Chinascope – Page 157

Beijing Tries to Strengthen Its Ties with the Pacific Islands

China’s Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin announced on May 24 that State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi will pay official visits to the Solomon Islands, Kiribati, Samoa, Fiji, Tonga, Vanuatu, Papua New Guinea, and Timor-Leste. The visits will take place from May 26 to June 4. He will pay a “cloud visit” to the Federated States of Micronesia, hold a video meeting with the Prime Minister and Foreign Minister of the Cook Islands and the Prime Minister and Foreign Minister of Niue, and host the second China-Pacific Island Countries Foreign Ministers’ Meeting in Fiji.

China has recently disclosed that it signed a security treaty with the Solomon Islands, which includes police training, a possible military exchange and setting up a naval base in the Solomon Islands for the People’s Liberation Army.

An intelligence officer for a U.S. ally said that Beijing is negotiating with Kiribati and at least one other Pacific island on a treaty similar to the Solomon Islands’ treaty.

Sources:
1. People’s Daily, May 26, 2022
http://cpc.people.com.cn/n1/2022/0526/c64094-32430646.html
2. Radio France International, May 21, 2022
https://www.rfi.fr/cn/国际/20220521-中国寻求与基里巴斯签协议-美澳担忧

Briefings | | May 26, 2022 | Geo-Strategic Trend

Microsoft Bing Performs Political Censorship on Chinese Content in the U.S. and Canada

The Citizen Lab of the Munk School on Global Affairs and Public Policy, University of Toronto, reported they consistently found that Microsoft Bing censors politically sensitive Chinese names and that, over time, their censorship has spanned multiple Chinese political topics. It consists of at least two languages, English and Chinese and applies to different world regions, including China, the United States, and Canada.

Microsoft has censored search results on its search engine Bing in China. The lab found that even in the United States and Canada, Bing censors sensitive words in Chinese on its autocomplete feature.

In 2021, Bing was found to have censored image results for the query “tank man” in the United States and elsewhere including queries about the 1989 Tiananmen Square Movement anniversary.

Source: Citizen Lab, May 20, 2022
https://citizenlab.ca/2022/05/bada-bing-bada-boom-microsoft-bings-chinese-political-censorship-autosuggestions-north-america/

Briefings | | May 25, 2022 | Information/Technology

UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Received CCP’s Propaganda before Trip to Xinjiang

Michelle Bachelet, the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights and former President of Chile, began a high-profile visit to China’s Xinjiang China on May 24. Beijing is accused of a brutal crackdown on Uighur Muslims.

The Chinese government has isolated Bachelet’s delegation from Western media on the grounds of the epidemic. As details of the exact locations of the visit have not been released, questions have been raised as to whether such a visit is a controlled tour.

According to the website of the Chinese Foreign Ministry, the Chinese government made its goals clear before Bachelet entered Xinjiang. At a one-on-one meeting with Michelle Bachelet on Monday, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi expressed hope that this visit would help clarify the “misinformation” about China.

To that end, Wang gave Bachelet a copy of Xi Jinping’s book. According to China’s state media, it was an English translation of “Excerpts from Xi Jinping’s Discourses on Respecting and Safeguarding Human Rights,” .

Source: Radio France International, May 24, 2022
https://rfi.my/8RYY

Briefings | | May 25, 2022 | Geo-Strategic Trend

China’s Birthrate Slips

China recently announced the result of the latest national population census, claiming its total population reached 1,411.78 million, an increase of 72.06 million over the 1,339.72 million in 2010. The figures translate to a low annual growth rate of 5.38 percent over the past decade.

The number of new births was 12 million in 2020. Recently published provincial-level population data gives the number of births in 2021 as merely 10.62 million, a drop of 11.5 percent. Among all the provinces, only Guangdong’s new births stayed above 1 million, with a number of provinces hitting a record low in 2021.

The decline in births may be caused by late marriages and an increasing number of highly educated women who chose to have fewer or no children. The COVID-19 epidemic is seen as one of the factors influencing young people’s attitude toward marriage and their decision to marry and have children.

11 out of the 31 provinces registered negative population growth in 2021, including Heilongjiang, Liaoning, Jilin, Chongqing, Mongolia, Hunan, Hubei, Shanghai, Jiangsu, Hebei and Shanxi.

Source: Central News Agency (Taiwan), May 18, 2022
https://www.cna.com.tw/news/acn/202205180088.aspx

Briefings | | May 24, 2022 | Economy/Resources

Global Times: Canada Finally Banned Huawei and ZTE from 5G Network

Global Times recently reported that, on May 19th local time, the Canadian government banned Huawei and ZTE from participating in Canada’s 5G network construction, citing national security reasons. Huawei Canada responded by saying that the company was “obviously disappointed” by Canada’s move. The Canadian Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry announced in Ottawa the decision to ban so-called “high-risk suppliers” from participating in building Canada’s 5G network. Under the decision, Canadian telecommunications companies will not be allowed to use any products or services that include these Chinese companies in their networks, and companies that have installed the equipment will be required to stop using it and remove the equipment. The Canadian federal government has indicated that it wants to see the Canadian telecommunications industry stop procuring new 4G or 5G equipment and services from Huawei and ZTE by September 2022, end the use of any new or existing 5G equipment and services from Huawei and ZTE by June 2024, and stop using any new or existing 4G equipment and services from Huawei and ZTE by December 2027. The Canadian federal government also said it would submit some new legislation shortly to amend Canada’s Telecommunications Act. The government says the bill will support Canada’s telecommunications system against national security risks in the financial, telecommunications, energy and transportation sectors. Previously, on the issue of Huawei, Canada was the only member of the “Five Eyes” alliance that had not formally expressed its position on how to treat Huawei. The Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in October last year that Canada should uphold an objective and impartial attitude and independently make choices that suit its own interests.

Source: Global Times, May 20, 2022
https://world.huanqiu.com/article/4856lnbGiRn

Briefings | | May 23, 2022 | Geo-Strategic Trend Information/Technology

Chinese Graduates Signing Rate was Only 32 Percent as of May

Well-known Chinese news site Tencent News recently reported that, according to the latest data on contract-signing for college graduates, as of May, 22 percent of males signed employment contracts and 10 percent of females signed, which is really appalling. This year’s class of college graduates faced a truly tough labor environment. The COVID pandemic has brought down many employers. With continuous risk control, millions of companies have no profit, only expense after expense. It has not been easy for small and medium-sized companies to survive this year. However, if they do survive, they have to save money and reduce costs. Many employers are laying off employees. It is very difficult to find a job at this time. Half of the companies have closed down, so it’s already strange if one doesn’t lose his job, let alone the difficulty college students who have just graduated face in seeking a job. There are a lot of people who have been in the job market for more than 10 years and are still without a job. The number is greater than for those who have just-graduated. Many colleges push students to sign the Tripartite Agreements (an employment agreement between the student, the college and the employer), which are often not a guarantee of employment but just an intent, since the Agreement is not a legally binding formal hiring contract. Not many students have managed to secure a hiring contract for job positions as soon as they graduate. Many had to turn to continuing education by taking graduate school exams, or to participate in civil service exams to obtain a government job. However, there are only so many job positions every year, and most people will take the exams while working on something temporary or just give up altogether.

Source: Tencent News, May 19, 2022
https://xw.qq.com/cmsid/20220519A034M400

Briefings | | May 23, 2022 | Social Stability

Tencent’s First-Quarter Net Profit Halved

Well-known Chinese news site NetEase (NASDAQ: NTES) recently reported that Tencent Holdings just released its financial report for the first quarter of 2022. According to the financial report, the company’s revenue in the first quarter was RMB 135.5 billion (around US$20.2 billion), flat year-over-year, while net profit was RMB 23.4 billion (around US$3.5 billion), down 51 percent year-over-year. This is its worst performance since its listing. Tencent also warned that advertisers in consumer, e-commerce and travel businesses are cutting spending. Tencent, as the WeChat messaging platform operator, said advertising sales fell 18 percent in the first quarter, year-over-year. This is the category that saw the deepest loss. The domestic gaming market revenue was down one percent year-over-year, citing tighter government regulations. Ma Huateng, the founder of Tencent, said that Tencent implemented cost control measures and adjusted some non-core businesses. Another senior executive also said that, the more people, the higher the cost, so structural changes are needed, and the company may “optimize personnel structure.” The Chinese government established the Measures for the Administration of Internet Advertising in the fourth quarter of 2021, which “enhanced” the industry supervision system. As one of the biggest sponsors of internet advertising before, the online education and training industry has plummeted. Tencent’s stock price has halved since its peak in January last year, wiping US$440 billion off its market value. This happened after China launched a regulatory crackdown to control the influence of big internet companies.

Source: NetEase, May 19, 2022
https://www.163.com/dy/article/H7NLLLT505509EKV.html?f=post2020_dy_recommends
https://www.163.com/dy/article/H7M6DK620519SUH3.html?f=post2020_dy_recommends

Briefings | | May 23, 2022 | Economy/Resources Information/Technology

The Connection between the LA Shooter and the China Council for the Promotion of Peaceful National Reunification

In a planned shooting, David Wenwei Chou (周文伟), 68, of Las Vegas, killed one person and injured five at a Taiwanese church in Los Angeles. The Orange County police called it a politically driven hate crime against Taiwanese. Chou strongly opposed Taiwan independence.

There are a few connections between the killer and the China Council for the Promotion of Peaceful National Reunification (中国和平统一促进会). That was a semi-official organization under the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP’s) control. It served as a vehicle for the CCP’s united front work. Wang Yang (汪洋), a member of the CCP Politburo Standing Committee (the highest CCP decision making organ) and the Chairman of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference, serves as the Chairman of that organization.

In 2019, Chou attended the opening ceremony of the Las Vegas Council for the Promotion of the Peaceful National Reunification. He was a board member and spoke at the ceremony.

Before the killing, Chao mailed out a set of audio/image packages, titled, “The Diary of the Angle to Eradicate (Taiwan) Independence.” The recipients of his packages include Wang Yang, Qin Gang (China’s Ambassador to the United States), Hu Xijin (former Chief Editor of Global Times (Huanqiu)) and Wang Feng, the publisher of China Times (a Taiwan media which switched to a pro-CCP position after being bought by Want Wang Holdings which had a big business investment in mainland China), and some Chinese media in the United States.

Source: NTDTV, May 19, 2022
https://www.ntdtv.com/gb/2022/05/19/a103433096.html

Briefings | | May 22, 2022 | Geo-Strategic Trend Government/Politics

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

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

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

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