The Sinocism China Newsletter 06.19.16

"Sinocism is the Presidential Daily Brief for China hands"- Evan Osnos, New Yorker Correspondent and National Book Award Winner

THE ESSENTIAL EIGHT

1. Supervising Supervision — China Media Project — Medium Essentially the idea that the media represent the public (or the “masses”) in monitoring the government with critical reporting, “supervision by public opinion” has generally been poles apart from the notion of “positive news,” the sort of brown-nosing coverage we expect to find in China’s bland Party newspapers. In his speech, however, Xi Jinping subverted the distinction entirely: “Supervision by public opinion and positive propaganda are unified,” he said. Thirteen unlucky characters: 舆论监督和正面宣传是统一的. But with these Xi Jinping nullified the idea that the media might play a monitoring role with any semblance of initiative or independence. Just as all media, from traditional newspapers to WeChat, are subordinated to the Party’s will according to Xi Jinping’s all-dimensional vision of media control, so is the practice of “supervision by public opinion.”

2. 习近平和彭丽媛凭吊在我国驻南联盟使馆被炸事件中英勇牺牲的烈士CCTV节目官网-CCTV-1央视网(cctv.com) 6.18 CCTV Evening News on Xi’s visit to the memorial for the 3 Chinese killed in the May 1999 US bombing of the PRC embassy in Belgrade. This is the first visit to Belgrade by a top Chinese leader in 32 years, the fact that Xi visited and made it his first stop is noteworthy but a visit would be expected no matter the state of US-China relations, though the propaganda prominence is important. The last 60 seconds of the report makes it clear the US was behind the bombing, in case anyone had forgotten  // 1999年5月7日,以美国为首的北约悍然对南联盟进行轰炸,用导弹野蛮袭击了我国驻南联盟大使馆,造成正在使馆中工作的新华社记者邵云环,《光明日报》记者许杏虎、朱颖不幸牺牲,同时炸伤数十人,使馆馆舍严重损毁。2009年5月7日,贝尔格莱德市政府在使馆旧址前竖立纪念碑,缅怀在北约轰炸中牺牲的中国烈士,感谢中国在塞尔维亚最困难时期给予的宝贵支持。// Xi pays homage to Chinese martyrs killed in NATO bombing – Xinhua 

Related: 今天新闻联播的主要内容是:习大大访问塞尔维亚凭吊被炸使馆旧址,中塞建立全面战略伙伴关系,西方体育制裁俄罗斯 凭吊烈士和使馆看起来是再正常不过的事情,之前17年从未来看过,本身就是一种不正常的表现。但即便是这样的一个活动,也被很多人解读为民族主义崛起,韬光养晦结束,天下即将大乱的节奏。

Related: China, Serbia call for settling South China Sea disputes by directly involved parties via negotiation – Xinhua China and Serbia stressed Saturday that the South China Sea disputes should be settled by directly concerned parties through friendly consultations and negotiations. The two sides set forth the consensus in a joint statement issued here during Chinese President Xi Jinping’s ongoing state visit to the Balkan country.

Related: China, Serbia publish blueprint for upgrading partnership – Xinhua Xi and his Serbian counterpart, Tomislav Nikolic, signed a joint statement to lift bilateral relations to a comprehensive strategic partnership on the basis of their strategic partnership established in 2009. In the statement, the two countries agreed to elevate their practical cooperation in various fields including aligning development strategies, infrastructure, industrial capacity, investment, finance, culture, education, healthcare, science and technology. Serbia said it is ready to play an active role in China’s Belt and Road Initiative, in an effort to seize the opportunity and align their development strategies so as to realize common development and prosperity.

3. Mother’s Fight to Exonerate Executed Son Highlights Gaping Holes in Justice System-Caixin Zhang Huanzhi’s only son, Nie Shubin, was executed in 1995 – when he was 20 – for raping and killing a woman in a cornfield near Shijiazhuang, the provincial capital. A decade later, another man arrested for a separate crime, confessed to the murder. Zhang had fought for years after this fresh evidence emerged to exonerate her son, but she kept on hitting a wall. The case is back in the public spotlight after the country’s highest court, the Supreme People’s Court, on June 6 ordered a court in the eastern province of Shandong to review the 1995 ruling, saying evidence that lead to his death sentence were “unreliable and incomplete.”

4. Two Carrier Strike Groups Double Down in Western Pacific > Commander, U.S. 7th Fleet >Commander, Task Force 70 Public Affairs U.S. Navy aircraft carriers have conducted dual carrier strike group operations in the Western Pacific including the South China Sea, East China Sea and Philippine Sea for several years. These operations typically occur when strike groups deployed to the 7th Fleet area of operations from the West Coast of the United States are joined with the forward deployed carrier strike group from Japan. In Sept. 2014, USS George Washington (CVN 73) and USS Carl Vinson (CVN 70) strike groups conducted combined operations in the Western Pacific and in Sept. 2012 they operated in the South China Sea and East China Sea. In 2009, George Washington and USS Nimitz (CVN 68) operated together in the Western Pacific, and in 2001, USS Constellation (CV 64) and Carl Vinson operated together in the South China Sea. “Working with Rear Adm. Hitchcock and Carrier Strike Group Three, during their deployment to the Indo-Asia-Pacific region, has been a great opportunity for us to train on how we would operate multiple carrier strike groups in a contested environment,” said Alexander. “The U.S. Navy has flown, sailed and operated throughout the Western Pacific in accordance with international law for decades, and will continue to do so.”

Related: At Scarborough Shoal, China Is Playing With Fire: Retired Admiral | Foreign Policy China would risk a potential military confrontation with the United States if it started dredging on a disputed shoal off the coast of the Philippines, retired U.S. Navy Adm. Dennis Blair said Thursday. And in a clash with the United States and its allies in the Philippines, Beijing almost certainly would lose, he said. “If the Chinese push there, I think there’s going to be trouble,” said Blair, who once oversaw U.S. forces in the region as the former four-star head of Pacific Command. “And it’s trouble that the United States and the Philippines are going to win because the military situation is set up that way.”

Related: Indonesia, Vietnam stress ASEAN’s common stance on South China Sea – Channel NewsAsia Indonesia and Vietnam have separately said that the recent strongly worded ASEAN statement on the South China Sea did in fact have the consensus of all ASEAN foreign ministers.  The document, released by Malaysia and described as a joint statement from the bloc, warned developments in the hotly contested South China Sea could “undermine peace, security and stability”. The statement specified “land reclamation” as a source of tension, a clear reference to China’s massive island building activities where it is trying to cement a claim to almost the whole sea.

Related:  Is there a way for Beijing to save face after the South China Sea arbitration ruling? | South China Morning Post Jerome A. Cohen says China should look to restart negotiations with the Philippines after the upcoming ruling on the UN Law of the Sea dispute, given its impact on regional peace and its own foreign policy

5. China ups ante in East China Sea- Nikkei Asian Review interesting details in here //Japan administers the Senkaku Islands and considers them part of Okinawa Prefecture. China also claims the islands, known as Diaoyu in Chinese. The small group of uninhabited islets has been a source of tension between the two neighbors in recent years. Now those tensions are escalating. On Wednesday, a Chinese naval intelligence-gathering ship entered Japan’s territorial waters off Kagoshima Prefecture, northeast of Okinawa, for about an hour and a half. It was the first time in 12 years for a Chinese naval vessel to enter Japanese territorial waters.

Related: China’s legal argument on use of Tokara Strait infuriates Japan:The Asahi Shimbun Under customary international law practice, freedom of navigation for all ships is applied to parts of straits considered important internationally. Beijing is apparently trying to define the Tokara Strait as one of these important international straits to legitimize the June 15 passage of its naval vessel through it. Defense Minister Gen Nakatani on June 17 flatly rejected the Chinese legal explanation. “We cannot accept the argument made by China because those waters are not used for international navigation,” Nakatani said at his news conference. “I absolutely cannot understand the argument.”

Related: How to avoid a China-Japan conflict at sea – Opinion – China Daily neither China nor Japan wants such an incident to snowball into a full-blown conflict. So what should be done? To begin with, China and Japan should follow the Code for Unplanned Encounters at Sea, which both have pledged to honor. CUES has a set of communication and operational procedures, for example, to prevent a ship from getting too close to vessels in formation, and avoid aiming guns, missiles or fire control radars at other vessels or aircraft it encounters. The Chinese navy has held quite a few exercises with foreign navies, including the US Navy, on how to fully observe CUES. The Chinese and Japanese navies could do the same to build confidence and familiarize themselves with the procedures.

6. Uber’s battle for China – Financial Times The car-hailing app has disrupted taxi and transport companies around the world. But in China – home to hundreds of millions of urban commuters – it is losing $1bn a year in an aggressive fight for market share.  //Uber can definitely build a sizable business in China if it is willing to burn cash endlessly. But it faces a much better financed and connected local competitor in Alibaba/Tencent/Apple-backed Didi Chuxing that will not be spent into submission in a war with Uber, nor is there an obvious “strategic combination” that could offload the China burden for Uber. Uber shareholders should be very nervous about how big the China black hole may turn out to be, but they look to be stuck. 

7. A Publisher in Exile Gets the Big Scoops on China’s Elite – The New York Times Bao Pu, the publisher of New Century Press in Hong Kong, said Mr. Ho had a mixed record. Although he has had spectacular scoops and published an authoritative biography of Zhou Enlai, the first prime minister of the People’s Republic of China, his company has also published its share of salacious works. Those books made money, enticing other publishers to follow suit and hurting the reputation of Hong Kong’s media and publishing industry, Mr. Bao said. “I’m not sure whether they contributed to freedom of speech or if they spoiled it,” Mr. Bao said of Mirror. But if Mr. Ho is an agent of his sources, it is hard to tell who they may be. On the one hand, he can be complimentary of China’s politicians, saying, for example, that Mr. Xi still has the chance to become a great leader. He is also highly critical of people who say Hong Kong’s civil liberties are in grave danger from Beijing, arguing that many people in the former British colony exaggerate the threat. The greatest danger to liberty in Hong Kong lies with the tendency of Hong Kong’s media toward self-censorship, he says.

8. Trump Proposes Putting Major Super PAC Donor ‘In Charge of China’ – NBC News “You take somebody like Andy Beal, you put him in charge of China: ‘Okay, Andy, do me a favor, renegotiate our trade deal.’ You know what, we can all go home, relax, have dinner.” Beal, the founder of Dallas-based Beal Bank, endorsed Trump in February and is reportedly backing one of the pro-Trump spending groups, Great America PAC. According to the Dallas Morning News, Beal may have attended a briefing for potential donors in Dallas last weekend.

 

BUSINESS, ECONOMY AND TRADE

U.S. sees China investment talks ‘productive’ after new offers: USTR | Reuters A USTR spokeswoman said U.S. and Chinese negotiators exchanged revised “negative lists” of sectors that would stay off-limits from foreign investment as they try to reach a deal for a bilateral investment treaty. “China will need to demonstrate the substantial liberalization of its investment market, ensure that U.S. firms can compete on a level playing field, and address other key priorities to facilitate the progress and successful conclusion of a mutually beneficial and high standard BIT,” the USTR spokeswoman said in a statement. // wonder how good China’s latest offer is given that it failed to meet its originally promised date of late March for this round of the negative list…A good BIT is a good thing, but one that includes no movement towards opening of the PRC media market for US firms is a bad BIT, and one that the Senate should not approve…

China May home prices rise 6.9 pct y/y | Reuters The southern city of Shenzhen was again the top performer, with home prices rising 53.2 percent from a year ago. The coastal city of Xiamen surpassed the top-tier cities and saw the second highest price rise of 28 percent. Shanghai prices rose 27.7 percent.

China’s ‘Land Kings’ Return as Housing Prices Rise – WSJ Officials face a dilemma in trying to tame land prices: Land is commonly used as debt collateral; a sharp drop in valuation could trigger defaults and produce a wave of bad loans, crippling the economy. On the other hand, runaway land prices make it harder for ordinary Chinese to afford apartments. In Suzhou and Nanjing, bidding wars at land auctions have compelled the authorities to cap land prices. To find another way in, bidders now compete on the volume of affordable housing they are willing to commit to.  // SOEs playing a big role in this, reportedly they were given a talking to recently to get out of the real estate business, though unclear why this time they will listen when they have ignored many similar orders over the years

This Risky Chinese Takeover Just Might Get Done – Bloomberg Gadfly Ingram Micro distributes technology rather than producing it, selling products made by Acer, Cisco, HP, Microsoft, etc. And of the $43 billion of revenue it generated last year, only a tiny fraction seems to have come from doing business with the U.S. government. That’s why this deal may have a better chance than something involving sensitive assets.

A Chinese tech giant just sealed a multimillion deal to acquire Yahoo’s land – Business Insider LeEco, the Chinese electronics maker partnered with electric-car startup Faraday Future, is digging its heels even deeper into the US. The Beijing-based company just bought nearly 50 acres of land that belonged to Yahoo. The asphalt is situated near Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, California.

Chinese investors looking to dethrone Tesla as electric car kingpin-USA Today Atieva, one of those startups, recently unveiled plans to release a luxury EV sedan dubbed Edna within two years. The company, whose Chief Technology Officer is Peter Rawlinson, who led the engineering of Tesla’s Model S, is funded by a variety of investors, among them Beijing Auto and LeEco—a software company owned by entrepreneur Jia Yueting. Another Tesla competitor hopeful, Faraday Future, also based in California, like Tesla and Atieva, is funded by Jia as well. The company, which has announced plans to start production of its EV in the U.S., recently snapped up top Ferrari manager Marco Mattiacci to oversee everything from branding to sales and customer experience. Faraday Future, like Atieva, doesn’t yet have a car ready for mass production, but it’s in the process of building a plant in Nevada where it will make its FFZero1.

An Argentine ex-Kirchnerite official caught red-handed trying to hide bags of cash in a monastery — MercoPress Lopez was arrested with six bags and a suitcase stashed with dollars, Euros, Yuan and Qatar currency as well as very expensive watches (Rolex, Omega). “We found 160 bundles of cash, 108 of dollars, and some of them still thermo-sealed with the stamps from China’s central bank”, revealed Cristian Ritondo, head of Buenos Aires province security.

Jack Ma’s Counterfeit Comments Shed Light on Taobao’s ‘Legal’ Fakes – Jing Daily Jack Ma’s claim that the Chinese bags are made in the exact same factories as major luxury brands is likely of particular concern for industry professionals, which must often contend with fakes claiming to be yuandan (原單), or “factory extras.” As security is often extremely tight at production facilities, experts believe that true yuandan goods are extremely hard to come by, and sellers are more likely to be hawking high-quality fakes made of real leather. Ma’s claim not only throws support behind the “same factory” idea that fuels yuandan seller claims, but also sends the message to brands that they might have more competition from names like “Jyusze” or “House of Hello” on Alibaba’s platforms.

Vanke’s $6.9 Billion Share-Sale Plan Opposed by China Resources – Bloomberg Vanke’s 45.6 billion yuan ($6.9 billion) plan to buy assets from Shenzhen Metro by issuing new shares didn’t pass the board because it needs approval from two-thirds, or eight, of the 11 members, China Resources said Saturday in a statement on its official WeChat account. Shenzhen-based Vanke said on Friday its board voted 7-to-3 in favor of the plan after one director chose to abstain, citing a conflict of interest.

Jack Ma’s Ant Financial Plans to Buy 20% Stake in Ascend Money – Bloomberg Ascend Group Co. Ltd. was spun off from True Corporation and is a subsidiary of Thailand’s Charoen Pokphand Group Co Ltd., which has interests in agriculture, retail businesses and telecommunications.

Monsanto Files Lawsuit Over Stolen Computer Data – WSJ When Monsanto asked Mr. Chen about the removed files, he attributed it to a “hacker” but also said he was considering a job offer at a seed company based in Wuhan, China, court papers said. According to the lawsuit, he said he had previously been in contact with Mo Hailong, a Chinese citizen who earlier this year pleaded guilty to participating in a long-running plot to steal genetically pure corn seeds developed by Monsanto and DuPont Co.

 

POLITICS AND LAW

Villagers in China vow to press ahead with land seizures protest after hundreds of police involved in operation to detain their leader | South China Morning Post Plainclothes officers and police in riot gear stepped up patrols on the streets of Wukan in southern China on Sunday after hundreds of police were deployed in the early hours of the morning in an operation to arrest a village chief. Villagers are hoping to go ahead with a village assembly later on Sunday to discuss a protest next week over their land seizure disputes with the local authorities. The atmosphere was tense on Sunday after villagers were involved in a stand-off with about 400 police after the arrest of Lin Zuluan, the villages’ Communist Party secretary. // the “rebel” village that was going to change China if the reporting from the last round was to be believed…

Nephew of China’s Former Domestic Security Tsar Jailed for Graft – The New York Times The nephew of fallen Chinese domestic security tsar Zhou Yongkang has been jailed for 12 years, state media reported on Friday, the latest of his relatives to be sentenced on graft charges. Zhou’s family has been ensnared in President Xi Jinping’s crackdown on corruption, a broad campaign that has felled officials at all levels of government including many of Xi’s top political opponents. Zhou’s nephew, Zhou Feng, was also fined 59 million yuan ($9 million), state broadcaster China Central Television (CCTV) reported on an official microblog account.

They’re not police, military or even official … inside the mysterious ‘central investigation team’ that answers only to the Communist Party | South China Morning Post The mysterious “central investigation team” that Hong Kong bookseller Lam Wing-kee believes took him away at the Chinese border reports directly to the central committee of the Communist Party. The team – which does not belong to any official law enforcement body – holds the same level of importance as investigators looking into important cases, including that of the disgraced former security tsar Zhou Yongkang.

China Law Translate | 社会服务机构登记管理条例(修订草案征求意见稿) Notice of Public Solicitation of Comments on the Ministry of Civil Affairs Provisional Regulations on the Registration and of Management Civil Non-enterprise Institutions [revision draft for the solicitation of comments]…In order to more accurately reflect the orientation and nature of social services organizations, and connect with the “PRC Charities Law”, this amendment changes “civil non-enterprise institutions” to “social service organizations” in the text and title of the regulations. In order to widely hear the views of the public and further increase the quality of legislation, the full text of the draft for public comments and its explanatory note are hereby released, and solicit the views of all aspects of society. Units and members of the public who have comments may submit them through the following means:

2 Chinese Activists Sentenced to Over 10 Years on Subversion Charges – The New York Times The court gave a sentence of 11 years to Lu Gengsong after declaring him guilty of subversion for publishing pro-democracy essays on overseas websites and promoting the banned China Democratic Party, and it handed down a sentence of 10 and a half years to Chen Shuqing, another supporter of the party, for the same charges, said Fu Yonggang, a lawyer for Mr. Chen. Mr. Fu said that Mr. Lu’s main defense lawyer could not be in court for the verdict because of another trial.

‘China Is the Biggest Mad House in the World and CCP the Worst Lunatic’ « China Change China is probably the only country in the world where the Ministry of Public Security operates a chain of at least 27 mental hospitals across the country known as the “Tranquil and Healthy Hospitals” (安康医院).  Petitioners, Falun Gong practitioners, and sometimes political prisoners, have been thrown in mental hospitals. Recently, a news item from 2010 went viral on social media with the headline “The Ministry of Public Security: Mental Hospitals May Not Treat Non-mentally Ill Patients Without Permission from Police.” Netizens quickly parsed its understatement:  With permission from the police, mental hospitals may admit normal people;   Mental hospitals have done so before without police permission; Mental hospitals have done so before with police permission; Police, not medical professionals, decide whether one should be sent to a mental hospital.

CPC names officials punished for condoning misconduct – Xinhua According to the website of the CPC Central Commission for Discipline Inspection (CCDI), a number of officials have received punishments, including official warnings, removal from office, or reduction in benefits, for improperly handling their subordinates’ violations of the law and of the Party’s code of conducts. // 中央纪委通报七起落实全面从严治党主体责任不力被问责的典型问题 

Ilham Tohti: A Short Introduction « China Change Ilham Tohti’s life and career have exemplified the ideals of Andrei Sakharov. His nomination for the European Parliament’s Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought has been supported by organizations and renowned individuals, including the Dalai Lama and Sakharov Prize laureate Hu Jia. // Will the EU dare upset Beijing by awarding him the Sakharov Prize?

文献纪录片《筑梦路上》在中央电视台黄金时间播出-新华网 新华社北京6月14日电 为庆祝中国共产党成立95周年,中央宣传部、中央文献研究室、中央党史研究室、国家发展改革委、国家新闻出版广电总局、中央档案馆、中央军委政治工作部联合摄制的32集文献纪录片《筑梦路上》,6月14日至29日在中央电视台综合频道晚间黄金时间连续播出。// 95th anniversary of the founding of the CCP coming up, lots of propaganda work underway

【建党95周年·学党章】入党为什么必须面向党旗进行宣誓—中央纪委监察部网站 按:今年,中国共产党将迎来95华诞。95年来,党章指引、见证并展现了我们党成长、成熟、发展、壮大的光辉历程,是我们党奋斗历史的概括总结和高度浓缩。近日,本网推出“建党95周年·学党章”专题。让我们一起来追寻党章、重温党章、学习党章、尊崇党章,继续用党章指引我们不断前进。

乡镇党委换届观察-新华网 来源: 《瞭望》 评论0 打印 字大 字小   各地突出干部选拔重基层、接地气的特点,拓宽干部选拔视野,从严考察干部,严肃换届纪律,狠抓换届作风,营造风清气正的换届氛围  //  Liaowang on the upcoming changes in leadership in village/township party committees

运用大数据思维和手段提升政府治理能力 当今时代,数据已成为国家基础性战略资源,大数据正日益对全球经济运行机制、社会生活方式和国家治理能力产生重要影响。党中央、国务院高度重视大数据发展及创新应用,十八届五中全会明确提出实施国家大数据战略。国务院印发的《促进大数据发展行动纲要》指出,大数据已成为“提升政府治理能力的新途径”。这就要求各级政府树立大数据思维,借助大数据手段推动政府管理理念和社会治理模式进步,实现国家治理体系和治理能力现代化。  //  Guiyang Munipal Party Secretary Chen Gang in Qiushi on using big data “thinking and methods” to improve governance capacity…

 

FOREIGN AND DEFENSE AFFAIRS

Senior Chinese diplomat and critic of mainland media Wu Jianmin, 77, dies in car accident | South China Morning Post Wu, 77, a former Chinese ambassador to France, the United Nations in Geneva and the Netherlands, had been outspoken about mainland media and actively promoted public diplomacy after retirement and was regarded as a dovish figure in China’s foreign policy.  //  don’t confuse “dovish” in China with not being a staunch nationalist

逝者丨温和吴建民 走完半个世纪外交生涯综合新京报网 6月18日凌晨4时许,知名外交家、原驻法大使、外交学院前院长吴建民,在武汉天河机场前往住地的路上,突遇车祸离世。“他是一位具有理性思维的外交家。”中国驻新西兰、瑞典前大使陈明明评价。如果没有这起车祸,吴建民的不少师友都觉得,他还可以继续为国家工作“至少五到十年” //  The Beijing News on Wu Jianmin

积极适应我军领导指挥体制改革新要求 Wu Changde in latest Qiushi on meeting the needs of the PLA reforms

Gov’t Says Homegrown Satellite Navigation System Gaining Traction-Caixin Dozens of countries including Pakistan and Saudi Arabia have expressed an interest in using China’s navigation technology, a whitepaper said

US does not support ‘Tibet independence’: Kerry – China.org.cn The United States maintains that Tibet is an inalienable part of China and does not support the independence of Tibet, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said on Saturday. During a telephone conversation with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, Kerry said the U.S. policy on the Tibet issue remains unchanged and will not change.

China urges U.S. to reflect human rights situation after torture interrogation exposed – Xinhua “We are aware of the report and shocked by the details,” said Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying, referring to the more than fifty documents declassified by the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) on Tuesday, which detailed interrogation by torture conducted by the U.S. government after the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001. “Every country should abide by international conventions, including the Geneva Convention, and guarantee the basic rights of criminals,” Hua said. The U.S. styles itself as a “human rights defender” and has been known to make indiscreet criticism of other countries’ human rights situation, Hua said, adding the United States should reflect on its own behavior and take concrete measures to stop the severe violation of human rights.

Ambassador Sung Kim, Special Representative for North Korea Policy Travel to Beijing Special Representative for North Korea Policy and Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs Ambassador Sung Kim will travel to Beijing June 21-23 to hold meetings with Chinese officials and attend the Track 1.5 Northeast Asia Cooperation Dialogue.

新华国际时评:美国打南海“舆论战”居心叵测-新华网 越来越明显的趋势是,美国正全方位动员政治、经济、军事、外交资源“重返亚太”、遏制中国。其中,制造南海舆论偏见无疑是一种低投入、高回报的方式。美国国家利益中心高级研究员哈里·卡齐亚尼斯说得直白:“我们的目标很简单:迫使中国限于守势,并在媒体(尤其是社交媒体)上一次又一次地羞辱中国……在新闻界和社交媒体上散布一起又一起中国在南中国海侵略行径的经济费用会很小,但通过媒体曝光来揭露中国的行径所带来的回报则可能是巨大的。”

Chinese UAVs See Action In Myanmar | iHLS Israel Homeland Security Myanmar’s military has confirmed that it has been using Chinese combat UAVs in clashes with ethnic rebels for counter-insurgency operations in the north of the country, UAS Vision reports. Myanmar first acquired drones for its Air Force in 2013 or 2014. These Chinese-built CH-3A (Cai Hong 3A or Rainbow 3A) UAVs have been deployed on sorties from an airfield presumed to be in either Bhamo in southeastern Kachin State or Lashio in Shan State.

50 years of work on U.S.-China relations – Sinica Podcast In this week’s episode of Sinica, we are proud to announce that we’re joining forces with SupChina. We’re also delighted that our first episode with our new partner is a conversation with President Stephen Orlins and Vice President Jan Berris of the National Committee on United States–China Relations, recorded at their offices in Manhattan.

At Okinawa Protest, Thousands Call for Removal of U.S. Bases – The New York Times China must love this, wonder if any PRC money is supporting

美报告非议中国反恐 持双重标准犯下巨大错误军事环球网 Global Times does not like the recent CNA report prepared for the U.S.-China Economic & Security Review Commission on China’s terrorism policies

Is China’s soft power strategy working? | China Power Project interviews with Joseph Nye, Liz Economy and David Shambaugh

Views: What Do Chinese Women Think of Hillary Clinton?-Caixin Clinton has had a tough stance on China during her time as the U.S. Secretary of State, but Chinese women polled by Caixin say they connect with her despite this

 

HONG KONG, MACAO AND TAIWAN

Bookseller’s Account of Abduction Rekindles Fear of Lost Rights in Hong Kong – The New York Times When asked several times about the episode at a routinely scheduled news conference on Friday, a spokeswoman for the Chinese Foreign Ministry, Hua Chunying, said, “Lam Wing-kee is a Chinese citizen, and when he broke China’s law in the mainland of China, the authorities had the right to take actions in accordance with the law.”

4,000 Hong Kong protesters voice against China on bookseller detentions | Reuters Over 4,000 people marched in Hong Kong on Saturday to protest against China’s detention of five booksellers whose shop published gossipy books about Chinese leaders, including President Xi Jinping. The demonstration followed a march by 100 activists to China’s liaison office on Friday to protest against what they called the “cross-border abductions”. They said one bookseller was abducted to China from Hong Kong and another from Thailand.

China bans news coverage of Hong Kong bookseller abduction | World news | The Guardian Censors order removal of editorial and ‘related reports’ amid uproar over Lam Wing-kee’s account of his disappearance

 

TECH AND MEDIA

China Is Building Its Own Version Of Netflix – Vocativ China’s internet powerhouses are replicating yet another Western business model—this time it’s the digital filmmaking industry. The biggest search engine behind the great firewall—Baidu—has just announced an investment of $305 million in 30 film and television projects. According to Variety, Baidu will be using data-driven methods to assess projects, drawing from its far-reaching web platforms. Baidu Nuomi Pictures will handle the investment, and the company will likely stream its content on iQIYI, a Chinese streaming service of 20 million subscribers that the major tech company largely owns.

Apple iPhone Is Targeted in Beijing Patent Case – The New York Times With an appeals process ahead, the ruling is unlikely to have a major impact on Apple. Still, the action spotlights the growing number of cases of municipal patent offices in China backing local companies against larger, international brands. According to a statement from the Beijing Intellectual Property Office, Apple infringed on a design patent used in a phone called the 100C, made by the Chinese phone maker Baili. The statement ordered Apple to stop selling certain older versions of the iPhone within Beijing, though an appeal of such a ruling to the courts in China usually forestalls any sales injunctions. // remember Apple’s 2012 iPad trademark dispute? there were reports then that iPad banned from sale, also turned out be incorrect

Central Bank Wraps Meituan for ‘Breaking Payment Rules’-Caixin Popular group-buying firm ran payment service even though it lacked a license, prompting authorities to intervene, PBOC source says

Find-a-Journalist App Highlights Murky Media Practices in China – China Real Time Report – WSJ Similar to how users of the ride-hailing app can choose to go with a normal sedan or more luxurious cars, Zhao Jizhe offers services tailored to companies of all sizes and needs. For as little as 1,000 yuan, or roughly $150, Zhao Jizhe can get the company an ordinary writer, and publicity on one publication is guaranteed, according to the app. Companies with a higher budget can choose mid- or high-level writers. The premium service, at 8,000 yuan, comes with a senior writer, and a guaranteed coverage on 25 publications, including four well-known ones.

What’s Next for Artificial Intelligence – WSJ The best minds in the business—Yann LeCun of Facebook, Luke Nosek of the Founders Fund, Nick Bostrom of Oxford University and Andrew Ng of Baidu—on what life will look like in the age of the machines  // think it is too bad that one of America and the world’s best minds on AI is working for Baidu, one of China’s national Internet champions, which means that what is developed for Baidu here in the US is available to Beijing and the CCP if they want it…

网易游戏前高管涉侵犯商业秘密案不予起诉_财新网 一起历时近五年的国内顶级游戏争端在法律上有了定论:对广州市擎天柱网络科技有限公司(以下称“擎天柱公司”)所开发的《封神》游戏涉嫌侵犯网易公司《大话西游》游戏商业秘密一案,广州市天河区人民检察院于2016年6月13日作出不予起诉决定。

 

SOCIETY, ART, SPORTS, CULTURE AND HISTORY

Q&A With Liu Shaohua on How Heroin, HIV Ravaged Rural Community | Sixth Tone Anthropologist explores the impact of modernization on one ethnic minority group in Sichuan province.

How the Cultural Revolution Sowed the Seeds of Dissent in China – The New York Times Guobin Yang is a sociologist at the University of Pennsylvania best known for his research on the internet in China. But in his latest book, “The Red Guard Generation and Political Activism in China,’’ he turns back to examine the upheavals of the 1966-76 Cultural Revolution and the imprint they left on a generation of Chinese who became radicals and Red Guards in the name of Mao Zedong. The book explores the cultural background to the violence of the Cultural Revolution, and how those experiences nurtured dissenting ideas and the cultural experimentation that burst into flower after Mao’s death in 1976. In an interview, Mr. Yang explained how that happened.

The Red Guard Generation and Political Activism in China: Guobin Yang: Amazon looks interesting, too bad hardcover is $55 and kindle is $47…broken academic publishing model…

 

ENERGY, ENVIRONMENT, SCIENCE AND HEALTH

China’s Last Wild River Carries Conflicting Environmental Hopes – The New York Times Chen Zuyu, a prominent hydropower scientist, estimates that the country has installed less than half of700gigawatts of potential hydropower capacity, and said it should push ahead. “China is still in the golden era of hydropower development,” he said. “China can keep developing hydropower for another 30 years, and then it will be done.” Mr. Chen said the Nu was ready to be developed, but noted, “Environmental issues are political issues and are the hardest to resolve.”

Fate of Xinjiang Mountain Rabbit Hangs in the Balance | Sixth Tone Two men — one a zoologist, the other a nomad — have formed an unlikely alliance aimed at protecting a species of furry, rabbit-like animals facing extinction in their natural habitat high in the mountains of northwest China’s Xinjiang region. Li Weidong, 61, was the first person to discover the Ili pika three decades ago.  //  saw lots of Pika on out trips to Tibet in 2014 and 2015…very cute, interesting little creatures

 

AGRICULTURE AND RURAL ISSUES

Architects See Potential in China’s Countryside – The New York Times The nature of the projects varies. Some focus on tourism, others on farming or community development. In addition to Mr. Chen’s pig barn, notable examples have included a village library near Beijing by Li Xiaodong, a rural community center and museum in Henan Province by He Wei, and a rural regeneration project near Hangzhou recently completed by Wang Shu, who was awarded the Pritzker Prize, architecture’s equivalent of the Nobel, in 2012. But they all have a common goal: to revitalize the countryside and enhance its appeal to young people, farmers, visitors and educated workers.

 

EDUCATION

实验二小白云路分校操场开拆综合新京报网 6月17日,西城区教委已开始对实验二小白云路分校操场进行全场拆除,全体学生放假一天,预计下周一恢复上课。对于操场施工情况,有学生家长表示,不知道操场具体拆到什么程度,想得知最终的整改方案。// “toxic” playground removed from Beijing primary school…seems to be a bit of an epidemic across China, here is People’s Daily on the need for standards  “问题跑道”事件频发,别让标准再迟来” Poisoning kids with toxic playgrounds at good urban primary schools falls into the “not delivering the goods” category for the urban middle class…

“网络文明进校园”主题教育活动总结表彰会举行_中国经济网——国家经济门户 “网络文明进校园”主题教育活动于2015年11月于中国人民大学启动,主要包括“百校千场网络文明主题校园巡礼”和“网络文明 你我同行”主题辩论邀请赛。其中,“百校千场网络文明主题校园巡礼”,由高校校园网站联盟网络文化专委会和上海交通大学承办,开展网络文明教育,传播网络文明理念,展示网络文明风采,倡导良好的校园文明道德风尚;“网络文明 你我同行”主题辩论赛由全国校网联盟网络思政专委会和重庆大学承办,组织大学生围绕网络文明主题开展辩论,引导大学生遵守网络行为规范,倡导文明健康的网络生活方式。辩论赛分片区赛和决赛两个阶段,共有清华大学、北京大学等全国24所高校近200名大学生辩手参加比赛。// more on the ongoing campaign to bring “Internet Civilization” onto campuses 

 

FOOD AND TRAVEL

上海迪士尼开园之后,有些人就把脸丢向了世界…… probably not the scenes of queueing and bad behavior at Shanghai Disney opening day that Disney PR wants you to see…looks like a nightmare to me

 

BEIJING

通州和北三县将“统一政策”国内新京报网 未来,通州和河北三县将统一规划、统一政策和统一管控,这也是北京首次明确通州和北三县“统一政策”。另外,城市副中心155平方公里的详细规划,将从全世界50家顶级设计团队和专家中挑选,并在今年内完成。

Fannou House: Beijing’s Most Ambitious Collection of Whiskies Has Arrived in Sanlitun | the Beijinger We ride down Nan Sanlitun Lu every day due to its proximity to our office, but we never realized that there was a world-class whiskey bar called Fannou House hidden inside this fancy furniture store next to The Smokeyard. By world class we mean there are whiskeys here that in the words of Indiana Jones, “belong in a museum.” This is mainly because the owner of this fine establishment is conveniently also one of the founders of Single Malt Club China (SMCC), a conglomerate of experts who specialize in importing this tasty spirit.  //happy my friend has finally opened something that is not in Wangjing. If you like single-malt this is place in downtown Beijing to visit

 

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