At the inauguration ceremony of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region bureau of People’s Daily on November 9, the state newspaper’s president Zhang Yannong emphasized the importance of reporting on Hong Kong and predicted the paper’s grand overseas expansion. Two days later, People’s Daily launched its Macao branch.
Source: Xinhua, September 9 and 11, 2009
http://news.xinhuanet.com/gangao/2009-11/09/content_12419673.htm
http://politics.people.com.cn/GB/1026/10360293.html
According to Xinhua, Xi Jinping gave a speech at the Central Party School’s 2009 Fall semester opening ceremony for the 2nd training class. Xi stressed that the development of a learning-oriented Marxist political party is an important and urgent strategic task. The study should focus on Marxism, the Chinese Characteristics of Socialism, and the Socialist Core Value System. Party official’s promotion should be linked to an evluation of the study effort under his leadership.
Xi is the selected successor to Hu Jintao, currently a member of the Chinese Communist Party Standing Committee of the Political Bureau (Politburo), the secretary of the CCP Central Committee Secretariat, and the president of the CCP Central Party School.
Source: Xinhua, November 12, 2009
http://news.xinhuanet.com/politics/2009-11/12/content_12444075.htm
According to China News Service, 340 police station chiefs from 13 cities and districts in Heilongjiang Province gathered on November 10, 2009, at the Heilongjiang Province Public Security Police Vocational College to attend a police station chief training class. The training content included the development of public security information technology, the implementation of standardized law enforcement, and the building of a harmonious relationship between the police and the people, as well as improvement of police quality and ability.
The Heilongjiang Provincial Public Security Department will train more than 1600 police station chiefs across the province by holding four closed-door trainings, each of which will take about 10 days. It will also rotationally train county-level public security bureau heads. The number receiving training will exceed 2400 people, accounting for 4% of the police force in the province.
Source: China News Service, November 11, 2009
http://www.chinanews.com.cn/gn/news/2009/11-11/1958575.shtml
Radio Free Asia reported that a Zhengzhou city newspaper in Henan province published an investigative report which has given rise to Chinese Internet user’s newest tongue-in-cheek catchphrase: “Are you a Party member?” According to the article, entitled “Dog Management Office Manages Nothing But Only Collects Money,” a reporter asked Wang Ping, the Director of Zhengzhou City Dog Management Office, the whereabouts of 12 million yuan in management fees and also hoped that he could release the relevant financial accounts to the public. Wang let the journalist directly question the Financial Bureau. However, a person in charge at the Financial Bureau inexplicably responded to the reporter, “Are you a Party member?” The implication — that the reporter has no right to ask the Financial Bureau officer the whereabouts of the 12 million yuan if he is not a Party member – is now the target of biting criticism from Internet users.
Source: Radio Free Asia, November 7, 2009
http://www.rfa.org/mandarin/yataibaodao/wang-11062009214733.html
The International Herald Leader, a newspaper under Xinhua, published an article commemorating the downfall of Communism in Eastern Europe, stating the lesson learned is to continue socialism in China. An official from the government think tank Institute of Russia, Eastern European and Central Asian Studies under the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences states, “The lesson learned from the dramatic changes in Eastern Europe is that China should adhere to its own path. Only by better domestic buildup will China not be as vulnerable to external changes. We used to be gravely concerned about such changes in the social system. Now, we have more reason to be confident because China’s economy has made considerable progress. We should always remember that the reform and opening up has always been feasible under the socialist system."
Source: International Herald Leader, November 9, 2009
http://news.xinhuanet.com/herald/2009-11/09/content_12415817.htm
Southern Metropolis Daily, a relatively liberal state-owned media in Guangzhou, published an editorial commenting on the 20th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall. “Although the class struggle has ended, the shadow of ‘the philosophy of the people’s struggle’ has not dissipated. The resultant social divide and class discrimination are also a thick wall for the Chinese people to tear down. Although the wall is dilapidated, there are still countless walls standing in our way to move forward. When we distinguish enemies from friends, urban from rural, the West from the Orient, ‘leftist’ from ‘rightist,’ people born in the 1980s from people born in the 1990s, men from women, people using the Internet from people not using the Internet, the wise from the retarded, and etc, we must exercise extreme caution because in every case, there is a potential danger of erecting a wall.” “Don’t miss any small effort to overthrow all the walls that should not be there – whether it is virtual or physical, whether political or spiritual – this is the best way to commemorate the collapse of the Berlin Wall, because they are all Berlin Walls.”
Source: Southern Metropolis Daily, November 9, 2009
http://gcontent.nddaily.com/1/d9/1d94108e907bb831/Blog/634/6baa03.html
China will launch its own space station in 2020, says chief scientist of the Chinese Lunar Exploration Program. According to the plan, in 2010 China will launch a small space laboratory module called "Tiangong 1" with two separate cabins for a lab and resources. Then, the unmanned Shenzhou 8 spacecraft will be launched to dock with Tiangong 1. In 2015 Tiangong 2 and 3 will be launched, leading ultimately to the launch in 2020, Tiangong, China’s own space station. The scientist also confirmed that China is building a new lunar launch site at Wenchang City, Hainan Province, because the Long March 5 rocket to launch the lunar probe will be 5 meters in diameter and can only be transported via waterways.
Source: Chengdu Evening News, November 11, 2009
http://www.cdwb.com.cn/html/2009-11/11/content_741526.htm
On October 16, 2009, the Guangzhou City Finance Bureau released budget information for all municipal offices, totaling more than 20 billion Yuan, on its website (http://www.gzfinance.gov.cn). Traffic has flooded the website. On October 23, it even caused the server to go down. This is the first time a government entity has released budgetary information to citizens.
However, details were still omitted, including dining on public money, traveling using public cars, and traveling abroad on public money, the infamous “three public” expenses, which represent a significant portion of government spending. Guangzhou’s budget also showed 60 million Yuan in “subsidy” given to 9 child daycare centers serving employees of the municipal offices, averaging 20 thousand Yuan per child.
Guangzhou’s action was in reply to the request from a volunteer group, “Public Budget Observer Volunteers.” The group submitted 33 budget requests to central ministries and municipal governments. All except Guangzhou rejected the request. Shanghai claimed the information was a “national secret” and "could not be released." After Guangzhou’s action, Shanghai reversed its position. It announced on October 29 that it will improve its budgetary openness and transparency and would research ways to release the information.
Source:
1. The website of the Central People’s Government of the People’s Republic of China, October 26, 2009
http://www.gov.cn/jrzg/2009-10/26/content_1448828.htm
2. People’s Daily, October 24, 2009
http://media.people.com.cn/GB/10251652.html
3. Nanfang Weekends Magazine, October 28, 2009
http://www.infzm.com/content/36515
4. Eastday.com, the official website for Shanghai government, October 29, 2009
http://sh.eastday.com/qtmt/20091029/u1a649370.html