On Chinese Media

Minsheng Weekly

Issue No. 8， published on April 14， 2014

Beijing， Shanghai and Guangzhou， Besieged yet Abandoned

Of the 49 million people or more that left Beijing， Shanghai， Guangzhou， and Shenzhen for their rural hometowns in the lead-up to the 2014 Lunar New Year on January 31， 10.7 million did not return， Tencent data shows. From February 2 to 25， 2014， meanwhile， 19.94 million migrants made their first entry into the four A-tier cities.

This statistic conjures up the image of a teeming throng flowing into Chinas four most economically developed cities as another one， equally immense， heads out.

Mass departures from these four metropolises have been observed and commented upon over the past decade. The reality， however， is that a flow-back of migrants from smaller cities often follows such an exodus， so perpetuating the cycle. In this issue， journalists and scholars explore the underlying reasons for this phenomenon， namely， the factors that influence migrant workers decision-making and judgment.

Oriental Outlook

Issue No. 15， published on April 17， 2014

Factors Critical to Medicare Reform

Needed reforms to Chinas medical care system are too many to mention， but the three main ones are those of addressing hospitals excessive dependence on drug sales， institutional innovation， and rekindling healthcare workers zeal for their work.

In 2009 the magazine ran a feature story suggesting that one key to health care reform lies in emancipating doctors. In recent years policymakers and people from all walks have been exploring ways of diffusing once and for all the tensions that frequently arise between doctors and patients. All experimental reforms in this regard focus on the two main parties involved —healthcare workers and patients.

This issue features interviews with a number of doctors in different hospital departments that reveal two impediments to medical reform. One is the absence of support that enables doctors to practice at a locale of their own choosing. The second is that the current medical insurance advance payment policy in hospitals discourages them from admitting certain patients.

Providing the public with affordable， accessible and quality medical services requires more than medical workers conscience and moral obligations.

CBN Weekly

Issue No. 13， published on April 14， 2014

Start-up Appeal

Government departments， state-owned enterprises， and transnational corporations have lost their luster for new college graduates. Their preference appears to have shifted to emerging private businesses， particularly bigger ones， attractive by virtue of their swelling capital， business growth， and management strength， not to mention good pay and innovative dynamism.

A recent Universum survey of 51，400 2014 college graduates shows that 25 percent intend to join state-owned enterprises， as compared with 33 percent in 2012， and that 21 percent have a preference for foreign companies – less than half of the 44 percent whose choice was this last year. Those with their eye on private businesses， including start-ups， meanwhile， soared to 30 percent from 14 percent in 2013.

Todays younger generation is less concerned than before about the ownership of the company that employs them. Thirty percent of college graduates taking part in a 51job.com survey in 2012 said that a companys ownership did not influence their desire to work for it. Only 16 percent had a preference for European and American companies， and 21 percent were most interested in the private sector.

Caijing

Issue No.13， published on May 5， 2014

On Oil Industry Reform

Chinas top leadership explicitly stated last November that mixed ownership is a key manifestation of the countrys fundamental economic system. Soon after， reforms to the oil industry– in which government investment is heaviest – began.

The foremost issues to be tackled in promoting mixed ownership in the oil industry are breaking monopolies， opening the market， making geological data transparent， and allowing free circulation of oil， petroleum， and gas assets to ensure the survival of companies other than the three oil Titans ─ CNPC， SINOPEC and CNOOC. Stateowned oil companies must also adapt their management towards fostering a modern corporate system and following internationally recognized market rules. These goals cannot be achieved without top level design.

Chairman of the board of Lenovo Liu Chuanzhi made no bones about the nature of stateowned enterprises at the 2014 Boao Forum for Asia when he stated that they are not businesses in the true sense of the word. State-owned companies have for years remained an arm of the government rather than purely economic entities.

To achieve its intended reform goals， China must itself answer the question “what is a corporate？” before considering that of“where is reform heading？”