Today’s Links:

THE ESSENTIAL EIGHT

1. Wang Jianlin, a Billionaire at the Intersection of Business and Power in China – NYTimes Mike Forsythe revisits the story for which Bloomberg fired him..clearly the New York Times is not interested in untying the bell, while Bloomberg appears to have done so as it is apparently getting journalist visas here again// there is an aspect of his relationship with the authorities that Mr. Wang never raises in interviews and that has gone unreported in the many accounts of his success published in China and abroad: Relatives of some of the nation’s most powerful politicians and their business associates own significant stakes in his company. An extensive review of corporate records filed with the government identified several such investments made from 2007 to 2011, when Wanda was privately held and rarely sold shares to outsiders.

2. Obama Presses Case for Asia Trade Deal, Warns Failure Would Benefit China – WSJ President Obama, in an interview with WSJ’s Jerry Seib, made his case for the proposed Trans-Pacific Partnership warning that if the U.S. doesn’t enact a free-trade deal with Asia, then China will write the rules in that region

Related: Trans-Pacific Partnership Puts Harvard Law School Rivals on Opposite Sides, Again – NYTimes “This is not personal,” said Senator Bernard Sanders, independent of Vermont and another opponent of the trade effort. “It’s clearly the rules that have been established in terms of transparency. It’s been a disgrace, frankly.” Fomenting much of that umbrage is Ms. Wallach, whose tactics, detailed treatises and Capitol Hill briefings have torn apart the chapters of the Pacific accord that have leaked out. She has castigated Mr. Froman’s tight control over the contents of the agreement and dismissed efforts by Republicans and Democrats to find common ground as smoke screens for a big-business agenda

3. China Readies Fresh Easing to Tackle Specter of Debt – WSJ Under the plan, which could be put in place in the next couple of months, the People’s Bank of China will allow Chinese banks to swap local-government bailout bonds for loans as a way to bolster liquidity and boost lending, the officials said. The strategy—dubbed Pledged Supplementary Lending—is similar to the long-term refinancing operations, or LTROs, used by the European Central Bank. The Wall Street Journal reported last week that the central bank was considering such a plan. Press officials at the PBOC didn’t respond to a request for comment.

Related: 央行马骏：央行没必要直接购买新发地方债实施QE_金融_一财网 PBoC’s Ma Jun tells CBN in interview posted Tuesday afternoon that the PBoC is not pursuing QE // 今年我国将维持稳健的货币政策，这个基调在中央经济工作会议、3月份的政府工作报告中都已经明确和重申。央行手中有包括定向再贷款、利率、存款准备金率和各种流动性调节工具，足以维持合理的流动性，保持货币和信贷的平稳增长，没有必要以直接购买新发地方债的QE手段来投放基础货币。

Related: 宏调组合拳再出招财新周刊频道财新网 无论是自行发行还是委托中央发行，中央和地方政府都希望通过发债的方式来降低成本。但现实是，与往年只有新增地方债不同，今年新增6000亿地方债的同时，还要发行1万亿置换债券，地方债供给激增使得利率开始抬升，与降低债务成本的初衷相悖。此次大力度降准在一定程度上也被视为配合地方债发行的举措。第一创业证券首席经济学家、中国社会科学院金融研究所研究员彭兴韵称，此次降准是接下来债券市场扩容压力之下引导市场利率下行、降低融资成本的需要。华创证券宏观经济研究主管钟正生预计，在巨大的供给冲击下，银行仍是债券的主要投资主体，为防止利率继续抬升，货币政策必然成为被动的“接盘侠”。问题在于，如果通过市场方式来置换，货币政策无论通过全面降准还是PSL等其他方式来配合，为降低利率，央行都不可避免地被迫放水，当地方政府收到钱偿还原有债务后，央行可能还需要回收流动性

4. This Chinese feminist wants to be the country’s first openly lesbian lawyer, and police harassment won’t stop her – The Washington Post Li Tingting, 25, a lesbian campaigner on women’s issues, is probably the most prominent of the five women who were detained in early March for planning to distribute stickers at bus stations to raise awareness of sexual harassment on public transport. Detained for 37 days, the five were released April 13 after a global outcry but remain under investigation. They have been told to report regularly to police, to not leave their home cities and to not talk to journalists. But Li, in a statement given to The Washington Post, said she was determined not only to force the government to drop the case against her but also to continue her struggle for justice for women in China.

Related: Chinese feminist: Long hours of interrogations after release – The Washington Post One of five leading Chinese feminist advocates said she went through lengthy and verbally abusive interrogations after she was conditionally released in a case that has attracted international attention. Wu Rongrong, a 30-year-old advocate for women’s rights, said in a statement released Saturday that she endured an eight-hour police interrogation in a hotel room in the eastern city of Hangzhou. She said her interrogators insulted her at length, calling her selfish and ungrateful and telling her that she brought shame to social activists.

5. Three days in Beijing with Ai Weiwei, Jacob Appelbaum and Laura Poitras, the global dissident elite | Fusion On the night he arrived, Appelbaum was happy to discover that, despite reports to the contrary, Tor was not blocked by China’s infamous Internet censors. “The perceptions of China don’t meet the reality,” he said. “It doesn’t feel like an oppressive surveillance state. China has been demonized by the West.” Appelbaum realized he’d praised an authoritarian regime, and added a caveat. “Sure, they have mobile death vans that harvest people’s organs,” he said, “but they’re not overtly restrictive.”

6. What’s new in the U.S. cyber strategy – The Washington Post The United States is very clearly suggesting that it will try to be restrained. How exactly the United States will implement these restraints is unclear – the United States is unlikely to announce its exact rules of engagement to the world for fear that other actors might then be able to game these rules. Furthermore, the United States seems to be moving towards publicly identifying actors that it believes to be norm breakers, and sometimes providing public evidence that supports its allegations. It is doing this by building collaboration between the military, intelligence and criminal justice systems – the public indictment of Chinese hackers appears to have been in part an effort to enforce the United States’s preferred norms

Related: Defense.gov Special Report: Cyber Strategy The purpose of this strategy is to guide the development of DoD’s cyber forces and strengthen our cyber defense and cyber deterrence posture. It focuses on building cyber capabilities and organizations for DoD’s three primary cyber missions.

7. Video: Screams of horror in Tibet as Nepal earthquake strikes – Telegraph Mobile phone footage captures the horrifying moment shockwaves from the 7.8 magnitude earthquake in Nepal struck the Tibetan border, causing landslides

Related: China Races to Rescue Hundreds Trapped in Dam Damaged in Nepal – Bloomberg Business The Chinese-backed Rasuwagadhi Hydropower station was “severely damaged” in the 7.8-magnitude earthquake that struck on April 25, according to state-owned China Three Gorges Co., the country’s largest hydro-electric company. All roads to the dam are cut off, it said in a statement. The trapped workers have enough food to last only two more days, the company said, adding that two employees were killed in the quake and several others are injured. China is seeking to rescue them with the involvement of the regional government of Tibet and the People’s Liberation Army’s Chengdu Command, according to the statement.

8. US military equipment banned from export to China being sold on Taobao | South China Morning Post USTR and/or other US government agencies regret succumbing to Alibaba’s sophisticated DC lobbying efforts and removing it from the Notorious Markets list? // Multiple embargoed items, including infrared identification chips used by US military special ops, as well as sniper scopes, infantry accessories and internal training materials, are offered for sale by at least a dozen shops on Taobao, China’s largest online shopping site, owned by Nasdaq-listed Alibaba Group. Shop owners seemed to be aware of the items’ sensitivity, with many highlighting the embargo restrictions as a selling point…One Chinese computer scientist, speaking anonymously, said the US ban on Intel chips for the construction of super computers in China was a good example of the policy’s “foolishness”. “Search on Taobao for Intel Xeon chips and you will find thousands of shops with attractive prices,” the scientist said.

 

BUSINESS, ECONOMY AND TRADE

Gavekal Capital: Chinese Companies Keeping the Dream Alive with Leverage and Channel Stuffing Last week we wrote that 2014 marked another year in which Chinese companies increased the leverage on their balance sheets. In fact 2014 marked the 10th consecutive annual increase in aggregate leverage as measured by total liabilities as a percent of equity. Meanwhile profit margins are down by more than half over the same period. What we didn’t mention in that post last week is that the amount of “channel stuffing” – the reciprocal increase of working capital accounts among companies – has also continued to explode.

Shanghai FTZ expands to include three districts – Xinhua By including Lujiazui and the districts of Jinqiao and Zhangjiang, the FTZ will enlarge its area to 120 square meters, the largest of all four FTZs, according to the city government and the Shanghai FTZ administrative committee. The committee office will also be established in the Pudong New Area government, where the FTZ is located, in an effort to deepen government reforms and promote FTZ experience in Pudong, said Sun Jiwei, vice director of the committee and government head of Pudong

China Targets Online Shopping in the Gray Zone – Caixin The State Council, China’s cabinet, on April 9 ordered China Customs and other government agencies to crack down on imports of counterfeit goods and products that violate intellectual property rights sold through online outlets. Customs officers were expected to respond by stepping up inspections of parcels shipped to China from abroad. And they’re focusing not only on parcel content but also want to make sure that all taxes and import tariffs have been paid. The tightening effort could have a significant impact on imports of luxury goods and drugs, which increasing Chinese consumers have been buying through the Internet or by means of intermediates who work through websites to buy goods overseas and deliver them to Chinese customers.

高知官员接力掌舵 国家统计局再迎“博士新官”–时政–人民网 坊间消息流传多日之后，4月23日，国家统计局官网“局领导”一栏更新显示，王保安已任国家统计局党组书记，原党组书记、局长马建堂的信息已不再显示。有媒体分析，按照惯例，王保安转任国家统计局后，在国务院发布正式任免后，将以局党组书记兼任局长。 国家统计局是国务院直属的副部级机构，承担组织领导和协调全国统计工作，确保统计数据真实、准确、及时的责任。制定统计政策、规划、全国基本统计制度和国家统计标准，起草统计法律法规草案，制定部门规章，指导全国统计工作。

China plans to cut number of big state firms to 40: state media | Reuters “SOEs’ non-core businesses, particularly in tertiary industry, will be sold publicly on the capital market,” the newspaper quoted the authority as saying. Avoiding the loss of state assets will be “the most important and core requirement” when mergers that involve sensitive assets take place, the newspaper said. Earlier this month, Beijing committed to stepping up public scrutiny of state firms’ financial and performance information as well as changes of enterprise leadership, to increase transparency and fight corruption. The Central Commission for Discipline Inspection, the ruling Communist Party’s top graft-buster, is also intensifying its two-year inspections of state firms in strategic sectors.

国资委官员辟谣“央企大规模兼并重组”传言新闻腾讯网 据环球网综合报道，《经济参考报》27日援引权威人士的话称，目前国资委确定了下一步的国企改革重点，央企将在分类基础上进行大规模兼并重组，央企数量有望进一步缩减至40家。这篇题为《央企将进行大规模兼并重组 数量或减至40家》的报道在今晨2:30开始公布与传播。上午时分，许多网站开始转载。 为此，环球时报-环球网记者独家采访了一位国资委知情官员，该知情人士表示，国资委在国有企业改革方面没有这样的计划与方案。

China Probes Kaisa Chairman’s Trust Company Sale to Shareholder – Bloomberg Business Kwok Ying Shing neglected to tell the China Banking Regulatory Commission about the sale of National Trust Co. to Kaisa’s second-biggest shareholder, Sino Life Insurance Co., according to the people. Kwok also sold it despite a CBRC rule requiring trust company shareholders to hold their shares for at least three years, the people said. The CBRC may block the sale, according to the people, who asked not to be identified because the probe hasn’t been announced..

MasterCard Plots Course on Changes to China’s Payment Infrastructure – Caixin Chang Qing, head of MasterCard China, says the company is ready to leverage its expertise in adapting the bank card business to mobile technologies

股市太火 证监会再次提示风险股市一财网 CSRC post a Q&A to its website to remind all the new stock investors of the risks  //  证监会28日在官网发布“关于新投资者激增、全民炒股风险的问答”，再次提醒投资者注意股市风险，这则消息立刻引发市场关注

经济参考网 -地方启动全方位刺激楼市模式 业内：经济增长压力下更大规模楼市“松绑”或将到来 Economic Information says local governments launching more aggresive measures to stimulate their housing markets  //  《经济参考报》记者获悉，四川省相关部门目前正研究稳定住房消费需求的实施意见，其中对于住宅用地供应方面等具体问题，将由市、州相关部门具体出台文件落实。“3·30新政”的出台，明确了国家支持居民合理改善性住房的政策方向。在此背景下，近百城市发布了不同力度的公积金松绑政策。值得注意的是，虽然房地产市场有一定的向好迹象，但仍面临近6万亿平方米的待售库存压力。为此，地方政府开始在公积金政策以外，扩大政策惠及人群，同时在首改房认定、税费补贴等方面展开全方位刺激。

经济参考网 – 信贷资产证券化交易尴尬遇冷 银行欲留存优质信贷资产、股市疯狂“吸金”成主因 日前，银监会、央行针对资产证券化的发行制度相继进行改革，备案制和注册制均已落地，业内普遍认为，这将进一步刺激商业银行发行信贷资产证券化的积极性，2015年信贷资产证券化的发行规模有望再次扩容。不过，《经济参考报》记者获悉，今年以来，信贷资产证券化发行量并未如市场预期呈现“井喷”之势。 业内分析人士认为，中小银行积极参与，但由于其资产质量受限，发行规模并不大，而大银行和股份制银行在存贷比考核压力不大的情况下，面对经济下行压力，宁愿保存优质信贷资产，不急于证券化转让处理。与此同时，目前股市热债市冷，信贷资产证券化产品收益率吸引力有限，流动性不足，也成为交易市场遇冷的重要原因。

 

POLITICS AND LAW

Party Graft Buster Announces Inquiry into Sinopec Executive – Caixin Wang Tianpu, the general manager of Sinopec Group, is being investigated for serious violations of the law, the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection (CCDI) said. Wang, 53, also served as the vice chairman of the group’s listed subsidiary, China Petroleum & Chemical Corp., which is often referred to as Sinopec. Wang is suspected of using his positions to help his relatives to gain business with the subsidiary and of helping Zhou Bin, a son of Zhou Yongkang who once sat on the party’s top decision-making body, to sell equipment to its Shengli Oilfield, a person with knowledge of the matter said.

China gives more say to graft watchdogs in leadership nomination – Xinhua Measures were unveiled Monday that will give more power to anti-graft watchdogs in their leadership selection, in a test of reforms aimed at increasing the authority of discipline agencies. The three documents, released by the General Office of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC), outline how the leadership of provincial-level discipline inspection agencies should be selected. The regulations clarify that potential leaders will be nominated and assessed mainly by superior-level inspection agencies and organization departments.

[视频]中共中央办公厅印发《省（自治区 直辖市）纪委书记 副书记提名考察办法（试行）》等三个文件新闻频道央视网(cctv.com) 近日，经中央全面深化改革领导小组会议审议，中共中央办公厅印发了《省(自治区、直辖市)纪委书记、副书记提名考察办法(试行)》、《中央纪委派驻纪检组组长、副组长提名考察办法(试行)》、《中管企业纪委书记、副书记提名考察办法(试行)》。 三个《提名考察办法》紧扣提名考察作出规定，明确省(自治区、直辖市)纪委书记副书记、中央纪委派驻纪检组组长副组长、中管企业纪委书记副书记的提名、考察以上级纪委会同组织部门为主。 在提名条件上，突出强调纪委书记、副书记人选要敢于监督、善于监督，注重从履行党风廉政建设主体责任、监督责任表现突出的优秀干部中选拔。 在干部来源上，三个《提名考察办法》明确规定，要拓宽选人视野和渠道，可以从纪检监察系统内和系统外提名，纪委书记人选一般应当交流任职。此外，三个《提名考察办法》还分别明确了提名、考察具体要求和有关各方的职责分工

Xi’s remarks on advancing rule of law published – Xinhua A compilation of selected remarks by Chinese President Xi Jinping on comprehensively advancing the rule of law has been published. The book, published by the Central Party Literature Press, contains 193 remarks by Xi selected from more than 30 speeches, articles and written instructions between Dec. 4, 2012, to Feb. 2, 2015. Many of the quotes in the book are published for the first time. The remarks can help government officials and Party members acquire a better understanding of the significance of comprehensively advancing the rule of law and fully carry out the strategic layout of the “Four Comprehensives.

[视频]《习近平关于全面依法治国论述摘编》出版发行新闻频道央视网(cctv.com) 《习近平关于全面依法治国论述摘编》共分8个专题，收入193段论述，摘自习近平同志2012年12月4日至2015年2月2日期间的讲话、报告、批示、指示等30多篇重要文献。其中部分论述是第一次公开发表。

James Leung | Fighting Corruption to Save the Chinese Communist Party | Foreign Affairs JAMES LEUNG is a pseudonym for an economist with extensive experience in China, Europe, and the United States….wonder why the pseudonym, the article is generally positive on the corruption crackdown  //  At the moment, there is more reason for optimism than pessimism. Xi has already consolidated a great deal of control over the state’s power structures and is determined and able to remove anyone who might resist or challenge his authority or policies. So far, within the senior leadership and the wider bureaucratic system, resistance to the anticorruption campaign has been passive rather than active: some bureaucrats have reportedly slowed down their work in a rather limited form of silent protest. Meanwhile, the anticorruption campaign continues to enjoy strong public support, especially from low- and middle-income Chinese who resent the way that corruption makes the Chinese system even more unfair than it already is. Anticorruption thus represents a way for the party to ease the social tensions and polarization that might otherwise emerge as the economy slows, even as dramatic economic inequalities persist. To maintain this public support, the trick for Xi will be calibrating the scope and intensity of the campaign: not so narrow or moderate as to seem halfhearted, but not so broad or severe as to seem like a form of abuse itself.

Legislature Approves Reform of Jury System – Caixin On April 20, Zhou Qiang, the president of the top court, proposed a two-year pilot on jury operations in five courts in each of the 10 provinces and cities. The pilot will include changes to increase the minimum age for jurors from 23 to 28 and lower education requirements. It will also change the selection procedure to allow broader public access. At least three jurors will be required to sit on major cases, up from the current two. The decision marks a step toward a long-anticipated reform of the jury system, which has been in place since 2005. Unlike the jury system in the United States, where jurors are randomly selected, jurors in China are chosen from a group of candidates that are recommended by communities or local authorities and they have a five-year tenure. Many in the public complain that jurors fail to play their proper roles.

China forces shot protesters: Xinjiang residents | AFP Something hideously violent happened in Elishku. Whether it was a separatist attack or a civilian massacre is shrouded in the mists of conflict, control, claim and counter-claim that plague China`s mainly Muslim region of Xinjiang. According to authorities, 96 civilians and “terrorists” died when militants attacked a police station in the township last July 28. Residents, speaking to foreign media for the first time, say that hundreds of people mounted a protest against government restrictions on religion which was brutally put down. “Everyone who joined the crowd is either dead or in jail,” said Mahmouti, who hid in his nearby home with his then-pregnant wife. “No one has been heard from since, no one knows where they are now.”

Beijing Police Recommend Charges Against Civil Society Advocates – NYTimes The Beijing Public Security Bureau has recommended that prosecutors indict Guo Yushan and He Zhengjun, two leading members of an independent economics and education think tank, on charges of “illegal business activity,” according to lawyers and a copy of the police document.

山东德州副市长黄金忠从楼上跌落摔伤，正在治疗无生命危险一号专案澎湃新闻-The Paper Dezhou, Shandong deputy mayor doesn’t die after jumping/falling (it’s unclear) from government building. But if he jumped, double fractures don’t get your excused from likely “double regulation”

 

FOREIGN AND DEFENSE AFFAIRS

Japan and U.S. Set New Rules for Military Cooperation – NYTimes “With China’s growing assertiveness and North Korea’s nuclear and ballistic missile programs, Japan, like a lot of allies, wants to be there for us so we’ll be there for them,” said Michael J. Green, the senior vice president for Asia and Japan Chair at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. “It allows the U.S. military to plan Japan in, so that when we turn to them and say, ‘Can you deal with our left flank?,’ the Japanese, in principle, now can do that.”

[视频]美老兵组织要求安倍承认历史新闻频道央视网(cctv.com) CCTV Evening News interviews head of US WW2 veterans group demanding Abe admit history before Congress speech  // 近日，一个美国二战老兵组织向美国国会发送信函，要求把日本首相安倍晋三明确承认日本在战时犯下的错误，作为其访美期间在国会演讲的条件。就此，本台记者采访了该组织负责人。 汤普森在向参众两院发送的信函中表示，安倍在美国国会演讲“是承认日本历史责任的特殊机会”，安倍此前质疑东京大审判的行径令人担忧，只有在安倍承认历史、脱离法西斯主义之后，才可以邀请他在美国国会进行演讲。

Details Emerge of China-Financed Dam Project in Pakistan – NYTimes The Karot dam, as the structure on the Jhelum River is to be called, is expected to cost $1.65 billion and will be financed on a commercial basis, the Chinese state news media said. According to the website of the People’s Bank of China, China’s central bank, the Silk Road Fund and the World Bank will buy shares in China Three Gorges South Asia Investment Ltd., a subsidiary of the Three Gorges Corporation, a state-run behemoth that builds dams at home and, increasingly, abroad.

Nationalism and Censorship | ChinaFile Christopher Cairns joins the hosts of Sinica for a discussion of his upcoming paper scheduled for publication in the China Quarterly. Why are we so interested in this topic? Because Cairns and his colleagues at Cornell have actually found a way to measure the extent of government censorship over time, and their research has unearthed some particularly interesting ideas about the relationship between anti-Japanese nationalism and the extent of censorship on Weibo.

China Defense Company’s Chairman He Becomes a Billionaire – Bloomberg Business lots of money going to be made in the rapidly growing China Military Industrial Complex  //  He Zenglin, chairman of Xi’an Tian He Defense Technology Co., a Chinese maker of radars and other air-defense systems, became a billionaire as the stock rose to a record. He has a net worth of $1.1 billion, based on the 45 percent stake in the Xi’an, China-based company that he holds with his wife, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index. The stock jumped by the 10 percent daily limit to 121.42 yuan at the close in Shenzhen Tuesday.

 

TECH AND MEDIA

Apple’s Earnings Surge, as iPhone Sales Jump and China Business Rises – NYTimes.com The company said on Monday that quarterly iPhone sales in greater China, which includes mainland China, Hong Kong and Taiwan, had surpassed those in Apple’s home market, the United States, for the first time. While Apple did not disclose specific numbers, the performance powered the company’s revenue, with sales in greater China rising 71 percent to $16.8 billion in the fiscal second quarter compared with the same period last year. Revenue from greater China also exceeded that from Europe for the first time.

Chinese come calling: At $5 bn valuation, Alipay to buy 25% stake in Micromax | ET Telecom So Jack Ma wants to make sure Lei Jun (who is several times richer than Ma) and Xiaomi have an even harder time in India now? Or is this just poor reporting in India? //  NEW DELHI: Micromax, India’s largest home-grown manufacturer of mobile phones, is close to selling a 25% stake to a consortium led by Ant Financial Services Group, China’s leading online financial services company that owns Alipay, valuing India’s No. 2 handset maker at around $4-5 billion (approximately Rs 24,000-30,000 crore), five people familiar with the matter said. Alipay, China’s top online payment solution company and part of the Alibaba Group, is bringing in two to three partners, said one of the people cited. “More partners will give divergence of views and comfort to the lead investor,” this person said. The proposed deal would see both infusion of capital and exits, partial or total, by existing investors, said the people quoted earlier. An exit will give existing investors significant returns on their investments.

Android Surpasses iOS In Revenue, If China’s Android App Stores Are Combined | TechCrunch According to Digi-Capital, apps in China must hit more than eight times the number of downloads on average compared to iOS to make the same amount of money. (This is a comparison with iOS versus Chinese Android globally, not just in China specifically, the report notes.)

‘Furious 7’ Makes Chinese Film History as Highest-Grossing Movie – Bloomberg Business “Furious 7” sped past “Transformers 4” to become the top-grossing film in Chinese history, bringing in a total of $324.3 million and dominating China’s box office for the third straight week. “Furious 7” earned $72.7 million from April 20 to April 26 in China

China Internet Censor Increases Scrutiny on Online News Portals – Bloomberg Business The Cyberspace Administration of China has empowered the agency’s local officers to question online news content providers about any apparent violations of rules against spreading false, violent, pornographic or politically sensitive information. Such posts by Web portals had hurt the public interest, Fan Li, head of the agency’s information service bureau, said Tuesday at a Beijing briefing announcing the rule.

国家网信办发布“约谈十条” 推动约谈工作规范化-中新网 “约谈十条”对约谈的行政主体、行政相对人、实施条件、方式、程序等作了明确规定。实施约谈的9种具体情形包括：未及时处理公民、法人和其他组织关于互联网新闻信息服务的投诉、举报情节严重的；通过采编、发布、转载、删除新闻信息等谋取不正当利益的；违反互联网用户账号名称注册、使用、管理相关规定情节严重的；未及时处置违法信息情节严重的；未及时落实监管措施情节严重的；内容管理和网络安全制度不健全、不落实的；网站日常考核中问题突出的；年检中问题突出的；以及其他违反相关法律法规规定需要约谈的情形。

 

SOCIETY, ART, SPORTS, CULTURE AND HISTORY

China to cut art, literature awards by 60 percent – Xinhua China will downsize awards for art and literature by 60 percent nationwide this year,the Ministry of Culture (MOC) announced on Monday. Too many redundant awards ceremonies and appraisals of literature and art have caused irregularities and power-for-money deals, according to the MOC. The MOC will regulate government officials’ participation in competitions and awards, in a bid to promote fairness and transparency. The officials will also be forbidden from exerting any influence during award appraisals.Violators will be subject to severe punishment.

Exclusive Interview: Tenzin Khecheo on “Miss Tibet” Documentary Film | TibetanFeministCollective Tenzin Khecheo is the 23-year old star of the critically-acclaimed new documentary film, Miss Tibet-Beauty in Exile, which follows her on her journey from Minnesota to Dharamsala, India for the 2011 “Miss Tibet” beauty pageant. Currently pursuing her nursing degree, Khecheo moved to the U.S. as part of the Tibetan refugee resettlement program when she was seven. She lives with her mom and two younger sisters in the Twin Cities.

Chinese Academy of Social Sciences throwing shade at The New Qing History | Jottings from the Granite Studio In this case, the apoplectic patriot is Li Zhiting, a Qing scholar with quite the fetish for exclamatory punctuation, and the article appeared earlier this week on the website of CASS and was then published in the official journal Chinese Social Sciences Today…The litany of charges against the New Qing historians is a long one, but mostly they have come under fire for having the temerity to destabilize the idea of a historically-fixed China and reject the teleological narratives which so many Chinese historians love to cuddle up with at night to keep the bad feelings away.

 

ENERGY, ENVIRONMENT, SCIENCE AND HEALTH

Chinese doctor took more than $18m worth of bribes, say reports–The Guardian Wang Tianchao, the head of Yunnan’s No. 1 People’s hospital, used his position to seek bribes related to construction projects, medical device procurement and doctor positions, according to a statement from the country’s top prosecutor. The Supreme People’s Procuratorate said Wang had received 35m yuan (US$5.64m) in cash, 100 properties worth about US$13m, and often coveted car parking spaces.

Q. and A.: Ma Jun on Using Mobile Phones to Fight Pollution – NYTimes Ma Jun, a former journalist who has become one of China’s most prominent environmentalists, was recently honored with a Skoll Award for Social Entrepreneurship for the work of his nongovernmental organization, the Institute of Public and Environmental Affairs, in increasing awareness about sources of pollution in China.

 

AGRICULTURE AND RURAL ISSUES

China to strengthen oversight of GM crops under development | Reuters Beijing supports genetically modified organisms (GMO) technology, which it sees as crucial to future food security. But critics have alleged the technology could pose health risks, and while China allows imports of some GMO crops it is yet to permit domestic cultivation of GM food crops. The planned changes to China’s safety administration regulation do not alter its GMO policy but will increase the supervision of biotech products under development, said Huang Dafang, professor at the Biotechnology Research Institute under the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences.

 

EDUCATION

Top legislator urges promoting vocational education – Xinhua Top legislator Zhang Dejiang called on local authorities to develop vocational education through strengthened supervision. Zhang, chairman of the Standing Committee of National People’s Congress, China’s top legislature, made the remarks while inspecting vocational education in the southwest municipality of Chongqing.

 

FOOD AND TRAVEL

Beijing to examine pesticide-contaminated strawberry – Xinhua The bureau sent a team to Changping District, the major strawberry cultivation base in Beijing, to check for restricted or banned pesticides, said a bureau spokesperson. Should any products not adhere to standards they will be withdrawn from the market, the spokesperson said. The investigation follows a report by state broadcaster CCTV, which found harmful pesticide residue in all eight strawberry samples it tested.

Reality check: China did NOT overtake France as a wine-growing region | Grape Wall of China The BBC headline — “China overtakes France in vineyards” — might well be accurate. The problem is with the first sentence: “The International Organisation of Vine and Wine (IOVW) said China now had 799,000 hectares (1.97 million acres) of land devoted to wine growing.” In fact, the OIV states that China has 799,000 hectares of vineyards, period. The BBC seems to be assuming these vineyards are used only for wine when, in fact, most in China are devoted to the country’s massive table grape and raisin sectors

China teaches its 100m tourists some travel etiquette – FT.com Outbound travel for ordinary citizens was still heavily restricted until the turn of this century. Since then overseas travel has risen tenfold, making China the world’s biggest spender on international travel, with outbound trips numbering 117m last year. Tourist spending totalled Rmb3.1tn ($500bn), according to estimates of China Confidential, a research service of the Financial Times.  // how much of China’s capital outflow is from the huge growth in overseas tourism?

 

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