Chinascope – Page 950

People’s Daily on Political Reform in China

On May 14, 2012, People’s Daily published an article on the subject of political reform in China. It stated, “The unswerving goal of the Party and the country is to actively and prudently promote political reform and develop socialist democratic politics.” The article explained that the "two aspects of political reform" are to “restrain power” and to “guarantee rights.” According to the article, what “restraining power" refers to is the supervision and control of public authorities,” and to “‘guarantee rights’ means to respect and enrich citizens’ rights.”

Source: People’s Daily, May 14, 2012
http://opinion.people.com.cn/GB/17876797.html

Briefings | | May 16, 2012 | Government/Politics

Xinhua: Former Federal Reserve Official Criticized the U.S. Government for Manipulating the Dollar

On May 14, 2012, Xinhua reported that Herman Cain, former chairman of the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City and former Republican Presidential candidate, commented on the Federal Reserve System. Cain said, "the present U.S. monetary system is an abysmal failure by any objective measure." He expressed the belief that the Fed is manipulating the dollar and that the United States should roll back to the Gold Standard. Cain wrote an article for the Wall Street Journal saying that “it is not the people of the Fed, but the actual structure, that needs reform. Our liberty and prosperity depend on it.” For the last 40 years in Washington, regulate has meant manipulate, with the Federal Reserve raising and lowering interest rates and buying and selling assets at its own discretion. Since the beginning of the global financial crisis, the Federal Reserve has lowered the interest rate to 0.25%. All the Fed’s recent rounds of “Quantitative Easing (QE)” efforts have cast a negative image on the Federal Reserve inside and outside of the United States.

Sources: Xinhua, May 14, 2012
http://news.xinhuanet.com/2012-05/15/c_123128015.htm

Wall Street Journal, May 13, 2012
"Herman Cain: We Need a Dollar as Good as Gold,"
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702304070304577395891113592150.html?mod=googlenews_wsj

Briefings | | May 15, 2012 | US-China Relations

Tourism Administration: Chinese Tourists in the Philippines are Returning Home

On May 13, 2012, China’s National Tourism Administration announced that, after the government released a travel safety advisory, Chinese tourist groups in the Philippines have been speeding up the process of returning home. According to the records of the Tourism Administration, there were 682 tourists in the Philippines on May 13, 2012, and there will be 211 people on May 14 and 15. Most of the Chinese travel agencies have stopped sending travel groups (to the Philippines) or have even stopped accepting applications. Tourist flights from major cities like Beijing and Shanghai to Boracay, Philippines have all been cancelled. Based on statistics, China is one of the Philippines major sources of tourism. It has more than 1 million Chinese visitors every year.

Source: Official Site of Chinese Central Government, May 13, 2012
http://www.gov.cn/jrzg/2012-05/13/content_2136105.htm

Briefings | | May 15, 2012 | Defense/Military

Qiu Shi: The West Discredits Chinese State-Owned Enterprises

Qiu Shi, a magazine of the CCP Central Committee, published an article that accused the West of giving Chinese state-owned enterprises (SOE’s) a bad name. The article claimed that there has been a recent wave of propaganda in the West suggesting that the Chinese government subsidizes SOE’s. This practice introduces unfair competition into international trade and hurts China’s trading partners. However, the author attempted to justify the dominance of SOE’s in the key industries by referring to existence of SOE’s in the history of Western capitalism. The author expressed that the West just does not feel happy about the fact that some Chinese state-owned companies are too large and too successful for them to be able to compete. The article concluded that China should keep backing these companies.

Source: Qiu Shi, May 10, 2012
http://www.qstheory.cn/gj/gjsspl/201205/t20120510_156891.htm

Briefings | | May 15, 2012 | Economy/Resources

Beijing Daily: Raising High the Banner of Patriotism

Beijing has undergone great difficulty recently in the arena of morality as the Bo Xilai and Chen Guangcheng cases have publicly exposed both corruption and human rights violations. On May 11, 2012, Xinhua republished a Beijing Daily article, stating, “China’s development needs a ‘patriotic faction.’” It said that currently in China, patriotism has been criticized and ridiculed. China must form a common understanding at a high level that patriotism is a core value that all Chinese must defend.

The article expressed criticism because “some people are obsessed with ‘universal values’ and with being ‘world citizens,’ but they forget that, in the first place, they are Chinese. These people have sold their souls, forgotten their ancestors, and served as servants of the West.” “While these people are usually very corrupt inside, they promote moral standards. … On the Internet, they post many anti-China statements and cover it up with a high moral appeal. Some even use the format of cursing and spreading rumors, creating a very bad influence on others. … It has been proven that those who betray their country and sell out their country have no morals at all.”

Source: Xinhua, May 11, 2012
http://news.xinhuanet.com/politics/2012-05/11/c_111928971_2.htm

Briefings | | May 14, 2012 | Government/Politics

Zhou Yongkang Attended the Xinjiang Electricity Delivery Project Opening Ceremony

Both Xinhua and People’s Daily reported that, on May 13, 2012, Zhou Yongkang attended the opening ceremony of the “Xinjiang Electricity Delivery” project at Bayinguoleng Prefecture, Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region. Zhou is a member of the Politburo Standing Committee and the head of the Political and Legal Committee. He is widely reported to have been closely connected with Bo Xilai.

The “Xinjiang Electricity Delivery” project starts from Hami, Xinjiang and ends at Zhengzhou City, Henan Province. When completed, it will deliver ten million kilowatts of electricity to Central China.

Source: Xinhua, May 13 2012
http://news.xinhuanet.com/politics/2012-05/13/c_123121768.htm
People’s Daily Online, May 14, 2012
http://politics.people.com.cn/GB/1024/17875535.html

Briefings | | May 14, 2012 | Government/Politics

Beijing Takes Tough Stance on Scarborough Shoal

After being enmeshed in the Bo Xilai incident and the Chen Guangcheng escape to the U.S. Embassy for a few months, last week, Beijing took a tougher stance against the Philippines on the issue of the sovereignty of Huangyan Island (known as the Scarborough Shoal internationally) in the South China Sea. Both China and the Philippines claim ownership of the area; in the past month, the tension between the two countries has been escalating, including the involvement of navy ships.

On May 7, Fu Ying, China’s Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs called a meeting with Alex Chua, Charge D’affaires of the Philippine Embassy in China. Fu made a serious representation over the current situation at Huangyan Island. She stated that the Chinese side has made all necessary preparations to respond in case the Philippine side caused the situation to escalate.

On May 8, People’s Daily published a commentary titled “When it is intolerable, there is no need for restraint. China does not mind creating a Huangyan Island Model.” It stated, “When others challenge us, especially on matters related to territorial integrity, national dignity, and social stability, we must take action to destroy this ‘unhealthy trend’ and win ourselves a harmonious and stable environment.” “There is a limit to how much generosity we can demonstrate. When it’s intolerable, then there is no need for restraint.” “Facing this opponent, we have enough wisdom and also enough means to make it surrender without a war.” Though the article used the words, "make it surrender without a war," the entire tone of the article hinted at a direct confrontation with the Philippines.

Sources: Ministry of Foreign Affairs Website, May 8, 2012
http://www.fmprc.gov.cn/eng/zxxx/t929748.htm
Peoples’ Daily, May 8, 2012
http://politics.people.com.cn/GB/17829343.html

Briefings | | May 14, 2012 | Geo-Strategic Trend

China’s Relies on Imports for over 56 Percent of Its Oil and Iron Ore

On May 10, 2011, China’s Ministry of Land and Resources issued the “2011 China’s Land and Resources Report.” The report revealed that China relies on imports for over 56 percent of all of the oil and iron ore it uses. The report stated, “In 2011, the total foreign trade in mineral products amounted to US$957.1 billion, which was a 34.3 percent increase over the previous year; imports increased 34.5, while exports increased 33.9 percent.”

Source: People’s Daily, May 10, 2012
http://politics.people.com.cn/GB/1027/17859378.html

Briefings | | May 11, 2012 | Economy/Resources

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.