war," and the lifting
of it is "conducive to a sound and smooth development of
the China-EU relations based on equality and reciprocity."
"The bilateral relations enjoy a smooth development at
present, while the two sides are gradually solving historical
problems between them," Kong said. He said he hopes that
the United States will temporize to the trend instead of setting
obstacles. Kong said the lifting of embargo is actually "the
lifting of political discrimination on China, which won't lead
to China to buy a large amount of weapons." China, he said,
will "pursue peaceful development and a defense policy
that is defensive in nature," and will be "no menace
to any country." He said, "China is not the obstacle
to the world peace and stability but an active strength to maintain
it."
Ministers stress Sino-UK co-operation
2005-02-22 China Daily
China expects closer co-operation with Britain to eliminate
unstable factors in the global economy, Chinese Finance Minister
Jin Renqing yesterday told his British counterpart in Beijing.
"The global economy faces many challenges although it is
experiencing a pretty good growth momentum. China and Britain
should enhance co-operation to meet the challenges," Jin
said when meeting Gordon Brown, Britain's Chancellor of Exchequer,
who started his three-day visit to China yesterday. The two
nations should also work together to help optimize existing
international co-operative mechanisms, Jin said. China is this
year's president of the G20, a group of the world's major industrial
and emerging market economies. ( ) Jin and Brown agreed that
the two nations shared many views in terms of realizing the
United Nations' Millennium Development Goals, which mainly focus
on poverty alleviation. Jin and Brown also agreed that there
are promising prospects for Sino-British trade and economic
co-operation. Bilateral trade was robust last year. China's
exports to Britain jumped 38 per cent to US$15 billion, while
the United Kingdom's exports to China grew 33 per cent to US$4.8
billion. ( )
Japanese move on islands "illegal"
2005-02-21 China Daily
Japan said it had placed under "state control" a lighthouse
built by nationalists on a disputed island in the East China
Sea despite claims by China. Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesman
Kong Quan said in Beijing on February 16 that Diaoyu Islands
and neighboring islands have been China's territories since
ancient time, and any unilateral action is "illegal and
invalid". ( ) "Those who built the lighthouse said
they no longer can run it," Vice Foreign Minister Shuzen
Tanigawa said. "Since they have abandoned the right of
possession, it has been transferred" to the state, Tanigawa
said. "Japan has been saying they (the islands) are traditional
Japanese territory," he said. "Even if we have some
trouble, we are going to protect what we have to protect."
The move comes amid rising tensions between Japan and China,
including a dispute over a major gasfield near the islands.
A Chinese non-government organization, China Federation of Defending
Diaoyudao Islands Limited, with an aim of defending the Diaoyudao
Islands and adjacent isles has been registered in Hong Kong,
and will apply to Chinese authorities to develop the islands.(
). Tong Zheng, president and founder of the federation, said
a meeting of the board of directors will be held soon. Tong
disclosed that the federation will soon submit an application
to the State Administration of Oceanography to lease the Diaoyudao
Islands for tourism and exploration activities. It is learned
that the federation will be headquartered in Beijing and has
its office in Hong Kong. Its articles of association will also
be published in its website (www.cfdd.org.cn).It
also plans to organize an exhibition of the islands, part of
the Chinese territorial sovereignty in the coming months.
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| China vows to reduce road accidents
2005-02-25 People’s Daily
China's transportation department will take measures to reduce
road accidents, said an official with the Ministry of Communication
Thursday. In 2004, 94,000 people in China died from road accidents,
the largest number worldwide. Of the total deaths, 87.4 percent
were killed in accidents caused by drivers. The driver is the
most important factor in road security and the ministry has
issued a new guidelines for training drivers, said Zhang Jianfei,
director of the ministry's Highway Department. Also a new driver's
education textbook will be used beginning March 1. Zhang said
the student drivers will find it easier to learn from the new
book, which has many illustrations. The new textbook also provides
many tips to drivers such as the situations in which the rearview
mirror is not reliable and how to overtake other vehicles. However,
he said to get a driving license will be difficult since the
new guidelines are much more strict. Besides improving the education
of drivers, the ministry will improve roads and bridges to reduce
traffic accidents.
Beijing stresses security for national legislature meeting
2005-02-24 People’s Daily
Beijing has taken steps to enhance security for the upcoming
annual meeting of the national top legislature and political
advisory body slated for early March, the municipal government
said Wednesday. The National People's Congress (NPC) and the
Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC),
will hold their annual meetings in March, considered two of
the most important political events in the country. Beijing
is likely to accommodate thousands of NPC deputies and CPPCC
members, as well as domestic and foreign journalists covering
the events. Zhou Yuqiu, head of the Beijing Production Safety
Supervision Bureau, said the bureau will strive to eliminate
any possible safety threats, especially in public places. The
bureau's deputy chief, Li Jianwei, said security examinations
of more than 4,000 public places, enterprises and organizations
began in January. He said five inspection teams would go to
"almost every corner of the city hunting for hidden troubles"
that may develop into accidents or disasters. Beijing reported
101 accidents in January, which left 112 dead, a slight fall
from 114 accidents and 141 death in the same month one year
ago. In the Spring Festival holiday last week, Beijing witnessed
eight traffic accidents that killed 12, compared with 23 accidents
and 23 death a year earlier. ( )
State Council suspends official, takes steps to halt coal
mine disasters
2005-02-24 People’s Daily
Liu Guoqiang, vice governor of northeast China's Liaoning Province
and responsible for industry and work safety, was suspended
after 214 people were killed in last week's colliery gas explosion
in the province, according to a decision made at Wednesday's
State Council meeting. The meeting, chaired by Premier Wen Jiabao,
was convened to work on measures to improve work safety in coal
mines, where major accidents involving great casualty and economic
losses have occurred with alarming frequency over the past year.
On Feb. 14, a gas explosion occurred at Sunjiawan colliery of
Liaoning's Fuxin Coal Industry Group, leaving 214 dead out of
574 miners working at the time of the blast. The State Council
sent an investigation team headed by Supervision Minister Li
Zhilun to the scene, and those responsible for the accident
will be punished once the cause of the disaster is found out,
according to the statement released following the meeting. China's
coal production picture was very grim, said the meeting's statement,
which pointed out serious problems such as violation of safety
standards and overproduction in some coal mines. ( )
Henan steps up efforts to help AIDS patients
2005-02-23 Xinhua News
Last year's campaign in central China's Henan Province helped
provide the region's AIDS patients and carriers of human immunodeficiency
virus (HIV) with better access to free medical checks and treatment.
According to a document released by the Henan Provincial Government
at the recent annual session of the Provincial People's Congress,
Henan invested 330 million yuan (approximately 40.2 million
US dollars) to survey AIDS patients and HIV carriers and provide
them with necessary medical service. More than 280,000 local
commercial blood and plasma donors were screened and 25,036
tested HIV positive, among whom 11,815 had reported AIDS symptoms.
All these people were registered with local governments and
hospitals to receive medical checks and treatment regularly.
( )
Chinese president underlines research in building harmonious
society
2005-02-23 People’s Daily
Chinese President Hu Jintao instructed top officials of the
Communist Party of China (CPC) to "enhance their capability
of looking into major social issues in building a harmonious
society" at a high-level Party seminar Tuesday. Hu, also
general secretary of the CPC Central Committee, enjoined officials
at the seminar of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee
to study developments on social issues such as the structure
of social strata, urban-rural structure, population distribution,
employment structure, and changes in the structure of social
organizations, "to better the government's management of
social affairs." He also charged officials to look deeper
into improvements in public safety and social security to safeguard
social stability. Leading cadres should go deep among the people
to improve their understanding of policy and work. ( )
Chief justice: Chinese courts protect human rights
2005-02-22 China Daily
President of the Supreme People's Court and Chief Justice Xiao
Yang noted that China has made remarkable progress in the protection
of human rights in the administration of justice over the past
few years. In an interview published in the latest issue of
the Human Rights magazine, Xiao Yang said in March 2004, the
Second Session of the 10th National People's Congress made amendments
to the country's Constitution, writing "The state respects
and protects human rights" into this fundamental law. On
the codification of human rights protection at the second session
of the 10th National People's Congress, Xiao Yang described
it as an "important milestone in human rights development
in China," adding that it marked a deeper understanding
of how to protect human rights by the Constitution and law and
it is of great significance in directing the work of the people's
courts. By writing "human rights protection" into
the Constitution, it has raised higher demand on the people's
courts with regard to case hearing, said Xiao. ( ) In recent
years, the people's courts in the country have taken further
steps to have the judicial assistance better implemented so
that financially difficult special groups can take legal actions,
according to Xiao. Over the past two years, the people's courts
throughout the country have provided judicial assistance to
more than 460,000 people and reducing, postponing the payment
of and exempting litigation cost amounting to more than two
billion yuan (241 million US dollars). ( ) With regard to criminal
control, China has upheld the principle of "combining punishments
with correction" and applied reduction of prison terms
and release on parole to criminals that have shown real performance
of repentance. ( ) But he admitted that in practice, due to
various reasons, the hearing of some cases has been dragged
and that is why there is still the problem of extended detention
to varying degrees. To solve the problem, the Supreme People's
Court demanded all people's courts in the country to clear up
cases of overdue detention so that all criminal cases are cleared
as soon as possible. ( )
China boosts "red tourism" in revolutionary bases
2005-02-22 People’s Daily
China will boost "red tourism," or visits to former
revolutionary bases and landmark sites, through 2010 to promote
the "national ethos" and "social-economic development"
in those areas, according to a national program. ( ) The official
said "red tourism" will help people to further review
the rise of the Communist Party of China (CPC) and the nation.
There are abundant facts in these sites showing the Party and
socialism are the choice of history and the people. "It
will make people, especially the young people, to further consolidate
their faith in pursuing the road of socialism with Chinese characteristics
and realizing the great rejuvenation of the nation under the
leadership of the CPC," he said. ( ) Collective student
visits are free of charge and individual student visits are
half the normal price, according to the program. The sites,
including Jingangshan, Yan'an, Xibaipo and Taihang Mountains,
are mostly poor land-locked areas. The official predicted implementation
of the program would speed up social and economic development
there. ( )
Income gap grows wider in Beijing
2005-02-22 China Daily
The income gap among urban residents in Beijing is widening,
according to figures released by the Beijing Municipal Bureau
of Statistics. The average income of the richest 20 per cent
of its residents is four times that of the poorest 20 per cent,
according to figures for last year. That ratio was 3.4:1 for
2003, sources said. Different educational levels were the most
influential factors contributing to the widening income gap,
according to sources with the statistics bureau. Average per
capita income for the richest group was 29,600 yuan (US$3,600)
last year. But the figure for the poorest 20 per cent was only
7,400 (US$890) yuan. A survey conducted by the local statistics
bureau among 2,000 urban families in Beijing showed that the
overall average per capita income of Beijing's residents was
15,600 yuan (US$1,900) last year, 12.6 per cent higher than
in 2003. "Low-income families earned more last year than
2003, but the increase rate was lower than for families with
higher incomes," the bureau said, without giving further
figures. () In 2003, the average income for people with master's
and doctorate degrees was 2.1 times that of uneducated workers.
But that figure was up to 2.6 last year. Statistics also indicate
that people with different jobs end up with different pay. Professionals,
government employees and management staff occupied the top three
groups in Beijing last year, according to statistics. Their
per capita average annual income was 18,500 yuan (US$2,230),
18,400 yuan (US$2,220) and 16,800 yuan (US$2,000) respectively.
In contrast, incomes of workers engaged in production and transportation,
the service sector and commerce were all below the city's average
income level. For example, the average income of production
and transportation workers was 12,300 yuan (US$1,500), 66 per
cent that of professionals.
State Council revamps working rules
2005-02-21 PLA Daily
The State Council of China has recently amended and publicized
the statute on its working rules which are believed to be more
scientific, clear, strict and standardized. The newly amended
rules are divided into ten chapters including general principles,
member duties, full implementation of governmental functions,
promoting scientific and democratic decision-making and working
styles and enhancing disciplines. The statute said the State
Council should work hard to form an administrative management
system that is standardized, concerted, fair, transparent and
efficient. ( )
China to become "developed country" in 2080
2005-02-21 People’s Daily
China is expected to become an "advanced developed country"
in the second half of this century, according to a report published
on Friday. The China Modernization Report 2005, released at
a seminar organized by the China Centre for Modernization Research
under the Chinese
Academy of Sciences, concluded China will become a "moderately
developed country" before 2050 thanks to its ongoing modernization
drive. Experts and scholars involved in the study believe that
China's modernization of economy is scheduled to bring it into
the ranks of the world's top 40 developed countries in the first
half of this century. ( )
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