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All posts by TGS - 78. page

State Media: The U.S. Is Fanning the Flames in the South China Sea

The state media, the International Herald Leader, published a commentary in response to a statement that the U.S. State Department issued on August 3, 2012, regarding the South China Sea. The commentary accused the U.S. of attempting to sow discord in the region. “We are clear that the U.S. statement on the South China Sea sends out two messages: The first is to tell the Philippines and Vietnam that the U.S. is their back up and that they should not be afraid of confronting China; the second is to tell the ASEAN countries that, on the South China Sea issue, the U.S. has publicly come forward to speak out for them and that these countries should not hesitate; they should join together to face China without any fears or concerns about China."

The commentary further stated that the U.S. will very likely issue threats specific to those companies that may be interested in submitting bids to the state’s China National Petroleum Corporation for exploration in the South China Sea.

Source: International Herald Leader, August 17, 2012
http://ihl.cankaoxiaoxi.com/2012/0816/79199.shtml

Briefings | | |   US-China Relations

Huanqiu: The United States Will Exhaust Itself Trying to Contain China

Huanqiu published a commentary on the U.S. policy to contain China. It stated that this policy has motivated China’s neighboring countries, because of their own conflicts with China, to participate in the campaign to contain China. This is the geopolitical security challenge that China faces now. According to the commentary, the containment policy is a strategy of intimidation against China. It will harm both the United States and China and may lead to internal rifts within the camp that the United States leads. The containment strategy will exhaust the U.S. allies. China should use economic means to break the weak links among them and tire them out more quickly so that the allies will eventually abandon the United States. The containment strategy also increases the burden China faces when it has border disputes, trade disputes, and litigation. This, in turn, encourages political dissidents to create chaos and incites extremist forces, especially the ethnic separatists who make trouble by attacking China for its human rights abuses. All of this is done for the goal of derailing China’s development. “We should clearly recognize the essence of the problem so that, strategically, we remain stable; tactically, we are always able to handle the problem from the perspective of national security; and we finally hit the nail on the head.”

Source: Huanqiu, August 16, 2012
http://ihl.cankaoxiaoxi.com/2012/0814/78050.shtml

Briefings | | |   US-China Relations

International Herald Leader: Patriotism is a Duty, not a Burden

The International Herald Leader, a state media, published a commentary rebutting criticism of the state run sports program. “In addition there were many complaints that athletes participating in the state run sports program bear a "patriotic duty" that is too heavy. When winning, one must thank the State and when losing, one must apologize to the State. People cannot see a human being; they only see a cog in the machine. Such accusations ignore the fact that the state has always funded most of the Chinese athletes and that there is nothing wrong with doing a good job for your employer. The arbitrary interpretation of the post-race reflections of the athletes shows a total disrespect for the freedom of speech of the individual athletes. Do athletes only have the right to thank their parents and coaches, and no right to express their respect for the flag they fight for? Patriotism is never a burden for anyone. It is not wrong to express your love for the motherland openly.”

Source: International Herald Leader, August 14, 2012
http://ihl.cankaoxiaoxi.com/2012/0814/78050.shtml

Briefings | | |   Government/Politics

China Battered by August Typhoons

Three typhoons consecutively slammed 12 of China’s coastal provinces, causing severe damage. The three typhoons hit Jiangsu, Fujian and Zhejiang in the first half of August, delivering strong storms, heavy rains, floods, and landslides. According to the Ministry of Civil Affairs, the typhoons affected 30.84 million people, and caused 51 deaths, while 21 went missing. Over 4.06 million residents were evacuated to other regions; 80,000 houses collapsed with 500,000 houses damaged. The crops on 22.98 million acres of land were hit hard; the crops covering 2.63 million acres were totally ruined, resulting in direct economic losses of 65.5 billion yuan ($10.3 billion).

Source: Xinhua, August 13, 2012
http://news.xinhuanet.com/2012-08/13/c_112712692.htm

Briefings | | |   Economy/Resources

China’s Migrants Work Close to 55 Hours Per Week

On August 6, 2012, the National Population and Family Planning Commission of China released China’s 2012 Migrant Population Development Report. According to the report, the migrant population reached 230 million in 2011, accounting for 17 percent of the national population. Migrant worker’s average age was 28. In 2011, no more than 30 percent of the entire migrant workers population had insurance. Migrant worker’s insurance includes pensions, medical care, disability, unemployment, maternity, and funds for housing. Seventy-two percent of migrants either rent or share housing with others.

According to the report, China’s migrant workers work an average of 54.6 hours per week, far surpassing the standard 40 hour work week stipulated in China’s Labor Law. Only 51.3 percent of migrant workers have a fixed-term labor contract.

Source: The Central People’s Government of the People’s Republic of China, August 7, 2012
http://www.gov.cn/jrzg/2012-08/07/content_2199409.htm

Briefings | | |   Economy/Resources

Politburo Requires Police Chiefs to Exchange Posts

Huanqiu reported that local police chiefs at the provincial, regional, and city levels, who participated in a recent campaign to exchange their posts, have reported to their new positions in different regions. Li Yuanchao, Politburo member and head of the Communist Party Organization Department, stated that “pursuant to the requirement of the Party’s Central Committee, gradually, all police departments will be headed by those from outside the region in which they serve.” The the Communist Party’s Central Committee initiated the post-exchange campaign in order to strength national public security in a bid to prevent corruption and promote upright police enforcement.

Source: Huanqiu, August 2, 2012
http://china.huanqiu.com/politics/2012-08/2980271.html

Briefings | | |   Government/Politics

Xinhua: Clinton’s Trip to Africa Was to Sow Discord

Xinhua published a commentary on U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s visit to Africa. According to the commentary, during her speech in Senegal, Secretary Clinton implied that China is only interested in Africa for its natural resources. The commentary declared that her statement was untrue and that the Western countries are the ones that plunder Africa for its resources. It went on to state that the motive for her trip was to sow discord between China and African nations, to discredit China-Africa cooperation, and to restrain China’s influence in Africa.

Source: Xinhua,  August 3, 2012 reprinted by cnfol.com, August 6, 2012
http://gold.cnfol.com/120806/171,1988,12930479,00.shtml

Briefings | | |   US-China Relations

Huanqiu: A Victory for China

Huanqiu published a commentary on the recent protests in Hong Kong against the plans (for the mainland) to introduce a “National and Moral Education” course into the Hong Kong public school curriculum. The commentary stated that Hong Kong residents were claiming that it amounts to “brainwashing” young people with pro-mainland propaganda. It observed, “These protesters act more like they have been brainwashed by the British colonial and Western ideology, since they are so paranoid and resistant about the course. Their views of mainland China are totally Western views. … The core of the ‘National and Moral Education’ course is to provide national and civic education to students, with answers to such questions as ‘Who am I?’ ‘What is Hong Kong?’ and ‘What is China?’ It is not to instill allegiance to the central government into the people of Hong Kong. The patriotism in this course is beyond the political realities. … But we believe that the Hong Kong SAR Government will not concede to its opponents on whether to provide national education, which is a matter of principle.”

The commentary concluded, “The final outcome of the controversy on national education in Hong Kong will be nothing but a ‘victory for China.’ Perhaps it is not realistic for the protesters to pursue their own victory.”

(Editor: According to an opinion piece in the New York Times about the course, "It decries multiparty democracy as unfavorable to the lives of ordinary people …" and contains only praise, with no mention of faults.)

Sources: Huanqiu, August 1, 2012
http://opinion.huanqiu.com/1152/2012-08/2974531.html
New York Times, August 1, 2012
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/08/02/opinion/chinese-indoctrination-in-hong-kong.html?_r=2

Briefings | | |   Geo-Strategic Trend