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Xi’s Trusted Subordinates Take over Key Propaganda Posts

On August 21, Xu Lin, one of Xi Jinping’s former subordinates and ex-director of the Chinese Communist Party’s Central Cyberspace Affairs Commission, took charge of the State Council Information Office, the government’s chief international propaganda apparatus. Analysts believe that, by putting those he trusts in this position, Xi Jinping is making sure that the propaganda system presents a China that he wants the world to see.

Zhuang Rongwen, 57, another former aide to Xi when he worked in Fujian Province, will be the new head of the Central Cyberspace Affairs Commission, or the Chinese cyber czar.

Xu Lin, 56, worked with Xi Jinping in Shanghai. In June 2015, he was transferred from the Propaganda Department of Shanghai’s CCP Committee to be the Deputy Director of the Central Cyberspace Affairs Commission. One year later, he was promoted to be the deputy head of the Central Propaganda Department.

Xi Jinping began to clean up the propaganda system after Liu Yunshan, a former Politburo Standing Committee member, resigned as the propaganda chief in 2017. Lu Wei, Liu’s henchman and former director of Central Cyberspace Affairs Commission and deputy head of the Central Propaganda Department, was sacked in November 2017 and later prosecuted.

On July 25, Jiang Jianguo, another sitting deputy head of Central Propaganda Department, had himself removed from the position of director of State Council Information Office, paving the way for Xu Lin’s appointment.

Source: Voice of America, August 21, 2018
https://www.voachinese.com/a/news-china-appoints-new-global-propaganda-czar-20180821/4538007.html

Briefings | | |   Government/Politics

Another Medical Scandal in China: Children Injected With Expired Saline Solution

The recent vaccine case dealt a heavy blow to the public’s confidence in Chinese hospitals. In a new development, a hospital recently reported that several children have been injected with expired physiological saline solution.

A child in Jiangxi province was sent to a local hospital due to physical discomfort. The hospital administered him with an intravenous injection. Accidentally, the parents found out that the physiological saline the hospital had injected had expired. The effective period of the solution was until July. Further investigation revealed that more than 30 bottles of physiological saline in the hospital’s pediatrics department are yet un-used. The hospital claimed it was “workplace negligence.”

Another parent, finding out that his child was also injected with expired saline solution, complained to the hospital about the issue. Surprisingly, the hospital, which is not the same as the previous one, responded that it is not a problem.

Although the hospital personnel were swiftly punished, the scandals, breaking out one after another, have resulted in the Chinese people being furious. People have vented their anger on the Internet:

“Where is their conscience? Or is it this their attitude toward other people’s kids?”

“If the expired drug is fine, then inject these unscrupulous hospital personnel with it every day.”

“Absolutely not workplace negligence. The near-expiration and expired medicine is cheap and the commission on sale is, simply, appealing.”

Source: Liberty Times, August 26, 2018
http://news.ltn.com.tw/news/world/breakingnews/2531334

Briefings | | |   Social Stability

Short Videos Need to Conform to the “Main Theme”

On August 21, the China Internet Security and Information Office got a new director, Zhuang Rongwen. New censorship is now being directed against new social media in the form of short video platforms.

Since July, the Office has been urging all major short video platforms to impose “self-censorship.” So far more than 1.1 million accounts that violated the rules have been blocked, 8.1 million instances of “harmful” short videos have been deleted and 19 short video apps have been disciplined.

The Office also called for a meeting with 36 commercial short video platforms to give them guidelines. One example is that they must ensure “socialism’s core values” are reflected in their production. The Office also encouraged government and traditional media entering this new media platform “to occupy the new frontier of propaganda actively.” As a good example, it cited the “Youth League” setting up an account in the popular “Dou Yin” platform. The Dou Yin platform was one of the most popular social media in China. It has reported having .5 billion active users globally with overseas versions in Japan, Thailand, India, and Germany, among other countries.

On Aug 21, the Office together with Public Security Ministry issued a new notice. Short videos need to use “real names.” It also started to “blacklist” those (“rule-breaking”) broadcasters.

Source: Deutsche Welle, August 24, 2018
https://p.dw.com/p/33hQ9

Briefings | | |   Information/Technology

China Is Developing Cyberattack Technologies to Interfere in Neighboring Countries’ Politics?

Taiwan’s Central News Agency reported that China may have developed cyberattack technologies enabling it to intervene in neighboring countries’ politics. It is believed that China may have used Cambodia’s July 29 general election as a rehearsal, giving it the potential to interfere with intelligence collection and political elections in Asian countries in the future. According to the report, the practices include obtaining confidential information by illegal means, releasing false web information to manipulate voter psychology, and influencing the outcome of the elections by polarizing the target country’s public opinion and attacking the opposition camp.

The report expressed the suspicion that China set up its cyber warfare command center on Hainan Island. The evidence is an email received by Kem Monovithya, the daughter of Kem Sokha, the leader of Cambodia’s largest opposition party. The e-mail carried a virus that was capable of collecting confidential information. An Investigation showed that the server that the email was sent from is located on Hainan Island, China. Based upon the technology and hardware infrastructure, the investigation concluded that the email was undoubtedly linked to China.

This Hainan-based server, according to the report, was found to infringe frequently on Cambodian facilities. It is quite possible that China is using the Cambodian election as a drill to improve its cyber-attack technology. The ultimate goal may be to use the Internet to intervene in the politics of neighboring countries. This practice could be just treading on the heels of Russia.

Source: Radio France International, August 20, 2018
http://rfi.my/31Xx.T

Briefings | | |   Information/Technology

Mainland Chinese Students Account for One-fifth of the Total Foreign Students in UK

Universities UK International, an advocacy group for the universities in the UK, recently issued a research report showing that, among the foreign students in the UK, about 20 percent are mainland Chinese citizens.

According to the Higher Education Statistics Agency, Chinese students account for the highest proportion of foreign students in the UK. In the 2016-2017 school year, 95,000 students from mainland China studied at universities in the UK. When compared with the previous school year, the number increased by 4.2 percent. According to the report, the number of U.S. students was 17,500, ranked second among foreign students in British universities and less than one-fifth of the number of Chinese students. Next on the list were Hong Kong (16,600), India (16,500), and Malaysia (16,300). The report also stated that as many as 27 percent of the students have an economics or a management major.

Source: Sputnik News, August 14, 2018
http://sputniknews.cn/society/201808141026123122/

Briefings | | |   Geo-Strategic Trend

China’s Religious Czar Emphasizes Party Control over Religion

Wang Zuo’an, deputy chief of the Chinese Communist Party’s Department of United Front Work and director of the State Administration of Religious Affairs (SARA), published an article in the official Qiushi magazine, asserting that foreign forces are not allowed to dominate China’s religious affairs; he called for “Sinicization.”

The article stated that there is no affiliation between Chinese religions and foreign religions. Chinese religious groups and religious affairs are not subject to foreign influence. “When dealing with religious relations, one must uphold the leadership of the Communist Party, insist on the separation of church and state, and make sure religion must not be involved in administrative, judicial, and educational functions.” “It is necessary to persist in resisting foreign forces that use religion as a means of infiltration.”

According to the Union of Catholic Asian News (UCA News), by the end of this month, all Catholic parishes in China must submit a five-year plan to the Chinese Patriotic Catholic Association (CPCA) and the Bishops’ Conference of the Catholic Church in China (BCCCC) and report on the work of “Sinicization.” The CPCA and the BCCCC also drafted a five-year national work plan with the objective of accepting the leadership of the Chinese Communist Party. All measures of “Sinicization” ought to be under the leadership and supervision of the CPCA and the BCCCC. UCA News expressed the belief that the plan and measures are intended to control and deal with opposition from nonconforming Catholic followers in China.

Source: Radio Free Asia, August 19, 2018
https://www.rfa.org/cantonese/news/religion-08192018101150.html?encoding=traditional

Briefings | | |   Social Stability

“Student Officials” on Chinese University Campus

In July, the Student Association of Sun Yat-Sen University, one of the best universities in southern China, issued an “Announcement of the Appointment of Cadres for the 2018-2019 Academic Year.” Among the nearly 200 positions, there were 23 secretarial organizations, 12 functional departments, and 144 working offices. In addition to the sheer size of the student union, the school’s announcements mimicked the rankings of the Chinese Communist Party and Chinese government officials, such as “ministerial level” and “deputy ministerial level.” This invited ridicule from many netizens. An example of some online posts are below:

A. It is not a naive imitation. It is the quintessence of the real society.

B. Cultivating officialdom worship at a young age. This is truly great.

C.  … haven’t learned much knowledge, but perfectly grasped the bureaucratic stuff!

D. When administrative power can so easily infiltrate into student organizations, one can imagine how full of administrative stuff their daily operations must be.

On August 17, the Chinese Education Daily newspaper carried an opinion article that criticized this phenomenon. “On the campus, young students are keen on inter-personal relationships, playing the bureaucratic jargon, and vying to be a student cadre. This is a revelation that a few young people have the mentality of officialdom worship, that they are so skilled at calculation that they pursue an official position, and that they have an incorrect understanding of power.”

Source: Education Daily, August 17, 2018
http://www.jyb.cn/zgjyb/201808/t20180817_1193645.html

Briefings | | |   Social Stability

China Unicom to Build 300 5G Test Stations in Beijing by Years’ End

On August 13, China Unicom’s Beijing branch officially released the “5G NEXT” plan. At the same time, it launched the first batch of 5G sites. As one of China Unicom’s 16 5G pilot cities, Beijing Unicom took the lead in rolling out 5G scale tests for commercial use. It plans to build 300 stations by the end of 2018, covering a wide range of applications such as large scale network testing, the application of ecological services, and business experience promotion.

A Beijing Municipal official said that, in the next five years, in key areas including Beijing City’s Second Center, Beijing’s New Airport, the 2019 Beijing World Expo, the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics, and Chang’an Street, there will be demonstrations of applications of automatic driving, big data health and medical care, industrial grade Internet, smart city, and ultra-high definition video.

Source: Sputnik News, August 13, 2018
http://sputniknews.cn/china/201808131026111173/

Briefings | | |   Information/Technology