 |
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| SCHWEIZER
BOTSCHAFT IN BEIJING
EMBASSY OF SWITZERLAND IN BEIJING
AMBASSADE DE SUISSE EN CHINE |
Der wöchentliche
Presserückblick der Schweizer Botschaft in der VR China
The Weekly Press Review of the Swiss Embassy in the People's Republic
of China
La revue de presse hebdomadaire de l'Ambassade de Suisse en RP
de Chine |
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| Table of
contents |
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Mongolia
^ top ^
|
| Foreign
Policy |
| SCO member states to
increase defense cooperation (People's Daily Online)
2007-06-27
Member states of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO)
will make fresh efforts to cooperate in national defense and
security in a drive to deal with an array of challenges, Chinese
Defense Minister Cao Gangchuan said here Wednesday(…).
The meeting (…) discussed the security status in Central
Asia, and the priority of cooperation among SCO members. (…)In
the joint communique, the ministers agreed that terrorism, separatism,
extremism, proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and
international crime pose severe threats to regional and international
peace and stability, although the global society is making efforts
to safeguard peace. (…) They also applauded Russia's contributions
in organizing the Peace Mission 2007 anti-terrorist military
exercise among the armed forces of SCO members (…).
^ top ^
Pakistani envoy arrives in Beijing for
security talks (SCMP)
2007-06-26
A top Pakistani official has arrived in Beijing for talks on
strengthening anti-terrorist co-operation. Interior Minister
Aftab Khan Sherpao arrived for meetings with his mainland counterparts,
a Pakistani embassy spokesman said in Beijing. Xinhua said the
minister would meet Public Security Minister Zhou Yongkang and
other security officials. (…) The visit comes days after
six Chinese women were kidnapped from an alleged brothel in
Islamabad and briefly held by radical Islamic students as part
of an anti-vice campaign. ^ top ^
EU gets wake-up call on mainland's role
in Africa (SCMP)
2007-06-28
The European Union should launch an enhanced "partnership
of equals" with Africa this year in areas from trade to
aid to meet a rise in the mainland's influence in Europe's former
colonial backyard, its executive commission says. The goal is
to better position Europe in the quest for energy and other
resources also sought by the mainland as its economy surges
ahead. (…) Africa is also a front in the behind-the-scenes
ideological battle between the west and the mainland. Western
officials cite the mainland's reluctance to back tougher UN
sanctions against Sudan - one of its oil suppliers - as undermining
efforts to halt violence in Darfur and as proof Beijing places
interests before values in its foreign policy. They also suspect
the mainland of assiduously courting African capitals to win
their backing in the United Nations and its new Human Rights
Council to guard against attempts to censure it over its human
rights and democracy record. ^ top ^
Vice premier: China to enhance int'l cooperation
in IPR protection (Xinhua)
2007-06-27
Chinese Vice Premier Wu Yi said Tuesday China attaches great
importance to intellectual property protection and will enhance
international cooperation on the issue. (…) It is the
first time that the symposium has been held in Asia and it would
have a far-reaching influence on Asia and all developing countries,
said Wu. ^ top ^
Sudanese president meets Chinese envoy
for Darfur (Xinhua)
2007-06-23
Sudanese President Omer al-Bashir held talks in the Presidential
Palace on Saturday with visiting Special Representative of the
Chinese Government Liu Guijin in which they exchanged views
on the bilateral relations between the two countries, the Darfur
issue as well as other problems. (…) Al-Bashir noted that
the Chinese government had been exerting enormous efforts and
continuously playing a constructive role for helping resolve
the Darfur issue, adding that the appointment of a special representative
for Darfur proved again the concern of the Chinese government
over the issue. (…). ^ top ^
Mongolia vows to persist with Chinese policy
toward Tibet (Xinhua)
2007-06-27
The chairman of the State Great Hural of Mongolia Danzan Lundeejantsan
said Tuesday that Tibet is an inalienable part of China and
Mongolia would persist with the Chinese policy toward Tibet.
The speaker said this when meeting Tsering Dolkar, Vice Chairman
of Tibet's People's Political Consultative Conference of China
in Ulan Bator. (…). ^ top ^
|
| Domestic
Policy |
| Hu's policy speech prepares
ground for political theory (SCMP)
2007-06-27
President Hu Jintao has made a major push to leave his mark
on the Communist Party's constitution at the party congress
later this year, analysts say. He delivered a keynote speech
to elite party members on Monday, giving policy directions on
the country's economic and social development over the next
five years. Mr Hu, speaking at the Central Party School, outlined
a series of strategic ideas put forward by the party leadership
since the last party congress five years ago, highlighting his
pet concepts of "scientific development" and a "harmonious
society", Xinhua reported. (…) "The meeting
has set the tone for the 17th Party Congress, where the country's
previous reform path will be evaluated and new modes of development
will be asserted," said Mao Shoulong, a political science
professor at Renmin University. "Scientific development"
- Mr Hu's catchphrase for sustainable, energy-efficient economic
development instead of breakneck growth at the expense of the
environment - and "building a harmonious society"
- which essentially means reducing income disparities to ease
social tension - were likely to become the new party theory
to guide the country's development from 2007 to 2012, Professor
Mao said. (…) Mr Hu's political model, compared with that
of his predecessor Jiang Zemin, is considered to be more advanced
because it is concrete and focuses on overall and balanced development.
(…). ^ top ^
Journalists welcome revision of rules on
reporting emergencies (SCMP)
2007-06-26
Mainland journalists have cautiously welcomed a revision to
the draft law on emergency management which has dropped a controversial
clause prohibiting unauthorised media reports on emergencies.
The revision of the draft law, which is going through a second
reading at a National People's Congress (NPC) session, indicates
that the central government is gradually realizing that strong
media scrutiny is an effective anti-corruption tool. "It
represents a small victory for all news media workers in the
mainland," said a journalist who works for a US newspaper's
Shanghai office. The revised version also omits a provision
that would have allowed local governments to "monitor relevant
emergency coverage". It still calls on local governments
to "disclose information and developments of sudden incidents
in a unified, accurate and timely manner". (…).
^ top ^
Coal reserve proposed in law change (China
Daily)
2007-06-29
The country will set up a strategic coal reserve to ensure energy
security, according to a legislative amendment being drafted.
Building a strategic coal reserve is on the top of a list of
10 articles proposed to be added to the current coal law, Huang
Shengchu, president of the China Coal Information Institute
(CCII) affiliated to the State Administration of Work Safety,
told China Daily yesterday. (…) Of the four strategic
oil reserve bases, the first two - both located in East China's
Zhejiang Province - are already operational with a capacity
of 5 million tons each. Oil will be stored in the two other
bases - one in Huangdao of Shandong Province and another in
Dalian, Liaoning Province - this year or in the first half of
next year(…). The issue of a coal reserve is surely worth
discussing because of the importance of energy supply to the
economy(…). According to one revision, the threshold for
mining license application is raised to improve safety. Articles
on coal product processing and industry planning will also be
revised to serve the goal of sustainable development, he added.
The country's annual coal output reached 2.3 billion tons last
year. Exports were 63 million tons; and imports, 38 million
tons. Coal currently accounts for 70 percent of the country's
energy consumption. ^ top ^
China amends draft new labor law (Xinhua)
2007-06-28
The draft labor contract law, which is likely to be adopted
by China's national legislature when it ends its weeklong session
on Friday, has been revised to punish government officials for
abuse of office and dereliction of duty. Officials abusing their
authority or neglecting their responsibilities, resulting in
harm to the interests of workers, will face administrative penalties
or criminal prosecution if the actions are serious enough, according
to the revised draft. Lawmakers lambasted officials involved
in the forced labor scandal in north Shanxi Province during
their fourth deliberation on the draft, which resulted in the
revision, said Yang Jingyu, chairman of the Law Committee, on
Thursday. The officials' actions directly harmed the legal rights
of workers and caused social disquiet, so the labor contract
law, which aimed to protect workers, should contain provisions
to tackle the problem, according to members of the NPC Standing
Committee. (…). ^ top ^
China's courts recruit more staff for death
penalty reviews (People's Daily Online)
2007-06-23
China's courts will hire 1,900 more staff for open court trials
for second instance death sentence cases, according to a source
with the Supreme People's Court (SPC). "Over the past year,
the SPC has been recruiting personnel for local courts where
case numbers are high," the unnamed SPC official told an
inspection team of the National People's Congress, the parliament,
in a working report. According to China's Criminal Procedural
Law, since July 2006, open court sessions are obligatory when
a second instance case is defended by a people's procuratorate.
(…) Since 2005, Chinese media have exposed several errors
of judgement in death sentence cases and have criticized courts
for a lack of caution (…). ^ top ^
City admits to being a hub for drugs trade
- Guangzhou seen as top smugglers' target (SCMP)
2007-06-26
Guangzhou authorities have admitted for the first time that
the city has become an international distribution hub for illegal
drugs. Guangzhou customs deputy director Chen Jianwen said yesterday
that Guangzhou's prosperous economy and good transport links
made it "a good consumer and wholesale market for drugs".
(…) Guangdong police said yesterday that 110,000 people
in the province were addicted to heroin, about one-seventh of
the national total. ^ top ^
More than 1,000 officials disciplined for
corruption in first five months (People's Daily Online)
2007-06-25
More than 1,000 Chinese officials above the county level have
been punished for corruption during the first five months, up
2.4 percent over the same period last year, Monday's Procuratorial
Daily said. Prosecutors across China have investigated a total
of 12,622 corruption cases, involving 15,045 people, the newspaper
said, quoting sources with the Supreme People's Procuratorate.
(…) By April, China had dealt with 21,889 cases of commercial
bribery involving 5.3 billion yuan (676 million U.S. dollars)
since it started an anti-corruption campaign in 2005, according
to official statistics. ^ top ^
Slave cases spark crackdown on illegal
labour (SCMP)
2007-06-28
Beijing has launched a two-month nationwide crackdown on illegal
labour following the outcry over slavery scandals in Shanxi
and Henan. Jointly enforced by nine ministries, the campaign
will target illegal labour in small kilns, coal mines and workshops
in rural areas, according to a notice posted on a government
website yesterday. (…). ^ top ^
Illegal kilns used over 50,000 labourers
(SCMP)
2007-06-26
(…) Shanxi vice-governor Fan Duixiang told the National
People's Congress Standing Committee yesterday that the provincial
government has inspected 3,347 brick kilns, of which 2,346 had
been operating illegally. The kilns had hired 53,036 workers
illegally. "There are mainly three problems. Owners of
illegal brick kilns lured migrant workers with [empty promises]
of high salaries; restricted their workers' freedom; and used
child labour illegally," Mr Fan told the NPC Standing Committee.
Mr Fan said there were more than 100,000 migrants working in
8,760 small brick kilns, mines and refineries under investigation.
(…). ^ top ^
Petitioner killed in confrontation with
police (SCMP)
2007-06-28
One petitioner was killed and another injured when police tried
to prevent 10 petitioners from travelling from Liaoning province
to Beijing to complain about alleged illegal land requisition,
a human rights group reported yesterday. Police were holding
the eight other petitioners, the Hong Kong-based Information
Centre for Human Rights and Democracy said. (…) According
to the centre's report, the petitioners wanted to complain to
central government authorities in Beijing about a lack of compensation
when local officials seized their farmland for the construction
of a development zone. The incident came as top officials again
are reminding local cadres to handle properly any petitions).
^ top ^
Police detain eight Protestant leaders,
says overseas group (SCMP)
2007-06-28
Police have detained eight leaders of the unauthorised Protestant
church movement on charges of violating rules on religious activity,
an overseas monitoring group reported. The detentions, the latest
reported in an ongoing campaign of harassment against underground
church groups, came earlier this month in Shaanxi and Shandong
provinces, the China Aid Association reported. (…).
^ top ^
Industrial raw materials found in food
(China Daily)
2007-06-27
A nationwide inspection of the food-production industry has
uncovered the use of a wide range of illegal ingredients in
the processing of foodstuffs, the top quality watchdog said
Tuesday. Industrial raw materials, such as dyes, mineral oils,
paraffin wax, formaldehyde and the carcinogenic malachite green,
have been used in the production of flour, candy, pickles, biscuits,
black fungus, melon seeds, bean curd and seafood. Some processors
also use recycled or expired food in their operations, according
to the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection
and Quarantine. "These are not isolated cases," Han
Yi, director of the administration's quality control and inspection
department, said at a press conference. (…).
^ top ^
Map shows gap in China's rural services
2007-06-29
China's banking regulator has drawn a map of financial services
in rural areas to guide institutions to invest in regions with
inadequate coverage. The map, available at China Banking Regulatory
Commission's website yesterday, covers all the basic economic
and financial data of more than 30,000 towns, over 2,000 counties,
31 provinces and municipalities across the country. "It
shows the imbalance of financial resources between rural and
urban areas, and rural financial services need an urgent improvement,"
a CBRC official said. (…)The map is expected to provide
detailed information for financial investors as well as for
the regulator itself to better adjust its entrance requirement
policies for rural financial institutions. (…).
^ top ^
State Council passes Chongqing development
plan (Xinhua)
2007-06-27
The State Council, China's cabinet, on Wednesday passed a plan
for urban and rural development of southwestern Chongqing municipality
until 2020. The plan mainly aims to strengthen Chongqing's role
as a central city in the southwest and promote overall, balanced
and sustained development of the Three Gorges reservoir area.
Future growth of Chongqing will be based on balanced development
of urban and rural areas, better protection of its cultural
and ecological environment and proper use of its natural resources,
according to the plan. (…) The development environment
in Chongqing had changed greatly due to the Three Gorges project
and the massive population relocation, according to the State
Council. (…). ^ top ^
22.72 million people nationwide affected
by floods (People's Daily Online)
2007-06-28
According to statistics from the Office of State Flood Control
and Drought Relief Headquarters, as of June 15th, this year's
flooding has brought devastation to 1.224 hectares of farmland
and 22.72 million people, 128 deaths, and has been the origin
of a direct economic loss of 8.92 billion Yuan. The situation
has been especially devastating since June, due to serious flooding
in southern China. A population of 14.24 million people has
become victims of flooding. (…). ^ top ^
China minimum land bank to stay in effect
(Xinhua)
2007-06-26
The authorities will not allow the amount of arable land in
the country to shrink to less than 120 million hectares, a top
land official said on Monday while announcing the launch of
a nationwide land-use survey. Addressing a "National Land
Day" ceremony yesterday, Land and Resources Minister Xu
Shaoshi said conservative land-use would be a key part of economic
development and social stability. Xu warned that the amount
of arable land was shrinking due to relentless construction
and a poor land-use system. The most recent national survey,
released in October, showed that the country's arable land had
dwindled to 121.8 million hectares, representing a year-on-year
decline of 307,000 hectares. (…). ^ top ^
|
| Hongkong |
A-level English pass
rate at a 12-year low (SCMP)
Jun 29, 2007
The pass rate of Hong Kong students sitting the A-level English
exam has dropped to the lowest level in 12 years, figures revealed
yesterday. This year's pass rate was 4.3 percentage points below
that of 1996 and 0.6 percentage points down from last year.
The drop continues a decline that began in 2005, when students
who entered secondary school in 1998 - when mother-tongue education
was introduced - sat their A-levels. But some educators played
down the significance of the drop, noting that more students
were sitting the exam and the number passing had in fact increased
by 2,500. (…). ^ top ^
New Mainland and HK economic agreement
signed (Xinhua)
2007-06-29
The Chinese central government and the government of the Hong
Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) signed here Friday
Supplement IV to the Mainland and Hong Kong Closer Economic
Partnership Arrangement (CEPA), aiming to further open the mainland
market to Hong Kong. The agreement was signed by Henry Tang,
secretary of Finance of HKSAR government, and Vice Minister
of Commerce Liao Xiaoqi, witnessed by HKSAR Chief Executive
Donald Tsang and Minister of Commerce Bo Xilai (…).
^ top ^
|
| Taiwan |
Chinese mainland calls
for weekend, regular cross-Strait flights (Xinhua)
2007-06-27
The Chinese mainland hopes to establish weekend and regular
charter flights between the mainland and Taiwan as soon as possible,
in addition to the charter flights offered during major festivals,
a mainland official said. (…) The spokesman (…)
called for the resumption of negotiations on mainland tourists'
visits to Taiwan on Wednesday and blamed the Taiwan authorities
for putting obstacles against opening Taiwan-bound tourist routes
to mainland residents. ^ top ^
US lawmakers slam limits on visits by
Taiwanese officials (SCMP)
2007-06-28
US lawmakers, accusing the administration of kowtowing to Beijing,
called for an end to restrictions on visits to the United States
by high-level Taiwanese officials. The demand was adopted by
the foreign affairs committee of the House of Representatives
and now goes to a full vote in the lower chamber of Congress.
A parallel resolution is to go before the Senate. The US government
is wary of hosting top-level Taiwanese officials for fear of
offending Beijing. The resolution's sponsor in the House, Republican
Steve Chabot, said it was time to send a clear message to Beijing
over Taiwan, which the US is legally bound to defend in any
military conflict. ^ top ^
KMT officially backs Ma's presidential
bid - Party nominates ex-chairman as candidate (SCMP)
2007-06-25
Taiwan's Kuomintang yesterday officially nominated Ma Ying-jeou
and former premier Vincent Siew Van-chang as its candidates
for president and vice-president for the March election. After
accepting the nomination yesterday during the party's one-day
national congress held in Taoyuan, outside Taipei, Ma vowed
to respect the spirit of Taiwan's constitution. (…) "Once
the KMT regains power, I will solemnly announce the non-hostile,
but dignified way with sovereignty in mind" in dealing
with the mainland, he said. (…) ^ top ^
|
| Economy |
| China's first anti-monopoly
law imposes national security checks on acquisitions of domestic
firms (Xinhua)
2007-06-24
China's top legislature on Sunday read for the second time the
draft anti-monopoly law which requires foreign purchases of
Chinese companies to go through checks to ensure there is no
negative effect on China's national security. (…) What's
more, foreign companies have begun to acquire major state-owned
enterprises or companies with famous brands in recent years,
arousing concerns about China's economic security. (…)
China will strengthen examination and supervision of foreign
merger operations affecting major enterprises in sensitive sectors
and issue policies to improve the system for admitting foreign
invested industries by the end of 2010, according to the National
Development and Reform Commission (NDRC). (…).
^ top ^
China expresses regret and serious concern
over new trade rules of US (People's Daily Online)
2007-06-28
Wang Qinhua, director of the Department of Mechanical, Electronic
and Hi-Tech Industries under the Ministry of Commerce, said
that the Commerce Department of United States officially published
the "Revisions and Clarification of Export and Re-export
Controls for the People's Republic of China (PRC); New Authorization
Validated End-User; Revision of Import Certificate and PRC End-User
Statement Requirements" on June 19th. (…) This action
seriously affected the confidence of enterprises in both countries
to develop high-tech trade. China expressed regret and grave
concern over this measure. China holds the right to further
comment on the new regulations and prepare to take the necessary
measures. Wang Qinhua said that after the new regulations are
implemented, US enterprises will lose many potential trade opportunities
because of the export control policy on China and will pay a
high price. (…). ^ top ^
Imports to hit $1trillion by 2010 (China
Daily)
2007-06-29
China is trying to bolster imports to more than $1 trillion
by 2010 - up more than 25 percent from $792 billion last year
- in an attempt to balance trade, the Ministry of Commerce said
Thursday. The projected 2010 imports figure is almost equal
to the country's total trade volume in 2004. To restructure
the country's exports and narrow its widening trade surplus
with major trade partners - which hit $177.5 billion last year
- the government has adopted a range of measures to curb exports.
In the latest and boldest move yet to rein in exports, the country
announced that it will eliminate or cut tax rebates for more
than 2,800 export items effective July 1. (…).
^ top ^
Chinese gov't to allocate 6.5 bln yuan
to tether pork prices (Xinhua)
2007-06-23
With the dramatic rise in pork price, the Chinese government
has said that it plans to spend 6.5 billion yuan (850 million
U.S. dollars) this year to contain pork prices. The massive
government allocation, including 3.8 billion yuan from the central
government, will be mainly used for a soon-to-be-established
insurance scheme that will cover female pigs against illness
and natural disasters, said sources with the Ministry of Finance.
(…) A spike in the price of pig feed and cases of blue-ear
disease among the nation's swine has seen pork prices surge
dramatically this year(…). Food prices have climbed this
year, pushing China's inflation rate to 3.4 percent in May compared
with a year earlier. ^ top ^
China proposes US$ 200b for new investment
agency (China Daily)
2007-06-27
China's government unveiled plans Wednesday to inject US$200
billion into a company meant to invest part of its foreign reserves
abroad, giving the first official sign of the size of what will
be one of the world's richest investment funds. China announced
plans for the company in March in an effort to make more profitable
use of its US$1.2 trillion in reserves, which now are kept mostly
in US Treasurys and other safe but low-yielding securities.
(…) The fund is expected to avoid politically sensitive
deals by taking minority stakes in companies instead of pursuing
corporate takeovers, an official involved in the Blackstone
investment, Jesse Wang, told The Associated Press in May(…).
Financial analysts say the company also is expected to entrust
money to other private equity funds or securities firms to invest
in foreign stocks and other assets. Chinese authorities say
the investment company is modeled in part on Singapore's state-owned
Temasek Holdings, which invests in banks, real estate, shipping,
energy and other industries in Singapore, India, China, South
Korea and elsewhere. ^ top ^
Oil reserves to be ready in 1 year (China
Daily)
2007-06-28
The last two of the first four strategic oil reserve bases in
China, the world's second-biggest oil consumer, are expected
to kick off operations within a year, according to two State-owned
oil giants. An official from China Petroleum & Chemical
Corporation, known as Sinopec Group, told China Daily it would
start to fill crude oil into a base in Huangdao of East China's
Shandong Province by the end of this year. (…) A source
from China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC), parent of
Hong Kong- and New York-listed PetroChina, said a base under
construction in the northeastern port city of Dalian will be
filled with oil as early as the first half of 2008. Both bases
will be able to stockpile more than 3 million tons of crude
oil. The first two bases, both located in East China's Zhejiang
Province, are already operational with a capacity of 5 million
tons each.(…) The four bases are not enough to ensure
China's energy security if there is an interruption in petroleum
supplies, experts say. By contrast, the United States, the world's
top oil user, has a strategic petroleum reserve of 94 million
tons. (…)
Wahaha, Danone torn over statements (China
Daily)
2007-06-25
French food and beverage giant Groupe Danone SA yesterday called
on Chinese drinks maker Wahaha to ensure the smooth operation
of their joint ventures as the long-simmering tensions between
the two companies could hurt sales. Danone, which owns 51 percent
of the 39 joint ventures it has with its estranged partner Wahaha,
also expressed shock yesterday at Wahaha's decision to reveal
information from the joint ventures' board meetings, which ended
on June 21. The information should have been kept confidential.(…)
The feud surfaced as Zong Qinghou, founder of Wahaha, rejected
Danone's bid to buy out some of Wahaha's assets, while Danone
alleged that some companies linked to Zong's family are selling
Wahaha-branded products identical to those marketed by their
joint ventures. (…)
China's dairy production ranks third in
the world (People's Daily Online)
2007-06-25
China overtook Russia and Pakistan to rank third in the world
after India and the United States in the production of dairy
products in 2006, Monday's China Securities Journal reports.
China's production of dairy products grew 15 percent to reach
32.9 million tons in 2006, said Liu Chengguo, director of the
Dairy Association of China. Liu attributed the rapid development
of the country's dairy sector to a fast growth in the sector's
processing capacities. Both industrial output and sales revenue
of major dairy processing companies in 2006 were seven times
the 1998 figures, standing at 107.4 billion yuan (14.1 billion
U.S. dollars) and 104.1 billion yuan respectively, according
to Liu. (…) There was also a significant rise in the consumption
of dairy products in recent years as the consumer market expanded
from large and medium-sized cities to towns and villages, Li
noted. (…) ^ top ^
Millionaires becoming a yuan a dozen on
sizzling mainland (SCMP)
2007-06-29
The ranks of mainland US-dollar millionaires grew 7.8 per cent
to 345,000 last year as more people benefited from double-digit
economic growth and soaring stock markets. A report by Merrill
Lynch and Cap Gemini said a flurry of initial public offerings
by mainland companies helped create the new millionaires. Hong
Kong saw a 12.2 per cent increase in the number to 86,618 -
the 10th fastest growth in the world. (…)
^ top ^
China inaugurates free-trade harbor area
in Dalian (Xinhua)
2007-06-28
China inaugurated a harbor area with preferential tax rates
on Thursday in the northeastern city of Dalian, a major step
towards forming a free trade zone between China, Japan and the
Republic of Korea (ROK). (…) "It will remove tariffs
for foreign cargo and offer tax rebates for domestic cargo.
It will also exempt businesses from value added taxes and consumption
taxes if they trade with each other," Zhang said. (…)
^ top ^
|
| Beijing
Olympics |
PLA helps ensure security
for Games (China Daily)
2007-06-29
The People's Liberation Army (PLA) yesterday pledged to help
handle any emergencies such as terrorist attacks to ensure the
success of the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing. "Preventing
and fighting terrorist activities are our top priority,"
Tian Yixiang, director of the PLA Command Team for Beijing Olympic
Security Work, told military attaches from 54 countries. The
command team will also keep a close eye on East Turkistan separatist
forces, Taiwan secessionists and Tibet 'independence' activists,
Tian said, adding: (…). ^ top ^
BOCOG announces biggest torch relay (China
Daily)
2007-06-25
The organizers of the 2008 Olympic Games have announced that
they will recruit 21,880 torchbearers for the torch relay, making
it the biggest in the Games' history. (…) Zhang said BOCOG
had set no limits on the gender, career, nationality or health
of the participants, though they would have to be older than
14. (…) Chinese Taipei can also kick off its selection
of 120 torchbearers for the Beijing Olympic torch relay if it
returns to the written agreement reached by Beijing organizing
committee and Chinese Taipei Olympic Committee, officials said.
(…) The Beijing Olympic flame will be lit in March in
Greece before kicking off its 130-day journey, which will cover
137,000 km, including the world's highest peak, Mount Qomolangma.
^ top ^
|
| North
Korea |
| Watchdog's inspectors
set to visit nuclear plant (SCMP)
2007-06-28
North Korea will allow UN inspectors to visit the reactor at
the centre of the nation's nuclear programme today, in their
first on-site inspection in nearly five years, the head of an
inspection team said yesterday. The four-strong UN team flew
into North Korea on Tuesday, saying they were unsure if they
would be allowed to visit the Yongbyon reactor, which produces
the raw material for bomb-making plutonium. (…) The last
time UN inspectors were in North Korea was in 2002, but they
were kicked out in December that year at the start of a crisis
that led directly to the regime testing its first ever nuclear
weapon last year. Under a February accord, the North has promised
to shut down and seal the Yongbyon plant under UN supervision
in return for energy aid and diplomatic concessions. (…)
Under the terms of the February accord, the North must eventually
abandon the Yongbyon reactor. (…). ^ top ^
Japan rejects U.S.-proposed timing for
six-party ministerial meeting (Xinhua)
2007-06-26
The Japanese government has rejected a U.S. proposal to hold
a foreign ministerial meeting in the process of the six-party
talks in late July, citing Japan's upper house election slated
for the same period. The Cabinet made the decision out of concern
ahead of the parliamentary election since it will be hard to
achieve significant progress on the issue of the Democratic
People's Republic of Korea (DPRK)'s past abductions of Japanese
nationals during the talks, Kyodo News said. The six-party talks
on the Korean peninsula nuclear issue involves China, Russia,
the United States, Japan, South Korea and the DPRK. Japan has
been insisting that the abduction issue be put onto the agenda
of the talks. ^ top ^
|
| Mongolia |
Country Mourns 15 Dead
in Copter Crash (UB Post)
2007-06-21
The people of Mongolia are yet to come to terms with their grief
and gloom at the death of 12 firefighters and three members
of the crew in a helicopter crash in the mountains of Selenge
province. The Russian- made Mi-8 had crashed on Thursday morning
but it took three days to locate it and the official announcement
of the tragedy was made only on Sunday night. This said that
14 persons, 12 of them firefighters and the other two members
of the crew, had died in the crash. (…).
^ top ^
|
| Joel Baumgartner
Embassy of Switzerland
|
The Press review is a random selection
of political and social related news gathered from various media
and news services located in the PRC, edited or translated by
the Embassy of Switzerland in Beijing and distributed among Swiss
Government Offices. The Embassy does not accept responsibility
for accuracy of quotes or truthfulness of content. Additionally
the contents of the selected news mustn't correspond to the opinion
of the Embassy.
|
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