News » Society » More rainstorms forecast for north, heat wave for south
News » Society » More rainstorms forecast for north, heat wave for south |
- More rainstorms forecast for north, heat wave for south
- 40,000 evacuated from homes as floods peak
- Power transmission project gets under way
- Paper mill pipeline scrapped after outcry
- Strangler death sentence
- Officials punished over coach with 111 people
- Patrol vessel launched
- Hepatitis B carriers highlight discrimination
- China cancels waste project after protests turn violent
- SAFE ‘to invest $500m’ in Blackstone property fund
- China’s Yi Siling wins 1st gold medal in London
- SEC Freezes Assets in Insider Probe of CNOOC’s Nexen Buy
- In Chinese Politics, a Fall—and a Rise
- Have You Heard…
- Apple pays $60 million and still doesn’t get iPad trademark in China
- In pictures: China water pipeline protest
- Agricultural authorities have culled about 95,000 chickens following an outbreak of the H5N1 bird flu virus in northwest China.
- 12,000 rail passengers stranded by floods
- About 12,000 train passengers were stranded after a rainstorm flooded a section of the railway between Beijing and the city of Baotou.
- China's Yi wins first Games gold
| More rainstorms forecast for north, heat wave for south Posted: 28 Jul 2012 09:34 AM PDT CHINA'S meteorological authorities yesterday forecast rainstorms for the nation's northern areas, and a heat wave in the south. Heavy rains and storms were forecast for northern parts of north and northeast China up until tomorrow, the National Meteorological Center said. Torrential rains will hit eastern parts of Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, central-western parts of Heilongjiang Province, western areas of Jilin Province, central parts of Liaoning Province, northeastern areas of Beijing and Hebei Province and northern Tianjin. Regions west of the Yellow River in Gansu Province, central parts of Shaanxi and Shanxi provinces, southern parts of Hebei and northern parts of Shandong Province will also see downpours. And heavy rains are likely to hit most of Yunnan Province and Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, said the center. In the same period, a heat wave is expected to scorch regions along the Yangtze, Huai and Han rivers and Chongqing municipality, with temperatures of 38 degrees Celsius. Beijing issued an alert for possible geological disasters yesterday, as the rainstorms expected to hit the capital, could cause mudslides and cave-ins in Pinggu, Miyun, Huairou, Fangshan and Mentougou districts.
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| 40,000 evacuated from homes as floods peak Posted: 28 Jul 2012 09:31 AM PDT MORE than 40,000 people in central China's Yellow River area have been evacuated from their homes to safer areas as flood waters peak in Shanxi and Shaanxi provinces. The water flow at Wubu Hydro Station in Wubu County in Yulin City, in Shaanxi, reached 10,600 cubic meters per second on Friday, the highest level since 1989, the State Flood Control and Drought Relief Headquarters said. Recent torrential rain has seen water levels rise on the main artery and tributaries of the Yellow River's middle reaches, said the flood control authority. Famous tourism sites along the river, such as the Hukou area in Shanxi, have been closed to tourists until the alerts are lifted, said the authorities. Downstream, Longmen Hydro Station recorded a water flow of 7,620 cubic meters per second at 7am yesterday, the highest level since 1996, it said. Flood water has inundated low-lying areas and some water control and diversion projects, said officials. The headquarters said residents in areas threatened by flooding have been relocated and that the two affected provinces have dispatched emergency personnel to strengthen checks on dams and increase flood control materials. Rainstorms in Beijing last weekend killed 77 people, triggering public anger, with questions asked about emergency planning and the poor drainage system in big cities like the capital. In the aftermath of the Beijing deaths, as the flood peak hit parts of central China, the authorities had demanded the quick evacuation of affected areas. Meanwhile, train services on parts of the Southern Xinjiang Railway in northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region were suspended yesterday due to flooding, said the railway operator. Flood water has covered sections of the track, halting services on the Turpan-Korla stretch of the railway line, said railway officials. Hundreds of rescuers are working at the site and trapped passengers have been transferred from the area, said officials. "Luckily, the train stopped in a small station where supplies were available," said a train passenger, surnamed Li, who yesterday had been trapped for hours on a train in Xinjiang. But other passengers were unable to stock up on provisions. One female passenger stranded on a train complained yesterday that she had eaten nothing since embarking on her journey. |
| Power transmission project gets under way Posted: 28 Jul 2012 09:30 AM PDT CONSTRUCTION on a west-to-east ultra-high voltage direct current (UHV DC) power transmission project began in east China's Zhejiang Province yesterday, marking the nation's latest efforts to ease power shortages in its eastern regions. The project, funded by the State Grid Corporation of China (SGCC), will transport about 40 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity annually from Xiluodu Hydropower Station in southwest China to Zhejiang after its scheduled completion in 2014. This will help save 12.28 million tonnes of standard coal, which means the cut of 34 million tonnes of carbon emissions. The SGCC, the nation's major power grid operator, will invest 23.86 billion yuan (US$3.79 billion) in the construction . Starting in Yibin in Sichuan Province, the 1,679.9-kilometer transmission line will traverse Guizhou, Jiangxi and Hunan provinces to reach Zhejiang's central city of Jinhua. SGCC Vice President Shu Yinbiao said that compared to previous projects, the line will be built with a greater transmission capacity, more advanced technology and a higher domestic manufacturing level. The move came as China steps up the construction of UHV transmission projects since an increasing number of economically developed eastern cities have reported being affected by power shortages. The project is the SGCC's third UHV DC power transmission project after the Xiangjiaba-Shanghai and Jinping-Nanjing transmission lines, completed in 2010 and 2012, respectively, said Liu Zehong, director of SGCC's DC power construction department. The three transmission lines together will support a transmission capacity of 21.6 million kilowatts, Liu said. These projects will also help fuel the exploration of clean energy in the country's water-rich southwestern regions and make water resources there an economic advantage, which will in turn promote balanced regional growth, Liu said. By 2015, the SGCC aims to build three north-to-south UHV lines, which would deliver power from the nation's northern energy bases, and three west-to-east UHV lines, which would transport coal electricity from the north and hydropower from the southwest and connect a line among the northern, central and eastern regions.
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| Paper mill pipeline scrapped after outcry Posted: 28 Jul 2012 09:28 AM PDT A TOP official in Nantong City in Jiangsu Province said yesterday the construction of a discharge pipeline from a Japanese paper mill to the sea in Qidong City has been cancelled. The project, in Qidong City, which is affiliated to Nantong, had led to a public outcry over pollution concerns. Yesterday, many residents, who had taken to the streets to protest against the pipeline, dispersed after learning the news, Xinhua News Agency reported. Zhao Nan'nan, an official with the Qidong government, said that following research and discussions the pipeline plan had been scrapped. Media reports said the project "will not be restarted in the future." After the announcement, Qidong police published a post on their microblog asking residents to "go home with relief." The project was planned by Oji Paper Co Ltd. Work had not started, said Qidong government officials. The Japanese company said on its website that the pipeline "is just a supporting project item and the company has strict controls on the water quality." Waste water would only be discharged after being processed properly, said the company. But Qidong residents feared the discharge pipe would pollute the nearby Lusi fishery. There were also concerns that the discharge from the paper mill could pollute Shanghai's Qingcaosha Reservoir at the mouth of the Yangtze River, from where most Shanghai residents receive their water. The Shanghai water authority has sought to reassure city residents over the safety of their tap water. |
| Posted: 28 Jul 2012 09:00 AM PDT A man was sentenced to death yesterday for killing 11 people in southwest China's Yunnan Province, a court ruling said. Zhang Yongming, 57, was accused of strangling 11 people in Jinning County from March 2008 to April 2012, according to the Kunming Intermediate People's Court. Zhang used various means, including dismemberment, burning and burial, to destroy the evidence, it said. He was given a death sentence with a two-year reprieve in 1979 for intentional homicide. Zhang was released in September 1997 after receiving a number of sentence reductions, the ruling said. Zhang was given of land by the village and a subsistence allowance from the local government, but he did not show any gratitude and continued to commit crimes, the ruling said. He showed no remorse in court and refused to apologize to the relatives of victims.
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| Officials punished over coach with 111 people Posted: 28 Jul 2012 09:00 AM PDT SIX officials in Taoyuan County of central China's Hunan Province have been given disciplinary demerits after a coach with 39 seats was found to be carrying 111 passengers, local authorities said Friday. The coach, heading to Jiangmen City in the neighboring Guangdong Province, was discovered to have 111 passengers, including 22 students and children on July 4, said a statement issued by the provincial safety production commission office. Six officials in the county traffic police department and traffic bureau were given administrative demerits or serious warnings according to the disciplinary rules of the Communist Party of China. Coach driver Kang Lihui had his driver's licence revoked, received a life ban from the transport business and was fined 2,000 yuan (US$316). A string of fatal road accidents involving overloading have occurred in recent years in China. In November 2011, 22 people, including 20 preschoolers, died when a school bus, a nine-seat van illegally converted to hold 64 people, hit a coal truck. |
| Posted: 28 Jul 2012 09:00 AM PDT CHINA yesterday launched its largest and most advanced patrol vessel, Haixun01, in Wuhan, in central Hubei Province, in a move to maintain marine sovereignty and enhance rescue efficiency. Haixun01 is the first Chinese patrol vessel to simultaneously incorporate marine inspection and rescue functions. It will carry out inspections, safety monitoring, rescue and oil spill detection and handling, said Xu Guoyi, head of the Shanghai Maritime Bureau, which will manage the ship. It should go into service by the end of the year, Xu said. The 5,418-tonne vessel is 128.6 meters long. Its sailing speed is 37 kilometers per hour and it has a maximum sailing distance of 18,520 kilometers without refueling, said Tang Gongjie, general manager of Wuchang Shipbuilding Industry Company Ltd, which built the ship. It can hold 200 rescued people, and offer medical treatment. It also has a helipad. Haixun01 will maintain maritime safety and safeguard sovereignty, said Huang He, deputy head of the Transport Ministry's maritime bureau. This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Hepatitis B carriers highlight discrimination Posted: 28 Jul 2012 09:00 AM PDT HUNDREDS of hepatitis B carriers gathered in downtown Chengdu, Sichuan Province, to cover their eyes, ears and mouths, symbolizing "see no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil," in a bid to raise awareness about their infection yesterday, World Hepatitis Day. "Although the number of hep B carriers is huge in China, people are reluctant to accept them. I hope this performance art can bring the public's attention to the need for equal rights for those with hep B," said Cheng Zhuo, the organizer of the event in Chengdu. Lei Chuang, a 25-year-old activist against hep B discrimination as well as a post-graduate student at Zhejiang University, initiated a "hep B carriers treat you to dinner" event on the Sina Weibo microblog platform this week, winning support from people living with hep B in 12 Chinese cities. "Our focus is not the dinner itself. We are calling for a scientific spirit and equal rights," said Lei, a hep B carrier. "We want to let more people understand hep B and eliminate social discrimination against us," he added. Feng Bofeng, a human resources manager in Hangzhou, asked to have dinner with Lei. "As an HR manager, I know companies' prejudice against hepatitis B carriers remains serious," Feng said. "I want to challenge this," he said. As of noon yesterday, 25 people in the southern boomtown of Guangzhou had taken to Weibo to join the local "hep B carriers treat you to dinner" event. However, shifting widespread public attitudes is no easy task. "People quickly run away when they hear the words 'hepatitis B.' Some even say it is infectious," said Yang Zhanqing, initiator of the "hep B carriers treat you to dinner" event in Zhengzhou, in central China's Henan Province. About 93 million Chinese people are infected with the hepatitis B virus, 70 percent of whom are HB carriers, according to the Chinese Ministry of Health. Although it has been scientifically proven that hep B can only be transmitted via blood, sex and mother-to-fetus transmission, public sentiment has not caught up with science. Chinese job hunters with hep B have long complained of discrimination. In 2005, the government issued a standard that put hep B carriers among those eligible for the civil service. In 2010, universities and enterprises were banned from screening for hep B in admission and recruitment processes. "Discrimination against hep B carriers is easing but it is still worrisome in regards to employment," said activist Lei. |
| China cancels waste project after protests turn violent Posted: 28 Jul 2012 10:10 AM PDT  Source: Reuters By John Ruwitch (Reuters) – Chinese officials canceled an industrial waste pipeline project on Saturday after anti-pollution demonstrators occupied a government office in eastern China, destroying computers and overturning cars. It was also the second cancellation of an industrial project this month, as officials buckle under pressure from protests. Zhang Guohua, city mayor of the eastern China city of Nantong, said in a statement the city would terminate the planned pipeline that would have emptied waste water from a Japanese-owned paper factory into the sea near Qidong. The decision came hours after about 1,000 protesters marched through the city of Qidong, about one hour north of Shanghai, shouting slogans against the pipeline. "The government says the waste will not pollute the sea, but if that's true, then why don't they dump it into Yangtze River?" Lu Shuai, a 25-year-old protester who works in logistics, said while marching. "It is because if they dump it into the river, it will have an impact on people in Shanghai and people in Shanghai will oppose it." Several protesters entered the city government's main building where they smashed computers, overturned desks and threw documents out the windows to loud cheers from the crowd. Reuters witnessed five cars and one minibus being overturned. At least two police officers were dragged into the crowd at the government office and punched and beaten enough to make them bleed. Environmental worries have stoked calls for expanded rights for citizens and greater consultation in the tightly controlled one-party state. The outpouring of public anger is emblematic of the rising discontent facing Chinese leaders, who are obsessed with maintaining stability and struggling to balance growth with rising public anger over environmental threats. Such protests "suggest that the middle class, whose members seemed willing to accept in the 1990s that being able to buy more things equaled having a better life, is now wondering whether one's quality of life has improved, if you have to worry about breathing the air, drinking the water, and whether the food you're eating is safe," said Jeffrey Wasserstrom, of the University of California Irvine. The protest followed similar demonstrations against projects the Sichuan town of Shifang earlier this month and in the cities of Dalian in the northeast and Haimen in southern Guangdong province in the past year. "We are aware of the Shifang experience, and if it worked there then it may work here. We have a responsibility to protect our home," said one student who declined to be named because he said the government had threatened retribution against anyone who spoke to the media. The leadership has vowed to clean up China's skies and waterways and increasingly tried to appear responsive to complaints about pollution. But environmental disputes pit citizens against local officials whose aim is to lure fresh investment and revenue into their areas. |
| SAFE ‘to invest $500m’ in Blackstone property fund Posted: 28 Jul 2012 10:06 AM PDT  Source: By Wang Xiaotian and Cai Xiao (China Daily) China is strengthening its efforts to diversify the world's largest foreign exchange reserves and increase returns on its portfolio by investing in a private-equity fund. The fund that SAFE has agreed to invest in is the biggest of its kind, as it has attracted more than $12 billion. Blackstone expects the fund to reach $13.3 billion at the final close in the next few months. Both SAFE and Blackstone declined to comment on the issue. The newspaper said SAFE will allocate about 5 percent of the $3.2 trillion foreign reserves to alternative asset classes such as private equity, while investment in government bonds, cash and other liquid assets remains the main trend. The diversification of China's foreign exchange portfolio is vital for the country to maintain the value of its assets, said Zhang Anyuan, a senior analyst at the economic research institute under the National Development and Reform Commission. "It's always welcome that SAFE could set different layers to its investment of foreign reserves, and setting aside such a small proportion for high-return but high-risk investment is necessary," said Chen Daofu, policy research chief of the Financial Research Institute at the State Council's Development Research Center. But given the fact that international financial markets are facing rising pressure due to the current economic situation, liquidity and security should be granted increasing emphasis when authorities are making investment decisions, Chen added. In 2008, the foreign reserve watchdog poured $2.5 billion into a fund managed by the US-based private-equity firm TPG and suffered losses after the fund's subsequent investment in Washington Mutual, the largest US savings-and-loan firm at the time, was wiped out after the lender's closure by the US government, the Wall Street Journal reported. SAFE has constantly reiterated that security is its top priority when making investments using foreign reserves, and it has already taken appropriate measures to offset potential major risks. It has invested most of the reserves in low-yield assets such as government treasury bonds. China is the largest foreign holder of US Treasuries, having invested about a third of its foreign reserves in those bonds. About 20 percent has been invested in euro-denominated assets. The capital raising for Blackstone's Real Estate Partners VII fund will end in February. Its Real Estate Partners VI invested the majority of its capital in business property in the United States, such as shopping mall-owner General Growth Properties Inc and hotel-owner Extended Stay. But some recent figures have raised doubts over future returns. According to the results of a primary mortgage market survey released by Freddie Mac on Friday, fixed mortgage rates continue to reach record lows. The 30-year fixed rate mortgage averaged 3.49 percent, while the 15-year fixed-rate mortgage, a popular choice for those looking to refinance, hit a record low of 2.8 percent. Frank Nothaft, vice-president and chief economist of Freddie Mac, said market concerns over the strength of the economic recovery brought long-term Treasury yields to new lows. "Existing home sales fell to 4.36 million homes (annualized) in June and represented the slowest pace since October 2011. Similarly, new home sales fell in June to their lowest level since January of this year," he said. "Investing in real estate can be interesting for investors who wish to invest in real assets and are shying away from volatile financial markets" said Andre Loesekrug-Pietri, chairman of the Beijing-based European PE company A CAPITAL, adding that local and professional teams are very important as this always require local expertise. Loesekrug-Pietri said the US property market has gone through a long readjustment since the subprime crisis, but as the US economy improves, the conditions may become more attractive in the coming years, both in residential and commercial real estate. According to him, markets such as China, whose macro drivers for growth include urbanization and consumption, should continue to be attractive for real estate investment, in particular for sophisticated investors that can avoid overheated sectors and identify strong value for money in all market categories.   |
| China’s Yi Siling wins 1st gold medal in London Posted: 28 Jul 2012 10:20 AM PDT  Source: Xinhua LONDON – Chinese shooter Yi Siling shot down the first London Olympics gold medal in women's 10-meter air rifle Saturday with a score of 502.9 points. Yi's teammate Yu Dan came up from fourth place in the qualification to grab a bronze, further 0.7 points trailing. Yi 23, world No. 1 in the event, extended a stable and consistent performance in the final, shooting all her ten shots above 10 points and won the title in a deserved and convincing way. In contrast, Bogacka who shot two under-par nine-plus, maintained her lead through first six shootings over Yi, but a costly eighth shot of 9.7 points denied the Polish chance of victory. "My stability help me a lot today and at the same time I think I'm quite lucky," said Yi. Yi earned one point in the single shot and overtook Bogacka for top place for the first time and for good. "I have been away from home for more than a year and now I miss my family a lot," said Yi. "After the Games, I'm going to have a vacation back to my hometown in Hunan province. Yi burst into tears of happiness and excitement. "I feel I'm relaxed right now. You can't deny the pressure for me and for others competing here," added Yi. "I was quite in ease and excited the moment the competition came to an end and I luckily won it, so I can not control my emotion. Yi ruled out of seeking entertainment career for which her good-looking character and reputation built up from here will pave the way smooth. "After a vacation, I will come back to normal training and set my eyes and goal on next Olympics. The moment, seeking a career of entertainment is not there for me to think. "My life will be improved from the victory more or less," added she. "But the honor from Olympics is surely bigger for an athlete training all year long." China was poised to finish one-two prior to the final shot, but Yu's 9.6 points in the last attempt downgraded her to the third place as Bogacka rebounded strong with a 10.8. Defending champion Katerina Emmons luckily squeezed into the final with a 0.2 point margin in the qualifying shoot-off and steadily lifted her ranking in the finals through nine 10-plus shots in a row, but stumbled in her final shot to capture only 9.6 and missed her third consecutive podium finish. Third-placed Daria Vdovina in the qualification faltered into the last place in the finals due to three under-10 shots. Yi stood on the medal podium at all three World Cup events this year including a gold medal performance in Munich. She won the title of this event at the 2010 world championships in Munich. Following are the results of women's 10m air rifle at the London Olympics on Saturday: 1. Yi Siling, China, 502.9 points (gold medal)   |
| SEC Freezes Assets in Insider Probe of CNOOC’s Nexen Buy Posted: 28 Jul 2012 10:13 AM PDT  Source: Bloomberg News By Joshua Gallu The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission obtained a court order to freeze assets of traders who allegedly reaped more than $13 million by trading illegally ahead of CNOOC Ltd. (883)'s announcement that it would buy Nexen Inc. (NXY) Nexen's stock rose more than 50 percent on July 23 after CNOOC, China's largest offshore oil and gas explorer, said that it would pay $15.1 billion in cash to acquire the Calgary-based company in the biggest overseas takeover by a Chinese firm. The price was $27.50 for each common share, a premium of 61 percent to Nexen's closing price on July 20, the previous trading day. "Well Advantage and these other traders engaged in an all- too-familiar pattern of misusing inside information to place extremely timely trades and profit handsomely from their illegal acts," Sanjay Wadhwa, deputy head of the SEC's market abuse enforcement unit, said in a statement. Almost all of the purchases of Nexen stock occurred during the seven trading days before the acquisition was announced, and the accounts used for the transactions had little or no history of buying Nexen shares. Well Advantage's owner is controlling shareholder of a Hong Kong-based company that engages in significant business activities with CNOOC, the SEC said. The SEC complaint didn't list defense counsel for Well Advantage and the other traders. A telephone call yesterday to a Hong Kong number listed for Zhang Zhi Rong, Well Advantage's sole owner, wasn't answered. Calls and emails to a spokesman were not answered today. Close Ties Zhang controls shipbuilder and petrochemical engineering firm China Rongsheng Heavy Industries Group Holdings Ltd. (1101), a company that has close business ties to Cnooc, according to the SEC's filing. Zhang, who is also the chairman and founder of Glorious Property Holdings Ltd., (845) according to data compiled by Bloomberg, was listed as China's 38th richest person with a fortune of $2.9 billion in the 2010 Hurun Report, which tracks the country's wealthy. Bloomberg data showed trading in bullish Nexen options reached the highest level since 2008 before Cnooc announced it would buy the energy company. A total of 47,302 calls traded on the company's U.S. shares last week, with bullish contracts reaching 24,554 on July 20, the most since March 2008. Call options that convey the right to acquire shares for a given price by a certain date usually offer higher returns than stock to traders speculating on takeover. Nexen said last year it was exploring a sale and the departure of its chief executive officer in January spurred speculation it might find a buyer. |
| In Chinese Politics, a Fall—and a Rise Posted: 28 Jul 2012 10:18 AM PDT  Source: Wall Street Journal By Bob Davis GUANGZHOU, China—Political fortunes can change quickly in China. This year, the fall of Bo Xilai, a party leader, appears to have given one of his longtime rivals an inside track for promotion to the Communist Party's top ruling body. That clears an obstacle for Mr. Wang, Guangdong province's party chief, who is seen in the West and among some of China's elite as a standard-bearer of reform. Should he get a slot on the Standing Committee, it could be a signal that the new leadership will seek to accelerate market-oriented changes. Mr. Bo, who was party secretary of the giant city of Chongqing, largely relied on state-owned firms to spur growth and sought to revive a nationalist spirit associated with Mao Zedong. Mr. Wang, by contrast, looked for private companies to remake his region and sought to reduce the state's role in labor disputes and social services. The chatty 57-year-old son of a laborer, Mr. Wang caught the attention of paramount leader Deng Xiaoping in the 1980s, as a young official in the eastern mining city of Tongling. In 2007, he was appointed party chief of Guangdong, the export-heavy province next to Hong Kong. The 63-year-old Mr. Bo's status as a "princeling," son of a party luminary, eased his way to power, but his self-promotion and courting of powerful allies made party leaders wary, according to China analysts. In spring 2012, he was removed from all his party positions, felled by a series of incidents that included his police chief's taking refuge in a U.S. consulate and his wife, Gu Kailai, becoming implicated in the death of a British businessman. Thursday, Chinese state media said Ms. Gu had been charged with murder, suggesting the party has reached consensus on how to handle the case at the core of the scandal around Mr. Bo. Mr. Bo and his wife haven't commented publicly on the accusations against them.  Mr. Wang, who is responsible for Guangdong's policies and relations with the central government, is fond of slogans about a "happy" society and "economic transformation." In his vision, the province's most modern cities, especially Guangzhou and Shenzhen, would become centers of innovation and high technology while low-wage factories would move to the province's hinterlands, where development is sparse. Guangdong's economic success and Mr. Wang's adroit handling of labor and social unrest have won him national attention and made him a top contender for a standing committee post. But his record shows the difficulty of pushing through change. Some of his early proposals, including a plan to increase the number of direct elections in Shenzhen, were shelved; his allies blame lower-ranking Guangdong officials for using the global financial crisis to undermine Mr. Wang's efforts. "Lower-level leaders shouted out [Mr. Wang's] slogans, but in practice, they did nothing," said Liu Cheng, a Shanghai Normal University law professor who has helped rewrite Chinese labor laws. Mr. Wang has been overridden by his bosses in Beijing when he didn't move quickly enough to help exporters amid the crisis in 2009, according to Guangdong political analysts. The progress he has made has come from reacting with negotiation rather than force to such events as strikes and village uprisings. Whether he would be effective in Beijing is an open question. If he gets the promotion to the Standing Committee, Mr. Wang would be a junior member of a panel that prizes consensus and has often interpreted protests as challenges to authority that must be put down by force. Mr. Wang didn't respond to multiple requests to comment for this article. In written responses to questions posed before the Bo Xilai affair, Mr. Wang said "reform is always a tough slog," because of "resistance from vested interests, lack of innovation and shortcomings in knowledge and personnel." "Crises always supply chances for reform" says Xiao Bin, a professor of government at Sun Yat-sen University in Guangzhou, the capital of Guangdong. "Wang Yang wasn't a genius," Mr. Xiao says, "challenges pushed him to react." A wave of strikes in 2010 gave him an opening. As a strike against Honda Motor Co. dragged on, he called union and government officials together. The workers were acting reasonably, he said, and their aims were "economic in nature." That meant strikers didn't have to fear that police would crack down in the name of political stability, as often has happened elsewhere in China. "In China, there's a huge difference between economic and political," said Chen Weiguang, chief of the Guangdong union, who was at the meeting. "If it's economic, the government will resolve the matter in peaceful ways." Honda eventually approved 30% raises. Other walkouts followed, and Mr. Wang and province officials helped settle them. At the same time, the city of Guangzhou was in the process of raising the minimum wage—it has risen by a total of 70% since 2009—and other cities followed its lead. Even though many companies in the province already paid more than the minimum, they still had to raise wages to compete for workers. The increased costs added to pressure on low-margin manufacturers to move to industrial parks Guangdong was building in lower-wage, rural areas—moves that fit Mr. Wangs's strategy. "As a result of the strikes, companies took notice [of workers' complaints], government took notice and wages caught up to where they should be," said Harley Seyedin, president of the American Chamber of Commerce in South China. Mr. Wang has learned the importance of courting local businesses, local leaders say. He meets regularly for discussions with groups of entrepreneurs in Foshan, a city in Guangdong, said Zhang Qikang, a senior manager at ceramics company Foshan Monalisa Industry Co. Mr. Wang tries to explain the need for companies to improve technology and design and rely less on cheap labor, because other Asian countries have labor that is cheaper still, Mr. Zhang said. "We realized that low-end producers won't last long—only creative companies can survive," said Mr. Zhang. Amid the global crisis, Hong Kong manufacturers—which employ about 11 million people in Guangdong, according to market-research firm ChinaScope Financial Ltd.—appealed directly to Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao for help after Mr. Wang didn't commit to relief. In late 2008, Guangdong started to roll out aid, including credit guarantees, import-tariff relief and a partial reversal of earlier tax increases. Officials said they were carrying out Mr. Wen's wishes, a statement local observers interpreted as a slap at Mr. Wang.Mr. Wang didn't respond to requests for comment at that time. More recently, Hong Kong manufacturers have successfully lobbied to block legislation, backed by Mr. Wang, that would have given labor unions a representative on corporate boards. The manufacturers said such representatives couldn't be trusted to keep company secrets. A watered-down bill that would make it easier for the unions to force collective bargaining has been held up at the provincial level, where officials are looking for a signal the central government in Beijing favors the change. Pending a nod from Beijing, the unions, which are organized by company, have made few recent efforts to force bosses to negotiate over wages or other issues. Only 9% of 204 manufacturers in the Guangzhou-Shenzhen area surveyed in March by Standard Chartered Bank said they had engaged in collective bargaining in the past six months, and just 14% said they expected to in 2012. The Honda strike gave Mr. Wang an opening to push labor change; a citizens' revolt in a fishing village called Wukan late last year allowed him a chance to test his interest in direct elections. Angry villagers accused local Communist officials of grabbing and selling their land—a complaint that resonated in a country where illegal seizures of farmland to build luxury apartments have become common. Mr. Wang sent an aide, who negotiated with villagers for the direct election of a new leader they trust to handle land issues. Since the Wukan revolt, Mr. Wang has given nongovernmental organizations more leeway to handle social issues, such as helping migrant laborers, rather than always relying on the government. The NGO involvement is aimed at ensuring residents are better represented and their complaints are dealt with more quickly, analysts say. Mr. Wang hasn't tried to turn Wukan into a model for direct elections elsewhere in the province. Such a change would require Beijing's approval, and in a year of political turmoil and economic uncertainty, few expect the country's leaders to tackle the divisive question of how China should be governed. |
| Posted: 28 Jul 2012 10:20 AM PDT Have You Heard… |
| Apple pays $60 million and still doesn’t get iPad trademark in China Posted: 28 Jul 2012 06:44 AM PDT
The back story: Proview, a manufacturer of screens, had a product around the turn of the century which they called the IPAD. Pretty much a clone of a Compaq product. When Apple wanted to release their "iPad" they realised that Proview owned the name. So they set up a shell company (making sure that no one knew it was Apple) and bought it for $35,000. All good so far. Then, as we know, the iPad became massively, hugely, popular. And amazingly, the China subsidiary of Proview then revealed that while Apple had indeed bought the trademark for the rest of the world it hadn't for China. Shenanigans maybe but Apple caved and paid the now bankrupt Proview $60 million for the China rights a couple of weeks back. Apple can now launch the iPad in China (supplies until now have been coming in, sorta "smuggled" from the US and Hong Kong up to now)…..except that it can't quite. For the law firm that acted for Proview hasn't been paid. Proview is claiming that since they're bust they don't have to pay the lawyers. At which point the lawyers are claiming the trademark until they're paid. So, story so far: Apple's paid $60 million and still can't launch in China. Well, they can, but they don't as yet own that trademark……. |
| In pictures: China water pipeline protest Posted: 28 Jul 2012 07:13 AM PDT Protests in Chinese city of Qidong win waste water pipeline reprieve |
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| China's Yi wins first Games gold Posted: 28 Jul 2012 04:29 AM PDT China's Yi Siling wins the first gold medal of London 2012 in the women's 10m air rifle at the Royal Artillery Barracks. |
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