Archive for March, 2012

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04/03/2012

* New Indian Army chief appointed

The Hindu: “Eastern Army Commander Lieutenant General Bikram Singh will be the next Chief of Staff of the 1.3 million-strong Indian Army. He will succeed General Vijay Kumar Singh, who retires on May 31.

The announcement by the Defence Ministry on Saturday came 90 days ahead of the scheduled day of assumption of charge — as against the 60-day norm the government has been following. The move removes uncertainty over the successor following a rash of speculative reports that Gen. Singh could put in his papers early which could alter the succession plan of the senior-most Army Commander taking over as the next Chief.

The appointment came a day after the incumbent Army Chief said he was not going to resign, effectively countering speculative reports by some television channels and dailies that Gen. Singh would resign after the Supreme Court disposed of his petition last month on the controversy over his year of birth.”

http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/article2957641.ece

Controversy over the true date of birth of the incumbent Army Chief ends with appointment of his successor. This news is purely coincidental to China’s announcement of it’s $100 billion military budget.

Posted in India alert, Military | Leave a Comment »

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03/03/2012

* US military ties with India growing

Times of India: “Ties between the US and Indian militaries are growing, a senior defense official said on Friday, noting recent bilateral security talks between the two countries reaffirmed the partnership and the growing US interest in advancing it.

Acting under secretary of defense for policy James Miller joined Indian defense secretary Shashi Kant Sharma in co-chairing the 12th annual US-India defense policy group dialogue in New Delhi Feb 21 and 22.”

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Military-ties-with-India-growing-US/articleshow/12121013.cms

Undoubtedly another attempt at ‘encircling’ China policy by US. Earlier this year US and Australia agreed closer military cooperation. This will, no doubt, cause some reaction from the Chinese military eventually.

Posted in Defence, Diplomacy, GeoPolitics, India alert, Military | 5 Comments »

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02/03/2012

* Chinese manufacturing continues to expand

China Daily: “Manufacturing bounced back to a five-month peak in February, supported by stronger exports, easing concerns about a possible contraction.

The purchasing managers’ index, an indicator of manufacturing activity, hit 51 last month, 0.5 points higher than January, the National Bureau of Statistics and the China Federation of Logistics and Purchasing revealed on Thursday.

It has stayed above the 50-point level for three consecutive months after it dropped to a 32-month low of 49 in November. A reading higher than 50 means expansion, while below 50 shows contraction.

“The continually increasing PMI proves the nation is undergoing an economic rebound,propped up by industrial production,” Zhang Liqun, a research fellow with the DevelopmentResearch Center of the State Council, said.”

http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2012-03/02/content_14735838.htm

Fears of a ‘hard landing’ for the Chinese economy recedes. Good news for global economies!

Posted in China alert, Economics, Good news | Leave a Comment »

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02/03/2012

* China to boost local govt debt (of over USD 1.5 trillion) clean-up

China Daily: “China will boost the clean-up of thousands of millions of local government’s debt in 2012, so to guard against possible defaults that would hurt its banks, the country’s bankingregulator said Thursday.

The country will focus on cleaning up old loans made to local government financing vehicles(LGFV) while tightening new debt issues and raising cash to debt coverage ratios, China Banking Regulatory Commission (CBRC) said on its website.

The CBRC will strictly control the use of LGFV loans, while giving priority to key projects that are under construction, it said. The regulator will also improve risk monitoring and reclassify LGFV loans to relieve pressure from banks.

Local government debts had risen to 10.72 trillion yuan (1.7 trillion US dollars) by the end of 2010, accounting for about 26.9 percent of China’s gross domestic product, according to data released by the National Audit Office.

Analysts fret that if a certain proportion of the loans have gone sour, it will push up non-performing loan ratios in the banking industry and threaten banks’ credit ratings.

Local governments typically invested the money they borrowed in building infrastructure. They also faced huge repayment pressure in 2011 and now also in 2012.”

http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2012-03/02/content_14735361.htm

China is taking steps to rein in the extraordinary splurge it generated in the aftermath of the 2008-09 financial crisis by encouraging local government initiatives. It is primarily this LG debt that has caused China’s debt to GDP ratio to increase from less than 20% to over 40 % in two years.

Posted in China alert, Economics, Good news | Leave a Comment »

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01/03/2012

* Use of DNA to rescue kidnapped kids in China

China Daily: “The DNA database for missing children set up by the Ministry of Public Security has helped over 2,000 abducted kids return home, a Chinese official said Wednesday.

The ministry has created a DNA database of more than 20,000 blood samples from parents who have lost their children in an effort to help identify abducted children and fight against thecrime, according to Chen Shiqu, head of the ministry’s office for the crackdown on childabductions.

Since 2009, police have uncovered nearly 16,000 cases of women trafficking and 12,000 child abduction cases. Authorities rescued more than 19,000 abducted children and 35,000 women,Chen said. The police will keep on implementing the “zero tolerance” policy to the crime, and beef up efforts to crack down on child trafficking, he said.

Human trafficking is difficult to root out in China, partly as the conventions of “boys carrying o nthe family line” and “sons guaranteeing one’s old age” remain deeply rooted in the countryside.In many rural areas, couples with no offspring still tend to “buy” and adopt abducted children.”

http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2012-03/01/content_14727447.htm

The high incidence of child abduction is a direct consequence of the one-child policy combined with the Chinese (and Indian) view that sons are ‘better’ than daughters. Boys are kidnapped for parents without a son and, sometimes, girls are kidnapped because of the growing awareness that there is a serious sex-ratio disparity that will later cause there to be fewer women than men for marriage purposes!  ;-(

Posted in China alert, Good news, Obsolete practices, Rule of law, Social & cultural | 1 Comment »

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01/03/2012

* Chinese vice premier urges equal access for disabled

Xinhua: “Chinese Vice Premier Hui Liangyu has called for equal access for the country’s disabled people to participate in the social life and to enjoy the benefits of the country’s development.

Hui made the remarks at a conference on the work to assist the disabled here Wednesday.

Efforts should be made to narrow the gap in living standard between the disabled and the average people in the society, Hui said. He also called on the government to improve relevant policies to ensure and promote the employment situation for the disabled as well as to provide better education and cultural services for them.

The work to assist the disabled should be focused on those who live in the rural areas, Hui said.

He called on the officials in charge of the work to better understand the lives and works of the disabled, hear more carefully the voices of them and give more considerations of them. He also urged more preferential policies to support the disabled people.”

http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/china/2012-03/01/c_122773597.htm

This news is – to Western eyes – kind of “what’s new?”.  But in China, the disabled have been historically treated as an invisible blot on a household, a sort of divine pronouncement on something wrong/bad we did generations ago, a kind of karma even. So this is real enlightenment for China.

Posted in China alert, Culture, Good news | 1 Comment »

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01/03/2012

* At least 20 people were killed in China’s Xinjiang

The Hindu: “At least 20 people were killed in China’s Xinjiang region on Tuesday in violence that the government blamed on separatists. The incident underscored the ethnic tension in the far-western Muslim-majority region that has erupted intermittently in recent months.

The government said attackers armed with knives killed at least 13 people and injured many on a busy pedestrian street in the county of Kargilik, or Yecheng in Chinese, which is located around 250 km from Kashgar. The ancient Silk Road city of Kashgar, situated near China’s border with Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK), was the scene of similar violence last July, when attackers armed with knives assaulted pedestrians and set off bombs, killing at least 20 people. The local government said the police had shot dead “seven violent terrorists” and captured two.

The government blamed last year’s violence on extremist groups who they said had been trained in camps in Pakistan. Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hong Lei said it was “not yet known” who was behind Tuesday’s violence.”

http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/article2947105.ece

Xinjiang, with a Muslim  majority who speak a Turkic language, is one of the two ethnic trouble-spots in China.  The other, of course, is Tibet. Unlike Tibet, there is no historic dispute of sovereignty – unless you’re going back to early history pre-dating even the Muslim conversion/incursion of the ‘native’ population. Strife here is mainly due to the feeling of becoming ‘dispossessed and displaced’ with increasing influx of Han Chinese who come to seek their fortunes in a mineral rich region that also boasts warm summers suitable for sub-tropical fruit, including grapes!

Posted in China alert, Ethnic clash, unrest | 2 Comments »

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