Chinascope – Page 784

Report on Indices of Government Transparency

On February 25, the Institute of Law under China’s Academy of Social Science (CASS) and the Social Sciences Academic Press jointly released the Annual Report on China’s Rule of Law (the Blue Book on the Rule of Law).

The Blue Book contains a report on the indices of the transparency of the Chinese government based on the evaluation of 55 government departments under the State Council. The Ministry of Education ranked first with the highest score, while the National Railway Bureau ranked last with zero points.

With 100 points as the perfect score, the top five were as follows: The Ministry of Education (65.082); The State Administration of Work Safety (64.033); The National Development and Reform Commission (63.454); The Ministry of Commerce (61.635); and The General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection, and Quarantine (60.7351).

The bottom five were The State Administration of Radio, Film, and Television (33.252); The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (25.3353); The Ministry of Justice (25.2854); The State Bureau for Letters and Calls (19.9555); and The National Railway Bureau (0).

Source: Xinhua reprinted by Guangming Daily, February 25, 2014

http://politics.gmw.cn/2014-02/25/content_10497663_2.htm

Briefings | | February 28, 2014 | Government/Politics

China Youth Daily: Environmental Protection Draws the Most Public Attention

A China Youth Daily team that monitors online public opinions issued a report on February 27. The report, based on a calculation of the amount of keyword-tagged information that has appeared at various online platforms since March 2013, came up with the top ten hot topics of public opinion, namely: environmental protection, anti-corruption, social security, food and drug safety, the stability of (housing) prices, Internet regulation, reform of the household registration system, judicial reform, health care reform, and social mores.

The issue of "environmental protection" rose to the top of the list, with three times more online discussions than the No.2 issue of anti-corruption. Of the 68 million online discussions, more than 70 percent (70.8 percent) of the netizens focused on PM2.5, a measure of particles less than 2.5 micrometers in diameter found in the air, which are believed to pose the greatest health risk. With over 48 million discussions on the matter it had more than a one third (35.6 percent) jump over last year. China Youth Daily received responses to over 1,000 questionnaires on how to deal with the air pollution. Approximately one third (29.3 percent) of the respondents called on the Government to strengthen its regulatory responsibility.

The topic of "anti-corruption" and "social security" ranked No. 2 and No. 3. on the list. The amount of total online discussion was about 22 million each, with a difference of only 3 percent. These two issues have made the list three years in a row, but the change this year is that "anti-corruption" jumped to No.2.

Source: China Youth Daily, February 27, 2014
http://zqb.cyol.com/html/2014-02/27/nw.D110000zgqnb_20140227_1-03.htm

Briefings | | February 27, 2014 | Economy/Resources

[We] Should Not Be Blindly Optimistic about Talk that the “U.S.-Japan Relationship Is Breaking Down”

The People’s Daily website recently published an opinion article about a breakdown in the relationship between the United States and Japan. Below is an excerpt from that article:

Since December 26, 2013, when Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe visited the Yasukuni Shrine, the relationship between Japan, China, and South Korea has been in a frozen state. Recently, public condemnation and doubts from the international community, including the United States, about the Abe regime’s extreme right-wing tendencies have been growing. … There has been recent talk in the international community stating that "The U.S.-Japan relationship is breaking down." Will it really be so between the United States and Japan?

In this regard, we must remain highly aware and be sober minded. We must not be blindly optimistic.

First, recently, Abe’s hardline nationalist movement has clearly gained momentum in Japan. If there were no support from a big country behind it, how could Abe dare to act so recklessly as to even openly challenge China, South Korea, and the world? Who its "boss" is behind the scenes is well known to everyone, without any need to guess. The reason that the United States expressed disappointment about Abe’s move is mainly because Abe did not take sufficient action to mitigate the worries of another key U.S. ally, South Korea, about its agenda.

Second, since Japan and the U.S. signed a security treaty in the 1960s, the United States and Japan have maintained close contact and relations with each other. Even in the statement condemning Abe’s visit to the Yasukuni Shrine, the United States also stressed that Japan is still a very important and even its staunchest ally and friend in Asia.

Third, at present, Japan’s domestic politics have shown a clear trend towards being overall rightist. From Abe’s visit to the Yasukuni Shrine as well as from a series of tough words and deeds, even Europe and America also had some doubts and suspicions about his motives and about Japan’s future direction. However, out of its own strategic interests, the United States will take advantage of this "Yasukuni" card, and continue to adhere to its stance of supporting Japan.

The Abe path is endangering the safety of the Asia-Pacific region and sometimes it may affect or even damage the Japan-U.S. relationship. However, the world should be clear that they are the same kind of animal. As long as its fundamental interests will not be jeopardized, then in front of a common "enemy," the United States is not going to reverse its relationship with Japan.

Source: People’s Daily (online), February 25, 2014

http://military.people.com.cn/n/2014/0225/c1011-24454659.html

Briefings | | February 27, 2014 | US-China Relations

In January the Number of Housing Transactions in Beijing Hit Second Lowest in Nine Years

The Yahao Real Estate Selling and Consulting Solution Agency recently released statistics on the Beijing housing market. According to those statistics, in January 2014, there were a total of 6,908 transactions in the Beijing real estate market. These properties covered 744,200 square meters. In terms of the number of transactions and the total square meters of the properties involved in the transactions, the figures represented a 40 to 50 percent drop compared to December 2013 and to the same period in January 2013.

At the same time, at 6,908, the number of transactions for January 2014 was the second lowest in the almost nine years since 2006 when transactions started to be posted online to increase transparency in the housing market.

The China Index Academy monitored the January real estate transactions in 43 major cities and found that over 90 percent of these cities saw a decline from December 2013 in the total number of transactions. Bangbu was hit the hardest with a 56.78 percent decline, followed by Dalian’s with a 53.11 percent decline. The number of transactions in Shenzhen dropped by 44.4 percent, Beijing by 36.8 percent and Shanghai by 30.65 percent.

Source: Beijing Times reprinted by Huanqiu, February 23, 2014

http://china.huanqiu.com/roll/2014-02/4852590.html

Briefings | | February 27, 2014 | Economy/Resources

Study Times: Take the Initiative to Move Forward on the Road to RMB Internationalization

On February 24, 2014, Study Times, the publication of the Party School of the Central Committee of the CCP, published an article titled “RMB Internationalization Leads Chinese Economic Breakthrough.” The article reported that the People’s Bank has signed a currency swap agreement with the European Central Bank and the Bank of England, two of the three “World Central Banks.” According to the article, a currency swap with major world powers is a convenient way to realize the internationalization of the RMB. China’s economy has reached a critical juncture. It is time to take the initiative to move forward on the road of RMB internationalization. However, a currency war may be bloody and violent.

Source: Study Times, February 24, 2014
http://www.studytimes.com.cn/shtml/xxsb/20140224/3929.shtml

Briefings | | February 26, 2014 | Economy/Resources

The Chinese Communist Regime’s Strategies to Overpower the U.S.

Download PDF

The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) ghost is still behind every building block of Chinese society, while China’s economy has expanded to a scale comparable to that of the U.S. People who live in a society that doesn’t require having to face the CCP in their daily lives tend to underestimate the Party’s impact.

Although the U.S. government and the American people have never been China’s enemy, due to their conflicting ideologies, U.S. democracy and its values have presented the biggest threat to the CCP’s continued existence. This has been particularly true since the CCP attempted economic openness at the international level, while still trying to keep its political system unchanged. How the communist regime views and treats U.S.-China relations has therefore become quite complex.

Continue reading →

Analyses | | February 25, 2014 | Opinion

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.