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SCHWEIZER
BOTSCHAFT IN BEIJING
EMBASSY OF SWITZERLAND IN BEIJING
AMBASSADE DE SUISSE EN CHINE |
Der wöchentliche
Presserückblick der Schweizer Botschaft in der VR China
The Weekly Press Review of the Swiss Embassy in the People's Republic
of China
La revue de presse hebdomadaire de l'Ambassade de Suisse en RP
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DPRK
Mongolia
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Chinese embassy urges Switzerland not to interfere in HK affairs after foreign ministry's improper comments (Global Times)
2020-08-06
The Chinese Embassy in Switzerland on Wednesday said that the postponement of Hong Kong's Legislative Council election is a reasonable and legitimate move to ensure people's health and safety, in response to the Swiss foreign ministry's concerns and arbitrary comments on the disqualification of some opposition candidates. Faced with a serious epidemic situation since July, the government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) took the responsible decision to postpone the Legislative Council (LegCo) election. It is a totally justified step to ensure the health of Hong Kong residents and a necessary action to ensure a safe and fair election, said the embassy in a statement posted on its official website. There is no shortage of precedents around the world for postponing elections due to epidemics and other disasters, and the postponement in Hong Kong is in accordance with international practice, which is reasonable and legitimate, the embassy noted. In terms of the disqualification of certain candidates for the LegCo election, the embassy said that the legal basis for whether a candidate is qualified to stand for election to the Legislative Council of HKSAR is well defined by the Basic Law, national security law for the HKSAR and the election law of Hong Kong, and the disqualification is fully justified and legitimate. Before the HKSAR government announced the postponement of Legislative Council elections due to the new COVID-19 outbreak, 12 opposition candidates had been disqualified. Local media reported that some candidates visited the US in August 2019 amid the social unrest, and begged US lawmakers to pass the Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act. "The words and actions of those disqualified candidates have crossed the red line of the law. Some have openly pleaded for 'Hong Kong independence', and others have slavishly called on foreign forces to sanction Hong Kong and interfere in Hong Kong affairs. If they run for office, it is not for the prosperity and stability of Hong Kong, but to cripple the SAR government, to subvert the government and undermine the principle of 'one country, two systems'," said the embassy. The embassy further stressed that Hong Kong's national security legislation aims to plug a loophole in security, which is fully compliant with and ensures the implementation of the "one country, two systems." The rights and freedoms of Hong Kong residents under the law are not affected. Many Western countries, including Switzerland, also have national security laws and some even have more than one, said the embassy in the statement. Hong Kong affairs are purely China's internal affairs. No foreign government, organization or individual has the right to intervene. The Swiss side should deal with Hong Kong affairs in an objective and impartial manner and refrain from any form of interference, said the embassy. ^ top ^
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| Foreign Policy |
Canadian sentenced to death for drug production (China Daily)
2020-08-07
A Chinese Canadian was sentenced to death for producing drugs by the Guangzhou Intermediate People's Court on Thursday, demonstrating the determination of judicial authorities in the city to fight against drugs and related crimes. The court also ordered the confiscation of all personal property of the man, Xu Weihong, according to a verdict handed down by the court. No details were revealed about Xu's personal information, career or background. One of Xu's accomplices, Wen Guanxiong, a native of Guangzhou, capital of Guangdong province, was sentenced to life behind bars, said the verdict. Wen, 45, was also stripped of all personal assets and deprived of political rights for life, the verdict said. According to Guangzhou-based Yangcheng Evening News, Xu and Wen were accused of purchasing raw materials and production equipment and tools to make ketamine at Wen's villa in Guangzhou in October 2016. They stored the drugs they produced in the city's Haizhu district. Police seized about 121 kilograms of ketamine on Wen's property after a sweep of the drug production areas, the report said. According to Chinese laws, Xu can appeal to the upper court, the Guangdong High People's Court. If the high court upholds Xu's death penalty, the sentence then must be submitted to the Supreme People's Court, the country's top court, for a final review before it can be carried out. Producing and smuggling drugs is a serious crime on the Chinese mainland that can carry the death penalty. In June, the Guangzhou Intermediate People's Court also sentenced Australian citizen Karm Gillespie to death for drug smuggling and confiscated all of his personal assets, according to media reports. Gillespie was arrested in 2013 with more than 7.5 kg of methamphetamine in his check-in luggage while attempting to board an international flight at Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport, media reported. ^ top ^
Chinese defense minister holds phone talk with U.S. counterpart (Xinhua)
2020-08-07
Chinese State Councilor and Minister of National Defense Wei Fenghe on Thursday took a phone call from U.S. Secretary of Defense Mark Esper upon invitation. The two sides exchanged views on the bilateral ties and military relations, as well as the bilateral military exchanges in the next phase. Wei stated China's principled position on questions including the South China Sea, Taiwan and the U.S. stigmatization of China, and urged the U.S. side to stop erroneous words and deeds, improve the management and control of maritime risks, avoid taking dangerous moves that may escalate the situation, and safeguard regional peace and stability. Esper said that amid tensions between the two countries, the two militaries should maintain dialogue and consultation to manage crises, avoid misjudgment and reduce risks. ^ top ^
Opposition to TikTok aims to stifle competition (China Daily)
2020-08-06
The drama in the saga concerning popular social media app TikTok continues, with United States President Donald Trump first setting a 45-day deadline for Byte-Dance, TikTok's parent company, to sell its US operations, and then demanding that a share of the sale proceeds be paid to the US Treasury. Speculation continued to mount over TikTok's talks with US technology giants amid reports that the company may relocate its headquarters to London, an announcement that drew a positive response from British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, but was criticized by the Conservative Party's anti-China fringe. Amid this controversy, there is one strategic point that observers have failed to notice in regard to disdain for TikTok and the challenge the app poses to the global allied surveillance and data sharing network known as Five Eyes. With a Reuters report having stated that Microsoft may be looking to buy TikTok's operations in Australia, Canada and New Zealand, a clear pattern emerges. While critics argue (without evidence) that the app is sharing data with China, in practice these countries are disdainful of a major social media network that doesn't fall under their own data collection systems. That is why there is an obsession with having a US tech giant control it. The US crusade against TikTok is simply about preserving American technological hegemony and aggressively stifling competition. The fact that the US president himself is using threats and coercion to push this deal through is self-explanatory, not least as much as it is an unacceptable abuse of power by the American government to undermine rival companies. TikTok is a video-sharing app. While it is commercially successful, it does not appear to be a "strategic technology" like Chinese telecommunications giant Huawei that can change the balance of power between two countries. So what is the issue that links it to great power politics? The answer is data－albeit from a different angle. TikTok is the first globally successful social media app that exists beyond the power of US technology giants. Its rise to become the most downloaded app in the world is not a surveillance threat (as this has never been proved), but it undermines the global surveillance operations of America and its allies by putting a new generation of young people beyond their reach. In the US, PRISM and ECHELON, both surveillance programs, harvest data from Silicon Valley giants and distribute it among the other Five Eyes partners: Australia, Canada, New Zealand and the United Kingdom. Google, Microsoft, Facebook and others participate in this. It is imperative for the US and its allies to keep this system in place by ensuring that global social media remains under their control, giving them a strategic hold over the entire world. TikTok challenges this not because it allegedly shares data with China, but because it denies them access to data of their own citizens. It exists beyond their sphere of political power. That is why the US is obsessed with ensuring that a US company such as Microsoft controls it, so that TikTok becomes co-opted by default (as Microsoft is a participant) in these programs, thus allowing the National Security Agency to gain insight into 80 million Americans that they previously did not have. This explains why its potential sale may expand into three of these other countries as well. Attacks against the app are a form of projection. It's not so much about "China stealing data" (for this is just a politicized story), but the fact that the US government itself cannot do what it accuses Beijing of in this instance. This makes sense when one understands the broader scope of the technology war to effectively be the Five Eyes coordinating against Chinese technology companies, as has been done with Huawei. These five countries build their power by maintaining dominance over all communications and networks as part of a global surveillance effort. China is only a threat because its technological successes have challenged this monopoly. As a result, TikTok has a five-eyed monster coming after it that isn't trying to protect the data of users, but trying to steal the data for its own nefarious purposes. ^ top ^
Demanding top US colleges to disclose donations from China signals growing antagonism ahead of election: observer (Global Times)
2020-08-06
A demand from US Republican lawmakers that six top US universities disclose their records of donations from China is just another move to hype China's influence and shows that Republicans are heading toward a more irrational way to antagonize China ahead of the November election, Chinese observers said. Three Republican members of Congress, James Comer, Jim Jordan and Virginia Fox published a joint letter they sent to the six universities, which included Harvard University, New York University and Yale University, asking them to hand over donation records from foreign countries including China and Russia, citing that their dependency on foreign funding risked national security. In the letter, lawmakers accused these universities of "lacking of transparency in reporting as required by law," demanding the records of foreign anonymous donations from China, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Iran, and Russia since 2015, totaling more than $6 billion, the letter claims. The universities were given a week to provide the requested records. "Universities in the US have a tradition of raising funds via donations, and a complete system to manage those donations while maintaining academic freedom," Li Haidong, a professor at the Institute of International Relations of the China Foreign Affairs University, told the Global Times, saying that the senators' move is not only creating something out of nothing, but also underestimating those universities' time-honored traditions. As the ties between China and the US are spiraling down rapidly and a presidential election is approaching, some people in the US, especially certain Republicans, are trying to attack China at every level, politicizing every arena of China-US cooperation, Zhang Tengjun, an assistant research fellow at the China Institute of International Studies, told the Global Times. Zhang said most of those renowned universities are in blue states, so the intent in making such a spectacle will exert a blow to the Democratic Party. But the expert warned that if Republicans continue to push a political agenda onto academic institutes, it will make US universities lose their appeal for Chinese students, and even students from all over the world. Earlier in February, the US Department of Education announced an investigation into Yale and Harvard for failing to disclose the alleged receipt of hundreds of millions dollars of foreign donations. In May, a faculty member of the University of Pennsylvania called allegations that the Penn Biden Center had accepted undisclosed donation from China "completely untrue," media reported. Big Chinese donors to the US universities are mainly businesspeople, such as billionaire couple Pan Shiyi and Zhang Xin who gifted $10 million to Yale University in 2014, in a wish to establish scholarship for impoverished Chinese students, and Chen Tianqiao, founder, chairman and CEO of Shanda Investment Group, who donated $100 million to the California Institute of Technology in 2016 to sponsor the institute's brain science research. ^ top ^
Twitter begins labelling 'state-affiliated media', including Chinese outlets (SCMP)
2020-08-07
Twitter launched a crackdown on Chinese and Russian government-linked news outlets on Thursday, labelling sites including People's Daily, China Daily and Global Times as "state-affiliated media" and preventing them from being recommended to users or otherwise amplified on the social media platform. The new categorisation covers accounts in the United States, Britain, France, China and Russia – the five permanent United Nations Security Council members – but will in effect only apply to outlets from China and Russia, given the high degree of control that government bodies in those countries exert on editorial decisions through funding and other forms of pressure. Jessica Herrera-Flanigan, a public policy executive at Twitter, said the goal of the initiative was to "further protect the public conversation in an election year". The new labels, which appear on both the homepages of targeted accounts and above every tweet posted by them, have also been added to editors and prominent reporters at the outlets. Those include Global Times' editor-in-chief, Hu Xijin, who uses the platform to share commentary on or insights into Beijing's official position on international affairs, frequently regarding relations with Washington. China Daily's EU bureau chief, Chen Weihua, who was not labelled, accused Twitter of bias against China and Russia "to fit the McCarthyist narrative that is prevailing in Washington" and criticised the company for not applying the label to the US taxpayer-funded Voice of America. Under the new rules, publicly funded outlets that have firewalls between financial revenue and editorial decisions will not be targeted, Twitter said, pointing to the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) and National Public Radio (NPR) as examples. Alongside the media labelling, which was also applied to Kremlin-controlled Russia Today, Twitter rolled out labelling for prominent government officials from all five countries. US President Donald Trump's official Twitter account was among them, while his "personal" account (@realDonaldTrump), which he has used far more frequently while in office, was not. Twitter also labelled as "Chinese government account[s]" numerous Beijing officials, such as foreign ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian, one of the few Chinese citizens permitted to use the domestically blocked website. "China blocks access to Twitter for regular users," Twitter said in its statement announcing the move. "We believe that people benefit from additional context when interacting with Chinese government and state-affiliated accounts." Twitter also said it planned to expand the number of countries subject to the new rules. As of Thursday, the company had placed the state-affiliated media label on a large number of Chinese news accounts, including those not considered government mouthpiece outlets and at least one – Caixin Global – that is not government funded. Caixin is a financial news magazine known for pushing the political envelope in China, a reputation that grew further this year with a series of investigative reports into the government's handling of the coronavirus outbreak. A Twitter representative declined to comment on the decision to include Caixin, instead referring to a company statement defined state-affiliated media as "outlets where the state exercises control over editorial content through financial resources, direct or indirect political pressures, and/or control over production and distribution". The company representative also declined to comment on whether this definition would effectively cover all outlets in China, given the high degree of control that internet regulators exert over online publications. As of Thursday, Twitter had not labelled SHINE, the digital version of the government-funded Shanghai Daily newspaper, as state-affiliated. Twitter did not respond to a request to comment on that decision. Under the rules, accounts that are labelled as state-affiliated media and their tweets will no longer be amplified through Twitter's recommendation systems, including its home timeline, notifications and search functions, the company said. The measures by the San Francisco-based company come atop similar moves last year to prevent accounts of state-affiliated media and their journalists from accessing Twitter's paid promotion service, which pushes content to users regardless of whether they follow those accounts. And in June, the company took down 23,750 accounts it charged were part of a Beijing-coordinated campaign to sow disinformation and promote government narratives on the platform. Also on Thursday, Google pulled more than 2,500 accounts from YouTube as part of what the Alphabet-owned company described as an "ongoing investigation into coordinated influence operations linked to China". ^ top ^
Bashing China now the norm for West's media (China Daily)
2020-08-05
The Western media went absolutely mental again, radically schizophrenic, after Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor declared that the Sept 6 legislative elections in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region would be postponed for one year. She offered a rational explanation: "(If) we have 3 million voters going out in one day across Hong Kong, such flow of people would cause a high risk of infection." While COVID-19 can justify any action taken by the West and by countries closely associated with the West, it is constantly used against the Chinese mainland and the HKSAR. Whether the elections were to be held or not, attacks against Lam and Beijing were planned to continue. They were clearly launched at the behest of the Western establishment. On July 31, CNN published bizarre comments: "Under Hong Kong's Basic Law, the city's de facto constitution, prospective legislators must swear to 'uphold' the constitution, a declaration that has been largely procedural in the past. "But citing a court case in 2016 barring a pro-independence candidate, the government said in a statement that vowing to 'uphold' Basic Law denotes not just compliance with it, but also an intention to support, promote, and embrace it." First of all, "upholding the constitution" is an essential condition for any prospective legislator in any democracy. In the United States, the president, when sworn in, puts a hand on the Bible and solemnly swears to uphold and defend the US Constitution. Second, some readers can probably overlook certain parts of the text, but this time they should come back to them and read carefully: "barring a pro-independence candidate". CNN is obviously criticizing the HKSAR for not allowing participation of separatists in the election. It is difficult not to call it hypocrisy, given the fact that almost anywhere in North America and Europe, separatism is not tolerated. Just think about Spain (Catalonia) or France (Corsica). Separatism that is ignited, supported and financed by foreign powers would be considered treason, and punished harshly. Each Western country has its own national security law. But bashing China and its territories has become a norm in Western media. Baseless or exaggerated criticism of everything Chinese has become synonymous with a fast track to career advancement, at least in the fields of journalism and academia. The headline of the quoted CNN article is: "Hong Kong is setting up an election without a real opposition." In the new Western propaganda lexicon, "real" means hardcore separatism, fundamentalist anti-communism and radical anti-mainland stand. Even The New York Times, known for (at least stylistically) more "elegant coverage", produced a hawkish headline on July 31:"Hong Kong Delays Election, Citing Coronavirus. The Opposition Isn't Buying It." So, first, the way elections were to be conducted was wrong; and now their postponement became wicked. Western "analysts" reacted quickly. Suspicion is omnipresent when it comes to news coverage by Western media of the HKSAR and the Chinese mainland. It is essential to confront Western propaganda with facts, again and again. Therefore, let us continue with our labor. This essay is written and sent from the Western Hemisphere, the part of the world that is most damaged by COVID-19. Elections here are either outright postponed, or postponement is at least considered as an option. Even US President Donald Trump is going back and forth on the issue. A Chilean referendum on changes to the country's Constitution was postponed, without much debate, due to COVID-19. Elections in Bolivia have been delayed again and again. The elections are crucial, as last year there was a US-backed coup that unseated popular president Evo Morales. But you would not read much about all this in Western media. Western media takes the COVID-19 argument for postponing elections in the Americas as legitimate because this fits the interests of Washington. What is taken as a norm elsewhere is never acceptable when it happens in China. It is Kafkaesque, it is unfair, but it is part of a new normal constructed by US leaders like Trump, Senator Marco Rubio, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, former national security adviser John Bolton and Peter Navarro, White House trade adviser. Carrie Lam and Beijing know perfectly well how to govern their territory and the entire country. They do not need Westerners to tell them how. And China, including the HKSAR, would be doing even better if it would be left alone, not be antagonized every day and night, and be allowed to concentrate on what it is doing best－improving the lives of its people and the world. ^ top ^
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Xi stresses combination of top-level design, public advice in compiling 14th Five-Year Plan (Xinhua)
2020-08-06
President Xi Jinping has underlined the need to combine top-level design and public opinions in compiling the 14th Five-Year Plan. Formulating and implementing the five-year plans for economic and social development are important ways for the Communist Party of China (CPC) to govern the country, said Xi, who is also general secretary of the CPC Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission. He stressed the need to broaden channels for the public to express their opinions and offer their suggestions as compilation of five-year plans involves all aspects of economic and social development and is closely related to production and the life of the people. Members of the public and people from all sectors of society should be encouraged to offer advice by diverse means so that social expectations, the wisdom of the people, expert advice and experience at the primary level could be integrated into the plan, Xi stressed. China will implement the 14th Five-Year Plan for Economic and Social Development starting next year. As the compiling work is going on, relevant departments will soon solicit opinions and suggestions from officials, the public, as well as the specialists and scholars. ^ top ^
Chinese researchers urged to enhance professional integrity (People's Daily)
2020-08-07
China's Ministry of Science and Technology and the National Natural Science Foundation have issued a notice calling for the enhancement of professional integrity management among researchers. The notice says research institutes, colleges and universities, enterprises, and social organizations should enhance management work to help research fellows raise their awareness of academic ethics and integrity. The notice asks the related units whose research projects are supported by public funds to honestly report their work in integrity management, as well as investigations into and the handling of problems, to administrative departments at the provincial level or higher. The notice also calls for the enhancement of the quality of research papers. ^ top ^
Honeywell, PITTA masks disqualified over quality problems (Global Times)
2020-08-07
Foreign-branded face masks including ones made by Honeywell, PITTA, Rolevin and Dr. Hoffmann were in the latest list of sub-quality masks revealed by the Beijing authorities, causing quality concerns among Chinese consumers over foreign medical supplies. Honeywell responded on Thursday, saying that its disqualified masks were an old type and are no longer in production. Beijing market supervisors publicized a list of 18 masks that failed to pass a sample inspection on Wednesday, at least four of which are foreign, the Economic Daily reported on Thursday. Supervisors said they found an "unqualified label" problem on the inspected batch of US enterprise Honeywell's Anti-PM2.5 face masks named "H930," which were produced in Shanghai in September 2018. Honeywell explained to the media on Thursday that the "unqualified label" refers to the lack of a description of storage conditions in the mask's packaging. The label problem is irrelevant to the quality of this batch of masks, a Honeywell staffer told the Global Times on Thursday. "We Honeywell employees in China also wear our mask products," she said. British brand Rolevin's "0081S" masks made in East China's Hubei Province were disqualified over "filtration efficiency" and "protection effect" in the inspection. The brand's service hotline told the Global Times that the masks have no quality problems. "They were disqualified because inspectors used a different standard," explained the hotline staffer, saying that customers can return the masks they bought and get their money back. The staffer didn't give more details about the differences between the company's production standard and the Beijing authority's inspection standard. It is not the first time that foreign-branded masks in the Chinese market have been involved in quality problems. By the end of June, a total of 680,000 masks had been recalled by local drug administrators in provinces such as Fujian, Chongqing and Jiangxi because of quality problems, some of which were foreign-branded ones including Honeywell's, reported Southern Metropolis Daily on June 29. The latest exposure of quality problems has once again caused worries among Chinese customers about foreign goods, and some netizens said that foreign producers of low-quality products should apologize and quit the Chinese market. "It's ridiculous that some countries complain about Chinese masks but turn a blind eye to their own products," wrote a user on Weibo. ^ top ^
China's migrant workers facing end of an era as the world's factory winds down amid coronavirus, US-China trade war (SCMP)
2020-08-06
After spending more than half her life working in factories in Guangdong, Rao Dequn's 25 years as a migrant worker could be coming to an end within a month, with the coronavirus and US-China trade war leading to another factory closure in Dongguan's withering export-oriented manufacturing industry. Mother-of-two Rao, 43, and around 900 colleagues were informed by letter at the end of July that Dongguan Dingyi Shoes Company would be closing in five weeks as their "employment at the company, on top of all other agreements you may have with the company, will be terminated". "It will be very difficult to find another stable factory to work for … many nearby factories are closing down or laying off workers," said Guizhou native Rao, who has been working at the shoe factory for the last 10 years. Like many of China's 290 million migrant workers, Rao's working life has been spent on production lines to earn a better income than was possible in her rural hometown but not enough to allow her to settle down in a city. "I am sad to leave this job and this factory. The boss is a good person, the pay is always on time, and income has always been stable. Many of the workers have been working here for over 20 years," added Rao, who has been promised a redundancy package in line with the local labour laws. Rao and her husband live in a 100 sq ft room with a shared bathroom, costing 250 yuan (US$40) per month. There are few decorations or furniture except a bunk bed, rice cooker, water heater and an electric fan. A tiny folding desk which also serves as a dinner table, a few plastic chairs and a small flat screen television hanging on one wall complete a far from luxurious lifestyle. The couple keep three pairs of trainers and one pair of wedged women's shoes on a small shelf at the door – a modest collection of footwear for a worker who had been in the business for over a quarter of a century. Her husband, Liu Liang, is also a migrant worker but has rarely worked at the nearby furniture factory over the last few months. "We may have to leave Dongguan because the jobs are now very unstable," he said. The Dingyi compound, one of the thousands of factories in Dongguan that supported China's role as the world's factory, is now largely quiet. The footwear factory, funded by Taiwanese investors since 1990, imported materials and designs to be turned into finished products for overseas markets. But with China now losing its low-cost advantages, and the coronavirus leading to the cancellation of export orders, the heyday for the once-successful business model now appears to be over. Chinese authorities had hoped to phase out of labour-intensive manufacturing like Dingyi in hopes that higher value-added industries would take over to help the country move into a more lucrative position in global value chains. But fears are growing that China may have underestimated the importance of factories like Dingyi in providing jobs and social stability. The darkened job and income prospects for people like Rao, who has been feeding her labour into China's manufacturing machine since she was a teenager, could also hinder Beijing's new economic strategy of "dual circulation", which relies more on the domestic market for economic growth, since there could be insufficient consumer spending. Zhao Jian, the head of Atlantis Finance Research Institute, said this week that China's choice of "dual circulation" was a response to the trend toward a reversal of globalisation, led by the decoupling between China and the United States, but the success of such an inward-looking strategy is far from certain in terms of employment, and even economic security. "While China's reliance on external demand, on the surface, has been falling in the last decade since the global financial crisis … the export sector is vital for Chinese employment," he said. "Exporters are mainly private enterprises with numerous small and tiny businesses living on [global] value chains." According to China's Ministry of Commerce, the export industry accounts for around 180 million jobs in China, or over a third of China's total 530 million non-farm jobs. China's official data showed the country's overall economic performance rebounded in the second quarter thanks to state-led investments and a recovery in industrial production following the historic 6.8 per cent contraction in the first three months of 2020. The official employment data also painted a relatively stable picture, with the surveyed jobless rate falling to 5.7 per cent at the end of June from 5.9 per cent in May. However, the nation's army of migrant workers, who have been hit particularly hard by the impact of the trade war with the US and the coronavirus, are not included in the statistics. Closures of factories like Dingyi also affect the local community – the small restaurants, hotels and numerous shops who rely on the workers for their own income – with property agent Li Gang going as far to say "the whole community will be idle or even dead". The closure is also a psychological shock for other production faculties in the Dongguan area, who are in similar precarious positions. "Many of us [in the shoemaking business] are familiar with this factory. It has been in operation for 30 years and it has survived so many storms – the financial crisis, labour shortages, capital problems – what kinds of storms had it not experienced? It wouldn't close unless it sees no future", said Wang Jie, who runs a footwear production business in Dongguan. Lay-offs and dwindling employment is so widespread in Dongguan that the local government has started to roll out a shared worker programme, in which the local authority acts as a centralised agency to shift surplus workers from an idle factory to one that needs temporary help. As many as 13,000 workers have taken part in the programme since March. The workers are paid 500 yuan (US$72) per month by the local government to take part, while factories avoid official redundancies by offering workers to other factories on contracts of up to three months. "Few factories are expanding … most factories are suffering insufficient orders. But it also costs a lot to close down a factory … so many factories just suspend production," said a human resources manager at a factory in Dongguan, who labelled the shared worker programme as "at best a short-term remedy". Dongguan Chang An Mattel Toys, one of the world's largest doll makers, is one of the few factories still actively recruiting. It used the shared worker programme to recruit 250 workers from another factory Dozens of young workers, mostly males in their 20s, some pulling luggage, lined up to apply for jobs with a starting salary of 1,950 yuan (US$281) per month. For working 11 hours a day, for 26 days a month, a worker can earn as much as 4,559 yuan (US$656) with overtime, with an extra 20 yuan per day offered for night shifts. "The money is not superb, and a toy factory work is tiring," said one jobseeker queuing at the recruitment office. "But it's a big factory and has better job stability [than smaller factories]." ^ top ^
Beijing's defence of national security in Hong Kong should be open and above board (SCMP)
2020-08-06
Sometimes you are kept awake by things that don't affect you personally but affect you emotionally. That's what happened to me last Wednesday after Hong Kong's new police unit enforcing the national security law arrested four students for alleged secession. As I lay in bed, trying not to think about what ghastly fate awaits them if convicted, a question kept popping up: how can four youngsters aged 16 to 21 possibly pose a security threat to China, a superpower? The four belonged to the pro-independence Studentlocalism, which disbanded hours before the security law came into force. But police linked them to the overseas-based Initiative Independence Party – made up of former Studentlocalism members – which wants to establish an independent "Republic of Hong Kong". That is mission impossible. But I guess the law is the law. If the police believe you have crossed a red line, you will be arrested regardless of age. Advocating independence, even if you have no means to achieve it, is a red line under the security law. The law troubles me because I think it's too sweeping, too vague, and too un-Hong Kong, but I am on the record as saying I oppose independence, and laws must be observed. The trouble with this law is that too many Hongkongers feel there are too many unclear red lines. It's like trying to navigate a minefield. One wrong step and "boom". If only Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor had not triggered months of often-violent protests with her now-dead extradition bill. Beijing would then not have imposed such a draconian law. Western countries would not have responded by suspending extradition treaties with Hong Kong. And election officials would not have disqualified so many opposition candidates. But that's now academic. What is not is that Hong Kong – my birthplace – has become an eerily baffling place to me. Lam dumped the city in unchartered constitutional territory by delaying next month's Legislative Council elections for a year on coronavirus health grounds. I am among many who believe she did it out of Beijing's fear that the opposition would sweep the polls. What I find so baffling is the secrecy that surrounded this week's visit by Zhang Xiaoming, deputy director of the Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office, to discuss how Beijing should extend the life of the current Legco. That Zhang met only loyalists was expected. But why not even acknowledge his visit? Why were those he met so tight-lipped? Extending Legco's four-year term is a weighty constitutional issue which only the National People's Congress can handle. Will the four current Legco members who election officials disqualified for the now-delayed polls be allowed to serve in an interim legislature? If they were ruled unqualified to run, how can they be part of a caretaker Legco? But if they are banned, how is that fair to them and their voters? Only the NPC has the power to provide answers, which are likely to come during its four-day meeting starting on Saturday. Zhang came here only to collect views. But given the city is now on constitutional thin ice, Hongkongers deserve openness, not Zhang secretly huddling with loyalists. What baffles me more than Zhang's secret trip is Beijing's threat to not recognise the British National (Overseas) passport as a travel document after Britain retaliated against the security law by offering BN(O) passport holders a citizenship path. About 350,000 Hongkongers have BN(O) passports and another 2.5 million are eligible. Didn't Lam say most Hong Kong people support the security law? Didn't Beijing say it would only affect a small minority of people? If most Hongkongers support the law, which supposedly only targets a small minority, logic dictates that very few BN(O) passport holders will take up Britain's offer. They will prefer to happily live in Hong Kong. So why threaten not to recognise the BN(O) passport? Could it be a fear of possible mass migration? If Beijing carries out its threat, the security law will not only affect a small minority. It could potentially affect more than 2.8 million law-abiding BN(O) passport holders. ^ top ^
China's Dalian rules out possibility of COVID-19 resurgence originating from home (People's Daily)
2020-08-04
The northeastern Chinese city of Dalian has preliminarily ruled out the possibility of the recent COVID-19 resurgence originating from domestic transmission, according to the local health commission. An epidemiological survey showed that the local outbreak since July 9 may have started from a seafood processing workshop in the Dalian Kaiyang World Seafood Co., Ltd., said Zhao Zuowei, director of the Health Commission of Dalian. The gene sequence of the local virus samples is different from that of the domestically prevalent virus in China, and the connections with outbreaks in Urumqi, Beijing and several other cities in northeast China have also been ruled out, Zhao said. The possibility that the virus is imported from overseas has not been excluded, Zhao said. By the end of Sunday, Dalian had reported a total of 87 confirmed local cases during the recent resurgence. ^ top ^
Xi Focus: Xi stresses modernization of national defense, armed forces (Xinhua)
2020-08-03
Xi Jinping, general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, has stressed advancing the modernization of the national defense and armed forces. Xi made the remarks while presiding over a group study session of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee on strengthening the modernization of the national defense and armed forces, which was held on Thursday. To uphold and develop socialism with Chinese characteristics and achieve national rejuvenation, Xi underscored ensuring both development and security, and ensuring that efforts to make the country prosperous and efforts to make the military strong go hand in hand. The modernization of the national defense and armed forces must be in step with the country's modernization process, and the military capabilities must fit national strategic needs, Xi said. Xi said the CPC has always been striving to build strong national defense and powerful military forces, and has made great achievements in this regard. In this year, China will achieve the targets and missions of strengthening the national defense and armed forces for 2020, and embark on a new journey to basically complete the modernization of the national defense and armed forces, and to transform the Chinese military into world-class forces, Xi said. Xi called for efforts to implement the strategic plans and arrangements made by the CPC Central Committee and the Central Military Commission on the modernization of the national defense and armed forces, to make sure that the targets and missions in this respect are achieved. Noting that the world today is undergoing profound and fast-evolving changes unseen in a century, and that the COVID-19 pandemic is exerting a far-reaching influence on the international landscape, Xi said China's security situation faces growing uncertainties and destabilizing factors. He called for a stronger sense of mission and urgency and more efforts to achieve leapfrog development in the modernization of the Chinese military. Xi underscored implementing the military strategic guideline for the new era, formulating the 14th five-year (2021-2025) plan for building the military, drawing a scientific road map, and cultivating a new type of high-caliber and professional military talent. Stressing joint civil-military efforts in advancing the modernization of national defense and armed forces, Xi called on central Party and state institutions, as well as Party committees and governments at all local levels, to strengthen their awareness of national defense and carry forward the development of national defense and the armed forces. ^ top ^
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| Beijing |
Beijing police solve 60 drug-related crimes in first half of 2020 (Global Times)
2020-08-04
Beijing police have solved over 60 drug-related crimes from the beginning of this year until July, local police told the Global Times on Monday. Some 80 suspects have been arrested, and over 300 drug abusers inspected. A total of 9.3 kilograms of various types of drugs have been seized by police. In July, Beijing police received a tip-off concerning a batch of drugs about to be transferred in an eastern suburb of Beijing. They quickly conducted an investigation into the case and launched an operation, seizing 6.2 kilograms of drugs packed in wine bottles at a highway service area. Three suspects were later detained in a cross-provincial arrest. Another case of drug trafficking was reported by local residents living in a northern district of Beijing in mid-July. A man surnamed Lu was put under surveillance and police soon discovered his drug trafficking routes and areas. Lu was arrested with 122 grams of drugs seized at the scene on July 17, and is now under police detention. Three local drug gangs have been dismantled in the first half of this year, Beijing police told the Global Times on Monday. Beijing police have solved over 60 drug-related crimes from the beginning of this year until July, with a total of 9.3 kilograms of various types of drugs seized by police. Photo: courtesy of Beijing police. Last year, Beijing reported over 900 drug-related crimes in total, arresting some 5,000 people and seizing 70 kilograms of various types of drugs, local authorities revealed. A cross-border cocaine trafficking case, originating in South America and going through Beijing to Hong Kong and Southeast Asia, was busted in September 2018 by the Beijing police, with a total of 24 kilograms of cocaine seized. According to data from the 2019 China Drug Report, nationwide drug-related crimes stood at 83,000 last year. Over 113,000 suspects were arrested, 65 tons of drugs seized, and 617,000 drug abusers inspected. The main sources of drugs include the Golden Triangle (the area that overlaps Thailand, Laos, and Myanmar), Southwest Asia, and Latin America. Imports of meth crystals and ketamine have risen sharply, occupying a leading position in China's drug market. ^ top ^
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| Shanghai |
Shanghai outlet stores see growing sales amid epidemic (Xinhua)
2020-08-07
Outlet stores in Shanghai have become one of the retail sector's bright spots amid the epidemic, reporting an average monthly sales growth of over 30 percent year on year since March. Shanghai Village, an outlet located in the Shanghai International Resort, has seen an increasing passenger flow since it reopened in early March and a monthly sales growth of over 50 percent year on year. With global travel disrupted by the COVID-19 epidemic, outlets have emerged as new tourist attractions, according to Catherine Edme, Retail Operations Director of Shanghai Village. An open space with beautiful scenery with Shanghai characteristics, Shanghai Village is seen not only as a shopping center, but also as a scenic spot where consumers can relax and entertain themselves, said Edme, adding that many families in Shanghai choose to spend their weekends there. The suspension of global travel has also helped channel pent-up customer demand into outlet stores at home, industry insiders said. To attract more customers, Shanghai Fashion Center, an urban outlet in the Yangpu District, has opened a market for imported products, such as French wine, beef from northern Europe and rice from Hokkaido, Japan. The outlet will be taking further steps to make consumers spend more in Shanghai, including keeping prices competitive and bringing in more overseas brands, said Wang Lu, general manager of Shanghai Fashion Center. ^ top ^
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| Guangdong |
China tech titan Shenzhen should get higher status amid Greater Bay Area push, academics say (SCMP)
2020-08-06
Academics from a top Chinese research institute have proposed upgrading Shenzhen and three other cities to centrally administered municipalities, similar to top-tier metropolises such as Beijing and Shanghai. In an article published in the July issue of the journal Bulletin of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, the authors said that adjustments to administrative divisions should be made as the country continued its urbanisation and economic push. "We should support Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei development, Greater Bay Area development, Yangtze River Delta and other strategic schemes," wrote the two academics from the Key Laboratory of Regional Sustainable Development Modelling at the Chinese Academy of Sciences. Specific suggestions include designating Shenzhen, the eastern cities of Qingdao and Dalian, and Kashgar in the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region as centrally administered municipalities. The article also proposed expanding administrative rights for cities including Chengdu, Wuhan and Nanjing. "Repetitive construction and ferocious competition between different administrative regions commonly exist, and adjustment of these relations will directly impact competition, allocation and cooperation in these areas," the article said. Setting up municipalities and flattening the management structure would improve administrative efficiency and resource allocation, it argued. At present, Shenzhen had a lower administrative status and was under the purview of Guangdong province, said Hu Gang, director of the Urban Research Institute of South China, a Guangzhou think tank. "If Shenzhen became a municipality, it would gain greater policy support and more resources, such as budget directly from the central government, as well as investment projects," he said. An elevation of the city's status would also give Shenzhen a boost in the Greater Bay Area development plan, because it would be seen as having a leading role with similar clout to that of Guangzhou, Hong Kong and Macau. If Shenzhen did become a centrally administered municipality, its leader would have the same rank as the Communist Party secretary of Guangdong and be more senior than the Guangzhou party chief. The development plan is aimed at turning nine mainland Pearl River Delta cities, together with Hong Kong and Macau, into a vibrant and thriving technology and manufacturing hub that can rival Silicon Valley and Tokyo Bay. China has four centrally administered municipalities: capital city Beijing, the eastern economic hub of Shanghai, Tianjin in the northeast, and Chongqing in the southwest. Besides the four centrally administered municipalities, China controls 22 provinces, five autonomous regions including Xinjiang and Tibet, and the two special administrative regions of Hong Kong and Macau. The administrative framework, formed in the 1960s when China was a predominantly agricultural society, needs adjustment to meet the needs of changing times, according to Hu. "The development of Chinese cities has always been linked with administrative resources," he said. However, such a policy change may not be implemented swiftly. Since news of the proposal emerged, Wang Kaiyong, one of the authors, has clarified to the Southern Metropolis News on Tuesday that "the article is purely academic research, just [our] opinion, and it is not national policy or established on the basis of existing policy". The idea of Shenzhen getting such a boost surfaces every few years, and has been a hot topic of discussion among grass-roots organisations and individuals. Beijing-based independent political economist Hu Xingdou has been writing publicly since 2007 about the case for upgrading Shenzhen's status to at least a "junior municipality". "When Chongqing became a centrally administered municipality [in 1997], and when Hainan became a province [in 1988], they had roused high tides of development," he wrote. Such adjustment would enhance innovation development, improve administrative efficiency through the decentralisation of power, and help speed up economic development, he has argued. In 2015, a report by the Shanghai Academy of Social Sciences that called for readjustment of the administrative regions also suggested upgrading Shenzhen, Qingdao and Dalian to centrally administered municipalities, to be managed directly through the State Council, China's cabinet. There is already no shortage of development schemes and projects that could bolster Shenzhen's growth. Besides the Greater Bay Area scheme, the city has also benefited from the completion of the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge, high-speed trains linking the city with China's massive railway network, and dozens of infrastructure, education and scientific research projects. The latest addition is a 474.1 billion yuan (US$67.9 billion) investment plan to improve intercity rail connections by building 775km (480 miles) of intercity railway links and five transport hubs in the Greater Bay Area region. ^ top ^
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| Xinjiang |
China urges U.S. to withdraw Xinjiang-related sanctions (Xinhua)
2020-08-04
China on Monday urged the United States to immediately withdraw its wrong decision of imposing sanctions on the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps and two relevant officials, vowing to "resolutely fight back" if the U.S. side is bent on behaving like this. Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin made the remarks in response to relevant U.S. move, and a recent statement by U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo criticizing China's Xinjiang policy. "The U.S. action is a gross interference in China's internal affairs and a grave violation of basic norms governing international relations. China firmly opposes and strongly condemns it," Wang told a daily press briefing. He said Xinjiang-related issues are never about human rights, ethnicity or religion, but about counter-terrorism and anti-separatism. "Xinjiang affairs are purely China's internal affairs. The United States has no right and no ground to interfere." Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps has made important contributions to promoting Xinjiang's development, ethnic unity, social stability and border security, living in harmony with all ethnic groups as a friendly and supportive companion, said Wang. "The U.S. allegation is nothing but rumor-mongering and mud-slinging." The Chinese government is resolute in upholding its sovereignty, security and development interests, in fighting violent terrorist, separatist and religious extremist forces, and in opposing any foreign interference in Xinjiang affairs and China's other internal affairs, Wang said. While commenting on Pompeo's recent accusation about so-called "surveillance" against ethnic minorities in Xinjiang, Wang said the allegation has no factual basis at all. "It is a common international practice to use modern scientific and technological products and big data to improve social governance, and the United States is no exception. The installation of cameras in public places in accordance with law in Xinjiang does not target any specific ethnicity and it aims to improve social governance and prevent and fight crimes. This measure has been widely supported by people of all ethnic groups as it makes the society safer, he said. "Speaking of surveillance, the United States has long been criticized for its massive surveillance using high-techs," Wang said. According to a report released by Georgetown University, half of American adults, or more than 117 million people, are enrolled in a law enforcement face recognition network, and African Americans are most likely to be singled out, he said. Moreover, relevant U.S. agencies have long been conducting massive, organized and indiscriminate cyber theft, surveillance and attacks against foreign governments, companies and individuals in breach of international law and basic norms of international relations, Wang said. "This has been a well-known fact to all." Pompeo and his likes' remarks are "nothing better than malicious slanders," Wang said. "Such attempt to sabotage prosperity and stability in Xinjiang and seek pretext to have a hand in China's internal affairs is doomed to fail." ^ top ^
'Independent' observation based on lies in Xinjiang unaccepted (Global Times)
2020-08-03
China will not accept so-called independent observation of human rights in Northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region as it is only some countries' trick to crack down against countries who are different from theirs and it will not bring justice but only indulge those rumor-mongers, the Chinese Embassy in France said Sunday in response to France's recent suggestion of a UN-led observer mission to evaluate the treatment of the Uygurs in Xinjiang. In a BBC interview with a Uygur woman named Zumrat Dawut [in July], the latter claimed she was "detained in re-education camp" and "her father died recently from unclear reason during detention by the Xinjiang government." But the fact is she never studied in any vocational education and training center in Xinjiang and her father stayed with the family until he died on October 12, 2019 of heart disease, according to the embassy. She also claimed she was forced to undergo a hysterectomy. But the fact is that she gave birth to a third child at a hospital in Urumqi in Xinjiang in 2013, and the hospital gave her a Caesarean section and tubal ligation and never removed her uterus, the embassy said. What Zumrat Dawut said are all lies and one of her brothers has publicly called on her to stop telling lies, the embassy noted. After the report, France joined the US and the UK in criticizing China over the human rights of Uygurs in Xinjiang. On July 28, French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian called for a UN-led observer mission to evaluate the treatment of the group, media reported. A so-called "international independent observation" based on lies will not lead to justice but indulgence and encouragement to rumor-mongers, the embassy said in a statement released on its website. Those people care nothing about the human rights of Uygurs but only aim to defame and smear China and make trouble for China, the embassy noted. Such tricks can be found everywhere in history. What would your country do if some people faked a rumor about your country and called for an "international independent observation" based on it? You may accept one such investigation, but what if rumor-mongers make up 10 or 100 more lies and call for investigations, read the embassy's statement. We propose an investigation into these rumors and lies rather than into China, the embassy said. The embassy stressed that China welcomes foreigners to visit and learn about the real Xinjiang and always holds an open attitude to UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet's visit to Xinjiang, welcoming her to make equal communication without making presuppositions rather than conducting a so-called observation as China is not guilty. Since 2018, more than 1,000 diplomats, international organization officials, journalists and religious leaders have visited Xinjiang and admitted that what they saw in the region is absolutely different from what Western media depicted. ^ top ^
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| Hongkong |
Hong Kong Immigration Dep't refuses to explain months-long work visa delays for journalists (HKFP)
2020-08-07
Hong Kong's Immigration Department has dodged questions over the months-long delays in issuing work visas to journalists, refusing to state how long applicants and media outlets might be expected to wait. On Thursday, the Foreign Correspondents' Club said that highly unusual processing delays have "affected journalists of multiple nationalities and in some cases have prevented journalists from working." In response to a series of questions from HKFP last week, a spokesperson said in an emailed response that the department does not keep statistics on visa processing times and would not comment on individual cases. They said that, when considering applications, they "will consider the circumstances of the case and act in accordance with the laws and immigration policies." The spokesperson did not answer questions as to whether Beijing was now overseeing the processing of visas for journalists, nor did they reply when asked how long applicants or employers could be expected to wait. "Routine applications for extension of stay will normally be finalised within two to three weeks upon receipt of all necessary documents. The actual processing time of each application depends on its own merits and circumstances," they said. The department made no mention of any coronavirus-related backlog and HKFP is aware of work visas that have been granted to applicants in sectors other than the media. Multiple international outlets have bases in Hong Kong including The New York Times, AFP, CNN, the Wall Street Journal, Bloomberg and the Financial Times. The press club urged the authorities to explain the delays after several outlets reported issues: "The FCC opposes using journalists' visas as a weapon in international disputes and also opposes taking action against journalists for the decisions made by their home countries," they said. Hong Kong does not issue journalism visas. Unlike in China – any company can apply for a business visa to hire foreigners if certain skills are unavailable in the local workforce. Last month, the New York Times announced that it would shift a third of its workforce in Hong Kong to South Korea after their correspondent Chris Buckley was denied a visa. It comes during a tit-for-tat dispute between the US and China over visa issuance. There is added concern in Hong Kong over press freedom following the enactment of the controversial security law in June. Chief Executive Carrie Lam said last month she will only give guarantees about press freedom to the FCC if they also give "a 100 per cent guarantee that they will not commit any offences under this piece of national legislation." The issuance of visas for journalists first became politicised in 2016. HKFP revealed that the Financial Times' journalist Victor Mallet was refused a visa extension after he chaired a talk with a pro-independence advocate at the FCC. He was then banned from Hong Kong entirely. ^ top ^
Commissioner's office of Chinese foreign ministry in HKSAR urges Foreign Correspondents' Club to distinguish right from wrong (Xinhua)
2020-08-07
The Office of the Commissioner of the Chinese Foreign Ministry in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) on Thursday refuted a statement of the Foreign Correspondents' Club (FCC) in Hong Kong and urged the FCC to distinguish right from wrong. The United States, while proclaiming itself as a champion of the freedom of the press, has been ramping up political suppression on Chinese media out of its Cold War mentality and ideological bias, which laid bare its hypocrisy, double standards and hegemonic bullying, a spokesperson of the commissioner's office said. Given the U.S. action, China will be compelled to take necessary countermeasures to safeguard its rights and interests, the spokesperson said, stressing it is the United States that caused the situation and should be solely responsible for it. Hong Kong is part of China and the central government has the diplomatic authority to take countermeasures, the spokesperson said. The national security law in the HKSAR makes it clear that the freedoms of speech, the press and publication of Hong Kong residents will be protected, and the HKSAR government has also reiterated that the law will not erode the institutions that underpin Hong Kong's success as an international city, including the freedoms of expression and the press, and the free flow of information, the spokesperson said. The spokesperson stressed that any freedom should be exercised within legal boundaries, and media outlets are not free from law anywhere in the world. The spokesperson expressed firm opposition to external interference in Hong Kong affairs and China's internal affairs as a whole on the pretext of the freedom of the press. ^ top ^
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| Macau |
China's Macao university develops intelligent system to distinguish COVID-19 from common pneumonia (People's Daily)
2020-08-05
Researchers from the University of Macao of China's Macao Special Administrative Region and institutions in central China's Hubei Province have worked together to develop an intelligent system to distinguish pneumonia caused by the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) from other common pneumonia, said the university Tuesday. The new system, developed by Prof. Wong Pak Kin in the Faculty of Science and Technology, and his doctoral student Yan Tao in the Department of Electromechanical Engineering, can tell COVID-19 from other common pneumonia at a speed nearly 60 times faster than radiologists, the University of Macao said in a press release. They had worked with researchers at institutions in Hubei Province to collect data on 206 confirmed COVID-19 patients and their 416 chest computed tomography (CT) scans, as well as data on 412 patients with non-COVID-19 pneumonia and their 412 chest CT scans. Based on these CT images, the researchers developed an automatic diagnosis system based on a multi-scale convolutional neural network. The verification results have shown that with a limited amount of data, the intelligent diagnosis system can successfully distinguish COVID-19-caused pneumonia from other common pneumonia. CT diagnosis has a very high degree of accuracy and can provide more clinical information for COVID-19 detection and diagnosis. But the large number of scan images and lengthy time for manual identification bring big challenge for radiologists. The related research paper titled "Automatic Distinction between COVID-19 and Common Pneumonia using Multi-Scale Convolutional Neural Network on Chest CT Scans" has been published by the international science journal Chaos, Solitons & Fractals in its latest issue. ^ top ^
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| Taiwan |
DPP criticized over obstructing mainland students' return to Taiwan for study (Xinhua)
2020-08-06
A Chinese mainland spokesperson on Thursday denounced Taiwan's Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) authority for obstructing mainland students from returning to the island to continue their studies. Ma Xiaoguang, a spokesman for the State Council Taiwan Affairs Office, said this has severely harmed the legitimate rights and interests of the students. Since the outbreak of COVID-19, the mainland has supported its students in safeguarding their legitimate rights and interests, and helped them solve problems in returning to Taiwan for study, Ma said. He added that out of selfish political interests, the DPP authority deliberately adopted discriminatory practices against mainland students and repeatedly obstructed them from returning to the island for study. The DPP authority's moves to create confrontation across the Taiwan Strait have been criticized on the island, Ma said, urging the DPP to face up to the public opinions and protect the mainland students' legitimate rights and interests to continue their studies in Taiwan. ^ top ^
Several Taiwan lawmakers detained for graft probe (People's Daily)
2020-08-05
A Taipei court on Tuesday afternoon granted a prosecutors' request to detain three lawmakers involved in a bribery case after a two-day hearing. The Taipei District Court agreed to detain Su Chen-ching, a lawmaker of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), as well as Chen Chao-ming and Liao Kuo-tung of the Kuomintang. The court also ordered former New Power Party lawmaker Hsu Yung-ming to be released on bail. Another former DPP lawmaker, Mark Chen, who was implicated in the same graft case, was released on bail on Friday. According to the prosecutors, the three lawmakers and two former lawmakers were suspected of taking bribes in an enterprise ownership dispute. ^ top ^
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| Economy |
China Exempts Foreign Banks From Massive Loan Relief Push (Caixin)
2020-08-07
Small businesses in China are being told by their foreign banks that loan extensions mandated by the government no longer apply to them as the nation dials back one of the relief measures unleashed after the coronavirus lockdown. In a notice to foreign lenders operating in the jurisdiction of Shanghai, China's banking regulator said those banks won't need to extend loan relief to small and medium-sized companies, according to people familiar with the decision who asked not to be named discussing a private decision. The measure applies throughout the country, one of the people said. Business lending in China is dominated by local banks, ensuring that the government's lending relief program will continue for most enterprises. The local branch of the China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission couldn't immediately comment. The move clarifies that foreign lenders aren't part of a May extension to the relief program as the coronavirus outbreak eases and the world's second-largest economy gets back on its feet. The program provides a reprieve on trillions of yuan of troubled loans through March next year by mandating that domestic lenders extend principal and interest payments. "As the economy is recovering, regulators are more flexible," said Chen Hao, a Shanghai-based senior analyst at CIB Research. "To start with foreign banks is a good idea given the scale of their loans are rather small." Policymakers have been juggling between supporting the economy and managing risks from rolling over bad debt. At a meeting Monday, the People's Bank of China said it will keep up support for smaller businesses, but relief policies should not come with hard rules. It also pledged to allow commercial banks to manage their own operations. China's $41 trillion banking system is at the forefront of propping up businesses hurt by the virus outbreak. Relief measures and changes to how bad loans are classified have so far limited a jump in bad debt. S&P Global estimated in May that the nation could face an $8 trillion jump in nonperforming loans this year, doubling to almost 10% of the total. Foreign lenders will also be exempted from sending their loan extension data to regulators as of July, the people said. In May, Premier Li Keqiang said in his annual policy address that small and medium-sized businesses can delay their interest and principal payments for nine months to the end of March 2021, extending an original deadline of June 30. The authorities also said big commercial banks will be required to expand lending to smaller enterprises by more than 40% this year, a more aggressive target than last year's 30%. ^ top ^
China to boost smart infrastructure in transport sector (Xinhua)
2020-08-06
China will promote the construction of new infrastructure projects in the transport industry, aiming to advance the sector's transformation toward digitalization and intelligence, according to a guideline issued by the Ministry of Transport on Thursday. By 2035, China aims to achieve remarkable results in the field, with advanced information technology playing a key role in empowering transport infrastructure, the document said. The country will set up data centers and network security systems for the sector, while gradually promoting the application of smart trains, self-driving vehicles, and smart ships. Vowing to expand the application of new energy and new materials, the guideline also put forward building smart roads, intelligent railways, smart ports, and civil aviation, among others. By using blockchain technology, China will intensify whole-chain oversight on electronic documents, online businesses, and hazardous substances, according to the guideline. ^ top ^
Apple Takes Down Over 30,000 Apps from China Store Amid Government Crackdown (Caixin)
2020-08-03
Apple kicked more than 30,000 apps off its Chinese App Store on Saturday, including over 26,600 games, possibly in response to a Chinese policy requiring paid games or games offering in-app purchases to obtain a government license before publication, according to statistics provided by research firm Qimai. The crackdown puts an end to the previous practice of allowing developers to sell games on the Chinese App Store while they were awaiting government approval, as Chinese regulators tighten their grip on apps which they deem could be used to spread "sensitive" content and the government increases efforts to combat gaming addiction. Early signs of Apple's purge appeared in February, when the U.S. company asked developers to submit government licenses for their paid games and games with in-app purchases before June 30. In July, Apple extended the deadline to July 31, at which point developers would be banned from continuing to operate on the Chinese App Store if they failed to submit such licenses. Some industry experts said that the rule, which has been enforced by China's major Android app store since 2016, is expected to take a toll on small game developers, some of which could switch their revenue model to in-app advertising to steer clear of the approval process which is long and complex. As of Saturday, about 179,000 games remained on the Chinese App Store, of which some 160,000 were free, according to Qimai. ^ top ^
China's central bank pledges continued opening-up of financial industry (Xinhua)
2020-08-04
The People's Bank of China (PBOC), the central bank, said Monday that it will resolutely push forward the opening-up of the country's financial industry in a sound and orderly manner. Measures announced to open up China's financial sector will continue to be implemented, the PBOC said in a video conference on its work in the second half of 2020. It will promote a full implementation of the foreign investment administration model of pre-establishment national treatment plus negative list, advance the internationalization of the renminbi and capital account convertibility in a proactive and sound manner, and unify the foreign exchange management policies applied in the opening-up of China's bond market. The central bank said it will be deeply involved in global financial governance and safeguard multilateralism. Noting that its policies in the first half of the year facilitated a speedy recovery of the national economy amid COVID-19, the PBOC said it will pursue a more flexible and appropriate monetary policy, making it more targeted, and effectively implement policies aimed at helping enterprises tide over difficulties and ensuring employment in the second half. The central bank also pledged to use a variety of monetary-policy tools to enable M2 money supply and aggregate financing to grow at notably higher rates than last year, while promoting a substantial growth in the inclusive loans to small and micro businesses and medium- and long-term loans to the manufacturing industry. Efforts will be made to leverage a 1 trillion yuan (143 billion U.S. dollars) re-lending and rediscount quota and the policy instruments introduced in June to directly channel funds into the real economy and extend support to as many virus-hit micro and small companies as possible, the PBOC said. The central bank also said it will advance the research and development of a legal digital currency in a proactive and sound manner. ^ top ^
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| DPRK |
DPRK's ruling party holds meeting on new department (China Daily)
2020-08-06
Kim Jong-un, top leader of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), presided over a meeting of the Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK) on Wednesday to establish a new division and improve the party's functions, official media reported Thursday. The Fourth Meeting of the Executive Policy Council of the Seventh WPK Central Committee discussed the issue of setting up a new department within the Central Committee and the ways to improve the party's personnel affairs system, the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported. It did not give further details about the new department. At the meeting, "Kim Jong-un called upon the members of the Executive Policy Council to decisively improve the work of the fields in their charge by displaying high sense of responsibility and devotion," according to the KCNA report. Members at the meeting also heard a report on the anti-epidemic work and the situation in Kaesong City, which is completely locked down under the state's maximum emergency system, and decided to provide special supply of food and funds to the city to stabilize the living of its citizens, the report said. Kim placed Kaesong near the border with South Korea under total lockdown on July 25 after a person there was found with suspected COVID-19 symptoms, though the official media said a few days later that no confirmed case was reported in the country. Currently, Kaesong is still under lockdown, with "the maximum emergency system" being carried out in the whole country to stem the epidemic. ^ top ^
China expresses indignation over leak of UN draft report on DPRK (People's Daily)
2020-08-05
China on Tuesday expressed indignation and concern over the leak of a confidential UN draft report on the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK). "China notes that the 2020 Midterm Report drafted by the Panel of Experts of the Security Council 1718 Committee has been leaked to the media and caused unfounded media hypes. China expresses indignation and concern on this issue," the spokesperson for the Permanent Mission of China to the United Nations said. "The previous reports of the panel were also leaked, and some member states including China expressed concerns. China requests the Secretariat to take this issue seriously and avoid leakage in the future," the spokesperson said. "China has been completely and strictly implementing DPRK-related resolutions of the Security Council, and faithfully fulfilling its international obligations. To that end, China has sustained huge losses and made tremendous sacrifice," the spokesperson said. "China will continue to work towards dialogue and detente, advance political settlement process, and play a positive and constructive role on working towards denuclearization of the peninsula and lasting peace and stability in the region," the spokesperson stressed. The Security Council's sanctions committee on the DPRK, called the 1718 Sanctions Committee, was established in 2006 by Resolution 1718 in response to the DPRK's first nuclear test and other nuclear proliferation activities. ^ top ^
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| Mongolia |
State Secretary of Foreign Ministry meets Chinese Ambassador (Montsame)
2020-08-06
State Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs N.Ankhbayar met today with Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the People's Republic of China to Mongolia Chai Wenrui. Ambassador Chai Wenrui congratulated State Secretary N.Ankhbayar on his appointment and wished a success in his future endeavors. Thanking the Ambassador, State Secretary N.Ankhbayar expressed his commitment to actively cooperate with the Ambassador and the Embassy staff to deepen and enrich Mongolia-China Comprehensive Strategic Partnership and expand cooperation between the two Ministries of Foreign Affairs. Furthermore, they exchanged view on bilateral relations and international and regional cooperation. ^ top ^
Mongolia-China Strategic Dialogue held virtually (Montsame)
2020-08-05
The 5th Strategic Dialogue between the Ministries of Foreign Affairs of Mongolia and the People's Republic of China was successfully held virtually today, August 5. The virtual meeting was chaired by Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Mongolia B.Munkhjin and Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs of China Luo Zhaohui. The Strategic Dialogue is organized annually between the Ministries of Foreign Affairs at the Deputy and Vice-Ministerial level to review the development of bilateral relations, discusses short-term goals and major events, and exchanges views on regional and international cooperation. At the beginning of the meeting, the sides reaffirmed that the two sides attach great importance to the sustainable development of Mongolia-China relations and pledged their active cooperation to further deepen the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership. Noting that the mutual assistance and emotional support provided by the two governments and its people during the joint fight against the COVID-19 pandemic was an important impetus for strengthening mutual understanding and trust, the sides stressed that further deepening of bilateral and multilateral cooperation will play an important role in tackling the pandemic. The two sides agreed to maintain the frequency of talks at all levels, hold high-level reciprocal visits when the current situation turns the corner, and hold meetings of key mechanisms of bilateral cooperation in an appropriate manner in order to develop bilateral cooperation sustainably. Introducing the goals set by the Government of Mongolia to ensure sustainable economic development, Deputy Minister B.Munkhjin noted the importance of increasing trade turnover between the two countries as much as possible and revitalizing economic and investment cooperation at a time when the economies of the countries around the world is facing hardships due to the pandemic. Vice Minister Luo Zhaohui said that China would continue to take measures for boosting trade and economic cooperation such as the implementation of "Green Gateway", a temporary regulation, and expressed its commitment to provide potential supports to increase the trade turnover between the two countries. Furthermore, the sides exchanged views on advancing specific Mongolian-Russian-Chinese trilateral cooperation projects and on international and regional issues of mutual interest. ^ top ^
China to provide CNY 600 million as non-refundable aid to Mongolia (Montsame)
2020-08-03
The People's Republic of China has resolved to provide a non-refundable aid of CNY 600 million to Mongolia for the procurement of border inspection equipment. Letters of exchange of the project has been signed by Minister of Finance Ch.Khurelbaatar and Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the People's Republic of China to Mongolia Chai Wenrui, on behalf of their respective countries. Minister Ch.Khurelbaatar emphasized that the project is a timely aid for the procurement of the necessary equipment for the inspection at the country's border crossings and stressed the importance of the significant contribution of the project to detect and halt potential illegal activities at the borders and customs. He also noted that it is a project of high economic and social significance to develop trade and economic relations between the two countries and accelerate the foreign trade turnover of our country. Moreover, the Minister said that the procurement of inspection equipment will improve border and customs operations and create favorable conditions for the development of foreign trade, emphasizing that this is a major step forward in China's "Belt and Road" initiative. Present at the signing ceremony were State Secretary of the Ministry of Finance S.Narantsogt, Director of the Mongolian Customs General Administration B.Asralt, Minister Counsellor of the Embassy of the People's Republic of China Yang Qingdong, Commercial and Economic Counsellor Sun Xuejun and other corresponding officials. ^ top ^
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Pascal Wanner
Embassy of Switzerland
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