|
 |
|
SCHWEIZER
BOTSCHAFT IN BEIJING
EMBASSY OF SWITZERLAND IN BEIJING
AMBASSADE DE SUISSE EN CHINE |
Der wöchentliche
Presserückblick der Schweizer Botschaft in der VR China
The Weekly Press Review of the Swiss Embassy in the People's Republic
of China
La revue de presse hebdomadaire de l'Ambassade de Suisse en RP
de Chine |
 |
|
|
| Table of
contents |
|
Mongolia
^ top ^
|
| Switzerland |
Swiss govt pledges to guarantee mask supplies ahead of easing lockdown (China Daily)
2020-04-23
The Swiss federal government on Wednesday said it will guarantee the supply of face masks as parts of the current lockdown measures are expected to be eased next week. Swiss Federal Councilor and Defence Minister Viola Amherd told a press conference Wednesday that the Swiss armed forces are planning on buying up to over 100 million face masks, which will be sold to retailers at purchasing price. The official said that some 21 million face masks have already been distributed among Switzerland's 26 cantons. Despite the efforts to guarantee the supply, the Swiss government will not make it a general obligation to wear a mask, said Alain Berset, head of the Swiss Federal Department of Home Affairs. "A mask does not replace the basic rules like distance and hand hygiene," he said. However, the government has recommended that passengers using public transport in rush hours wear protective masks. According to a survey published by local media earlier this week, three-fifths of the respondents in Switzerland said they are in favor of the mandatory wearing of protective masks in public to fight COVID-19. Switzerland reported 205 new cases of COVID-19 on Wednesday, bringing the total infections to 28,268, with 1,217 fatalities. ^ top ^
Coronavirus attacks lining of blood vessels all over the body, Swiss study finds (SCMP)
2020-04-21
The coronavirus attacks the lining of blood vessels all over the body, which can ultimately lead to multiple organ failure, according to a new study published in The Lancet. "This virus does not only attack the lungs, it attacks the vessels everywhere," said Frank Ruschitzka, an author of the paper from University Hospital Zurich. He said the researchers had found that the deadly virus caused more than pneumonia. "It enters the endothelium [layer of cells], which is the defence line of the blood vessels. So it brings your own defence down and causes problems in microcirculation," said Ruschitzka, referring to circulation in the smallest of blood vessels. It then reduces the blood flow to different parts of the body and eventually stops blood circulation, according to Ruschitzka, chairman of the heart centre and cardiology department at the university hospital in Switzerland. "From what we do see clinically, patients have problems in all organs – in the heart, kidney, intestine, everywhere," he said. That also explained why smokers and people with pre-existing conditions who had a weakened endothelial function, or unhealthy blood vessels, were more vulnerable to the novel virus, he said. Those underlying conditions included hypertension, or high blood pressure, diabetes, obesity and established cardiovascular disease. The study, published on Friday, found viral elements within endothelial cells, which line the inside of blood vessels, and inflammatory cells in Covid-19 patients. While the results were based on analysis of three cases, Ruschitzka said autopsies on other Covid-19 patients had also found their blood vessel linings were "full of virus" and the function of vessels was impaired in all of their organs. One of the cases was a 71-year-old Covid-19 patient with coronary artery disease and arterial hypertension who had developed multisystem organ failure and died, according to the study. A postmortem analysis of his transplanted kidney showed viral structures in the endothelial cells. Researchers also found inflammatory cells in the heart, small bowel and lungs, where most small vessels appeared congested. Another 58-year-old patient with diabetes, arterial hypertension and obesity developed mesenteric ischemia, or decreased blood flow to the small intestine that can permanently damage the organ. Lymphocytic endotheliitis, which causes inflammation of the endothelium, was also found in her lungs, heart, kidneys and liver. Based on these findings, the researchers suggested therapies to stabilise the endothelium while tackling viral replication. On top of a vaccination that reduces virus replication, Ruschitzka suggested strengthening vascular health may be key to treating Covid-19 patients. "All patients who are at risk and the elderly should be treated very well for the underlying cardiovascular conditions. The better they are treated, the more likely they are to survive the Covid-19 infection," he said. "We know that angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors [heart medications used to treat high blood pressure] and anti-inflammatory drugs [make the endothelium stronger]," he said. John Nicholls, a clinical professor in pathology at the University of Hong Kong, said more research was needed. "While many structures may seem to resemble viral particles using the electron microscope, other laboratory techniques should be done to confirm true viral infection," he said. ^ top ^
|
| Foreign Policy |
White House must concentrate on fighting outbreak, not China-bashing (China Daily)
2020-04-24
The White House press briefing on the novel coronavirus pandemic is supposed to be a time to inform and rally the American people in the fight against the virus, which has infected more people and claimed more lives in the United States than any other country. However, that is not the case. The briefing has increasingly become a campaign rally ahead of the presidential election in November, including regular China-bashing to spread misinformation. For example, the US leader claimed on Tuesday that US trade deficit with China used to be as high as $500 billion, which he said meant the US was losing $500 billion to China. The US goods and services trade deficit with China, according to US government data, was $381 billion in 2018. Even if US goods imports from China stood at $540 billion, the US didn't just give China that amount for nothing. In return, it received large quantities of computers, cell phones, apparel, toys, sports goods and furniture, just to name a few items. On Saturday, the US leader claimed that China is providing the US with several billion dollars in tariffs, saying that Chinese, not Americans, are paying the tariffs he imposed on Chinese goods entering the US.However, Goldman Sachs and many US economists have said that the cost of such tariffs has fallen "entirely" on US businesses and households. According to Chad Bown, a senior fellow at the Peterson Institute for International Economics, the new tariffs have disrupted medical supplies critical to the US' fight against the coronavirus outbreak. While these are old lies, the US leader did make a new and shocking statement on April 17 that the US doesn't have the most COVID-19 cases and deaths. He said most cases and deaths have in the world have to be in China because it's a massive country. But we all know that the numbers of cases and deaths are not necessarily proportional to the size of a country's population. They have much to do with the containment and mitigation measures taken to fight the pandemic. Compared with the US', China's measures have been far more decisive, stringent and effective. That said, it is highly immoral for a national leader to wish there were more sick and dead people in another country. On the same day when asked by a reporter about whether the novel coronavirus escaped from a Wuhan lab, the US leader said, "a lot of people are looking at it. It seems to make sense". A national leader floating such a conspiracy theory on live TV is again shocking and immoral. Many scientists, governments and institutions, such as the World Health Organization, have made it clear that the novel coronavirus that causes COVID-19 originated in nature, not in a lab. An NBC News-Wall Street Journal poll released on Sunday showed that 52 percent of respondents in the US said they generally do not trust the president about the virus, while just 36 percent said they do. That trust seems still high given that a report in The Washington Post on April 14 said that as of April 3, the 1,170th day the US leader in office, he had made 18,000 false or misleading claims, an average of more than 15 a day. It is sad to see China-bashing becoming a regular part of the White House briefing on the pandemic. It is high time the US leader focused his mind and resources on fighting the pandemic instead of indulging in China-bashing in a bid to divert attention from the criticism he has been inviting for mishandling the outbreak. Such distraction will only make it harder for the US to flatten the curve. ^ top ^
China's support role is crucial for intl organizations amid COVID-19 battle: ICRC regional head (Global Times)
2020-04-24
As the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) has yet to show signs of fading and continues to sweep through countries and haunt lesser-developed regions, head of the Regional Delegation for East Asia of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) told the Global Times that China, with its experience, has an important role to play in the global fight against the virus. Jacques Pellet, also personal envoy of the ICRC President for China, told the Global Times that the sanctions countries have enforced should not render humanitarian action more difficult. Pellet called for countries and international organizations that enforce sanctions to grant exemptions with expedited procedures to facilitate humanitarian action in the affected countries. According to media reports, Cuba and Iran are facing more difficulties in the battle against COVID-19, as medical equipment cannot reach their countries due to sanctions, which have raised concern over whether it could lead to a humanitarian crisis. Pellet said the outbreak had forced fragile and violence-stricken countries to face greater challenges as they were already grappling with weak public health services, fragile economic systems and ongoing conflict. As the virus spreads in South America, Africa, and regions where the medical systems are weaker, Pellet warned that if actions are not taken immediately to contain it, then the effects could be devastating, especially in places already weakened by war and violence. "It is hard to predict the extent the virus will propagate in [Africa, South America and other less developed regions] as it depends on the level of prevention measures in place and the level of preparation of the health systems and medical personnel, he said. However, the pandemic will also likely be followed by economic, political and security turmoil in some countries, he added. In Africa, it is in a race against time to curb the spread of COVID-19, especially in places affected by conflict and violence. Those who have been displaced by conflict are vulnerable to health complications. Temporary accommodation or camps easily become crowded, and physical distancing is impossible, often with inadequate sanitation and shelter or little access to medical care and good nutrition, according to Pellet. In Somalia, less than half of the urban population has access to health care. In rural areas, it's less than 15 percent. In Northeast Nigeria, only half of the region's 700 plus health care facilities are functioning. Two-thirds of the facilities have been damaged. Many areas have no doctors, nurses or midwives, as clinics repeatedly come under fire amid regional conflicts. "Cease fires, even of a short duration, might be the only way to implement certain protection under international humanitarian law (IHL) such as the evacuation of wounded and sick fighters and civilians, release of detainees, delivery of humanitarian assistance, and access to health care services," Pellet said. The ICRC and the International Federation of the Red Cross and Red Crescent launched a global appeal of 800 million Swiss Francs ($822 million) to enhance humanitarian response in fragile, conflict-affected, and violence-stricken countries. "This is a global fight that requires a global response and solidarity across borders. We must help countries already struggling to provide health care to communities," Pellet explained. "Due to its experience in fighting COVID-19 at home and taking into account its contributions to the global response, China definitely has an important role to play in supporting the work of international humanitarian organizations." ^ top ^
Ambassador condemns 'political virus' (China Daily)
2020-04-24
China's Ambassador to the United Kingdom Liu Xiaoming has condemned a "political virus" that he says has emerged during the COVID-19 crisis, where some politicians and world leaders have resorted to "blaming and scapegoating" China in order to further their own agendas. Liu said that the novel coronavirus "does not respect borders or discriminate between races" and said that global cooperation is the most effective weapon if the "international community is to claim victory against the virus". The ambassador made the comments in an online discussion on COVID-19 with Stephen Green, a member of the UK's House of Lords and chairman of London-based public policy center Asia House. "The ongoing battle is leading proof that the countries of the world belong to one and the same community with a shared future. We need global united action," Liu said. Liu strongly condemned attempts to blame China for the pandemic, and he said those who do so are blatantly politicizing a global public health issue. "Such a move will only drive a wedge between countries, undermine international cooperation, and harm the interests of all mankind," he said. "In the face of the crisis, blaming and scapegoating are futile. Arrogance and insolence will only poison cooperation between countries." During the question and answer session, Liu was asked if China will provide investigators with full access to all the relevant data, locations, and witnesses in any future international inquiries into the origins of the pandemic. "It's up to the WHO (World Health Organization)," Liu responded. "That's why we support the WHO. We have to play by international norms, international rules, not by some other country's rules." Liu went on to condemn courts in the United States that have explored legal action against China over allegations the country had not done enough to contain the virus. "It's absurd," he said. "This is not the first time some politicians and some people want to play world police. This is not the era of gunboat diplomacy, this is not the era when China was a semi-colonial, semi-feudal society. This is the third decade of the 21st century. Those people, I cannot understand them, these people still live in the old days, thinking they can bully China and bully the world." Liu said that China has been open and transparent since the start of the outbreak. He moved to correct reports in some British media outlets and elsewhere that China delayed alerting the international community after the medical system was first alerted of the virus in late December. "The government adopted very swift actions, and notified the WHO four days later, and shared information seven days later with the Americans," he said. Liu said he was pleased that the UK has confirmed it will continue to support the WHO, after the US threatened to halt funding the organization earlier this month. ^ top ^
China, Russia cooperation on virus fight reveals depth of partnership (Global Times)
2020-04-24
The COVID-19 outbreak has expanded to most other countries in just one month, becoming the worst pandemic in a century. Global cooperation is the only way to maximize containment efforts for the benefit of all humanity. However, economic nationalism and populism prevail in Western countries and some politicians still shirk their responsibility. This damages global governance awareness, trust among nations and global efforts to fight the virus. Following the 2008 financial crisis, the G20 established a mechanism in a very short time. The mechanism proposed effective solutions to many problems confronting the world economy. However, the G20 appears to be powerless amid coronavirus pandemic, which has caused far more serious harm. This indicates the "global village" can break down under the growing influence of economic nationalism. While some Western countries are busy blaming each other and tarnishing non-Western nations, China and Russia have joined hands to tackle the COVID-19. This is a showcase of close Sino-Russian relations. China and Russia have upgraded their relations to a comprehensive strategic partnership of coordination for a new era. The two nations are committed to working together to maintain the stability of the international order, and helping each other's domestic development. The leaders of China and Russia keep in close contact to ensure their joint anti-epidemic actions are carried out quickly. Over the last month, President Xi Jinping and President Vladimir Putin have had two phone calls. The communication is far more frequent than with leaders of other countries, demonstrating the significant partnership and mutual trust between the two countries. The two leaders discussed issues such as strengthening exchanges of experts, ensuring supplies of anti-epidemic material and opportunities to enhance cooperation in various fields. The leaders of China and Russia personally direct their respective anti-epidemic work, which is conducive to coordinating all departments and efficiently conducting disaster-relieving work. The two leaders also expressed support and thanked each other during their calls. Low-key and pragmatic, China and Russia display their support with action. They generously provide urgently needed anti-epidemic materials to each other. On February 5, when China was struggling against COVID-19, Russia delivered urgently needed medical materials directly to Wuhan and sent medical and anti-epidemic experts to conduct joint research with Chinese experts. On February 9, the Russian government provided China with 23 tons of medical relief materials. It is likely that Russia used its strategic reserves to help China since the light industry in Russia is underdeveloped. In April, epidemic broke out in Russia, and China offered Russia COVID-19 aid, including medical masks, protective suits, surgical gloves and thermometers. When some Western countries attempt to stigmatize China, Russia comes to China's defense in the international arena. When talking with Xi, Putin pointed out that it was unacceptable to smear China for the spread of COVID-19. On April 14, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said claims that China should pay for economic damage caused by the pandemic made his "hair stand on end." While Western countries keep throwing mud at China, Russia gives its friend strongest moral support. China and Russia have developed an intimate relationship through all-round cooperation between governments, academia and people. The relationship between nations is the same as that between people. A friend in need is a friend indeed. The pandemic has helped show us who our true friends are. During the virus fight, people in both countries have behaved irrationally and spread unfounded criticism of each other. However, the Western media deliberately exaggerated isolated cases of friction and badmouthed the overall situation of Sino-Russian cooperation. Conflict between great powers is inevitable, and we should view China-Russia relations from a wider perspective. When the pandemic struck, Western countries abandoned the "Good Neighbor Policy" advocated by former US president Franklin Roosevelt in the 1930s. In contrast, China and Russia cooperated in the battle against the virus, laying a stronger foundation for stable relations between the two countries. Starting in 2008, economic nationalism gradually evolved from an attitude adopted by minority groups to a social movement of the general public. After 2016, as economic nationalism has extended its influence, anti-globalization becomes a policy option for some powers that once led globalization. The pandemic has greatly accelerated anti-globalization trend. Technological nationalism, market decoupling and restrictions on people's movement, have all been on the rise. Even when the pandemic is over, these measures will not be completely cancelled. As economic nationalism and globalization collide, global cooperation is sure to be more difficult. The China-Russia comprehensive strategic partnership of coordination for a new era serves as a model for the great power relations in the post-pandemic era. When globalization encounters setbacks, the cooperation based on coordinated development is an ideal choice. ^ top ^
US lawsuit against China a political scheme, 'no chance to win' (Global Times)
2020-04-23
A real-life political farce is playing out in the hometown of famous American writer Mark Twain, a sharp critic of American democracy. Suing China as part of a choreographed "Blame China" campaign led by American hawks like Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt is one of the common tactics being used, as long-term anti-China political elites see Beijing's rising status as the biggest obstacle to "making America great again," observers said. Missouri became the first US state to file a lawsuit against the Chinese government for its handling of the novel coronavirus pneumonia (COVID-19) outbreak, even though it doesn't have any grounds to sue due to sovereign immunity. Such move came along when some law firms in Republican states such as Florida and Texas have been pushing forward class action against China for unleashing the virus while some lawmakers such as Arizona senator Martha McSally and Tennessee lawmaker Marsha Blackburn trying to introduce the bill to remove China's sovereign immunity. Some analysts also noted that just like Missouri, a place dubbed the "Show Me" State, Republicans should be ashamed of using groundless evidence for legal proceedings to achieve their goals in the November elections, especially when they clearly understand the case would be hard to proceed due to illegitimate and flawed procedures. However, some politicians from Western countries, particularly major US allies, began parroting Washington's tone to blame China - a way to distract public attention from their own mishandling of the pandemic, which further exposed the vulnerability and lack of integrity in their foreign policies, as they are yielding to Washington's pressure amid the outbreak, analysts said. 'No chance' In the lawsuit filed against Beijing, Eric Schmitt, Missouri Attorney General, who is also the plaintiff of the case, sued three ministries, the Chinese government, Communist Party of China, the provincial and municipal-level Hubei and Wuhan governments, as well as the Wuhan Institute of Virology and Chinese Academy of Sciences, according to the lawsuit document. Some American law experts told the US media that the lawsuit will not succeed because the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act of 1976 provides that "foreign states enjoy immunity from the civil jurisdiction of US courts," said Chimène Keitner, a law professor at UC Hastings College of Law, who wrote an article Don't Bother Suing China for Coronavirus. Some Chinese law experts who talked with the Global Times on Wednesday said there is no chance that "such a lawsuit will succeed." "Aside from the absence of jurisdiction, the US also has no investigative powers," Yuan Zheng, a research fellow at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (CASS), told the Global Times on Wednesday. The court needs to have evidence to make a judgment, which requires an investigation, but it's impossible for China to let the US come to investigate. Who do they think they are?" Yuan asked. It will be difficult to proceed with the lawsuit, as the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act of 1976 extends immunity to countries from most lawsuits in the US. However, such immunity does not apply when it comes to commercial activities according to 1605(a)(2) of the Act, said Peng Qinxuan, an expert from the Wuhan University Institute of International Law. While some American law experts also suggested that if the US wants to file charges against China, it would have to do so in the international court. Peng told the Global Times that countries would settle an international dispute at an international tribunal when an pre-agreement between them specifically provides so. But now there is no such preliminary agreement concerning the situation that grants jurisdiction to any international tribunal given the current status of China-US ties. Schmitt blames those government agencies and institutions for "deceit, concealment, misfeasance and inaction" that unleashed this pandemic. However, almost all the 115 pieces of evidence listed as the nature of the action are from previous US media reports, including far-right US media outlet Fox News, which has long covered China in a biased way, and the Wall Street Journal, which published an opinion piece with racist headline defaming China amid the outbreak, sparking wide-ranging criticism over the arrogance, prejudice and ignorance of Western mainstream media. Even more ironically, the document cited nine articles from American right-wing opinion-driven magazine National Review as major sources, or in other words, so-called "evidence" to prove China's missteps that fueled the COVID-19 spread. Some of those reports hyped the virus as being manmade, and distorted facts. For instance, Fox News claimed it was leaked from the Wuhan Institute of Virology, which contradicted scientists and medical experts' evaluation of the virus when the World Health Organization confirmed that available evidence shows the virus originated in animals and was not created in a laboratory. The Federal Rules of Evidence Rule 802 states that the rule against hearsay is not admissible, except by rules laid down by federal statutes or the Supreme Court. The media reports enumerated in the indictment are not exceptions to the rule of hearsay evidence and should not be admitted as evidence by the court based on relevant rules, Zhang Qihuai, an attorney from the Beijing Lanpeng Law Firm, told the Global Times. Also, none of the treaties addressing the international spread of infectious diseases dating back to the 19th century have rules requiring payment of compensation for damage in other countries associated with violations of treaty rules, David Fidler, visiting professor of law at Washington University in St. Louis, said in an article published on justsecurity.org in March. The leading contemporary treaty, the International Health Regulations (2005) (IHR), has no provisions on this issue, he said. Geng Shuang, spokesperson of the Foreign Ministry, slammed the latest US lawsuit against China, claiming that the alleged accusation has no basis in fact or law and is ridiculous. "The sovereign actions taken by the Chinese government in the prevention and control of the coronavirus epidemic are not subject to the jurisdiction of the US courts," he said. The US is filing lawsuits against China at federal and state level and may amend some legal provisions to facilitate the process of suing China. Once it wins at the federal level, it may provide a "legal" basis for US long-arm jurisdiction, Zhu Ying, deputy director of the National Human Rights Education and Training Base of Southwest University of Political Science and Law, told the Global Times on Wednesday. The hyping of these lawsuits has political purposes and their legal basis is not practical. The virus is an invisible enemy, while China is visible. By filing these lawsuits, the US and some Western countries want to slander and isolate China, hyping the country as the origin of the virus and stirring up anti-China sentiments in the international community, Zhu noted. Rather than a serious lawsuit, "Filing a lawsuit shows their political stance and shirks their responsibility, which is standard politics and democracy in the West," Yuan said. On the Cotton and Crenshaw bill that aims to remove China's immunity from the US judiciary, experts suggested that China fight back by legislating on a reciprocal basis, which is, to remove US diplomatic immunity in China through an amended law by China's National People's Congress, which is more efficient than US legislature. US President Donald Trump speaks during a Coronavirus Task Force press briefing at the White House in Washington, DC, on Sunday. Photo: AFP 'Blame China!' Besides GOP hawks in the US, some politicians, influencers and media elites in countries like Australia, UK, and Germany have been trying to follow similar anti-China rhetoric, blaming China for COVID-19 outbreaks and intensifying the political battle between the West and China. The latest move is part of a flurry of lawsuits in the West, using China as a scapegoat to advance their political agenda. Australian Nationals MP George Christensen called for China to pay reparations on March 31 for the pandemic and urged an investigation into reports that the virus originated from a Wuhan laboratory. And in India, a complaint was jointly filed on April 4 by the All-India Bar Association and International Council of Jurists - two NGOs who share the same president - and submitted it to the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC). They are demanding that China pay $22 billion in compensation for China's alleged "legal responsibility" in the pandemic. The case also alleged the novel coronavirus was leaked by the Wuhan Virology Institute. "Australia has been echoing the panda-bashing rhetoric from Washington's campaign to smear and incriminate China. Such blind alignment with the anti-China crusade follows the so-called Western value, without any regard of reason and righteousness, and is basically against Australia's own national interest," Chen Hong, a professor and Director of Australian Studies Centre of East China Normal University, told the Global Times on Wednesday. British foreign policy think-tank Henry Jackson Society released a report on April 5 claiming China should be responsible for the huge ￡3.2 trillion ($3.9 trillion) loss of G7 nations, including the UK, US and Japan from the pandemic. The "China-bashing" complaint led by Indian lawyer Adish Agarwala to the UNHRC was recently slammed by some Indian legal experts who also questioned its motives. "There is no official backing to his complaint and it is a publicity stunt … it is extremely tragic and shameful that some individuals are exploiting such a human crisis for cheap publicity," Prashant Kumar, a former president of LAWASIA (The Law Association for Asia and the Pacific), said in a public message. "There is no backing from the Indian government or any recognized body." Also, Bild, Germany's largest newspaper, recently listed a "bill" that China needs to pay for the coronavirus outbreak in Germany. Julian Reichelt, the editor-in-chief of the newspaper, made a video maliciously attacking China. From the offensive rhetoric used in defending his claims, Reichelt showed no sympathy to coronavirus patients and casualties without the goodwill for global solidarity, observers said. And what he focused on was self-promotion by stirring up confrontation between the West and China, which is a typical nasty move amid the turbulent moment and a shame to German media. Ni Feng, deputy director of the Institute of American Studies of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, told the Global Times that the move is mostly a political manipulation aimed at scapegoating China and winning votes or shifting the blame rather than a real claim for compensation. "These politicians know that legal action will attract public attention, especially at such a critical moment and given the tough epidemic situation in their countries," Ni said, noting that judicial procedures will take a very long time, giving them a long time to play their game. Still, others have urged global solidarity in fighting the pandemic, which has caused more than two million cases globally, warning against misinformation that can have fatal consequences. "With the scale and reach of the pandemic increasing exponentially, there is an urgent need to establish practices to effectively disseminate current, accurate information and quickly identify and root out outdated guidance or misinformation," digital medical journal The Lancet said on Tuesday. "I have never seen any country as shameless as the US," a Chinese netizen said on Weibo on Wednesday in response to the lawsuit. "Countries like Australia should stop parroting the US. Otherwise, they would always be Washington's lapdog," another netizen said. ^ top ^
Attempts to deny China's sovereignty in South China Sea doomed to fail: Chinese FM (Global Times)
2020-04-22
Xisha Island and Nansha Island are parts of China, and any attempts to deny China's sovereignty and rights in the South China Sea are invalid and doomed to fail, the Chinese Foreign Ministry said on Tuesday. Since March, the Permanent Mission of Vietnam to the UN has submitted notes reiterating its sovereignty over the Xisha and Nansha Islands and denying China's sovereignty and rights in the South China Sea. China firmly opposes this and has made solemn representations to Vietnam, Geng Shuang, spokesperson for the ministry, told a regular press conference. The response was made after Vietnam made "illegal claims" to the UN, accusing China of infringing on its "sovereignty and jurisdiction rights" over the South China Sea. The Southeast Asian country also protested against China's establishment of two districts, Xisha District and Nansha District, in Sansha City, South China's Hainan Province, in the name of the sovereignty concerns, on Sunday. China claims sovereignty and jurisdiction rights in relevant parts of the South China Sea in accordance with international laws that include the UN Convention of the Law of the Sea, and the Xisha and Nansha islands are inherent parts of China, Geng said. "China will take any necessary measures to defend its sovereignty, rights and interests in the South China Sea," he said. ^ top ^
US public opinion of China hits new low, Pew Research survey shows (SCMP)
2020-04-22
Americans' views toward China fell to their lowest level since Pew Research Centre started asking the question in 2005 as respondents' opinion of President Xi Jinping hit a new low, according to survey results released Tuesday. The Pew poll of 1,000 people taken last month found that 66 per cent of respondents held an unfavourable view of China, up from 47 per cent in 2017 when President Donald Trump took office. And a large majority of Americans said they lacked confidence in Xi to do the right thing when it came to global affairs, a steep increase since last year. "It's hardly surprising," said Orville Schell, director of Asia Society's Centre on US-China Relations. "It's now just about the only thing in Washington that Republicans and Democrats agree on, that we should have a much more sceptical view of China's intentions." Surveys by Pew and other major polling organisations have charted a significant rise in American distrust toward China since President Donald Trump came into office, including a Gallup poll in March that pegged US public opinion at a 20-year low, below even where it was after the 1989 Tiananmen Square crackdown. But analysts also underscore that trust toward the Asian giant was ebbing even before Trump came to power, launched a massive trade war and stepped up anti-China talk. "Trump's rhetoric might strengthen some anti-China sentiments among some Republican voters or Trump supporters. But I don't think Trump changes the whole US public attitude toward China," said Xiaoyu Pu, director of graduate studies in the University of Nevada's political science department. "China is also much stronger and more authoritarian than before. And there are more high-profiled contentious issues between US and China." The percentage of respondents who had an unfavourable view in 2006 was 29 per cent; last year it rose to 60 per cent amid US-China trade tensions. A Pew poll of 1,000 people taken in March found that 66 per cent of respondents held an unfavourable view of China. Image: Pew Research Centre In a press conference over the weekend, Trump accused China of having a "weak" economy, "questionable" statistics on Covid-19 and a "slow" response to the virus. Topping Americans' list of gripes toward China in the latest Pew survey was the Asian giant's impact on the global environment. This was followed by Beijing's role in cyberattacks, the US trade deficit, job losses, military rivalry, human rights violations and technological competition. Ranking as a relatively low concern was the tense situation between China and Hong Kong. This, say analysts, likely reflects how little understanding many Americans have about global affairs as they focus on their own lives. "I think people just don't understand that Hong Kong is kind of a canary in the coal mine," said Douglas Paal, an analyst at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace and a former staff member of the National Security Council. "It's just too small and far away. And personally, Trump doesn't care about Hong Kong or Taiwan. He only cares about big markets." The survey was taken between March 3 and 29 as US consciousness about the coronavirus became increasingly acute, although many of the attitudes toward China appear more deeply rooted without much evidence that the pandemic or China's response affected the immediate results, Pew said. "It takes a while for stuff to seep in. I was a bit surprised by that honestly," said Kat Devlin, a researcher on Pew's global attitudes project. "Public opinion is really finicky sometimes." Topping Americans' list of gripes toward China in the latest Pew survey was the Asian giant's impact on the global environment. Image: Pew Research Centre While respondents from both major US political parties expressed growing wariness of China and its motivations, there were significant differences. Republicans were more distrustful of China by some 10 percentage points and more concerned about the country's impact on the US economy, jobs, cyberattacks and military rivalry. Democrats tended to be more concerned about the environment and human rights. After vacillating between praise toward China and harsh criticism, Trump has in recent days sharply ramped up his attacks with the November presidential election in sight. Democrats are also likely to make China a key issue during the campaign. And by some calculations, more than 250 bills currently before Congress touch on China, most advocating more restrictions and tougher policies, according to Paal. "That shows you how many members of Congress in both parties feel the need to get on record criticising China in order to get reelected. And that's a measure of how deep this runs, and how broadly," said Paal. A large majority of respondents this year said they lacked confidence in Xi Jinping to do the right thing when it came to global affairs. Image: Pew Research Centre Negative American views toward Xi increased sharply to 71 per cent in the latest survey from 50 per cent last year, with respondents' views of a leader often mirroring their views of the country, Pew said. While Americans do not necessarily understand the nuances of Xi's policies, they tend to be wary of autocrats, analysts said. And Xi has squandered numerous opportunities to boost China's standing abroad as confrontational policies under him have included building islands aggressively in the contested South China Sea, cracking down on protesters in Hong Kong and building vast Uygur internment camps in Xinjiang, they said. "It is quite incredible the way Xi Jinping has offered everybody a reason to feel uncomfortable about China. And it's completely, all of it, is unnecessary," said Schell. "This is one of the most extraordinary things in world history that a country with so much success and so much to be proud of and no enemies should have turned the world into this sort of confrontational adversarial arena." "He had the United States neutralised with engagement. And he lost it," he added. "It's not in China's interest to make everybody feel antagonistic." With so many parts of the relationship moving in the wrong direction, analysts see little immediate hope of a truce. "The US-China relationship might get worse before it gets better," said Pu. But both the emerging and mature superpowers are far more than the image their leaders project, he added. "Both the US and China are complex, dynamic, and resilient societies," Pu said. "I am not hopeful for the political relationship in the short term. But I am still hopeful for the people-to-people relationship in the long-term." ^ top ^
G77, China voice support for WHO in COVID-19 fight: statement (Xinhua)
2020-04-21
The Group of 77 (G77) and China on Sunday issued a statement expressing their support for the World Health Organization (WHO) in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic. "The Group of 77 and China is deeply concerned at the rapid spread of the COVID-19 pandemic, one of the most serious public health crises in modern history," the statement said, adding that "the first priority is to save lives." "The group, therefore, acknowledges the leading role of the World Health Organization led by its Director-General, Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, and extends its full support and appreciation for its work in providing information, technical guidance, training and other assistance to developing countries to help them prepare for and efficiently respond to the pandemic," the statement said. The group and China share United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres' view that solidarity counts in the international efforts to curb the virus and its shattering consequences, they said. They emphasized that "the international community must unite in its efforts to ensure access to scientific guidance, training, equipment, essential medical supplies, and concrete life-saving services to countries in greatest need and in regions where the full impact is yet to be felt." The statement includes a call on the international community "to maintain and, where possible, increase their support for the WHO, which, by the mandate given to it by member states, has a critical and central role to play in supporting developing countries to confront a crisis of epic scale that threatens to erase the gains made over the past decades." "We reiterate the need to strengthen international solidarity and multilateral cooperation and partnership in the fight against a disease that is our common enemy," according to the statement. ^ top ^
|
| Domestic
Policy |
|
President confident of achieving poverty relief goal (People's Daily)
2020-04-23
Despite the influence of the novel coronavirus pandemic on the country's economy, President Xi Jinping said on Tuesday that he was confident of achieving the goal of eliminating poverty in China by the end of this year. While visiting a community in the town of Laoxian in Shaanxi province's Pingli county, Xi instructed local officials to make substantial efforts to promote employment so that the people will have a stable life. "I am confident of largely achieving the goal of poverty eradication this year. What concerns me more is whether the situation can be stabilized after this year, or whether there is a long-term mechanism," Xi said. Xi's trip to the region started on Monday with ecological preservation and poverty alleviation on top of the agenda. Only through stable employment can locals live a prosperous life, Xi told the family of Wang Xianping. Wang's family is among 1,346 households in the community that have been relocated from hilly areas prone to geological disasters or poverty-stricken areas. President Xi Jinping, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, inspects the local poverty alleviation work in Jinping community of Laoxian township, Pingli county of the city of Ankang, Northwest China's Shaanxi province, April 21, 2020. [Photo/Xinhua] Xi stressed down-to-earth efforts facilitating employment, warning against any practice of formalism. "The Chinese Communists are truth-seeking and pragmatic, and they make sure that the people can obtain real benefits," said Xi, who is also general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee. The places Xi visited are located in the Qinling-Bashan mountainous region, one of China's 14 contiguous areas of extreme poverty, which are the "hardest nut to crack" in the final rush for poverty relief. Across China, more than 9.6 million poor people have been relocated to more habitable areas over the past few years as part of the country's poverty alleviation efforts. According to the agenda set by Xi, China will lift all rural residents living below the current poverty line out of poverty by the end of this year. While presiding over a symposium on securing the decisive victory in poverty alleviation last month, Xi instructed the country's officials to work hard to overcome the influences of the pandemic and strive for the fulfillment of the poverty elimination goal. While visiting a tea plantation in Pingli county, Xi told the farmers that tea is the way for them to achieve prosperity and they should "do well in the industry". He also went to a primary school in the county, where he told the students to become psychologically and physically strong. ^ top ^
Commentary: "Westward relocation spirit" inspires China to meet development goals (Xinhua)
2020-04-24
President Xi Jinping's inspection trip to Xi'an Jiaotong University has reignited the "westward relocation spirit," which will fuel the nation's drive to eliminate poverty and complete building a moderately prosperous society in all respects in a year when the coronavirus epidemic adds complexity to economic and social development. The "westward relocation spirit" was promoted in the 1950s when part of Jiaotong University was moved from east China's Shanghai to Xi'an in the west to serve the national strategy of industrial development in the western region. It features selfless devotion and hard work in difficult situations to contribute to the country. The spirit was vital for China to achieve social and economic development in the past decades and must be passed on to the new generations in the new era. China is in its final push to eliminate absolute poverty, with some areas in western and central China remaining the hard nuts to crack. It is a priority to lift those areas out of poverty in the short term. In the long run, the western and eastern regions should enhance industrial complementarity, personal exchanges and mutual learning to realize common development. China is also at a critical moment in balancing epidemic prevention and control and social and economic development. Although the epidemic situation has improved significantly, imported infections remain serious, posing pressure for the resumption of work and production, which brooks no delay. The tasks are no easy feat but have to be accomplished. It is more important than ever for the new generations to carry forward the "westward relocation spirit," draw inspirations from it, pursue their careers in the most-needed places of the country, and make new contributions in the new era. ^ top ^
China's upcoming NPC session likely to be held via video conference: observer (Global Times)
2020-04-23
An announcement on the National People's Congress (NPC) WeChat account on Wednesday said that the 16th session of the Standing Committee of the 13th NPC, China's top legislature, was held in a way for the first time in history in which deputies in Beijing held a video conference with non-Beijing deputies. Observers said the upcoming 17th session may be held in a similar way and China's current technology can assure a smooth process and the security of such conferences. The 17th session of the Standing Committee of the 13th NPC is expected to be held from April 26 to 29 in Beijing and will implement the requirement on normalizing the prevention work for the novel coronavirus and ensure the effective operation of the top legislature, Yue Zhongming, spokesperson for the Legislative Affairs Commission of the NPC Standing Committee, was cited as saying by the NPC WeChat account. Yue noted that deputies in Beijing attended the 16th session of the Standing Committee of the 13th NPC and held a video conference with deputies from outside Beijing. This was the first time for the NPC Standing Committee to hold the meeting in this way. It was an innovative practice under the special circumstance, which ensured the effective work of the top legislature as well as implemented the requirements for prevention of the virus. The practice was practical and highly efficient, and complied with the principle and spirit of the Constitution and laws, Yue said. China's current technologies can guarantee a successful video conference among several thousand people. The current encryption measures would also make it difficult for hackers, Li Xiaodong, founder of Beijing-based Fuxi Institution, which is dedicated to advancing internet services and research on critical internet infrastructure, and former head of the China Internet Network Information Center (CNNIC), told the Global Times. Aside from concerns over technology, more details on how to carry forward the process of the video conference more smoothly should be discussed in advance among working staff of the NPC Standing Committee in and outside Beijing, Li said. Some experts said that the 17th session of the Standing Committee of the 13th NPC, which is the first step in the national two sessions, might indicate how the two sessions will be held. The openings of the annual sessions of the NPC and the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), China's top political advisory body, are usually held on March 5 and March 3, respectively. The postponement of the key events in the country's political calendar this year is widely seen as part of the efforts of top authorities to prioritize the prevention and control work against COVID-19. Li said that it has become a trend to have video conferences in China amid the COVID-19 pandemic and this format can also save time. ^ top ^
5G networks reach 'roof of the world' (China Daily)
2020-04-23
With the north side of Qomolangma recently covered by 5G networks, netizens can now enjoy livestreaming videos from the world's highest mountain. Offered by China Telecom and China Mobile, two of the nation's leading telecommunication providers, the livestreaming videos display the beauty of the mountain, which is known in the West as Mount Everest. On April 19, China Telecom teamed up with China Central Television to provide a round-the-clock, live, high-definition broadcast with a 360-degree view. Meanwhile, China Mobile offered a livestreaming video showing a 360-degree view of Qomolangma between April 19 and 20 via the company's video platform MIGU Video. In a posting on social media platform Sina Weibo, netizen Gang Duoji said he appreciated the livestreaming videos as Qomolangma was one of his favorite places, but he was unable to visit it as it's too far away. "Now I can observe its beauty with the 5G livestreaming broadcast on my phone, it is really incredible!" said Gang. ^ top ^
Tianjin honors contributors to anti-virus fight (China Daily)
2020-04-23
Tianjin honored nine leading companies, research institutions and universities with awards recognizing their outstanding contributions in the fight against the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic on Thursday.The award is the first of its kind in the country to honor such commitment at the provincial-level.Dai Yongkang, director of the Tianjin Municipal Science and Technology Bureau, said at the awards ceremony that Tianjin's solid science and technological foundation had paved the way to address urgent market demands since the outbreak."Its efforts, including progress toward a COVID-19 vaccine, traditional Chinese medicine injections, a test kit for the virus and other contributions, have played a key role," he said.A prominent award-winner is the team led by Zhang Boli, president of Tianjin University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, which performed a minor miracle by mitigating the COVID-19 illness using traditional Chinese medicines in makeshift hospitals in Wuhan, Hubei province. The effort focused world attention on TCM.Zhang said during the awards ceremony "During the campaign, the team has investigated more than 1,000 cases with different symptoms and analyzed treatment effects more than 2,000 cases, which helped inform the choice between conventional modern medicine or the widely adopted and effective traditional medicines."Zhang Junhua, director of the science and research department of TCM university and a head of the team, said the world's medical sector "has paid close attention to TCM".Avoiding frequent false-positive tests is a priority in global medical circles. For its part, the city gave Bioscience (Tianjin) Diagnostic Technology Co a special award for its efforts to advance a COVID-19 antibody testing method, a pioneering effort to augment the antibody test to improve accuracy and precision in confirming COVID-19 in humans.The company's diagnostic kits for the coronavirus antibody were the first of the Chinese products to earn CE (Conformite Europeenne) technical qualification in Europe.Luan Dawei, president of the company, noted that its products have been provided to more than 600 Chinese hospitals and overseas hospitals in Italy, Malaysia and Myanmar and Thailand."Several award-winners shared insights from their bumpy roads to enable their products to stand at the peak of scientific and technological commitment during the country's campaign against COVID-19.Yao Xiaoqing, president of Tianjin Chase Sun Pharmaceutical Co, the producer of the Xuebijing injection, one of the three traditional Chinese medicines pinpointed by government authorities to treat the coronavirus pneumonias, said it "has undergone 10 years of difficult component-based studies in line with rigorous Western medicine research standards, and convinced Western counterparts by its effects and results".Song Xiao, president of Teda Filter Co, the country's top face mask filter producer, noted that it was "the top technology in meltblown cloth that could cement our production volume quickly and boost production capacity of 6 tons per day to 10 tons per day — enough raw material for 100,000 face masks". ^ top ^
China's vice public security minister under probe (Global Times)
2020-04-21
Vice minister of public security, Sun Lijun, is under investigation for suspected severe violations of discipline and law, the top anti-graft body said Sunday. The Communist Party of China Central Commission for Discipline Inspection (CCDI) and the National Supervisory Commission are leading the probe into the alleged violations. The Party Committee with the Ministry of Public Security said on Sunday it firmly supports the CCDI's investigation into Sun on Sunday, stressing that officials, regardless of power or status, will be punished for violating the law and Party discipline. The meeting also stressed that despite the positive momentum is strengthened in China's epidemic prevention and control work, the country still faces great pressure in guarding against a possible rebound of COVID-19 infections, public security organs are facing an arduous task in maintaining the national political security and social stability. Sun's case is an opportunity for national law enforcement agencies to implement self-inspection, rectification, reform, and improvement measures, while withstanding tests, according to the meeting. ^ top ^
Respect for life is the basic logic behind revision of COVID-19 data (People's Daily)
2020-04-18
The command centre for the prevention and control of the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in Wuhan, capital of central China's Hubei province and the previous epicenter of the COVID-19 pandemic, released a notification regarding the revision of the numbers of confirmed COVID-19 cases and deaths on Friday. As of the end of April 16, the city's total number of confirmed COVID-19 cases had been revised up by 325, and the number of deaths among the confirmed COVID-19 cases up by 1,290. Although this is a normal action, it has drawn a great deal of attention worldwide, prompting some to ask, "Why there are discrepancies between the present data and the previously released data? Does it indicate that Wuhan had been concealing information?" Such doubts are understandable, but the question is more complicated than it first appears. Anyone with any common sense should know that after major events such as a natural disaster, sudden accident or public health incident, it is a universal convention for authorities to rectify omissions, investigate doubts, and revise early statistics according to new leads and the emergence of concrete evidence. Wuhan's command centre for the prevention and control of the novel COVID-19 has also followed this convention. It has set up a special investigation group for this task, and ordered multiple departments to compare the relevant data online so as to remove duplicates and rectify omissions. In addition, great efforts have been made to check and verify the relevant information on site from person to person in order to guarantee that the whole city has been covered and no case left out. Such efforts by Wuhan represent international convention, and they were made with the intention of respecting lives, facts, as well as history. Such basic logic and common sense is clear to all. A similar conclusion can also be reached by answering three questions. First, was there enough incentive for Wuhan to hide the real numbers of confirmed cases and deaths? Hiding this data means those involved must take the risk of being severely punished and condemned forever when the truth is finally revealed. What are the benefits of such an act? Would officials in Wuhan get promotions or make fortunes if the numbers were a little bit lower? Or could they dump stocks like certain U.S. senators to reap profits before information about the situation was released? There was never this kind of "positive incentive" in China. Instead, the world has seen how government officials in Hubei province and its capital Wuhan were held accountable and widely criticized for their inadequate response to the incident in its initial stages. Second, if they had concealed the real numbers, were those "falsified" figures small enough to get those who tampered with the data off the hook? As the worst-hit Chinese city in the pandemic, Wuhan examined tens of millions of people and reported tens of thousands of confirmed cases and thousands of deaths. In peacetime, these numbers would be alarming however you looked at it. In fact, in today's world where information spreads far and fast around the world in a variety of forms, a public health incident of this magnitude was quickly placed under a high-powered microscope. If some people in Wuhan could have mitigated their punishment by reducing some numbers regarding the pandemic, why didn't they just cut it more and make the data more "appropriate" so that they could shift the blame more easily? Furthermore, the difference between the two sets of data are within a reasonable range. According to the general principles of statistics, this should be attributed to unintentional omissions caused by differences in statistical methods rather than deliberate attempts to conceal. Third, how did the discrepancies between the two sets of data come about? The notification has, in fact, answered this question in detail. During the initial stage of the pandemic, when China, and Wuhan in particular, was suddenly stricken by the strange virus, there was an abysmal lack of nucleic acid testing capacity and extremely limited medical resources to treat severe and critical patients. At that time, Wuhan and Hubei were facing a huge gap between demand and their capacity for epidemic prevention and control measures. Under such circumstances, no country can ensure that no cases are missed and every single case is recorded in a timely manner. What has happened, and is happening, around the world shows that this is, in fact, inevitable. The pandemic that's currently ravaging the world has shown clearly how cunning a virus can be and how limited man's knowledge is. As various reports can verify, no country was fully prepared for the sudden pandemic. It has been proven that the practice of concentrating limited medical resources on the rescue and treatment of severe and critical patients was the most rational choice made during the early period of the pandemic. In fact, with the implementation of various measures stressing the need for raising hospital admission capacity to leave no one unattended to and large numbers of medical personnel and supplies being sent from various parts of China to Hubei to fight against the virus, the shortage of medical resources in the province was quickly addressed. During this major test, Chinese people have seen clearly and without doubt that the country always puts its people first and regards their health and safety as its top priority. China has long treasured the principle of "seeking truth from facts", and has adhered to this very principle throughout its efforts to combat COVID-19. Revising the relevant data on the COVID-19 pandemic in the name of respecting life is precisely the result of the country's practice of seeking truth from facts. ^ top ^
|
| Beijing |
Beijing district listed as high-risk area for virus (China Daily)
2020-04-22
After Beijing's Chaoyang district was listed as a high-risk area for COVID-19 epidemic control by health authorities due to a recent cluster of infections involving four family members, district residents should think twice about travel plans, if they have any. Huang Ling, a bank clerk in her 30s who works in Chaoyang, had planned to go to Guilin, a tourist city in Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region, during the upcoming Labor Day holiday starting on May 1. Hearing the news, she has decided to stay at home. According to Guangxi's health commission on Sunday, in order to control the epidemic, people who have stayed in Chaoyang district during the past 14 days must show negative nucleic acid test results within seven days as well as a "green code" to enter the region. The green code is an indication that a person is symptom free according to a health code app, which includes basic health information and travel history. The app was developed as a result of the outbreak. "I might still be able to go there because I believe the result of my test will be negative for sure, but I want to save the trouble," she said. On April 18, Beijing authorities announced that the health code in neighboring Hebei province and Tianjin municipality will be accepted by the capital, which means people who come to Beijing from Hebei and Tianjin with a green code will not be required to self-quarantine at home. The new policy has made it easier for people who live in nearby cities in Hebei and work in Beijing. However, now that Chaoyang is listed as a high-risk area, once someone from Hebei comes to the district, he or she will be required to quarantine upon returning. "I try to avoid Chaoyang when I drive back home," said Li Lei, a white-collar worker who works in Beijing's Dongcheng district but lives in Langfang city of Hebei. Pang Xinghuo, deputy director of Beijing's Center for Disease Control and Prevention, said according to the national standard, areas with over 50 cumulative confirmed cases and a concentrated outbreak in the past 14 days are categorized as high-risk. On April 14, Beijing reported an imported case that resulted in three more confirmed cases among family members. It is categorized as a concentrated case, which is why Chaoyang was listed as a high-risk area, Pang said. The imported case was a Chinese male student who came home from Miami, Florida, in the United States. The three related cases are the student's mother, brother and grandfather. They were confirmed with COVID-19 when tested. Up to 62 of his close contacts were put under medical isolation and observation. The student had completed his 14-day quarantine and tested negative multiple times. However, he developed symptoms of fever and cough two days after going home to live with his family. He was sent to the hospital, where he was confirmed to have contracted COVID-19. According to the national standard, cities, counties and districts with no active cases or with no new infections in the past 14 days are categorized as low-risk; those with new infections in the past 14 days and fewer than 50 cumulative confirmed cases, or with over 50 cumulative confirmed cases but without a concentrated outbreak in the past 14 days, are categorized as medium-risk. ^ top ^
Chaoyang district in Beijing the only 'high-risk' COVID-19 area in China (Global Times)
2020-04-21
Beijing's Chaoyang district is classified as the only district in China with a "high risk" of COVID-19 infection, according to official categorization, followed by northeastern city Suifenhe and two districts in South China's Guangzhou that are categorized as having medium risk due to the threat brought by imported cases. The capital city has lifted the 14-day quarantine requirement for people coming from neighboring Hebei Province or Tianjin Municipality, a move that represents the complexity of the epidemic control work in Beijing, analysts said. Chaoyang district has been identified as a high-risk COVID-19 area as of 6 pm on Sunday, with media reports saying it is the only "high-risk" area in China in the official system, triggering concerns among local residents over the epidemic situation in the district as well as in the capital. Areas that have reported more than 50 COVID-19 cases in total and discovered cluster transmissions in the last 14 days are ranked as high-risk COVID-19 areas in China, Pang Xinghuo, deputy director of the Beijing Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said at a press conference on Monday. The move came after local authorities confirmed three new COVID-19 cases in a Chaoyang community, who are all from the same family of an imported case from the US reported on April 14, constituting a cluster transmission case, according to Pang. The move triggered heavy concern on social media platforms amid viral reports on Monday. Chaoyang residents expressed worry over the epidemic situation in the district and how the ranking would affect their lives, and they wondered if they would be asked to undergo a 14-day quarantine if they left the district. Some were also worried that the move indicates the high threat of imported cases to the capital in general. According to some posts circulating online, relatives of the cases mentioned above had been to an outlet store in Chaoyang and a water park in Shunyi district before they were confirmed to be infected. The Global Times contacted the water park in Shunyi on Monday, which said that it had not discovered transmission in the park and is operating as normal. Beijing authorities have isolated related cases, tracked close contacts and conducted nucleic acid tests on neighbors of the above-mentioned cases. Places they went to before being confirmed infected have all been disinfected, Pang noted at the press conference, vowing to enhance epidemic prevention and control measures in the capital. Despite growing imported cases and cases related to them, Beijing has not reported domestic cases for more than 25 continuous days. The capital as a whole is at a low COVID-19 risk level, according to local officials. Beijing has stopped telling arrivals from neighboring Hebei and Tianjin to undergo a 14-day quarantine if they stayed more than 14 days in those two places before coming to Beijing, Xu Ying, an official from the Beijing government, announced at the Monday press conference. Before the announcement, all arrivals from other provinces and regions to Beijing had to undergo a 14-day quarantine. The easing restrictions on the influx of people combined with the upgrade of Chaoyang's risk level show the complexity of epidemic control in the capital city, an political, economic and cultural center. While most parts of China, including the hardest-hit Wuhan, have been classified as low risk, seven locations, including Yuexiu and Baiyun districts in South China's Guangzhou and Suifenhe in Northeast China's Heilongjiang Province, are still considered medium-risk areas due to the threat of imported cases. The risk level of more than 3,000 areas in China are shown on a service program of the State Council, China's Cabinet, on WeChat. ^ top ^
|
| Guangdong |
More throat-swabbing centers open in Guangzhou (China Daily)
2020-04-21
Li Ming, vice-mayor of Guangdong's provincial capital in South China, urged residents not to panic when they discover a growing number of throat-swabbing centers in local communities and housing estates. Guangzhou has expanded screening to find COVID-19 patients and their close contacts, with an aim to find all the patients, particularly those who have no symptoms, to prevent and control the spread of coronavirus in the city, Li said at a press conference on Monday evening. "Now a large number of residents will be screened once a confirmed case has been reported in the city," Li said. She added that the people who are screened and required to have their nucleic acid tested include a patient's colleagues, people in the same trade, family members, relatives, friends, neighbors and clients. All of the city's more than 35,000 taxi drivers have now been required to have their nucleic acid tested after a taxi driver was detected with a COVID-19 patient last week. All residents in a housing estate in Guangzhou's Yuexiu district also have been required to have their nucleic acid tested when a resident in the housing estate was confirmed with the virus last week, said Li. And this is why many throat-swabbing centers have been seen in the city recently, she added. Li said more than 200,000 teachers, educational staff and grade three students at junior and senior high schools will be required to have the nucleic acid tests before they resume class next week. Guangzhou can now help more than 70,000 residents a day take nucleic acid tests, according Li. But the expanded screening on suspected cases did not mean the city has a very high risk of a COVID-19 outbreak, and the city is very safe, she said. Only seven asymptomatic coronavirus carriers were detected after more than 68,000 residents had been screened over the weekend, and the positive rate reached only 1.32 out of more than 10,000 residents. "It is very low," she added. Tang Xiaoping, director of the Guangzhou City Health Commission, said the result of the nucleic acid testing for the city's taxi drivers is quite pleasing, as of Monday noon, all nucleic acid test results of more than 11,300 taxi drivers were negative. Pan Shuangming, director of the Guangzhou Transportation Bureau, said the city's underground trains, public buses and ferries are safe and residents do not have to worry about being infected with COVID-19 when they take the city's public transportation. "None of the locals and tourists have, so far, been reported to be infected after taking the city's metro trains, buses and ferries," he said. And Pan's bureau has enhanced disinfection on public transportation, metro stations and bus terminals, with emphasis disinfection on handrails, lifts, seats and toilets, he added. ^ top ^
|
| Xinjiang |
Focus on grazing helps grassland conservation in Xinjiang (People's Daily)
2020-04-24
With new roads and bridges, a 100-km migration of livestock is no longer the headache it once was for animal drovers in Fuhai County, Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, northwest China. Instead, they have honed a new skill -- math. Days before the big move to spring pastures, herder Yerlan Kharimkhan, had carefully counted his camels, horses, and sheep twice, and handed his son task of converting the number of camels and horses into "sheep units." "I'm only allowed to take 200 'sheep units' to the spring pasture, no more," said the seasoned livestock expert. Sheep units were the brainchild of the conservation administration in its bid to better protect grassland from over-grazing. It refers to how much grass one sheep eats. Based on that, herders can calculate the grass consumption of other animals. "Cattle eat more grass than sheep. The grazing area for cattle is five times that for sheep," Yerlan explained; therefore, one cattle is the same five sheep units. The natural environment is subject to strict conservation policies in Xinjiang. Herders are told to take a scientific approach to grassland, meaning they must balance grazing and environmental conservation. Each herder household, like Yerlan's, has been issued a grazing license, which details the location of the grassland, the approved grazing size, and the number of "sheep units." "Too much livestock means the grass won't grow. It's the circle of life," said Kurengbek Muratbek, an official with the township grazing administration. Kurengbek said that over-grazing in years past had left the grassland in a dire state. "In the past, cattle and sheep were easily fed. Now they have to fight for grass." With less grass, the livestock lost weight, which affected their sale price. And yet, nobody wanted to reduce their herds. "We treasure our livestock, and none of us wanted to cut down our herds or flock," said Yerlan. "If it was not for the new, strict rules, the grassland would disappear sooner or later, and with it, our nomadic life," said Kurengbek. To get to spring pastures, herders and their livestock must cross the Ertix River, where grazing administration staff are on-hand to count the animals and check their licenses. If there are more animals than on the license, they are either sent back or sold, said Kurengbek. "I sell my extra sheep in advance. The remaining sheep are fed for it and grow fatter," said Yerlan, "It's a righteous circle, and I can earn more money." After having his sheep counted, Yerlan herded his flocks heading to pasture on the mountain, where grass has just shot up. It takes three days to get there, but in his mind, he is pushed forward by visions of a greener grassland and a fatter flock. ^ top ^
Groundless claims on Xinjiang cotton 'malicious attempt' to slander China: analysts (Global Times)
2020-04-23
Some US organizations' call for the UK government to halt cotton imports from Northwest China's Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region over fabricated rumor of forced labor is "despicable", showing that some US politicians have conspired to meddle in China's internal affairs and try to slander China, industry observers say. The malice won't be supported by the international community, as rational UK officials and businessmen are able to draw a line between malicious political motivation and normal business activity. More importantly, cotton grown in Xinjiang plays a vital role in the global supply chain and it is extremely difficult for companies to find any replacement. In a letter to the UK government on Thursday, the World Uyghur Congress (WUC) and the Global Legal Action Network called on the UK government to halt imports of cotton grown in Xinjiang, claiming that there was overwhelming evidence that Uyghur people were forced to work in cotton downstream and upstream industries in Xinjiang. Chinese observers have dismissed the allegations, saying that the letter is full of lies and distortions. "It is totally groundless. Uyghur workers come voluntarily to work at our factory. We pay social insurance for them and they take one day off per week. They're treated the same as employees from other ethnic groups," a manager of a Xinjiang-based large textile company surnamed Zhang told the Global Times. According to Zhang, 99 percent of the company's employees are Uyghurs, with an average monthly income of 2,000 yuan ($284.6) to 3,000 yuan. These wages have helped lift dozens of Uyghur workers out of poverty. The repetitive slander against Xinjiang has ignited a tsunami of anger among local workers and businessmen, Zhang said. According to industry insiders, because of this badmouthing, some local textile companies have lost most or all of their export orders, which results in job cuts and affects the livelihood of the Uyghur people. "Do they really care about the well-being of Uyghurs? Those organizations are merely illegally interfering in the internal affairs of China with the ultimate goal of disrupting the fast rise of Xinjiang," Zhang stressed. The Global Times reported earlier that the WUC, which released the report, is a US-backed right-wing organization that relies heavily on US funding and political guidance. It has long played a role in tainting China's Xinjiang policies, but virtually all of its reports have failed to gain any influence on the world stage. Chinese analysts said that because the report was issued at a time when relations between China and the US are frayed, it cannot be ruled out that certain US politicians are using the report as fodder to complicate China's relationships with some European nations. "The act of the WUC is like that of a despicable scoundrel and rational government leaders won't buy into it. So it is highly likely that the UK government won't take the call. Relations between China and the UK will move forward smoothly," Li Haidong, a professor at the Institute of International Relations of the China Foreign Affairs University, told the Global Times on Thursday. The letter from the WUC also specifically identified several big-name companies such as H&M, IKEA, Uniqlo and Muji, which it claimed sell products made with Xinjiang-grown cotton. The letter suggested that they should suspend such imports. H&M said in a statement sent to the Global Times Thursday that the firm is committed to upholding international labor standards and adopting due diligence at various parts of its supply chain - from manufacturing to the farm level. The other three companies had not responded to interview requests from the Global Times as of press time. An industry insider, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said that Xinjiang supplies about one-sixth of global cotton each year, which makes it impossible for foreign cotton buyers to find substitutes for the high-quality supply. More than 83 percent of China's cotton also comes from Xinjiang. "It is up to retailers to decide on their sources of supply. This is purely an economic decision rather than serving some Western politicians' hidden ambitions," Li added. ^ top ^
China's Xinjiang transmits 77 bln kWh clean electricity (Global Times)
2020-04-22
Northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region has transmitted over 77 billion kWh of electricity outside the region since 2010, all generated by clean energy. The power, generated by wind, photovoltaic power and hydropower, has been sent to 19 provinces and regions, including Henan, Anhui and Hubei, said the State Grid Xinjiang Electric Power Co., Ltd. The clean electricity helped reduce over 24.73 million tonnes of coal use and cut emissions by 66.77 million tonnes of carbon dioxide and 21,000 tonnes of sulfur dioxide. To date, the installed generating capacity of wind power, photovoltaic power and hydropower in Xinjiang has reached 36.97 million kilowatts, accounting for about 40 percent of the region's total installed capacity. ^ top ^
US claims of 'forced labor' in Xinjiang baseless: Grayzone (Global Times)
2020-04-21
The independent news website Grayzone recently released a report on the new wave of Western media reports accusing China of implementing an oppressive program of "forced labor" against the country's Uyghur Muslim ethnic group. The Grayzone's main argument is that these reports reveal serious biases and credibility gaps that Western media willfully ignore in a bid to paint China as the world's worst human rights violator. The latest accusation against China has been called "Xinjiang's new slavery". However, The Grayzone noted that the forced labor studies relied almost entirely on a series of dubious studies by purportedly "independent" think tanks backed by the West's military-intelligence apparatus, while exposing their main sources as the Australian Strategic Policy Institute (ASPI) and Washington, DC-based Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), as well as an evangelical religious fanatic billed as the "leading expert" on Xinjiang, Adrian Zenz, who has said he is "led by God" on a "mission" against China. Both ASPI and CSIS are right-wing, militaristic think tanks funded by US and Western governments, mega-corporations, and an eye-popping array of weapons manufacturers. As previously reported by The Grayzone, Adrian Zenz is a far-right fundamentalist Christian whose questionable but incendiary accusations against China have led to the Western press crowning him as the leading international "expert" on Xinjiang. The Grayzone claimed ASPI's labor report relies on far-right blogs of religious fanatics, and discovered the Australian media stifled criticism of the ASPI report and manipulated interview subjects. Similarly, CSIS, a US militaristic think tank, recycled shoddy research in the "forced labor" report, offering little to no new information. While the Western public encounters stories about alleged "forced labor" as shocking journalistic exposés, they are, in fact, the direct product of an orchestrated PR campaign backed by US and EU governments, NATO, and arms manufacturers – all of which stand to benefit handsomely from the intensification of a new Cold War, according to Ajit Singh, the author of the Grayzone report. ^ top ^
|
| Hongkong |
HK govt reshuffle for better governance, recovery (Global Times)
2020-04-23
China's State Council on Wednesday announced the appointment and removal of several key officials of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) government, and the chief executive of the HKSAR stressed that the reshuffle aims to push the economic recovery. The new appointments to the HKSAR government include secretaries for Constitutional and mainland affairs, civil service, financial services, and home affairs, as well as innovation and technology. Analysts on Hong Kong affairs said that the performance of former officials in some of these sectors was not very satisfied in handling the political turmoil and social unrest since June 2019, as well as the COVID-19 pandemic, so the new appointments need to fix the problems and save the economy by empowering the professional and loyal officials. The decision was made in accordance with the HKSAR Basic Law of the People's Republic of China, and based on the nomination and suggestion of HKSAR Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor, the Xinhua News Agency reported. Lam said that with her new political team she hoped to start immediately planning for Hong Kong's economic recovery, according to the HKSAR government's new website news.gov.hk. Nip Tak-kuen was appointed Secretary for the Civil Service, replacing Law Chi-kong. Tsui Ying-wai was appointed Secretary for Home Affairs, replacing Lau Kong-wah. Tsang Kwok-wai was appointed Secretary for Constitutional and Mainland Affairs, replacing Nip Tak-kuen. Hui Ching-yu was appointed Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury, replacing James Henry Lau. Sit Wing-hang was appointed Secretary for Innovation and Technology, replacing Yang Wei-hsiung. Tsang Kwok-wai was removed from the post of Director of Immigration. Tian Feilong, a Hong Kong affairs expert at Beihang University in Beijing, told the Global Times on Wednesday that according to the list of the new and replaced officials, we can find the central government has considered the appointments carefully based on the officials' loyalty, political reliability, governance capability, and professionalism. Li Xiaobing, an associate professor at Nankai University in Tianjin, said that the newly appointed officials need to better implement the Basic Law more precisely and correctly in their daily work and better understand the ties between the Chinese mainland and Hong Kong, as well as the relationship between the central government and the SAR government. Lam said that the reshuffling of her political team was not in response to the recent social unrest in Hong Kong, according to news.gov.hk. But Tian noted that some former officials in the relevant sectors of the HKSAR government didn't make a very satisfying performance in handling the turmoil in 2019 and the current COVID-19 pandemic, which has made the city's economy suffer a heavy damage, so in order to push the economic recovery in the future, the new appointed officials have to fix the problems and improve the governance. Meeting the media with the five newly appointed principal officials, Lam said Hong Kong needed to seize the opportunities presented by the development of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area. She noted that this round of appointments could ensure the city grasped those opportunities to help the economy rebound. "Hong Kong is in a very difficult situation now, apart from the pandemic, we are going into a major economic recession with high unemployment and so on, so we really need to start immediately to plan for Hong Kong's economic recovery," she said. "Especially in the several sectors which we attach importance to, and that is Hong Kong's financial services, Hong Kong's innovation and technology, Hong Kong's professional services and creative industries, and the many opportunities that will be available to Hong Kong under the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area," Lam noted. Tian said currently the opposition group and violent extreme separatists are still trying to seize political power through creating chaos and political election, so under this kind of challenges, the HKSAR government needs to be united to safeguard the public order, and this is the precondition for the economic recovery, and the new appointments this time also aim on organizational construction of the political team of the HKSAR government. Hong Kong stocks ended Wednesday on a positive note, with the Hang Seng index up 99.81 points, or 0.42%, at 23,893.36 after news of the reshuffle and with the market hoping for further fiscal stimulus from the central government. ^ top ^
Hong Kong cabinet reshuffle not linked to extradition bill protests but non-performance, disappointing critics (SCMP)
2020-04-22
A cabinet reshuffle by Hong Kong's leader expected to be announced this week sends a message that her administration will stand firm against criticism by the opposition and reflects Beijing's ambition to tighten its oversight on the city amid a wave of anti-government sentiment, analysts say. The upcoming revamp, which sources revealed on Tuesday, comes amid an escalating row over the role of Beijing's liaison office and the cabinet-level Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office. A government source familiar with the matter said Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor had been disappointed with the four ministers' performances over the past two years, while Patrick Nip Tak-kuen, the current secretary for constitutional and mainland affairs, would help to reorganise the Civil Service Bureau as its new chief, replacing Joshua Law Chi-kong. The central government's liaison office in Sai Ying, Hong Kong. Photo: Bloomberg The insider denied the move – planned sometime earlier – could be seen as punishment by Beijing for recent upheaval over Article 22 of the Basic Law. The central government's offices in Hong Kong have been locked in a battle with the opposition camp over the past week, accusing the lawmakers of filibustering, criticisms the politicians say amount to interference and therefore violate the article. "Lam wanted Joshua Law to do something on civil servants after the anti-government protests, but he was resistant," the source said. "Patrick Nip at least understands Beijing's preference more." But no ministers who came under fire for mishandling the now-withdrawn extradition bill are involved in the reshuffle. The proposal prompted millions of people to take to the streets in June last year and the crisis snowballed into an anti-government movement that shook the city's social stability and alarmed Beijing. Two of the new appointees are relatively young members of the Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong (DAB), the biggest pro-establishment political party in the city. Current Undersecretary for Labour and Welfare Caspar Tsui Ying-wai will be promoted to minister for home affairs, while Christopher Hui Ching-yu, the executive director of the Financial Services Development Council, will become secretary for financial services and the treasury. Both Tsui and Hui are 43. Laurence Li Lu-jen, head of Financial Services Development Council, expressed confidence in Hui. "If it is Christopher, I'm confident that he will be a very good secretary for financial services," Li said. "He knows the industry, has worked with government, he has international, local and mainland-related experience. Also, most importantly, his heart is in the right place, [he is] very committed to Hong Kong and to public service." Lau Siu-kai, the vice-president of the Chinese Association of Hong Kong and Macau Studies, said an injection of fresh blood could answer Beijing's demands for changes in the administration. Three of the bureaus involved were politically sensitive – the Constitutional and Mainland Affairs Bureau (CMAB), Civil Service Bureau, and Home Affairs Bureau – while the other two involved sectors that were instrumental in strengthening Hong Kong's economic growth, he said. ^ top ^
Central govt has duty to safeguard HK's order (China Daily)
2020-04-22
The central government has full authority to safeguard Hong Kong's constitutional order, the Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office of the State Council said on Tuesday. The office added that supervising implementation of the Basic Law of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region is one of the ways the office safeguards the city's constitutional order. The remarks, made in a statement published online, came after the office and the Liaison Office of the Central People's Government in the HKSAR commented on the deadlock in the city's Legislative Council. Following the comments, questions were raised whether the two offices were "interfering" in local Hong Kong affairs. An HKMAO spokesperson said mandating a high degree of autonomy for the HKSAR does not mean the central government has no right to oversee SAR affairs or that it has given up such rights. Instead, such supervision is key to ensuring the successful implementation of the Basic Law and the proper use of power granted by the central government. Regarding the deadlock, the spokesperson said it has severely affected the Basic Law's implementation, undermining fundamental interests of the SAR and the nation and threatening the SAR's constitutional order. Due to delaying tactics by some opposition lawmakers, including Dennis Kwok Wing-hang, the Legislative Council's House Committee has been stalled since October. Fourteen bills and 89 pieces of subsidiary legislation have been held up, leading to partial legislative paralysis. The two offices have issued several strongly worded criticisms of opposition lawmakers' tactics. By doing so, the offices were diligently fulfilling their supervision role and safeguarding order, the statement said. In another statement on Tuesday, the HKMAO expressed resolute support for the recent police apprehension of 15 criminal suspects, including businessman Jimmy Lai Chee-ying and opposition lawyer Martin Lee Chu-ming. They were held in relation to often violent anti-government protests in Hong Kong last year. The HKMAO called the arrests law-based and in line with police duties to safeguard the rule of law, social order and justice. It added that the central government will continue to extend full support to Hong Kong police in law enforcement and to the judiciary for administering justice fairly. Yet some politicians in the United Kingdom and United States claim the suspects' participation in unlawful assemblies was to "exercise freedom of speech and demonstration", the statement says. Such statements and pressure recklessly violate human rights and the rule of law in Hong Kong, constituting blatant interference in the SAR's judicial independence and high degree of autonomy and gross interference in China's sovereignty and internal affairs, the spokesman said. The central government is firmly against any interference in Hong Kong affairs in any form by any external forces, the spokesman said. ^ top ^
Commissioner's office of Chinese foreign ministry in HK opposes interference in Hong Kong's rule of law (People's Daily)
2020-04-21
The Office of the Commissioner of the Chinese Foreign Ministry in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) emphasized on Monday that Hong Kong is governed by the rule of law and no interference is ever allowed in its judicial independence. In reply to the groundless accusations by governments, organizations and politicians from the United States, the European Union, Canada and Australia against the Hong Kong police's law enforcement efforts, the spokesperson of the commissioner's office said that all are equal before the law, and no one shall be above the law or enjoy immunity from punishment for criminal offenses. "It would be pure wishful thinking if the criminal suspects counted on external forces to grant them a get-out-of-jail-for-free card." The spokesperson said that some foreign forces have applied blatant double standards and made a travesty of the rule of law by whitewashing extremist violence as "peaceful protest" and smearing the Hong Kong police's law enforcement efforts. "While claiming support for 'human rights' and 'freedom', they just avoid discussing whether the suspects in question have indeed violated the law and whether such offense deserves punishment in their own countries." The spokesperson pointed out that their true motive is to condone and support the offenders, turn Hong Kong into an independent or semi-independent political entity, openly meddle with Hong Kong affairs, and endorse the anti-China troublemakers in Hong Kong. Such outrageous erosion of Hong Kong's high degree of autonomy and attacks at the region's prosperity and stability have met with not only firm opposition from the Chinese people, but also universal condemnation, the spokesperson added. The spokesperson urged the foreign forces to face the fact that Hong Kong is a special administrative region of China and that the 1.4 billion Chinese people, including the Hong Kong compatriots, did not and will not bow to any foreign pressure. "What these forces should do is to match words with deeds, and earnestly respect the HKSAR's rule of law and judicial independence," said the spokesperson. "Be sure of this: any act to undermine Hong Kong's prosperity and stability and China's sovereignty and security is doomed to fail." ^ top ^
Hong Kong in midst of tussle over 'tricky' relationship between liaison office, Basic Law, and daily running of the city (SCMP)
2020-04-21
Whether Hong Kong's Basic Law, its mini-constitution, prevents Beijing's liaison office from becoming involved in the city's internal affairs has been a hotly debated topic in the past week. Photo: AP Commonly held views in Hong Kong dictate that mainland Chinese agencies are restricted from interfering in the day-to-day running of the city by its mini-constitution, the Basic Law. But these are not ordinary times, and the precarious political climate means nothing should be taken for granted. The Hong Kong government found itself in hot water from both pan-democrat and pro-establishment camps over the weekend after releasing flip-flopping statements on the legal status of Beijing's liaison office in the city. A government source on Monday conceded it had become "very tricky" for the government to explain whether the work of the liaison office fell within the scope of the Basic Law's Article 22, which guarantees non-interference. Patrick Nip Tak-kuen, secretary for Constitutional and Mainland Affairs, issued an apology on Monday night for 'confusion' caused by issuing more than one press release addressing the liaison office's appropriate role. Photo: Felix Wong An initial Saturday night statement identified the liaison office as one of three Hong Kong bodies established by the central government in accordance with Article 22, a contradiction, at least partially, of the stance taken by the mainland Chinese agency. But only hours later, at 1.22am on Sunday, the Hong Kong government backtracked, issuing a statement that said the liaison office had not been set up under Article 22. Writing on his Facebook page on Monday, mainland affairs chief Patrick Nip Tak-kuen said: "There were errors in a press release issued on Saturday afternoon on the remarks made by the Hong Kong and Macau Office and the Liaison Office, and releases needed to be issued again to make corrections and explanations, and there were confusion and misunderstanding. I deeply regret that!" The row over the interpretation began a week earlier, when both the liaison office and the Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office (HKMAO) publicly took aim at opposition lawmakers for filibustering tactics they said had created a backlog of bills at the Legislative Council. In strongly worded statements, they accused the legislators of betraying their oaths of office and possible criminal misconduct. The statements sparked controversy, with pro-democracy figures insisting they amounted to interference in the city's internal affairs and were therefore in violation of Article 22. The liaison office on Friday fired back that the two agencies were not circumscribed by Article 22, the first paragraph of which states that "no department of the Central People's Government and no province, autonomous region, or municipality directly under the Central Government may interfere in the affairs which the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region administers on its own." The two agencies were "authorised by the central government to handle Hong Kong affairs", the liaison office said, and not considered "departments". Insiders said the government statements that followed were drafted by the Constitutional and Mainland Affairs Bureau, then circulated to the Department of Justice for approval, before being released by the Information Services Department (ISD) on Saturday night. An ISD source said "more than one high-ranking official" requested the initial statement be amended soon after it was released. Opposition lawmakers held a press briefing on April 20 to argue that Hong Kong is facing a constitutional crisis over what limits there are to the powers of Beijing's liaison office. Photo: K.Y. Cheng The flip-flop has left the Hong Kong government in an awkward position, as it has long held that the liaison office fell under Article 22. In a paper submitted to the Legco's constitutional affairs panel in January 2007, the Constitutional Affairs Bureau identified the office as one of the three set up by the central government. Nip seemed to underscore that stance in 2018 when he told lawmakers the liaison office would "follow the laws of [Hong Kong] in accordance with the requirement stipulated in Article 22 of the Basic Law". But a source in the Constitutional and Mainland Affairs Bureau on Monday insisted the government's stance on the liaison office's status had not changed, and that the mention of Article 22 in the first Saturday statement had been a "technical error". It was the second paragraph of Article 22 the constitutional affairs paper had referenced back in 2007, he said, not the first. And while it listed the liaison office as one of three agencies set up by Beijing, it did not state directly it was set up in accordance with Article 22. "There was no strong linkage between the two," he said. The source, however, who spoke on condition of anonymity, admitted it had become "very tricky" for the government to explain whether the liaison office's work fell in the scope of the article's first paragraph, which guarantees non-interference. On Monday night, a spokesman for the bureau issued a statement doubling down on its stance that the liaison office was not interfering. "It was authorised by the central government to specialise on Hong Kong affairs. It has the power and responsibility to represent the central government in expressing views on major issues … and exercising its supervisory power," a spokesman said. Another government insider said Hong Kong officials needed time to clarify with the central government whether the Beijing agencies were covered by the Basic Law. One argument employed by those who say it does not circumscribe the liaison office, is the fact it has existed in Hong Kong since well before the handover. The office's predecessor, the Hong Kong branch of Xinhua News Agency, dates back to 1947. The branch, which served as Beijing's de facto embassy in the city until Hong Kong returned to Chinese rule, was renamed the liaison office in 2000. A State Council circular to the Hong Kong and Macau governments on January 15, 2000, announced the renaming of the Xinhua News Agency's branches in Hong Kong and Macau and identified them as central government agencies. It did not, however, state under which clause in the Basic Law they were set up. The liaison office argued in its Friday statement that it had the responsibility and right to "supervise" how the "one country, two systems" policy governing Hong Kong was being implemented. Tam Yiu-chung, an architect of the Basic Law, said what drafters had in mind at the time was how to prevent mainland provinces and government departments not specifically dealing with Hong Kong affairs from setting up in the city after 1997. "We didn't have the awareness that the HKMAO and Xinhua's Hong Kong branch, which was later renamed the liaison office, would interfere in Hong Kong affairs," said Tam, who is Hong Kong's sole representative on the National People's Congress Standing Committee. But the recent statements by the bodies did not amount to interference, he argued. "The premier can't handle everything about Hong Kong, that's why the two offices were authorised to do so," he said. "The controversy arises from many Hong Kong people interpreting the clauses of the Basic Law from … a literal interpretation of the text." A mainland source, meanwhile, said the issue of Hong Kong's autonomy became increasingly less relevant if Legco was unable to function normally. "The central government was aware of the possibility that the two offices' statements would trigger controversy in Hong Kong, but Beijing could no longer tolerate the fiasco in Legco," the source said. Simon Young, a constitutional law expert at the University of Hong Kong, agreed the liaison office had a distinct status and fell outside the scope of Article 22 because of its long-standing presence in the city. "But it does not mean the office can do and say whatever it likes in Hong Kong," he said. He said the State Council's circular in 2000 clearly spelt out the office's five functions and required its members to strictly abide by local laws. "If the office acts in excess of the functions or in breach of the laws, it could be criticised for acting in excess of that authorisation" he said. However, Young said he believed the office's recent criticisms of Legco's inability to select a House Committee chairman fell within one of its primary functions: promoting exchange and cooperation between Hong Kong and the mainland in certain fields. "But I would still advise the office to exercise some restraint, as statements made at certain times and with certain emphasis may undermine the Hong Kong government's authority," he said. Lau Siu-kai, vice-president of Beijing-aligned think tank the Chinese Association of Hong Kong and Macau Studies, said the liaison office's legal status was authorised by China's Constitution, not the Basic Law, as its powers were delegated by the State Council in 2000. Lau cited Article 31 of the constitution, which states "the systems to be instituted in special administrative regions shall be prescribed by law enacted by the National People's Congress in the light of specific conditions". "The liaison office can function well without the Basic Law," he said. Documents recently declassified from Britain's National Archives in December, meanwhile, suggest the British were well aware of the debate that might one day erupt. In February 1989, the British government suggested Beijing amend Article 22 of the then draft version of the Basic Law to guarantee non-interference in Hong Kong's affairs post-1997. British officials' "overall critique" of the draft said "paragraph 1 of Article 22 of the draft does not prohibit the CPG (Central People's Government) itself or organs other than departments under the CPG from interfering in Hong Kong's internal affairs". The critique was sent from the Hong Kong government to Britain's Foreign and Commonwealth Office on October 26, 1989. The document suggested amending the clause to state that "the CPG and its departments, and other executive organs of the State as well as provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities directly under the CPG shall not interfere in the affairs which the HKSAR administers on its own in accordance with this Law." The document said the British side had discussed the matter with the Chinese side. There is no record of their response. ^ top ^
FM office in HKSAR slams US politicians' exculpation of riot leaders (Global Times)
2020-04-20
The Office of the Commissioner of the Chinese Foreign Ministry in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region on Sunday solemnly refuted Western politicians' exculpation of Hong Kong riot leaders, claiming their rhetoric revealed their complicity with rioters who have created chaos in the city. Chinese experts also noted that if these Western politicians really respect Hong Kong's rule of law, they should support Hong Kong government and police in punishing rioters who have violated local laws and heavily damaged the city's economy and local people's livelihood, or they are just applying a double standard. The Hong Kong police's arrest of suspects who organized and attended unapproved gatherings is an act of law enforcement that aims to safeguard Hong Kong's rule of law. Through this move, the Hong Kong government is executing its power mandated by the Basic Law, and no foreign country has the right to interfere, read a spokesperson's statement released on the office's website on Sunday. Some US politicians have ignored the facts, twisted the Sino-British Joint Declaration and exonerate those disturbing Hong Kong from a charge under the excuse of so-called transparency, rule of law and high degree of autonomy. These acts revealed the politicians' complicity with the suspects, which will certainly encounter the joint denunciation of the international community, read the statement. The spokesperson called on US politicians to adhere to the basic principle of international relations and stop interfering in the affairs of Hong Kong, stressing that the city is ruled by law and no one should place himself be above the law. The statement came after some US politicians expressed opposition to the Hong Kong government's arrests on Saturday of 15 Hong Kong riot leaders, including Apple Daily founder Jimmy Lai Chee-ying and Hong Kong barrister Martin Lee Chu-ming. It followed another statement released on the office website on Saturday rebuffing some UK politicians' similar accusations on the arrests, which revealed the UK side's double standard toward rioters. US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said that "Beijing and its representatives in Hong Kong continue to take actions inconsistent with commitments made under the Sino-British Joint Declaration that include transparency, the rule of law, and guarantees that Hong Kong will continue to 'enjoy a high degree of autonomy'," CNBC reported Saturday. In a separate statement, US Attorney General William Barr called the arrests "the latest assault on the rule of law and the liberty of the people of Hong Kong," according to the report. Britain's Foreign Office also criticized the arrests, saying, "the right to peaceful protest is fundamental to Hong Kong's way of life and as such is protected in both the Joint Declaration and the Basic Law," according to ABC. Western politicians should not exculpate these suspects if they really respect Hong Kong's law, as riot actions these suspects organized and supported have seriously damaged Hong Kong's social order, local people's livelihood and local economy, said Tian Feilong, an associate professor and expert on Hong Kong studies at Beihang University in Beijing. Western politicians also show double standard on patriotic personages and so-called democratic fighters on Hong Kong-related affairs, but no one should place himself above the law, Tian noted. He stressed that the arrest of these riot leaders would help to restore the authority of law, protect local people's interest and nip local terrorism in the bud. The arrested individuals, aged between 24 and 81, were suspected of violating Hong Kong's Public Order Ordinance by organizing and taking part in unauthorized assemblies on August 18, October 1 and October 20, 2019, Hong Kong police said at a media briefing on Saturday afternoon. They are scheduled to appear before a court on May 18. Jimmy Lai Chee-ying, an infamous and veteran "political media person," is a unique ghost-like existence in Hong Kong's diverse political ecosystem, according to Chinese mainland experts. His NEXT Digital, and Apple Daily in particular, is characterized by slanders and attacks on the governance of the Hong Kong government and China's overall political system. Lai has played complicated and multiple roles as "fundraiser," "propagandist," and "behind-the-scenes master" during Hong Kong's radical social movements, according to Chinese mainland analysts. ^ top ^
|
| Macau |
Economic stability tops the agenda in Macao leader's first policy address (China Daily)
2020-04-21
Chief Executive of the Macao Special Administrative Region Ho Iat-seng on Monday made his first policy address since taking office in December, pledging to utilize the fiscal reserve to maintain economic stability and people's livelihoods as he forecast the region's first budget deficit since its return to the motherland in 1999. Addressing the Legislative Assembly, Ho also stressed that the SAR will safeguard the "one country, two systems" principle, utilizing the central government's favoring policies to drive the city's recovery from the epidemic and ensure stable development. With a decline in financial revenue caused by the fallout from the pandemic, the SAR government will have a budget deficit in the 2020 fiscal year, the first time since 1999, Ho said. Macao has a total fiscal reserve of over 627 billion patacas ($79 billion), Ho said. The government will implement a proactive fiscal policy, by increasing expenditure and cutting taxes and fees, to ensure economic stability, Ho said. Expenditure will be increased in public investment on transport, public housing and government facilities to stimulate employment, Ho added. Measures will also be implemented to maintain employment and relieve residents' financial burden, he said. To stimulate the tourism and gaming sectors, which are Macao's pillar industries, the SAR will ask the central government to extend the individual travel visa scheme to more mainland cities. It will also talk with the Guangdong provincial government, to further relax visa restrictions for Guangdong residents visiting Macao. As of Monday, Macao had a total of 45 cases of coronavirus infection. It has not reported new cases for 12 consecutive days. To contain the virus, the government shut down all casinos for 15 days in late February. Ho stressed that the government will continue its efforts to diversify Macao's economic structure, such as the development of innovation and technology. It will also strengthen cooperation with neighboring cities under the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area outline, especially with Zhuhai in the Hengqin free trade zone. Ho also pledged reform of the city's governing system, improving the structure of the government, to ensure a more effective administrative team. ^ top ^
Coronavirus: Macau will be in the red for first time since handover as gaming revenue plummets amid pandemic, its leader says (SCMP)
2020-04-21
Macau's leader warned on Monday that the gambling hub would be in the red for the first time in two decades this year as the Covid-19 pandemic had pushed down gaming revenue by about 60 per cent in the first quarter while traveller numbers had been down by more than half in the first two months of the year. Ho Iat-seng, who was sworn in as the city's chief executive last December, however said the coronavirus situation in Macau was now "basically under control" and revealed plans to ease some border restrictions to boost the city's tourism by next month. Making his maiden policy address at the legislature on Monday, the lawmaker-turned-chief executive said: "Because of the use of countercyclical fiscal measures … to assure jobs, stabilise economy and safeguard people's livelihood … this year we will see for the first time since the [1999] handover a deficit." He said the government would spend more than 50 billion patacas (US$6.27 billion)– about 12 per cent of its GDP – in relief measures to ease the impacts of the pandemic on the people's livelihood and the businesses, including giving out shopping vouchers worth a total of 8,000 patacas to its residents and waiving electricity and water bills for three months. Ho Iat-seng, chief executive of Macau, says the Covid-19 pandemic has exposed the "vulnerability and risks" of the gambling hub economy's overreliance on gaming tourism. Photo: RTHK These were in addition to a cash handout of 10,000 patacas for each permanent resident and 6,000 patacas for each non-permanent resident to be given away this month. Ho also noted that the pandemic had exposed the "vulnerability and risks" of Macau economy's overreliance on gaming tourism. Because of the border restrictions and business shutdowns amid the public health crisis, the number of tourists Macau received in January and February was only slightly more than 3 million, down 56.9 per cent year on year, while gaming revenue for the first three months of the year also saw a 60 per cent year-on-year fall, to about 30.49 billion patacas, Ho told the legislature. Macau will give residents 2.2 billion patacas worth of vouchers to boost economy 14 Feb 2020 Overall unemployment rate was 1.9 per cent for the period between December and February, up 0.2 percentage point from the November-to-January period. In a press conference after the policy address, Ho said the pandemic situation in Macau was basically under control and there had not been a new case in the last 12 days. He said: "If we can maintain zero new cases until the end of the month, I think we can say the situation has stabilised … and hopefully we can see signs to go back to normal life." Ho said Macau was keeping contact with mainland authorities and Hong Kong for reviewing the border restrictions and hoped mainlanders would be able to go there very soon to boost the gambling hub's tourism. Macau's calm handling of coronavirus crisis puts Hong Kong panic in perspective 1 Feb 2020 During his 90-minute address, Ho also stressed the importance of diversifying the gambling hub's economy. "Some structural and deep-seated problems are starting to emerge and affect the sustainable development of society and the economy," he said. Ho is expected to attend a session at the Legislative Assembly on Tuesday to answer lawmakers' questions. Macau pro-democracy legislator Au Kam-san described many of Ho's ideas as "old wine in a new bottle", saying he had just repeated the old clichés of his predecessors. "Ho's plan to ease border controls to allow more visitors to enter is also just wishful thinking," he said. "Even if the Covid-19 situation stabilises, do you think many people will start travelling soon after such a big crisis that has hit the economy so gravely?" ^ top ^
|
| Taiwan |
Taiwan affairs authority condemns DPP interference in HK (China Daily)
2020-04-23
The mainland's Taiwan affairs authority on Tuesday strongly condemned the ruling Democratic Progressive Party of Taiwan on manipulating Hong Kong affairs for political gains. The DPP administration and the "Taiwan independence" separatists made accusations and attacks on Hong Kong police's arrest of Jimmy Lai Chee-ying, Lee Chu-ming and other instigators of the Hong Kong protests. Zhu Fenglian, a spokeswoman for the State Council Taiwan Affairs Office, said the arrest of offenders who are suspected of organizing and participating in unauthorized gatherings is legal, which embodies the rule of law principle that those who violate the law will be prosecuted. "The DPP used it to create hype and called white black," Zhu said. "Its nature of 'Taiwan independence' was exposed again, by meddling in Hong Kong affairs, seeking political gains and attempting to split the country." She warned the DPP to stop the political manipulation and said that any political attempt to realize "Taiwan independence" or split the country will not succeed. ^ top ^
Unemployment rate in Taiwan rises in March (People's Daily)
2020-04-23
Taiwan's unemployment rate in March, after seasonal adjustment, rose by 0.06 percentage points to 3.76 percent, the highest in the past 10 months, the island's statistics agency said Wednesday. The unemployment rate has risen for two consecutive months, the agency said in a press release. About 261,000 people worked less than 35 hours weekly in March, up 15.48 percent over February and the highest since January 2019, according to the agency. The number of employed people across the island totaled at 11.51 million in March, down 10,000 from February, while the number of unemployed people totaled at 445,000, up 2,000. Service sectors reported the biggest reduction of employment. The agency attributed the rise of unemployment to the outbreak of the novel coronavirus disease and estimated that the situation might be worse in April. The latest survey made by Cathay Financial Holding Co. showed that about 87 percent of the respondents thought that the island's economy is worse than six months ago, the highest since the survey was first launched in March 2010, while 68.7 percent of them thought that the economy might be worse in the next six months, also reaching the record high, the survey report said. The survey was made from March 1 to 7, receiving about 17,000 questionnaires through e-mails. ^ top ^
Taiwan's plots of playing political tricks slammed (China Daily)
2020-04-21
The claim by Taiwan's ruling Democratic Progressive Party that it informed the World Health Organization in December that COVID-19 can be transmitted from person-to-person is totally unfounded, the mainland's Taiwan affairs authority said on Friday. Zhu Fenglian, a spokeswoman for the State Council Taiwan Affairs Office, condemned the DPP authority on fabricating facts and making use of the pandemic for political gain. The DPP claimed recently that the island's outbreak prevention department had "warned" the WHO that the virus could be spread person-to-person in an email sent Dec 31, but the WHO didn't disclose the information to the world. The WHO rejected the island's accusation, stating that the island did not inform it about person-to-person spread of the virus. Chen Shih-chung, head of the island's health authority, posted the email the island sent to the WHO on Dec 31 online last week, declaring its reporting was an early warning. Zhu said the email merely cited the Wuhan Health Commission in Hubei province where the earliest cases of COVID-19 were found on the mainland, and it didn't mention "humanto human transmission" at all. Since the outbreak of COVID-19, the mainland has kept the WHO and relevant countries and regions informed of the outbreak in a timely manner, she said. The health authority of Wuhan made public for the first time on Dec 31 news of some 27 infection cases on its website. The WHO received the information on the same day. Also on Dec 31, the island's health authority inquired about the situation in Wuhan from the National Health Commission on the mainland, Zhu added. "It is clear that the mainland released the information first and the island relayed it. There was no such thing as the island reporting to the WHO first," she said. According to Zhu, the island's health authority issued news releases on Jan 4 and Jan 6, stating that "there is no obvious person-to-person transmission or infection among medical staff". However, it stated recently its email to the WHO on Dec 31 was the first "warning". "The DPP was fabricating facts to play political tricks, and some foreign politicians spread the rumors to attack the mainland and the WHO. They have ulterior motives," she said. In response to the DPP's declaration on many occasions that it lacks access to the WHO, Zhu said that the email proved such an assessment to be false. As of Monday, the mainland had updated Taiwan on the status of the outbreak 127 times, Zhu said. "The DPP ignored all these. It exposed that their purpose is not pandemic control but political gain," she added. ^ top ^
DPP 'behind Taiwan ghostwriters' (Global Times)
2020-04-20
Since early April, World Health Organization (WHO) Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus suffered cyber violence on social media networks and his Twitter account is now still filled with sarcastic and abusive comments with a considerable number originating in Taiwan. Pro-Chinese mainland experts based in Taiwan said that the comments were left by Taiwan's "internet water army" sponsored by the separatist political party - Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), which is now ruling the island. The experts said they were familiar with individual incidents being used to hype anti-Chinese mainland sentiment and inciting conflicts between the Chinese mainland and other countries. They said the DPP stigmatized and smeared anti-separatist KMT candidates in the Taiwan regional election in January 2020. "Taiwan people rarely use Twitter. We like Facebook more," a Taiwan-based resident, who asked for anonymity, told the Global Times, adding that because of this, it was abnormal to see that many Taiwan accounts on Twitter. Many accounts were registered just in April. "Abuses, or racist comments, giving me names, black or Negro… this attack came from Taiwan," Tedros told reporters in a press briefing from WHO's Geneva headquarters on April 8. The terms like "Negro" seldom show up on internet platforms like Twitter as it would cause international public outrage. But Chinese mainland analysts said such abuse was "quite common" on PTT, the largest terminal-based bulletin board system in the island of Taiwan, with its core theme hyping hatred against the Chinese mainland. But Chinese mainland analysts said such abuse was "quite common" on PTT, the largest terminal-based bulletin board system in the island of Taiwan, with its core theme hyping hatred against the Chinese mainland. A Taiwan political commentator with the pen name ROCky who requested anonymity told the Global Times that "so-called cyber warriors, or internet ghostwriters, of Taiwan's green camp [pro-separatist camp], have some favorite themes in their propaganda plan in the international public opinion field." They smeared the Chinese mainland as "undemocratic, uncivilized and nouveau riche," ROCky said. They stressed Taiwan's "sovereignty" and said the island was "suppressed" by the Chinese mainland, portraying it as "tragic" to seek support from anti-China forces from other countries including the US and Japan, ROCky said. These "cyber warriors" use fake identities and pretend to be parties concerned with news stories, ROCky believed. ROCky noted that in early 2019, the pro-green camp Taiwan People News, used a fake Facebook account to attack Taiwan leader Tsai Ing-wen in simplified Chinese, hoping to create an illusion that some Chinese mainlanders were interfering in the Taiwan regional election. But the Taiwan People News forgot to switch its account and its remarks were mixed with both simplified and traditional Chinese characters: a giveaway of its real identity as traditional Chinese characters are mainly used in the island of Taiwan. Wang Bing-chung, spokesperson of the New Party, a pro-reunification political party in Taiwan, told the Global Times that the DPP of Taiwan has two ways to manipulate the island's social media. The first was to raise requirements for officials in the name of preventing fake news and penetration by the Chinese mainland. "That's why many Facebook groups, which supports Han Kuo-yu, candidate of the KMT of this year's Taiwan regional leader election, were banned during the campaign," Wang said. Han Kuo-Yu (center), "presidential candidate" for Taiwan's main opposition Kuomintang (KMT) party, is greeted by the supporters while visiting Chingan temple on the campaign trail in Keelung on Tuesday, ahead of the Sunday "presidential" and parliamentary elections. said that on Taiwan social media, one would not be banned for writing the insulting word "shina,"(a racist word against Chinese people, like "Negro" for Africans) but could be banned for insulting pro-Japan or pro-independence figures. The second DPP method was financially supporting "cyber warriors," Wang said. Companies of DPP members paid low-income people to post anything they are told, he told the Global Times. Taiwan's future would be determined only by the cross-Straits relationship, Wang said. "Tsai is bluffing via making fake illusion that a majority of people in Taiwan are anti-China, but that's all false, with fundamental issues left unresolved," he said. ^ top ^
Taiwan DPP exploiting COVID-19 to attack WHO 'doomed to fail' (Global Times)
2020-04-20
The Taiwan Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) authority has targeted the World Health Organization (WHO), seeking "Taiwan independence" by using the COVID-19 pandemic. Such an attempt is doomed to fail, the Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council said, following the Taiwan authority's accusation that the WHO "refused to act" on an email it sent four months ago concerning the possible human-to-human transmission of COVID-19. What the DPP publicized was a false proposition with political intentions, and some Western politicians followed suit, circulating the rumors and targeting the Chinese mainland and the WHO. Such actors have ulterior motives, Zhu Fenglian, a spokesperson for the State Council Taiwan Affairs Office, said on Friday. The DPP claimed that Taiwan's health department had sent a warning email to the WHO concerning the possible human-to-human transmission of COVID-19 on December 31, 2019, and that the WHO failed to disclose the information. These claims were not facts, Zhu said. The email did not mention "human-to-human transmission" and it was based on information from the Wuhan's health commission, Zhu said. The email simply proved that Wuhan's health commission had made the information public to the global community in a timely manner, Zhu said. The Taiwan authority also claimed it has been unable to communicate with the WHO, despite the fact that medical experts from Taiwan have been participating in WHO meetings, and 24 Taiwan experts joined technical WHO meetings at the beginning of 2019 and continued to attend these meetings until March. The Chinese mainland had shared information on the COVID-19 with the Taiwan authority on 127 occasions by Monday, Zhu said. The DPP failed to mention these facts to the people in the island, but continued to publicize their "warning" email. It's quite clear that the DPP's focus has not been on public health and COVID-19 prevention and control, and that this has merely disclosed the DPP's political goal of seeking independence by utilizing the pandemic, Zhu said. The WHO is a specialized UN agency comprised of sovereign states. Taiwan's participation in the WHO needs to be arranged in a reasonable and appropriate manner under the one-China principle. ^ top ^
|
| Economy |
Huge crude futures losses expose vulnerability of Chinese financial sector (Global Times)
2020-04-24
Chinese investors taking long positions in a crude futures product sold by the Bank of China (BOC) have not only lost their principal investments but have now also found themselves owing millions to the bank. The unusual incident occurred after the West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude May futures contract plummeted to a record low of -$37.63 a barrel on Monday. As the story unfolds, it transpires the huge losses were caused by the BOC rolling over its May contract positions too late. It then had to accept the historically low price to sell soon-to-expire contracts amid strained liquidity, when other market players were shunning deliveries of physical oil shipments. Unsurprisingly, investors are blaming the bank for failing to take necessary precautions to avoid risks. Some other Chinese banks that offer similar products, like the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, chose to roll over their May contract positions much earlier due to recent oil price turbulence during the coronavirus pandemic. The drama is a typical example of a lack of experience and risk awareness among Chinese investors and financial institutions. While relevant financial authorities have asked banks to double check their product risk and submit self-examination reports after the incident, it is the Chinese financial industry that needs to reflect on how to adapt amid the pandemic. The global financial market is experiencing unprecedented change and multiple risks due to the coronavirus crisis. Panic over the potential impact of the pandemic has not only ended a 10-year bull market for US stocks, but is close to triggering wild fluctuations in financial products ranging from commodities to futures and derivatives. Against such a backdrop, the Chinese financial sector is facing an urgent need to strengthen risk management and supervision. The BOC incident raises serious questions over Chinese financial institutions' ability to invest in high-risk derivatives and products, which appear immature and unprofessional compared to their Western peers. For instance, hedge fund managers like Pierre Andurand reportedly made huge gains in the same oil price plunge. Qualified financial professionals with mature understanding of risk management are urgently needed in China's financial sector to avoid heavy losses in future trading, otherwise such colossal losses will continue in Chinese financial institutions and companies. More importantly, as China has already begun further opening up its financial market to the world, it will not be long before experienced foreign institutions and hedge funds enter the Chinese market. It is truly disturbing that whether Chinese financial institutions will be able to cope with increased market risks at that time is in question. Regulatory authorities will, of course, try their best to strengthen risk checks for high-risk transactions by domestic institutions, but the key to solving the issue is ensuring financial institutions themselves can withstand market risks, both at home and abroad. ^ top ^
Commentary: China's resumption of production anchors global supply chain (People's Daily)
2020-04-24
President Xi Jinping's inspection tour to Shaanxi Province underpins the fact that China is steadily pushing for a comprehensive resumption of production to ensure a smooth supply chain at home and abroad. While in Xi'an, the provincial capital, Xi visited an automobile producer, a university and a commercial street to oversee the reopening of business and the return of normal life order. Thanks to its great sacrifice and painstaking efforts, China has basically brought the COVID-19 epidemic under control, making it possible for its factories, businesses and schools to open. As the global community fights against the pandemic, China has made the utmost efforts to provide other countries with life-saving medical supplies within its capacities. The pandemic has disrupted the global supply chain. The reopening of production lines in China will not only help the Chinese economy, but also recover the global supply chain and lend a great support to the global fight against the pandemic. The epidemic has indeed taken a heavy toll on China as the country's economic output shrank by 6.8 percent in the first quarter, the lowest reading in decades. Industrial production, infrastructure investment and retails sank to an all-time low. In Haibowan District of Wuhai City, more than 40 enterprises above designated size have resumed production in an orderly manner with strict measures taken to fight against the COVID-19. However, these stumbling blocks cannot change the solid fundamentals and positive trend of the economy. Good news has arrived. The purchasing managers' index (PMI) for China's manufacturing sector re-entered the expansion zone in March by firming up to 52 from 35.7 in February, official data showed. Confidence should be strengthened, and consistent efforts should be made to accelerate the transformation of the economic development model, strengthen and optimize the real economy, especially the manufacturing industry, and promote new infrastructure investments such as in 5G network, Internet of Things, artificial intelligence and industrial Internet to foster new growth drivers, enhance the flexibility of the industrial chain and supply chain and solve the problem of unbalanced and insufficient development. ^ top ^
Chinese firms mull suing foreign govts over COVID-19 losses (Global Times)
2020-04-24
As more foreign officials, most notably in the US, sue the Chinese government over the coronavirus pandemic, many in China, while dismissing the lawsuits as absurd, are also mulling potential countermeasures in case these lawsuits bring damage to Chinese businesses. International legal and trade experts have argued that if Chinese companies' legitimate interests and rights are damaged by these lawsuits or other politically-motivated moves by foreign governments, there are also abundant legal means both Chinese government and businesses can take to protect themselves. "If they insist on [carrying forward the lawsuits] and cause damage on China, then sorry, we will also have to strike back and respond in kind by suing them," He Weiwen, a former senior trade official and an executive council member of the China Society for World Trade Organization Studies, told the Global Times on Thursday, calling the lawsuits by some foreign officials "absurd" and will not be accepted by China. So far two US states - Missouri and Mississippi - have filed a lawsuit in the US, accusing the Chinese government of not doing enough to stop the coronavirus epidemic. There have also been media reports of lawsuits filed in India and Italy, seeking compensation from the Chinese government over the pandemic. While few in China believe the lawsuits will bear any meaningful result, there are concerns that Chinese companies that are operating overseas could be impacted - not necessarily by the lawsuits but the overall anti-China politics. To protect their legitimate interests, some experts said that Chinese business groups can also sue foreign governments, including the US, for their inability to contain the virus that caused losses at Chinese companies. Chinese companies, whose orders have been reduced due to the ineffectiveness of the US government in fighting the pandemic, can also collect evidence and sue the US federal government or relevant state governments for compensation, Zhu Ying, a professor of international law at Southwest University of Political Science and Law, told the Global Times on Wednesday. Zhu said that lawsuits can be filed in the US or at appropriate Chinese courts. As the coronavirus continues to ravage abroad, many Chinese factories are seeing widespread declines in export orders, delays, or cancellations of existing orders. Some are even facing risks of going bankrupt due to declining orders. In the first quarter, China's total export dropped by 11.4 percent year-on-year. In fact, as the domestic epidemic has been effectively contained and economic activities have gradually resumed, top Chinese officials have deemed the deteriorating external environment as one of the biggest risks for the Chinese economy. For Chinese companies, the worry is not just the pandemic itself but also an increasingly hostile environment for Chinese products, as some foreign officials and media outlets even sought to smear life-saving Chinese medical supplies. To help Chinese businesses handle potential disputes over business contracts, the China Chamber of International Commerce, which represents 246,000 Chinese companies, and Beijing-based Deheng Law Group have recently published a series of legal guidelines for companies to follow in an international business dispute, including legal procedures in the US and other major markets. He, the former Chinese trade official, said that, while the WTO dispute settlement function is for member states, Chinese companies can file lawsuits over a business dispute in China or the country of their clients to protect their interests. Still, lawsuits might be too expensive or unfeasible for many Chinese companies given the complexity of the legal systems in different countries, but there are many other ways for companies to protect themselves, said Gong Jinjun, deputy general manager of Shanxi Huanjie Petroleum Drilling Tools Co, who oversaw the company's legal battle against the US government when it imposed sanctions on the company in 2009. One way is that Chinese companies can charge much higher prices for products exported to the US because of the high risk of doing business with the US, according to Gong. "In other words, if there exists legal procedures in the future that result in penalties for the US government, it won't be out of our pockets," he told the Global Times on Thursday. However, Gong said that for Chinese companies, the most important thing is to improve the quality of their goods and diversify their overseas market so that it is not too dependent on one market. ^ top ^
Economic Watch: China seeks to boost industrial chain resilience amid COVID-19 strains (Xinhua)
2020-04-23
Work has restarted in most Chinese firms, but more needs to be done to reinforce the country's industrial chain resilience as challenges from demand deficiency and imported cases of the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) remain. To reboot the Chinese economy fast without triggering a second wave of the COVID-19 outbreak, local enterprises and industry regulators have all been fully engaged in a nationwide drive aiming to firm up industrial chains. The early results came out better than expected. About 84 percent of small- and medium-sized enterprises (SME), the most sensitive to weaker consumer demand, had restarted work as of April 15, according to the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT). Among them, firms in the secondary industries saw the highest work resumption rate, followed by those in the production service sector and then the consumer service sector. The purchasing managers' index (PMI) for China's manufacturing sector re-entered the expansion zone in March by firming up to 52 from 35.7 in February, official data showed. Despite the signs of recovery in manufacturing activities, Chinese firms, especially the micro ones, are facing mounting uncertainties and challenges amid the global spread of COVID-19. BACK INTO GEAR How are the breakthroughs made in returning to work when epidemic prevention and control becomes a regular practice? The answer is synergy-seeking by encouraging top enterprises to lead SMEs along the industrial chain in work resumption, according to the MIIT, while upstream and downstream firms along the same industrial chain are working in coordination to foster growth momentum, tapping domestic and overseas markets together. Over 400,000 SMEs have resumed production following the reopening of nearly 100 top firms and over 7,600 of their core business partners, MIIT data showed. Key areas including materials for epidemic control, life necessities, spring plowing and products for international supply chains as well as labor-intensive industries were the most targeted during the progress, said the MIIT. Amid efforts to uplift the resilience of industrial chains and further unleash the work resumption potential, Chinese firms are also cranking up critical supplies in response to the global COVID-19 fight and wobbled global supply chain. Since the outbreak, many Chinese manufacturers of apparel, electronics and cars changed their production line for face mask supply in just weeks, which also relied much on stable and flexible supply chain. MOVE TO DIGITAL Due to anemic global demand, more Chinese enterprises have to shift their focus to the domestic market, and nurturing domestic demand thus becomes more essential. An unfolding trend on the business front is accelerating digitalization to boost new types and upgrades of consumption emerging from epidemic control. For the e-commerce sector, a cloud platform which combined 5G and virtual reality has been built to offer a panoramic virtual shopping experience for consumers staying indoors. It will be applied in nearly 100 commercial enterprises across the country, said the MIIT. Digital measures are also underway to enable the development of SMEs whose demand for work resumption and growth transformation are much greater. The use of information technology can help SMEs better equipped in epidemic control and allow them to get back to operation as soon as possible, said Qin Zhihui, deputy director of the small and medium-sized enterprises bureau of the MIIT. Growth of new modes such as online office and online education have been speeded up, which will help expand the production modes of service-oriented manufacturers, making shared manufacturing and personalized customization more popular. On top of building digital platforms to help SMEs unclog the supply chains and connect financing resources, digital transformation will be promoted among qualified firms to realize lean production and agile manufacturing, Qin said. ^ top ^
Economic Watch: With key rate cuts, China ramps up stimulus to bolster economy (Xinhua)
2020-04-21
China's market-based benchmark lending rate lowered Monday, another sign that the country is determined to channel funds into the real economy via more flexible monetary policy, analysts said. The one-year loan prime rate (LPR) fell 20 basis points from a month earlier to arrive at 3.85 percent, while the above-five-year LPR fell 10 basis points from the previous reading to 4.65 percent, according to the National Interbank Funding Center run by the People's Bank of China (PBOC), the central bank. The reduction is in line with market expectations, as a key meeting last Friday decided to guide market interest rates lower as part of a broader policy package to cushion against the economic fallout of COVID-19. That the declines between the one-year and above-five-year LPR differed demonstrated China's resolve to offer targeted monetary support for the real economy other than real estate speculation, said Wen Bin, a chief researcher with China Minsheng Bank. Rather than resorting to massive stimulus plans to shore up an economy faced with unprecedented challenges, China has vowed targeted and accurate measures to help firms tide over the difficult period. To support the real economy, especially medium-sized, small and micro enterprises, China will step up the use of tools including reserve requirement ratio cuts, interest rate cuts and reloans, according to the meeting of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee Friday. Including Monday's reduction, China's one-year LPR has dropped by a total of 40 basis points since last August when it unveiled a key reform to use the LPR to better reflect market changes and steer borrowing costs lower to support the real economy. The raft of measures have taken effect in boosting market liquidity. In the first quarter, the new yuan-denominated loans hit 7.1 trillion yuan (about 1 trillion U.S. dollars), the highest quarterly level in history, said the central bank, adding that the credit structure has been optimized and the credit support is becoming more targeted and effective. Yet, the PBOC's current approach is more moderate and measured than the U.S. Federal Reserve's latest bold moves such as steep rate cuts and quantitative easing, said Ren Zeping, chief economist of Chinese property developer Evergrande. The "ammunition" in China's monetary policy toolbox is sufficient, said Ming Ming, an analyst with CITIC Securities, noting that with improved structural tools, intensified financial regulation and optimized capital flow, a deluge of strong stimulus policies similar to those favored by the country during the 2008 global financial crisis may not appear. Ping An Securities analyst Zhang Ming said the Chinese government has stepped up its de-leveraging campaign to defuse financial risks since 2016, and it will refrain from a massive monetary and credit stimulus package. China will also lean on fiscal stimulus to spur infrastructure investment and consumption as stimulating domestic demand plays the main role in pumping up the economy, analysts said. Friday's key meeting called for more proactive fiscal measures with deficit spending such as issuing special government bonds to support the virus fight and increasing the issuance of local government bonds as well as raising the utilization efficiency of capital to help stabilize the economy. In emphasizing the need to expand domestic demand, the meeting stressed the necessity to release the potential of consumption by stimulating consumer spending and increasing public spending as appropriate. It is also imperative to expand investment by way of renovating old and dilapidated residential areas, strengthening investment in traditional and new infrastructure to advance the upgrading of traditional industries, and boosting investment in emerging strategic industries. Local governments' actions to roll out voucher programs, ensure employment and cut tax and fees could help households and businesses tide over difficulties, prop up domestic demand and keep the economic fundamentals steady, according to Zhang Bin, a senior researcher at China Finance 40 Forum. According to the World Economic Outlook report recently released by the International Monetary Fund (IMF), China is expected to be one of the few major economies that could see economic expansion this year, while it projected the global economy would decline by 3 percent in 2020. The country's domestic activity is expected to rebound and continue to recover in the second half of this year as the containment measures are withdrawn and policy support gains strength, said Kenneth Kang, deputy director of the Asia and Pacific Department at the IMF. ^ top ^
Digital currency trials are underway (People's Daily)
2020-04-21
China has started testing its government-backed digital currency in some regions before it is introduced to the public, aiming to replace paper notes and coins in circulation, according to the People's Bank of China, the central bank. At present, the trials are being conducted in a closed environment and not connected to the existing sovereign currency issuance and circulation system. Pilot programs have been launched in Shenzhen, Suzhou, and Chengdu, as well as in the Xiongan New Area, Hebei province, said a senior official from the digital currency research institute of the PBOC, who did not want to be identified. Some of the payment scenarios related to the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics are also undergoing tests, he said. "In the short term, the central bank's digital currency will not be issued in large amounts for the public and the velocity of the money in circulation will not be influenced or lead to an inflation surge," said a statement on the PBOC's official WeChat account on Saturday. The PBOC will be the sole issuer of the "digitalized renminbi", and will originally offer the digital money to commercial banks or other operators, which is still in a centralized issuance system. The public can transfer the money in their bank accounts to the digital version and deposit the same in "electronic wallets", the official said. To avoid excessive money issuance, commercial institutions should set aside provisions equivalent to their digital money holdings, he said. The PBOC started research on its digital legal tender in 2014. The State Council, the nation's cabinet, approved the PBOC's digital currency development program at the end of 2017, jointly with some qualified commercial banks and institutions. The central bank called the new money as "digital currency and electronic payment", or DC/EP. Zhou Xuedong, a spokesman of the central bank, disclosed at a news conference on April 10 that the digital currency launch has not been disrupted by the novel coronavirus outbreak. The COVID-19 epidemic can persist for a few hours on hard surfaces, and there is probability of transmission via physical money－paper notes and coins, as they are frequently touched objects. The pandemic has led to unprecedented public concern about viral transmission via cash. Many central banks have taken measures to ensure the safety of using cash. Raphael Auer, an economist with the Monetary and Economic Department of the Bank for International Settlements (BIS), said that in the context of the current global health crisis, central bank digital currency (CBDC) would in particular have to be designed with access options for the layman and have contact-free technical interfaces suitable for the entire population. "The pandemic has highlighted the value of having access to diverse means of payments, and the need for any means of payments to be resilient against a broad range of threats," he said. Payments via the upcoming Chinese sovereign digital currency could be contactless and the transaction can be achieved when two mobile phones with electronic wallets get close to each other, Mu Changchun, head of the PBOC digital currency research institute, said earlier. Different from Alipay and WeChat Pay that rely on the internet, the technology used by the PBOC allows the digital currency to be exchanged without the internet, just like using physical cash, said Mu. China could be one of the leading countries in the world to have a retail-based central bank digital currency, said analysts. ^ top ^
|
| Mongolia |
Deputy Speaker receives Chinese Ambassador (Montsame)
2020-04-23
During the meeting, Ambassador Chai Wenrui said, "President of the People's Republic of China Xi Jinping paid a state visit to Mongolia in 2014, bringing bilateral relations to the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership. The cooperation between the supreme legislative body and the parliamentary group has played an important role in strengthening the long-standing friendly relations and cooperation between the two countries" and expressed his readiness to implement the government's policy to strengthen friendly cooperation between China and Mongolia and expand cooperation between legislatures of the two countries. For his part, Deputy Speaker Ya.Sanjmyatav emphasized that the Chinese government, led by President Xi Jinping, has taken prompt measures to combat the COVID-19 pandemic and has acted responsibly. Moreover, he remarked that the visit of President of Mongolia Kh.Battulga to China in February was the expression of solidarity of the people of the two countries in the fight against the pandemic. In his speech, Ambassador Chai Wenrui noted that the people of China will never forget the support and assistance rendered by the Government of Mongolia, members of the Parliament and the people during hard times caused by the pandemic and highlighted that Mongolia's accurate policy, responsible and prompt responsive actions is showing a good example in the world. At the end of the meeting, Deputy Speaker Ya.Sanjmyatav wished success to the Ambassador in his future endeavors and instructed him to focus on deepening inter-parliamentary relations as cooperation between the legislatures is an important component of bilateral relations. ^ top ^
Foreign Minister meets U.S. Ambassador (Montsame)
2020-04-23
On April 22, Minister of Foreign Affairs D.Tsogtbaatar met with U.S. Ambassador to Mongolia Michael S. Klecheski, exchanging views on the current state of bilateral cooperation and other issues. The sides stressed that the countries need to join efforts and cooperate closely at this time of the exponential spread of novel coronavirus in the world. ^ top ^
Green Belt Project - Symbol of Friendship between Mongolia and the Republic of Korea (Montsame)
2020-04-22
On November 22, 2019, during a parliament session, it was warned that 76.8 percent of Mongolia's territory has become subject to desertification and land degradation. Later, on February 20, 2019, a technical meeting to develop a global sand and dust storm source base map talked about how the yellow dust storm caused by desertification and land degradation is posing a challenge to not only Mongolia and Asia, but the entire world and producing diverse impacts on human health. A Mongolia-ROK joint project, 'Green Belt', has been running for 14 years to mitigate desertification in Mongolia and combat yellow dust storms. Specifically, Mongolia and ROK made high level talks to implement a forestation project for the prevention of yellow dust storm and desertification in 2005, and the Mongolian Ministry of Environment and Tourism established a Memorandum of Cooperation with the Korea Forest Service in 2006. As a result of the project, tree nurseries have been set up in 45 hectares of lands in Dalanzadgad soum of Umnugobi aimag and Bayanzag Flaming Cliffs site in the aimag's Bulgan soum and Lun soum of Tuv aimag with USD 11.8 million assistance from ROK and 3,046 hectares of forests have been planted. 20 types of anti-desertification trees such as poplar, tamarisk, willow, elm, Prunus sibirica, and Prunus amygdalus, that were planted in the abovementioned three soums, where yellow dust storms might emerge from, are now growing smoothly. Mongolia has been taking over the management of the forested areas in phases. Since 2017, a total of around 2,200 hectares of lands have been transferred to the Mongolian side. The remaining 821 hectares of lands will be transferred this year together with funds and equipment necessary for upkeeping the forested areas. This will open up an opportunity for the Government of Mongolia to preserve the forests and plant more trees, said project director Seong In-kyeong. Showing that there is a great opportunity to plant trees in the areas affected by desertification and further grow forests was an outstanding success. Mr. Seong Inkyeong also emphasized his hope that many citizens and politicians will get inspirations from the project and protect the nature by planting trees. Even though the project had originally wrapped up in 2016, governments of the two countries agreed to continue with it and held another high-level talks on May 18, 2016, and a memorandum of understanding was signed on July 17 of the same year to collaborate in the fight against desertification and yellow dust storms. Accordingly, it was decided to implement the project's second phase from 2017 to 2022 and works began to build an urban forest called 'Mongolia-ROK friendship park' in a 40 hectares of land located in the 16th subdistrict of Sukhbaatar district. The ongoing second phase targets reduction of air pollution in the capital city, while the goal of the first phase was to prevent yellow dust storms. The project worth USD 9 million is currently 50.8 percent complete. The project director highlighted that people will get to know everything about forests such as benefits, plantation, and maintenance of trees by visiting the urban forest, while they would only take a rest and picnic in regular parks. The urban forest will have 90 types of trees and other plants besides having a learning garden, bike path, playground, sports ground, and a parking lot for around 100 cars. Currently, the construction of basketball court is running at 83 percent, observation tower – 79 percent, parking lot – 79 percent, fences – 94 percent, flower-shaped railings - 33 percent, levee – 98 percent, pond – 99 percent, and information center - 24 percent, and the park's tree nursery has been fully constructed. The most important part of the project, tree planting, is beginning this year. A single tree has an annual fine dust reduction effect of 35.7 grams and an acre of moderately mature trees absorbs 2.5 tons of carbon dioxide per year. It is therefore expected that the project will concretely contribute to reducing air pollution in the capital city. During his March 2019 visit to Mongolia, former ROK Prime Minister Lee Nak-yeon got acquainted with the construction works and planted a tree. About this, project director Seong In-kyeong said, "During his visit, Prime Minister Lee Nak-yeon gave us an idea for fruitful continuation of the project. So we are now studying whether to implement the project's third phase." The project team is confident that the Green Belt project that has been making concrete contributions to preventing and fighting desertification and yellow dust storms in Mongolia and reducing air pollution in Ulaanbaatar city will become a symbol of friendship between Mongolia and the Republic of Korea. ^ top ^
|
|
Sun Mengqi Eleanore
Embassy of Switzerland
|
The Press review is a random selection
of political and social related news gathered from various media
and news services located in the PRC, edited or translated by
the Embassy of Switzerland in Beijing and distributed among Swiss
Government Offices. The Embassy does not accept responsibility
for accuracy of quotes or truthfulness of content. Additionally
the contents of the selected news mustn't correspond to the opinion
of the Embassy.
|
|
|
|
