Chinascope – Page 630

People’s Daily (Overseas Edition): Zhou and Ling Were the “Significant Potential Political Danger”

Xiake_Island is an account that People’s Daily (Overseas Edition) uses for microblogging. It recently published an article commenting on the official report of the Sixth Plenary Session of the 18th Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP’s) Central Commission on Disciplinary Inspection (CCDI). The commentary was titled, "Who Was the ‘Significant Potential Political Danger in the Party’ That the CCDI Eliminated?"

The article emphasized that the report made a statement that the CCDI had never used before, "The investigation of Zhou Yongkang and Ling Jihua ‘has eliminated a significant potential political danger in the Party.’ … It is very rare to link a ‘significant potential political danger’ to individuals. … The reason it made this statement is that Xi Jinping said that (this group) ‘had political ambitions; out of their personal interests or the interests of a small group, they initiated a political conspiracy and conducted actions that damaged and separated the Party.’"

The article also said that, compared to the reports from previous years and Xi Jinping’s early speeches, one could tell that Xi felt there had been a significant status change in the anti-corruption campaign. It changed from what had previously been described as "severe and complicated" to the current situation of "an overwhelming form of suppression (of corrupt officials) is taking shape." Still, the anti-corruption campaign is "long-term," "tough," and "always ongoing."

"What is the ‘overwhelming form of suppression’? In Xiake_island‘s view, the balance between the two forces that support and resist anti-corruption has changed. The resisting force has been or is being eliminated, or at least does not have much power to fight back anymore. The anti-corruption move is no longer reversible."

Source: People’s Daily (Overseas Edition) Online, January 15, 2016
http://opinion.haiwainet.cn/n/2016/0115/c456317-29553991.html

Briefings | | January 22, 2016 | Government/Politics

China Youth Daily: Local Governments’ Zero Loss in Lawsuits Is Not Necessarily a Good Record

China Youth Daily published an article commenting on the “zero loss” records of local governments when they are defendants in lawsuits.

Since its opening on December 28, 2014, until the end of 2015, the Third Shanghai Intermediate People’s Court has handled a total of 610 administrative cases in the pilot phase that involved trials in administrative cases. This figure included 242 administrative cases in which the municipal people’s government was a defendant for the first time. Others were second instance administrative cases in which the municipal administrative organs were the appellant or appellee. As of now, the Shanghai municipal government has not yet suffered a single loss in any of its lawsuits.

The local governments that achieved “zero loss” were not limited to Shanghai. Late last year, the Legislative Affairs Office of Sichuan revealed that the provincial government was a defendant in 126 administrative cases [in 2015] and had a "zero loss" record.

The article commented that a government under the rule of law is not necessarily one with a "zero loss" record [in lawsuits]. Similarly, the dazzling "zero loss" record may not directly convey a positive signal to the public. In the process, the suppressed discontent, the injustice, and even the unfairness may very well result in the loss of the last appeal channel. The result might be silence, but [the problem is] that this silence might not completely disappear, especially when the situation continues and gives rise to new injustices. As a result, local governments do not have to consider "zero loss" as an achievement.

The reason why the people take on the local government as a defendant is not that they have got nothing better to do or because they want to embarrass the government deliberately. It is because the people regard the government as the final solution to the problem.

Source: China Youth Daily, January 20, 2016

http://zqb.cyol.com/html/2016-01/20/nw.D110000zgqnb_20160120_4-02.htm

Briefings | | January 21, 2016 | Social Stability

CNR: Xing’ang Shoes Ceased Operation

China National Radio (CNR) recently reported that Xing’ang Shoes Industry announced that the Taiwanese capital based company will cease operation starting February 10. Xing’ang is located in Dongguan, Guangdong Province and was founded 13 years ago. The Taiwanese owner of the company, Xing’ang International, is one of the top 10 largest shoe makers in the world. It has over 500 shoe stores across Mainland China. For many years, Dongguan Xing’ang has been a main manufacturer for well-known world class brands like Nike, Prada, and Rockport. According to the company, the direct cause of the close-down was the increase in labor costs. In the past three years the company suffered an annual labor increase rate of 15 percent. Last year, the company saw a profit decline of 50 percent. The company said that its manufacturing capacity is being moved to Southeast Asian countries.

Source: China National Radio, January 12, 2016

http://finance.cnr.cn/gs/20160112/t20160112_521118309.shtml

Briefings | | January 19, 2016 | Economy/Resources

BBC Chinese: African Exports to China Declined by 40 Percent

BBC Chinese recently reported that, according to official data that Chinese Customs just released, total exports from Africa to China declined by around 40 percent in 2015. China is Africa’s largest trade partner. In recent years, China’s demand for Africa’s resources greatly pushed the African economy forward. However, the obvious slow-down of the Chinese economy directly caused the significant decline in African exports to China. Many African currencies devalued in the past year due to heavy economic pressure. In the meantime, China’s investment in Africa has been shrinking too. In the first half of 2015, China’s direct investment in Africa saw a 40 percent drop, year-over-year. However, statistics showed African demand for Chinese goods is increasing. Chinese exports to Africa in 2015 reached US$102 billion, which represents an increase of 3.6 percent.

Source: BBC Chinese, January 13, 2016

http://www.bbc.com/zhongwen/simp/china/2016/01/160113_china_africa_trade

Briefings | | January 19, 2016 | Geo-Strategic Trend

People’s Daily: Obama’s State of the Union Address Painted a Rosy Soft Picture

People’s Daily recently published a commentary on U.S. President Barak Obama’s last State of the Union Address. The commentary suggested that lame duck presidents typically provide nothing constructive in their last State of the Union Address. Instead they prefer to focus on their legacy. However, President Obama took painting this kind of “political soft picture” to the next level by describing an optimistic future that he cannot deliver to his people due to his term limitation. The author expressed the belief in the commentary that the general American middle-class is actually in a state of “anxiety and unease” – and Obama’s speech was trying to persuade people to believe that there is hope. With the currently rising “Trump Phenomenon,” the American public is largely in agreement that the nation is on the wrong path. Even the economic recovery is very questionable. Obama seems to realize that there is a gap between reality and people’s expectations. In his speech, he tried to prove that what he has done set the stage for a better tomorrow.

Source: People’s Daily, January 14, 2016

http://world.people.com.cn/n1/2016/0114/c1002-28052874.html

Briefings | | January 19, 2016 | US-China Relations

Chinese Official’s Oath of Allegiance Omits Loyalty to the Party

China has established a new procedure. Before assuming office, each official will go through the process of taking an oath of allegiance to uphold the Constitution. The 70-Chinese letter oath states that the official is to "be loyal to the Constitution," "be loyal to the country," and "be loyal to the people." It does not mention being "loyal to the (Communist) Party."

On January 13, at the Supreme People’s Court, more than ten new judges took this oath for their first time.

According to the "Decision of the National People’s Congress on the Implementation of Taking an Oath (of allegiance) to the Constitutional System," starting January 1 of this year, all government employees, including those who work at the People’s Congress, the government, the People’s Court, and the People’s Procuratorate, will take this standard oath.

The oath, when translated into English, states:
"I pledge: (I will) be loyal to the Constitution of the People’s Republic of China, safeguard the Constitution’s authority, perform obligations as required by law, be loyal to the country, be loyal to the people, be committed to my duty, be honest on my job, accept the people’s supervision, and work hard to build a socialist country that is prosperous, strong, democratic, culturally advanced, and harmonious."

Source: VOA Chinese, January 14, 2016
http://www.voachinese.com/content/voa-news-chinese-judges-vow-to-constitution-20160113/3143616.html

Briefings | | January 18, 2016 | Government/Politics

Chinese Military Experts Reveal the Secret of Deterrence Strategy in Cyberspace

Yuan Yi, a military expert from the Chinese PLA Military Academy of Sciences, published an article discussing the strategy of cyberspace deterrence.

The author stated, “As human society’s dependence on cyberspace is deepening, cyberspace is becoming the ‘second living space’ of human beings and the ‘fifth-dimensional battle space’ of military confrontation. Surrounding the controlling power over cyberspace, countries throughout the world are competing fiercely. Competition in cyberspace has reached a level equivalent to survival involving a country’s fate and the success of its military struggles.”

Regarding how to develop cyberattack deterrence, the author emphasized long-term preparation. The article said, “‘Rome was not built in a day.’ The successful implementation of cyberspace deterrence requires a combination of peace and war. It is [important] to have detailed preparation on an ongoing basis. First, we must conduct a comprehensive and thorough network reconnaissance, gradually find out the basic situation of the enemy’s network, draw a topology map, and find out all the vulnerabilities of both the software and hardware systems of the enemy. Second we must to carry out a large number of effective strategic presets. Using hacking tools, we must secretly penetrate into the enemy’s various networks, leaving the back door [open], set the stepping stones, and plant logic bombs and Trojans, so as to leave breakthrough points for launching future cyberattacks. Third, to minimize losses, we must have prepared cyber defenses in case of the enemy’s revenge.”

Talking about the strategy for cyberspace deterrence, the author summed it up as "show but not declare; declare but not show." "‘Show but not declare’ is, by utilizing the fact that it is difficult to track the location of cyberattacks, to launch cyberattacks on specific targets but not announce one’s own identity. By doing so, it shows one’s ability but, at the same time, the enemy can only speculate as to the source of the attack and cannot come up with evidence. "Declare but not show" is to publicize or ‘inadvertently’ disclose one’s own research or advanced network warfare equipment such models, performance, and features, while deliberately exaggerating their operational effectiveness. Thus the enemy will be unable to figure out our true strength and this will produce a deterrent effect. Cyber warfare operations are difficult to trace and it is difficult to find evidence. Therefore, the initiator can choose to admit, totally deny, or put the blame on civil hackers.”

Source: People’s Daily, January 6, 2016

http://military.people.com.cn/n1/2016/0106/c1011-28020408.html

Briefings | | January 15, 2016 | Defense/Military

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.