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Briefings - 828. page

Three Gorges Dam Project Is an Unexploded Powder Keg

On October 19, 2012, China Gate reprinted an article from another source titled “The Truth is Getting Closer: The Three Gorges Dam Project Is an Unexploded Powder Keg.” The article gave a comprehensive description of the dangers related to the Three Gorges Dam Project. It also pointed out that the Three Gorges Project has not achieved flood control; nor has it produced the navigation benefits the State Council claimed it would. Its only achievement is power generation.

Source: China Gate, October 19, 2012
http://www.wenxuecity.com/news/2012/10/19/2040930.html

Briefings | | |   Grapevine

Xinhua: Upper Management’s Largest Wage 4553 Times Greater than that of Lowest Worker

Xinhua recently reported that, based on a report released by the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security, upper management income in some industries has grown very rapidly. According to the report, the highest wage received by upper management is 4533 times more than the wage of the lowest grade worker. Based on the national labor union’s research, 23.4 percent of workers have not received a pay raise in the past five years. The biggest gaps in wages exist in the large scale state-owned companies, especially those with monopoly powers. Experts suggested that the government needs to regulate itself better and to truly consider the interests of the general public. They also called for closing the loopholes in the personal income tax system. 
Source: Xinhua, October 20, 2012
http://news.xinhuanet.com/comments/2012-10/20/c_113435946.htm
Briefings | | |   Social Stability

Xinhua: Chinese Currency Exchange Rate Reached Record Highs

on October 19, 2012, Xinhua reported that the rate of exchange of China’s RMB to the U.S. Dollar hit record highs for the past six consecutive days. China’s central bank released the interbank foreign exchange market’s central parity rate at RMB 6.3021 to USD $1 on October 18. It is widely believed that the primary cause of this increase is that the U.S. Dollar weakened after the Federal Reserve kicked off QE3. Another possible cause is the RMB appreciation pressure from China’s neighboring countries. Experts are worried about the negative impact this round of RMB appreciation has had on China’s exports. However the RMB futures market also demonstrated an expectation that the RMB will be devalued in the long run. This means the probability of a major RMB fluctuation is unlikely. 
Source: Xinhua, October 19, 2012
http://news.xinhuanet.com/finance/2012-10/19/c_123842468.htm
Briefings | | |   Economy/Resources

CRN: China’s Natural Gas Consumption increased by 400 Percent in Ten Years

China Review News (CRN) reported that recent research showed that China is the fourth largest country in the world in the consumption of natural gas. In 2011, China consumed 130 billion cubic meters of natural gas. That was four times the volume of the level in the year 2000. According to the research, China’s consumption may double in the period from 2011 to 2015. Next to the United States, China is the second largest natural gas consumer among all member countries of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). Based on China National Petroleum Corporation’s (CNPC) estimate, China will need 350 billion cubic meters by the year 2020. China is becoming one of the largest natural gas importers in the world; a quarter of its demand relies on imports. The research report expressed the belief that the increased demand for imported natural gas is only accelerating. 
Source: China Review News, October 19, 2012
http://www.chinareviewnews.com/doc/1022/7/4/0/102274067.html?coluid=45&kindid=0&docid=102274067&mdate=1019174636
Briefings | | |   Economy/Resources

VOA: Jiang’s Presence Surfaced again Demonstrating his Influence and Health

According to VOA, on October 13, 2012, one month before the 18th National Congress, a picture showing a meeting between the former Chinese leader, Jiang Zemin, with a leader from Shanghai Ocean University appeared on the university website. The picture was reportedly taken on October 9 when Jiang and his wife met with the university leader in Beijing. People’s Daily first carried the news on October 20; the rest of China’s major media followed.

Hong Kong China News Agency said it was Jiang’s first appearance in the past year. This seems to be contradictory to news reported by the oversea’s Chinese media on Jiang’s public appearance at an opera concert at the National Centre for the Performing Arts in Beijing. The news was published at the end of September, although it was believed to be a fake news report.

According to VOA, official media reports on whether Jiang is healthy or still active have always been considered an influential factor in the Party’s internal power shifts. The postings on microblogs showed that people were suspicious about the authenticity of this piece of news. Some were puzzled as to why this news made the headlines when it was about the former leader meeting with a representative from a university.

Source: VOA, October 20, 2012
http://www.voachinese.com/content/cpc-18th-congress-jiang-zemin-20121020/1530404.html

Briefings | | |   Government/Politics

Graduate Students Doubled in Ten Years While Employment Rate Tumbled

According to Xinhua News, Chinese graduate school student enrollment continued to grow in 2012. Xinhua reported that the graduate student enrollment was 584,416 this year, which was double the size it was ten years ago. This phenomenon has temporarily eased the employment pressure for undergraduate students. However, the number of graduate students who graduated last year surpassed the number of undergraduate students, indicating that graduate student enrollment exceeded that of undergraduate students three years ago.

Another alarming phenomenon is that the employment rate for graduate students continues to decline. In the past three years, it even dropped below the rate for undergraduate students. Statistics from the Talent Pool Market in Jiangsu Province indicated that the employment rate for graduate student was 86.62 percent compared to 90.3 percent for undergraduates and 94.1 percent for vocational or associate degree students.

Some experts also raised concerns over the quality of the education for graduate school students. A survey from 2008 suggested that 15.7 percent of the college professors oversee 10 or more graduate students while close to one percent have 20 or even 30 students. Meanwhile, the average professor to graduate student ratio in the U.S. is one to only two to three students or a maximum of five to six.

Many experts say that universities and colleges should be discouraged from seeking to expand and should reduce their enrollment size so that the quality of education can be improved.

Source: Xinhua, October 21, 2013
http://news.xinhuanet.com/fortune/2012-10/21/c_123849066.htm

Briefings | | |   Social Stability

International Herald: We Need to be Ready for the Next New President

The International Herald carried a commentary on the presidential race and the U.S. China policy for the next four years. The article concluded that the U.S. has to face the fact that China is growing stronger. Whoever wins the next presidential election, there will not be any fundamental change in China and US policy. “To a certain extent, the decisive factor in the China U.S. relationship does not simply lie with a certain party or political power. It lies with the increasing civil powers in the social and economic sectors.”

The article stated that the China topic has been the focus of the presidential debate. It is a channel for the candidates to demonstrate their charm and express what their passion has been over the past twenty years. “When Romney claims that he will crack down on China for manipulating currency, the world knows that it was simply part of an election statement. … For Obama, his Asian policy is a complete anti-China product, whether it was the measures he took to intervene in the Diaoyu islands or the South China Sea issue. The candidates have both openly demonstrated their desire to limit China’s growth.” The article also claimed that whether Obama or Romney wins, their belief will not differ much one from the other; it is to protect U.S. values and the country’s national interest.

Source: International Herald, October 17, 2012
http://ihl.cankaoxiaoxi.com/2012/1017/106206.shtml

Briefings | | |   US-China Relations

Social Unrest over Man’s Death

A driver died during a traffic incident sparking an incident of social unrest that pitted several thousand people against the authorities in Luzhou, Sichuan. According to Huanqiu, which reprinted the version that the local government publicized, the traffic police directed the driver to move his vehicle, which was illegally parked, but the driver refused. The driver did not feel well and, after taking some medicine, died on site. The Luzhou government “reminded the residents that they should not believe or spread any rumors.”

Xinhua later reported that, during the incident, about a thousand people gathered. Some of them were emotional and attacked police vehicles. They overturned seven vehicles and set five of them on fire. Two were entirely burned as a result. “After patient persuasion, the driver’s relatives voluntarily brought the body to the city funeral home. … During the incident, Public Security took custody of 20 people and no one was injured or died.” The local government hoped the residents would not believe or spread rumors.

[Editor’s note: According to online miniblog posts, the 57-year-old man argued with the police who then pushed and kicked him, leading to his death. This incident occurred within three weeks of the Eighteenth Congress of the Chinese Communist Party.]   

Sources:
Huanqiu, October 18, 2012
http://china.huanqiu.com/local/2012-10/3197614.html
Xinhua, October 18, 2012
http://news.xinhuanet.com/legal/2012-10/18/c_123838416.htm

Briefings | | |   Social Stability