"Sinocism is the Presidential Daily Brief for China hands"- Evan Osnos, New Yorker Correspondent and National Book Award Winner
Today’s Links:
THE ESSENTIAL EIGHT
1. Remarks With Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi video and transcript of Tuesday afternoon Kerry-Wang press conference. Maybe they are just exhausted but they do not look happy.
Related: China missiles ‘changing operational landscape’ in S.China Sea -U.S. commander | Daily Mail Online China was “clearly militarizing the South China (Sea),” Admiral Harry Harris told the U.S. Senate Armed Services Committee, adding: “You’d have to believe in a flat earth to think otherwise.” Speaking ahead of a meeting in Washington between China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi and U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, Harris said China was continuing to escalate the situation in the South China Sea with new deployments.
Related: Harris: PACOM Needs More Subs, Long-Range Missiles To Counter Chinese Threats – USNI News To protect the aircraft carriers and maintain stability in the region despite Chinese aggression in the South China Sea, Harris said he needs more submarines, more long-range weapons, and more intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR). // SCS tensions definitely a boon for defense contractors
Related: Freedom of navigation in South China Sea not U.S. vessels’ “muscle show”: China – Xinhua Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying made the remarks at a daily press briefing in response to a senior U.S. naval officer’s recent call for more naval operations in the region. “I must point out that the freedom of navigation in the South China Sea entitled under international law does not mean U.S. naval vessels or airplanes’ freedom to flex their muscle,” Hua said. Vice Adm. Joseph Aucoin, the commander of the U.S. Navy’s Seventh Fleet, said on Monday that Australia and other countries should follow the U.S. lead and conduct “freedom-of-navigation” naval operations within 12 nautical miles of contested islands in the South China Sea, the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) reported.
Related: China, United States call on each other to halt South China Sea ‘militarisation’ | IHS Jane’s 360 The Chinese foreign minister’s comments suggest that Beijing may be framing its militarisation activities as a form of response against United States’ ‘incursions’
Related: 社评：南海不是美国保霸权一克不少的地方评论环球网 南海最新也最大的变化是美国的直接干预。美国军事力量公开在南海秀肌肉骤然改变了南海问题战略风险的性质，南海一旦擦枪走火意味着什么，这个问题从此变得截然不同。美国从外部输入了有全局牵动力的紧张，南海开始具备一些人们把它当“火药桶”来扯一扯的谈资了。
Related: 中美关系不应被局部问题绑架（钟声）–国际–人民网 近来在南海问题上，美国作为域外国家一方面在南海频繁派军用舰机炫耀武力，还图谋拉拢一些国家搞所谓联合巡航，严重威胁沿岸国家主权和安全，另一方面又在不同场合针对中国大谈所谓南海“非军事化”。这样自相矛盾的言行，让人对华盛顿的真实战略考量有所疑虑，中方要求美方停止挑拨、停止蓄意制造紧张，有十足的根据。在朝鲜半岛核问题上，美国以半岛核问题为借口，有意在韩国部署“萨德”反导系统。对于如此直接损害中国战略安全利益的举动，中国自然难以接受。
2. South Korea Tells China Not to Intervene in Missile-Defense System Talks – NYTimes Jung Youn-kuk, a spokesman for President Park Geun-hye of South Korea, said Seoul’s decision to discuss the system, known as Thaad, which stands for Terminal High Altitude Area Defense, was based on its own need for “self-defense against North Korea’s growing nuclear and missile threats.” “This is a matter we will decide upon according to our own security and national interests,” Mr. Jung said on Wednesday. “The Chinese had better recognize this point.”
Related: THAAD deployment in ROK to “directly” impair China’s security interests: FM – Xinhua “We understand the ROK’s legitimate security concerns, but no country should impair others’ security interests when pursuing its own,” Hua Chunying said at a daily news briefing. “We believe that the deployment of the THAAD system will directly compromise China’s national security interests,” said the spokesperson. // but China’s activities in the South China Sea have no impact on national security interests of other countries?
Related: U.S., China agree draft North Korea sanctions resolution at U.N. – envoys | Reuters Speaking on condition of anonymity, two council diplomats said Beijing and Washington reached a deal on the draft, which could go to the full 15-member council soon. The two veto powers had been negotiating on a draft resolution for the past seven weeks following Pyongyang’s fourth nuclear test on Jan. 6. “It’s a substantive, long, full draft … which I hope will be adopted in the coming days,” a senior council diplomat said. “There were a significant number of blockage points between the two countries … There is an agreement between those two countries.”
3. Xi Jinping’s News Alert: Chinese Media Must Serve the Party – The New York Times Mr. Xi’s directives would also make it harder for foreign governments to determine which Chinese journalists operating in their countries are legitimate news gatherers and which ones are agents serving propaganda, intelligence or other official interests. The major party and state-run news organizations have been greatly expanding their operations overseas, including in the United States.
Related: Senior official stresses implementation of Xi’s speech on news reporting – Xinhua Liu Qibao, head of the publicity department of the CPC Central Committee, said that all publicity personnel must study and understand Xi’s speech to ensure their thoughts and actions following the instruction. Xi’s remarks expounded the historical role, significance, obligation, goal and principle of the Party’s media work, and enriched Marxist journalism theories, Liu said at a teleconference held by the department.
Related: 人民日报评论员：不断提高新闻舆论工作的能力和水平-人民网 ——三论学习贯彻习近平总书记新闻舆论工作座谈会重要讲话精神…人在哪里，舆论阵地就应该在哪里。抢占新闻舆论制高点，必须不失时机推动融合发展，主动借助新媒体传播优势，打通并用好同群众信息交流的新渠道…提高新闻舆论工作能力水平，增强国际话语权是重要内容。信息流进流出的“逆差”、中国真实面貌和西方主观印象的“反差”、软实力和硬实力的“落差”，在国际上有理说不出、说了也传不开的状况，警示着我们对外传播尚存短板。必须下大气力加强国际传播能力建设，既要善于讲故事，又要善于讲道理，通过引人入胜的方式启人入“道”、让人悟“道”，努力提升中国话语的国际影响力，让全世界听到并听清中国好声音。
Related: Xi’s speech on news reporting resonates with domestic outlets – Xinhua The People’s Daily, in one of its two commentaries published since Sunday said Xi had directed the route along which the journalism industry should develop, and provided fundamental principles to follow. The article said that media outlets run by the Party and the government must follow the party’s leadership, reflect the Party’s will, and be the mouthpiece of the party and the people. The Overseas Edition of the People’s Daily said in an article Monday that Xi’s speech has clearly defined the responsibilities and missions of news reporting in a new era. Meanwhile, Xinhua News Agency published commentaries on three consecutive days expounding Xi’s speech, vowing to stick to the CPC’s leadership and focus on positive coverage.
Related: 中央网信办组织网站集体学习习近平在新闻舆论工作座谈会重要讲话精神-中共中央网络安全和信息化领导小组办公室 中央网信办传播局新闻处处长程志良表示，对网信系统而言，要坚持党性原则，必须自觉维护党中央权威，坚定不移地传播党中央的声音。网络媒体要坚持正确舆论导向，不管是中央新闻网站、主要商业网站还是地方新闻网站，都要坚持正确的导向。要充分发挥互联网巨大传播优势，让主旋律、正能量主导网络空间，让党的主张成为网络空间最强音。// CAC holds meeting to discuss Xi’s comments on media
Related: 中宣部通知要求 认真学习宣传贯彻习近平总书记在党的新闻舆论工作座谈会上重要讲话精神新闻频道央视网(cctv.com) 通知要求，学习领会习近平总书记重要讲话精神，要着力把握讲话的基本内涵和核心要义，深入学习领会党的新闻舆论工作的地位作用、职责使命、方针原则、任务要求和根本保证。宣传思想战线要迅速行动起来，周密组织安排，以高度自觉的态度、扎实有力的措施，形成学习宣传的浓厚氛围，见到贯彻落实的实际成效。各级党委宣传部门和新闻单位要以讲话精神为引领，谋划推进各项重点工作，不断开创党的新闻舆论工作新局面。
Related: Sinocism vs CCTVAmerica (with image, tweets) · Storify a little twitter debate I had earlier this week with CCTV’s Wang Guan over this issue
4. [视频]今年中央第一轮巡视将对32家中央和国家机关党组织开展专项巡视 对4个省进行“回头看”新闻频道央视网(cctv.com) 央视网消息（新闻联播）：经中央批准，2016年中央第一轮巡视将对中央宣传部、国家发展改革委、工业和信息化部、国家民委、民政部、司法部、人力资源和社会保障部、农业部、国家卫生计生委、国务院国资委、海关总署、工商总局、质检总局、新闻出版广电总局、食品药品监管总局、国家旅游局、国家宗教局、国家信访局、国家粮食局、国家能源局、国家国防科工局、国家烟草专卖局、国家外专局、国家公务员局、国家邮政局、国家文物局、国家中医药管理局、全国总工会、全国妇联、全国供销合作总社、全国老龄办、中国农业科学院等32家单位党组织开展专项巡视，同时对辽宁、安徽、山东、湖南等4个省进行“回头看”。// Xinhua-China to launch new anti-graft inspection in 2016–32 organizations, 4 provinces get a second visit to check on behavior after the last time they were inspected
Related: 王岐山在中央巡视工作动员部署会议上强调突出坚持党的领导聚焦全面从严治党—中央纪委监察部网站 会议强调，学习的过程就是看齐的过程，要牢固树立政治意识、大局意识、核心意识、看齐意识。3年来，伴随着深入学习习近平总书记系列重要讲话精神，巡视工作从聚焦党风廉政建设和反腐败斗争、围绕“四个着力”，到聚焦全面从严治党、把纪律挺在前面，再到突出坚持党的领导、加强党的建设，着力发现违反政治纪律和政治规矩、选人用人问题，始终与时俱进、向中央看齐。“四个意识”就是立场方向，就是衡量的标准。是否在思想上、政治上、行动上同党中央保持高度一致，不仅要听其言、观其行，最终看的是工作实践效果。要对照“四个全面”、“四个意识”找出差距、发现问题，推动被巡视党组织坚定正确的政治方向，真正把政治纪律和政治规矩严起来。
Related: 王岐山新动作释放3大信号 中央巡视正发生变化|王岐山_新浪新闻 信号一 “看齐”成为巡视组和被巡视单位“双要求”… 信号二 中央巡视重点发生重要变化… 信号三 向4省杀“回马枪”的目的与目标被明确
Related: Chinese Communist Party’s propaganda arms targeted in graft review | South China Morning Post Propaganda work is under the portfolio of ideological tsar Liu Yunshan, the fifth ranking Politburo Standing Committee leader. The propaganda department, an organ of the party instead of the government, ranks higher than any ministry in the State Council. Inspection tours have been labelled a key weapon in the party’s sweeping anti-corruption campaign. However, tours in the past year have focused on political loyalty. The ideology and cultural departments will be reviewed on whether they are in line with Xi’s two landmark speeches on ideology and propaganda, said anti-graft chief Wang Qishan yesterday in a meeting kicking off the new round of inspection exercise.
5. China’s Xi urges implementation of reforms – Xinhua Chinese President Xi Jinping on Tuesday urged officials of all levels to implement reforms and crack hard nuts to ensure the effectiveness of reform efforts. He made the remarks while presiding over the 21st meeting of the central leading group for overall reform. Xi, head of the group, said promoting reform is a key political responsibility of all the regions and departments.
Related: 习近平主持召开中央全面深化改革领导小组第二十一次会议-新华网 新华社北京2月23日电 中共中央总书记、国家主席、中央军委主席、中央全面深化改革领导小组组长习近平2月23日下午主持召开中央全面深化改革领导小组第二十一次会议并发表重要讲话。他强调，各地区各部门要牢固树立全局意识、责任意识，把抓改革作为一项重大政治责任，坚定改革决心和信心，增强推进改革的思想自觉和行动自觉，既当改革促进派、又当改革实干家，以钉钉子精神抓好改革落实，扭住关键、精准发力，敢于啃硬骨头，盯着抓、反复抓，直到抓出成效。
6. Rhodium Group » Don’t Misread Old Tealeaves: Chinese Investment and CFIUS A series of derailed Chinese technology acquisitions in the US has triggered media reports about greater US scrutiny of Chinese investments. The release of an annual report by the Committee on Foreign Investment in the US (CFIUS), which reviews foreign acquisitions for national security threats, further fueled this debate, showing China in the top spot for covered transactions for the third year in a row. This is serious misreading of the situation. The greater prominence of Chinese transactions in the work of CFIUS process does not reflect a tougher stance by the US against Chinese investment, but rather the sharp uptick in Chinese deal-making activity in the US, and a shift of that interest towards technology.
Related: The Washington insiders who work to get Chinese deals approved | Reuters Among the former officials who use their CFIUS experience in advisory work are Anne Salladin, who reviewed some 500 deals that went to CFIUS during her 20 years at the Treasury. Her role at law firm Stroock & Stroock & Lavan LLP has included advising a Chinese private equity firm on the acquisition of some semiconductor-related assets. Other officials include former U.S. Treasury deputy assistant secretary for investment security and policy Nova Daly, now with the law firm Wiley Rein LLP, and former Department of Homeland Security assistant secretary for policy Stewart Baker, now with law firm Steptoe & Johnson LLP, according to the websites of their employers.
Related: Chinese Deals Feel the Chill From Washington – The New York Times Last week, Cfius issued its annual report for actions in 2014. The interagency body — it includes representatives from the Treasury, Justice and Defense Departments — is a bit secretive. All its filings are confidential, it doesn’t have a building in Washington and it lags an entire year in reporting figures. Potential foreign acquirers make a filing for a national security review. In 2014, there was a record high of 147 filings, up from 97 in 2013. The increase in 2014 was mainly a result of acquisitions in manufacturing, primarily technology. The most filings were by China with 24. Next was Britain with 21, and after that was Canada with 15. (Yes, even our closest allies are subject to Cfius review.)
Related: Reflections on the CFIUS Process: New CFIUS Report Underscores Growth of Chinese Investment in the United States Covington & Burling February 22, 2016 5 pages
7. To Curb Graft in Guangzhou, It Takes a Village-Caixin Local officials have frequently tried to tear down what remains of Xian, which many see as the last “urban village” in Guangzhou. Most buildings in what used to be a community of peasants have already been razed and replaced by newer, taller buildings. But a group of defiant villagers has stood in the way of a final demolition project, not out of love for run-down buildings but out of contempt for the officials and property developers they say have been cutting dirty deals and unfairly taking their land. Since 2008 Xian villagers have worked hard to hold back demolition crews while at the same time petitioning for justice. That justice eventually came in the form of arrests and convictions of about a dozen officials on corruption charges. Villagers also got what they wanted most: a fair deal for their land.
8. How Long Can China’s Internet Thrive if the Rest of the World Gets Shut Out? | ChinaFile Conversation regulations for violations are more severe. But arguably of greater concern is the distinct hostility expressed with respect to things foreign, the expression of which is arguably in violation of WTO requirements. Article 10 bars Chinese-foreign joint ventures and wholly foreign-owned enterprises from Internet publishing, effectively capping foreign investment at 24.9 percent. This appears to be in violation of the decision by the WTO Dispute Settlement Body in WT/DS363/14, which held that China is obligated to open trading and services for publications and audiovisual entertainment products to foreign individuals and enterprises and to open distribution services for publications to foreign suppliers. Article 10 even goes beyond investment prohibitions to require prior government approval for any cooperation between a licensed Internet publishing services provider and a foreign-invested enterprise in China (itself a Chinese company) or any overseas organization or individual engaged in Internet publishing. // and if someone brought a WTO case how many years would it take for resolution?
BUSINESS, ECONOMY AND TRADE
China Hopes to Calm Jitters About Its Economy at G-20 Meeting – WSJ China had hoped the Group of 20 meeting in Shanghai later this week would give it a stage to promote new models for running the world economy. Instead, it is becoming a venue for Beijing to assuage global anxiety about its currency policies, tumultuous markets and economic management.
Treasury’s Lew: China Must Make Clear No ‘Major Devaluation’ Coming – WSJ U.S. Treasury Secretary Jack Lew arrives Thursday in Shanghai to meet with finance ministers and central bankers from the Group of 20 nations. He sat down with The Wall Street Journal’s Greg Ip
[视频]中共中央政治局召开会议 讨论政府工作报告和“十三五”规划纲要草案 中共中央总书记习近平主持会议新闻频道央视网(cctv.com)
China bans local governments from borrowing for land reserve – Xinhua China has banned local governments from borrowing from banks to finance land purchases and preparations for property development, an official statement said on Tuesday. Local governments must reduce the number of institutions responsible for land reserve, whittling down the many departments to just one, according to the statement, which was jointly issued by the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Land and Resources, the People’s Bank of China and China Banking Regulatory Commission.
Two Wrong Ways to Think About China’s Slowdown – Bloomberg View – Noah Smith I find that Western writers tend to subscribe — explicitly or implicitly — to one of two folk theories of China. Both have serious deficiencies. The first of these folk theories is “rebalancing.”..The second folk theory that people use to understand China is based on debt levels…Focusing on debt levels distracts people from the real issue, which is the quality of that debt.
China Opens Bond Market to Foreigners as Outflows Hurt Yuan – Bloomberg Business The People’s Bank of China said in a statement on its website Wednesday that most types of overseas financial institutions will no longer require quotas to invest in the interbank bond market, which accounts for the bulk of debt in the nation. Commercial lenders, insurance companies, securities firms and asset managers were included on a list of those eligible and the authority said it also hopes to attract long-term investors such as pension funds and charities. Hedge funds were not included, while foreign central banks and sovereign wealth funds won access in June.
Trust Industry Grew to More than 16 Tln Yuan Last Year: Report-Caixin Assets under management at the country’s 68 trust companies were worth 16.3 trillion yuan at the end of December, 16.6 percent more than at the same time in 2014, according to data released by the China Trustee Association on February 24.
Top US agriculture official queries Chinese Syngenta bid – FT.com President Barack Obama and his administration have so far stayed quiet on the transaction. But in a conference call with reporters on Tuesday, Tom Vilsack, the US agriculture secretary, said he had concerns about the deal and its impact on US competition for the Chinese market.
中央部门预算改革“铆住”精细化 _ 经济参考网 _ 新华社《经济参考报》官方网站 《经济参考报》记者从财政部独家获悉，2016年中央部门预算迎来实质性改革。所有中央部门预算的编制必须以项目库建设作为基础和前提，财政部聘请各个领域专家和多家社会第三方机构参与预算事前评审，各个中央部门的项目如果没有通过评审则不能进入项目库，未进项目库项目不得编入部门预算，无法获得财政资金。目前，已完成预算评审的109家中央部门，评审后审减额近344亿元，平均审减率为38%。
国企改革重磅消息或今日公布 2900点之上深度掘金主题个股证券新闻中证网 国资委相关人士证实，2月25日公开十项改革试点的方案，大力推进国企改革。受此消息刺激，国企改革概念股昨日集体爆发，上海电力、中成股份、新兴铸管、华电能源、际华集团等多只概念股强势涨停，成为市场中的一大亮点。本文特从市场表现、资金流向、操作策略等三角度对国企改革概念股进行仔细梳理，挖掘相关龙头股的投资价值，以飨读者。（证券日报）
Nevadans Cheer Trump’s China-Bashing Even as Nation Buoys State – Bloomberg Politics “It’s easy to bash perceptions of Nevada or the U.S. losing economic challenges or competition to China,” said Brian Krolicki, a Republican who led trade missions to China as Nevada’s lieutenant governor between 2007 and 2015. “The Chinese-bashing, political rhetoric has less validity in Nevada than it does in other states.”
Complacency, protectionism: Why China won’t shut underused factories – The Washington Post Those are the findings of a new report by the European Chamber of Commerce in China that blames complacency, a lack of leadership and protectionism by local governments for China’s failure to address the problem. “We have heard the same soundtrack for years — ‘We are aware of the problem, we are going to deal with this,’ ” said Chamber president Jörg Wuttke. “But the problem is getting worse. Now we are asking: Do you have the audacity to implement your policies?”
POLITICS AND LAW
Inside the Chinese Princelings’ New Year Dinner Party – Bloomberg Business The annual meeting of the Yanan Children’s Friendship Association began with traditional singing of classics from the party hymnal. “Without the Communist Party, there would be no China,” the largely silver-maned crowd of hundreds of “princelings” sang in unison… The celebrations gave way, however, to stark warnings from group founder Hu Muying, who called on attendees to stay faithful amid the “complex and fluctuating situation” confronting China three years into Xi’s rule. The party faces ideological “chaos” and a graft problem that needs more time to fix, Hu said. Meanwhile, “hostile Western forces are containing, slandering and doom saying China, and working hard to subvert the communist and socialist regime,” she said.
Chinese Growing Social Inequality Prompts Stronger Social Control | The Jamestown Foundation China’s leaders have demonstrated cognizance of the need to make significant progress with the comprehensives in the context of a slowing economy. While unrest about inequality has so far been muted, this is because most ordinary Chinese, like people everywhere, generally compare themselves to family, neighbors and those in similar situations and for most people most of the time, things have been getting better. An economic slowdown, however, will bring inequality and particularly procedural unfairness into much sharper relief. Worse, real setbacks and losses, such as declining property prices, will immediately result in a mass sense of relative deprivation and bottled up grievances are likely to boil over. Xi and the Party leadership are seemingly aware of these problems. The pressing need for reform coexists with increasing suppression of non-state reformist groups and civil society.
国家能源局原副局长许永盛受审 当庭喊冤称遭逼供政经频道财新网 former NEA official Xu Yongsheng denies charges in court, says he was tortured into confessing
中纪委机关报刊文：有人见巡视哆嗦走了嘚瑟，要杀回马枪震慑舆论场澎湃新闻-The Paper “宜将剩勇追穷寇。”只要违纪问题存在，巡视利剑就会不期而至。此轮巡视杀“回马枪”会有怎样的成效，值得期待。
A Looming Crisis for China’s Legal System | Foreign Policy – Jerome Cohen Talented judges and lawyers are leaving the profession, as ideology continues to trump the rule of law.
中办大清洗 令计划四大金刚被免不寻常_中国-多维新闻网 原中南海大管家令计划落马之后，中共中央办公厅展开大清洗，最近又有四名出身中办的高官被免职。曾任中办调研室主任的卓松盛，被免去中央文献研究室副主任；曾任中办调研室组长的丁孝文，被免去中共中央对外联络部部长助理；两名中办老臣李建波、陈瑞萍，也分别被免去中央纪委驻交通运输部纪检组组长、国家卫计委纪检组组长。
FOREIGN AND DEFENSE AFFAIRS
The PLA’s New Organizational Structure: What is Known, Unknown, and Speculation (Part 2) | The Jamestown Foundation Although official Chinese and PLA media articles have laid out the general policy issues and reforms at the CMC, service headquarters, and theater command levels, there has been no indication about who will become the new generation of CMC leaders. Other important details, such as the organizational structures of the services and theater commands or the details of how operational units will be affected by the reforms, have also not yet been announced. Even after the official announcements are made, many gaps in the information made public, such as the structure for the first-, second- and third-level administrative and functional departments for the various organizations, remain.
陆军第27集团军去年年底已从河北移防山西新闻腾讯网 按照习主席和中央军委命令，陆军第27集团军从河北移防山西，成为全军第一个因改革而进行部署调整的军级单位。2015年12月27日，27集团军最后一批人员装备离开驻地。
HONG KONG, MACAO AND TAIWAN
‘Colonisation’ fears in Hong Kong after broadcaster uses Chinese mainland characters – Telegraph More than 10,000 viewers complained to TVB after the media outlet used simplified Chinese characters for a news bulletin, as opposed to traditional characters which are common in Hong Kong.
TECH AND MEDIA
China pulls gay online drama off the Internet and people aren’t happy The Chinese censors are at work again. A popular 15-episode web drama called Addiction was taken off air earlier this week after 12 episodes were shown
Wanda Group Flips Slice of Legendary Pictures to Local Investors – WSJ Wanda Group is seeking to raise $1.5 billion from domestic Chinese investors for Wanda Pictures at a $5.3 billion valuation, according to a document prepared as part of the offering. Wanda Pictures comprises Wanda’s own movie-production business and Legendary Entertainment, which the Chinese conglomerate agreed to buy in January.
How Mobile Payments Reshape Lifestyles – WSJ Analysys estimates that Chinese used their mobile devices to send payments and transfers totaling 16.4 trillion yuan ($2.5 trillion) last year, about double the amount in 2014 and more than 12 times the 2013 level. Alibaba and Tencent have facilitated this.
Ex-Uber Public Policy Chief Corey Owens Now Works for Drone Maker DJI | Re/code SHARE: Former head of public policy for Uber Corey Owens — who was poached from Facebook by the ride-hailing service in 2013 — is now working for Chinese drone giant DJI.
SOCIETY, ART, SPORTS, CULTURE AND HISTORY
Chinese social media platform plays a role in U.S. rallies for NYPD officer – LA Times “Most of the organizing was done on WeChat. There was some via email, Facebook and Twitter, but very little,” said Jack White, a small-business owner who immigrated from China 13 years ago and is president of the Minnesota Chinese Assn. It was the first time, he said, that he had taken part in such a protest. // wonder what the United Front Work Department thinks about the potential for using Wechat to organize activities overseas
“有用崇拜”：一位80后干部的回乡随笔 – 国情民情 – 共识 村的村民们，不管如何骂贪官骂政府，但最看得起的，还是那些有钱的搞工程做生意的人，还是那些有实际权力尤其是管着资金和工程的大小干部;却看不起那些有文化没资本的人，看不起那些尽管职务级别高但没什么实际权力的人。
The Cultural Revolution at 50: A Q&A with Four Specialists (Part One) » The LARB Blog This year marks the 50th anniversary of the beginning, and the 40th anniversary of the end, of China’s Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution (1966-1976). Despite the passage of time, the Cultural Revolution remains one of most controversial and least understood periods of modern Chinese history. I have invited Denise Ho (Yale University), Fabio Lanza (University of Arizona), Daniel Leese (University of Freiburg), and Yiching Wu (University of Toronto) to look back and help make sense of what we know — and what we still don’t know — about the Cultural Revolution.
No room at the cemetery: Beijing tells families to ‘squeeze up or go green’ to make space at gravesites | South China Morning Post A joint directive issued yesterday by nine ministries, including the Ministry of Civil Affairs and the National Development and Reform Commission, said the mainland would promote smaller graves and eco-friendly alternatives, such as sea burials and scattering ashes over flowers. “The whole country should recognise the importance and urgency of eco-friendly burials in the face of the grim situation resulting from the huge population, limited land supplies, severe pollution and a deteriorating environment,” the directive said. // very bad fengshui
Doping Claims Involving Chinese Track Stars Re-emerge, Decades Later – The New York Times Two employees warily eyed a reporter asking about allegations in the Chinese news media that female track athletes who burst onto the global scene in the early 1990s, setting world records, were in fact heavily doped by their trainer, Ma Junren. Continue reading the main story RELATED COVERAGE China Wants Drug-Use Incidents From 1990s to Be Distant Memory Sprinter Is Barred in Latest Doping Scandal for China Chinese Withdraw 6 Runners And Coach (2000) Chinese Runners Excel On Work and Worms (1993) The smoking gun: a letter purportedly written by the women in 1995 that an investigative reporter, Zhao Yu, said they gave him at the time. The letter was first published in April 2014, in a book of Mr. Zhao’s investigative works, but drew attention only when Sports.qq.com, a website owned by Tencent, reprinted it this month. Mr. Zhao declined to be interviewed for this article.
Rules Opening Gated Communities ‘Could Infringe Property Rights’ Government plan to open some residential areas and government properties to improve traffic situation may break law, expert says
China Maintains Respect, and a Museum, for a U.S. General – The New York Times By the time General Stilwell was recalled to the United States in the fall of 1944, he grumbled that Washington was “as big a pile of manure as Chungking was.” In Heat of August 1945, Mao and Chiang Met for the Last TimeNOV. 4, 2015 Still, that unflattering take on Chongqing, now a metropolis of 30 million, has not stopped a wellspring of local pride and scholarship about General Stilwell, the American military hero who was sent by President Franklin D. Roosevelt to help the Chinese battle the Japanese.
ENERGY, ENVIRONMENT, SCIENCE AND HEALTH
Inside China’s Nuclear Core – China Real Time Report – WSJ China General Nuclear Power Group, one of the country’s biggest and fastest-growing nuclear providers, this week welcomed a coterie of foreign business leaders, diplomats and reporters inside its heavily fortified nuclear power station at Daya Bay. The visit–ostensibly aimed by CGN at marketing its latest “Hualong One” reactor design to the world–illustrated just how much China’s nuclear industry has matured since first powering up three decades ago.
The South China Tiger Is Functionally Extinct. Stuart Bray Has 19 of Them Stuart Bray brawls with everyone—including his wife—to save the South China tiger from extinction.
China Builds a Faster Beagle in Gene-Editing Race With U.S. – Bloomberg Business Chinese scientists say they were among the first in using Crispr to make wheat resistant to a common fungal disease, dogs more muscular and pigs with leaner meat. The scientific research bankrolled by the Chinese government could eventually be tapped by agricultural and pharmaceutical companies
AGRICULTURE AND RURAL ISSUES
The Best Way to Improve the Lots of Farmers-Caixin-Hu Shuli Editorial Policymakers must have the courage to make crucial changes in the agricultural sector if conditions in rural areas are to improve
BEIJING
Beijing overtakes NYC as ‘Billionaire Capital of the World’ | New York Post The Chinese capital has overtaken the Big Apple as home to the most billionaires — 100 to 95 — according to Hurun, a Shanghai firm that publishes a monthly magazine and releases yearly rankings and research about the world’s richest people and their spending habits.
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