2nd of July 2011
The Lion Awakes
Daily News, Culture & Current Affairs about China
Graeme has been using ChinesePod since 2007
"I highly recommend ChinesePod, I haven't found any Online teaching programmes that come close."
People's Daily
Reasons behind Communist Party's democracy successes in China
Democracy is an unavoidable topic for the 90th anniversary of the Communist Party of China's founding. During the revolutionary period of the last century, countless communists bravely sacrificed their lives for true democracy in China.
Kaixin OpEd – Hmmmm … obviously not a fan of Sun Tzu.
You shouldn’t engage the enemy on their own ground.
Bit strained I thought.
I have been impressed by the slow but steady rise of the people’s voice in China. From the almost total darkness of Mao’s China, the people the peoples voice has tentatively come out into the sunlight.
It must be remembered that the people did not have a voice before Mao.
Mao did not suppress democracy, he just didn’t encourage it.
In the twenty first century I believe China will evolve its own form of democracy. A democracy shaped by the people of China.
It will not be a ‘higher form’ of democracy, it will be China’s form of democracy.
The article demonstrated the gap of understanding that still exists between East & West, I think.
China likely to continue tight monetary policy: CICC
China will continue its tight monetary policy for the rest of the year but the possibility of a hard landing for the economy is slim, a Chinese economist has said.
Although the country's economic growth has started to slow, inflation remains stubbornly high, which means the monetary policy should remain tight in the short run, Peng Wensheng, the chief economist of the China International Capital Corp (CICC), was quoted as saying by China Daily on Saturday.
Policy discrepancies among major economies make China's macro control difficult
The differentiated economic policies of the world's major economies have increased the difficulty for macro control in China and other developing countries, said Ma Delun, vice governor of China's central bank, on Friday.
China's ports will remain number one
Chinese ports will remain the busiest in the world this year, although sluggish economic recovery in the United States and the European Union (EU) will dent their container volume growth, according to an outlook report by the Chinese Academy of Sciences.
See Kaixin's - ECONOMIC CHINA
China, US not strategic rivals
There has been much discussion as to whether East Asia will continue to maintain stability since Obama announced that the United States would "return to Asia." The United States claimed that its presence in East Asia is conducive to regional stability, but is it true? Its Asia-Pacific strategy has three priorities: economic prosperity, regional stability and the safety of its allies. Overall, the United States has the willingness, ability and need to maintain the stability of East Asia.
However, history has clearly proven that only a regional multilateral security mechanism will ensure long-term security and stability in East Asia.
World's longest cross-sea bridge opens in east China
The world's longest cross-sea bridge spanning Jiaozhou Bay of Qingdao City, Shandong Province, opened on Thursday.
The opening ceremony of the 36.48-km eight-lane Qingdao Jiaozhou Bay Bridge was held Thursday morning.
The bridge, connecting the urban district of the city to its Huangdao district, cost 14.8 billion yuan (2.3 billion U.S. dollars). Construction of the bridge began in May 2007.
See Kaixin's FEATURE - The Qingdao-Haiwan Bridge
Motives behind US talk of 'freedom of navigation'
The words "freedom of navigation" have frequently appeared in the media of the United States amid the recent territorial disputes in the South China Sea. According to a report by Reuters on June 23, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said when meeting with the Philippine Foreign Affairs Secretary Albert del Rosario, "We are concerned that recent incidents in the South China Sea could undermine peace and stability in the region," and "U.S. national interests in freedom of navigation and respect for international law are at stake." Some senior U.S. officials and mainstream agencies have repeatedly made similar remarks over recent months as if international navigation in the South China Sea were in peril.
Clashes over South China Sea pose a test to new E Asian Structure
By Li Hongmei
South China Sea waters will be churned up if some regional countries insisted on risky ventures to address the so-called border issue. What is happening now is already inviting the global concerns--- Vietnam is using live ammunition in its war exercises in the waters of the South China Sea. Meanwhile, Philippine President Benigno Aquino's office stated it was renaming the South China Sea as the "West Philippine Sea" amid the mounting tensions with Beijing.
A vision for ruling CPC
By Li Hong
Three events will serve as footnotes for the 90th anniversary of the ruing Communist Party of China: the world's single longest high-speed railroad connecting Beijing and Shanghai goes to operation; top lawmakers approve an amendment to the tax code, giving tax exemptions to low- and middle-income earners but adding tax on the rich; and probably, by coincidence, Premier Wen Jiabao visits Hungary, Britain and Germany, forging a deeper and closer partnership with Europe.
China Daily
Hu: CPC must serve the people
BEIJING - Alienation from the people poses the greatest risk to the Communist Party of China (CPC), while corruption will cost the Party the support of the people, Hu Jintao, general secretary of the CPC Central Committee, said on Friday.
Addressing a celebratory meeting at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing to mark the 90th founding anniversary of what is now the world's largest political party, Hu said that all of the Party's achievements over the past nine decades had been made together with the people.
CPC accomplishes three major events: Hu Jintao
BEIJING - The Communist Party of China (CPC), chosen by history and the people, has accomplished three major events since its formation 90 years ago, President Hu Jintao said Friday.
The first is that the CPC, relying on the people, completed the new-democratic revolution, winning national independence and liberation of the people, Hu said at a grand gathering marking the 90th founding anniversary of the CPC.
The second is that the CPC completed the socialist revolution and established the basic socialist system, he said.
The third is that the Party carried out a great new revolution of reform and opening up, creating, upholding, and developing socialism with Chinese characteristics, he said.
"These three major events reshaped the future and destiny of the Chinese people and the Chinese nation," Hu said.
Yuan's trading band may soon be widened
Daily 1 percent limit appropriate, Bank of China analyst says
BEIJING - The yuan's daily trading band against dollar will probably soon be widened from the current 0.5 percent to 1 percent, said a report released by Bank of China Ltd (BOC) on Thursday.
See Kaixin's - Yuan Revaluation & Internationalisation
Qingdao bridge sets world record
QINGDAO, Shandong - The world's longest cross-sea bridge, spanning Jiaozhou Bay of Qingdao in East China's Shandong province, opened to traffic on Thursday amid a major effort to further consolidate this coastal city into an international shipping center for Northeast Asia.
My Days with Mao - VIDEO FEATURE
July 1 marks the 90th anniversary of the founding of the Communist Party of China (CPC). On this special occasion, Li Yechen, former chief conductor of the special train for Chairman Mao, sat down with China Daily to share his stories from the old days, unveiling the unknown side of Mao.
XinHua News
Rail linking Europe expected to open up China's less-developed West
CHONGQING, July 1 (Xinhua) -- A cargo train filled with laptops and LCD screens has left Chongqing, a mega-city in China's less-developed western regions, starting its 13-day trip to Duisburg, Germany, which marks the official launch of the new transcontinental rail freight route.
The new rail route witnessed its official opening on Thursday night, after three test runs since March last year.
Clattering out of the station at about 9 p.m., the cargo train is set to travel 11,179 kilometers across the far western Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, Kazakhstan, Russia, Belarus, Poland, before finally reaching Germany.
The route offers a major shortcut to the more traditional sea trade routes from Shanghai and Guangzhou, cutting travel time to Europe from about 36 days by container ship to just 13 days by freight train, said Huang Qifan, mayor of the inland business hub.
Senior leader urges Tsinghua University to strive for world-class status
BEIJING, June 30 (Xinhua) -- Senior Chinese leader Li Changchun on Thursday called on Tsinghua University to improve its education quality to foster more talent and boost its influence in global education.
FM press conference on 28th June
Global Times
China is complicated
In a surprisingly frank interview the Global Times Editor-in-Chief, Hu Xijin, talks about the politicization of democracy, Ai Weiwei and what it means to be born in China.
Hu, 51, has worked for the Global Times (GT) since 1993. As a reporter he covered the Bosian and Iraq wars. He has been the Global Times Editor-in-Chief since 2005.
The interview was published by Southern People Weekly on June 27. Part of the translated transcript follows.
US, Philippines start joint naval exercise
The US and the Philippines began an 11-day joint naval exercise on Tuesday, shortly before China accused the US Senate of intervening in the South China Sea issue.
Dangerous nationalism risks future of South China Sea
Recent disputes in the South China Sea have been focused above all on the Nansha Islands, drawing in the Chinese mainland, Taiwan, Vietnam, the Philippines, Malaysia, and Brunei and going back to the 1960s.
Kaixin OpEd - A good historical perspective
The Wall Street Journal
U.S. Reliance on Exports for Growth May Boost China’s Role
“How do you keep the economy going? Exports, and that means whether it’s directly to China or not, they are certainly the linchpin.”
China Buying Too Many Treasurys Inspired Rule Change: Report
Amid the debt-ceiling debate and the end of QE2, everybody’s worried about whether China, the world’s biggest foreign holder of US debt, will keep buying Treasurys. A Reuters report today hearkens back to a happier time, when China was apparently buying too much Treasury debt.
Shanghai’s International Board: Some New Clarity
There’s often a long lag between China signaling financial reform and the reform actually happening. But the wait for an international board in Shanghai – an idea first floated in 2009 — is becoming China’s version of Waiting for Godot, with officials repeatedly dropping hints that foreign companies might soon be allowed to list yuan-denominated shares on the Shanghai Stock Exchange only to fall silent when pressed for details.
Chinese Party Marks Nine Decades
Critics Say All-Out Campaign to Reassert Its Version of a Complicated Past Shows Failure to Evolve
BEIJING—Eager to bolster its legitimacy in the eyes of an increasingly restive and Internet-savvy society, China's Communist Party is marking its 90th anniversary Friday with a no-holds-barred campaign to reassert its airbrushed version of modern history.
IMF Appoints Lagarde as Managing Director
WASHINGTON—The International Monetary Fund executive board Tuesday officially named Christine Lagarde as the next IMF director, after the French finance minister won late support from the U.S. and several major emerging-market nations.
See Kaixin's - The selection of the next IMF President
Eight Questions: Deborah Fallows, ‘Dreaming in Chinese’
As China’s influence intensifies across the world, interest in the study of its official language is also growing. Fluency in Mandarin – long the world’s most commonly spoken language – has become an increasingly desirable skill in both business and diplomatic circles, with roughly 1,600 American public and private schools now offering Mandarin classes. Recently, the language has even been dubbed “the new English” by those confident in its future. But as author Deborah Fallows found out, knowledge of Chinese is advantageous in more than just a political or economic sense.
See Kaixin's - An Introduction to Chinese
The New York Times
Growth Slows in China’s Manufacturing Sector
Although the moderation in activity did not point to a sharp drop-off in economic growth for now, the data were slightly worse than forecast and led some analysts to predict that China might be less aggressive in tightening monetary policy conditions later this year.
I.H.T. Op-Ed Contributor
Great Party, but Where's the Communism?
By MINXIN PEI
There is little question that the Chinese Communist Party has come a long way since it was founded 90 years ago by 12 delegates representing roughly 50 members.
Yet however insignificant it may have seemed back then, there was no question about its ideology, identity and mission.
Repackaging the Revolutionary Classics of China + VIDEO
CHONGQING, China — The kindergarten musical climaxed in a whirlwind of violence: A teacher playing a Japanese soldier sliced down a peasant girl with a curved sword, just as two tykes in Red Army outfits took aim at him with plastic pistols.
Caixin Online
The Most Favored Go-Between
By Eu Li
Henry Kissinger's On China offers a rich examination of Sino-U.S. relations from 1971 onward
Ancient Chinese history and the Chinese concept of "face" in diplomacy are explored in Henry Kissinger's most recent book, "On China." While American readers may be interested in the former national security advisor's musings on Chinese diplomacy, Chinese readers will be keen to know the details of Kissinger's interactions with Chinese leaders, which cover a span of forty years. Starting with U.S. President Richard Nixon's first visit to China in 1971, his recollections include an intimate conversation between Nixon and Deng Xiaoping, where Deng turns the microphone off. The book also offers a rare glimpse into the friendship that was formed with former Premier Zhou Enlai.
Cities Struggle with Affordable Housing
Faced with financial pressures and a housing backlog, local governments have eased the income ceilings for affordable housing
(Beijing) – The government is in the midst of an unprecedented push to build 3.6 million units of guaranteed housing in the next three years, but the program has yet to benefit its intended low-income audience.
See Kaixin's - CHINA REAL ESTATE
Small Enterprises Squeezed by Loans
Macro controls aimed at easing bank risks are putting increasing pressure on SME lending
Rumors have been circulating in the last few months that small enterprises in the Yangtze River Delta and the Pearl River Delta are suffering from tight capital supplies, large-scale work halts and even closures. Those that fear China's economy may suffer a "hard landing" see this as seeds of risk.
Through the BRIC Wall
There is a clear-cut way out of the middle-income country trap – but it requires a commitment to the creation of high quality institutions
The 90th anniversary of the founding of the Communist Party is an opportunity for China to celebrate economic and political achievements that have eluded all other communist parties. It is a testament to the pragmatism that the Party has demonstrated ever since Deng Xiaoping became determined to lift China out of poverty 30 years ago. But this anniversary is occurring against a backdrop of challenges which should make us wonder what China might look like when the centenary comes around.
The First Domino? Yunnan Highway Breaches its Financing Platform Contract
Yunnan Highway's failure to repay its debt may foretell a bumpy road ahead for local government financing platforms
A Slowdown's Implications, Solutions
Economic growth will diminish, but China's social problems will not. Urgent reform can avoid a related future crisis
Will China's economy face a hard landing, or will a slowdown be within its control? Whatever the answer, analysts would agree that economic growth is bound to slow down. Yet the central government hasn't written any sound plans to prepare for it.
A Fringe of Foam on Foreign Shores
China's real estate investment cups have runneth over – and domestic buyers have gone abroad on a strong yuan and favorable lending conditions – but has the investment bubble followed them?
In late May of this year, more than 400 people lined up to purchase apartments at a site in New Westminster City, a suburb of Vancouver. Within two and half hours of the start of the sale, all 153 units had been sold.
See Kaixin's - CHINA REAL ESTATE
Asia Times Online
THE PERFECT STORM
ASEAN adrift in South China Sea
By David Brown
The dispute over sovereignty of the South China Sea that has flared up in recent weeks is more than a neighborhood spat. Yet it tests the waters for the Association of Southeast Asian Nations to present a united front and put tangled claims on course for resolution under international law. ASEAN chair Indonesia must act fast, before China's client states in the region take their turn at the wheel.
Taiwan, kingmaker from the shore
By Jens Kastner
Taiwan may have been watching from the sidelines as waters roil, and suggestions that the Kuomintang government may back China militarily have been shrugged off as fanciful. A Taiwanese presence in the largest island in the Spratlys, though, fits well into Beijing's strategic planning to shove Vietnamese and Philippine territorial claims aside once and for all.
Self-interest in China's helping hand
By Jian Junbo
Examine the substance of Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao's just-ended European tour, including the offer to help the financially challenged region by buying debt, and it's easy to conclude that support for the euro is in China's own interests. Assertions that Beijing has launched a campaign to make political capital from Europe in crisis, however, aren't a match with the truth.
US hesitates on Philippine arms
By Al Labita
Philippine lawmakers hope joint exercises with the US Navy in the disputed Spratly Islands will send a strong message to China as President Benigno Aquino resists an invitation for talks in Beijing to ease tensions in the South China Sea. However, Manila cannot count on Washington to make good on a pledge to deliver modern arms to point Beijing's way.
China's expressways face high-toll backlash
By Olivia Chung
Hong Kong-based visionary Gordon Wu's pioneering development in southern China tops a list of profitable tollroads as the Chinese government clamps down on charges to use the country's vast expressway network in response to public complaints and their impact on logistics costs.
SUN WUKONG
CCP rediscovers democracy, at 90
By Wu Zhong, China Editor
As the Chinese Communist Party celebrates its 90th birthday and prepares for new leaders, it is re-implementing Mao Zedong's early ideas of intra-party democracy. Chairman Mao believed his democratic model would allow the party to avoid the fate of vanquished dynasties. Now, with the "on horseback" revolutionary leaders long gone, votes are the only way to confer legitimacy
China runs gauntlet in South China Seas
By Jian Junbo and Wu Zhong
China has remained cool in the face of Vietnamese provocations over disputed South China Sea territories, aiming to reinforce its status as a "responsible player" in international affairs. However, nationalists are interpreting this as weakness. While the backlash is for now too minor to provoke the social instability that worries the Chinese Communist Party, if it heats up, so will Beijing's response.
BOOK REVIEW
Pomp and porn during the Qing Dynasty
Decadence Mandchoue by Sir Edmund Trelawny Backhouse
Reviewed by Kent Ewing
In an erotic romp through the twilight years of the Qing Dynasty, these memoirs recount among other trysts the Victorian Orientalist author's subservient servicing of the Empress Dowager Cixi, then 69, and adventures with the eunuchs and catamites of Peking's bathhouses. Intermingled with fantastical imperial palace intrigue, the work has faced charges of fraudulence and obscenity; this belies its charm and historical significance.
THE ROVING EYE
An extreme traveler, Pepe's nose for news has taken him to all parts of the Pepe Escobar globe. He was in Afghanistan and interviewed the military leader of the anti-Taliban Northern Alliance, Ahmad Shah Masoud, a couple of weeks before his assassination
China Themes
Insights into China's Society & Culture
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