Chinascope – Page 736

People’s Daily Will Be Investigated for Corruption

On October 5, 2014, the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection of the Communist Party (CCDI) announced that it will conduct a special inspection of six units of People’s Daily.

Pu Zengfan, the CCDI chief at People’s Daily, made the announcement at a recent meeting at the newspaper. At the meeting Pu delivered remarks from CCDI Secretary Wang Qishan and laid out the implementation plan for the special inspection of three local branches and three affiliated newspapers and businesses. Two teams, each comprised of high-ranking officials from CCDI, audit administration, and the personnel department, will carry out the inspection.

The inspection will focus on five areas. The first is the implementation of the Party’s policies, compliance with the Party’s discipline procedures, and news reporting; second is anti-corruption mechanisms; third is instances of bribery and blackmail in news reporting; fourth is internal management; and fifth is nepotism and the disclosure of high-ranking leader’s personal affairs.

Pu stated that the effectiveness of the inspection depends on whether the inspection is taken seriously. “[One] must carry out this inspection as a political task and be clear as to the scope of the task.” Pu stated that the inspection must prioritize and concentrate on problem areas.

Source: The Central Commission for Discipline Inspection of the Communist Party of China, October 5, 2014 http://www.ccdi.gov.cn/xwyw/201409/t20140926_27998.html

Briefings | | October 9, 2014 | Government/Politics

Xinhua: Western Think Tank Stated That Washington Scripted “Occupy Central”

Xinhua reported that Tony Cartalucci, a researcher from the think tank "Land Destroyer" published an article in which he maintained that the U.S. planned the current "Occupy Central" event in April of this year.

The Xinhua report stated, "When Martin Lee, founder of the Democratic Party in Hong Kong, and Anson Chan, Hong Kong’s Chief Secretary under British rule, visited the U.S. in April, they held a meeting with the National Endowment for Democracy (NED) and the National Democratic Institute (NDI), funded by the State Department, on their plan, the leaders, and the agenda for the ‘Occupy Central’ movement."

"Cartalucci stated that the U.S. has provided funding and support for ‘Occupy Central,’ and that the people directing ‘Occupy Central’ are not Hongkongese who participated in the movement, but Washington and Wall Street. … The true agenda of ‘Occupy Central’ is not about having a real vote in Hong Kong, but getting the foreign-backed political cabal behind ‘Occupy Central’ into power, ‘soft’ colonizing Hong Kong, and further dividing China."

[Land Destroyer has been described as a blog that critiques the "corporate-financier oligarchy" and never condemns any U.S. enemy (http://rationalwiki.org/wiki/Land_Destroyer).]

Sources:
1. Xinhua, October 7, 2014
http://news.xinhuanet.com/world/2014-10/07/c_1112724840.htm
2. Black Listed News, October 5, 2014
http://www.blacklistednews.com/Entire_%22Occupy_Central%22_Protest_Scripted_in_Washington/38396/0/38/38/Y/M.html

Briefings | | October 8, 2014 | Government/Politics

Huanqiu: -China’s First Flight Test of New Mobile ICBM Is to Terrorize the U.S.

On October 3, 2014, Huanqiu, the Chinese edition of Global Times, published an article on China’s first flight test of the Dongfeng 31B missile, a new road-mobile intercontinental ballistic missile that was developed to deter the United States. Citing a report from the Washington Free Beacon, Huanqiu said that “the missiles can be hidden in garages or caves so that satellites and other sensors cannot detect them.”

“China has made it clear in its state-run media that the PLA has developed nuclear forces for use against the United States. Chinese media have reported that a submarine-launched missile attack on the United States would kill between 5 million and 12 million Americans.”

Source: Huanqiu, October 3, 2014
http://mil.huanqiu.com/observation/2014-10/5157572.html

Briefings | | October 8, 2014 | US-China Relations

Phoenix New Media: The U.S. Supports Hong Kong ‘Occupy Central’ with Funds and Efforts

Phoenix New Media, a Hong Kong based media group directly controlled by Beijing, published an article accusing the U.S. of supporting Hong Kong’s “Occupy Central” (the umbrella movement) with funds and efforts.

“‘Occupy Central’ seems to be a democratic action striving for ‘universal suffrage,’ but it has secretly received financial, political, and media help and other assistance from the U.S. State Department, the U.S. National Endowment for Democracy (NED), the National Democratic Institute (NDI), and other institutes in Western countries. The U.S. government’s purpose is to turn Hong Kong into a cradle land outside China for organizing groups that can directly influence China. … Since Western forces reluctantly returned sovereignty over Hong Kong (to China), they have actively worked on how to separate the Hong Kong SAR from mainland China. They have even planned to turn Hong Kong into their pawn to undermine China’s stability.”

Source: Phoenix New Media, October 3, 2014
http://news.ifeng.com/a/20141003/42136316_0.shtml

Briefings | | October 8, 2014 | US-China Relations

Global Times: Germany Has Become the Largest Trade Surplus Country

Global Times recently reported, based on newly released IMF numbers, that Germany replaced China to become the country with the largest trade surplus. This shows that Germany has built its success on an extremely high export level rather than on imports. It seems that Germany has not encouraged its domestic consumer spending, which could otherwise help the EU’s weak growth. Instead, Germany is becoming a drag on the EU’s overall economy. China has held the top surplus title for many years. However the Chinese currency, the RMB, has appreciated by 30 percent since 2006. In the upcoming IMF/World Bank Annual Meetings in Washington, Germany is expected to face pressure from the international community when it is asked to take action to stimulate its domestic economy to help the EU recover.

Source: Global Times, October 3, 2014

http://world.huanqiu.com/exclusive/2014-10/5157608.html

Briefings | | October 7, 2014 | Economy/Resources

BBC Chinese: The U.S. Partially Lifted Its Embargo on the Sale of Arms to Vietnam

BBC Chinese recently reported that U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry met with Vietnamese Foreign Minister Pham Binh Minh on October 2. The United States decided to lift its embargo on the sale of weapons for naval defense purposes. The embargo on the sale of arms started in 1975 and has lasted nearly four decades. The U.S. government explained that this move was based on improvements in the human rights situation in Vietnam. Further expansion of the scope of lifting the embargo will depend on more improvements in the human rights area. U.S. officials denied any relationship between this announcement and the conflicts China is currently having with its neighboring countries in the South China Sea. The United States and Vietnam restored normal relations 20 years ago. The current annual trade volume between the United States and Vietnam is around US$20 billion.

Source: BBC Chinese, October 2, 2014

http://www.bbc.co.uk/zhongwen/simp/world/2014/10/141002_us_vietnam_arms_sales

Briefings | | October 7, 2014 | Geo-Strategic Trend

People’s Daily: China Comments on Discontinuation of Confucius Institute at University of Chicago

People’s Daily recently reported that the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs responded in a press conference to the question of whether the closure of the Confucius Institute at the University of Chicago will become an obstacle in China’s effort to enhance its “soft power.” The Ministry’s spokesperson stated that all U.S. Confucius Institutes were established based on voluntary applications from U.S. universities. The voluntary applications requested “support and help” with teaching materials and teachers. The Institutes have never imposed anything on the universities and could not be a threat to academic freedom or to the reputation of the universities.

[Editor’s note: On October 1, Pennsylvania State University discontinued its contract with the Confucius Institute. The Toronto District School Board, the largest district school board in Canada, also voted against the renewal of its contract with the Confucius Institute.]

Source: People’s Daily, September 29, 2014

http://world.people.com.cn/n/2014/0929/c1002-25762461.html

Briefings | | October 7, 2014 | US-China Relations

Xinhua: Hefty Import Tariffs Drive Chinese People to Shop Overseas

Xinhua published an article stating that the hefty import tariffs imposed on mid to high end products and the fact that tax free product development lags behind have caused the growth in the number of Chinese people shopping overseas. The article said that the trend does not help to improve China’s domestic consumption; nor does it ease domestic economic pressure. The article stated that, among 20 luxury consumable goods, the prices on the Mainland are 45 percent higher than Hong Kong, 51 percent higher than the US and 72 percent higher than France. The result is that, during the current week long national holidays, the number of Chinese people shopping overseas has increased dramatically. The statistics showed that Chinese people spend an average of 20,000 yuan (US$3,255) overseas on each trip with 58 percent of their spending going toward shopping.

Source: Xinhua, October 5, 2014
http://news.xinhuanet.com/politics/2014-10/05/c_127065170.htm

Briefings | | October 6, 2014 | Economy/Resources

China’s Reaction to Trump’s Election Win

Xinhua Commentary Series: Spotlight on the U.S. Presidential Election

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