NEWLY APPOINTED VICE FOREIGN MINISTER

Kong Xuanyou has been appointed vice minister of foreign affairs， the State Council announced on January 2. Kongs last position was assistant minister of foreign affairs.

Kong was born in northeast Chinas Heilongjiang Province in July 1959. He studied Japanese at Shanghai International Studies University from 1979 to 1983 and continued further study of diplomacy at China Foreign Affairs University from 1983 to 1985. Then Kong started his diplomat career as a staff member and consular attachéat the Chinese Consulate-General in Osaka， Japan. Kong assumed the position of ambassador to Viet Nam during 2011-14. In 2015， Kong was appointed assistant minister of foreign affairs. In August 2017， Kong also took the position of special representative of the Chinese Government on Korean Peninsula affairs.

Kong is specialized in the areas of Asia， treaty and law， boundary and ocean affairs， and consular affairs.

Ban on Importing Trash Legal Daily January 2， 2018

In December 2017， the General Administration of Customs carried out a Blue Sky campaign in 13 provinces to crack down on smuggling of solid waste. During the campaign， 127 criminal suspects were arrested， and 323，000 tons of solid waste， including plastics and slag， were seized.

Increasing amounts of foreign waste continue to be imported because of the huge profi ts it brings. Some people buy these waste materials illegally and end up selling them at prices up to hundreds of times what they originally paid.

Loopholes in regulations and laws are also reasons why rubbish continues to fl ow into China. Article 25 of Chinas Law on the Prevention and Control of Environmental Pollution by Solid Waste bans importing solid waste. But it also allows the import of solid waste that can be used as raw materials. Some companies utilize this ambiguity to bring hazardous foreign waste into China.

What worries people the most is whether smuggling of foreign waste will come back once the crackdown is over. In addition to campaigns， we must also prepare for a time-consuming war. Relevant government departments should perfect relevant laws， regulations and working mechanisms and join hands to severely punish the smuggling， acquisition， processing and sales of foreign waste in accordance with the law. The government could investigate the import of waste by enterprises through integrating environmental law enforcement， monitoring and solid waste management and with the use of on-site exploration and sampling. Apart from asset confiscation and fines， waste smugglers must bear criminal liability.endprint

Thorny Problem of Going Bankrupt

Caixin Weekly December 25， 2017

Going bankrupt is a solution for an enterprise that has fallen into deep trouble. In legislation， the law on bankruptcy aims to offer debtors a road to get relief and clear up debts as well as to protect the legal interests of all stakeholders. But in reality， many Chinese enterprises fi nd it very hard to go bankrupt until their debt issues become incurable and have a big impact.

The history of law and regulations on bankruptcy is not long in China. Chinas top legislature issued the countrys fi rst Law on Bankruptcy for Enterprises in 1986， providing a legal framework and procedures for enterprises to go bankrupt. In the late 1990s， many state-owned enterprises across the country went bankrupt as part of the implementation of economic reform. At that time， liquidation was the major approach of bankruptcy， by which an enterprise shut down and sold assets to repay debts. In 2006， the Standing Committee of the National Peoples Congress amended the bankruptcy law. So far， the law regulates three solutions after an enterprise goes bankrupt： reaching compromise with creditors， reshuffl e and liquidation.

In recent years， many enterprises met difficulties and fell into debt as economic growth took a downturn. However， the number of bankruptcy cases did not increase correspondingly. The reasons differ. Some enterprise owners were not willing to let their enterprises die. Some local governments set barriers for enterprises to go bankrupt in order to maintain the GDP and employment rates. Some courts were too prudent in dealing with bankruptcy cases， which slowed down the process.

During the Central Economic Work Conference in December 2017， policymakers stressed solving the issue of “zombie enterprises” through approaches like bankruptcy and asset restructuring in a bid to further supply-side structural reform and shift toward highquality development.

A Cleaner Takeout

South Daily January 2， 2018

The takeout food and beverage market has been booming in recent years. Meanwhile， the quality of online booking services and food safety have become a matter of public concern. On January 1， the Law on Measures for the Supervision and Administration of Food Safety in Internet Catering Services took effect.

Growing apps and delivery services make it convenient to order food online. But risks might hide behind the booming business. Customers have no idea about the food processing and whether the service providers are qualified. Besides self-discipline， external regulation should be introduced.endprint

Currently， market players who can better comply with the rules can win the trust of consumers. The newly released measures stipulate that online catering services should be offered based on physical restaurants， and third-party platforms should inspect these restaurants and regularly review their business licenses.

Food safety in delivery is also a concern. In this regard， the new measures require restaurants and distribution staff to take on corresponding obligations. For instance， it demands that online platforms fulfi ll their responsibilities to provide information and strictly control the food manufacturing process， and requires delivery staff to maintain certain personal hygiene standards and ensure delivery without contamination.

With booming sales of online food and beverage， it has been a top priority for food safety watchdogs to strengthen supervision. The purpose of the new measures is to set rules for market players. The public ex pect them to be implemented strictly.

STAR ELECTED VICE CHAIRMAN OF A POLITICAL PARTY

Feng Gong， a renowned cross-talk artist and comedy star， was elected vice chairman of the Revolutionary Committee of the Chinese Kuomintang at the partys 13th National Congress， which concluded in Beijing on December 24， 2017. The leadership of the non-Communist political party is composed of Chairman Wan Exiang and 10 vice chairpersons.

Born in Tianjin City in 1957， Feng is widely known in China for his outstanding artistic attainment in cross-talk， a traditional Chinese art performance. He developed his comedic style in cross-talk and extended it to other artistic performances such as drama， TV series and fi lms. In his works， Feng always focuses on ordinary people living in cities， which makes him popular.

Feng has rich life experience， spanning from worker， soldier and cross-talk actor to fi lm director and theatrical troupe leader. Feng joined the Revolutionary Committee of the Chinese Kuomintang in November 2000. He is also a member of the Standing Committee of the National Committee of the Chinese Peoples Political Consultative Conference.

“We will continue to advance the transformation of the global transportation and automotive industries through diversified international operations and partnerships.”

Cheng Wei， CEO of DiDi Chuxing， commenting on the Chinese ride-hailing companys acquisition of leading Brazilian counterpart， 99， on January 3

“The newly discovered species in south Yunnan enriches the public knowledge of the geographical distribution and diversity of this flowering plant from the Primulaceae family.”

Yang Bin， researcher on biodiversity with the Chinese Academy of Sciences， speaking about Primula Zhui in Kunming， southwest Chinas Yunnan Province， on January 2

“The project will save space for building solar farms and shorten the transmission distance.”

Xu Chunfu， Chairman of Qilu Transportation Development Group， speaking after a 1-km section of photovoltaic expressway was put into testing in Jinan， east Chinas Shandong Province， on December 28， 2017

“By issuing the visa regulations， China is sending a signal that it welcomes top talent from across the world and that it is willing to create conditions for such talent to work and live in China.”

Gao Xiang， Director of the Policies and Regulations Department of the State Administration of Foreign Experts Affairs， speaking about the issuance of R visas in Beijing on January 5endprint