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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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Swiss Centers China signs agreement to attend 4th CIIE (China Daily)
2021-03-30
Swiss Centers China signed an agreement on Thursday indicating that it would participate in the fourth China International Import Expo to be held in Shanghai from Nov 5 to 10. Felix Sutter, president of the Swiss-Chinese Chamber of Commerce，said that more Swiss small- and medium-sized enterprises have shown a keen interest in the CIIE and he hopes that Swiss exhibitors can achieve greater results through the expo. According to Kuno Gschwend, deputy general manager of Swiss Centers China, more high-quality and competitive food, agricultural products and consumer goods will be showcased at Swiss booths during the fourth CIIE. "The economic and trade cooperation between China and Switzerland has shown positive momentum. The two sides have been in line with the principle of complementary advantages and mutual benefits," said Liu Fuxue, deputy director-general of the CIIE Bureau. Nearly 60 Swiss companies, including Nestle and ABB, participated in the third CIIE. The total exhibition area occupied by Swiss companies measured 12,000 square meters at the third edition, according to Liu. "The reform and opening-up of China will provide countries across the world, including Switzerland, with a larger market and increasing opportunities. We encourage Swiss companies to make full use of the CIIE to introduce more Swiss products to the Chinese customers," Liu added. ^ top ^
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| Foreign Policy |
China to face 'protracted war' on human rights with US (Global Times)
2021-04-01
In the week that saw the commencement of the trial of the former Minneapolis police officer accused in the death of George Floyd, which triggered sweeping nationwide protests in the US in the summer of 2020 over deeply rooted racial inequality, the US Department of State released its annual "country human rights" report, lambasting other countries' human rights records including China's Xinjiang policy. The US, whose failed COVID-19 response resulted in the world's highest COVID-19 death toll, has no right to grade other countries' human rights records, Chinese observers said. The Biden administration released the report to polish its image and obscure their failed handling of the COVID-19 pandemic and racial inequality, which would only further intensify its domestic conflicts, the observers noted. They warned that if the US continues swinging the stick of sanctions at China over its domestic affairs, including Xinjiang and Hong Kong, China will firmly hit back with countermeasures. In the 2020 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices released on Tuesday, the US accused China of committing "genocide and crimes against humanity" against Uygurs in Northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. Although US Secretary of State Antony Blinken had previously accused China of "genocide," the language in the report was described by some Western media as the "first time the Biden administration had made an official declaration." In response, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying said at Wednesday's media briefing that the US arbitrarily alleged "genocide" in Xinjiang based on lies and false information from some anti-China forces, which is an absurd lie of the century, a grave insult to the Chinese people, and a severe trampling on international law and the basic norms governing international relations. "The US has no right to accuse China over human rights. It's time for some US politicians to end the drama they made up, directed and performed themselves, and it's time for them to wake up from their own Truman Show," Hua said. Lü Xiang, a research fellow on US studies at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, told the Global Times on Wednesday that weaponizing human rights has been a US strategy to deal with China for decades. Though their accusations of Xinjiang are complete lies, "you cannot wake a person who is pretending to be asleep," Lü said, noting the proverb also applies to the US' domestic governance. Blinken admitted on Tuesday that the US has work to do "at home," including "systemic racism," but he said: "We don't pretend these problems don't exist or try to sweep them under the rug. We don't ignore them." It seems that Blinken is attempting to separate human rights issues in the US from accusations it pinned on other countries, which exactly showed US' double standards in human rights, analysts said. Jia Chunyang, an expert from the China Institutes of Contemporary International Relations, told the Global Times on Wednesday that Biden has always adopted a tough stance on human rights issue, and using the term "genocide" in its human rights report means the US' hawkish strategy toward China will not ease during Biden's term. The US may take more actions on issues of Tibet and Hong Kong, Jia said. Lü pointed out that addressing racism has become a customary slogan for US politicians, but they have neither the capability nor the willingness to really solve the problem. In contrast, those politicians tried to pump up their image in front of Americans and blur the domestic focus on governance failures by smearing and discrediting other countries, Lü said, citing the Trump administration's attacks on China over coronavirus origins as an example. Washington's attitude will further poison US domestic political environment and encourage ordinary people to vent their anger on ethnic minorities, the expert said. The Biden administration is facing a 20-year high in numbers of migrants arriving at its southern border, including some 5,000 children. According to Western media reports, the children were kept in detention facilities that were criticized as inhumane and were described as "concentration camps" by American and Chinese net users. Just before the US released its report, China's State Council Information Office issued a full report on human rights violations in the US in 2020 on March 24, with Chinese analysts saying the report reveals an inevitable declining trend in human rights in the US. The 15,000-Chinese-character document details facts regarding Washington's incompetent pandemic containment leading to tragic outcomes, American democracy's disorder that has triggered political chaos, ethnic minorities suffering racial discrimination, continuous social unrest threatening public security, growing polarization between the rich and the poor, aggravating social inequality, and the US trampling on international rules resulting in humanitarian disasters, the Xinhua News Agency reported. By the end of February 2021, the US, home to less than 5 percent of the world's population, accounted for more than a quarter of the world's confirmed COVID-19 cases and nearly one-fifth of global deaths from the disease. More than 500,000 Americans lost their lives due to the virus, according to the report. The impact of attacking China over human rights is far-reaching, as it will undermine mutual trust between China and the US, which is the basis for cooperation in any other field, Jia said. Counter possible US sanctions Apart from Xinjiang, the report also slandered China over the Hong Kong issue, which Blinken described as the "quashing of democracy" in Hong Kong as he released the report. Blinken said that the US will "use a broad range of other tools to stop abuses and hold perpetrators to account," and one way is by working with Congress, which has passed laws allowing sanctions on human rights violators. Blinken mentioned the Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act that was signed into law in 2019. If the US insists on stirring up troubles over Xinjiang, Hong Kong and other topics, China will fight to the end. Sanctions on Chinese officials and entities will receive reciprocal countermeasures, while if the US Congress passes acts allowing economic sanctions, China will fight back firmly, Lü said. The US and its Western allies will not stop using human rights to accumulate political capital, and will not stop smearing China, for which China should get prepared for a "protracted war," Lü said. "Western countries have economic strength and louder voices, but that does not mean they represent the majority of the international community," Jia said, citing that more than 80 countries expressed clear support for China's Xinjiang policies at the UN human rights council. China in the meantime could take a greater initiative in international human rights arena and more actively promote our own human rights discourse and values so that international society would learn about China's true human rights value, observers said, and they noted that China could make more countries understand that the discourse of human rights is not just based on Western standards, but is pluralistic, multicultural and multi-ethnic. ^ top ^
ASEAN FMs' China visit expected to help overcome regional challenges, external pressure (Global Times)
2021-04-01
China and ASEAN are going to overcome challenges like COVID-19 and seek solutions for regional problems like the Myanmar unrest together, as four key members of ASEAN - Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore and the Philippines - have sent their foreign ministers to jointly visit Beijing from Wednesday to Friday. Following the trip made by Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi to the Middle East, China has been conducting diplomacy in recent days, and after the three-day visit made by the four foreign ministers of ASEAN key member states, China will receive South Korean Foreign Minister Chung Eui-yong from Friday to Saturday. Some observers said China's frequent diplomatic activities have become a countermeasure to US pressure in the region against China, but Chinese analysts said Chinese diplomacy is not driven by any third party, and the dialogue and cooperation between China and its partners are based on their demand. China's diplomatic style is different from that of the US. The US frequently uses regional conflicts or disputes to create problems and instability, so it could legitimize its presence in the regions and even military intervention and arms sales, said Li Haidong, a professor at the Institute of International Relations of the China Foreign Affairs University. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying said on Tuesday, "At the invitation of the Chinese foreign minister, Singaporean Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan, Malaysian Foreign Minister Hishammuddin bin Tun Hussein, Indonesian Foreign Minister Retno L. P. Marsudi and Philippine Foreign Minister Teodoro Locsin will visit China from March 31 to April 2." "This year marks the 30th anniversary of the dialogue relations between China and ASEAN, and our friendly exchanges will move toward greater maturity," Hua said at a routine press conference on Tuesday. Xu Liping, director of the Center for Southeast Asian Studies at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, told the Global Times on Wednesday that "these four countries have significant influence in ASEAN. They are the brains, the guardians and key promoters for cooperation in the bloc. So they will discuss strategic level issues including how to upgrade China-ASEAN ties after the 30th anniversary, COVID-19 vaccines, regional economic recovery and reopening." Since COVID-19 broke out last year, China and Southeast Asian countries have maintained close high-level communication in a flexible way, witnessing positive progress in anti-epidemic and development cooperation, Hua said. Chinese analysts said the vaccine is the key for regional economic recovery and reopening, but the chance for ASEAN countries and other developing countries to get vaccine from the West is extremely limited, so China is becoming the most reliable and trustworthy provider of the vaccine to these countries. ASEAN members including the four countries, as well as other members like Thailand and Cambodia, have received China's vaccines. Due to the tense situation in Myanmar, based on the noninterference principle held by the ASEAN and China, they will also coordinate with China on the Myanmar unrest and seek solutions together, Xu said. The Myanmar situation is getting more and more dangerous, which provides more excuses for the West to launch interventions, so the difficulty for China and ASEAN to maintain regional stability and noninterference principle has increased, experts said. "Through this visit, China hopes to step up communication with ASEAN countries on the regional and international situation, implement important consensus of the leaders, strengthen strategic mutual trust, deepen anti-epidemic and development cooperation, boost quality BRI (Belt and Road Initiative) cooperation, scale new heights in bilateral relations and China-ASEAN relations, and better safeguard regional peace, stability and development," Hua said. Apart from regional hot spot issues, China and the four countries will also focus on issues including the Code of Conduct of the South China Sea, to continually promote the high-quality cooperation of the BRI and to restart some projects which were suspended due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Xu said. Western countries led by the US have launched sanctions based on disinformation about "human rights violations" in Xinjiang, and the visit of the four foreign ministers, including the foreign minister of Indonesia, a Muslim country with a huge population, will also prove that not only the Middle East countries like Iran and Saudi Arabia support China's stance on Xinjiang, but ASEAN countries also hold friendly and fair stance toward China on the matter, analysts said. "China and ASEAN members normally won't comment on each other's internal affairs. If the ASEAN partners want to learn about the truth on Xinjiang, China will provide the information in a transparent manner. But this is based on mutual respect, rather than disinformation or groundless accusations," Xu said. Li said China and ASEAN are developing their ties based on mutual respect and are trying to make the region more united and development-focused. This is a much more modernized and civilized diplomatic philosophy, while US diplomacy is based on "finding common threats and using alliances to pressure and contain others and create new common threats," which is dangerous. ^ top ^
BBC reporter John Sudworth hides in Taiwan island after Xinjiang individuals plan to sue BBC for fake news (Global Times)
2021-04-01
BBC's Beijing correspondent John Sudworth, who became infamous in China for his many biased stories distorting China's Xinjiang policies and COVID-19 responses, has left the Chinese mainland and is now believed to be hiding in Taiwan island after Xinjiang individuals said they plan to sue BBC for fake news, sources told the Global Times. From stigmatizing China as being the origin of the novel coronavirus to claiming Xinjiang's cotton was "tainted," Sudworth has participated in many of BBC's notorious reports attacking China in recent years. Sudworth's biased reporting started in as early as 2017 when he attacked China's Skynet Project, which actually contributed to maintaining the low crime rate in Chinese society. During his interview with police in Guiyang, Southwest China's Guizhou Province, which was carried out under the name of reporting China's high-tech equipment, he uploaded his facial information to the Skynet Project's "blacklist" and his face was identified seven minutes later. He then twisted his story by concluding that the system was used not to hunt criminals, but to "suppress anti-government voices and monitor dissidents." His coverage of the COVID-19 epidemic and the Xinjiang policy was also full of smears. When interviewing World Health Organization (WHO) China representative Gauden Galea in March 2020, he asked questions in a misleading way while ignoring WHO's recognition of China's efforts in controlling the epidemic. When Galea caught on to his trick, Sudworth tried to pin the blame on China for the global epidemic by editing the interview out of context. Before WHO's international experts came to China for a joint study in January, he put pressure on WHO experts and maliciously incited hostility from the international community to China. Screenshot of the BBC video which falsely labeled an anti-terrorism drill as "human rights violations by China's anti-epidemic authorities." Screenshot of the BBC video which falsely labeled an anti-terrorism drill as "human rights violations by China's anti-epidemic authorities." Banner held by police offiers in footage of BBC video shows that this was in fact an anti-terrorism drill. Banner held by police officers shows that the event was in fact an anti-terrorism drill. In another report, he posted footage, claiming to be evidence of "violent law enforcement and human rights violations by China's anti-epidemic authorities." But in fact the footage was from a previous anti-terrorism drill. His poor handling of the video proved the story had been fabricated. He also tried his best to throw mud at China's Xinjiang policy. In his report on the vocational education training centers in Xinjiang in 2019, he shot an iron gate and fence for his story, and then used horror film music and depressing filters to deliberately create a dark atmosphere. During an interview, he stigmatized the training centers as "re-education camps." Screenshot of the interview with Stephan Wollenstein Screenshot of Sudworth's interview with Stephan Wollenstein, CEO of Volkswagen Group China, during which he raised biased questions In November 2020, Sudworth repeated the same technique by questioning the head of Volkswagen China – the company's CEO in China, Stephan Wollenstein – in the style of an interrogation. After Wollenstein said, "This is something that we specifically checked in Urumqi and I can assure you, we do not have forced labor," Sudworth offered a bizarre argument: "Whenever you have a factory in Xinjiang, no matter where the workers are from, they are helping the Chinese government persecute Uygurs." He also cited the World War II, comparing free and hard-working Uygur workers to Jews who were subjected to forced labor by the Nazis, and pressed the interviewee on why the company still had not left Xinjiang. In December 2020, Sudworth took part in the production of the BBC Xinjiang-related report "China's tainted cotton," which declared the existence of "forced labor" in the cotton industry in Xinjiang, despite the fact that machine picking had already become widespread rather than the extensive use of manual labor, a fact that Chinese officials have clarified repeatedly. Chinese observers said the report shows that Sudworth intended to smear Xinjiang and attempted to disrupt the region's industrial chain so that he could win an award as a human rights defender and gain fame. As a reporter from an established Western media outlet, Sudworth unscrupulously spreads rumors and slanders against China and thought there is no way for the Chinese to get him as a foreign journalist, but he forgot that China is a country under the rule of law and there is a cost for spreading rumors, observers said. A number of individuals in Xinjiang plan to sue BBC for producing fake news, spreading rumors about Xinjiang and slandering China's policy in the region, Xu Guixiang, deputy director of the publicity department of the Communist Party of China Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region Committee, said at a Xinjiang-related press conference held by the Chinese Foreign Ministry in Beijing on March 18. Under the cover of so-called "freedom of the press" and without investigation and verification, the BBC followed the trend and quoted the so-called Xinjiang-related "research report" by pseudo-scholar Adrian Zenz, producing and broadcasting fake news, making irresponsible remarks on Xinjiang-related policies, and spreading rumors and slander, Xu said, noting that the British media outlet has become a platform for the dissemination of Zenz's lies about Xinjiang. Chinese observers predicted that Sudworth may portray himself as suffering "political persecution" and paint himself as a "hero" of Western anti-China opinions who was forced to leave because of his persistence in seeking "justice." However, no matter where he flees to and in what capacity he reports on China, as long as he continues to adhere to ideological bias and continues to churn out false news to attack and smear China, he will not be able to escape righteous condemnation, they said. ^ top ^
Chinese FM touts fruitful Middle East tour, enhanced cooperation with regional countries (People's Daily)
2021-04-01
Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi said on Tuesday that his six-nation tour in the Middle East has achieved the expected goals of enhancing cooperation with regional countries and making China's contribution to peace in the region. Wang made the remarks during an interview as he concluded a week-long Middle East tour that took him to Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Iran, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Oman and Bahrain. He said that his visit achieved rich results, including reaching broad consensuses with the six countries on continuing mutual support over core interests, upholding multilateralism, elevating pragmatic cooperation, enhancing joint anti-pandemic fight, and seeking political solution to hotspot issues in the region. BROAD CONSENSUSES REACHED The Chinese diplomat said that during his visit, he reached broad consensuses over wide-ranging issues with the leaders of the six countries, which all welcomed China to play a bigger role in Middle East affairs. "China and the countries agreed that the sovereign independence and national dignity of all countries should be respected, and independent and diverse ways of development should be promoted," Wang said. They agreed to oppose interfering in other countries' internal affairs and slandering other countries under the guise of human rights, safeguard the international system with the United Nations as the core and the international order based on international law, multilateralism, and international equity and justice, Wang said. The seven countries, he said, vowed to upgrade their practical cooperation within the framework of the Belt and Road Initiative in light of China's construction of a new development paradigm. On the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic, the countries pledged to continue their mutual support and reject politicization of the pandemic and vaccine, Wang said. On the basis of China's successful vaccine cooperation with the UAE, Turkey and Bahrain, China and Mideast countries will continue to explore new patterns of vaccine cooperation, including tripartite cooperation and mutual recognition of health codes, he said. The countries agreed that inclusive dialogue should be advocated in pursuing political settlement of hotspot regional issues, and the two-state solution should be the key for seeking an early, fair and reasonable solution to the Palestinian issue, the Chinese diplomat said. Regarding the Iranian nuclear issue, illegitimate sanctions and long-arm jurisdiction should be lifted as soon as possible, and compliance to the Iranian nuclear deal, or the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), should be resumed in an orderly manner with synchronization and reciprocity, he said. China and the six countries also agreed to explore the establishment of a regional dialogue platform to maintain the security and stability of the Gulf through communication and consultation, Wang added. IMPLEMENTATION OF PEACE INITIATIVE During his visit to Saudi Arabia, Wang unveiled a five-point initiative for achieving security and stability in the Middle East, which calls for advocating mutual respect, upholding equity and justice, achieving non-proliferation, jointly fostering collective security, and accelerating development cooperation. The initiative was well received by many of the state leaders and foreign ministers during the visit, Wang said, noting that the Palestinian Foreign Ministry issued a statement expressing willingness to cooperate with China to revive the stalled Palestinian-Israeli peace talks. He elaborated on the ways to implement the peace initiative through close communication and coordination with all the related parties: Firstly, China fully supports the international mediation over the two-state solution to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict. When taking the rotating presidency of the UN Security Council in May, China will push for holding full deliberation of this issue, and will host a seminar for Palestinian and Israeli peace activists on a proper date. Secondly, China will continue its active participation in the process of resolving the Iranian nuclear issue. China has sent officials to Moscow to discuss with Russia and Iran the roadmap and timetable of reviving the nuclear deal. Also, China will keep close communication with Gulf countries over holding multilateral forums in China on the Gulf security, starting from easy topics such as safeguarding oil infrastructure and shipping-lane security. Thirdly, China will boost vaccine cooperation with Mideast countries in a bid to help them speed up the return to normal life, promote recovery of local economies, and ensure smooth implementation of major projects with the Chinese participation. Fourthly, China will hold in 2021 the China-Arab Reform and Development Forum and the Middle East Security Forum to enhance exchanges of experience in governance, promote dialogues between civilizations, and deepen cooperation on fighting terrorism and de-radicalization. FUTURE ANTI-PANDEMIC COOPERATION Facing the COVID-19 pandemic, China and Mideast countries join hands in the fight against it, which has sublimated their friendship, deepened mutual trust, and opened up new areas of cooperation, Wang said. The Chinese government has practically fulfilled its solemn commitment to making vaccines a global public good, donating and exporting nearly 38 million doses of vaccines to 17 countries in the Middle East, Wang noted. He said China is willing to work with the countries in the Middle East to push forward the anti-epidemic cooperation: Firstly, China will step up vaccine cooperation with countries in the Middle East and continue to donate and export vaccines to the region to the best of its ability. Secondly, China will promote the establishment of an international mechanism for mutual recognition of health codes to facilitate personnel exchanges. Thirdly, China and Mideast countries will continue to build consensus on preventing the politicization of pandemic from reemerging, and make the vaccines available and affordable to all countries. BUILDING CHINA-ARAB COMMUNITY WITH SHARED FUTURE Facing complex changes in the international situation, the China-Arab relations have set a good example for the South-South cooperation, Wang touted. Over the past year and more, Chinese President Xi Jinping and many Arab heads of state have held over 10 phone calls and exchanged nearly 20 letters, pointing the way for the development of the China-Arab relations, he said. China and the Arab countries firmly support each other, jointly defend the purposes and principles of the UN Charter, and safeguard multilateralism, equity and justice, the Chinese minister said. "And the anti-pandemic cooperation has demonstrated the China-Arab brotherly friendship of sharing weal and woe," Wang said. To build the China-Arab community with a shared future, "we should focus on strengthening solidarity and coordination among developing countries, and promoting reform of the international system and the formulation of international rules to better reflect the voices and concerns of developing countries," he said. China and Arab states need to align development strategies, consolidate cooperation on the whole energy industry chain, deepen cooperation on new and high technologies, upgrade financial investment and free trade arrangements, and align rules and standards more closely, Wang said. "We need to build closer people-to-people ties, make good use of the China-Arab States Cooperation Forum and other mechanisms to deepen exchanges and cooperation on the youth, culture, education and tourism, and lay a solid foundation for lasting friendship," he added. CONSENSUS ON HUMAN RIGHTS Wang said that the views of human rights held by some Western countries don't represent those of the international community, noting that such views of the developing countries should be more listened to, respected and absorbed. "The six (Middle East) countries I visited this time and China are all developing countries and share same or similar views on the human rights issue," Wang said. "We agree that human rights ought to be comprehensive and balanced. The rights to live and develop are as important as the political and social rights, and fairness and justice should be respected the same as democracy and freedom," he noted. During the recent session of the UN Human Rights Council, many developing countries, including 21 Arab countries, voiced solidarity with China, Wang said, noting China has always objected to using human rights as an excuse to meddle in the domestic affairs of Arab countries. "China is keen to work together with Arab and other regional countries to champion the policy of non-interference in other countries' internal affairs, uphold the purposes and principles of the UN Charter, and preserve the common interests of each other and the developing countries," he said. SYNERGY OF DEVELOPMENT STRATEGIES Wang revealed that the six countries he visited pin high hope on future practical cooperation with China. He said China is ready to work with Mideast countries to promote cooperation mainly in three areas: further synergy of their development strategies, better integration of their resource markets, and exchange of experiences on governance. Firstly, China and Mideast countries should better align their development strategies. All the six countries he visited, Wang said, expressed strong willingness to dovetail their development strategies with the China-proposed Belt and Road Initiative to take advantage of the opportunities offered by China's drive to create a new paradigm of development. Secondly, the two sides should step up cooperation on energy and resources as well as high tech. Wang suggested the two sides consolidate their energy cooperation along the entire industrial chain, promote trade facilitation, innovate investment models, and expand the scale of bilateral currency swaps, in addition to increasing cooperation in information technologies such as 5G, big data and artificial intelligence. Thirdly, the two sides should hold in-depth exchange on the views of governing philosophies. In this regard, China is ready to focus more on helping Mideast countries to improve the livelihood of their peoples so to enable them to share the fruits of economic development, the Chinese diplomat said. ^ top ^
Beijing courts Southeast Asian nations in bid to counter South China Sea backlash (SCMP)
2021-03-31
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi is expected to meet his Southeast Asian counterparts this week, stepping up Beijing's attempts to engage with the region and counter growing criticism over its activities in the South China Sea. Sources said in addition to meeting with Southeast Asian foreign ministers, Wang will also have talks with his South Korean counterparts in Fujian province. A statement by Singapore's foreign affairs ministry said Minister Vivian Balakrishnan will visit Fujian on Tuesday and Wednesday. The visit "reaffirms the long-standing and substantive relations between Singapore and China, as both countries cooperate to strengthen economic recovery following the Covid-19 pandemic," it said. Chinese President Xi Jinping wrapped up a four-day trip to Fujian last week, the first after China's top legislature approved the country's next five-year plan, a core part of which is self-sufficiency in technology. Xi visited Nanping, Sanming and Fuzhou, the provincial capital. Meanwhile, the US has been seeking to rally its allies and Washington has been joined by Japan, Indonesia and the Philippines in speaking out over China's activities in the South China Sea. Aaron Jed Rabena, a research fellow at the Asia-Pacific Pathways to Progress, a Manila-based think tank, said the planned meeting could be an attempt by China "to engage and reassure regional countries amid greater political and diplomatic coordination among Quad and Western countries". Earlier this month, US President Joe Biden hosted a virtual summit with the leaders of the other members of the Quad – Japan, India and Australia – the first meeting of its kind. Wang Yi is expected to welcome Southeast Asian foreign ministers to Fujian province. Photo: Reuters On Monday, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the US "stands with our ally, the Philippines" after Manila said it would deploy aircraft to Whitsun Reef in the Spratly Islands to monitor the 200 or so Chinese vessels that have gathered in the disputed waters. Manila and Washington have described the ships as part of a Chinese "maritime militia", but Beijing insists they are fishing boats. The previous day, the Japanese and Indonesian defence ministers agreed to send a message that their two countries would strongly oppose any action by China that could escalate tensions in the contested waters. According to Japan's defence minister Nobuo Kishi, this will include a joint exercise in the South China Sea. "I think Wang Yi would reassure [the foreign ministers] in the meeting that the introduction of the law does not target any country and is not intended to provoke conflicts. I think he will also reiterate China's consistent position in the South China Sea: set aside disputes and pursue joint development," said Yu Zhirong, deputy secretary general of the Pacific Society of China, a think tank. "He will call on countries in the region not to be influenced by countries outside the region and push forward Maritime Silk Road cooperation". Japan and the US also expressed serious concerns about the coastguard law when Blinken visited Tokyo in mid-March, adding that they objected to Beijing's "unlawful" claims in the South China Sea. Vannarith Chheang, a visiting fellow at Singapore's ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute said the foreign ministers' meeting was likely to discuss topics such as cooperation on Covid-19 and post-pandemic recovery, the unfolding political crisis in Myanmar and tensions on the Korean peninsula after the North's recent missile launch. Chheang added that the US "strategic encirclement of China" was also likely to feature. The Biden administration has been working to build a common front with its allies against Beijing and last week saw coordinated sanctions from the US, Canada, Britain and the European Union on Chinese officials accused of human rights abuses in Xinjiang. Alaska summit: China tells US not to underestimate Beijing's will to safeguard national dignity Collin Koh, a research fellow from the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies in Singapore, said that while the White House was trying to reinvigorate US alliances, Southeast Asian countries will remain wary of being sucked into the vortex of Sino-US rivalry and try not to become too closely aligned to either side. "While Biden's recent reassurances could be taken positively in the respective capitals in Southeast Asia, and to be sure, US military, economic and diplomatic presence would be welcomed as a counterweight against China, especially in the South China Sea, there are still clear limits to the alliance systems. Clearly the Philippines, while holding onto its alliance with the US as its trump card in the pocket, isn't simply relying just on that," he said, referring to Manila's efforts to improve relations with Beijing. "Regional countries such as the case of Indonesia are also wary of the complexities and hence we saw its cultivating of closer security ties with others such as Japan," he said. But Koh said it is not a comfortable situation for Beijing, adding: "The inclusion of other external powers, who have close security links with the US, contributes to a sum of countervailing bilateral approaches against China." Fujian has deep connections with several Southeast Asian countries as a major source of migrants to overseas Chinese communities. Even though large numbers of Chinese began emigrating to Southeast Asia in search of opportunities and better livelihoods as early as the late 1700s, most of those who settled in Southeast Asia left in the mid-19th century. This came after a number of treaty ports were opened in China with the signing of the Treaty of Nanking in 1842 after the first Opium War, where many left from the British treaty ports of Xiamen (Amoy) and Fuzhou (Foochow). Other waves of Fujian immigrants to Southeast Asia followed after famines and floods in 1910, and later during World War II and the early days of Communist rule which began in 1949. In recent decades, many Fujian descendants in the region have not only contributed funds to help local communities build schools and ancestral halls, they have also returned to Fujian to search for remaining relatives and check out their ancestral lineages. ^ top ^
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China to take new steps to further transform gov't functions, invigorate market entities (Xinhua)
2021-04-01
China will roll out new measures to deepen the reform of government functions, in a bid to further energize market players and boost the momentum of development, the State Council executive meeting chaired by Premier Li Keqiang decided on Wednesday. Solid efforts are needed to maintain stability on the six priority fronts and provide protections in the six key areas. It is imperative to have a keen grasp of the current economic situation and take more concrete measures to provide necessary support and solidify the foundation of stability, so as to promote stable economic operation and improve the quality and efficiency of growth. "It is critical to maintain stability on the six priority fronts and provide protections in the six key areas. Experience gained from last year shows that efforts in this regard played a vital role in keeping China's economic fundamentals stable," Li said. The meeting decided on policy steps to create a more enabling employment environment. The number of professions requiring government-approved licenses will be reduced, while the certification of vocational skill grades by private actors will be promoted. The sound development of new forms of employment will be supported. Occupational injury insurance for flexible employment will be piloted, and the coverage of work injury compensation insurance extended, to safeguard the lawful rights and interests of people engaged in flexible employment. "While stabilizing full-time employment, we must attach great importance to flexible employment, which holds broad prospects," Li said. The meeting also called for streamlining the procedures for enterprise-related examination and approval, while reducing the documents, time and fees required. China will accelerate its efforts to achieve the whole-process digitization of trademark and patent registration. The customs inspection rate of law-abiding enterprises and low-risk goods will be reduced, while charges at ports will be reduced or merged. "We should stay clear-eyed that the foundation of economic recovery and growth needs to be reinforced, if we are to have sound and steady economic development," Li said. Domestic demand will be boosted. Unwarranted restrictions on the cross-city registration of used cars will be overhauled, while market access for homestays will be eased as appropriate. The supply of public services in the sphere of livelihoods will be optimized. More inter-provincial services will be provided for matters closely related to people's daily lives. The development of elderly care facilities will be promoted by involving private actors to improve services. "Market players need to be enabled to play a primary role," said Li, "Since last year, there has been a significant increase in the number of market players, which now totals over 138 million. Over 70 percent are active. We need to support these market players to keep employment stable." Fair regulation will be further promoted. Both deregulation and oversight will be advanced as needed, while effective oversight will serve as a necessary safeguard for administrative streamlining. Competent departments shall fulfill due oversight responsibilities. Regulatory standards and rules will be refined, and a benchmark system for administrative discretion established. Compliance oversight will be innovated and stepped up, and matters involving people's life and health and public security will be put under stringent oversight. Deepening the reform of government functions will help foster a more vibrant, fair and efficient market. "Fair competition will be promoted through fair regulation. Market entities can only get a fair shot at opportunity when there is fair competition," Li said. ^ top ^
Xi's article on Party history learning to be published (Xinhua)
2021-04-01
An article by Chinese President Xi Jinping on learning the history of the Communist Party of China (CPC) will be published Thursday. The article by Xi, also general secretary of the CPC Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, will be published in this year's seventh issue of the Qiushi Journal, a flagship magazine of the CPC Central Committee. ^ top ^
CPC leadership reviews guideline on promoting high-quality development of central region (Xinhua)
2021-04-01
The Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee held a meeting on Tuesday to review a guideline on promoting high-quality development of the country's central region in the new era. Xi Jinping, general secretary of the CPC Central Committee, chaired the meeting. Promoting the high-quality development of China's central region is of overall significance as it has rich resources, well-developed transport networks, a sound industrial foundation, and massive development potential, according to the meeting. Efforts should be made to build a modern industrial system underpinned by advanced manufacturing industry, facilitate high-level opening-up of the inland region, improve system and mechanism, and promote coordinated development between urban and rural areas, it said. The meeting called for improving basic public services and accelerating the rise of the central region, so as to contribute more to China's journey toward socialist modernization. It urged efforts to promote city-cluster development in the middle reaches of the Yangtze River and the central plains and comprehensively advance rural vitalization. Innovation should be the primary driving force behind development while scientific and technological innovations should drive industrial growth, said the meeting. It also called for a new system of high-level opening-up in the inland region of China. The meeting also stressed the need to pursue a new path of green and low-carbon development, strengthen the economical and intensive use of energy and resources, enhance ecological construction and management, and realize the green rise of the central region. ^ top ^
Chinese mainland reports 6 new locally transmitted COVID-19 cases (People's Daily)
2021-04-01
The Chinese mainland on Tuesday reported six new locally transmitted COVID-19 cases, the National Health Commission said Wednesday. The same day saw five new imported cases on the mainland, the commission said in its daily report. One suspected COVID-19 case and no new deaths related to COVID-19 were reported on Tuesday, it added. ^ top ^
Corrupt officials become internet sensation due to massive wealth (Global Times)
2021-03-31
Officials convicted of corruption in Northeast China's Heilongjiang Province have become an internet sensation due to the extent of their wealth, including more than 100 luxury cars and funds equivalent to 3 billion yuan ($470 million). Li Wei, former deputy director of Harbin Electric Power Bureau, a subsidiary of State Grid Corporation of China, and his two younger brothers were charged. One of the younger brothers was in charge of electric power projects in Harbin, capital of Heilongjiang, and the other ran several electrical installation companies. Together, they controlled 77 percent of the local power system. The Li brothers were suspected of a total of 24 criminal offences, including intentional injury, forced transactions, and assembling a crowd to engage in sexual promiscuity. Li Wei and his brother Li Tong were both sentenced to death with a two-year reprieve. The three brothers' offenses came to light in a program that state broadcaster CCTV aired on Monday, covering the Chinese government's campaign against corruption. The program revealed the lavish lives of the Li brothers, including the large quantity of antiques found at their homes and luxury cars including a Rolls-Royce, Bentley and limited-edition Chrysler Hunter found at their parking lots with an estimated value of nearly 100 million yuan. The Li brothers also owned a total of 69 properties. The wealth of the brothers and their conspicuous consumption appalled the public. On China's social media platform Sina Weibo, a hashtag of "corrupt officials found to have hundreds of luxury cars like an auto show" was trending with 60 million views and 18,000 comments as of press time. "I thought I already knew how wealthy corrupt officials can be, but clearly I was wrong," read one comment from a Weibo user. Police found that the Li brothers ran illegal subcontracting projects worth more than 3.16 billion yuan. According to the investigation, Li Wei usually assigned the power supply projects to his brother Li Tong, former general manager of Harbin Electric Power Industrial Group Corporation, who would later subcontract them out to their brother Li Jian. With power at the government level and projects at the enterprise level, the three brothers formed an "electronic empire" in Harbin. "Whichever companies wanted electricity had to go through the Li brothers first. If you applied for electricity in the normal way, it could not be provided, but you could directly ask the Li brothers for power supply," said a victim in the TV program, adding that people would also get beaten and kicked out of the city if they did not follow orders. Reports showed that the brothers had also taken drugs and raped a girl under the age of 14. They also bribed the police into getting them a minor punishment of 5,000 yuan. Li Wei was a worker at an electric power installation company in Harbin in his youth and made his way to the position of assistant to the director general of Harbin Electric Power Bureau in 2010 before rising further in the ranks. ^ top ^
Xi stresses role of revolutionary cultural relics in inspiring people (China Daily)
2021-03-31
Chinese President Xi Jinping has stressed the importance of better protecting, managing and utilizing revolutionary cultural relics to inspire people to build a modern socialist China and achieve national rejuvenation. Xi, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, made the remarks during his recent instruction on work related to the country's revolutionary cultural relics. Revolutionary cultural relics hold the glorious history of the heroic struggles of the CPC and the people, and are records of the great course and touching actions of the Chinese revolution, Xi noted during his instruction, calling them valuable assets of the CPC and the country. They can serve as vivid teaching materials for the promotion of revolutionary traditions and culture, and socialist cultural-ethical progress, and for inspiring a strong sense of patriotism and invigorating the Chinese ethos, said Xi. Improving the protection, management and utilization of revolutionary cultural relics, he said, is the common responsibility of the Party and the whole Chinese society. It is a job that should be put high on the agenda of Party committees and governments at various levels and entails greater efforts, said Xi, highlighting the importance of giving full play to the role of revolutionary cultural relics in education related to Party history, revolutionary traditions and patriotism. A national conference on revolutionary cultural relics was held in Beijing on Tuesday, during which Xi's instruction was delivered by Sun Chunlan, a member of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and China's vice premier. Huang Kunming, a member of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and head of the Publicity Department of the CPC Central Committee, said at the event that Xi's instruction provides a fundamental guideline for work on revolutionary cultural relics in the new era, and called for its full implementation to break new ground in the work. ^ top ^
CPC leadership reviews guideline on promoting high-quality development of central region (People's Daily)
2021-03-31
The Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee held a meeting on Tuesday to review a guideline on promoting high-quality development of the country's central region in the new era. Xi Jinping, general secretary of the CPC Central Committee, chaired the meeting. Promoting the high-quality development of China's central region is of overall significance as it has rich resources, well-developed transport networks, a sound industrial foundation, and massive development potential, according to the meeting. Efforts should be made to build a modern industrial system underpinned by advanced manufacturing industry, facilitate high-level opening-up of the inland region, improve system and mechanism, and promote coordinated development between urban and rural areas, it said. The meeting called for improving basic public services and accelerating the rise of the central region, so as to contribute more to China's journey toward socialist modernization. It urged efforts to promote city-cluster development in the middle reaches of the Yangtze River and the central plains and comprehensively advance rural vitalization. Innovation should be the primary driving force behind development while scientific and technological innovations should drive industrial growth, said the meeting. It also called for a new system of high-level opening-up in the inland region of China. The meeting also stressed the need to pursue a new path of green and low-carbon development, strengthen the economical and intensive use of energy and resources, enhance ecological construction and management, and realize the green rise of the central region. ^ top ^
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| Beijing |
Beijing subway to roll out credit-based 'white list' for faster security checks (Global Times)
2021-03-31
A new form of security checks based on passengers' credit scores will be launched this year at subway stations in Beijing, according to the latest city transport management plan. Frequent passengers with good credit scores can apply for the "white list," enjoying a faster and simpler security check process. The Global Times found earlier that Beijing's Fuchengmen subway station adopted this system in 2019 on a trial basis, the only one so far to do so. The capital city will also start trial operations at seven subway sections, making up a total of 54.5 kilometers, this year, the Beijing Daily reported on Wednesday. The city's transport authorities are promoting an integrated network of subway and rail, and studying the feasibility of one set of systems, one network operation, one ticket pass and one security check at transits. The new development is seen as an attempt to speed up passenger's entry into subway stations, which has become a headache for many commuters who have to wait in long lines for security checks during the morning and evening rush hours. With a resident population of 21.5 million, the weekday volume on the Beijing subway is about 12 million, according to data compiled before the COVID-19 outbreak. ^ top ^
Beijing courts to find foreign mediators (China Daily)
2021-03-31
Foreign mediators are expected to participate in dispute resolution in Beijing courts to improve the judiciary's capacity to handle foreign-related affairs, a senior judge from China's top court said. "We encourage the participation because foreign mediators are more familiar with laws, customs and trading habits in areas where they're from, which will help courts across the city better solve foreign-related commercial cases," said Wang Shumei, chief judge of the Supreme People's Court's No 4 Civil Division. The move was highlighted in a guideline issued by the top court on Friday to facilitate the construction of Beijing's pilot free trade zone and demonstration zone for further opening up the services sector. Wang said courts nationwide have seen the number of foreign--related cases grow rapidly, adding that Chinese courts heard 22,330 such disputes last year, up 3 percent year-on-year. She said Beijing courts need to strengthen their capacity to deal with foreign-related affairs, "as the city is the country's international exchange center, and the establishment of the two zones brings about new and higher requirements for the judiciary in this area". While calling for the judiciary to strengthen its ability to resolve international commercial disputes by means including mediation or arbitration, she also urged Beijing courts to do more work with colleges and institutes to enhance the application of international law and explore new education channels to develop international expertise in the judiciary. To help build the two zones, "courts citywide have to make greater efforts in educating judicial talent on trade, investment, finance, tax and information data," Wang added. The measures in the guideline implement requirements raised by President Xi Jinping on advancing the rule of law in foreign-related affairs to better safeguard State sovereignty, national security and development interests, she said. A focus on building a foreign-related legal system was also written into the recently adopted Outline of the 14th Five-Year Plan (2021-25) for Economic and Social Development and the Long-Range Objectives Through the Year 2035, Wang added. When introducing the guideline to media on Friday, Tao Kaiyuan, vice-president of the top court, said Beijing courts should create a sound legal environment for technological innovation and give stronger legal support to digital economic development by harshly punishing those who infringe intellectual property rights. As the capital is home to major financial supervision departments, the headquarters of many international financial institutions and important financial infrastructure, she said the city's courts should also concentrate their power on serving modern financial reform, preventing financial risks and carrying out the country's financial strategy. "As the courts improve the diversified resolution of financial cases, they also need to provide better legal protection for small and medium-sized investors, financial consumers and financial institutions," Tao said. An Fengde, vice-president of the Beijing High People's Court, said the newly established Beijing Financial Court will play a role in handling civil and administrative disputes in the financial sector. The capital will also increase protection of data property and personal information, he added, with more research on new problems regarding big data transactions. The top court issued a similar guideline in January urging courts to promote judicial services to help speed up the development of the Hainan Free Trade Port. ^ top ^
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| Xinjiang |
Ministry: 'Genocide in Xinjiang' another US lie (China Daily)
2021-04-01
China called the "genocide in Xinjiang", fabricated in a new United States report, a "preposterous lie", saying on Wednesday that its conspiracy to disrupt China from the inside will not work. Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said that the allegations against the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region made in the US State Department's 2020 human rights report were false, insulted the Chinese people and trampled on international law and basic norms governing international relations. A genocide finding must be the product of an authoritative legal procedure and must survive strict scrutiny of the facts and withstand the test of time, Hua said at a daily news conference. No state, organization or individual is qualified and entitled to arbitrarily determine that another state has committed genocide, she said, and "no country should use this crime as a political label to conduct malicious manipulation". The investigation reports the US keeps citing and hyping up are disinformation fabricated by anti-China sources like Adrian Zenz, and the few so-called witnesses are actors trained by the US, while the media concerned act as the microphone to spread the rumors, Hua said. Their clumsy performance has been revealed and refuted by Xinjiang as well as many foreigners, including those from the US, she said. Hua said that the "genocide "claim slandered China's ethnic policies and Xinjiang's development achievements. The label only exposes the hypocrisy of the US, which boasts about championing the rule of law, and it serves as further evidence that the US strategic conspiracy is attempting to create the so-called Xinjiang issue to contain China's development, she said. "We can say that China's policies regarding ethnic minorities are much better and more equal than those of the US. Ethnic minorities in China enjoy much greater happiness, equality, and dignity than those in the US." The vicious and wanton accusations and insults that the US hurls at Xinjiang are a reflection of its own crimes and sins committed in the past, Hua said, citing evidence including the genocide of Native Americans, military invasions of other countries, and inhumane treatment of illegal immigrants at the US-Mexico border. "The US has no right to criticize China on human rights issues, and it is time for US politicians to wake up," she said. ^ top ^
Chinese consumers blast H&M statement, saying it showed no sincerity on Xinjiang cotton (Global Times)
2021-04-01
Chinese consumers said they would not buy a fresh statement H&M made Wednesday, some asserting H&M is a market "speculator" after the company claimed itself as "a responsible buyer", but it refused to apologize or begin to source Xinjiang cotton. "Just shut up, H&M does not understand the true thinking of Chinese consumers at all," a Beijing-based white-collar worker surnamed Liang told the Global Times, "The company lives in prejudice." Such comments were made after H&M said Wednesday that "China is a very important market" and its commitment to the country "remains strong". It is a fresh announcement after the Swedish apparel brand is facing a roaring boycott in China for more than one week, after the company said it will stop to source cotton produced in Xinjiang, northwestern China, on a fabricated lie that Xinjiang used "forced labor" in cotton-picking. H&M statement said that they are dedicated to regaining the trust and confidence of the customers, colleagues, and business partners in China. "We comply with local laws and regulatory frameworks in all the markets where we operate. We want to be a responsible buyer, in China and elsewhere," the statement said. However, Chinese netizens didn't buy the statement. "Lots of nonsense, the statement does not have one sentence saying H&M will support Xinjiang cotton," one netizen commented. "There is no apology? I will continue to boycott the brand," another netizen said. Hashtags relating to H&M topped China's Twitter-like Sina Weibo hot topics as of press time, minutes after the announcement was out. And, search results for "H&M" and "HM" on online shopping platforms including taobao.com and JD.com returned no results. Meantime, more entertainment studios said they have stopped cooperation with the brand. Reuters reported on Wednesday that with many of its shops closed because of the coronavirus pandemic, H&M reported a pretax loss for the December-February period, its fiscal first quarter, of 1.39 billion crowns ($159 million) against a year-earlier profit of 2.50 billion. ^ top ^
Foreign enterprises welcomed to visit Xinjiang cotton fields, textile companies to 'make wise choice' (Global Times)
2021-03-30
Foreign enterprises are welcomed to visit local Xinjiang cotton producing areas and textile companies, talk to cotton growers to make a wise choice, the local Xinjiang government said on Monday, while denouncing Western countries putting "genocide" label on Xinjiang as the "biggest case of a frame-up in human history." While Xinjiang reiterated its open attitude, some Western media have been hyping up so-called "unfettered access" of the UN officials to the region amid reports that China and the UN are in communication regarding UN officials' visit to Xinjiang. Chinese analysts said any visit by officials from UN or other nations to Xinjiang should be based on respecting China's sovereignty and the hype was pure political manipulation to pressure China, and the UN should not be affected by it. Elijan Anayat, spokesperson of Xinjiang regional government, refuted "forced labor" rumors surrounding Xinjiang's cotton industry at a press conference on Monday, saying that anti-China forces in the West fabricated the rumor aiming to attack Xinjiang's textile industry, depriving workers of all ethnic groups of their employment rights and destroying their happy lives. The consequences for certain Western companies such as H&M and Nike blindly making a decision to boycott Xinjiang cotton was losing the Chinese market, their Chinese customers and affecting their overall reputation, Elijan Anayat said, "We Chinese people are reasonable. Those companies boycott Xinjiang cotton, naturally we don't want to buy your products." Over the past few days, Western brands like H&M, Nike and Adidas have been facing strong social media boycott in China, and more than 30 Chinese celebrities including Wang Yibo, Zhang Yixing, and Dilireba who is from Xinjiang, have terminated contracts with these brands to show support for cotton products from Xinjiang. Companies like H&M have been influenced by rumors seeking to politicize its economic behavior, and the EU, the US, UK and Canada sanctioned Chinese individuals and entities also based on such rumors, Xu Guixiang, spokesperson of the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region government, said at Monday's media briefing. Some anti-China forces in the EU, the US, UK and Canada maliciously used rumors such as "concentration camps," "mass surveillance," "forced labor," and "compulsory sterilization," to smear Xinjiang's governance, attempting to portray Xinjiang's policies as genocide, which is a grave defiance of international law and the norms governing international relations, running counter to the international community's efforts to punish the crime of genocide and is the biggest case of a frame-up in human history, Xu said. Xu said as a multinational company, H&M should have realized that when the big stick of sanctions from some Western countries is wielded at other countries, it will also hit themselves. "We hope that more companies will sharpen their eyes and distinguish right from wrong," Xu said. "Today's China is not the China of 1840, and the era when the Chinese people were subjected to arbitrary bullying by Western powers has long gone. The entire Chinese people, including the people of all ethnic groups in Xinjiang, cannot be trifled with," Xu said. The regional government welcomes foreign enterprises to visit local textile firms and hit back at the "forced labor" and "genocide" smear with statistics, facts and personal experiences of local textile company workers at Monday's media briefing. According to data released by Xinjiang's agricultural department in 2020, about 70 percent of cotton locally grown was mechanically picked. Almire Tursun, an employee of a textile firm in Kuqa in Aksu prefecture, told reporters at the press conference that she applied for a job and signed the contract with the company in April 2020, earning a monthly salary of 4,800 yuan ($732). The company provides her a free dormitory with internet service and other necessities and she spends weekends like every other young girl: shopping, watching movies and travelling. "Those overseas forces who concocted the 'forced labor' claim have never visited our company, and know nothing about our true situation," she said. "What they claim is nonsense, what they want is to leave us with no work, no food, what they did was very shameful and hateful," she said. Apart from anti-China forces, some Western media outlets also helped spread the rumors with their biased reports. Xu cited an example of journalists from a foreign broadcasting company who only skirted around the outside of a cotton processing factory in Xinjiang. But they claimed in their report that China was forcing tens of thousands of different ethnic minorities to engage in hard manual labor, and journalists from the same media outlet filmed without the consent of the subjects while interviewing a clothing company in the region. They even mistaken company employees for local government officials claiming they were obstructed by officials. Xu stressed that Xinjiang is open and welcomes foreign journalists, but firmly opposes those who carry out "investigations" with the presumption of guilt under the pretext of so-called human rights investigation, with the aim to disrupt the stable development of Xinjiang and interfering in China's internal affairs. Political manipulation Not just the regional government, the Chinese central government also repeatedly expressed its open attitude towards the visit of the High Commissioner for UN Human Rights as well as officials from other Western countries to Xinjiang. On Monday, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian said that China has extended an invitation long ago to the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, and the two sides are in communication. But Zhao stressed that the purpose of the visit is to strengthen communication and cooperation, rather than "investigations" with the presumption of guilt. "We also oppose using this issue for political manipulation to put pressure on China," Zhao said. Zhao's remarks came after reports that UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres said in an interview with Canada's CBC on Sunday that the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet's visit "is being negotiated at the present moment" with Chinese authorities. "And I hope that they will reach an agreement soon and that the human rights commissioner will be able to visit China without restrictions or limitations," Guterres said, according to Reuters. Mao Junxiang, executive director and professor at the Human Rights Studies Center at Central South University, told the Global Times on Monday that the UN's visit to any country should be based on the consent of the host country and respecting the country's sovereignty. He said that the Chinese authorities and the UN should discuss the mission of the visit. But Western media have been hyping up so-called "unfettered access" to Xinjiang, which analysts called pure political manipulation that tries to pressure the UN and China and sour China's cooperation with the High Commissioner. Chinese analysts said the UN should stand up against pressure from certain Western countries, not declare any political position in its remarks and adhere to the UN Charter. 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 that the UN officials' visit to China has not been finalized as it requires much communication between the two sides on the schedule and the procedure of the visit, and if the visit plans to involve international experts, the selection of the experts also takes time. ^ top ^
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| Hongkong |
China amends Basic Law annexes to improve Hong Kong's electoral system (People's Daily)
2021-04-01
President Xi Jinping has signed presidential orders to promulgate the amended annexes, which will go into effect on Wednesday. "A democratic electoral system suiting Hong Kong's legal status and reality has taken shape as a result of the amendments," said Li Zhanshu, chairman of the NPC Standing Committee when presiding over the session's closing meeting. Li said the two amended annexes fully demonstrate the resolution and common will of the Chinese people, including Hong Kong compatriots, in safeguarding national sovereignty, security and development interests as well as the constitutional order of the HKSAR. HKSAR Chief Executive Carrie Lam said Tuesday in a statement that by improving the electoral system and implementing "patriots administering Hong Kong," the excessive politicization in society and the internal rift that has torn Hong Kong apart can be effectively mitigated, thereby enhancing the governance capability of the HKSAR. "I and the HKSAR Government will spare no effort in taking forward the necessary amendments to the local electoral legislation in accordance with the amended Annex I and Annex II," said Lam. EMPOWERING THE ELECTION COMMITTEE The overall design of the system was centered around the reformation and greater empowerment of the Election Committee of the HKSAR. Committee membership has been expanded from 1,200 to 1,500. The number of sectors has been increased from four to five. The number of subsectors has also been increased from 38 to 40, and some subsectors have been adjusted and improved based on the actual situation. Apart from its original function of nominating and electing the chief executive, the committee will have two more key functions: electing a relatively large proportion of LegCo members and participating in the nominations of all LegCo candidates. "With the enlargement, increased number of sectors, adjusted subsectors and renewed functions, the Election Committee will have a broader base and be more representative of society, leading to more balanced participation from people from all walks of life," said Zhang Yong, deputy head of the Legislative Affairs Commission of the NPC Standing Committee. BROADER REPRESENTATION The amendments also expand LegCo membership from 70 to 90. Among the members, 40 shall be returned by the Election Committee, 30 by functional constituencies and 20 by geographical constituencies through direct elections. "The consideration behind this institutional design is that LegCo members returned by the Election Committee would represent the overall interests of Hong Kong society, those returned by functional constituencies would represent the interests of various sectors, and those returned by geographical constituencies through direct elections would represent the interests of their constituencies," said Deng Zhonghua, deputy director of the Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office of the State Council. According to the amendments, the seats of District Council members are canceled in both the Election Committee and the LegCo. In recent years, District Councils have seriously deviated from their functions and nature prescribed by the Basic Law, which stipulates that District Councils are "district organizations which are not organs of political power" and may "be consulted by the government of the Region on district administration and other affairs," explained Deng. Funded by the government, District Councils should concentrate on promoting the well-being of grassroots communities, provide valuable and constructive suggestions to the HKSAR government, and work as a bridge connecting the government with ordinary people, Deng added. VETTING COMMITTEE According to the new annexes, a candidate eligibility review mechanism shall be established to review and confirm the eligibility of candidates for the Election Committee, the office of chief executive, and the LegCo. This is to ensure candidates meet not only the general eligibility requirements, but also the legal requirements and conditions of upholding the Basic Law and swearing allegiance to the HKSAR, so as to fully implement the principle of "patriots administering Hong Kong," said Deng. STAUNCH SUPPORT Plugging loopholes and defects in the HKSAR's current electoral system and improving methods for the selection of the HKSAR chief executive and the formation of the LegCo in a systematic manner are the common aspirations of the Chinese people, including Hong Kong compatriots, said the Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office of the State Council in a statement. The office called on all sectors of Hong Kong to support the work of the HKSAR government and LegCo, so as to create an optimal environment for various elections to be held on schedule. Tam Yiu-chung (4th L), one of the conveners, hands over a petition signed by over 2.38 million people in support of improving Hong Kong's electoral system to Luo Huining (4th R), director of the Liaison Office of the Central People's Government in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, in Hong Kong, south China, March 24, 2021. (Xinhua/Li Gang) Staunch support for the improvement of Hong Kong's electoral system has been expressed by local residents. A public petition launched in support of the legislative move received over 2.38 million signatures in Hong Kong. According to a survey by local think-tank Bauhinia Institute, nearly 70 percent of the 1,366 Hong Kong residents interviewed at random support the effort to improve the electoral system, and 66.8 percent agree on the composition of the Election Committee as it can better reflect the overall interests of Hong Kong society. It is quite obvious that Hong Kong residents hope for a stable society and "patriots administering Hong Kong," said LegCo member Chan Han-pan. ^ top ^
China's top legislature unanimously approves HK electoral overhaul plan (Global Times)
2021-03-31
After a two-day meeting of the Standing Committee of China's top legislative body and rounds of discussions, Chinese top lawmakers have unanimously approved the draft of the Hong Kong electoral reform plan, with revised measures for electing the Hong Kong chief executive and the formation of the Legislative Council, which is seen as another major step in tackling the loopholes in the city's governance structure. Chinese President Xi Jinping on Tuesday signed presidential orders to promulgate the Hong Kong electoral reform plan. Li Zhanshu, chairman of the NPC Standing Committee, presided over the first plenary meeting of the session on Monday afternoon, which was attended by 167 members of the NPC Standing Committee. During this year's two sessions at the beginning of the March, a draft decision to improve the electoral system of Hong Kong was submitted to the country's top legislature, clarifying a series of targets for the electoral system overhaul, indicating the major principles to be followed during the reform process. The goal of the overhaul is to make sure that the bodies of power in Hong Kong are run by patriots. The decision was overwhelmingly approved on March 11 at the closing of the two sessions, and a detailed overhaul plan is scheduled to be unveiled by the end of March, following which local authorities in Hong Kong will begin amending local laws. Due to the urgency of the matter, it took less than 20 days from the decision adopted on March 11 to the detailed plan being released, which also showed that the central government paid great attention to Hong Kong electoral reform and had carried out a lot of preparation work before the amendment, some Chinese experts said. "From the top level, it provides a clear and defined authoritative indication for local law amendment, and the HKSAR government can revise the main text of the relevant laws and their auxiliaries accordingly," Tian Feilong, an associate professor at Beihang University, told the Global Times on Tuesday. The Global Times had reported that the detailed measures for Hong Kong electoral reform could come out in late March, given the urgency and complexity of the next phase of local law amendment in Hong Kong, and local authorities are expected to finalize the local law amendments by the end of May as there are three major local elections to be held in the next 12 months. Since the decision to improve the electoral system for Hong Kong was adopted by the top legislature on March 11, some Western countries have not given up the fantasy of pressuring China by playing the"Hong Kong card," as some countries like the UK and Western-led blocs like G7 and EU have all come up with statements stigmatizing the overhaul. China firmly believes that the electoral reform and the earlier national security law for Hong Kong, as well as other potential reforms that could take place in the future, are "the right things to do and must be done," whether the West likes them or not, analysts said. "Under external pressure, the central government has never shown any sign of retreating, but will adhere to its principles while keep on fighting," Tian said, noting that the so-called sanctions imposed by some Western countries are the last desperate struggle, which will turn out to be meaningless. ^ top ^
Hong Kong's opposition facing draconian new rules under electoral overhaul approved unanimously in Beijing (SCMP)
2021-03-31
Beijing has endorsed the most controversial and sweeping overhaul of Hong Kong's electoral system since its return to Chinese rule in 1997, one that will slash the number of directly elected seats in the city's legislature from half to about one-fifth. Under the plan approved unanimously by the National People's Congress Standing Committee on Tuesday, the Election Committee responsible for picking the city's leader will be granted the new power to send 40 representatives to the Legislative Council, which has been expanded from 70 to 90 seats. The 167-0 vote was accompanied by a large round of applause, according to Tam Yiu-chung, the city's sole representative to the standing committee. State news agency Xinhua later confirmed the changes had been promulgated in two orders signed by President Xi Jinping. Under the overhaul, which Tam said would take effect on Wednesday, Legco's geographical constituencies will be reduced to 20 from 35 seats – dramatically diluting the element of direct voting – while each of the 10 constituencies will return two members by direct voting. Tam also said the local national security police unit would help scrutinise candidates and submit a report to the newly formed vetting committee. No judicial review or appeal of the body's decisions will be allowed for candidates, while vetting committee members will be appointed by the Hong Kong government, according to a pro-Beijing source. As expected, the newly empowered Election Committee will enjoy the biggest share of Legco seats – with 40 – while 30 will go to the trade-based functional constituencies. The amendment to the Basic Law annexes does not specify if only members of the Election Committee can qualify to contest the 4o seats they are responsible for choosing. But according to a source familiar with the plan, non-committee members will be able to vie for those seats. Candidates chosen by, but not members of, the committee were allowed to run for Legco seats between 1998 and 2004. "Details like these will be addressed by local legislation," the source said. The 1,200-strong Election Committee, originally created to choose the city's chief executive, will also be expanded by 300 members. The new members will include patriotic groups and members of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) to further reinforce the pro-establishment camp's control of the body. Pan-democrats are also at risk of losing their strongholds in certain sectors of the Election Committee as more corporate bodies or entities – expected to be controlled by the pro-establishment bloc – will be allowed to vote for representatives of various business, professional and social sectors. All 117 district council seats on the Election Committee have also been scrapped. The seats were expected to have gone to the opposition had the electoral overhaul not been undertaken. Tam said the sweeping changes had a "solid" mandate and would fully implement the principle of "patriots administering Hong Kong". "It will effectively prevent those people who disrupt Hong Kong from entering the Election Committee and Legislative Council through elections," he said. "It will guarantee we elect people who genuinely defend the 'one country, two systems' principle, and are capable of serving the society and citizens, not those who stir up troubles". Legco hopefuls are required to secure nominations from all of the Election Committee's five sectors, which represent businesses, professions, social organisations, the new patriotic groups, lawmakers and local representatives to the country's legislature. The new requirement significantly raises the barriers to entry for opposition hopefuls given they will find it extremely difficult to secure support from all five sectors. The number of nominations that must be obtained from each of the five sectors by Legco election candidates will be in the "single digits", according to a source familiar with the overhaul. But the nomination threshold is even more stringent for candidates running for chief executive, who must secure backing from 188 of the 1,500 members. They must also be nominated by at least 15 members of each sector. Determining the exact size of the "candidates' qualification review committee", responsible for ensuring that anyone running for chief executive, the Legislative Council or the Election Committee poses no threat to national security, will be left up to Legco. Shortly before the overhaul was endorsed by the NPC Standing Committee, Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor was asked if dissident voices would still exist in city politics. "The answer is yes. The whole arrangement to improve the electoral system of the [Hong Kong Special Administrative Region] is to ensure patriots administrate Hong Kong. They have to fulfill a requirement, which actually is in our electoral law – that they have to bear allegiance to the HKSAR and also uphold the Basic Law," she said. "For people who hold different political beliefs, who are more inclined towards democracy or who are more conservative, who belong to the left or who belong to the right, as long as they meet this very fundamental and basic requirement, I don't see why they could not run for election." Lam noted that senior Beijing officials had also said the changes would not leave the system with "homogenous" candidates. ^ top ^
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| Taiwan |
DPP slammed for smearing mainland on Xinjiang-related issues (People's Daily)
2021-03-31
A Chinese mainland spokesperson on Monday slammed Taiwan's Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) authority for smearing and slandering the mainland based on the lies and false information fabricated by external anti-China forces. The mainland firmly opposes the move, which is extremely vicious, said Zhu Fenglian, a spokesperson for the Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council. Zhu made the remarks in response to recent erroneous remarks by the DPP authority, claiming the mainland has long suppressed Uygurs in Xinjiang. Over the past 60 years and more, Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region has fully implemented the Communist Party of China's policies concerning ethnic groups, resolutely implemented the system of regional ethnic autonomy, and worked hard to promote unity, common prosperity and development of all ethnic groups, Zhu said. With ulterior motives, the DPP authority's act once again fully exposed its usual trick of maliciously manipulating, attacking and smearing everything involving the mainland, Zhu noted. ^ top ^
PLA aircraft again surround Taiwan in drills with US intervention on mind (Global Times)
2021-03-31
Warplanes of the Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) again surrounded the island of Taiwan from both west and east in an exercise on Monday after a similar drill on Friday, and this time additional aircraft crossed the Miyako Strait to reach Taiwan's eastern side. The recent exercises show that the PLA is continuing to increase its combat preparedness by making its routine exercises more complex and realistic and taking possible US and Japanese interventions into consideration, Chinese mainland analysts said on Tuesday. Some 10 PLA aircraft - four J-16 and four J-10 fighter jets, a KJ-500 early warning aircraft and a Y-8 anti-submarine warfare aircraft - entered Taiwan's self-proclaimed southwest air defense identification zone on Monday, with the Y-8 anti-submarine warfare aircraft flying across the Bashi Channel to the southeast to the island before returning, the island's defense authorities said. The flight paths of the warplanes on Monday were similar to those in the exercise on Friday, which was the largest featuring 20 PLA aircraft. But unlike the Friday exercise, the PLA sent another group of warplanes on Monday that were not observed by Taiwan island's defense authorities, but Japan's. A Y-9 reconnaissance aircraft and a Y-9 patrol aircraft - often referred to as the Y-8 anti-submarine warfare aircraft - on Monday flew across and then returned from the Miyako Strait, with the Y-9 reconnaissance aircraft flying close to the eastern side of Taiwan island before returning, according to a press release by Japan's Ministry of Defense Joint Staff. This means Taiwan island was surrounded from both west and east, with the PLA coming from different directions, analysts said. To resolve the Taiwan question, no matter through peaceful or military means, military strength is always needed as a basis, Xu Guangyu, a senior adviser to the China Arms Control and Disarmament Association, told the Global Times on Tuesday. The PLA must be able to deter Taiwan secessionist forces from all directions, and the recent exercises were very much needed and aimed at achieving this goal, Xu said. More, larger exercises could take place in the future, Xu predicted. Other experts reached by the Global Times pointed out that PLA exercises to the east of Taiwan mean the PLA can not only strike military facilities on the east of the island, but also lock down the island entirely from possible interventions by US and Japanese forces. A separate press release by Japan's Ministry of Defense Joint Staff on Friday said that a PLA Navy flotilla consisted of the Type 055 guided missile destroyer Nanchang, the Type 052D guided missile destroyer Chengdu and the Type 054A guided missile frigate Daqing left the Sea of Japan from the Tsushima Strait and headed toward the East China Sea on Thursday, after entering the Sea of Japan a week earlier. This is the first time a Type 055 destroyer, China's most advanced 10,000 ton-class destroyer, has conducted similar exercises, reports said. ^ top ^
China urges U.S. to prudently handle issues regarding Taiwan question (Xinhua)
2021-03-30
China urges the United States not to attempt to break China's bottom line and prudently handle issues involving the Taiwan question, a Foreign Ministry spokesperson said Monday. Spokesperson Zhao Lijian made the remarks at a press briefing in response to a query on U.S. ambassador to Palau joining the Palau president's delegation in its visit to Taiwan. The one-China principle is a widely recognized norm for international relations and a universal consensus acknowledged, accepted and practiced by the vast majority of countries around the world, Zhao said, adding that adhering to the one-China principle is the common will and prevailing trend. "Taiwan question is the most important and sensitive issue between China and the United States," the spokesperson said, calling the one-China principle the political foundation of China-U.S. relations. Zhao stressed that China firmly opposes official exchanges in any form between the United States and Taiwan, which is a consistent and clear position. "China urges the U.S. to fully recognize the high sensitivity of the Taiwan question, adhere to the one-China principle and the three China-U.S. joint communiques," said Zhao, calling on the United States to stop official exchanges with Taiwan, and not to send wrong signals to separatist forces seeking "Taiwan independence." China also urges the United States to properly handle issues relating to the Taiwan question so as to avoid causing serious damages to China-U.S. relations and peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait, Zhao added. ^ top ^
NASA should get Taiwan status right (People's Daily)
2021-03-30
Enraged Chinese netizens have bombarded NASA with demands to withdraw their names from the organisation's initiative to "send your name to Mars" after they found out that NASA has labelled Taiwan as a "country," as well as omitting part of Tibet from China's territorial boundaries on its official map. The initiative, which is open to netizens worldwide who can sign up to have their names sent into space on NASA's future Mars mission, has attracted over 18 million participants around the globe as of press time. Over 4 million applicants from the Chinese mainland, as well as more than 130,000 from Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan have signed up for the initiative, making China the top country on NASA's list of name submissions. NASA labels Taiwan as an independent country on its official website. However, on its application portal, NASA has labelled Taiwan as an independent country, as well as excluding parts of Tibet from China's territory on its online page featuring a world map. The move was first exposed on Chinese social media earlier in March and has led to an online campaign to boycott NASA in China. "I wasn't aware of NASA's petty trick when I signed up for the mission. Exploring the red planet is a noble cause for all human beings; it is despicable of NASA to exploit our good intentions for political reasons, and it is sad to see science being plagued by politics," said a netizen on Douban, a Chinese social networking platform. Netizens on Weibo have also called for a campaign to withdraw their signed applications from NASA, calling the organisation "despicable and rude." For a "politically correct" institution like NASA, this is not its first "politically incorrect" move against China. In 2013, NASA faced a fierce backlash from researchers worldwide after it rejected applications from Chinese nationals who wanted to attend a conference at the agency's Ames Research Center in California on the grounds of national security. The latest public wrath is to be well expected as NASA has undermined the sovereignty and territorial integrity of China, hurting the feelings of the Chinese people. The Biden administration has reiterated its adherence to the one-China policy on the Taiwan question. In February, a spokesperson at the US Department of State, Ned Price, reiterated the Americans' stance on Taiwan, noting that the US' one-China policy has not changed. Meanwhile, NASA's Taiwan stunt has been nothing more than a smack right in the face of the US government. NASA is a US government agency. And so, it is obliged to honor its government's words and actions, and should show a greater understand regarding the sensitive nature of the Taiwan and Tibet questions. Taiwan is an inalienable part of China's territory. This is a fact recognized by the international community and a basic norm of international relations. China has always stressed that the one-China principle is the political foundation for the China-US relationship, and a red line that should not be crossed. On the Taiwan question, there is no room for compromise or concessions from the Chinese government. As a scientific research center, NASA has the capability to send probes to Mars and has successfully sent humans to the moon. Thus, on what is fundamentally a much more simple, down-to-earth matter, NASA should get the status of Taiwan and China's map right, and do so with likewise care and precision. ^ top ^
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| Economy |
Chinese smartphone maker Xiaomi unveils plan for Smart Electric Vehicle business (Global Times)
2021-03-31
The Chinese smartphone maker Xiaomi unveiled on Tuesday its ambitious $10 billion plan to enter the Smart Electric Vehicle (EV) manufacturing field, as the company has more than 100 billion yuan ($15 billion) in cash reserves and a vast talent pool to support the new business. According to the announcement, Xiaomi will invest 10 billion yuan ($1.5 billion) in the initial phase and an additional $10 billion in the next 10 years. A new subsidiary will be set up to operate the Smart EV business and Xiaomi's founder, Lei Jun, will be the CEO. Lei's business trajectory in recent years has revealed enthusiasm toward new-energy vehicles manufacturing for a long time. He visited Elon Musk at Tesla's factory in Silicon Valley in 2013. In addition, the capital firm that Lei cofounded has shares in the Chinese EVs makers NIO and Xpeng. Constant speculations that Xiaomi would kick off EV projects had been emerged until it was officially ratified this time. At Tuesday's product launch event, Lei said that Xiaomi's board of directors started the research on EVs on January 15. He personally has very optimistic views on this sector's future and has invested in nearly 10 EV makers. Lei said that he knows the risks of entering the Smart EV sector as it requires a vast investment but by the end of 2020, the company had more than 100 billion yuan in cash and over 10,000 employees in its research and development team, which will strongly support this new business. EV making has attracted many Chinese internet giants mostly by establishing joint-ventures with automobile companies. Information technologies companies Huawei and Tencent have both revealed plans to provide intelligent network services to auto makers. Chinese search engine giant Baidu allied with automaker Geely to jointly make new-energy vehicles. Zeng Zhiling, Managing Director of LMC Automotive Consulting in Shanghai, told the Global Times on Tuesday that Xiaomi is likely to purchase a manufacturing plant or build its own for Smart EVs production, considering its investment size. Chinese automobile manufacturer, Great Wall Motors, on Friday denied rumors that Xiaomi would use its factories to produce Smart EVs. Xiaomi has advantages in its powerful software that can control and connect different smart home products, such as TVs and cleaning appliances, Zeng noted, adding that it would be great if the convenience of its smart home system could be extended to smart commuting and trips. ^ top ^
New steps to improve standards of credit ratings (China Daily)
2021-03-30
China has come out with steps to improve the standards and regulations of credit ratings and urged companies to improve their ratings methodology, strengthen corporate governance and bolster information disclosure. According to a draft document jointly published by five departments, including the People's Bank of China, the central bank, and the Ministry of Finance, on Sunday, China aims to improve the quality of credit ratings in terms of standards, independence and quality control, underlying consistency, accuracy, and timeliness of the ratings decisions. Credit ratings agencies, acting as independent third-party agencies, need to see their own reputation as "lifeline" and fully activate their role of risk disclosure, it said. The new rules were rolled out following a series of defaults by some companies that disrupted the country's $4.4 trillion corporate bond market. The PBOC said in a statement that the new rules are also designed to create a better environment in which bond issuers will not interfere with the credit rating decision-making process. It will also enable investors to rely on multiple ratings sources. Zhang Xu, chief analyst at Everbright Securities, said the new guideline will help address some of the pressing issues in the credit ratings market. Though the credit bond market has been too reliant on credit ratings, there has not been much standard assessment or evaluation for the ratings decisions. Ming Ming, head of fixed-income research at CITIC Securities, said that some false high ratings, insufficient classification and frequent default risk failures are some of the major issues facing China's credit rating market. The fact that some defaults were caused by several high-rating firms last year has shown that credit ratings agencies are failing in their duties, and placing obstacles in the healthy and steady development of the bond market. Noting that the quality of credit ratings is the cornerstone of China's financial market, he said that such an overhaul will lead to a process during which ratings for a number of firms will go down and lead to repricing of the credit market. The impact will be short-term, and will contribute to the long-term and healthy growth of the country's financial market, said Ming. ^ top ^
China becomes largest destination for FDI (People's Daily)
2021-03-30
While global foreign direct investment (FDI) collapsed significantly in 2020, China's inbound FDI grew against the trend by 4 percent to $163 billion, indicating that the country surpassed the U.S. as the largest recipient of FDI in the world, according to the latest Investment Trends Monitor of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD). Data from China's Ministry of Commerce (MOC) showed that the country's total volume, yearly increment, and global share of inbound FDI all climbed last year. In particular, the country's actually used FDI totaled 999.98 billion yuan (about $152.9 billion) in 2020, up 6.2 percent from the previous year, while the paid-in FDI in China's non-financial sector grew by 4.5 percent year on year, ranking first in the world, according to the MOC, which also revealed that a total of 39,000 foreign-invested enterprises newly registered in China in 2020. The continued growth in the amount of paid-in foreign investment in China against the trend of shrinking FDI worldwide has been accompanied by the country's constant efforts to open its door wider to the rest of the world. "When economic globalization has been hindered by headwinds and protectionism and unilateralism are on the rise, China's notable growth in actual use of foreign investment has proven the huge attractiveness and growth potential of the Chinese market," said Cui Fan, a professor of the School of International Trade and Economics, University of International Business and Economics. Such achievement is the result of the country's effective response to the COVID-19 pandemic and earnest implementation of relevant policies and measures, which sped up the restorative growth of the Chinese economy and made the country the world's only major economy that achieved positive growth amid the raging COVID-19 last year, Cui said. Factors such as lower market access threshold for foreign investment and continuously improving business environment are closely related to China's achievements in attracting foreign investment and have signaled the country's resolve to unswervingly expand its opening-up during the new development stage. The super-large Chinese market is becoming more and more attractive to foreign investors as Chinese residents' income rises steadily, the country's middle-income group has constantly expanded, and the trend of consumption upgrading has continued to gain momentum. "China has given play to its advantage as the world's factory and exerted strong manufacturing capabilities amid the COVID-19,"Cui said. "The Eurostat pointed out that among the top ten largest trading partners of the European Union (EU), the EU saw positive growth in two-way trade only with China last year, which proves that China's strong economic recovery has laid a solid foundation for its trade growth with the EU and that the resilience and vitality of China's manufacturing sector should not be underestimated," Cui said. "China has become the biggest trading partner of the majority of countries and regions in the world. This is already a fact,"Cui said, adding that the fact shows the great appeal of the Chinese market and that in the international trade arena, China can be called the center of manufacturing in the world and the hub of global value chain. China, also the world's largest exporter, has complete industrial chain systems and is one of the few economies in the world with a complete range of industries, according to Cui, who believes that with the continued growth in the size of China's economy and the implementation of measures such as the ones for expanding imports, China is going to show more and more advantages in manufacturing and foreign trade, and the Chinese market will be opened wider and wider to the world. China is facing considerable challenges in stabilizing foreign investment this year. On the one hand, multinational corporations may find themselves unable to make investments as their wealth shrank significantly due to the COVID-19. The UNCTAD estimated that global FDI fell by 42 percent in 2020. On the other hand, global industrial and supply chains are being restructured after the outbreak of the COVID-19, which poses new challenges to China's efforts to utilize foreign investment. The MOC will further improve China's business environment, earnestly implement the Foreign Investment Law and regulations for the implementation of the law, as well as the working mechanisms for handling complaints filed by foreign-invested enterprises, and strengthen protection for the legitimate rights and interests of foreign investors, said Wang Wentao, China's Minister of Commerce. The MOC will continue to create a market-oriented, law-based, and internationalized business environment and ensure that foreign investors enjoy better environment, better development, and greater accomplishments in China, Wang added. ^ top ^
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| DPRK |
United States considering 'additional UN actions' in response to North Korea missile tests (SCMP)
2021-03-31
The Biden administration said on Monday it is looking at "additional actions" that the United Nations might take to respond to North Korea's recent missile tests. US Ambassador to the United Nations Linda Thomas-Greenfield was not specific about what those actions might entail, but noted that the UN Security Council had met last week and renewed the mandate of experts who monitor sanctions against North Korea. The council is also expected to hold closed-door discussions on North Korea on Tuesday. "We're looking at additional actions that we might take," Thomas-Greenfield said of the US and others Security Council members. Meanwhile, President Joe Biden's national security adviser Jake Sullivan will be meeting in Washington soon with his counterparts from Japan and South Korea to discuss North Korea strategy as the administration finalises a review of how to approach the country. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, who recently returned from Tokyo and Seoul, said the three countries are united in dealing with the challenges posed by Pyongyang. "What we're seeing from Pyongyang in terms of these provocations does nothing to shake the resolve of our three countries along with allies and partners around the world to approach North Korea from a position of strength to diminish the threat that it poses to the region and beyond," Blinken said. On Monday, North Korea accused the UN of a "double standard" over its reaction to the launches, which violate UN sanctions, warning of serious consequences. Last week, North Korea fired two short-range ballistic missiles into the sea in a defiance of UN resolutions that ban such launches by North Korea. Some experts say North Korea's missile launches, the first of their kind in a year, were aimed at applying pressure on the Biden administration. Past short-range missile launches by North Korea have typically drawn UN Security Council condemnations, but not fresh sanctions. North Korea was slapped with toughened UN sanctions in 2016-2017 following its provocative run of missile and nuclear tests aimed at acquiring the capability of launching nuclear strikes on the US mainland. ^ top ^
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un's sister calls South's President Moon Jae-in 'a parrot raised by America' (SCMP)
2021-03-31
Kim Yo-jong, sister of North Korea's leader Kim Jong-un. Photo: AP,Kim Yo-jong, sister of North Korea's leader Kim Jong-un. Photo: AP, North Korea called South Korea's president "a parrot raised by America" on Tuesday, resuming its trademark derisive rhetoric against its rivals amid renewed animosities on the Korean peninsula. Kim Yo-jong, the powerful sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, issued the latest verbal salvo after South Korean President Moon Jae-in criticised the North's ballistic missile launches last week. She said Moon's "illogical and brazen-faced" comments echoed the US stance. "We can hardly repress astonishment at his shamelessness," Kim Yo-jong said in a statement carried by the North's state media. "He cannot feel sorry for being 'praised' as a parrot raised by America." Seoul's Unification Ministry expressed "strong regret" over her statement, saying that the two Koreas must observe "the rules of minimum etiquette in any circumstance." Kim Yo-jong once enjoyed an image of "a peace messenger" in South Korea after she visited Seoul and conveyed Moon her brother's invitation to visit Pyongyang in early 2018. But since ties soured again, she's taken the lead in anti-South rhetoric. On Saturday, Ri Pyong-chol, a top deputy to Kim Jong-un, called President Joe Biden's criticism of the North's missile tests a provocation and encroachment on Pyongyang's right to self-defence. Ri said it was "gangster-like logic" for Washington to criticise the North's launches while the US freely tested intercontinental ballistic missiles. Meanwhile, the White House said on Monday Biden does not intend to meet with Kim Jong-un. Asked if Biden's diplomatic approach to North Korea would include "sitting with President Kim Jong-un" as former president Donald Trump had done, White House press secretary Jen Psaki said, "I think his approach would be quite different and that is not his intention." Biden on Thursday said the US remained open to diplomacy with North Korea despite the tests, but warned there would be responses if the East Asian nation escalates matters. Before entering now-stalled nuclear talks with the US in 2018, Kim Jong-un called Trump "the mentally deranged US dotard" after the then-president called him a "little rocket man." In 2019, North Korea called Biden, then a presidential hopeful, a "rabid dog" and a "fool of low IQ" when it criticised his comments about its leadership. Some experts say the hermit kingdom's recent missile launches and tough language are meant to increase pressure on the Biden administration as it's shaping its policy on North Korea. They say Pyongyang eventually wants the US to relax sanctions on the North while accepting it as a nuclear weapons state. ^ top ^
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| Mongolia |
Government approves MNT 2.7 billion as incentives for frontline healthcare workers (Montsame)
2021-04-01
At its regular meeting dated March 31, the cabinet approved to provide incentives to healthcare employees working on the COVID-19 frontline. MNT 1 million of one-time incentive will be paid to each doctor, nurse and medical employee responding to COVID-19 and each MNT 500,000 for resident doctors. The necessary funding of MNT 2 billion 780 million will be sourced from the government's contingency fund. There are 2,230 healthcare workers and 1,100 resident doctors working on the frontline to combat COVID-19 pandemic and their work burden has increased drastically since November 2020 as the community transmission of COVID-19 in the country has been growing nonstop, putting them at risk of being infected. ^ top ^
PM works at Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Montsame)
2021-04-01
At the outset of the meeting, Minister of Foreign Affairs B.Battsetseg briefed on the current state of international relations and its future trends, as well as issues to be addressed in foreign relations. Prime Minister L.Oyun-Erdene met virtually with heads of Mongolian diplomatic missions overseas, presenting the policy of the government and expressing his views on the works that should be carried out in the field of foreign relations. Particularly, the PM called on the Ministry and diplomatic missions to work effectively in accelerating the import of COVID-19 vaccine, increasing foreign investment, restoring the trust of foreign partners, ensuring the implementation of foreign policy and repatriating Mongolian nationals stranded abroad. ^ top ^
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Embassy of Switzerland
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The Press review is a random selection
of political and social related news gathered from various media
and news services located in the PRC, edited or translated by
the Embassy of Switzerland in Beijing and distributed among Swiss
Government Offices. The Embassy does not accept responsibility
for accuracy of quotes or truthfulness of content. Additionally
the contents of the selected news mustn't correspond to the opinion
of the Embassy.
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