China alert | CHINDIA ALERT: You'll be living in their world, very soon

09/10/2012

* China issues white paper on judicial reform

Reform in China continues apace.

China Daily: “The Chinese government issued Tuesday a white paper on judicial reform, highlighting the progress that has been made in safeguarding justice and protecting human rights.

The white paper was issued by the Information Office of the State Council.

Apart from reviewing China’s judicial system and reform process, the white paper focuses maintaining social fairness, justice and human rights protections.

“China’s judicial reforms are aimed at strengthening judicial organs’ capability to maintain social justice by optimizing the structure of the judicial organs and the allocation of their functions and power, standardizing judicial acts, improving judicial proceedings and enhancing judicial democracy and legal supervision,” it says.

Improving the protection of human rights is an important goal, the white paper says, adding that China’s Criminal Procedure Law amended in 2012 included “respecting and protecting human rights.”

In terms of protecting human rights, effective measures are being taken to deter and prohibit the obtainment of confessions through torture, better protect the rights of criminal suspects and defendants and protect attorneys’ rights to exercise their duties. Measures are also being taken to strictly control and prudently apply the death penalty.

Jiang Wei, a senior official in charge of the judicial system reform, said Tuesday at a press conference that China’s judicial system would be based on its reality, instead of simply copy from other countries.

A populous developing country, China still has problems in its judicial system, Jiang said.

The country’s economic and social development does not match the people’s increasing expectations for social justice. Capabilities of the judicial system do not meet the demand for judicial service, he said.

Imbalanced development in different regions also contributed to the existing problems, he added.

“The problems can only be solved by the Chinese way and the wisdom. Copying foreign experience or systems might lead to a bad end,” he said, in response to a question whether China’s judicial system should follow Western models.

However, he said, China is keen to learn from experience of other countries and will try to incorporate judicial concepts and practices utilized elsewhere.

Judicial reform, an important part of China’s overall political reform, remains a long and arduous task. The white paper urges continuous efforts to strengthen reforms with a goal of establishing a “just, effective and authoritative socialist judicial system with Chinese characteristics.”

via China issues white paper on judicial reform |Politics |chinadaily.com.cn.

Posted in China alert, Justice, Law suit | Leave a Comment »

Tags: China, Chinese culture, Judicial Reform, State Council Information Office

09/10/2012

* Ice train begins trial operations

China’s investment in infrastructure continues relentlessly.

China Daily: “Railway built to withstand extreme cold prepares to welcome travelers

A high-speed railway linking major cities in Northeast China began trial operations on Monday, ahead of its launch at the end of the year.

Ice train begins trial operations

The new line, which links Dalian, a port city in Liaoning province and Harbin, capital of Heilongjiang province, is the world’s first high-speed railway built to withstand extreme cold weather conditions, according to a statement by Harbin railway authorities.

A test train departs from the Dalian North Railway Station, a terminus of the new Harbin-Dalian High-Speed Railway, in Dalian, Nnortheast China’s Liaoning province, Oct 8, 2012. [Photo/Xinhua]

A test train departed Harbin on Monday morning, arriving in Dalian three-and-a-half hours later. The journey takes nine hours on an ordinary train.

The new line will make 24 stops and connect 10 cities, including the capitals of Liaoning, Jilin and Heilongjiang provinces.

Construction of the 921-kilometer line began in 2008. It is designed to reach a top speed of 350 kilometers per hour, but will travel initially at a maximum of 300 km/h, railway authorities said.

The line has to withstand extreme temperatures as low as -39.9 C in winter and as high as 40 C in summer, which poses major challenges to the trains and railway construction.

Zhang Xize, chief engineer of the Harbin-Dalian high-speed railway program, said the low temperatures in Northeast China could threaten the roadbed and rail track and ice could also disrupt the power supply and signal system.

“We researched the experiences of high-speed railway line construction in relatively cold areas of Germany and Japan and took reference from road, water conservancy and electric supply projects in frigid areas,” Zhang said.

The railway is fitted with special facilities to remove snow and ice from the line and to protect its power supply systems from the elements.

“We have used all the measures that we can come up with to ensure the safety of this project,” said Zhang.

The line could provide a boost to the tourism industry in Harbin and Dalian, both major vacation destinations.

Harbin is notable for its beautiful ice sculptures in winter and its Russian legacy, and Dalian is well known for its mild climate and multiple beaches.

“The railway comes at the right time as I was planning to take my daughter to see the ice lanterns in Harbin this winter,” said Liu Yan, a 38-year-old resident of Dalian.

The new railway is also expected to ease pressure on the current rail system during peak holiday times.”

via Ice train begins trial operations[1]|chinadaily.com.cn.

https://chindia-alert.org/economic-factors/chinas-infrastructure/
* China to build more high-speed railways (chindia-alert.org)

Posted in China alert, Construction, Economics, Infrastructure, Technology, Tourism | Leave a Comment »

Tags: China, Dalian, extreme cold weather, Harbin, Heilongjiang, High-speed rail, Jilin, Liaoning, Northeast China, railway authorities, railway construction

08/10/2012

* Over 660,000 Chinese officials punished in five years

Chinese authorities continue to chase and punish corruption by officials, which the Chinese Communist Party recognises as one of the dangers facing a single-party governing body.

Xinhua: “Anti-corruption bodies of the Communist Party of China (CPC) have punished more than 660,000 officials guilty of disciplinary violations in the past five years, senior leader He Guoqiang announced on Monday.

More than 24,000 officials were transferred to the judicial system for suspected crimes, said He, head of the CPC Central Commission for Discipline Inspection.

Procuratorial and discipline inspection authorities across the country investigated more than 640,000 corruption cases from November 2007 to June this year. More than 630,000 of the cases have been resolved, according to He.

A series of major cases, including those involving former Chongqing Party chief Bo Xilai, former Railways Minister Liu Zhijun and former Shenzhen mayor Xu Zongheng, were relentlessly pursued, said He.

Investigating corruption cases is a long-term task in the process of building a clean government, said the head of the commission.

He urged institutions to put the “handling of disciplinary violation cases” at the top of the agenda and to always crackdown on corruption.

The corrupt ones, no matter who are involved, will be relentlessly followed and will never be given a chance of escaping punishment in accordance with Party discipline and the law, He said.

The head of the commission noted that improvements have been made in the way various departments cooperate to prevent corrupt officials fleeing to foreign countries and to strengthen overseas arrest.

He also urged anti-corruption authorities to learn and grasp the effective measures in the past five years to promote the combat against corruption and to build a clean party and government.

via Over 660,000 officials punished in five years – Xinhua | English.news.cn.

https://chindia-alert.org/prognosis/chinese-challenges/
Bo Xilai expelled from CPC, public office (news.xinhuanet.com)
Chinese anti-corruption official hopeful of improvement (wantchinatimes.com)
China faces challenges when supervising government power (capitalfm.co.ke)

Posted in China alert, corruption | 1 Comment »

Tags: communist party of china, cpc central, politics

08/10/2012

* More Chinese Muslims head for Mecca pilgrimage

Xinhua: “A total of 332 Muslims from northwest China’s Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region flew to Mecca, Saudi Arabia Sunday evening for the annual pilgrimage.

This is part of the government-organized pilgrimage tours that will carry 13,800 Chinese Muslims via 41 charter flights to the holiest city of Islam this year.

Previously, more than 2,700 Muslims from neighboring Gansu Province had flown to Mecca in eight groups.

In Ningxia, one of major regions inhabited by Muslims in China, 2,676 Islamic followers will go on the pilgrimage this year, according to Li Yushan, vice president of the regional Islamic association.

The Mecca pilgrimage, also known as the Hajj, is a Muslim religious tradition that specifies that all able-bodied Muslims who can afford to travel to Saudi Arabia must visit Mecca at least once in their lives.

China has more than 20 million Muslims, about half of whom are from the Hui ethnic group. In addition to Ningxia, Chinese Muslims mainly live in the western provinces of Qinghai, Gansu and Yunnan, and Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region.”

via More Chinese Muslims head for Mecca pilgrimage – Xinhua | English.news.cn.

https://chindia-alert.org/political-factors/chinese-tensions/
Chinese Muslims to join in Islamic Cultures EXPO in Istanbul (worldbulletin.net)

Posted in China alert, religion, Social & cultural | 1 Comment »

Tags: China, Gansu, Hajj, islam, Mecca, mecca pilgrimage, mecca saudi arabia, Muslim, muslims in china, Ningxia, religion, Saudi Arabia

08/10/2012

* Chinese tourists head overseas during holiday

As China gains in middle class affluence, its own tourists sites get completely jammed , especially as a China has three major long public holidays: Lunar New Year, Tomb Sweeping ceremony and October National celebrations. It is therefore not surprising that those who can afford it go abroad instead.

China Daily: “A large number of Chinese tourists flocked to Thailand, South Korea and Europe during China’s National Day holiday. It’s estimated that the number of tourists booking overseas trips rose by 50 percent from last year.

South Korea emerged as the most attractive destination for Chinese tourists keen to exploit this year’s longer-than-normal holiday, because of the stronger yuan and the ease of obtaining a visa and travel.

The Korea Tourism Organization said that 100,000 Chinese tourists visited the country during the holiday, a rise of 35 percent from last year. The tourist hotspot of Jeju Island alone hosted nearly 33,000 Chinese visitors between Sept 29 and Oct 3, a 59 percent increase over last year, according to the Korea JoongAng Daily newspaper.

Most first-time visitors tended to stay north of the Han River, where famous tourist sites such as the Mt Nam peak and the Gyeongbok Palace are located. However, regular visitors tend to spend their time in Gangnam, south of the river, shopping. Duty-free stores in the Gangnam area have seen sales rise, reflecting the increase in the number of Chinese tourists who regularly visit the country.

Medical tourism is also becoming more popular. Dermatologists in Gangnam are attracting more and more Chinese customers, who come on a regular basis for procedures such as skin whitening, according to the Chosun Ilbo newspaper.

During the holiday season, charter flights to Thailand, especially Bangkok and Phuket, were available from many second- and third-tier cities. Tourism industry insiders said Thailand is popular with Chinese tourists because of it’s relatively inexpensive and easy to get to.

Meanwhile, long haul flights to France, Germany and Belgium were booked well in advance and tour agencies had sold all their seats to the Middle East and Africa by early September, making destinations such as Turkey, Egypt, South Africa and Dubai the best reserve options.”

via Chinese tourists head overseas during holiday |Society |chinadaily.com.cn.

Posted in Affluence, China alert, Economics, Tourism | Leave a Comment »

Tags: China, Chinese language, chinese tourists, Korea Tourism Organization, national celebrations, South Korea, Thailand

07/10/2012

* China spends heavily in afforestation efforts

China continues to invest heavily in its environment. This is despite not formally singing up to varius global agreements.

China Daily: “The Chinese government allocated 46.2 billion yuan ($7.22 billion) from its central budget to the return-farmland-to-forests plan during 2008-2011, according to the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC).

As of the end of 2006, around 9.3 million hectares of farmland had been converted to forests since the government launched a national campaign in 1999. Around 15 million hectares of hillside was closed to facilitate afforestation during the period, according to the NDRC.

Under the plan, farmers received grain and cash subsidies if they returned their farmlands to woodlands to combat soil erosion.

By 2006, some 124 million farmers had been subsidized and the ecological environment had seen significant improvements, the NDRC said.

The emphasis on boosting forest coverage came amid the country’s efforts to increase its “forest carbon sink capacity”. This means using forested areas to remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, thereby helping address global climate change.

China’s forest coverage reached 20.36 percent in 2010, up from 18.2 percent in 2005, and is expected to further increase to 21.66 percent by 2015.

via China spends heavily in afforestation efforts |Society |chinadaily.com.cn.

Why are forests important for climate change? (rtcc.org)
China to introduce National Low-carbon Day (capitalfm.co.ke)
https://chindia-alert.org/economic-factors/greening-of-china/

Posted in China alert, Economics, Environment | Leave a Comment »

Tags: Afforestation, China, climate, climate change, environment, global climate change, National Development and Reform Commission, NDRC, soil erosion

05/10/2012

* Diaoyu islands dispute hammers Japanese car sales in China

If the September drop in sales continues, the future for Japanese cars in China is very bleak indeed. There are lots of competitors both indigenous and foreign that can take up the slack. If Japanese car factories close as a result, the impact on Chinese employment will be non-trivial. So the anti-Japanese sentiment cuts both ways.

South China Morning Post: “Toyota’s sales in China halved last month from August levels, damaged by anti-Japanese sentiment in a row over disputed islands in the East China Sea, the Yomiuri newspaper reported on Friday, citing the carmaker.

Showroom traffic and sales have plunged at Japanese automakers since violent protests and calls for boycotts of Japanese products broke out across China in mid-September over Japan’s acquisition of a group of disputed islands.

A prolonged sales hit of this scale could threaten profit forecasts at Toyota, Nissan and others as China, the world’s biggest car market, makes up a bigger portion of their global sales. Toyota sold about 75,300 cars in China in August.

As demand evaporates, Toyota, Nissan, Honda and others have been forced to cut back production in recent weeks in a slowing, but still promising Chinese market.

A source told reporters late last month that Toyota’s production cutbacks could extend through November, a move that would almost certainly put the company’s goal of selling 1 million cars in China this year out of reach.

A Toyota spokeswoman in Tokyo declined to confirm the newspaper report, saying the company would announce its Chinese sales for September on Tuesday.

On Thursday, Mazda said its China sales tumbled by more than a third last month from a year earlier, providing the first concrete numbers to point to Japanese automakers’ troubles in China.

via Diaoyus dispute hammers Japanese car sales in China | South China Morning Post.

Toyota pays for cars smashed in China riots (wantchinatimes.com)
Dispute hurts Japanese carmakers’ production in China (wantchinatimes.com)
Japanese Automakers Bracing for Bashing in China Protests (bloomberg.com)

Posted in China alert, Economics, GeoPolitics, Manufacturing, Neighbour conflict, Politics, Retail, Territorial dispute | 2 Comments »

Tags: Anti-Japanese sentiment, cars, China, East China Sea, Honda, japanese car sales, Nissan Motor, Toyota

04/10/2012

* IPR awareness rises in China: experts

As China increases its own Intellectual Property and the number of registered and granted patents, it is in its own self-interest to take IPR and copyright more seriously than it has hither to. This is good news for all innovators whether Western or Eastern.

Xinhua: “An increasing number of patents and trademark registrations is boosting social awareness of intellectual property rights (IPR) in China, which will change the way that the world’s second-largest economy grows, experts said.

The number of trademark registration applications reached 1.42 million in 2011, a sharp rise from the 19,000 applications submitted in 1983, when the country’s trademark law took effect, a national news magazine Outlook Weekly reported.

“The increasing number of patents will be conducive to IPR awareness in China,” said Prof. Liu Chuntian at Renmin University.

Liu said IPR protection is a basic tenet of the modern market economy, adding that China should carry out top-down reforms to further improve IPR regulations and laws.

The government’s previous efforts to protect IPR include a strategic guideline published in 2008 that set a goal of making substantial progress in creation, application, protection and management of IPR by 2020.

China has only 21 of the world’s top 500 brands, despite a large number of patents and trademark applications, the report said, adding that China’s performance in IPR does not match the size of its economy.

However, home-grown technologies, including the TD-SCDMA and TD-LTE telecommunications interfaces, and emerging hi-tech giants, such as Huawei and ZTE, indicate that China is starting to improve its capacity to innovate, the report said.”

via IPR awareness rises in China: experts – Xinhua | English.news.cn.

Posted in China alert, Economics, Good news, Intellectual Property Rights, patents, Technology | 3 Comments »

Tags: Asia, China, creation application, Huawei, Intellectual property, TD-SCDMA, Trademark, trademark registrations, ZTE

04/10/2012

* Chinese gov’t to strengthen int’l cooperation on cyber issues

Xinhua: “The Chinese government will continue to strengthen international cooperation on cyber issues, and work with all countries to build an open and secure cyberspace, said an official here on Thursday at the ongoing Budapest conference on cyberspace.

Given the many challenges presented ahead, Huang Huikang, legal advisor and Director-General of the Department of Treaty and Law to China’s foreign ministry emphasized the importance of cooperation across the entire international community.

Although cyberspace is virtual, it needs rules and norms to follow, Huang said. China holds that the United Nations, as the most universal and representative international organization, is the best forum for elaboration of international norms and rules in cyberspace, he added.

Huang said China proposes that the following principles be observed in strengthening international cooperation on internet related issues.

The first, he said, concerned cyber sovereignty. He said that cyber sovereignty is the natural extension of state sovereignty into cyberspace and should be respected and upheld.

“Every country is entitled to formulate its policies and laws in light of its history, traditions, culture, language and customs, and manage the internet accordingly,” he said.

The second concerned the free flow of information, which he called a “double edged sword,” adding that it was no excuse for the “illegal and irresponsible information rampant on the internet,” which threatened national security, social orders and the lawful rights of people.

Huang also called for peaceful use of cyberspace, equitable development, and international cooperation, noting that all countries were equally entitled to share in the management of critical Internet resources. He proposed that international cooperation could be initiated in areas where there were common needs, such as in combating cybercrime and enhancing cyber security.

There are 540 million internet users in China now, making it the world’s top user quantitatively. But only 40 percent of the Chinese people had access to the internet. In 2011, e-commerce in China amounted to 930 billion U.S. dollars, or 12.5 percent of its annual gross domestic product.”

via Chinese gov’t to strengthen int’l cooperation on cyber issues: official – Xinhua | English.news.cn.

CISPA: Cyber Security or Big Brother? (digitalsurgeons.com)

Posted in China alert, cyberspace, Good news, Politics, Security | Leave a Comment »

Tags: internet, politics, science

03/10/2012

* Lenovo to open PC production plant in US

Maybe reverse-offshoring – at least for manufacturing – is for real? we will keep watching out for such news.

IET Magazine: “Lenovo will open its first PC production plant in the United States with operations expected to begin in 2013.

Lenovo's laptop PCs are displayed at an electronic shop

The Whitsett, North Carolina, facility will manufacture Think-branded laptop and desktop PCs, tablets and servers aimed at the US market, Lenovo said in a statement this week.

Lenovo, the world’s number two PC maker, did not provide any investment figures but said it would create 115 jobs.

Over the past two years, Lenovo has invested in new plants and manufacturing joint ventures in China, Brazil and now the US to produce PCs and mobile Internet devices such as smartphones, it said.

Analysts have said Lenovo is set to overtake Hewlett Packard later this year as the world’s largest PC maker.”

via Lenovo to open PC production plant in US – E & T Magazine.

Tags: computer, gadgets, mobile internet devices, technology

CHINDIA ALERT: You'll be living in their world, very soon

Chindia Alert: You’ll be Living in their World Very Soon

Categories

Blogs I Follow

Archive for ‘China alert’

* China issues white paper on judicial reform

* Ice train begins trial operations

* Over 660,000 Chinese officials punished in five years

* Chinese tourists head overseas during holiday

* China spends heavily in afforestation efforts

* Diaoyu islands dispute hammers Japanese car sales in China

* IPR awareness rises in China: experts

* Chinese gov’t to strengthen int’l cooperation on cyber issues

* Lenovo to open PC production plant in US

Tags

Creative Commons

Archives

Meta

Blog Stats

Chindia Alert: You’ll be Living in their World Very Soon

Categories

Blogs I Follow

Archive for ‘China alert’

Related articles

Related articles

Related articles

Related articles

Related articles

Related articles

Related articles

Related articles

Tags

Creative Commons

Archives

Meta

Blog Stats