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The Rule of Law with Chinese Characteristics

Upon its close on October 23, 2014, the Fourth Plenary Session of the 18th Communist Party Congress issued a communique on the subject of the rule of law. 

The communique stated that the Party “must comprehensively advance the rule of law" in China. The overall goal is “to build a socialist legal system with Chinese characteristics and a socialist country under the rule of law.” 
“The party’s leadership is consistent with the socialist rule of law. The socialist rule of law must uphold the Party’s leadership and the Party’s leadership must rely on the socialist rule of law.” 
The communique emphasized that the Party’s leadership is the most essential feature of socialism with Chinese characteristics and the most fundamental guarantee of the socialist rule of law.
Source: Xinhua, October 23, 2014 
http://news.xinhuanet.com/politics/2014-10/23/c_1112953884.htm
Briefings | | |   Government/Politics

Xi Jinping Holding Umbrella Won Top Photojournalism Prize

A photo of Xi Jinping, China’s President, holding an umbrella on a rainy day last year won China’s top photojournalism prize in the National News Awards. 

The official media, Xinhua, took Xi’s picture during the President’s trip to Wuhan, Hubei Province, on July 21, 2013. The photo shows that, holding an umbrella in hand, Xi stood in the rain with his pants rolled up to keep them dry. The significance of this top prize was noteworthy because of the Hong Kong government’s position against the on-going umbrella revolution in Hong Kong. 
Another Xinhua photograph of the disgraced Bo Xilai won the runner-up prize. The photo, titled “Bo Xilai Sentenced to Life Imprisonment,” shows that Bo was handcuffed while two police officers escorted him during his trial. The introduction to the photo said that with a steady presentation, rich in detail, and a strong sense of the actual scene, the photo brought to life the happenings in the courtroom and reflected the sacred, solemn atmosphere of the court. Reports indicated that the photo was widely popular and that 321 media companies had used it. 
Sources:
Huanqiu, October 22, 2014 
http://china.huanqiu.com/article/2014-10/5176004.html 
People’s Daily, Octiber 21, 2014 
http://politics.people.com.cn/n/2014/1021/c1001-25880607.html
Briefings | | |   Government/Politics

Health Authorities: Temperature of Nigerian Quarantined Earlier Returned to Normal

In news related to the Ebola virus, on October 17, 2014, the Municipal Health Bureau in the city of Ningbo announced that the temperature of the Nigerian man who had been quarantined earlier returned to normal. On the afternoon of October 16, after landing from Taiwan around 6:00 pm local time, the Nigerian man was found to have a slight fever and was taken to a Ningbo hospital for observation. 

Regarding the overall issue of how Ebola may effect China, according to customs officials in charge of the ports in Guangdong Province, Guangdong ports are considered high risk. Of all the ports in China, those in Guangdong Province have the largest number of passengers entering China from African countries, the current location of the Ebola outbreak. For example, the Guangzhou airport, Guangdong Province, is one of the busiest airports with over 160 direct flights from Africa and about 41,000 people entering into China every month. In addition, there are large numbers of people from Africa visiting China via Hong Kong, Qatar, and other international hubs. 

Sources:
China News, October 17, 2014 
http://www.chinanews.com/sh/2014/10-17/6688471.shtml 
Caijing.com, 
October 16, 2014 http://caijing.shiliunet.com/cn/1191154.htm

Briefings | | |   Social Stability

Medical Facilities to Conduct Self-Examinations of Readiness for Ebola

On October 16, 2014, China’s National Health and Family Planning Commission issued a directive requiring that, by October 31, hospitals, clinics, and emergency centers are to complete a self examination of their readiness for handling Ebola. 

The self examination should include whether a collaborative mechanism has been established to issue alerts, share data, and identify responsibilities across provinces and departments. The following should also be examined: whether hospitals that have been designated to provide treatment for Ebola patients have adequate facilities and equipment including protective supplies; whether they have isolation centers where they can observe those who have contact with Ebola patients; whether all medial staff that will be involved in providing treatment, care, inspection, cleaning, and disinfection have adequate experience to protect themselves; and whether a process has been established to pre-examine and segregate fever patients while protecting medial staff involved in the pre-examination. 
Source: Xinhua, October 16, 2014 
http://news.xinhuanet.com/2014-10/16/c_1112858243.htm
Briefings | | |   Government/Politics

China Suspended Applications for the Issuance of Corporate Bonds

The China National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) has suspended the acceptance of corporate applications for the issuance of new bonds. The official reason for the suspension is that the authorities are developing new rules but there is no set date to resume accepting applications. 

The suspension is closely related to the anti-corruption campaign in the bond market which started early last year. Analysts believe that the NDRC approval system for the issuance of corporate bonds has been a major cause of corruption in the bond market. It is expected that the NDRC will make comprehensive changes in the rules. 

Source: Caixin.com, October 14, 2014 
http://finance.caixin.com/2014-10-14/100738442.html

Briefings | | |   Government/Politics

Central Bank Implies the Economy Has Worsened

China Business News reported that China’s central bank, the People’s Bank of China, stated at its third quarterly meeting that "The intricacies of the financial situation in China should not be underestimated," indicating the economy has worsened. 

According to financial analysts, the statement was significant in view of the message from the previous quarterly meeting where the central bank stated, “The economic and financial structure began to show positive changes, but the situation is still complicated. Both favorable and unfavorable factors coexist." Removal of the positive remark at the central bank’s third quarterly meeting may mean that, presently, negative factors have probably increased compared to the second quarter, adding pressure to the economy. These negative factors are mainly reflected in business conditions and the slowing down of the growth of profit. The latest PMI index shows that the trend of recovery in manufacturing and service industries has stopped. 
As China’s central bank, the People’s Bank of China issues monetary policy and regulates financial institutions in mainland China. 
Source: China Business News, October 8, 2014
http://www.yicai.com/news/2014/10/4025204.html
Briefings | | |   Economy/Resources

The Paper: The True Ranking of the Communist Party Leaders

Recently The Paper, a Shanghai based news portal, reported that there are stringent protocols about the sequential order in which Communist leaders are mentioned in news reports, and that such protocols are not officially acknowledged. 

 The commonly used term, “Party and State leaders,” in news reports is based on the Civil Servant Law of the People’s Republic of China, Article 16, which divides the posts of civil servants into the category of leading posts and non-leading posts. The top levels of leading posts are chiefs at the state level and deputies at the state level. “Party and State leaders” refers to the chiefs and deputies at the state level. 
“Party and State leaders” include the following Communist Party officials: Central Committee General Secretary, Politburo Standing Committee members, Politburo members, Secretariat of the Central Committee, Chairman and Vice Chairman of the Central Military Commission. 
“Party and State leaders” include the following state leaders: President and Vice President of China, Chairman and Vice Chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress, Premier, Vice Premiers, State Council members, Chairman and Vice Chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference, Chairman and Vice Chairman of the Central Military Commission of the People’s Republic of China.  
Also included in the term “Party and State leaders” are President of the Supreme People’s Court and the Procurators-General of the Supreme People’s Procuratorate. 
It is common that one person holds multiple positions, so the actual number of “Party and State leaders” is lower than the total number of positions. Currently, the total number of Party and State leaders is about 70. 
There are stringent protocols about the sequential order in which Communist leaders are mentioned in news reports. No official documents are available for the public on this matter. Thus, people must figure it out from the news reports. 
Source: The Paper reprinted by sina.com, October 9, 2014 
http://yd.sina.cn/article/detail-iazpqypm6462325.d.html?vt=4&mid=cfkptvx2565783
Briefings | | |   Government/Politics

People’s Daily Will Be Investigated for Corruption

On October 5, 2014, the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection of the Communist Party (CCDI) announced that it will conduct a special inspection of six units of People’s Daily.  

Pu Zengfan, the CCDI chief at People’s Daily, made the announcement at a recent meeting at the newspaper. At the meeting Pu delivered remarks from CCDI Secretary Wang Qishan and laid out the implementation plan for the special inspection of three local branches and three affiliated newspapers and businesses. Two teams, each comprised of high-ranking officials from CCDI, audit administration, and the personnel department, will carry out the inspection. 
The inspection will focus on five areas. The first is the implementation of the Party’s policies, compliance with the Party’s discipline procedures, and news reporting; second is anti-corruption mechanisms; third is instances of bribery and blackmail in news reporting; fourth is internal management; and fifth is nepotism and the disclosure of high-ranking leader’s personal affairs.

Pu stated that the effectiveness of the inspection depends on whether the inspection is taken seriously. “[One] must carry out this inspection as a political task and be clear as to the scope of the task.” Pu stated that the inspection must prioritize and concentrate on problem areas. 
Source: The Central Commission for Discipline Inspection of the Communist Party of China, October 5, 2014 http://www.ccdi.gov.cn/xwyw/201409/t20140926_27998.html
Briefings | | |   Government/Politics