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• Watch: Epic overloaded scooter is biggest thing on the road
• Officials recognize China's 'Cancer Villages'
• China Distribution Agreements: Exclusivity Is NOT Required
• Chinese demand for shark fin devastating Mozambique coast
• Photos: BMW owner and his cow stage bizarre protest
• Ironically named 'Hope Project' primary school turned into a garbage dump
• 10,000 yuan reward offered if man who gave kids collecting for charity fake 100 yuan will apologise
• A Famous Army Singer’s 17-Year-Old Son Has Been Detained For Gang Rape
• And Here’s Kim Jong-Un Ordering Lunch
• This Sad Polar Bear In Beijing Again Highlights The Paltry Condition Of China’s Zoos
• Global Times Editor Hu Xijin Didn’t Know Fox News Existed Until Everyone Began Comparing His Paper To Fox News
• A Building In Killzone: Shadow Fall For PS4 Bears An Uncanny Resemblance To Beijing’s Galaxy SOHO
• Chinese Software Company Mocks Kim Jong-Un And North Korea’s Nuclear Ambitions In This Funny Ad
• Thousands Gather To Mourn 16-Year-Old Who Died Trying To Save A Man Who Fell Through Ice
• Sina Weibo Suspends Three Prominent Accounts In Less Than Two Weeks
• Thursday Memes: China Geography Edition
• Foxconn significantly slows recruitment across factories
• Bo Xilai resisting investigation, staging hunger strikes
• World Health Store's 12-Week Challenge is Back
• Six Things to Salivate Over this Weekend

Watch: Epic overloaded scooter is biggest thing on the road Posted: 22 Feb 2013 04:00 PM PST A few days ago, The Telegraph ran a slideshow of "China's Overloaded Vehicles." They definitely found a few massive-stacking gems, but nothing quite like this traffic-dodging super-stacker. Note 0:52, as various pedestrians are trying to pretend like the world's biggest pile of garbage didn't just cycle past them on the back of a man's scooter. [ more › ]

Officials recognize China's 'Cancer Villages' Posted: 22 Feb 2013 01:23 PM PST Deng Fei, recently of "Show me a Dirty River" fame, is once again revealing China's deteriorating environmental state. In 2010, Deng published a Google Maps document of more than 100 "Cancer Villages" throughout China, highlighting towns with significantly higher-than-average rates of cancer. This map has now returned to the headlines, as the Chinese Ministry of Environment Protection admitted the existence of such cancer hot-spots, at figures even higher than Deng's original findings. [ more › ]

China Distribution Agreements: Exclusivity Is NOT Required Posted: 22 Feb 2013 12:37 PM PST I spoke last week on China IP at Columbia University. During my talk, I mentioned how common it is for the Chinese side in a licensing or a joint venture deal (or really any deal) to claim that the law requires the foreign company to transfer ownership of IP for the deal to go through.  I talked of how when my law firm is confronted with such a situation we ask the Chinese side to provide us with the legal cite to the law that allegedly requires this. To which we typically get one of the following in response: An English language translation of a law that does not exist; A Chinese language version that does not say what the Chinese side says it says; A claim by the Chinese side that it is an unwritten law. I then stressed how there is no such law, though we have on more than one occasion seen American companies turn over their IP because they believed otherwise. After my talk, Andrew Hupert told me of how on more than one occasion he has worked with American companies that have entered into exclusive distribution arrangements with Chinese companies based on the assertion by the Chinese company that Chinese law requires such agreements between foreign companies and Chinese companies grant the Chinese company exclusive distribution for all of China.  Andrew described one situation where an American had signed a long-term China exclusivity deal with a Chinese company that had no capabilities outside Shanghai. There is no such exclusivity requirement! In fact, as commentators love to point out, (see for example, Patrick Chovanac's Nine Nations of China), China is a very large and very diverse place and a really good distributor/marketer/seller of a product or service in one region might very well not know anything about distributing/marketing/selling in another region.  The good news though is that you are not required to use the same distributor throughout China, no matter what you are told. We have found this exclusivity claim particularly common with wine and with food products where the Chinese party claims that the approval to sell these items in China is restricted to only one seller/distributor.  There are though some product areas (such as pharmaceuticals) where it is very common for a distributor/reseller to require nationwide distribution even though it is not legally required. Bottom Line:  Chinese companies love claiming something has to be done a particular way in China whether that is really the case is not.  This holds true with respect to the law as well.  Your job is to confirm or deny. For more on distribution agreements in China, check out the following: Getting Your Product Into China Via Distributorship. A Legal Piece Of Cake That's Hot: China Distribution Contracts Exclusivity In China Distribution Agreements

Chinese demand for shark fin devastating Mozambique coast Posted: 22 Feb 2013 03:05 AM PST There is a danger fishermen will be scapegoated for harm inflicted by markets and criminal networks Standing among coconut and mango trees near the coast of Mozambique, Fernando Nhamussua carefully prepares shark meat for a family meal – and contemplates a basket with a profitable haul of four dried shark fins. "I want to sell them to the Chinese," the 33-year-old admits with disarming candour, estimating that a kilogram's worth will fetch around 5,000 meticals (US$161). "We take them to town where there is a place for Chinese buyers. It's good money." Nhamussua reckons he has sold 20 fins so far, boosting his normal income and his hopes of completing a modest concrete house that stands unfinished. But this burgeoning trade along the Mozambican coast is putting precious species such as manta rays in existential danger, according to local conservationists. Fishing for sustenance has long been a staple here, with few alternative sources of income. But it is an open secret that Chinese syndicates are supplying improved fishing nets, buying shark fins and manta ray "wing" tips and shipping them back to Asia, where there is increasing demand for delicacies such as shark fin soup. Nhamussua's nephew, Americo Gilamba, is 19 and has scant other career prospects. "We do it because we don't have a good job," he explained, standing in the small, sandy family settlement that includes huts made of reeds and coconut leaves. "We know it's not good and the Chinese are killing things that are not allowed to be killed, but we do it to survive and get some money. We don't want to have to steal from other people. If we were given an alternative, we would stop." Inhambane's beaches and ocean are a diver's paradise with one of the most fabulous concentrations of marine life in the world. Tourism, a vital lifeline in one of the world's poorest countries, could be threatened. Carla Victorino Guicome, who last year became the first Mozambican woman to qualify as a diving instructor, said: "I am sad, I am angry because if it continues like this it's going to kill tourism in Mozambique. No more tourists will come here." She continued: "People come from all over the world to enjoy diving with sharks and manta rays, but if this goes on, they won't be there any more. "The Chinese don't respect marine life and they're trying to destroy our heritage. We have tried and tried, but the government don't seem to be doing anything to stop it. If nothing is done, the animals will disappear." Fishing versus tourism Conservationists have called for legal protection of species such as sharks and manta rays, the banning of gillnets – which create a wall of netting to catch fish – and greater education of and alternative livelihoods for fishermen. But the fisheries ministry is powerful. Andrea Marshall, director of the Marine Megafauna Foundation in Tofu, said: "I would argue that far more people benefit from tourism here than from the fishing industry. The economic argument for preserving these charismatic animals in the long term surely outweighs a one-off profit for a few fishermen and Chinese." Time is running out for the manta ray, a beautiful fish with big, triangular pectoral "wings" that has a meagre reproductive cycle. Inhambane has one of the biggest populations in the world, with 908 known to the foundation, but has witnessed an 87% drop in the past decade. This means that where visitors could once expect to see six or seven of the creatures in a single dive, now the average is less than one. Marshall, principal scientist for the manta ray programme, said: "We're looking at decimation in the next decade or decade-and-a-half. Manta rays are in big trouble along the coastline. If current trends continue, I don't give this population more than a few generations." Fishermen are more efficient than ever before thanks to bigger nets and more sophisticated equipment. "Sometimes the fishing nets are given by the Chinese, other times they're part of official schemes intended to benefit fishing communities," Marshall added. "We've been to the fishing camps and you can see the high-quality hooks and lines that they have now." And when she followed the money, it led to China. "It's a very secretive operation, but we've had confirmation of the Chinese buying and shipping them out. There are containers that are just reeking. Everyone knows who owns those containers, but nobody does anything." Many Chinese people are in Inhambane on legitimate business and working on government infrastructure programmes. But the fishing controversy echoes wider concerns over what some in Africa regard as a Faustian pact with China. The Environmental Investigation Agency has said nearly half of the timber exported from Mozambique to China is done so illegally, costing the impoverished nation tens of millions of dollars a year. Based on evidence given by fishermen, the Guardian visited a Chinese-run shop said to be a front for the illicit trade in marine life; an expensive car was parked outside. Its owners said they were aware of such trade in recent years, but claimed it had declined of late. Asked where shark fins could be obtained, a co-owner shook her head and said: "I don't know." But Lon Chen, a resident of five years and owner of a supermarket in Inhambane, claimed that he been offered such items in the past. "The local people kill them and bring them," he said. "They came here to ask if we needed it or not. I said no, but some Chinese are buying that kind of food. They don't eat it at all; they are buying it to export to Asia. It's their business and they're surviving on that." Criminal networks in operation Mozambican authorities are said to be taking the problem seriously, but are working with limited resources, including only one or two patrol boats to cover the immense coastline, although focusing on Inhambane with its abundant marine life would be a start. Carlos Carvalho, an activist based in the capital, Maputo, claimed that sea turtles and dolphins are also being targeted for their flippers and organs, although observers in Inhambane could not verify this. Chinese traders are seeking to obtain boats to extend the fishermen's range, he added. "The Chinese are gangsters and they have the protection of certain officials in Inhambane province," Carvalho said. "Every month it is escalating. Inhambane is out of control. It is the killing field of Mozambique and nobody is doing anything about it. It absolutely devastates me." But the issues are complex and there is a danger that fishermen will be scapegoated. Timothy Dykman, director of Ocean Revolution, said: "It's about the markets, conditions and global impacts far beyond the control of local fishermen that are being run by organised criminal networks. Networks are also selling drugs and engaged in human trafficking." Copyright © Guardian News and Media Limited 2013

Photos: BMW owner and his cow stage bizarre protest Posted: 22 Feb 2013 03:00 AM PST      A BMW owner in Qingdao, Shandong province, hired a cow to tow his car around town, after a local BMW dealer failed on a number of occasions to repair the man's car. The cow reportedly cost 1,000 yuan to hire for the day. [ more › ]

Ironically named 'Hope Project' primary school turned into a garbage dump Posted: 22 Feb 2013 02:00 AM PST A Hong Kong charity sponsored 'Hope Project' school in Guizhou has been abandoned and turned to a garbage recycling station, Beijing News reported Thursday. [ more › ]

10,000 yuan reward offered if man who gave kids collecting for charity fake 100 yuan will apologise Posted: 22 Feb 2013 02:00 AM PST Parents in Zhenzhou, Henan are offering 10,000 yuan for a man to apologise for giving their son a counterfeit 100 yuan note while the boy was raising money for charity. [ more › ]

A Famous Army Singer’s 17-Year-Old Son Has Been Detained For Gang Rape Posted: 22 Feb 2013 02:33 AM PST Undated SCMP file photo; the accused is on the far right Earlier today, the People's Daily reported that five people were detained in connection with a gang rape that happened Sunday in a Beijing hotel. A source has just informed the South China Morning Post one of those detainees is the 17-year-old son of a famous PLA singer. A source close to Beijing police told the South China Morning Post on Friday that Li Tianyi, also known as Li Guanfeng, was detained on Thursday night for allegedly participating in the gang rape. The source did not elaborate on the crime or its victim. …Several major Chinese news portals, including Sina.com and Ifeng.com, have also confirmed Li Tianyi's detention, citing police sources and family members. Li's father is 74-year-old Li Shuangjiang, a singer for the People's Liberation Army who has a non-commanding rank of Major General. This is not the younger Li's first brush with the law. In 2011, at the age of 15, he was sentenced to a year in a youth reformation centre after he and another young friend assaulted a couple near his Beijing home. This incident occurred after a minor collision between their cars. Li was driving a souped-up BMW without a licence because he was too young to drive. More details as they become available. General's son detained in connection with gang-rape (SCMP)

And Here’s Kim Jong-Un Ordering Lunch Posted: 22 Feb 2013 01:28 AM PST This comes from KCNA via Reddit, unclear when it was taken. You know who Kim Jong-un would be bestest friends with? Mao Xinyu. Meanwhile.

This Sad Polar Bear In Beijing Again Highlights The Paltry Condition Of China’s Zoos Posted: 22 Feb 2013 12:03 AM PST Whether dealing with common pets or endangered species, many humans still don't know how to be humane. But public reaction to conditions at the Beijing Zoo and an incident at South China Normal University in Guangdong indicate that at least awareness is growing among animal advocates and netizens in this country. A video of the poor living conditions of a polar bear at the Beijing Zoo, posted by Sina Weibo user @临临Lynn, elicited a flood of comments yesterday. The video (above) shows a bear slowly making its way across a barren, drained swimming pool littered with sheets of cracked and peeling paint. According to Hexun, zoo officials explained that the paint is a waterproof fiberglass coating, and that significant temperature changes during the winter cause it to crack and peel from the concrete below. The zoo said it will take remedial measures, but netizens are still critical, saying the zoo shouldn't wait until it hears complaints to fix such issues. Other instances of mistreatment at zoos include hurling snowballs at lions, stoning crocodiles, and biting an ostrich to death. In other news, this shocking story from last month: security guards at South China Normal University were spotted dragging a stray dog across campus and beating it to death. When questioned, guards justified their brutality by saying they were acting on orders from school administrators. This misguided attempt to reduce the stray dog population was an apparent response to dog bitings, though it's unclear how many attacks there were. Reporters interviewed a dog rescue advocate in Guangzhou, who claims that "most stray dogs around the school were abandoned by students upon graduation," and that the problem can be solved by "increasing oversight of dorms and forbidding students from keeping dogs." The advocate believes that any dog attacks were most likely the result of instigation. "[Strays] will instinctually protect themselves if attacked, and most strays that were originally raised by humans hope people will help them." Elliott blogs at Education News China and tweets @e2l2t.

Global Times Editor Hu Xijin Didn’t Know Fox News Existed Until Everyone Began Comparing His Paper To Fox News Posted: 21 Feb 2013 10:39 PM PST Global Times editor-in-chief Hu Xijin made his first trip to India recently, and apparently he was so impressed with what he saw that he granted a rare media interview. Pramit Pal Chaudhuri of the Hindustan Times, the lucky interviewer, called GT a "voice of ultranationalism" in the resulting article, and revealed that contrary to misconception, Global Times doesn't merely regurgitate government propaganda; rather, say staffers, the paper writes based on its "market." Global Times editorials and often its oped pieces are among the most critical of the Indian government and, arguably, even more critical of countries like Japan and Vietnam when the newspaper comments on foreign policy issues. In India, this has caused much excitement since it is assumed that a state-owned newspaper must be reflecting the opinion of the Chinese Communist Party and Chinese government. Global Times staffers argue otherwise. They take a tough stance in part because that is their market nice — many of whom are from the security forces or young urbanites with a strong sense of nationalism. In other words, they still don't believe half the stuff they say, but publish because they think their readers believe it. So there you go, confirmation that the Chinese people don't like India. Doesn't that make you feel better, Hindustan Times readers? Also, we learn from the mouth of Hu himself: "I have been told this [that Global Times resembles Fox News]. But I had never heard of Fox News until I was asked this." It's good to know that Hu isn't consciously modeling GT's editorials off the worst of pundit journalism. The man marches to his own tune — an off-key, jangling refrain on a rusty bugle. And: "The party put me in this job and they can take me away," he notes. "Over the years, party control is getting weaker." Watch out, world. Hu Xijin is breaking his shackles, soon to publish what his heart really desires: retrocomputing, the women of English football, kitty porn. Hu was treated kindly by the people he met in India. "I had expected much hostility towards China because of the articles we carry describing the arguments between the two countries. But people are quite friendly here. He did not meet TAR Nation. UPDATE, 4:18 pm: Says TAR: "This article is a lie, Hu Xijin dines only on Japanese children." Breakfast With Global Times (Hindustan Times)

A Building In Killzone: Shadow Fall For PS4 Bears An Uncanny Resemblance To Beijing’s Galaxy SOHO Posted: 21 Feb 2013 08:53 PM PST While checking out coverage of the "invisible console" unveiling of the Playstation 4 in New York, I was struck by a familiar sight. No, not Diablo III. During the gameplay footage of Killzone 4, I recognized a certain oft-blighted building here in Beijing. Amidst the the civil unrest between the Helghest and Vektan loomed the unmistakeable curves and orbs of the Zaha Hadid-designed Galaxy SOHO. Why? In a bid to convince the often pride-motivated Chinese government to end its June 2000 ban on video game consoles, perhaps Sony ordered a launch title to feature a building from the capital city. Or maybe, with the civil strife and sectarian violence of Killzone 4 eliciting the long repressed memories of the pre-July 14th revolution in the Baghdad of her childhood, Hadid is compelled to design for the game a building evoking life under the rule of an authoritarian regime. More likely, it's just a case of designers in one field taking inspiration from designers in another. That being said, you'd think if you were given the blank slate of a future world to create architecture not bound by present conventions, construction capabilities or even physics, you wouldn't resort to copying an empty office building in downtown Beijing. (Images Gizmodo [from 55-second mark of video below], People's Daily)

Chinese Software Company Mocks Kim Jong-Un And North Korea’s Nuclear Ambitions In This Funny Ad Posted: 21 Feb 2013 07:43 PM PST North Korea may be distressing policymakers here and abroad with its threats of nuclear blah-blah-blah, but most people tend to shrug off its proclamations as rhetorical bluster, which we've all seen before. "Final destruction," DPRK? Really? You mean, this is finally the final one, now? North Korea, at this point, is a parody of itself, but that doesn't mean we've exhausted the satirical possibilities. Here's Kingsoft to demonstrate. In an ad for its new Liebao (Cheetah) browser, it depicts a fat Kim Jong-un pulling out a rifle and threatening to execute one of his commanding officers due to a browser glitch. As described by Abe Sauer on Brand Channel: But the fast-fingered lackey whips open a Liebao browser and saves the day. "Use Liebao. Launch Victoriously" reads the tagline. Then everyone starts Gangnam Styling because… of course. Sauer proceeds to analyze the Liebao browser's market potential, concluding that "without an English interface, it will likely remain" largely anonymous outside of China. "One thing is for sure," he writes, "Kingsoft can expect its market in North Korea is dead." Dead as Barack Obama in flames in this DPRK propaganda video. Dead as New York City. Final destruction dead. China's Kingsoft Mocks North Korea in Liebao Browser Ad (Brand Channel)

Thousands Gather To Mourn 16-Year-Old Who Died Trying To Save A Man Who Fell Through Ice Posted: 21 Feb 2013 06:36 PM PST Thousands of friends, classmates, and strangers, many of them wearing white flowers, gathered on Gangtie Road in Xingtai, Hebei province at 9 am on Wednesday to bid farewell to Ren Wei, a 16-year-old who drowned while trying to save a man who fell through ice on February 16. Even sanitation workers held banners that read, "RIP Ren Wei," and "Ren Wei, we'll always cherish your memory." That fateful afternoon, a cyclist was coming across the frozen river when the ice broke. Ren and his friend, Li Lin, both saw this, and rushed over to help. Both of them also fell into the frigid water. Of the three, only Li was rescued and survived. After the incident, a city council awarded Ren's family 10,000 yuan. On Monday the 18th, the Communist Youth League posthumously honored Ren by giving him the designation of a "Xingtai City Good Samaritan Youth." Representatives of the city government also sent 10,000 yuan and condolences on behalf of city hall.

Sina Weibo Suspends Three Prominent Accounts In Less Than Two Weeks Posted: 21 Feb 2013 09:53 AM PST What do former Taiwan premier Frank Hsieh Chang-Ting, former Google president Kai-Fu Lee, and human rights lawyer Pu Zhiqiang have in common? Within the last three weeks, each of them has seen his Sina Weibo account suspended. In Lee's case, he was slapped with a three-day ban. In Hsieh's case, his account was completely trashed. And Pu? He can't do anything on any Chinese microblog — not Sina's, Tencent's, or Sohu's. What's going on here? SCMP tries to get to the bottom of it. First, Pu: In his posts, which were widely commented on and reposted, Pu said (recently retired security tsar) Zhou (Yongkang) had "wrecked a country, ruined the people". The posts were soon deleted. That happened on February 8, on an unspecified account. He tried to open a Sina Weibo account the next day, which lasted four days before being deleted. On February 14, he tried again, and this time his account survived all of four hours. Pu said the suspension of his microblogs might have been due to his criticism of Zhou. In his post, Pu said too many human tragedies had been directly attributed to Zhou's policies and his stability-maintenance apparatus. "Stability maintenance is the worst evil for instability in China," he wrote. We'll repeat something we've said before: in China, you can talk about anything as long as you don't offend the wrong people or speak too loudly about the truth. In former Taiwan premier Hsieh's case, his account, a mere 24 hours after verification, was deleted on February 20. Perhaps a supervisor recognized his name and realized Hsieh was trouble. SCMP again: "It must have been the superiors of Sina, such as propaganda authorities, who issued the order [to delete Hsieh's account]," said two Beijing-based senior online editors, who asked that their names not be used. They said that it was impossible for Sina to make Hsieh a VIP user without approval from the Taiwan Affairs Office. "But if the state-level propaganda department does not like Hsieh's posts, they can ask Sina to delete his account," they added. Most confusing of all is the suspension of China Google's ex-president, Lee. On February 17 he tweeted: "I am silenced on Sina and Tencent [Weibos] for three days, so everyone can find me here." Netizens have, as you might expect, mostly rallied to these three men's causes. Freedom of speech may be a progressive, even radical idea, but many here still aspire for it. They're bound to be disappointed. "Freedom of speech is not about the freedom to criticise powerful officials, but about whether you will lose this freedom after having criticised them," Hsieh explained in a post uploaded on Wednesday. We should amend Hsieh's statement for China. It's not about whether you will lose this freedom, but how long it'll take. Not very long. (H/T Alicia)

Thursday Memes: China Geography Edition Posted: 21 Feb 2013 05:00 AM PST Showcasing the best in Asian-related memes. Sources: China Memes, We Know Memes.

Foxconn significantly slows recruitment across factories Posted: 22 Feb 2013 01:00 AM PST Foxconn, the largest private employer in China, has announced hiring freezes until the end of March and slowed recruitment forecasts across all of its Chinese factories. [ more › ]

Bo Xilai resisting investigation, staging hunger strikes Posted: 21 Feb 2013 11:30 PM PST The disgraced Chongqing politician's name hasn't made headlines for about three weeks, after excitement over his looming trial proved premature. Now, almost exactly a year after the Bo Xilai scandal first broke, sources have reported that the still-imprisoned, still-untried former politician is refusing to cooperate with authorities, has gone on hunger strike, and—details remain fuzzy, as per usual with this case—was "at one point treated in a hospital." [ more › ]

World Health Store's 12-Week Challenge is Back Posted: 21 Feb 2013 11:30 PM PST Date: Feb 22nd 2013 2:34p.m. Contributed by: katvelayo

Six Things to Salivate Over this Weekend Posted: 21 Feb 2013 11:27 PM PST Date: Feb 22nd 2013 2:23p.m. Contributed by: cityweekend_sh Stuck for ideas of what to do this weekend?

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