Chinascope – Page 894

Xi Jinping: China Must Develop a Strong National Defense and a Strong Army

From December 8 to 10, 2012, Chinese Communist Party leader and military head Xi Jinping conducted an inspection tour of the Guangzhou military base. While addressing the local military leaders, Xi emphasized that “the greatest dream of the Chinese nation in modern times is the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation. The dream is a dream of a powerful nation. To the army, it is also the dream of a strong army.” Xi further stressed that to achieve the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation, (we) must adhere to unifying the efforts to empower the nation by empowering the army; (we must) strive to develop a strong national defense and a strong military.

Source: Xinhua, December 12,2102

http://news.xinhuanet.com/politics/2012-12/12/c_114003822.htm

Briefings | | December 12, 2012 | Defense/Military

People’s Daily: Government Taxes and Fees Take Seventy Percent of the Cost of Housing

People’s Daily recently published a report on the result of research on the cost of housing. International Finance News, which is owned by People’s Daily, conducted the research, which delved into the full cost chain of the housing market from establishing the construction project to the final delivery to the ultimate buyer. The research showed that the entire process involves seven categories of government taxes and fees. These break down into thirty seven accounting cost items. The total cost of these government taxes and fees amounts to seventy percent of the price of the property. Different provinces may have some differences in those fees. In Beijing, the housing development process involves over twenty government agencies. In Guangzhou, this number is over thirty. Experts suggested that the real number would be higher than seventy percent if one considered upstream and downstream costs outside the scope of the construction project.

Source: People’s Daily, December 8, 2012

http://finance.people.com.cn/n/2012/1208/c1004-19832473.html

Briefings | | December 11, 2012 | Economy/Resources

WCIT2012: China and Russia Called for New Internet Rules

The Shanghai based newspaper Dongfang Daily recently published a report on the World Conference on International Telecommunications 2012 (WCIT2012), which started on December 4 in Dubai and will last 12 days. Government representatives from over 193 countries attended the event. During the event, the Internet governance issue once again became a big topic. China and Russia called for a new UN-based governance structure for the Internet instead of the current system managed by the US-based non-profit organization ICANN (Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers). China and Russia expressed the belief that all Internet member countries should have equal rights to Internet management. The United States and some other countries in the West took a strong position against any measure that would allow governments to monitor what people read and say online. Large Internet companies such as Google also stood against the new proposal. The WCIT2012 host, the International Telecommunications Union (ITU – a UN branch), suggested that everybody should focus on the fact that there are still 4.5 billion people who couldn’t even connect to the Internet.

[Editor’s Note: Media later reported that, on the afternoon of December 10, China, Russia, and other countries with poor records on freedom of expression withdrew their proposals.]

Source: Dongfang Daily, December 4, 2012

http://www.dfdaily.com/html/51/2012/12/4/904561.shtml

Briefings | | December 11, 2012 | Information/Technology

National Bureau of Statistics: November CPI up 2 Percent Compared to the Same Period Last Year

According to statistics reported by the National Bureau of Statistics of China, the November CPI was up 2 percent when compared to the same period last year. The CPI grew 2.1 percent among urban residents and 1.9 percent in the countryside. The report said that the price of food went up 3 percent while the price of non-food items went up 1.6 percent. The price for consumables was up by 1.9 percent and the service sector was up 2.3 percent.

Compared to October, the November CPI was 0.1 percent higher. The CPI in urban areas went up by 0.1 percent, while the countryside went up by 0.2 percent; the price of food was up by 0.4 percent and non-food prices were flat. The price of consumables was up by 0.3 percent while the prices in the service sector were down by 0.3 percent.

Source: Xinhua, December 9, 2012
http://news.xinhuanet.com/fortune/2012-12/09/c_124068137.htm

Briefings | | December 10, 2012 | Economy/Resources

Xinhua: The Dalai Lama Orchestrated the Self Immolation Incidents in Sichuan

According to Xinhua, the Public Security Bureau of Sichuan Province arrested two suspects from Ngawa County. One suspect was a monk from Kirti Gompa temple who "admitted" that he received direct orders from the Dalai Lama Group, which persuaded eight civilians to commit self-immolation, resulting in three deaths. The police in Sichuan stated that they will “conduct further investigations and severely punish those criminal actions that incite, instigate, and coerce innocent civilians to conduct self-immolation.”

Source: Xinhua, December 9, 2012
http://news.xinhuanet.com/legal/2012-12/09/c_113960646.htm

Briefings | | December 10, 2012 | Government/Politics

CCP Central Committee’s Political Bureau Meeting on Economic Work for 2013

In Beijing on December 4, 2012, the CCP Central Committee’s Political Bureau held a meeting on the economic work to be done in 2013. The result of the meeting was that China will continue to strengthen its control over real estate pricing.

The meeting set the direction for the year 2013 as follows: maintain the continuity and stability of macro-economic policies and apply appropriate precautionary adjustments and micro adjustments to the economy; try to expand domestic demand and continue strict control over over-production; maintain the stability of the general price level and regulate market prices and fee structures; improve people’s living standards and strengthen control over real estate pricing.

Source:
Huanqiu, December 4, 2012.
http://china.huanqiu.com/politics/2012-12/3344280.html

Briefings | | December 7, 2012 | Economy/Resources

Senior Party Official Investigated for Corruption

On December 6, Xinhua announced that the Communist Party Central Commission for Discipline Inspection confirmed that Li Chuncheng, the Deputy Communist Secretary of Sichuan Province, is being investigated for “suspicion of serious discipline violations." The one sentence announcement did not offer details. Later Xinhua published a follow-up commentary which stated that the anti-corruption campaign is unfolding from the central government to local governments. Huanqiu, which is under People’s Daily also published a commentary. It stated that official media tend to categorize reports on corruption as being “sensitive” and that in every case in which official media delay or maintain a low profile when handling the publication of such reports, it creates the appearance of a cover-up. Li is the first senior party official to be investigated for corruption since the new Party General Secretary, Xi Jinping, took over from Hu Jintao in November.

Sources:
Xinhua, December 6, 2012
http://news.xinhuanet.com/politics/2012-12/06/c_113923447.htm
Xinhua reprinted by Guangming Daily, December 6, 2012
http://legal.gmw.cn/2012-12/06/content_5920335.htm Huanqiu, December 6, 2012
Huanqiu, December 6, 2012
http://opinion.huanqiu.com/editorial/2012-12/3349303.html

Briefings | | December 7, 2012 | 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.