1st of February 2011
The Lion Awakes
Daily News, Culture & Current Affairs about China
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China Daily
Planes to bring Chinese travelers in Egypt back
Beijing - China planned to send at least four planes by Tuesday to fly back Chinese travelers stranded in Cairo as anti-government protests continued in Egypt.
Air China and Hainan Airlines each sent a plane to Cairo to evacuate Chinese travelers on Monday morning. Each plane can carry about 250 to 280 passengers. It is believed that there are more than 500 Chinese citizens at the airport in Cairo while about 2,000 Chinese travelers are in Egypt.
On Tuesday, Air China will dispatch two more planes to Cairo.
China to invest $608b in water projects
Massive investment planned to ensure conservation of resource
BEIJING - Efforts will be intensified to promote water conservation as well as the sustainable use of the precious resource, and the task will be a multi-trillion yuan national priority, a central policy document said.
The country will invest 4 trillion yuan ($608 billion) into projects during the next decade to improve water conservation, Chen Xiwen, director of the office for the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee's Leading Group on Rural Work, said on Sunday.
See Kaixin's - GREEN CHINA
Several new regulations to take effect in China
BEIJING - A governmental decree which prohibits landlords from dividing apartment rooms into smaller booths for rent will take effect Tuesday.
The decree, entitled the Regulations on Leasing of Commercial Housing, stipulates that the average living area of rented housing per person shall not be less than the minimum living area per person set by local governments.
Besides, the decree forbids the leasing of kitchens, toilets, basements and balconies to be used as sleeping rooms.
See Kaixin's - CHINA REAL ESTATE
China allocates funds to retired people
BEIJING - China's Ministry of Finance (MOF) said Monday it had allocated 28.23 billion yuan ($4.27 billion) to assure retired enterprise employees receive their pensions before the arrival of the Spring Festival.
Nujiang hydro project back on agenda
BEIJING - The country is set to resume its development plans for the Nujiang River in Southwest China due to increasing demand for energy.
The hydropower project was shelved eight years ago because of environmental concerns.
"I think it's certain that the country will develop the Nujiang River," Shi Lishan, deputy director of the new energy department under the National Energy Administration, told a meeting in Beijing on Sunday.
The Nujiang River is originated from the southern slope of the Tanggula Mountain Range in Tibet Autonomous Region, flowing north to south across the Tibet Autonomous Region and Yunnan Province, with a total length of 2,816 kilometers and a drainage area of 324,000 square kilometers. The name of the river is changed into the Salween River after flowing into Burma from China, and it finally empties into the Andaman Sea of Indian Ocean at the Moulmein.
See Kaixin's - GREEN CHINA
Chinese New Year
2011
The Year of the Rabbit
A BRIEF HISTORY
OF
CHINA
Global Times
Poll shows US views on China improving
Voices of opposition regarding China's foreign exchange policy are trailing off among US citizens, with more than 40 percent of respondents in a new survey saying they oppose the idea of labeling China as a currency manipulator.
Despite bickering on a series of issues between the two sides in the past year, the poll found that the US public's overall attitude toward China is improving, with a 47.97 out of 100 points being given on their impression of China.
China can learn from Li Na's personality
Despite losing the final at the Australian Open, 28-year-old Chinese tennis player Li Na is all the rage in the foreign media. This is related not only to her identity as the first Asian to play in a Grand Slam singles final, but also her courtside humor and bubbly personality.
Women's Tennis Association CEO Stacey Allaster said that on the global stage, Li represents the image of the Chinese people.
Every successful athlete, on certain occasions, becomes a symbol of his or her nation. Previously, Chinese sports players had a strong sense of "representing China," and often appeared conservative and overcautious. Foreign journalists used to find it hard to distinguish among Chinese athletes due to their lack of individuality in their eyes. Li is breaking that stereotype.
Li's impressive performance on the court was driven by her own personality and it represents a social change in China during the past two decades. Mainly, the constraints on self-expression have been shaken off. This forthright girl represents a different China that allows her to "just be herself."
SLIDESHOW - Finally, here comes the Chinese Slam finalist
MELBOURNE - Li Na is on fire to become the first Chinese player to win a Grand Slam final, as she kicked out world No.1 Catholine Wozniacki 3-6, 7-5, 6-3 in Thursday's semifinal of Australia Open.
Color revolutions will not bring about real democracy
In a sense, democracy means to convey all grass-roots sentiment to the government level, but many existing governments do not do this. The more extreme elements exist in a society, the harder it is for a government to maintain a reasonable line. The Middle East is the region where beliefs and viewpoints clash most with the Western world view. Hence, Western countries support non-democratic governments who play into their hands.
Most Western democracies matured over a long period. Japan and South Korea, though implanted democracies, have to pay the price of accepting foreign armies on their territory. Some other countries have had an even tougher time in adopting a democratic system.
In general, democracy has a strong appeal because of the successful models in the West. But whether the system is applicable in other countries is in question, as more and more unsuccessful examples arise.
In the West, democracy is not only a political system, but a way of life. Yet some emerging democracies in Asia and Africa are taking hit after hit from street-level clamor.
Democracy is still far away for Tunisia and Egypt. The success of a democracy takes concrete foundations in economy, education and social issues.
As a general concept, democracy has been accepted by most people. But when it comes to political systems, the Western model is only one of a few options. It takes time and effort to apply democracy to different countries, and to do so without the turmoil of revolution.
Smaller cities must begin to evolve
The State Council has released a set of new measures to tame the property market Wednesday, which appears to have suffered most over the past 12 months. However, high house prices do not simply reflect the price of a home, but also the amount that people are willing to pay to chase their dreams in big cities.
As long as these cities still possess this broad appeal, house prices there will not fall.
There are more than 600 cities in China. In a few of them, house prices have become a real social problem. A common feature of these cities is the existence of abundant opportunities for personal growth and career development. Big cities have rich cultural scenes, rapid development and sophistication.
In comparison, some second and third-tier cities do not look like cities, despite their gleaming infrastructure.
The concentration of population in major urban areas is a global problem. For instance, the population of the Paris metropolitan area is one-fifth of the French population. However, the situation in China is much worse.
The excessive concentration of all kinds of resources in big cities has led to this skewed appeal. Despite the pains of extremely high house prices, people still view this as a necessary evil.
In big cities like Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou, measures to curb the housing market have become increasingly tight. But the craving for these properties lingers on as people believe these cities will become bigger with more opportunities.
The market demand being squeezed out by curbing policies may be effective, but only when small and medium-sized cities see a rapid rise in their appeal. Otherwise, such demand may return and drive house prices even higher in big cities.
China should try to increase the appeal of its second and third-tier cities.
Appeal-building means more than building houses, roads, and urban squares. These cities should possess vivid cultures, offering denizens the flavor of a big city. They should be able to echo global trends too.
In order to weigh down house prices, a few administrative control policies are not adequate. Bringing down house prices deserves the full force of China's modernization. At the moment, China's prosperity is dominated in a few cities. Such prosperity should shine over more regions, and people's traditional ideas of life and wealth should be reshaped. This sounds utopian, but it could determine the quality of China's modernization.
China is witnessing the expansion of its high-speed railway network and the migration of job opportunities into inland areas.
This provides second and third-tier cities with an opportunity to take a share of the appeal of big cities. However, these smaller cities still lack cultural confidence, and their appeal remains invisible in the eyes of many people.
China urgently needs more smaller cities to blossom next to their larger brethren. They will set good examples, and show people what modernization really means.
See Kaixin's - CHINA REAL ESTATE
Persecuted veterans finally vindicated
The first thing Xiong Shichao does every morning is dress up in full uniform and pin five anti-Japanese war (1937-1945) campaign medals to his chest.
At first glance, this 88-year-old veteran looked just like any other proud but forgotten war hero.
"As a soldier, these medals are all I care about," Xiong said.
The difference with Xiong is that he, like millions of other Chinese, fought on the wrong side.
Four of his medals are brand new: They were handed to Xiong last year by the government of Baoshan, Yunnan Province.
"It's been nearly 65 years since the war ended," Xiong said. "I only received most of these medals last year, but I don't care if it was too late.
"I'm just happy to be recognized."
There are more than 100 veterans like Xiong living in this prefecture-level city of about 2.5 million people. They came here to fight the Japanese.
See Kaixin's - Nanking, Nanking
Dialogue
A 30 Minute Current Affairs Programme on CCTV - 9 (In English) where current issues are discussed by experts from China and Internationally:
Revolution: Wealth redistribution
Obama's speech & political comeback
Future beyond Cancun Climate Conference
Taiwan & China - From revolution to reunification
US & China's best way forward through trade
China-US relations in transition
Strategic reassurance to be tested
Gates' fence-mending visit to Beijing
International News Sources
The Wall Street Journal - China RealTime Report
The Wall Street Journal
Pictures of China
Slideshows
Champion Of Chinese Modernity Dies
China has lost a staunch champion of its modernity: a scion of the founder of modern China itself.
Nora Sun, the 73-year-old granddaughter of Sun Yat-sen, died over the weekend, nearly a month after she was badly injured in a Taiwan car crash.
Ms. Sun’s grandfather campaigned tirelessly for a new kind of China, providing spirit for the revolution that toppled the Qing Dynasty in 1911. Her father was Sun Fo, the only son of Dr. Sun who held government positions in Guangzhou and Taipei.
See Kaixin's - Chinese Republic under Dr Sun Yat-Sen - Video Documentary
See Kaixin's - A Brief History of China
China Might Force Visits to Mom and Dad
Under a proposal from the Civil Affairs Ministry, adult children would be required by law to regularly visit their elderly parents. If they do not, parents can sue them.
Kaixin OpEd – ‘Once ensconced in intimate neighborhoods of courtyard houses and small lanes and surrounded by relatives and acquaintances, older people in China are increasingly moving into lonely high-rises and feeling forgotten, he said.’
Welcome to the west!
This proposed law is founded in compassion but will be dashed on the rocks of reality.
Xiaosui and our friends in China agree that the elderly are being forgotten, however a law will not address the issue. It will take either a change of attitude or the revival of the old ways where the elderly were treated as respected members of the family, not burdens.
How do you ‘prove’ in a court of law such a proposition? What defences will be allowed?
The first generation of only children are far more mobile, often live in different cities and are facing increasing costs of living. Many have neither the time nor means to visit their parent, even if they wanted to.
Will lack of money be a defence?
The elderly in China, and Asian societies in general, feel an obligation to their children. It is why the suicide rate is climbing. They are lonely and isolated, but do not want to be a burden on their children.
High quality aged care is probably the answer. The west has some good models to work from.
It is not ideal, but perhaps it is better than being alone and isolated in a high rise apartment.
The New York Times
Inflation in China May Limit U.S. Trade Deficit
Inflation is starting to slow China’s export machine as buyers from Western companies balk at higher prices.
Caixin Online
"Red Envelopes" for China's Home Buyers
The property tax in Shanghai and Chongqing, meant to target last year's bubbling churn in home prices, already looks set to miss its mark
During the Spring Festival, it is customary for children in China to receive a red envelope enclosed with cash from their elders. This year, many have made the wry remark that the central government had done just that – for some home owners and buyers.
The property tax on residential housing was touted by the government as a means to cool the property market. It came into force in Chongqing and Shanghai on January 28, nearly a week before the Chinese New Year. The first-ever tax levied on homes in decades now invites more questions than answers: Why Chongqing and Shanghai? Will the tax help rein in runaway real estate prices? What will the government do with property tax revenues?
Black Lung Miner Hikes an Unjust Paper Trail
Ma Jixing has spent years rounding up documents, but he's still being denied compensation for a coal mine disability
Coal miner Ma Jixing was diagnosed with late-stage black lung disease after spending a decade working in a Fangshan District pit near Beijing.
That was more than four years ago. And now, while he struggles to breathe, the Shandong Province native is also fighting for the occupational health compensation he's legally due.
In search of justice, Ma has followed a long, circuitous route to the offices of mining companies, courtrooms and government departments, all in vain.
Ma's case is one of many that's driving central government lawmakers to consider a revision of the Occupational Disease Prevention Code.
Is the style of parenting advocated by Amy Chua in her latest book, Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother, truly Chinese?
Recently, Amy Chua's article titled, "Why Chinese Mothers Are Superior," in the Wall Street Journal, ignited a sociological fire across parenting circles. A professor at Yale Law School, Chua's article was an excerpt from her book, "Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother" – in which she claims through a strict parenting culture, Chinese children are able to perform exceptionally well in the United States, while western parents abandon their due responsibilities out of "respecting individuality." According to Time Magazine, within a few days, news related to the article attracted over a million views and more than 5,000 comments worldwide.
The new book, however, uses simple, summarized slogans so that those who are either busy or lazy can flip to a simple answer from the perspective of Chinese parenting. But her account misses countless details. The book is ultimately more about a conversation on the differences between traditional and non-traditional parenting techniques, rather than the contrasts between Chinese and western styles of raising children.
When Chua's younger daughter was finally given the opportunity to make a decision for herself, she actually chose tennis – a very pushy sport for female players.
But since her children have been raised in the United States, the only way they will ever truly know is the American way.
The author is a scholar studying in the U.S.
See Kaixin's - Follow the Debate on Tiger Mum - Amy Chua 'Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother'
Sometimes a salary just doesn't cover all the expenses – how the malignant corruption of He Shen became the most egregious example of imperial corruption during the Qing Dynasty
Rising to become Emperor Qianlong's most trusted consort during the late Qing Dynasty, the legend of He Shen continues to live in the minds of many Chinese as a parable of rank official corruption. By the court's own archives of the time, He Shen was documented as having amassed a combined 107.2 million tael in 1799 with his relatives, when his assets were finally confiscated by the central government. The list is recorded in China's First Historical Archives Center, Volume 195.
Kaixin OpEd – The other legend on corruption is of the chief advisor to the Emperor in the Qing Dynasty, Kang Xi.
Kang Xi was infamous for his corruption and had also amassed a vast fortune.
A trusted adviser to the Emperor asked him why he didn’t do something about it and replace Kang Xi
The Emperor replied that Kang Xi was sated, the wolf was full.
If he appointed someone else, they would be a hungry wolf.
See Kaixin's - Corruption v 'li shang wang lai' 礼尚往来
The Age
Special oil greases China's alternative mechanism
The art of guanxi functions to break down the legal and other barriers to corrupt transactions.
THE art of building ''guanxi'' and the rituals of giving and soliciting bribes are not always the same thing in China, but they often are.
One reason Rio Tinto's Stern Hu is in jail is because he was no good at it.
''As experienced guanxi practitioners often say, 'the thing is half-done once the gift is accepted','' writes Li Ling in ''Performing Bribery in China'', in the current edition of the Journal of Contemporary China.
See Kaixin's - Corruption v 'li shang wang lai' 礼尚往来
Asia Times Online
SINOGRAPH
Confucius takes a stand
By Francesco Sisci
Chinese authorities last week placed a statue of Confucius in Beijing's Tiananmen Square, near the portrait of former paramount leader Mao Zedong. The move to give such a public face to the great philosopher is in line with Beijing's decision to cut down on Maoist paraphernalia in the political heart of China. Maoists are up in arms.
See Kaixin's - Confucius, Traditional Chinese Medicine ... best represent Chinese culture
See Kaixin's - Confucius - Video Documentary
See Kaixin's - Mao’s Last Swimmer - Chairman Mao's swim anniversary Nanning China
Kaixin OpEd – Xiaosui recalls the Cultural Revolution (which she lived through) and how Mao wanted to wipe Confucius from Chinese history.
Why?
Mao came from a village in rural China. He had seen how lofty ideas such as Confucianism had not benefited the rural population and peasants of China one jot.
He wanted to leave all that behind and forge a new China.
Yes, his ideals were corrupted by power, but the Cultural Revolution was actually founded on a sound idea, to rid China of the old ways that had contributed to grinding the average rural worker/farmer into the dust.
However, an idea, a philosophy, as strong as Confucianism cannot be wiped from the face of history.
It is re-emerging in China as China is taking its place in the world as a leading power. A place it held for most of recorded history.
The leaders of China know that the Chinese people, in particular the youth, need a powerful philosophy to guide them.
The influences and temptations of China’s re-gained wealth are great, and distracting.
Communism is a strong philosophy, but it is mainly political and economic. Also, China has let it evolve to benefit the needs of China, rather than wear it as a straightjacket.
Confucianism has 1,000’s of years of history in moral guidance.
Communism may provide the physical sustenance to the people of China, however Confucianism will provide the philosophical sustenance.
Global Times - Demented art
As a child, Guo Haiping witnessed his disturbed brother Guo Enping being dispatched to a mental hospital after reading The Selected Works of Mao Zedong nonstop for three days and three nights.
Kaixin OpEd - This article featured on the front page of one of China's leading overseas English newwspapers (news website). Along with the statue, it says something of how China is viewing Mao's legacy. Not all bad, but in perspective.
See Kaixin's - Mao’s Last Swimmer - Chairman Mao's swim anniversary Nanning China
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