"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
CPC to hold key session on rule of law – Xinhua “governing according to the law 依法治国 // The Communist Party of China (CPC) will hold the fourth plenary session of the 18th central committee in October, to discuss key issues concerning the rule of law, it was announced on Tuesday. The Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee will discuss “governing the country according to law” on every front, it was announced after the Tuesday meeting, presided over by the CPC Central Committee’s general secretary, Xi Jinping. It was agreed that the rule of law is a must if the country will attain economic growth, clean government, culture prosperity, social justice and sound environment, and realize the strategic objective of peaceful development. A statement after the meeting said that the rule of law is an intrinsic requirement of socialism with Chinese characteristics and crucial to modern governance. Governing according to law holds the key to the CPC’s leadership, the people’s well-being, deepening reform and long-term stability. The statement emphasized, that governing according to law has become more significant in the entire agenda of the Party and the nation, due to new circumstances.
Related: 盘点20年历次四中全会都研究啥–时政–
China Says Former Security Chief Is Being Investigated for Corruption – NYTimes.com People close to senior officials have said that Mr. Zhou’s son, Zhou Bin, is central to the party investigation and has also been detained, as have other members of Mr. Zhou’s extended family, including his wife, Jia Xiaoye; a brother, Zhou Yuanqing; and a sister-in-law, Zhou Lingying. One political consultant in Beijing who meets with senior and mid-ranking officials said he had been told that Zhou Bin recently gave new direct evidence against his father, who, according to the consultant and other party insiders, had strongly denied any personal wrongdoing during months of detention. The new evidence helped solidify a consensus among top leaders to announce the investigation publicly, said the consultant
Related: Fall of Zhou Yongkang Lights Up China’s Internet – China Real Time Report – WSJ In some ways, official censors appeared to be directing the public discourse by deliberately loosening online controls. Terms that were taboo on the Chinese Internet for more than a year – most notably the Chinese characters for Zhou Yongkang – were unblocked about an hour after the official Xinhua news agency released its customarily terse reports on Mr. Zhou’s fall. The “
Related: 从严治党 坚定不移–观点–人民网 “打铁还需自身硬”。
Related: No “safe box” in discipline enforcement: People’s Daily – Xinhua When it comes to the law and Party discipline, no one should bet on the odds of escape and entertain the illusion that there is some kind of “safe box”, the article says. Zhou’s case is another declaration that there should be no power exercised outside the “cage” and there should be no CPC member whose behaviors can stay outside the jurisdiction of the law and discipline, it says. There is no special member in the CPC before the Party’s discipline, it adds. Officials and Party members will eventually pay their price if they unscrupulously pursue their selfish desire, abuse their power or seek personal interests, according to the article. It also calls for efforts to enhance the sense of Party spirit, fortify the belief in the Party and strictly enforce the Party discipline among the CPC members.
Related: Graphics: Zhou Yongkang’s Tangled Path – Caixin Unweaving the complex network and overlapping interests of Zhou Yongkang’s family and his associates
Related: 周永康被审查不用“同志”说明了啥–时政-
Related: Closer Look: Ex-Politburo Members Accused of ‘Serious Discipline Violations’ Always Face Courts – Caixin Some are voicing concerns Zhou Yongkang will get off with light punishment from the party, but others in similar situations all went in front of a judge
Caixin Explains: Central Committee Discipline Inspection Teams – Caixin One of the most important tools the Communist Party is employing in its fight against corruption are little known “inspection teams” that have links to the 205-member Central Committee. Very little has been reported on these teams in the past, especially in English. Caixin gathered enough information from the website of Central Discipline Inspection Commission (CDIC) and government documents to begin painting a picture of the history of these teams, who staffs them and how they operate.
China to help 100 mln settle in cities – Xinhua unclear how much impact this will have // At a press conference on Wednesday, vice public security minister Huang Ming said differentiated approaches will be applied in the hukou system, based on the size and population of a city. The authorities will set no limits for those who want to settle in small cities and towns. “Anyone who has a legal residence can register for permanent residence, even temporary tenants,” Huang said. Medium-sized cities with a population between one million and three million will have a low threshold, while megacities with more than five million residents will try to strictly control the influx of new citizens. People wishing to settle in megacities like Beijing and Shanghai will have to qualify through a “points system” based on their seniority in employment, their accommodation and social security, according to Huang.
Related: China Focus: Hukou reforms to help 100 mln Chinese – Xinhua | English.news.cn Wednesday’s circular also indicated that the reform will put an end to the dual-household registration system which has divided people into urban or agricultural households since the 1950s.
Related: 内地将取消农业与非农业户口区别(全文)|
Related: 习近平13年前博士论文提出户籍改革路线图_
First Two Cities to End All Home Purchase Curbs See Sales Increase – Caixin Two large cities that canceled all local government restrictions on home purchases recently have seen a sharp increase in sales, data from the government and a research institute show. A total of 1,235 homes were sold from June 13 to July 13 in Hohhot, the capital of the northern region of Inner Mongolia, up 43 percent compared to the preceding 30-day period, data from the city’s housing administration bureau show. In Jinan, capital of the eastern province of Shandong, home sales rose 188 percent from July 1 to 20, compared to the same period in June, said a report by Shanghai-based E-House China R&D Institute, a property service provider and research body.
Related: East China city lifts home purchase limit – Xinhua The eastern Chinese city of Wenzhou on Tuesday became the latest city to lift home purchase restrictions to prop up the property market. Wenzhou in Zhejiang Province has a booming private economy. There will be no restrictions on the number of houses people can buy and home purchases will be open to both locals and non-locals, according to the municipal housing authority.
高昱的微博_微博 Caixin Weekly Deputy Editor Gao Yu says on Weibo that the Wall Street Journal is “shameless” for its recent report on CNPC Canada corruption that doesn’t credit Caixin even though Caixin already had reported much of what was in the WSJ story…Compare WSJ’s 7.28 Chinese Corruption Probe Stretches Into Canada with Caixin’s July 21 issue 中石油加拿大油砂交易蒙阴影 and CNPC Continues to Be Hit by Scandal as Two More Executives Fall //财新对中石油阿萨巴斯卡交易的调查从去年11月
Snake Eyes and Scrutiny for Macao’s Casinos – Caixin abridged translation of this week’s Caixin cover story, as always the original Chinese more interesting // The city where mainlanders go to gamble is in the spotlight for the way casino thrills are financed
Microsoft, the ‘Guardian Warriors’ and China’s Cybersecurity Fears – China Real Time Report – WSJ In many cases it isn’t clear why the companies have run into problems in China. They are also contending with other difficulties there, including China’s slowing economic growth and local companies like Inspur benefiting in the wake of the Snowden revelations. Here’s a rundown of how the companies are faring:// Sinocism on the “* Guradian Warriors” article last September
Related: NSA Concerns Give Chinese Server Maker Inspur a Boost – WSJ $$ a marketing program called I2I—IBM to Inspur—aimed at convincing businesses to switch from Big Blue. Since the NSA controversy began, Inspur, which started out in the 1960s making computer accessories in China’s northeast Shandong province, has seen domestic server sales soar. It overtook Dell Inc., China’s Huawei Technologies Co. and H-P in the first quarter to top China’s charts for server shipments, according to data from researcher Gartner.
BUSINESS, ECONOMY AND TRADE
China to balance reform, development, stability – Xinhua “In the first half, economic growth was kept within a reasonable range, with major indicators within targets,” a statement released after the meeting said. Growth still faces challenges internally and externally. “More efforts are needed to maintain steady economic growth,” it said. In the second half of the year, the country must get the balance among pushing forward reforms, seeking development and maintaining stability. At the same time it must find the balance between short-term targets and long-term growth. The government should also coordinate economic and social development while improving people’s livelihood, the statement said.
Guest post: China’s anti-corruption strike has long-tem investment implications – beyondbrics-Jonathan Fenby All this confirms our view that Xi, with the help of the redoubtably efficient Wang, is forging a new method of moving towards his goal, using the anti-corruption campaign both to instil fear among vested interest who might oppose him and to clear the way for the appointment of new managers who, politically loyal to him, will be given a mandate to run the big state enterprises more efficiently. Forceful as he is, Xi acts prudently. He prepares the ground well before launching his assaults. But, once launched, his initiatives tend to take on a momentum of their own, in sharp contrast to the consensus style of Hu Jintao.
棒约翰“过期面团”已被立案调查 门店暂时关闭-搜狐新闻 a Papa John’s in Nanjing found using dough past expiration date, in addition to husi mea // 7月29日，
JPMorgan Says Don’t Fight PBOC as Stimulus Lifts Stocks – Bloomberg The ruling Communist Party’s investigation into former security czar Zhou Yongkang could also provide a boost to equities, Lu Ting, head of Greater China economics at Bank of America Corp. in Hong Kong, wrote in a report today. “With some high-profile arrests under its belt, we believe the focus of the new government can start to shift from the anti-graft campaign to real institutional reforms, which are badly needed for China’s long-term economic health,” Lu said.
不动产登记暂行条例草案向社会公开征求意见|不动产登记_
China’s local GDP data points to recovery, rebalancing | Reuters In Hebei — China’s top steel producer — for instance, GDP growth stayed sluggish in the first six months, even though activity picked up slightly to 5.8 percent compared with 4.2 percent in the first quarter. Hebei’s drowsy performance is in part due to its efforts to remake itself. Hebei wants to slash total steel capacity by 60 million tonnes by 2017 and to shut more outdated steel mills this year to cut air pollution in northern China. Similarly in the northeastern Heilongjiang province, the only province that has not released its GDP data, a local statistician who declined to be identified said first-half GDP growth was likely to be the lowest in China at under 5 percent.
How Much Should China’s Yuan Be Worth? Consider the Big Mac – China Real Time Report – WSJ In its latest report on the world’s major economies, the International Monetary Fund reiterated its call that the yuan (also known as the renminbi) is undervalued by 5% to 10% – which goes to show that this isn’t an exact science. But the Peterson Institute for International Economics thinks the yuan is just 1.1% below where it should be, a difference barely visible to the naked eye. And the contrarians at Lombard Street Research, convinced that China is fundamentally losing competitiveness and that boatloads of capital are lining up for the exits, think the renminbi could be overvalued by as much as 15% to 20%.
POLITICS AND LAW
周永康次子与父不睦 已在国外_网易新闻中心-网易新闻客户端 Zhou Yongkang’s younger son Zhou Han is in San Francisco, Caixin says // 据财新网报道，接近中石油的权威消息人士称，周永康的次子、
杭州市经信委前主任在市政府办公楼坠楼 – 新华社发布 former head of Hangzhou economic and informatization committee official falls to his death from municipal government building…another official suicide? // 新华社杭州7月30日电（“新华社发布”客户端记者 商意盈）记者从有关部门获悉，30日下午，
网络安全和信息化工作座谈会召开 任贤良作报告_河北频道_凤凰网 SIIO deputy head Ren Xianliang talk on agenda setting and guiding public online…just a short summary, would love to see the full report // 7月29日上午，河北省召开网络安全和信息化工作座谈会，
How Xi Jinping Swatted Flies to Trip Biggest China Tiger – Bloomberg During the 18-month campaign against Zhou and his networks, none of China’s senior or retired leaders spoke publicly about his fate, a sign of implicit consent for his downfall. Fewsmith said the July 29 announcement means “everybody has now signed off on the handling of Zhou’s case,” probably including all the retired members of the Politburo Standing Committee. “There is consensus within the party that it must purge itself, and that if it doesn’t then its crisis will deepen,” said Kerry Brown, the director of the China Studies Centre at the University of Sydney. Xi and his supporters concluded that Zhou and his clan “grew corrupt because they did not adhere sincerely to orthodox ideology and were looking after themselves,” Brown said. “So they needed to be taken out.”
22 attackers shot dead in Xinjiang violence as extremists wielding axes targeted civilians | South China Morning Post Twenty-two attackers were shot dead and a further 41 arrested in a terror attack in Xinjiang on Monday in which at least 10 civilians died, according to sources and a report from a local party conference. A group of assailants, wielding knives and axes, attacked the government office and police station in Elixku township in Kashgar’s Yarkand, or Shache, county in the early hours of Monday, Xinhua reported last night. Some attacked residents in neighbouring Huangdi township.
揭秘纪委从会场带离贪官：为其定制高规格会议_新闻_腾讯网 “
Jailed businesswoman’s father detained over corruption claims – Xinhua The father of a businesswoman jailed for life for illegal fundraising has been detained by police after the family accused a senior official in charge of organizing the seizure and sale of her illegal gains of acting corruptly. The government of east China’s Dongyang City said on Wednesday that Wu Yongzheng, father of Wu Ying, has been detained by the municipal public security department on suspicion of defamation and concealing Wu Ying’s illegal gains.
FOREIGN AND DEFENSE AFFAIRS
PACOM Chief: US Not Worried About Chinese Intel Ship off Hawaiian Coast | Defense News | defensenews.com Sending the intelligence gathering ship to within 200 miles of the US coast “is within the law and it’s their right to do it,” Locklear said. The RIMPAC exercise is “an opportunity to build trust and confidence” between countries operating in the Pacific. He added, however, that “the introduction of the AGI [spy ship] kind of made it look a little odd.” In the coming weeks, the Chinese military will be conducting it’s unilateral “Blue Whale” exercise in the East China Sea featuring about 20 Chinese ships, and Locklear assured the Pentagon press corps that US will keep an eye on the proceedings, just as it always has.
Canada Accuses Chinese Hackers of Cyberattack | TIME In an unprecedented move, Canada accused Chinese hackers of infiltrating a computer network at the National Research Council on Tuesday, although Beijing denied responsibility for the assault. Canadian officials lodged an official complaint to Beijing that state-backed hackers penetrated the council — the government’s primary research body that works with many companies, including major manufacturing firms.
三副大军区级将领晋升中将_政经频道_财新网
TECH AND MEDIA
Backed By Tencent And Felicis, Scaled Inference Wants To Be The Google Brain For Everyone | TechCrunch Google Brain, an artificial intelligence and machine learning project at Google, has been used to power services like Android’s speech recognition system and photo search on Google+. Now, two of the most longstanding machine learning engineers, one of whom worked on Google Brain, have left the search giant to start a new company. The idea: to build machine learning, artificial intelligence technology similar to what’s used internally by companies like Google, making it available as a cloud service that can be used by anyone.// and Baidu has its new Silicon Valley hires in this area
SOCIETY, ART, SPORTS, CULTURE AND HISTORY
Harvard Is Summer Mecca as Chinese Students Crowd Boston – Bloomberg The surge in interest underscores both the prestige of obtaining a degree from Boston-area colleges and the burgeoning affluence of China’s middle class. The number of Chinese students in the metropolitan area almost tripled to 10,913 last year from 3,800 in 2009. That’s faster than growth nationally, which more than doubled, according to the Institute of International Education in New York.
ENERGY, ENVIRONMENT, SCIENCE AND HEALTH
新疆发现价值400亿金矿 神秘港商已获金矿控制权_网易新闻中心
GM scandal hits China’s rice sales – Xinhua A central Chinese city has reported reduced rice sales since a supermarket was exposed selling illegal genetically modified (GM) rice. Sales staff at several supermarkets in Wuhan, capital of Hubei, said rice sales dropped suddenly this week following a China Central Television report on Saturday that accused a local supermarket of selling rice that contained GM varieties.
Pangolins being eaten to extinction, conservationists warn | Environment | theguardian.com Pangolins are being “eaten to extinction” due to a demand for their meat at banquets in China and Vietnam and their scales for use in Chinese medicine, conservationists have warned. In an update last week to the authoritative Red List of endangered animals, all eight species of the scaly anteaters were upgraded to threatened status.
FOOD AND TRAVEL
Five fun facts on the Peking Duck The Quanjude restaurant, known globally for its Peking Duck, is marking its 150th anniversary with the launch of a museum documenting everything you need to know about this iconic dish.
BEIJING
经济参考网 北京一天内两宗住宅用地流拍 two Beijing land auctions fail// 进入下半年，北京加快土地供应步伐。
Health Guide 2014: Beijing Blues – An expat shares his experience with depression | Beijingkids Magazine | Hot Topics | Jul 30, 2014 | beijing-kids.com James Phillips (not his real name) is no stranger to the debilitating effects of depression. After living in Beijing for eight years, the father of two was depressed for almost six months last year after his affair led his wife to move back to their home country, leaving in secret with their children. “It all started one night when I just came home and my family wasn’t there. I didn’t know what to do anymore. It felt like the whole world had crashed in on me,” he says…Feelings of hopelessness eventually led to distrust in friends. “I thought everyone was talking behind my back about what happened. You know, you have this perfect family and saying how I just destroyed it. I thought everyone was saying I was a bad dad. It just all hit me.” // you are, and they probably were
Beijing subway riders could be detained for 10 days if they refuse security checks | South China Morning Post Beijing subway passengers could face up to 10 days detention if they refuse to go through security checks, as the capital city beefs up such measures as more travel lers visit during summer vaca tion, the Beijing News reported today. The city’s public security bureau said the highest level of security checks has been put in place with more than 10 million passengers using the subways daily this time of year.