THIS WEEK

JOINING THE JUBILEE

A dragon dance performance is held during a carnival celebrating the 16th anniversary of Hong Kong’s return to the motherland in Hong Kong on July 1.

Emergency Flight

Transparent Justice

In a bid to improve judicial transparency,China’s top court has posted judgments online for the first time,the Judicial Management Office of the Supreme People’s Court (SPC)said on July 2.

All of the judgments made by the SPC will continue to be publicized on its official website,www.court.gov.cn/zgcpwsw,except those concerning national secrets,trade secrets or personal privacy.

The office said in order to protect people’s legitimate rights,personal information related to the cases,including names,home addresses and ID card numbers,will be redacted before the judgments are posted.

Nuclear Safety

The State Council,China’s cabinet,recently approved the release of a revised version of the national nuclear emergency plan.

Drawing on the global response to nuclear accidents,including Japan’s Fukushima disaster in 2011,the plan specifies how national and provincial authorities and power stations should respond in the event of a nuclear accident.

The plan,amended from its 2005 version,requires relevant parties to disclose information in a timely manner to guide public response,according to the National Nuclear Emergency Response Office.

China has lifted a ban on approvals of new nuclear power stations,which was imposed in 2012,following Japan’s 2011 Fukushima disaster.The country now requires new stations be built according to the world’s highest safety standards.

China currently has 17 nuclear power reactors in operation,with a combined generating capacity of 14.76 million kw,and another 28 nuclear plants are currently being built.

SWEATY VACATION

Students from Sixian No.3 Middle School in Anhui Province take part in Outward Bound outdoor recreation training on July 3,as part of summer vacation activities

Elite Pilots

China’s first group of five carrierborne jet pilots and landing signal officers received their certifications in the latest sea trials of theLiaoning,the country’s first aircraft carrier,Xinhua News Agency reported on July 4.

TheLiaoningfinished its 25-day test and training mission on July 3.Using the J-15,China’s firstgeneration multi-purpose carrierborne fighter jet,pilots finished China’s first training mission stationed aboard the carrier as well as the first 105-meter short-distance ski-jump takeoff exercises.

Pilots and landing signal officers were tested on a range of skills.They passed the certification process following expert reviews and a flight data assessment.

Zhang Yongyi,Commander in Chief of the aircraft carrier tests and sea trials,said that China has successfully established a training system for carrier-borne jet pilots.

FOLK FASHION SHOW

A model struts in a Mongol costume at the opening ceremony of the Grassland Folk Culture Festival on June 28 in Xilin Gol League,Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region

Radio for Emergency

China is constructing a special emergency radio system to spread rescue and relief information in disasteraffected areas.

The State General Administration of Press,Publication,Radio,Film and Television,China National Radio and other departments are jointly building the broadcast network,according to a statement released after a symposium on the construction of national emergency radio services on July 2

China currently has no special system for releasing warnings or essential relief information to people in disaster-affected regions.The network is expected to be put into operation by the end of 2015,the statement said.

New Filial Law

An amended law that requires children to regularly visit their aging parents came into effect on July 1.

According to the law,family members should care about the psychological needs of their older relatives,and should visit them or send greetings on a regular basis.

The law was enacted to protect the lawful rights and interests of parents aged 60 and older,and to carry on the Chinese virtue of filial piety.

The law also states that China will cope with an aging population as part of its long-term national strategy,and will improve social security for old people.

The number of people aged 60 or older in China reached 185 million at the end of 2011,accounting for 13.7 percent of the population.It will exceed 200 million this year,according to the Ministry of Civil Affairs.That age group will number 480 million in 2050.

Mobile Malware

A total of 162,981 examples of malware circulating on mobile Internet devices have been detected by the National Computer Network Emergency Response Technical Team/Coordination Center of China (CNCERT/CC)or reported by Internet security companies,with 82.5 percent of the malware targeting phones using the Android operating system,the center said on July 4.The figure is 25 times more than that in 2011.

Most mobile Internet malware spreads through smartphone application stores,forums and sites offering other downloadable content,according to Zhou Yonglin,a department head at CNCERT/CC.

China has the world’s largest online population,as well as the most mobile Internet users.

In 2012,over 16,000 websites had been tampered with in China,up 6.1 percent from 2011,according to the center.

A total of 52,324 websites were found to be harboring malicious software last year,among which 3,016 were government websites,the center added.

Animal Show Ban

Animal performances will be strictly banned in zoos in China,according to a guideline on the development of zoos released on July 2.

The guideline,formulated by the Chinese Association of Zoological Gardens and released by the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development,also requires all zoos to improve emergency mechanisms to ensure safety in case dangerous animals escape.

Problems still exist in zoo development in China,and a prominent one is that some zoos irregularly utilize animals for profit,such as organizing animal performances or selling wild animal products,according to the ministry.

Oceanaut Recruitment

China’s manned submersible,the Jiaolong,is hoisted by its support ship for a deep-sea dive on July 3 to conduct geological sampling on complex terrain in the South China Sea.China has kicked off a five-month recruitment process for oceanauts to serve on the submersible.Four men and two women will be selected to train as oceanauts for the Jiaolong’s future missions,said a National Deep Sea Center statement.

Honey Melon,Sweeter Life

Farmers load honeydew melons at Nanhu Village in Hami,Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region.Honeydew melons from the village are in high demand both at home and abroad.A total of over 30,000 tons of melons are expected to ship out from the village.

Price Probe

Several infant milk formula producers,mainly foreign,are under anti-trust investigation by the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) for allegedly fixing prices.

Baby formula companies under investigation include Nestle SA,Abbott Laboratories,Mead Johnson Nutrition Co.,Danone’s Dumex and Wyeth Nutrition,as well as a local company Biostime International Holdings Ltd.

The NDRC has evidence that these companies charged higher prices in the Chinese market,with price increases of about 30 percent since 2008,said a report fromPeople’s Daily.

Concerns about the safety of domestic milk powder,especially after a melamine-tainted milk powder scandal in 2008,have fueled Chinese demand for foreign infant formula.Media reports say that foreign brands now account for about half the sales of baby formula in China.

“Boosted by increasing market demand,foreign baby formula companies have raised their prices every year,”said Wang Dingmian,executive council member of the Dairy Association of China.“Now,the consensus is that China is home to the most expensive infant milk in the world.”

Financing Support

The People’s Bank of China,the country’s central bank,said on July 1 that it has arranged a 12-billion-yuan($1.94-billion) re-lending quota to boost financial support for small and micro-businesses and rural areas.

Re-lending is a monetary tool used by the central bank to increase the liquidity of financial institutions and guide credit flows.

The central bank requires that funds from the quota be credited to small and micro-businesses,as well as the agricultural sector,rural areas and farmers.

About 162 billion yuan ($26.44 billion) has been accumulated in the re-lending quota to date,and 45 percent has gone to small and micro-businesses and 27 percent to rural areas.

GAME COMES TRUE

A theme park featuring characters of the famous mobilephone app Angry Bird is under construction in Haining,Zhejiang Province,on July 2.The park is expected to open in October

Trading HK Stocks

China’s planned qualified domestic individual investor program,known as QDII-2,may allow investors to buy securities products in the Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Ltd.(HKEx),according to aShanghai Securities Newsreport on June 28.

China’s central bank has decided to set up the QDII-2 pilot program in south China’s Guangdong Province,and is waiting for final approval from the State Council.

The investment scheme will first target HKEx and then expand to other financial products in the Hong Kong market,and gradually to products in other parts of the world.

Qualified domestic individual investors should have three years of experience in stock investment and financial assets equivalent to no less than 1.5 million yuan ($244,000).

The lower and upper limits of a single individual investor for overseas investment are set at 500,000 yuan ($81,600) and 20 million yuan($3.26 million) respectively.

To control risks,QDII-2 funds should circulate in a special account.It cannot be transferred into elsewhere,said the document.

Currently,only institutional investors in China can invest in overseas capital markets,via the qualified domestic institutional investor program,or QDII-1.

INTERCITY HIGH-SPEED

City Aid Plan

Central Government spending on transfer payments given to resourceexhausted cities will amount to 16.8 billion yuan ($2.72 billion) in 2013,an increase of 5 percent,said the Ministry of Finance on July 3.

Northeast China’s Heilongjiang,Liaoning and Jilin provinces are the top three beneficiaries,with 2.04 billion yuan ($332.7 million) going to Heilongjiang,1.64 billion yuan($267.5 million) to Liaoning and 1.53 billion yuan ($249.5 million) to Jilin.

The arrangement depends mainly on the conditions of resource exhaustion,the local nonagricultural population,a province’s fiscal power and a city’s financial situation,according to the ministry.The money will flow to local ecological management programs,municipal infrastructure construction and social security sectors.

The transfer payment was initiated in 2007 by the Central Government to advance city transformations nationwide.A total of 69 cities have been brought into its scope since then.

Aluminum Expo

Visitors observe aluminum alloy products at the ninth China International Aluminum Exposition held in Shanghai on July 2.The expo,showcasing the latest in materials and technology,was attended by 450 aluminum industry players from more than 30 countries.

Free Trade Zone

The State Council approved Shanghai’s free trade zone project on July 3,which will catapult the city to the forefront of global logistics centers.

The project,mapped out at the start of this year,is the first of its kind in China.

When completed,the Shanghai free trade zone will provide worldclass transport and communications facilities and a tax-free environment for domestic and foreign enterprises as a major hub of their supply chains in Asia.

The zone,occupying 28 square km, will take more than 10 years to build.It will center on the Yangshan Deep Water Port and include the Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone,Yangshan Free Trade Port Area and Pudong Airport Comprehensive Free Trade Zone.

Numbers

1,620 yuan

New minimum monthly wage in Shanghai,the highest in China

830 tln yuan

Online payment transactions handled by Chinese payment service providers in 2012

96

Number of Chinese banks in the list of Top 1,000 World Banks by British magazineThe Banker

$150 bln

China’s expected outbound direct investment in 2015

VIET NAM

Students and parents pray at the Temple of Literature in Hanoi on July 2.Students preparing for university entrance exams flock to the temple,believing it will bring them good luck

EGYPT

Adly Mansour (center),head of Egypt’s Supreme Constitutional Court,delivers a speech during his swearing-in ceremony as the country’s interim president in Cairo on July 4,a day after the military ousted President Mohamed Morsi following days of massive protests

THE UNITED STATES

A dog wearing sunglasses drinks water in a Los Angeles park on June 29.A heat wave swept through the southwest United States,bringing temperatures as high as 52 degrees Celsius in some desert areas

FRANCE

Eurocorps soldiers raise the national flag of Croatia in front of the European Parliament building in Strasbourg on July 1,the day the former Yugoslav republic became the 28th member of the EU

CANADA

Performers dance at an event in Montreal celebrating the 146th anniversary of Canada’s founding on July 1

GERMANY

Participants react to a colored powder shower at the green zone during a 5-km race in Munich on June 30.Thousands of runners took part in the event,passing through four color zones

“What senior citizens crave most is the love and care of their family.From a legislative point of view,it is necessary to provide legal support to what we see as a great social need.”

Dang Junwu,Deputy Dean at the Institute of China Aging Populations Studies,in response to an amended law put into effect on July 1 that requires grown-up children to regularly visit their aging parents

“Guide dogs are a life necessity for physically challenged people,so prohibiting these dogs from public transportation is depriving the disabled of their rights to travel.”

Niu Qianqian,a 26-year-old Beijing resident,commenting on the draft reIeased on the officiaI website of the LegaI Affairs Office of the Beijing Government on June 25 stating that animals may be forbidden from public transport in an attempt to prevent the transmission of animal diseases

“Non-commercial ads encouraging blood donation are Ok,but ads that ask people to donate their sperm might be too much for some people.”

Zhao Bangrong,Director of the Hebei Human Sperm Bank,in response to China’s sperm donation shortage,on June 29

“The Internet is amazing.It can answer any question you ask.”

Luosang,a villager from Deten,30 km from Lhasa of Tibet,talking about the power of the Internet from his perspective.His son secured a job in Lhasa via online recruitment in April

UNIvERSITY PRESIDENT RESIGNS

Fang Binxing,President of Beijing University of Posts and Telecommunications,a leading university in the fieId of teIecommunications,said he wouId resign from his post at the university’s graduation ceremony on June 27.He said the dual workload of academic and management responsibilities has exhausted him.Born in 1960,Fang is known as the Father of the Chinese National Firewall for his design of the system dubbed the“Great Firewall.”He became president of the university in 2007.

FIlM ACTRESS HoNoRED

Management of Temporary Workers

China Newsweek June 17

On May 31,eight urban management workers in Yan’an,northwest China’s Shaanxi Province,had a scuffle with a bicycle shop owner and his employees while they were on duty.

An official statement of the urban management department later said that only two of the eight workers are full-time employees,while the other six are temporary workers.In China,temporary workers in governmental departments have become a tricky phenomenon.Some of them inflict violence when enforcing law.

Although they ease the labor shortage of the governmental departments that hire them,they also put the latter into a dilemma.If they really are temporary workers,the government goes against the Labor Contract Law in hiring them;if they have signed a contract with the government,then the government should be responsible for their behavior.

Outsourcing public power seems to facilitate management in the short term;however,it may cause bigger management difficulties in the future.In a legalistic society,the government’s administrative responsibilities should not be given up or transferred.Hiring temporary workers to enforce the law not only contributes to inefficiency in certain departments,but more importantly reduces the government’s authority.

Carpool Policies

Qilu Evening News July 1

Beijing plans to encourage citizens to commute by carpool as a way of easing the city’s heavy traffic pressure,according to reports.The municipal government is now working on a variety of incentives to encourage carpooling.

Beijing has developed a reputation worldwide for its notorious traffic jams.Against this reality,carpooling sounds like a reasonable alternative on paper.However,questions remain over the plan’s legality and how to implement fees into the service.Car owners now run the risk of being punished for unlawfully operating their vehicles in a carpool mode.The unresolved fee issue has become a major obstacle in implementing such a program in the city.

The city government is going to release some guidelines on carpooling by the end of this year.Beijing’s action not only benefits itself,but also serves as a significant reference for other big cities across the country.With the rapid pace of urban construction,many cities are now faced with the same traffic woes as in Beijing.Municipal governments across China must now consider how to safeguard the rights of both car owners and passengers in order to ensure a lawful carpool practice.

Petition Online

People’s Daily July 1

The State Bureau for Letters and Calls,a Central Government department that handles complaints,opened an online petition system on its official website on July 1.This new channel of petitioning will help people better file complaints against governmental departments and improve the latter’s efficiency in handling citizen concerns.

The official online petition is convenient for both citizens and the government.Petitioners are able to ask higher authorities to help resolve their difficulties on the Internet without traveling hundreds and even thousands of miles to the gate of the governmental department.On the other hand,the new online petition system will allow the government to better track,supervise and respond to complaints,all under the surveillance of the public.

Enhancing the ties between citizens and the government is an important objective of the online petition system.In recent years,citizen petitions have become a hot topic in the country.Facts show that if the government cannot handle petitions well,relations between the government and the people will inevitably suffer.Online petitions are a way for the underprivileged and governments at all levels to connect.

The Central Government has carried out a series of reforms on the petition system in a bid to alter the way government departments engage the public and protect the lawful interests and rights of the people.

Intensive Land Use

Outlook Weekly June 24

With the rapid development of China’s urbanization,the tension between land supply and demand has become increasingly tight.On the one hand,the country’s land reserve is nearing the“red line”of 1.8 billionmu(120 million hectares);on the other hand,wide roads,large public squares and industrial parks that are incompatible with city size are eating away at the arable land.

If such an extensive method of land use continues,land resources will eventually be exhausted due to fast-paced urbanization and industrialization.The only solution is to transform the land use model into an intensive one.

Practices in Zhejiang and Guangdong provinces have both proved that intensively using land improves productivity and injects strong impetus to development.It should also be noted that such a process should guarantee farmers’ interests.