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Wu Guoguang: Xi Jinping’s Reversal of the Course, Will China’s Transition be Peaceful or Marked with Bloodshed?

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Cheng Xiaonong: U.S.-China Strategic Relations Have Crystallized

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Xinhua Commentaries: “Exposing the Three Major Political Deficits of the U.S.”

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The CCP’s Performing Arts Troupes in the U.S.

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Xinhua: Only 50% of Urban Job Seekers Can Find Work

On September 10, 2010, Xinhua republished a news report from http://www.gov.cn/ regarding unemployment problems in China. Below are the major points:

There is an oversupply of laborers in the job market. This year in the cities, around 24 million people are in need of employment; there is work for only 12 million of them. There are 6.3 million college graduates this year plus 6 million middle and high school graduates who will not pursue further studies. In the rural areas, there are over 100 million surplus laborers. At the same time, a large number of urban laid-off workers and retired military personnel need to be replaced.

In recent years, it has been found that "recruitment difficulties" and "employment difficulties" coexist. It is difficult to recruit migrant workers in the spring, while college graduates have a hard time finding jobs in the fall, after they graduate. This phenomenon highlights the aggravated structural problem in the area of employment. 

Source: Xinhua, September 10, 2010
http://news.xinhuanet.com/2010-09/10/c_12540420.htm

Briefings | | |   Economy/Resources

Ninety Percent of the Underground Water across China Has Been Contaminated

On September 8, 2010, the International Herald Leader, an official newspaper under Xinhua, reported that 90% of the underground water across China has been contaminated; 60% of the water has been seriously polluted. 

Underground water is an important source of drinking water in China. Nearly 70% of the Chinese people drink underground water.

“In 2005, the EPA conducted an inspection of 206 centralized drinking water sources in 56 cities nationwide. It revealed that the water sources were polluted by 132 types of organic pollutants, 103 of which belong to the category of pollutants that must be controlled either inside or outside of China.”

Source: International Herald Leader, September 8, 2010
http://news.xinhuanet.com/herald/2010-09/08/c_13484211.htm

Briefings | | |   Economy/Resources

Xinhua Defends the Government’s Real ID Registration for Cell Phones

In defense of China’s recent practice of requiring real IDs for cell phone numbers, Xinhua News Agency published an article titled “How the U.S. Implements Real Name Registration for Cell Phones.” The article explains that U.S. cell phone users need to provide their social security number, name, address, and credit card information at the time of purchase, thus showing that the newly implemented rule is not unlike the rules in many developed nations. However, the article obscured the fact that the major cell phone companies in China — China Mobile, China Unicom, and China Telecom — are all government-controlled, while telecommunication companies in the U.S. are private.
Source: Xinhua, September 9, 2010
http://news.xinhuanet.com/2010-09/09/c_12534295.htm
Briefings | | |   Information/Technology

Beijing Rebuts Deterioration of the Investment Environment in China

Beijing has made high profile efforts to defuse concerns about the deterioration of the investment environment in China. In July, when meeting with German Chancellor Merkel in Xi’an, Premier Wen Jiaobao said, “There is a view that China’s investment environment has been worse. I think this is not true.” On July 26, Commerce Minister Chen Deming wrote in an opinion piece in Financial Times that “In fact, China will open wider in the future.”
A report issued by the World Bank in July, "Investing Across Borders 2010," states that China is one of the regions that has the most constraint on foreign direct investment. As many as 18 procedures and a time span of 99 days are needed in order to launch a foreign business in Shanghai, slower than both the regional average for East Asia and the Pacific and the global average.
Sources:
World Bank, 
http://iab.worldbank.org/Data/Explore%20Economies/China#/Starting-a-foreign-business
China News Service, September 5, 2010
http://www.chinanews.com.cn/cj/2010/09-05/2512860.shtml
Financial Times
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/18dae5d2-981c-11df-b218-00144feab49a.html
Briefings | | |   Economy/Resources

CCP’s Organization Department Trains Officials Again

A third training session was launched by the Chinese Communist Party Central Committee’s
Organization Department, the party’s function of appointing cadres, in Jinggangshan on September 5. [1] The trainees are 112 Party or government officials at the bureau level (equivalent to assistant secretary in the U.S.) from across the country.
According to an official at the Central Party School, this session is part of the Organization Department’s large scale trainings for nationwide communist Party officials. The focus is “party spirit” and the “relationship between the Party and the people.”
Source: Beijing News, September 6, 2010
http://epaper.bjnews.com.cn/html/2010-09/06/content_144657.htm?div=-1
[1] Jinggangshan, a mountain located in Jiangxi Province, is known as the birthplace of the Chinese Red Army (the People’s Liberation Army of China) and the "cradle of the Chinese revolution." After the Kuomintang (KMT) turned against the Communist Party in 1927, the Communists either went underground or fled to the countryside. Following the unsuccessful Autumn Harvest Uprising in Changsha, Mao Zedong led his 1000 remaining men to Jinggangshan, where he set up his first peasant soviet.
Briefings | | |   Government/Politics

Study Times: China Cannot Afford 5% to 6% Inflation

Inflation in China has been driven by constant food price adjustments and a 10%+ food price increase, which puts excessive pressure on low-income residents, resulting in major social upheaval, said a Study Times article.  

The article disagrees with some Chinese economists who advocate a moderate annual inflation of 5% to 6%. While the Consumer Price Index (CPI) may remain low, food prices have increased significantly, pushing the CPI upward.  

The populace can’t adjust to the 5% to 6% CPI increase because of the veiled food price increases. In 2004, 2007 and 2008, the CPI increased 3.9%, 4.8% and 5.9% respectively. “These are the three years when the populace was most unhappy about existing price controls."  

Should food prices increase by more than 3%, "major social problems will ensue," said the article. 

Source: Study Times, September 6, 2010
http://www.studytimes.com.cn:9999/epaper/xxsb/html/2010/09/06/12/12_43.htm

Briefings | | |   Economy/Resources

Regulations on Radio Control Issued

China is implementing a nationwide, cross-province, cross-autonomous-region, and cross-municipality control of radio transmissions.  

The State Council and the Central Military Commission jointly published the "Regulations for Radio Control," which will become effective on November 1, 2010.  

According to the regulations, which consist of 13 articles, during the period of radio control, organizations and individuals having, using, or managing radio stations, radio transmission equipment, and non-radio-equipment radiating radio waves must follow the orders and directives.  

The military electromagnetic frequency spectrum control authority is responsible for implementation of the regulations. Various government entities are required to assist with the implementation.  

Penalties for any violation of the regulations range from shutdown to revocation of license, forfeiture of equipment, and criminal penalties.

Source: Xinhua, September 6, 2010
http://news.xinhuanet.com/2010-09/06/c_13481181.htm

Briefings | | |   Government/Politics

Changing the Public Image of the Chinese Military — Show a Soft Side

The Chinese military should improve its image in the international community "to attract and convince a global audience [of its peaceful intent]," says a Study Times article. The key is to adopt a soft approach when disseminating information about the military. 
 

The suggestions are: 1) Focus on civilian readers and progress from “readable” to “pleasantly readable,” rather than preaching. 2) The content should include soft peripheral stories appealing to the public, along with hard, main messages, so as not to trigger resistance. 3) Narrate stories gently and charmingly – be up close and personal when explaining military actions. Through the soft approach, “the pleasant image will gently sneak into the mind of the audience. It is beneficial to narrow the communication gap, bring the audience into the military’s fold, and help them understand the real intent behind the communications."

Source: Study Times, September 6, 2010
http://www.studytimes.com.cn:9999/epaper/xxsb/html/2010/09/06/12/12_47.htm

Briefings | | |   Defense/Military