Foreign Policy

• Xi talks with UN chief, calling for urgent int'l action against COVID-19 (Xinhua)
• Update: China to strengthen coronavirus prevention at border, aid overseas fight (Xinhua)
• Chinese journalist group slams US for suppression, discrimination (Global Times)
• China will take multi-pronged measures to keep foreign trade, investment stable (Xinhua)
• Western criticism of China proves unjustified as coronavirus victory nears (Global Daily)
• Oil prices plunge on fear of price war (China Daily)
• China's oil imports not affected by epidemic in Iran (Global Times)
• Political motivation of some U.S. politicians laid bare over comments on Jimmy Lai: commissioner's office of Chinese foreign ministry (Xinhua)
• Chinese journalists association denounces U.S. decision to cut number of U.S.-based Chinese reporters (Xinhua)

Domestic Policy

• Coronavirus: China's first confirmed Covid-19 case traced back to November 17 (SCMP)
• Xi Focus: With virus basically curbed, China pushes ahead battle against economic fallout (Xinhua)
• Experts call for steady mental health intervention efforts amid China's virus outbreak (Xinhua)
• Xinhua Headlines-Xi Focus: "Turning the tide" -- Xi leads anti-virus war toward victory (Xinhua)
• Commentary: Institutional strength: China's key to beating novel coronavirus (Xinhua)

Beijing 

• Beijing strengthens rules on quarantine (China Daily)
• Beijing expects to receive 70 pct fewer tourists in Q1: official (Xinhua)
• China launches new BeiDou navigation satellite (Global Times)

Shanghai

• Shanghai policies aid foreign workers (China Daily)

Xinjiang

• China denounces US human rights report on Xinjiang (China Daily)
• US bill would bar goods from Xinjiang, classifying them the product of forced labour by Uygurs (SCMP)
• US granting award for Xinjiang fugitive an affront to human rights: FM (Global Times)

Hongkong

• Hong Kong hits back at US report on 'police brutality', saying city has been dealing with unprecedented protest violence (SCMP)
• Hong Kong resurrects Chapter 11-style corporate rescue bill after a 24-year hiatus as Singapore powers ahead with reforms (SCMP)
• United States unlikely to impose sanctions on Hong Kong, cabinet advisers say after visit (SCMP)
• Hong Kong's Cyberport can connect US and China (China Daily)

Taiwan

• Cyberattack from Taiwan disguised as COVID-19 related files (Global Times)
• US deal with Taiwan may trigger China-US military conflict (Global Times)
• KMT becomes 'more pro-US and localized' as new chairman elected (Global Times)

Economy

• Economist says China remains on course to match the US' economy (China Daily)
• Supply chains stay intact, says ministry (China Daily)

DPRK

• Top DPRK leader guides another long-range artillery strike drill (China Daily)

Mongolia

• Decisions made at Cabinet meeting on March 11 (Montsame)

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Xi talks with UN chief, calling for urgent int'l action against COVID-19 (Xinhua)
2020-03-13
Chinese President Xi Jinping on Thursday spoke with UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres over phone, urging the international community to take urgent action in the fight against the COVID-19 epidemic. Xi recalled that since the outbreak of the novel coronavirus disease, Guterres has written to him to extend sympathies and express appreciation of China's prevention and control measures, and has publicly voiced support for China's anti-epidemic efforts on multiple occasions. The Chinese president conveyed his gratitude to the UN chief, pointing out that as Chinese people often say, a friend in need is a friend indeed. Thanks to arduous endeavors, China has been witnessing a domestic trend in which the situation of epidemic prevention and control is making sustained progress and the order of life and production is being restored at an increasing pace, Xi said. For the next step, he added, China will act as prudently at the end as at the beginning, and carry on its prevention and control efforts in an unrelenting, solid and meticulous fashion, and meanwhile earnestly advance all aspects of work in economic and social development. The Chinese people will definitely prevail over the COVID-19 epidemic and will also definitely realize its intended targets for economic and social development, Xi said. "I am fully confident in that." Xi stressed that the Chinese people's hard work has won precious time for and made important contributions to other countries' epidemic prevention and control. Noting that with COVID-19 having recently occured and spread in a number of countries, the situation is worrying, he urged the international community to take urgent action and carry out effective international cooperation in joint prevention and control, so as to form a strong concerted force to beat the disease. China stands ready to share its experience with other countries, carry out joint research and development on drugs and vaccines, and offer as much assistance as it can to countries where the disease is spreading, Xi said. He added that China supports the United Nations and the World Health Organization (WHO) in mobilizing the international community to enhance policy coordination, expand resources input, and particularly help developing countries with poor public health systems prepare themselves for prevention and response. China, he said, has announced a 20-million-U.S.-dollar donation to the WHO in support of its efforts to organize international actions against the epidemic. The epidemic has once again demonstrated that mankind is a community with a shared future that shares weal and woe, Xi stressed, adding that in the era of economic globalization, COVID-19 will not be the world's last major emergency, and various traditional and non-traditional security issues will constantly bring about new tests. The international community has to see humanity as one community with a shared future, look out for one another, and join hands to tackle risks and challenges and build a beautiful planet, said the Chinese president. Noting that this year marks the 75th anniversary of the founding of the United Nations, Xi said China supports the international community in taking that as an opportunity to reaffirm its commitment to multilateralism, and reinforce and improve the global governance system with the United Nations at the core. The Chinese side, he added, will continue supporting the work of the world body. For his part, Guterres said he is very pleased with and congratulates China on the significant decrease of COVID-19 cases in China. The UN chief said he believes that with firm determination and strong resilience, China will both overcome the epidemic and restore economic order in a rapid manner, which not only serves the interests of the Chinese people, but also represents an important contribution to the world. The United Nations thanks China for helping countries currently in difficulties to fight against COVID-19, said Guterres, adding that the world body appreciates China's sharing of experience in epidemic prevention and control with developing countries and provision of such valuable assistance as medical supplies, vaccines and medicines. He said that China's support is crucial to multilateralism, and that the United Nations hopes to further deepen its cooperation with China in climate change, sustainable development and various other fields, and looks forward to China playing an important leading role in international affairs. ^ top ^

Update: China to strengthen coronavirus prevention at border, aid overseas fight (Xinhua)
2020-03-12
A leading group of China's COVID-19 response Thursday called for more targeted prevention measures to stem the cross-border spread of the novel coronavirus and promised help for overseas fight against the pandemic. The group, led by Premier Li Keqiang, called for efforts to closely follow the overseas situation of the pandemic, and to take into consideration the latest assessment made by the World Health Organization and international practice, according to a meeting of the group held Thursday. More precise and targeted measures should be taken to guard against import and export of cases of infection, according to the meeting, which was presided over by Li, also a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee. The group called for efforts to further promote international joint prevention and control, stressing better data sharing, border quarantine and other virus prevention work. The group also stressed helping relevant countries and international organizations in fighting the virus to the best of China's capabilities. Domestic enterprises with adequate capacity were urged to produce more materials and goods for the virus control. After fulfilling domestic needs, enterprises should work to meet the demands of overseas commercial procurement based on market-oriented principles, according to the meeting. After having made major progress in the current stage, Hubei Province and its capital city of Wuhan should give priority to medical treatment and strengthen the treatment of severely ill patients, according to the meeting. The group urged more supportive measures to people in need amid the outbreak, stressing help for poor people, disabled people, children without guardians due to the outbreak and other vulnerable groups. After taking effective measures to prevent a rebound of the epidemic, various regions, especially those with low virus risks, should quicken their pace to restore normal business, production and life, according to the meeting. Wang Huning, also a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and deputy head of the leading group, attended the meeting. ^ top ^

Chinese journalist group slams US for suppression, discrimination (Global Times)
2020-03-12
The All-China Journalists Association on Thursday strongly condemned the US for its unwarranted suppression and discriminatory practices against Chinese journalists in the country, slamming US double standards on "freedom of the press" and its hegemonic bullying. This is the second time in a week that the association has spoken out for the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese journalists overseas following Washington's latest decision to cap Chinese media employee numbers in the US. The association said in recent years that US suppression of Chinese media has been intensifying. In December 2018, the US Department of Justice registered China Global Television Network's North America station as a "foreign agent." On February 18 this year, the US State Department announced that five Chinese media agencies in the US, including the Xinhua News Agency, would be designated as "foreign missions" and required to submit information on their staff and real estate. On March 2, the US State Department announced that starting March 13, the number of Chinese employees in the US from the five Chinese media would be cut by 60, or 40 percent, a move interpreted as expelling Chinese journalists from the US. The association also criticized discriminatory US policies on visas for Chinese journalists. The US only allows Chinese journalists stationed in the US to enter the country once. Chinese journalists who return home or go to a third country need to apply for a new visa when they enter the US again, while the US grants multiple-entry visas to journalists from other countries and regions. Since 2018, the US has been making it difficult for Chinese journalists to apply for visas. It has arbitrarily added more application materials that Chinese journalists are required to submit. In addition to the normal application materials, it also requires Chinese journalists to submit a large amount of additional materials, such as social media accounts, exit records over the past 15 years, company registration information and organizational structure in the US, and social relations. The US also extended its visa approval time, delaying visa approvals indefinitely or even refusing visa applications, claiming administrative review. Statistics show that since 2018, the visas of more than 30 Chinese journalists have been delayed indefinitely or have even been refused by the US. Among them, nine resident journalists have been unable to re-enter the US after leaving. Some Chinese journalists have not received any feedback from the US and their passports have not been returned since they applied for visas in mid-December. The association also condemned the US for restricting Chinese journalists from reporting in the US for a variety of reasons. On the grounds that their agencies were "foreign agents," the US denied journalists from CGTN, China Daily (which was registered in 1983) and other media outlets the right to apply for US Congress press credentials. The US also demanded that some Chinese journalists regularly submit employment certificates to the White House. Chinese reporters were often "looked at differently" or even interrogated during reporting. The US has removed some Chinese journalists from its email invitation list for small-scale events, or excluded them from coverage of small-scale events on the grounds that the number has been reached. It has become increasingly difficult to conduct interviews for Chinese reporters in the US after their agencies were listed as "foreign agents." Calling these actions "political oppression driven by its Cold War mentality and ideological bias," the association said they have seriously violated the normal and legitimate rights and interests of Chinese journalists overseas, seriously damaged the reputation of Chinese media, and seriously interfered with their normal operations. "We urged the US to effectively correct the wrong practices that violate the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese journalists in the US and take action to ensure their normal operations," the statement said. Chinese experts have said that the latest US move serves as "retaliation" for China revoking the press credentials of three Wall Street Journal journalists over a racist headline, and also as one of its cards to contain China. Da Wei, director of the Center for Strategic and International Security Studies at the University of International Relations, said no matter how the US chooses to designate them, these journalists help the two countries better understand each other. There have been challenges in China-US relations, and the two countries should try to increase mutual understanding rather than closing their doors to one another and creating further misjudgments. The US' move this time can be seen as a step that further leads to China-US decoupling. Such incidents will accumulate and eventually lead to a complete decoupling. The US is accelerating this trend, Da said. It has become a trend for the US to impede normal exchanges with China, which can be gleaned from US efforts to limit the activities of the Confucius Institute, viewing some Chinese students and visiting scholars in the US as potential security threats, and sharply reducing or suspending cooperation in scientific research. The decline in normal social and academic exchanges between the two countries will certainly have a profound negative impact on the sound development of China-US ties, said Xin Qiang, deputy director of the Center for American Studies at Fudan University. The recent moves by the US government will not achieve the results it wants. The deliberate discrimination against the Chinese media will only make the international community more aware of the double standards of the US. At the same time, such actions are likely to provoke retaliation from China, which could cause collateral damage to US media in China as well, said Zhang Tengjun, an assistant research fellow at the China Institute of International Studies. The attempt by the US to suppress China's rising influence by clamping down on its media will not succeed. If the US continues to suppress China, it will eventually lead to its own isolation, Zhang said. ^ top ^

China will take multi-pronged measures to keep foreign trade, investment stable (Xinhua)
2020-03-12
China will work to shorten the negative list on foreign investment and encourage financial institutions to increase foreign trade loans to cope with the impact of the epidemic and keep steady progress in foreign trade and investment. Sound preparations will be made for the China Import and Export Fair (Canton Fair) this spring. These were decided at the State Council's executive meeting on Tuesday presided over by Premier Li Keqiang. "Keeping foreign trade and foreign investment stable is vitally important as the Chinese economy has been deeply integrated into the world economy. Given the severe impact of the epidemic on foreign trade, we must implement targeted policies to arrest the slide in foreign trade and foreign investment, to forestall damage to the wider economy," Li said. It was decided at the Tuesday meeting that all export tax rebates must be made in full without delay except for energy intensive, polluting, and resource products. Financial institutions will be encouraged to increase foreign trade loans, fully deliver the policy of loan deferment in both principal and interest, and consider further rolling over, through consultations, the loans made to smaller firms deeply affected by the outbreak yet hold promising prospects. Commercial insurance companies will be supported in offering short-term export credit insurance services and lowering premium rates. The meeting called for sound preparation for the China Import and Export Fair this spring to bolster cooperation on foreign trade. Efforts must be intensified to shorten the negative list on foreign investment and expand the catalog of industries where foreign investment is encouraged, so that foreign investors in more sectors get to benefit from the tax and other incentives. Recent tax and fee relief policies designed to help companies in difficulty should equally apply to both domestic and foreign-invested enterprises. "All companies, regardless of size or type of ownership, should get to benefit from the recent policies designed to ease their difficulties. We must swiftly work out a further shortened negative list on the access of foreign investment to more clearly demonstrate our firm resolve on opening-up," Li said. ^ top ^

Western criticism of China proves unjustified as coronavirus victory nears (Global Daily)
2020-03-11
Some Western media outlets have blamed China for the virus' going global and made a big deal out of China's "delays" during the outbreak's initial stage. Now that the novel coronavirus crisis continues to unfold across the world, it's obvious to see which country's handling has been more efficient and effective. Within China, the spread has been brought under control. Chinese provinces and regions excluding Hubei have reported single-digit or even zero new locally transmitted cases for several consecutive days. And in Wuhan, people who have recovered from the disease now outnumbers people still being treated in hospital. For China, a complete victory is just around the corner. In sharp contrast, however, is the situation outside of China which is shrouded in uncertainty. The changing situation has revealed the true features of some Western countries and their media outlets. Prior to the lockdown of Wuhan in January, certain Western media outlets accused China of "letting" the virus spread in China and being responsible for its spread beyond its border. But right now, it is hard to find criticisms over some Western countries' inaction amid the increasingly serious situation. After the Chinese government took drastic steps, the Western media again attacked China for so-called violation of human rights. But now, a few Western countries and regions are starting to copy China's moves, locking down cities and adopting stringent measures. Linking up all the West's words and deeds over the past two months, one may find them ridiculous and pathetic. These self-contradictory and double-standard moves with no regard to basic facts expose their immorality and irresponsibility. Fortunately, the Chinese government is determined, and the Chinese people can well discern between right and wrong and will hardly allow themselves to be at the mercy of Western-controlled international public opinion. After all, no matter what China does, the Western media outlets will find a reason to throw mud at it. After the epidemic broke out in China, many countries and international organizations had expressed their support and provided substantial assistance. However, some Western media have looked on at China's misfortune with indifference and even taken pleasure in it. China, especially Hubei Province, suffered a serious shortage of face masks in the early days of the outbreak. These infamous media outlets, however, instead of practicing "humanitarianism," which they always advocate, and offering a helping hand, scolded China with harsh words and little sympathy. The difference between China and the West can also be seen at a glance regarding interactions with other countries and regions during the epidemic. Last week, Germany detained a shipment of 240,000 masks to Switzerland, a decision leading to a diplomatic spat, Bloomberg reported. Switzerland has already summoned the German ambassador to complain about its neighbor's move. For the sake of a truck of masks, the two Western countries put their images and traditional relations aside. In contrast, despite some past frictions, the three Asian powers - China, Japan, and South Korea - have stood together amid the epidemic and set a good example for the rest of the world. Friendly interactions between the three governments and peoples during the ongoing epidemic fully embody the spirit of a community with a shared future. With the rise of isolationism and narrow-minded nationalism, such a spirit will shed substantial light on the new globalization trend in the post-epidemic era. ^ top ^

Oil prices plunge on fear of price war (China Daily)
2020-03-10
Oil prices on Monday dropped the most since the 1991 Gulf War as tensions between Russia and Saudi Arabia sparked fears on Wall Street that an all-out price war is imminent and increased stress on a global economy already hit by the spreading coronavirus. The Dow Jones Industrial Average sank by more than 1,800 points minutes after the market opened and the S&P 500 plunged by 7 percent, triggering a "circuit breaker" that halted all trading for 15 minutes. By mid-morning, all three major averages were still struggling, but had pared some losses. Oil prices dropped overnight and investors turned to gold, pushing it to a seven-year high. Prices were down more than 20 percent after Saudi Arabia announced major price cuts and production increases. The Saudi move came after Russia last week rejected a proposal by OPEC to cut 1.5 million barrels of production per day. US President Donald Trump played down the plunging price of oil and the spreading coronavirus. He said that lower gas prices were good for consumers and compared COVID-19 to the common flu. "Good for the consumer, gasoline prices coming down!" Trump wrote in one of a series of posts on Twitter. In another, he wrote that the flu killed 37,000 Americans last year, compared with 22 known deaths from COVID-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus. Trump said the collapse of oil prices was caused by Saudi Arabia and Russia "arguing over the price and flow of oil". "That, and the Fake News, is the reason for the market drop!" Trump tweeted. "Nothing is shut down, life & the economy go on," he said."This has turned into a scorched Earth approach by Saudi Arabia, in particular, to deal with the problem of chronic overproduction," Again Capital's John Kilduff told CNBC. "The Saudis are the lowest cost producer by far. There is a reckoning ahead for all other producers, especially those companies operating in the US shale patch." Crude prices, along with US government bond yields, are typically viewed as key barometers of economic health and confidence, Gregory Perdon, co-chief investment officer at private bankers Arbuthnot Latham, told The Wall Street Journal. "There has always been an assumption that when the oil price collapses the world is going to become a darker place, whether that is driven by the demand side or supply side," he told the newspaper. "The fear today is about a global recession," said Thomas Hayes, chairman of Great Hill Capital, a hedge fund-management firm based in New York. "If Russia does not come back to the table soon, investors worry the default risk and credit spreads widening will lead to tighter credit and even a recession," he told the Journal. ^ top ^

China's oil imports not affected by epidemic in Iran (Global Times)
2020-03-09
The outbreak of COVID-19 in Iran is getting worse. But analysts said that the coronavirus epidemic in the oil-producing country will not affect China's crude imports or Chinese enterprises in Iran. As of Monday, the total death toll rose to 237, with confirmed cases at 7,161. Iran is the most affected country in the Middle East. Qu Xinrong, senior research fellow of the Shanghai Petroleum and Natural Gas Exchange, said that the epidemic in Iran will not have much impact on China's crude imports. "Due to the impact of the epidemic and the delay in the resumption of work of enterprises in China, domestic demand for crude oil has been declining and will decrease in March. Meanwhile, China's crude oil inventory is relatively high, resulting in less demand for imports," Qu told the Global Times on Monday. According to Refinitiv, a financial markets data provider, China bought a total of 10.12 million barrels per day (bpd, or 1.38 million tons) in 2019, while the volume was less than 7 million bpd in January and February. "China's crude oil imports from Iran have dropped significantly since last year. Considering the fact that crude oil is settled in US dollars, it will be more difficult for Chinese companies to continue importing crude oil from Iran under US sanctions," Qu noted. Data shows China imported 14.77 million tons of crude from Iran in 2019, an annual decline of 49.5 percent. Imports from Iran only accounted for 2.92 percent of total imports as China imported 506 million tons of crude oil in 2019, according to the General Administration of Customs. "Although the outbreak of COVID-19 in Iran will not have much influence on China, we should remain vigilant to see whether the coronavirus will further spread in other oil-producing countries," Wang Lining, deputy director of Oil Market Research Department at the Economics and Technology Research Institute of China National Petroleum Corp, told the Global Times on Monday. "Despite the severe outbreak of the coronavirus in Iran, the impact on Chinese companies is limited. First, most of Chinese companies have left Iran due to US sanctions. Second, more than 90 percent of Chinese enterprises and their personnel are located in Tehran, where only a few cases of COVID-19 have been reported," an Iran-based Chinese businessman who preferred not to be identified told the Global Times on Monday. ^ top ^

Political motivation of some U.S. politicians laid bare over comments on Jimmy Lai: commissioner's office of Chinese foreign ministry (Xinhua)
2020-03-06
Office of the Commissioner of the Chinese Foreign Ministry in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (SAR) said on Friday that some U.S. politicians' comments on the HKSAR government's legal action against Jimmy Lai and several others are attempting to sow trouble in Hong Kong. In a recent statement, some lawmakers of the U.S. House Committee on Foreign Affairs accused the HKSAR government's legal action against Jimmy Lai, widely known as one of the "black hands" behind Hong Kong's months-long unrest, and others who had tried to mess up Hong Kong, of being "politically motivated." The spokesperson of the commissioner's office on Friday condemned and firmly opposed the accusation, saying that it is exactly these politicians' absurd comments that are politically motivated, which have distorted the truth in an attempt to sow trouble in Hong Kong and China at large. The spokesperson pointed out that no one is above the law in Hong Kong, an SAR governed by the rule of law. There is solid evidence that Jimmy Lai and the others have long been engaged in anti-China activities and attempted to mess up Hong Kong, and the Hong Kong police took the legal action against them in strict accordance to the law. But some U.S. politicians have tried to shift the blame, painting the suspects as "Hong Kongers who are exercising their rights to free assembly and free speech" while accusing the police of "the politically motivated use of Hong Kong's legal system," the spokesperson said. The spokesperson said the U.S. side has also threatened with the so-called "Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act of 2019," which has only further revealed their disregard for the rule of law and endorsement of the wrongdoers. The spokesperson reiterated that Hong Kong is part of China, and its affairs are completely China's internal affairs. The political motivated attempts of some U.S. politicians to mess up Hong Kong and China as a whole are doomed to fail. ^ top ^

Chinese journalists association denounces U.S. decision to cut number of U.S.-based Chinese reporters (Xinhua)
2020-03-08
The All-China Journalists Association Friday issued a statement voicing strong condemnation and firm opposition to a demand made by the U.S. State Department to cap the number of U.S.-based Chinese journalists. Describing the U.S. move as de-facto expulsion of Chinese journalists, the association said that the actions have seriously violated the normal and legitimate rights and interests of Chinese journalists in carrying out news reporting overseas, damaged the reputation of Chinese media and journalists and interfered with their normal work abroad. While priding itself on freedom of the press, the United States now grossly infringes upon the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese journalists and obstructs the Chinese media from their normal reporting tasks. "Such two-faced behavior exposed its hypocrisy in so-called freedom of the press, nothing short of double standards and hegemonic bullying," the association said in the statement. Chinese journalists stationed in the United States have been strictly abiding by U.S. laws and regulations and carrying out news reporting under the principle of objectivity, fairness, truthfulness and accuracy, playing a positive role in enhancing communication and understanding between the Chinese and U.S. people, promoting strategic mutual trust between China and the United States, and enhancing exchanges and cooperation in various fields between the two countries, the statement said. China has respected and guaranteed the media of various countries to carry out normal reporting activities in the country in accordance with the law, and has never imposed any restriction on the number of U.S. media organizations or personnel in China, it added. The association called on the United States to abandon its Cold War mentality and political oppression based on ideological prejudice. The U.S. side is urged to immediately stop gross interference with the normal operation of Chinese media, stop infringement of the lawful rights and interests of Chinese journalists, and take immediate measures to correct its wrongdoings such as labeling Chinese media outlets in a discriminatory manner, capping the number of Chinese journalists, and setting visa barriers for Chinese journalists stationed in the United States, so as to protect the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese journalists in the United States, according to the statement. ^ top ^

Coronavirus: China's first confirmed Covid-19 case traced back to November 17 (SCMP)
2020-03-13
The first case of someone in China suffering from Covid-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus, can be traced back to November 17, according to government data seen by the South China Morning Post. Chinese authorities have so far identified at least 266 people who were infected last year, all of whom came under medical surveillance at some point. Some of the cases were likely backdated after health authorities had tested specimens taken from suspected patients. Interviews with whistle-blowers from the medical community suggest Chinese doctors only realised they were dealing with a new disease in late December. Scientists have been trying to map the pattern of the early transmission of Covid-19 since an epidemic was reported in the central China city of Wuhan in January, two months before the outbreak became a global health crisis. Understanding how the disease spread and determining how undetected and undocumented cases contributed to its transmission will greatly improve their understanding of the size of that threat. According to the government data seen by the Post, a 55 year-old from Hubei province could have been the first person to have contracted Covid-19 on November 17. From that date onwards, one to five new cases were reported each day. By December 15, the total number of infections stood at 27 – the first double-digit daily rise was reported on December 17 – and by December 20, the total number of confirmed cases had reached 60. On December 27, Zhang Jixian, a doctor from Hubei Provincial Hospital of Integrated Chinese and Western Medicine, told China's health authorities that the disease was caused by a new coronavirus. By that date, more than 180 people had been infected, though doctors might not have been aware of all of them at the time. By the final day of 2019, the number of confirmed cases had risen to 266, On the first day of 2020 it stood at 381. While the government records have not been released to the public, they provide valuable clues about how the disease spread in its early days and the speed of its transmission, as well as how many confirmed cases Beijing has recorded. Scientists are now keen to identify the so-called patient zero, which could help them to trace the source of the coronavirus, which is generally thought to have jumped to humans from a wild animal, possibly a bat. Of the first nine cases to be reported in November – four men and five women – none has been confirmed as being "patient zero". They were all aged between 39 and 79, but it is unknown how many were residents of Wuhan, the capital of Hubei and the epicentre of the outbreak. It is possible that there were reported cases dating back even earlier than those seen by the Post. According to the World Health Organisation's website, the first confirmed Covid-19 case in China was on December 8, but the global body does not track the disease itself but relies on nations to provide such information. A report published in medical journal The Lancet by Chinese doctors from Jinyintan Hospital in Wuhan, which treated some of the earliest patients, put the date of the first known infection at December 1. Dr Ai Fen, the first known whistle-blower, told People magazine in an interview that was later censored, that tests showed that a patient at Wuhan Central Hospital was diagnosed on December 16 as having contracted an unknown coronavirus. Accounts by other doctors seem to suggest the medical community in Wuhan became aware of the disease in late December. Previous reports said that although doctors in the city collected samples from suspected cases in late December, they could not confirm their findings because they were bogged down by bureaucracy, such as having to get approval from the Chinese Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, which could take days. They were also ordered not to disclose any information about the new disease to the public. As late as January 11, Wuhan's health authorities were still claiming there were just 41 confirmed cases. ^ top ^

Xi Focus: With virus basically curbed, China pushes ahead battle against economic fallout (Xinhua)
2020-03-12
After securing an upper hand in its all-out confrontation with the novel coronavirus on home turf, China is warily repositioning itself to fight the economic fallouts of the outbreak already declared as a pandemic. In stark contrast to the rapid spread elsewhere in the world, the virus spread has been basically contained in China, with new risks largely coming from imported cases. The National Health Commission said it received reports of 15 new confirmed cases on the mainland on Wednesday, among which six were imported cases. Since the beginning of the outbreak, China has prioritized the health of people from home and abroad and taken stringent measures to contain the spread of the virus at the expense of short-term economic gains. Flexibility and agility are what China has learned from its tough fight with the ferocious virus. Shortly before the World Health Organization declared the outbreak as a pandemic, China's State Council unveiled new measures to support foreign trade and investment in case the increasingly severe situations overseas might further weigh down global industrial chains. The measures in the pipeline include a shorter negative list of foreign investment and more foreign trade loans from financial institutions. During his Tuesday inspection of Wuhan, the epicenter of the outbreak, Chinese President Xi Jinping reiterated that the epidemic will not undermine the fundamentals of China's steady and long-term sound economic development despite short-term economic repercussions. In a speech at a teleconference on Feb. 23, Xi, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, stressed the importance of coordinating the prevention and control of the epidemic and economic and social development. While ensuring sufficient epidemic prevention and control, resumption of work and production in certain regions has a bearing on solid material supply to contain the epidemic, completing the building of a moderately prosperous society in all aspects, China's opening up and global economic stability, among others, said Xi. Xi demanded detailed steps to keep the economy stable, including category-based and region-specific work and production resumption, enhanced macro policy adjustment, doubled-down efforts on poverty alleviation and boosting employment, stepping up agriculture production, ensuring people's livelihood, as well as stabilizing foreign trade and investment. As the world's second-largest economy, China has much leeway in sustaining steady economic growth. The ample maneuver room comes from the government's rich policy toolkit. Xi has demanded the right pace and capacity of macro policies to cushion the epidemic's impact and prevent economic growth from slipping out of an appropriate range. The epidemic has become one of the busiest occasions for China's government agencies, which are in full swing to keep an eye on the economy's well-being amid the epidemic fight and develop support steps. Liquidity is boosted via open market operations and targeted credit ease. Tax, fee and social security payment cuts are offered to impacted firms. Daily necessity supplies are ensured through national reserve allocation. Logistics is facilitated via fast-track channels and free tolls. Food production is guaranteed by supporting spring farming. Governments at all levels are responding swiftly to calls for help. Some local authorities arranged chartered buses, trains and flights to bring employees back to work to ease labor shortages. After reports of some 300 million chickens starving over impeded feed supply in epidemic-stricken Hubei, the government prompted state-owned grain suppliers to send feed and later ordered local governments to refrain from blocking ways key to transport of livestock feed and products. Besides government aid, the country's businesses have been biting the bullet with grit and wit to survive and thrive. Companies and factories see the hard times as a chance to discover opportunities in the midst of a crisis. Industrial giants are taking the lead in business adjustments, such as the rollout of non-contact delivery services and promotion of virtual reality salesrooms and online scenic spot tours. Many also lend a hand to prop up smaller players in their business ecosystem, including scraping rent and commission and offering microloans for vulnerable partners. In one of the hardest-hit sectors, many restaurants take to food delivery to keep business going. Some even put their chefs on livestreaming platforms to pitch dishes or offer cooking tips. The country's vibrant digital sector further adds to the economy's resilience by enabling millions of people to work, entertain and study from home via telecommuting and livestreaming. As of the end of February, over 95 percent of companies in petrochemical, telecommunications, electricity and transport industries have resumed operation, while staff in over 80 percent of foreign-funded enterprises have returned to work. As the rest of the global economy is increasingly gripped by fears of the outbreak, China's getting back to economic normality offers much-needed comfort. ^ top ^

Experts call for steady mental health intervention efforts amid China's virus outbreak (Xinhua)
2020-03-11
Psychological experts said steady efforts in mental health prevention are needed as people's psychological status changes along with the situation of the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) epidemic in China. The general public has remained psychologically stable thanks to the importance that has been put on people's mental health during the outbreak, said Fang Xin, a psychologist with Peking University Hospital. China has dispatched 415 psychological counselors to Hubei Province to offer mental counseling services to patients and medical workers, according to National Health Commission figures. A total of 613 free hotlines have been available to individuals seeking psychological help during the outbreak, according to He Qinghua, a senior official with the National Health Commission. As the epidemic situation improves in China, "the fear about the coronavirus among the public eases, and the psychological differences among different groups emerge," said Gao Wenbin, a researcher with the Institute of Psychology, Chinese Academy of Sciences. "People's mental health needs can no longer be met just by listening to them and cheering them up," Fang said. Experts are referring to new mental health risks that might arise as China continues to resume work and production. He Jingli, director of a mental health counseling center for minors based in Nanchang, Jiangxi Province, said the center has recently received more calls about personal relationships and daily life. Preparations are being made across China. In Jiangxi, more than 600 volunteers with professional knowledge are recruited to join psychological professionals in offering counseling services via social media to community residents. In Shanghai, online platforms have been launched to provide psychological counseling around the clock. ^ top ^

Xinhua Headlines-Xi Focus: "Turning the tide" -- Xi leads anti-virus war toward victory (Xinhua)
2020-03-11
President Xi Jinping on Tuesday inspected the COVID-19 outbreak epicenter in central China, pledging a continuous fight toward victory as prevention and control efforts have "turned the tide." The inspection to Wuhan, Hubei Province, took the president to a hospital treating severely ill COVID-19 patients and a residential community. He visited patients, medics, community residents and workers, police officers, military personnel, officials and volunteers who have been fighting the novel coronavirus. Xi, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, called for firm, solid and meticulous prevention and control efforts to defend Hubei and Wuhan. Xi said thanks to hard work, the situation in Hubei and Wuhan has shown positive changes with important progress, but the task of prevention and control remains arduous. Xi stressed continuing to take epidemic prevention and control as a task of paramount importance. Praising the people of Wuhan, Xi said the positive trend in epidemic control could not have been achieved without their sacrifice, devotion, perseverance and efforts. With their concrete actions, the people of Wuhan have demonstrated the strength and spirit of China, as well as the Chinese people's love for their family and nation, which enables them to stick together through thick and thin, he said. On behalf of the CPC Central Committee, Xi sent condolences to people who died in the epidemic and people who sacrificed their lives fighting on the front line. Wang Huning, a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and a member of the Secretariat of the CPC Central Committee, also attended the inspection. In Huoshenshan Hospital, the first leg of his inspection, Xi lauded medical workers as "the most beautiful angels" and "messengers of light and hope." The frontline medical workers have taken on the most arduous missions, Xi said, calling them "the most admirable people in the new era" who deserve the highest commendations. Xi talked with patients in the hospital through a video link, and expressed his wishes for their quick recovery. "All prevention and control measures taken by the CPC Central Committee against the virus are to prevent more people from being infected and save more patients' lives," Xi said. Meeting medic representatives in the hospital, Xi said the spread of the virus has been basically curbed in Hubei and Wuhan, and attributed the achievement to efforts of the whole Party, the whole country and the whole society. "But you are the biggest heroes," Xi told the medics. Leaving Huoshenshan Hospital, Xi came to a residential community. People quarantined at home waved to Xi from their balconies and windows. Xi waved back and expressed his regards. Xi stressed the importance of communities in epidemic prevention and control, requiring grassroots Party organizations and Party members to play their key roles in containing the virus spread in communities. He emphasized closely relying on the people to win the people's war against the epidemic. After the field inspection, Xi chaired a teleconference and delivered an important speech. Xi said since the outbreak, the CPC Central Committee has taken the most comprehensive, rigorous and thorough prevention and control measures to resolutely curb the spread of the virus in Wuhan and Hubei. "Initial success has been achieved in stabilizing the situation and turning the tide," he said. Xi said medical treatment should be given the top priority to improve the recovery rate and reduce mortality to the greatest extent under the principle of scientific and targeted treatment. Noting that the fight against the virus is at a critical moment, Xi stressed further preventing the spread and exportation of cases. Xi demanded more understanding and tolerance for people in Hubei and Wuhan if some vent their feelings for long time under self-quarantine, as well as efforts to ensure the supply of their life necessities. The epidemic will not affect the fundamentals of Hubei's steady and long-term sound economic development, Xi said, urging implementation of policies and measures to support enterprises, stabilize employment and create more jobs. Calling the response to the virus a "test" for China's system and capacity for governance, which has brought both experience and lessons, Xi demanded efforts to fix the shortcomings and weak links as soon as possible. Xi urged Party organizations, members and officials to shoulder responsibilities, adopt sound prevention and control measures and improve their capabilities in the test. ^ top ^

Commentary: Institutional strength: China's key to beating novel coronavirus (Xinhua)
2020-03-10
Chinese President Xi Jinping on Tuesday visited Wuhan, the epicenter of the COVID-19 outbreak, to inspect the epidemic prevention and control work, as the number of new coronavirus cases has dropped sharply thanks to a raft of unprecedented measures rarely seen in history. The daily increase of new coronavirus cases on the Chinese mainland fell from thousands in February to 19 on Monday. The spread of the novel coronavirus disease has been basically curbed in Hubei Province and Wuhan, said Xi, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, during his inspection. The significant progress of China's outbreak control is encouraging and reassuring. It brings hope and lessons to the ongoing global fight against the novel coronavirus disease, which has been reported in more than 100 countries and regions. Drawing on its institutional strength, China's decisive measures to control the outbreak are enlightening, as the world is at a crucial time of containing its spread to save lives. China declared a total war against the virus and made it the top priority, relying on the people and a united response. Under the leadership of the Communist Party of China, people from all walks of life have joined hands in fighting the epidemic with wisdom, action and morale. Wuhan, capital city of central China's Hubei Province, went on lockdown after the outbreak, while 42,000 medics rushed to Hubei from the rest of the country. China built two makeshift hospitals in less than two weeks in Wuhan, activated the top-level response in most areas within a few days, and organized the pairing-up support of 19 provincial-level regions for cities of the province, among a slew of brave, swift and intensive measures. These measures have proved effective. As of Monday, Hubei accounted for 84 percent of the total of confirmed cases on the Chinese mainland, while the remainder were scattered across 30 other provincial-level regions. All these are vivid manifestations of China's system advantage, which ensures the whole country works together and stimulates the enthusiasm of all aspects to mobilize resources for major undertakings like poverty reduction, disaster relief, key technologies and large infrastructure projects. Just as the country tackled the 2002-2003 SARS outbreak and the 8.0-magnitude Wenchuan earthquake in 2008, the institutional strength will continue playing a key role in enabling China to secure a decisive victory against COVID-19. While China protects the health of its 1.4 billion people, it contributes greatly to the global fight as well. Those who have used the virus to make racist remarks or smear China's system and tremendous efforts are immoral and despicable. To tackle major deadly viruses and safeguard global public health, China also provides a useful lesson through its methods, such as early detection, isolation and admission, quarantine of close contacts, grassroots community-based prevention, and the reduction of public gatherings, in the battle against COVID-19. Meanwhile, in the spirit of building a community with a shared future for humanity, China has shown great transparency and openness in its cooperation with the international community regarding the outbreak. China has shared with the World Health Organization and other countries key information about the virus and experience in control and prevention. China welcomed aid from abroad among severe protective gear shortages and, in return, donated materials, money and even dispatched personnel to help other countries control the disease despite the battle at home not yet being over. Bruce Aylward, team leader of the China-WHO joint mission on COVID-19, told The New York Times that China's counterattack can be replicated but requires speed, money, imagination and political courage. With massive efforts since late January, China has achieved impressive progress and is anticipating a final victory against COVID-19. And the same hope goes for the global fight, which requires solidarity, cooperation and action. ^ top ^

Beijing strengthens rules on quarantine (China Daily)
2020-03-13
The capital city is tightening up screening and monitoring to prevent infections from imported cases with the implementation of a new quarantine measure on Wednesday requiring all people arriving in the city from overseas to isolate themselves at home or designated places for 14 days. For concentrated medical observation sites holding foreign visitors, stricter management should be adopted, according to a notice from the Beijing virus prevention leading group. In addition, reported imported cases have to be traced to their travel routes and close contacts. Those who arrive in Beijing from overseas have to quarantine themselves either in their homes or in designated hotels and submit to nucleic acid tests for the virus, a senior city government official said on Wednesday. Some outbound passengers who choose not to stay in the capital but transfer through Capital International Airport or Daxing International Airport in Beijing should undergo health monitoring, said Zhang Qiang, deputy director of the Organization Department of the Beijing Municipal Party Committee on Wednesday. As of midnight Wednesday, 85 imported cases have been reported in China with six new infections announced on Wednesday, according to the National Health Commission. Among the imported cases, 20 are from Beijing, and some that were reported outside the capital also passed through customs in Beijing airports before transferring to their final destination. Preventive measures to combat the surging risks of imported cases have already been taken in Beijing at gateways and surrounding areas near the capital airport. A special hub to temporarily hold returnees from hard-hit countries was set up in the China International Exhibition Center in Shunyi district. "Those without obvious symptoms of fever or cough after health examination and inspection at the airport have to be sent to the hub for transfer," said Pang Xinghuo, deputy director of Beijing Center for Disease Control and Prevention on Thursday. "Special work groups sent by provinces and autonomous regions across the country and all districts in the capital will pick up travelers there and take them to their residences." Body temperature checks will be conducted twice daily for staff at an isolated area in the hub, and results will be recorded, Pang said. People with abnormal temperatures or unusual symptoms will be sent to designated medical centers. The special hub, which is not being used for medical treatment purposes, is mainly for closely monitoring the health conditions of inbound travelers, said Yu Xueyin, a senior district official with the Shunyi government. Located 8 kilometers west of the capital airport, the hub consists of two exhibition halls totaling 28,000 square meters. The hub started operation on Tuesday afternoon and was separated into 47 transfer zones based on different regions of the country, added Yu. Earlier this week, Beijing Capital International Airport also created a special zone in Terminal 3 to inspect and examine airlines and travelers from hard-hit countries. "For some key airlines, two lines for infrared temperature measurements will be set up to cut off the contagion from outside the country," Gao Ruifeng, deputy director of the Beijing Customs, said on Thursday. "Our prevention focus on the epidemic has changed from preventing infectious disease going abroad to cutting off imported cases," he said. Earlier this month, Beijing imposed a 14-day quarantine measure for people from hard-hit countries including South Korea, Italy, Iran and Japan. ^ top ^

Beijing expects to receive 70 pct fewer tourists in Q1: official (Xinhua)
2020-03-11
Beijing is expected to host 44 million fewer tourists in the first quarter of this year than the same period last year, or an annual decrease of 70 percent, said Chen Dong, head of the Beijing Municipal Bureau of Culture and Tourism. Due to the novel coronavirus outbreak, the tourism revenue in the January-March period is expected to fall by 84 billion yuan (around 12 billion U.S. dollars), or 64.7 percent year on year, Chen said. As of Jan. 24, the city has closed 181 scenic sites and halted the operations of 3,016 travel agencies. In the following Lunar New Year holiday, the city received 81.9 percent fewer tourists and generated 89.8 percent less tourism revenue than a year ago. The bureau has rolled out a slew of measures to aid the struggling tourism businesses, including the granting of 345 million yuan in subsidies, and encourage some to develop online tourism products to nurture new growth drivers. Last year, the city received 320 million tourists, up 3.6 percent year on year, and generated tourism revenue of 622.46 billion yuan, up 5.1 percent, according to Chen. ^ top ^

China launches new BeiDou navigation satellite (Global Times)
2020-03-10
China launched a new satellite of the BeiDou Navigation Satellite System (BDS) from the Xichang Satellite Launch Center in southwest China's Sichuan Province at 7:55 pm Monday (Beijing Time), only one step away from completing the whole global system. The satellite, the 54th of the BeiDou family, was sent into a geostationary orbit as planned by a Long March-3B carrier rocket. China began to construct its navigation system, named after the Chinese term for the Big Dipper constellation, in the 1990s and started serving the Asia-Pacific Region in 2012. At present, all the first generation BDS-1 satellites have ended operations, and a total of 54 BDS-2 and BDS-3 satellites have been sent into space. Compared with other navigation systems in the world, the design of the BDS constellation is unique, including medium earth orbit, inclined geosynchronous earth orbit and geostationary earth orbit satellites. The BDS-3 system will consist of a total of 30 satellites, including 24 medium earth orbit satellites, three geostationary earth orbit satellites and three inclined geosynchronous earth orbit satellites. The newly launched satellite is the second geostationary earth orbit satellite of the BDS-3 system, and the last one is expected to be launched in May. The satellite and the carrier rocket were developed by the China Academy of Space Technology (CAST) and the China Academy of Launch Vehicle Technology, respectively. Space engineers have overcome difficulties during the novel coronavirus epidemic to ensure the success of the mission. Monday's launch was the 327th mission of the Long March rocket series. The new satellite has the most functions and signals, the largest size and the longest designed life span among all the BDS-3 satellites, said Chen Zhonggui, chief designer of BDS-3 satellites from CAST. The satellite is based on the Dongfanghong-3B platform, currently one of the largest satellite platforms being used in China, and can carry more fuels to ensure its long life, said Chen. The satellite has integrated the functions of navigation and communication. The accuracy of dynamic positioning can reach the decimeter level, according to Liu Tianxiong, deputy chief designer of BDS-3 satellites. It can provide services for the driverless vehicles, accurate berthing of ships, as well as takeoff and landing of airplanes. It will be widely used in the fields of communication, electric power, finance, mapping, transportation, fishery, agriculture and forestry. The ability of short message communication has been improved 10 times on this satellite. Users can send a message of over 1,000 Chinese characters at one time as well as pictures via the satellite, quite useful in emergencies. The satellite's ability to receive signals has also been greatly improved, which could help miniaturize users' terminals, said Pan Yuqian, one of the satellite's designers. China aims to complete the construction of the BDS constellation in May and provide high-precision, reliable positioning, navigation and timing services anywhere in the world. ^ top ^

Shanghai policies aid foreign workers (China Daily)
2020-03-13
One month after the municipal government of Shanghai introduced contactless processing for foreigners' work permits, it has updated policies to help foreign workers resume their jobs in the city. The update, released by the Science and Technology Commission of Shanghai Municipality on Tuesday to help with epidemic control and prevention, includes eight measures covering the most frequently asked questions such as applying for foreigners' work permits in China and extensions of their visa or residence permits. Before the new policies, the application to extend a foreigner's work permit had to be submitted 30 days before the due date. That limit has been temporarily removed. Employers can help foreign workers apply online before the expiration date. For high-end talent aged over 65, their employers will be exempted from attaching insurance documents or commitments, according to the updated version. Further, the approval time for the cancellation of expats' work permits has been shortened from 10 working days to a maximum of three working days, according to the new policies. Liu Haitao, director of the National Immigration Administration's border inspection, said at a news conference on March 1 that foreigners' residence permits can be extended for two months after expiration during the epidemic period as long as they have not left the country. This policy will also be applicable in Shanghai. Fabrice Megarbane, chief executive officer of L'Oreal China, said the new measures show Shanghai's strong innovation agility and determination to improve its business environment. When life and work are easier for foreign workers, they can focus more on their jobs and taking care of themselves. "We are looking forward to the extension of these facilitative measures after the epidemic is contained," he said. According to the contactless approval procedures announced in Shanghai in early February, employers can submit online applications for foreign work permits or related extensions. All the revisions and approval processes can be completed online. So far, more than 5,400 work permits or extension applications have been processed online, said Lu Min, chief engineer of Shanghai Science and Technology Commission. Wu Qing, head of the human resources department at Mitsui Sumitomo Insurance (China), said more than 20 foreign workers extended their work permits in February, which is especially convenient to those who have not returned from Japan. Multinational human resources companies like FESCO Adecco can help foreigners with their work permit applications or extensions. Some clients even went to their office to hand in their paper applications shortly after the Spring Festival. Such online processing can largely reduce human contact during the epidemic, according to FESCO's chief operating officer Ken Zhou. "It should also be noted that foreigners' applications for work permits are like a rigid demand," he said. "Favorable policies benefit both sides: help Shanghai to attract more overseas talent and provide job opportunities to foreign talent." More than 215,000 foreigners were working in Shanghai last year, the most of any city on the Chinese mainland. ^ top ^

China denounces US human rights report on Xinjiang (China Daily)
2020-03-12
China firmly opposes the 2019 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices issued by the United States Department of State, Foreign Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang said on Thursday. The China-related content in the report is "striking up the same old tune" and disregarding facts, Geng said at a daily news briefing. The report, as well as US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo's remarks on its release, are "full of political lies and ideological bias" against China, he said, urging the US to stop using human rights issues to interfere in China's domestic affairs. In response to Pompeo's criticism on China's human rights, Geng said that the Chinese government attaches great importance to protecting and promoting human rights. Historic progress has been made in China's human rights cause, and the human rights situation in China is at its best time in history, he said, adding that the Chinese people have the biggest say in this regard. The human rights situation in China won't be defamed by a single report or some remarks by certain US officials, he added. Xinjiang affairs are China's domestic affairs and brook no external interference, he said. The counter-terrorism and de-radicalization measures taken in Xinjiang have been supported by people among all ethnic groups and spoken of highly by the international community, he said, adding that the US has no right to make irresponsible remarks on the issue. China urges the US to reflect on and correct its mistakes, or it will meet stronger opposition from the Chinese people, he added. ^ top ^

US bill would bar goods from Xinjiang, classifying them the product of forced labour by Uygurs (SCMP)
2020-03-12
US lawmakers unveiled new legislation on Wednesday that would effectively block imports of any goods from China's Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region, amid concerns they were made by Uygurs there who had been subject to forced labour. The act, which adds to the growing pile of bills in the current Congress taking Beijing to task on its human rights record, would require companies that work with Xinjiang-based suppliers to provide convincing evidence that their goods were not produced by involuntary workers. "It is long past time for companies to reassess their operations and supply chains, and find alternatives that do not exploit labour and violate human rights," Representative Jim McGovern, Democrat of Massachusetts, said at a panel event on Capitol Hill alongside other cosponsors of the bill, which has yet to be formally introduced. The act would make it US policy that "all goods, wares, articles, and merchandise mined, produced, or manufactured wholly or in part" in Xinjiang are deemed to have been produced with some form of forced labour. Indonesian and Malaysian Muslims protest in support of Uygurs in China Currently, the US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agency can bar the import of goods – or blacklist the supplier of those goods – if there is evidence forced labour was involved in their production. The new bill, if enacted, would effectively reverse that calculus where Xinjiang products are concerned – blocking all such products unless CBP has "convincing evidence" that no forced labour was involved. The bill comes as reports grow from both the international media and research institutions contending that forced labour is widely used in Xinjiang. The region's authorities are three years into sweeping measures to hold and "re-educate" as many as a million Uygurs and other largely Muslim ethnic minority groups in mass internment camps that the government calls "vocational training centres". "Without knowing it, Americans all across our country have a connection to these human rights abuses through the products we buy," said Senator Jeff Merkley, Democrat of Oregon. "No matter how much [importing companies] try to make sure that forced labour is not part of the supply chain, the access to information and the lack of transparency makes it impossible to be sure." When contacted for comment on Wednesday, China's embassy in Washington referred to previous denials by the government that forced labour exists in Xinjiang. A recent report by the Australian Strategic Policy Institute estimating that upwards of 80,000 Uygurs and other ethnic minorities had been transferred from Xinjiang – some directly from detention facilities – to factories around the country had "no basis in fact", a Foreign Ministry spokesman said following its release. Though rejecting charges of forced labour, the ministry said in December that "trainees" who had "graduated" could opt to be assigned employment by authorities. Amid the growing reports of forced labour in Xinjiang, a major labour welfare association announced earlier this week that it could no longer vouch for companies doing business with suppliers in the region, and directed its members to review their sourcing operations. Announcing the move, the Fair Labour Association (FLA), whose affiliates include sportswear giants Adidas, Nike and Patagonia, said on Monday that it would work with affiliates, governments and other stakeholders "to identify shared solutions to end these human rights violations". The legislation unveiled on Wednesday would provide a four-month grace period for companies to readjust their supply chains. In addition to import restrictions, the bill directs the Trump administration to issue travel or financial sanctions against individuals deemed to "knowingly engage" in forced labour in Xinjiang. The executive branch could choose to waive such action in "limited circumstances to advance US treaty obligations or national interests". Staffers on Capitol Hill began working on the legislation in July, amid renewed efforts in Congress to push the administration to act on a number of China-related human rights issues, including Xinjiang, Hong Kong and Tibet. Representative Chris Smith, a Republican from New Jersey whose bill supporting Hong Kong's pro-democracy movement was signed into law in November, called the new legislation "historic" and said he expected it to pass. Backers of the bill are anticipating opposition from industry lobbyists, whose sectors have already been hammered by tariffs imposed during the US-China trade war. Touting the bipartisan support for the bill, McGovern said on Wednesday that he hoped "the US business community is listening carefully. We are together on this." On Tuesday, five of the largest US retail associations said in a statement that their members had expressed "strong concerns to their suppliers" but did not indicate whether they intended to cut off supply chains with producers in the region. A ban of imports on a regional basis would not be without precedent. Last year, the Trump administration said it was halting the import of rough diamonds from anywhere in Zimbabwe's Marange diamond fields, citing concerns over forced labour. Customs and Border Protection has also blacklisted goods from individual suppliers on the same grounds, including Hetian Taida Apparel Co, a clothing manufacturer based in Xinjiang. The bill would also require companies publicly traded on US stock markets to disclose any connections with entities that engage in forced labour in Xinjiang, provide mass surveillance technology to the region or have been subject to US sanctions over the mass internment programmes. Representative Jennifer Wexton, a Democrat whose northern Virginia district is home to one of the largest concentrations of Uygurs in the US, said she believed that "once US companies, shareholders and consumers are aware of the horrors that are going on in Xinjiang and beyond … they won't want to be participants in that system". ^ top ^

US granting award for Xinjiang fugitive an affront to human rights: FM (Global Times)
2020-03-06
Sayragul Sauytbay is a fugitive being pursued by Xinjiang public security department for illegally crossing borders and loan fraud, and she has never been in Xinjiang's training centers, said a spokesperson from China's Foreign Ministry, after the US State Department gave the ethnic Kazak woman from Xinjiang the "Women of Courage Award." Zhao Lijian, the spokesperson, said that Sayragul Sauytbay's fabricated rumors to slander Xinjiang, escape legal punishment and beg for political asylum are nothing short of crooked and abominable logic. Zhao's remarks come as the US State Department gave Sairagul Sautbay the "Women of Courage Award" after she publicly slandered China's effort of fighting extremism in Xinjiang. Awarding Sairagul Sautbay shows the US is encouraging her criminal activities. It is an affront to human rights, said Zhao, urging the US to cast aside ideological bias, cease interfering in China's domestic affairs, and do something beneficial to bilateral relations. Xinjiang does not have so-called "reeducation camps," and it has taught law and vocational skills to those who are corrupted by extremism in order to eradicate extremism and terrorism, said Zhao, noting that those measures have yielded sufficient gains, as the region hasn't seen terrorist attack in three consecutive years. All members have graduated from the training centers by the end of last year, and are living peaceful lives after being employed under the help of the government. ^ top ^

Hong Kong hits back at US report on 'police brutality', saying city has been dealing with unprecedented protest violence (SCMP)
2020-03-12
Hong Kong has hit back at a US government report that highlighted allegations of "police brutality" and other human rights issues, stressing that the city's embattled police force has been dealing with unprecedented protest violence. The State Department on Wednesday issued its annual report about human rights situations in mainland China, Hong Kong and Macau. It touched on the anti-government protest movement that started in the city in June last year, the pro-democracy bloc's landslide victory in the district council elections, and other developments in the city. "From June to [the] year's end, Hong Kong experienced frequent protests, with some exceeding more than one million participants. Most protesters were peaceful, but some engaged in violence and vandalism," the report said. "Significant human rights issues included police brutality against protesters and persons in custody; arbitrary arrests; substantial interference with the rights of peaceful assembly and freedom of association; and restrictions on political participation." The report was largely factual and the US stopped short of offering clear comments on the allegations that have been made previously by many Hong Kong politicians and NGOs. "The government's apparent unwillingness to criticise the police force for its actions related to protests, including the force's delayed response to a large July 21 vigilante attack on protesters and commuters, led to concerns that the police force operated with some degree of impunity," it said. The report was referring to an incident at Yuen Long MTR station, when a rod-wielding mob of about 100 people indiscriminately attacked protesters and passers-by during night time. The attack provoked a public outcry over the police response, with officers accused of colluding with the aggressors by arriving late to the scene and failing to make arrests at the time. The US report also said "multiple sources" had reported that suspected Chinese security agents were in Hong Kong to monitor political activists, NGOs, and academics who were critical of Beijing's policies. There were also "credible reports" that the Chinese agents had monitored pro-democracy human rights activists and journalists in the city, it said. But it also said there were no credible reports that the Hong Kong government or its agents had committed arbitrary or unlawful killings, as was claimed by some protesters. In response, the Hong Kong government said the "degree and extent of violence committed by radical protesters" in the city was "unprecedented". "Faced with this situation, the Hong Kong police is duty-bound to take appropriate actions, including the use of necessary force, to restore law and order. In the process, police officers also faced threats of serious injuries or even death," it said in a statement early on Thursday morning. "For complaints against the police, they will be handled professionally and impartially under a well-established mechanism." The Independent Police Complaints Council is conducting a fact-finding study on the handling of protests since June last year, the statement said, adding that foreign governments should not interfere in the city's internal affairs. Demosisto, a Hong Kong pro-democracy group led by Joshua Wong Chi-fung, said the report's wordings were "cautious" but showed that the US government had been collecting evidence of human rights infringements in the city. Civil society in Hong Kong needs to work harder on collecting more evidence of alleged police brutality to force foreign governments to impose sanctions on the city's government, it added. An alliance called the All Party-Parliamentary Group, run by members of Britain's House of Commons and House of Lords, has been collecting evidence of alleged police misconduct during the protests in the city, which was a British colony before July 1, 1997. Separately, the World Justice Project's latest report, released on Wednesday, put Hong Kong's rule of law status at the 16th place globally out of 128 places, same as last year. The city remained fifth in the Asia-Pacific region, behind New Zealand, Australia, Singapore and Japan. But the city's score in some areas has dropped. For example, Hong Kong's ranking in the fundamental rights category dropped by five places to 38th. The independent organisation is headquartered in the US. ^ top ^

Hong Kong resurrects Chapter 11-style corporate rescue bill after a 24-year hiatus as Singapore powers ahead with reforms (SCMP)
2020-03-12
Hong Kong plans to introduce Chapter 11-style provisions in its corporate rescue laws to shield debt-stricken companies from hostile acts while they reorganise their finances, revisiting a holdover from colonial days that failed to pass in various attempts through major financial crises. The government intends to hold a new round of consultation in the coming months, before possibly putting a draft bill to the Legislative Council after the session in October, the Financial Services and the Treasury Bureau said in an email reply to South China Morning Post. A statutory corporate rescue procedure and insolvent trading provisions are being drafted, it added. A key part of the proposal may include giving debtors a six-month moratorium from hostile acts, such as winding-up or liquidation proceedings, while they work on rehabilitation plans or find white knights, according to people involved in the discussions. The move underlines the government's efforts to prevent a wider implosion in corporate failures after gross domestic product economy shrank last year for the first time since the global financial crisis. Anti-government protests and the coronavirus outbreak have now brought many pillars of the economy to their knees. "I have already urged the government to speed up the process of introducing a proper corporate rescue legislation, as that is important for Hong Kong as an international financial centre," said Johnson Kong, president of the Hong Kong Institute of Certified Public Accountants. The law is "very urgently needed" as the current financial crisis is threatening to push thousands of companies into liquidation, he added. The Law Reform Commission mooted the proposal in 1996, before the onset of Asian financial crisis in 1997. A bill introduced in 2001 failed to pass, and was later modified through the Sars outbreak in 2003 and the global financial crisis in 2008, only to stumble because of opposition from some lawmakers and unionists seeking to protect workers' rights. "Given the complexity and technicalities of the bill as well as the concerns expressed by various stakeholders in previous exercises, we will organise a fresh round of engagement with stakeholders on specific areas in the draft bill in the next few months," the Bureau spokesman said in a written reply to the Post. It intends to finalise the bill for introduction in the first half of the 2020-21 legislative session, he added. Under Chapter 11 of the US bankruptcy code, debt-stricken companies can petition for automatic debt moratorium with global effect. Its Chapter 15 allows foreign companies to apply for worldwide recognition of debt workout agreements consented by courts in local jurisdictions. After its handover to China from the UK in July 1997, the Hong Kong government has held consultations with industry players through 2018 on the corporate rescue laws, without making any headway. India and Singapore took advantage of Hong Kong's inertia to reform their insolvency law in 2016 and 2017. Singapore amended its Companies Act in March 2017 by infusing some key features of the US Bankruptcy Code, giving companies access to independent judicial managers to devise recovery plans and find rescue financing, among others. The measures, akin to regimes enacted in the UK and Australia, are aimed at achieving a higher asset-recovery rate to repay creditors. "The proposed corporate rescue bill, if it passes, will increase the chances for companies in finding their white knights according to international practice," HKICPA's Kong said. Without such protection from hostile creditors, companies in Hong Kong are immediately exposed to winding-up or liquidation threats from any single creditor, putting their assets at risk of fire sales, according to Derek Lai Kar-yan, vice-chairman of Deloitte China. "The lack of corporate rescue procedures have made it difficult for liquidators to do their jobs," Lai said. "At presents, we will need to convince all creditors one by one to request them not to submit any winding-up petition, to give more time for companies to restructure. It will be beneficial to have this corporate rescue legislation." While Hong Kong's corporate bankruptcies are far from alarming by its historical standard, Asia's third-largest capital market is missing out on diversifying its services economy by luring more advisory firms and distressed-debt investors to the city. With its reforms, Singapore touted the city as a regional restructuring hub, seeking to ride the spectacular boom and bust of mainly mainland Chinese companies that fuelled the growth of Asia's US$1.1 trillion dollar-bond market over the past 10 years. Mat Ng, a partner of EY, said Hong Kong need to introduce the corporate rescue legislation to compete with its regional rivals. "If Hong Kong wants to compete with other major financial centres, we should make sure our financial legislation can match them" on global standards, he said. "Singapore and India have introduced their measures. The government should work harder to make the changes as soon as possible." ^ top ^

United States unlikely to impose sanctions on Hong Kong, cabinet advisers say after visit (SCMP)
2020-03-10
The United States is unlikely to impose sanctions on Hong Kong under a bill the Trump administration signed into law last year covering human rights in the Asian financial hub, a group of advisers to the city's leader said after meeting American officials. The visit by the seven-member delegation, which included opposition figures, was the first since US President Donald Trump signed into law the Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act amid violent anti-government protests that erupted last summer. Regina Ip Lau Suk-yee, chairwoman of the pro-establishment New People's Party, said US penalties on the city would be detrimental to Washington's objectives. "They understand that if sanctions are imposed against officials, US interests will eventually be affected if there are countermeasures against them," she said, calling on Washington to respect Beijing's authority over Hong Kong. That 1992 act allowed for the city to be treated differently from mainland China in terms of trade, diplomacy and politics following the 1997 handover. But last year, amid the escalating violence, widespread expressions of anger against Beijing and calls for American intervention in the city's affairs, both the US House of Representatives and the Senate unanimously passed the rights bill, which Trump signed into law in November. It paves the way for Washington to take diplomatic action and economic sanctions against the city's government, and requires the US government to regularly assess Hong Kong's autonomy to preserve its special trading status under the 1992 law. Executive Council convenor Bernard Chan said he told the Americans that passing the rights act at such a time was "inappropriate and unhelpful". Chan said he told the officials: "Even though you may claim all you do is with good intentions, the unintended consequences are to further divide the people in Hong Kong." American officials attending the talks included the State Department's Jonathan Fritz, who is deputy assistant secretary of state for East Asian and Pacific affairs. The opposition lawmakers joining the pro-establishment figures were Jeremy Tam Man-ho, Kenneth Leung and Charles Mok. A prominent figure of the anti-government movement, Joshua Wong Chi-fung, said he was not optimistic the US would announce sanctions in the upcoming report, but said the document would "definitely criticise" the erosion of Hong Kong's autonomy. "The US government may pay far more attention on handling the [coronavirus] pandemic," Wong said, adding the upcoming American presidential election and the downturn in the global economy could see the city's affairs take a back seat in Washington. Wong said the fact cabinet members had gone to the US demonstrated the Hong Kong government was worried that powers under the bill will be invoked. The US should also launch formal investigations to "identify and consider sanctioning" Hong Kong officials responsible for alleged police brutality during the anti-government protests, the letter says. Meanwhile, the Committee on Canada-China Relations in the Canadian House of Commons passed a motion to "express its grave concern" over the arrest in Hong Kong of Jimmy Lai Chee-ying, a media tycoon known for strongly criticising Beijing, and other pro-democracy politicians last month. In a statement issued on Tuesday, a spokesman for Beijing's foreign ministry's office in the city expressed strong opposition to the motion, saying the parliamentarians are "openly condoning the criminal suspects, impeding Hong Kong courts' judicial proceedings, and grossly interfering with Hong Kong's judicial independence". ^ top ^

Hong Kong's Cyberport can connect US and China (China Daily)
2020-03-10
The Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area project will play a decisive role in molding Hong Kong's future, with some media calling the blueprint "China's plan to beat Silicon Valley". And that's not without reason. The leading cities in the Greater Bay Area are expected to leverage their respective strengths to contribute to the project's success. Hong Kong will contribute its expertise in banking and financial services, while Shenzhen－where tech companies such as Huawei and Tencent are located－will leverage its technological prowess. That doesn't mean Hong Kong can't make significant contributions in innovation. Hong Kong is fast developing into a leading financial technology hub. A key part of the government's fintech strategy is Cyberport, a digital community with a cluster of technology companies. It is managed by Hong Kong Cyberport Management Co and wholly owned by the Hong Kong government. It houses about 600 tech companies, of which 200 are not local. According to data provided by InvestHK, a department of the Hong Kong government that is responsible for foreign direct investment, Cyberport's publicly funded incubation program admitted 108 new startups in 2018 and 2019. It has achieved an impressive survival rate of 72 percent. In 2018, the government allocated HK$300 million ($38.6 million) to Cyberport for strengthening support for its startups. A sum of HK$5.5 billion has also been earmarked for the development of Cyberport 5, which is expected to be completed in 2024. While Shenzhen is presumed to be the lead technology contributor to the Greater Bay Area, there is still room for Cyberport－and for Hong Kong－to make a significant contribution. This is important in the context of the United States-China trade conflict. That is because Cyberport can play a key role in connecting the two countries. In September, Cyberport´s chairman, Lee George Lam, participated in a symposium organized by the Hong Kong Trade Development Council in Los Angeles. Lam said tech companies and universities from Hong Kong and the US should collaborate closely on digital entertainment and artificial intelligence amid the trade conflict. Hong Kong has something that Shenzhen does not have: its "one country, two systems" governance. Despite the Chinese mainland having passed the new foreign investment law, which protects foreign intellectual property and prohibits forced technology transfers, many US companies, especially technology companies, are reluctant to enter the Chinese market. It will take some time before foreign companies realize that China has entered the next phase of economic development－in the same way that Japan evolved from a copycat in the 1950s and '60s to world leader in innovation and technology－and now leads the world in the number of patent applications. China is following the pattern established by Japan. What's remarkable in China's case is that it is taking far less time to undergo the same transformation. Cyberport can play a key role in two ways. First, it can be an integral part of the Greater Bay Area project, making meaningful contributions to the project's technological advancement. Second, it can serve as a steppingstone between US and Chinese tech companies, since Hong Kong is in the perfect position to serve as a "gateway to China". According to Chinese military strategist Sun Tzu, "The greatest victory is that which requires no battle." There's no reason the world's two biggest economies cannot achieve a win-win solution to their ongoing dispute. ^ top ^

Cyberattack from Taiwan disguised as COVID-19 related files (Global Times)
2020-03-12
A large number of phishing emails reportedly have been sent from the island of Taiwan targeting people on the Chinese mainland since the COVID-19 outbreak, according to a cyber-security insider on Wednesday. To get users to open files attached to the emails, they are disguised as "Guide Book for COVID-19 Prevention and Control" or "Documents from Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention." The aim is to allegedly run a massive cyberattack on the Chinese mainland and steal secret information, said the insider. Evidence showed that the cyberattacking emails were sent from special departments in Taiwan. Their targets include government departments, medical facilities, scientific research institutes and business agencies on the Chinese mainland. Once users open the files, their computers will be hacked by servers that can steal their information and data. ^ top ^

US deal with Taiwan may trigger China-US military conflict (Global Times)
2020-03-07
A To provoke China by playing the "Taiwan card" is not only a strategic approach of the US approved by both Republicans and Democrats, but is also a "dirty business" between Taiwan separatists and US politicians that serves the interests of US defense contractors at the expense of peace and stability in the West Pacific region, said analysts on Saturday. The draft bill titled "Taiwan Allies International Protection and Enhancement Initiative Act of 2019," or TAIPEI 2019, was passed with a unanimous vote by the US House on Wednesday. The US Congress has passed several Taiwan-related enabling acts in recent years, including Taiwan Travel Act in 2018 and Taiwan Assurance Act of 2019. This kind of trick is played frequently by US politicians to provoke China as it costs nothing and can cost Taiwan a fortune by selling weapons to the island, said Li Xiaobing, an expert on Taiwan affairs at Nankai University in Tianjin. "Not only the US Congress and politicians, but also US defense contractors want to get a share in this game." Randall Schriver, a former Assistant Secretary of Defense for Indo-Pacific Security Affairs in the US government, visited Taiwan and met with Taiwan regional leader Tsai Ing-wen on February 20. Tsai praised Schriver's "contribution" to facilitate significant arms deals of M1A2 main battle tanks ($2.2 billion) and F-16V fighter jets ($8.1 billion) when he served in the Trump administration, according to the VOA. Schriver is also the co-founder and chairman of Project 2049 Institute, a think tank that, since launching in 2008, has released reports arguing for a harder diplomatic approach toward China. The think tank takes its name from the year in which US conservative elites believe China plans to supplant the US as the world's sole global superpower, and also the 100th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China, and the year that China plans to realize "the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation." Using such a name shows that Schriver wants to make the China-US relationship look like a "time bomb," and the deadline of the explosion is 2049, so that he can sell panic to policymakers, Li noted. "For US politicians in Congress, they just need to vote on a few pieces of paper which costs nothing, then they can convince Taiwan separatists that they can buy US support," Li noted. "For officials in the US government, they won't take concrete military or political action as that could cause direct retaliation from China, but they can make Taiwan buy more weapons and provoke China. It is a good deal for the politicians, or some former politicians, as well as defense contractors, but it's also a tragedy for taxpayers in Taiwan," he noted. Taiwan is not just a normal client of US arms makers, but a client that is willing to pay an extremely high price to buy very normal or even outdated weapons, so the profit that US defense contractors can gain from Taiwan is very attractive, said Song Zhongping, a military expert and TV commentator. According to arms deal data between the US and the island, Taiwan always spends more money to buy US-made weapons such as Patriot missiles and Black Hawk helicopters which are totally incapable of competing with those of the People's Liberation Army (PLA). As for M1A2 tanks, many Taiwan-based commentators said they can't operate on Taiwan's roads because they're too heavy, so the areas the tanks can operate in are very limited. So, when the PLA launches attacks, these tanks are just "garbage," they noted. When the cross-Straits relationship worsens, there would be a huge opportunity for the lobby groups consisting of US former government officials and politicians to interact between the island and Washington, and there is huge benefit as well, Li said. The VOA report on Schriver's visit to Taiwan said that in the future, to what extent Schriver can use his non-official identity of "scholar of civil organization" to push Track II diplomacy [or backchannel diplomacy] between the US and the island would be key. The deal between Taiwan separatists, US defense contractors and ex-US officials is corrupt and also very dangerous as it might shake the foundation of China-US diplomatic ties, and even add risk of a military conflict between China and the US, said both US and Chinese experts. According to an article published in 2018 by Sludge, a US news website that exposes the hidden influence of lobbyists and special interest groups in creating public policy, reported that the Pentagon's top official for Asian policy Schriver's think tank Project 2049 Institute is funded by "defense contractors and foreign governments" including Japanese and South Korean governments, as well as the separatist force which is governing Taiwan. The article indicated that Schriver is a protégé of Richard Armitage, who served from 2001 to 2005 as Deputy Secretary of State in the Bush Administration under Colin Powell, and Armitage also has his own institution, Armitage International. Employees of Project 2049, according to their LinkedIn profiles, were also simultaneously employed by Armitage International. In 2005, Armitage left the US State Department to establish his own firm, along with Schriver and other confidantes from the State Department. Armitage International's website lists Schriver as a founding partner. As a consulting rather than lobbying firm, Armitage does not have to disclose its clients; however, some of Schriver's own clients are listed in his mandatory financial disclosure submitted when he was a nominee for the Pentagon position. While at Armitage, his clients included giant US defense contractors such as Raytheon, Boeing and Dyncorp. Taiwan is the most important contributor to Project 2049 Institute. According to the list of contributions and grants released by the institute, the Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office in the US and the "Ministry of National Defense" of Taiwan gave $279,357 in 2017. In 2016-2017, the funding from the island of Taiwan was about $689,000, which is higher than Japan (about $520,000), South Korea ($10,500) and any US defense contractor. Li said what Taiwan separatists want to buy is a service that can help them lobby US policymakers to provide more protection. "The final goal for the Taiwan separatists is to make the US promise to provide military protection when the mainland launches a military operation to reunify Taiwan, but unfortunately, they can never get it from the US no matter how much they pay. US soldiers won't die for the separatists of the island," Song said. In its 2018 National Defense Strategy the US defined China as a strategic competitor. The US media Foreign Policy Journal published an article in June 2019 saying that Schriver, who was assistant secretary of defense for Indo-Pacific security affairs at the US Defense Department, introduced in May the Pentagon's 2019 China Military Power Report, "which deemed that China has embarked on a 30-year program to eclipse the US as the preeminent military power in the Indo-Pacific region." Based on "unspecified observations, the Report misunderstood, or purposefully misrepresented, China's stated goal of becoming a world-class military by 2049 as the fulfillment of the neoconservative fear that China sought to overthrow the US in the global arena," said the Foreign Policy Journal. Colonel Lawrence Wilkerson, former chief of staff to former secretary of state Colin Powell, who was interviewed by the journal called the report an exercise in hypocrisy. "This is all about money," said Wilkerson. "This is a budget ploy." Wilkerson also warned that the Trump administration's combative attitude toward China increases the potential for a seemingly "inevitable" fight. China's determination to reunify Taiwan is unshakable and the recent situation has made the confidence of peaceful reunification drop dramatically on the mainland as the public feel the people on the island and the politicians generally have a hostile attitude toward the mainland even though the mainland treats them as compatriots, Song said. "However, the demand for a military solution is rising sharply among the public as they see the PLA's overwhelming advantage in the region and they are furious with the separatists on the island who poison the cross-Straits relationship. They are even losing faith in the KMT which holds a pro-reunification stance," Song further said. So, if the possibility of a peaceful solution totally perishes, a military solution is very likely, and the US and the separatists of the island must understand, no matter how much money they spend, the result of failure won't change once the PLA launches an attack, he stressed. ^ top ^

KMT becomes 'more pro-US and localized' as new chairman elected (Global Times)
2020-03-08
Chiang Chi-chen was elected as chairman of the Chinese Kuomintang (KMT) Party, reported Taiwan media on Saturday, with the Chinese mainland agency in charge of Taiwan affairs expressing hope that KMT can keep upholding the 1992 Consensus, which reflects adherence to the one-China principle by both sides in their efforts to seek national reunification, and opposing Taiwan separatism. However, experts from both the Chinese mainland and the island noted that Chiang's victory would probably mean that the KMT will become more pro-US and localized rather than more friendly to the mainland, as Chiang has made some unfriendly statements about the mainland and he represents the force with a weaker sense of Chinese national identification. Chiang, 48, KMT "lawmaker" of the island's "legislature," announced his bid to run for chairman in January. Chiang will replace Wu Den-yih, who announced his resignation in January following the KMT's defeat in the island's regional leadership and legislative elections. Wu's resignation forced a by-election to replace him. Chiang's term is to May 2021 and then the KMT will again start an election process for chairman for a new 4-year term. After the defeat in January, among the 113 seats in the island's legislature, the pro-separatism Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) garnered 61 seats while KMT got 38. Zhu Fenglian, spokesperson for Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council of the People's Republic of China, said later on Saturday that they noted the result of the KMT chairman election. "The Communist Party of China and the KMT have jointly promoted the peaceful development of cross-Straits relations and boosted interests and happiness for compatriots of the two sides in the past based on the shared political foundation of upholding the 1992 Consensus and opposing Taiwan separatism." However, according to Taiwan media reports, Chiang has been identified as a "reformist" with a different view to that of the Chinese mainland and is more localized and pro-US. Taiwan News reported that "In his victory speech, Chiang promised he would realize changes within the party within a year. During the campaign, he hinted the KMT might abandon the "1992 Consensus." Chang Ya-chung, a KMT member who ran in the KMT primary for the 2020 Taiwan regional leader election and a professor at National Taiwan University, told the Global Times on Saturday that Chiang represents the island's local faction in the KMT and has a different political stance to the mainland, and he might not be interested in boosting ties with the mainland, but will have closer ties with the US. Chiang's victory could be a symbol that the KMT would be more localized and pro-US and will likely weaken the sense of Chinese national identification, which means it could no longer be a trustworthy partner for the mainland to cooperate, Chang warned. "The opportunity for cross-Straits peace is reducing and the danger of military conflict is increasing, and this is probably what the US wants to see as it can interrupt China's great plan to realize national rejuvenation," he noted. In September 2019, Chiang met Joshua Wong, a Hong Kong separatist and major activist who participated in the months-long turmoil in the city, in Taiwan, and voiced support to Wong, which has been regarded as hostile move to the mainland, Taiwan media chinatimes.com reported. Zhu said, "Currently, the cross-Straits relationship is very complicated and intense, and we hope, under the leadership of Chairman Chiang, the KMT can treasure and safeguard the existing political foundation with the CPC, to play a role in bridging the two sides of the Taiwan Straits for communication, and keep making efforts to safeguard the peace and stability of the Strait, as well as the interests and happiness of compatriots of both sides." A Beijing-based Taiwan affairs expert who asked for anonymity said what he has done in the past might not be a reliable indicator of his true stance and the key is whether the CPC will send him a congratulatory letter and how he would reply. In fact, the mainland is not putting too much faith in the KMT. In the future the DPP might emerge as a player if it sees itself staying in power, encouraging some politicians to try to play a role in communicating with the mainland, he said. "So, to some extent, maybe current island leader Tsai Ing-wen's inauguration speech on May 20 will be more important to the KMT chairman's stance," he added. Chang said the mainland doesn't need to lose faith in the KMT as there are 30-40 or 20-30 percent KMT members, including him, who differ from Chiang, and they would like to keep seeking the possibility of a peaceful reunification with the mainland. ^ top ^

Economist says China remains on course to match the US' economy (China Daily)
2020-03-12
A leading British economist has reiterated that, by the end of the 2020s, China's economic output could match that of the United States, as long as the country overcomes "additional headwinds". Jim O'Neill, chair of the international think tank Chatham House and former chairman of Goldman Sachs Asset Management, said: "China is still broadly on track for what I have been famous for suggesting－by the end of this decade, it will become as big as the USA, and what happens is still consistent with that." O'Neill estimated that China's inflation-adjusted annual GDP growth for the 2020s would be between 4.5 and 5.5 percent and says the nation's slowing growth should be expected. "Nobody should be really that surprised that China's growth rate is slowing down," he said. "If China does not slow down to 4.5 to 5.5 percent, I will be very surprised, but it does not mean something is going wrong, other than the demographic: If you have an ageing workforce and low fertility rate, that's what happens." O'Neill is well known for coining the term BRIC in 2001, to refer to Brazil, Russia, India, and China as four rapidly developing nations that symbolized the shifting balance in the global economy. South Africa was added to the group nine years later, making it BRICS. O'Neill said people should put China's deceleration into perspective, saying the economy grew less quickly, but still by $800 billion last year, which is equivalent to "creating a Switzerland or two South Africas". He said this is the start of a challenging period for China because the country is facing a number of cyclical structural challenges, or headwinds. "If China cannot deal with the additional headwinds, then it won't overtake the US by the late 2020s," he said. One of the biggest concerns is debt, which has been an issue for years, he said. "The leveraging issue in the financial system, China cannot go on indefinitely allowing the debt-to－GDP to rise," he explained. "Secondly, it cannot keep squandering resources on 'lost' investments. The more it protects non-real-growth-keeping companies, the more that's allocating resources that could have been helping the new productive investments." O'Neill pointed out that China's position in international trade, particularly with the US, is another major issue. Despite the fact that both countries have signed a "phase one" trade agreement, "that does not solve any of the underlying issues, leaving in place very high tariff s", he said. "It could easily come back to bite China." With hundreds of thousands of Chinese people studying overseas, and millions traveling abroad every year, O'Neill said China needs to think through more carefully about how to use that soft diplomatic presence in its favor. "It might not matter 20 years ago how it deals with many parts of the world that do not have the same philosophical structure, but because China now is so big, it kind of does now," he said. "If China succeeds with that, there is no challenges that China won't be able to succeed with." And on the subject of the impact of COIVD-19 on China's growth, O'Neill, who chaired the UK government's Review on Antimicrobial Resistance, remains optimistic that a robust recovery in the second half of the year might off set the economic dent. "The quicker you shut things down and know that you have confidence controlling the infection's spread, the more confident you can be in the second half of the year. The overall growth performance for the year might not be negatively affected," he said. ^ top ^

Supply chains stay intact, says ministry (China Daily)
2020-03-12
Foreign Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang said on Wednesday that China has not seen a large-scale transfer of its supply chains to the other parts of the world as a result of the novel coronavirus outbreak. The outbreak will have only a limited and temporary impact on China's economy, which will develop for the better in the long term, Geng said at a daily news conference. The epidemic has not altered the factors that support the high-quality development of the country's economy, he said. China's manufacturing sector is the largest and most diversified in the world, and the international community is confident that China's supply chains are resilient enough in the face of the epidemic, Geng said. In addition, domestic and international companies have resumed business in key industries in China, which is getting the disease under control, the spokesman said. Any attempt to cut global supply chains due to the epidemic, or any support for transferring or decoupling them is unrealistic and unwise, Geng said. With regard to the global economy, he said its growth prospects will depend on how widely the epidemic spreads and how long it lasts, which in turn hinges mainly on the way the world responds. "At this critical stage, the international community should work together to overcome the epidemic as soon as possible, resume normal exchanges and cooperation between countries and put development of the global economy back on track," he said. Meanwhile, Beijing called on the five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council to further their cooperation to maintain the authority of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons. China, France, Russia, the United Kingdom and the United States, the five nuclear-weapon States recognized by the treaty, issued a joint statement on Tuesday to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the treaty coming into force. The treaty is the basis for the international nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation regime and is an important part of the international security system, but it is being challenged by growing uncertainties, Geng said on Wednesday. ^ top ^

Top DPRK leader guides another long-range artillery strike drill (China Daily)
2020-03-10
Kim Jong-un, top leader of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), guided another firepower strike drill of long-range artillery sub-units of the Korean People's Army (KPA) on Monday, the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported on Tuesday. Kim watched the drill at an observation post and ordered the start of the fire, said the report, without giving details about what kind of weapons were tested. The purpose of the firepower strike drill was to "inspect the sudden military counterattack capability of the long-range artillery units on the front," it said. The Republic of Korea officials said that the DPRK fired at least three unidentified projectiles Monday, the second such move within a week. The ROK's Defense Ministry said it detected different types of short-range projectiles fired from the Sondok area on the east coast of the DPRK into the waters between the Korean Peninsula and Japan. "The artillerymen on the front hit the target with excellent marksmanship in the presence of the Supreme Leader, fully demonstrating their combat power...," the KCNA said. On March 2, Kim visited a firepower strike drill ground of long-range artillery sub-units of the KPA and guided the drill, according to the KCNA. ^ top ^

Decisions made at Cabinet meeting on March 11 (Montsame)
2020-03-11
An additional financing for the building of a 300-bed maternity hospital in Khan-Uul District will be reviewed and approved, and relevant agreements will be revised. The construction is currently 90 percent complete. The cabinet will discuss a package bill on social protection, pension reform and social insurance at its regular meeting scheduled next week. The government is seeking to gain legislative reform and improve governance and financial management of social insurance system and to introduce multi-pillar pension system. It had been decided to implement a project on The fuel management system of the new international airport of Ulaanbaatar city under invest–operate–transfer concession and to select the concessions through direct contracting. The project is removed from the concession list as it was decided that a state-owned entity will be in charge of the fuel supply. The Cabinet gave an order to stop all types of activities of dumping waste, and sewage of factories and treatment plants in Ulaanbaatar in unauthorized areas and piling up wastes, emitting odors and causing negative environmental impacts. Mayor of Ulaanbaatar S.Amarsaikhan is charged to deliver warnings to relevant business entities and ensure their compliance with labor safety and health requirements. The cabinet decided to give monetary awards to the artists and athletes, who demonstrated great success at international competitions and events. Specifically, MNT 40 million to the artists from the "Mongolian Circus Development Center", who won silver medal from an international circus festival in China, MNT 34 million for the artists of the Mongolian Circus Association, who gained silver medal from the Monte-Carlo International Circus Festival, and MNT 19 million to Ch.Tsetsen, student of the Mongolian State Conservatory, who won at the Kocian Violin Competition in Czech and MNT 14 million each to students T.Udval and T.Esui, who were placed in the second places and MNT 9 million each to students J.Naransoyombo and U.Misheel, who won the third place in the competition. ^ top ^

Sandro Wirth
Embassy of Switzerland