Blogs » Politics » JUNE 2012: Retrospective on a 15-Year Anniversary

---

• JUNE 2012: Retrospective on a 15-Year Anniversary
• Photo: Camouflage, by Christopher Cherry
• In Brief: Ai Weiwei Denied His Day in Court, Legal Advisor Disappeared
• Ai Weiwei Prevented from Attending Hearing
• All the News That is Fit to Print
• Post with image of Hu Jintao deleted from Weibo
• Frenchman With Ties to Bo Arrested in Cambodia
• Bo Xilai verdict due before end of June: Boxun
• Managing South Asia’s Himalayan Rivers: A Human Development Framework
• Safety Scandals Give Foreign Dairies a Boost
• Lhasa Under Lockdown, June 2-14
• Foreigners in Guangzhou Protest Death of Expat
• Discussing Why Weibo Matters To Journalism’s Future
• China Blasts into Space
• Beijing Eases Tensions with Manila
• Foreigner Dies in Police Custody, Leading to Mass Protest by Africans in Guangzhou
• Xiong Peiyun on Land and Revolt
• Congress Apologies for Anti-Chinese Immigration Laws
• China, Hong Kong: ‘Happy Ad' for Student Abortions Ignites Debate
• The reign of Hu and Wen through the eyes of Jonathan Watts

JUNE 2012: Retrospective on a 15-Year Anniversary Posted: 19 Jun 2012 10:27 PM PDT Anniversaries are occasions for stock-taking and the exercise can hardly be avoided as Hong Kong completes its 15th year under Chinese rule. If all goes according to plan, President Hu Jintao [胡錦濤] will arrive from Beijing in time for the July First anniversary celebrations and officiate at the swearing in of Hong Kong's controversial new leader, Leung Chun-ying [梁振英]. Leung will be the third local Chief Executive to hold office since the last British governor, Christopher Patten, sailed away on June 30, 1997. It is sure to be a grand occasion but stock-taking will not be easy. Inventories depend on how much was sold and how much stock remains. Report cards for 15 years after the transfer from colonial to Chinese authority depend as much on subjective (partisan) expectations as objective balance sheets and if this month's build-up is any indication, the July First anniversary will likely be as tumultuous as it is grand. 1997: LOOKING BACK No one on either side of the mainland-Hong Kong divide, whatever their partisan political inclinations, knew for sure what to expect. In terms of hopes and fears, 1997 was the best and worst of times and everyone remained on guard as the new era began. The worst economic predictions about "the death of Hong Kong," soon took on a whole new meaning that had nothing to do with the new sovereign. On the contrary, China escaped the worst effects of the 1997-98 Asian financial crisis and Beijing helped Hong Kong weather the economic downturn in many ways. Worst fears also did not materialize for those more concerned about politics than economics. Despite Beijing's open animosity, leading democracy fighters Martin Lee [李柱銘] and Szeto Wah [司徒華] were never sent to jail for anything and they soon forgot their worries about being barred from reentry if they traveled abroad. But it was a result they had worked to achieve. Throughout the preparatory 1980s and 1990s, whenever rights and freedoms seemed at risk, each challenge was met with protest and resistance. One example was the candlelight vigil that had been held each year since 1990, to mourn those killed during Beijing's June 3-4, 1989 crackdown against democracy protesters in Tiananmen Square. The then Chief Executive-designate, Tung Chee-hwa [董建華], tried his best. In a televised address to the city on June 2, 1997, he said it was time to "lay down the baggage" of June Fourth. In response, public attendance at the vigil was upwards of 50,000, the highest turnout in five years (Ming Pao, June 5, 2012; Hong Kong Standard June 5, 1997). Thereafter, nothing more was heard of his administration's plans to close the Victoria Park venue in 1998 "for renovations." The commemoration, banned everywhere else in China, is always held in the same location and has remained an annual event despite Beijing's pressure to end it. Worst fears did not always dominate pre-1997 perspectives, of course, but the highest of hopes also did not materialize for either side. On occasion, after a good day or at farewell dinner parties, liberals (as today's pan-democrats liked to call themselves) would proclaim to rounds of applause that there was nothing to fear because China would be joining Hong Kong rather than vice versa. They toasted themselves as bridge-builders across the 1997 divide, helping to create a new democratic China. On other occasions liberals had to listen to conservative hopes and aspirations. This might happen after an especially tough day at the bargaining table with Beijing representatives and Hong Kong's current Chief Executive-elect who was then a close collaborator in the work of dismantling all Governor Patten's democratic reforms. When asked the purpose of legislative designs like proportional representation and small-circle constituencies, conservatives were sometimes candid enough to reveal their aim. The idea was to marginalize democrats by depriving them of their new-won 1990s electoral majorities and the public recognition that came with them. Professor Lau Siu-kai [劉兆佳], who also collaborated closely in the dismantling work, predicted that Beijing would just ignore its democratic critics and try to drive them into "political irrelevance" (Hong Kong Standard, Feb. 26, 27, 1996). Ultimately, Hong Kong's "way of life" did remain unchanged, just as Chinese leaders and Article 5 of its new Basic Law constitution promised. But one side's highest hopes stoked the other's worst fears, all revolving around the central question of China's political reform agenda. We can never have democracy in Hong Kong until China itself has democracy, said activist politicians. In response, Beijing dusted off its deepest oldest Cold War fears about Hong Kong as a nest of spies and base of subversion bent on overthrowing China's communist-led government. Pre-1997 tensions rooted in these two assumptions have continued ever since over every issue, big and small, that concerns Hong Kong's political freedoms and way of life. 2003: BEIJING'S "NEW POLICY" Professor Lau's prediction seemed like coming true throughout the first five years after 1997. With no economic training or experience of their own, democracy activists and politicians were derided by friend and foe alike as "one trick ponies." They had no choice but defer to their big business critics and to Beijing for guidance while Hong Kong tried to navigate its way through the economic downturn. These were also the years when the Democratic Party began losing its most energetic "Young Turk" members, although their departure seemed to do nothing either for the party or the movement it once led. Political street life was as lackluster as the Legislative Council's dead-end debates, and Szeto Wah began complaining that his Democratic Party candidates lacked sufficient resources to compete with the services their opponents were laying on for District Council constituents. The party had realized, he said, that their pre-1997 goal of democratizing China was premature. Without precedents or institutional memories to guide them, democrats were having trouble enough keeping their goals alive for Hong Kong itself. After 1997, Prof. Lau headed the Hong Kong government's Central Policy Unit think tank and he is only now retiring from his post as official government pollster. His habit of predicting what his superiors wanted to hear nevertheless ended abruptly on July 1, 2003, and he has kept a low profile ever since. A few days before, based on CPU polling, Lau told journalists that only about 30,000 people would turn out for a protest march against the government's attempt to push through its national security legislation as mandated by the Basic Law's Article 23. Instead, at least half-a-million angry residents marched across town on a sweltering summer holiday and Prof. Lau has never been allowed to forget it. Beijing was startled to discover the depth of opposition it had been led to believe did not exist. But as Hong Kong's democracy movement rediscovered its original purpose in protecting Hong Kong from the dangers of mainland-style rule, Beijing pushed back against the renewed momentum. In 2009, one of Beijing's "Hong Kong experts" provided a rare concise account of Beijing's response. Prior to July 1, 2003, wrote Professor CHENG Jie [ 程傑 ], Beijing had viewed Hong Kong as "politically-subdued territory" due to its long acceptance of British colonial rule. The "surprisingly broad-based resentments" demonstrated on July 1, 2003, directed both against the Hong Kong and central governments, led Beijing to replace its "laissez faire" approach with a "new policy." This emphasized "engagement and involvement, and the central government's authority over a subsidiary territory." She called it a "watershed" for both sides.* Since then, Beijing's interventions have been conspicuous by their presence including a highly publicized political study campaign conducted by Beijing's Basic Law "guardians" in early 2004; new rules that mandated Beijing's prior approval for all political reform initiatives; explicit affirmation that Beijing's right to appoint all leading Hong Kong government officials was substantive not symbolic; and direct participation by Central Liaison Office mainland personnel in local political debates. Policies and projects for cross-border economic and social integration have also accelerated. But to what effect? 2012: LOOKING FORWARD If July 1, 2003 was a watershed moment, what to make of this year's June Fourth candlelight vigil commemorating the 23rd anniversary of Beijing's crackdown against its own home grown democracy movement? There was no special reason for the huge overflow crowd this year. Organizers (the Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements in China) put the figure at 180,000; police claimed 85,000. But Victoria Park's six soccer pitches, which hold 80-85,000, were already packed before starting time at 8 p.m. An hour later crowds were still pouring into the adjacent park area where loudspeakers had been set up to accommodate the overflow crowd. Adding further to its significance, Hong Kong's younger generations had obviously taken over the event. Organizers also estimated that about one-tenth of the participants were mainlanders … probably more if the northern accents scattered throughout the crowd were any indication. Unlike the July First marches that target primarily the Hong Kong government, June Fourth has always been a direct challenge to Beijing. The "subversive" slogans have remained the same throughout including the provocative "end one-party dictatorship." Such overflow crowds have appeared only in 1990 for the first anniversary and 2009 for the twentieth, plus 2010 to honor the event's terminally ill mainstay, Szeto Hua, and then in 2011 to mourn his passing. But this year there was no special reason … except for a mood of rising anger fueled by several incidents associated with repressive mainland rule, its increasingly apparent intrusions here, and many indications that the Chief Executive-elect will be working more openly with Beijing than either of his predecessors. Specifically, there is a fear that his administration will restrict Hong Kong's freedom of political expression including especially the ability to articulate dissenting views on the street and in the media. As for the recent mainland incidents, Hong Kong activists regularly monitor and report on the work of their cross-border counterparts so blind lawyer Chen Guangcheng's [ 陳光誠 ] dramatic leap from his village in Shandong to New York City in April and May received widespread publicity here. So did the surprise approval by Hong Kong immigration authorities of a visitor's visa for 1989-era student activist FANG Zheng [方政 ]. Better-known 1989 dissidents are usually denied entry but Fang has kept a low profile since migrating to the U.S. in 2009. Severely handicapped after losing both legs to one of the People's Liberation Army tanks that cleared Tiananmen Square on the night of June 3-4, 1989, his highly-publicized attendance as an honored guest at the June Fourth vigil was a vivid reminder of the events Beijing still refuses to acknowledge. Local anger continued to grow after an even more tragic case came to light a few days later, this one from Shaoyang city in Hunan province. Dissident Li Wangyang [李旺陽] was largely unknown here until his June 2 interview with a Hong Kong cable TV station. He was found dead in his Shaoyang hospital ward on June 6. Li had been an ordinary worker in 1989 and was among many others who joined students and intellectuals trying to articulate the wide range of grievances that fueled China's 1989 protests. Imprisoned for "counter-revolutionary crimes," the old pre-reform name for subversive activities, he was partially blind, deaf, and toothless but still defiant when finally released 20 years later. He began petitioning local authorities to pay for his medical expenses, was again imprisoned, and released last year but remained under the usual security surveillance. Unable to care for himself, he was hospitalized and found tied to a window grating allegedly a suicide by hanging although both of his feet were resting firmly on the floor. Photographs of the implausible death scene, transmitted from Shaoyang by his family and friends, filled Hong Kong newspapers within hours and sparked an instantaneous backlash. The Hong Kong Alliance and the Civil Human Rights Front (a coalition of activist groups that has sponsored the annual July First protest marches since 2003) organized an impromptu march on Sunday June 10, and thousands (organizers: 25,000; police: 5,400) besieged Beijing's Liaison Office here demanding to know the truth about Li's death. They suspect he was killed by his minders as revenge for the June 2 interview he had managed to give without their knowledge. Obviously, Hong Kong's democracy movement has not faded away and neither has Beijing's way of governing. If anything, the two are reinforcing each other. Still firm in the spirit of its June Fourth 1989 response, the People's Liberation Army (Hong Kong garrison) is planning a ceremonial parachute jump directly into Victoria Park as part of the official July First anniversary celebrations (China Daily, June 13). A challenge to the central government's authority must be met with the reassertion of that authority regardless of the cost. Yet the relationship is also clearly interactive, working both ways and evolving at its own pace. Hong Kong's pan-democrats may be losing out at the ballot box but they are definitely not irrelevant. For its part, Beijing may be presiding over the same form of one-party rule, but it cannot completely contain Hong Kong's "bridging" function, which is having an impact after all. Hong Kongers are interacting with their mainland counterparts on at least one dimension — opening closed lines of political information — that is even more important than elections. Li Wangyang's friends hastened to post images of the suicide scene directly to the Hong Kong media before public security closed in. And presumably not all the photographs mainlanders took of themselves posing in front of Hong Kong's "subversive" June Fourth protest slogans will be lost in cyberspace. Chief Executive-elect Leung Chun-ying is undergoing the same two-way squeeze. He says he aims to intensify social and economic cross-border integration as a means of boosting Hong Kong's economic growth. This has naturally heightened fears about pressure for more political integration that is sure to follow. But another of his campaign promises was public outreach and he is being hounded at every stop to talk about June Fourth, human rights, and the Li Wangyang case. He has consistently declined comment on all sensitive political subjects but finally spoke out on the one that worries everyone most, namely, their own right to do so. During a June 18 TV interview, he pledged in so many words not to interfere with Hong Kong's freedom of political expression in any of its multiple forms. Whether this will be enough to allay suspicions and reduce the protest march turnout on July First remains to be seen … as does the impact of the PLA's celebratory parachute jump into Victoria Park. *CHENG Jie, "The Story of a New Policy," Hong Kong Journal, July 1, 2009 (http://www.hkjournal.org/archive/2009_fall/1.htm ). suzpepper@gmail.com

Photo: Camouflage, by Christopher Cherry Posted: 19 Jun 2012 10:27 PM PDT Camouflage © Sophie Beach for China Digital Times (CDT), 2012. | Permalink | No comment | Add to del.icio.us Post tags: Download Tools to Circumvent the Great Firewall

In Brief: Ai Weiwei Denied His Day in Court, Legal Advisor Disappeared Posted: 19 Jun 2012 06:31 PM PDT In news so depressingly predictable that it's almost not worth writing about, Ai Weiwei's legal advisor Liu Xiaoyuan is apparently being held by State Security after being summoned for a meeting at 8:30 PM last night. Although Ai Weiwei's Fake Studio tax appeal case opens in court today, Liu Xiaoyuan has not yet returned, and his phone is turned off. Ai has also been informed by police that he is not allowed in court. Honestly, I am running out of things to say when this sort of thing happens. It's a move as obvious as it is depressing, and it's indication number 9,343,245 that however fast China's economy is developing, the real rule of law is still a terribly long way off. One wonders how government spokesmen manage to choke out the words, "China is a nation with the rule of law," even as this sort of "justice" is being served. I also wonder what, exactly, Beijing is doing here. They clearly have no intention of giving Ai his day in court, and they can't possibly think that anyone outside China will consider whatever verdict they reach fair when Ai's principal lawyer was essentially kidnapped the night before his court date. So why not just arrest him and be done with it? Or hand him a summons informing him the court has found him guilty of tax evasion in absentia or something. I understand someone probably feels the government needs to make a show of doing this the right way, but security forces obviously don't agree. If you're going to put on a dog-and-pony show to try to fool people into believing China has the rule of law, it's best to at least allow the occasional dog or pony into the building, isn't it? VN:F [1.9.10_1130] Rating: 10.0/10 (3 votes cast) In Brief: Ai Weiwei Denied His Day in Court, Legal Advisor Disappeared, 10.0 out of 10 based on 3 ratings Tags: Ai Weiwei, Injustice

Ai Weiwei Prevented from Attending Hearing Posted: 19 Jun 2012 10:14 PM PDT The court hearing of artist and activist Ai Weiwei's case against tax authorities is scheduled for Wednesday in Beijing. In an unexpected move, a Beijing court earlier accepted Ai's case against tax authorities who filed tax evasion charges against Ai's art studio. But hours before it was due to open, police warned Ai Weiwei not to attend the hearing, while his legal advisor Liu Xiaoyuan was reportedly missing after being called in for questioning by police. Reuters reports: His supporters say the tax case, due to be heard later on Wednesday, is part of the government's drive to muzzle the outspoken social critic. Despite the courts' acceptance of his lawsuit, Ai told Reuters that police called him repeatedly on Tuesday afternoon, warning him not to turn up at the courthouse. "'You can never make it. Don't even try,'" Ai, 55, said police told him. He said police gave no reason. "This nation can have anything, they can have a satellite that goes to the sky and the moon, but they can never give you a clear reason why," he said. "This is ridiculous, right? There's no conversation, no discussion. Maybe they don't even know the reason. It's a really mysterious nation." An avid Twitter user, Ai has been tweeting updates to his followers, including a call for the release of Liu Xiaoyuan, who is assumed to be under police detention: 我可以不去法院，请放回刘晓原。 — 艾未未Ai Weiwei (@aiww) June 20, 2012 [I cannot go to the court; please return Liu Xiaoyuan.] Ai also tweeted photos of police cars stationed outside his studio; staff members were reportedly assaulted by the officers they were filming: RT @jenwyng: TT @aiww Ai Weiwei Studio was assaulted when filming 30 police cars outside. Video camera damaged, staff injured. — 艾未未Ai Weiwei (@aiww) June 20, 2012 A photo of Ai taken today is also making the rounds of Twitter: 这个是谁？嘿嘿@aiww twitter.com/qizhuochine/st… — 大盆儿 (@qizhuochine) June 20, 2012 Last week, Ai Weiwei recorded a message for the Cinema for Peace Foundation in Basel, Switzerland, which screened the documentary about him, Ai Weiwei: Never Sorry: Read more about Ai Weiwei and his detention on tax evasion charges last year. © Sophie Beach for China Digital Times (CDT), 2012. | Permalink | No comment | Add to del.icio.us Post tags: Ai Weiwei, dissidents, tax evasion Download Tools to Circumvent the Great Firewall

All the News That is Fit to Print Posted: 19 Jun 2012 07:40 PM PDT Speaks for itself:   Shanghai Daily     SHANGHAI DAILY-6-15-12

Post with image of Hu Jintao deleted from Weibo Posted: 19 Jun 2012 06:41 PM PDT The following post about Chinese President Hu Jintao appearing at the G20 summit in Mexico was deleted from Sina Weibo sometime before 3:42pm Hong Kong time yesterday, June 19, 2012. The post was made by Sichuan CPPCC delegate Fan Jianchuan (樊建川), who currently has just under 237,000 followers, according to numbers from Sina Weibo. [More on deleted posts at the WeiboScope Search, by the Journalism and Media Studies Centre]. Fan Jianchuan's post is accompanied by the following photo of television coverage of the G20 summit in Mexico this week showing Chinese President Hu Jintao. The caption on the television coverage reads: "Hu Jintao meets with German leader: we continue to support the Eurozone." The post from Fan Jianchuan reads: [We continue to support the Eurozone], but aren't quite so sure how to support it? The post was presumably removed not for the sensitivity of its remarks but because it contains an image of the Chinese president. Fan Jianchuan's original Chinese post follows: 「继续支持欧洲」，不太清楚怎么支持？ NOTE: All posts to The Anti-Social List are listed as "permission denied" in the Sina Weibo API, which means they were deleted by Weibo managers, not by users themselves. Tweet

Frenchman With Ties to Bo Arrested in Cambodia Posted: 19 Jun 2012 07:02 PM PDT The French foreign ministry confirmed on Tuesday that Cambodian police have arrested Patrick Henri Devillers, the architect who has become linked to the Bo Xilai scandal due to his alleged business ties to Gu Kailai. From The New York Times' Keith Bradsher, who tracked down Devillers in Cambodia last month: Bernard Valero, the spokesman for the French foreign ministry, said at the ministry's daily news conference in Paris on Tuesday that the architect, Patrick Devillers, had been detained in Cambodia. "We of course will offer our consular protection, and we are in direct contact with the Cambodian authorities regarding the ins and outs of this arrest," he said. "We are obviously following the ongoing investigation very closely." … Mr. Devillers had remained in Cambodia despite being warned strongly and repeatedly by friends that he was in danger there, in part because of the Cambodian government's close connections to the Chinese government, which is its largest creditor and aid donor. Mr. Devillers may have stayed because he began living with a Cambodian woman soon after moving to Phnom Penh nearly six years ago and has a kindergarten-aged child with her, said a friend who insisted on anonymity because of the diplomatic tussle over Mr. Devillers. The South China Morning Post reports that the arrest of Devillers was carried out with the cooperation of Beijing, which is seeking his extradition, though Phnom Penh police have not decided whether to send him to China or France. While French officials probe the cause of the arrest, The Telegraph's Malcolm Moore connected with Devillers' father for his reaction to the news: "I spoke to my son 10 days ago and he appeared perfectly calm," said the semi-retired property developer at his home in Rainans, Burgundy. "He had no idea he was in danger of being arrested, as he had intended to come to France for a trip over the summer. My aim is to have him repatriated to France. I will be speaking with a French consular contact in Cambodia tomorrow, and I intend to fly to Cambodia as soon as possible." He said he believed his son was attracted to Mrs Gu and had wanted a romantic relationship with her. "My opinion is that he was ensnared in a web of manipulation by this woman," he said, without providing more details. © Scott Greene for China Digital Times (CDT), 2012. | Permalink | No comment | Add to del.icio.us Post tags: Bo Xilai, cambodia, extradition, France, gu kailai, murder, Neil Heywood, Patrick Henri Devillers, scandal Download Tools to Circumvent the Great Firewall

Bo Xilai verdict due before end of June: Boxun Posted: 19 Jun 2012 06:17 PM PDT Bo Xilai, left, and Chongqing mayor Huang Qifan attend a local party meeting in January. Huang has survived the fallout from the Bo affair. (Photo/CNS) Bo Xilai, ousted in March as party secretary of Chongqing in China's southwest, will be convicted for "serious disciplinary violations" no later than this month, while his former right-hand man Wang Lijun will go on trial for treason next week, says Boxun, a Chinese-language citizen journalism site that is sourced mostly by anonymous users and frequently makes claims that are difficult to prove. Chongqing authorities held a vote on Monday to decide the city's representatives for the 18th National Congress later this fall, which will see a once-in-a-decade change in China's top leadership. The municipality has been headed by Zhang Dejiang, a vice premier and Politburo member, after Bo was stripped of his leadership posts in the city on March 15, and suspended from other senior party positions on April 10. The municipality deliberately postponed the election until Tuesday in a bid to avoid the aftermath of Bo's case overshadowing the forthcoming national congress, inside sources in Chongqing told Boxun. Beijing will announce its verdict on Bo before the end of June and he will not be held accountable for the actions of his wife, Gu Kailai, who is accused of murdering British businessman Neil Heywood over a financial dispute last November, according to the source. The insider said that in line with plans laid out by Bo before his downfall, the municipality is granting equal treatment to residents of outlying rural areas as to residents of urban districts from the first half of this year. The move was conceived by Wang Lijun, Bo's former right hand man and police chief who triggered the political storm by fleeing to the US consulate in Chengdu in February with details of the illegal practices of Bo and his wife. Wang will go on trial for treason in Chengdu next week, Cheng Wei, a senior media figure, said on his Sina Weibo microblog early on Sunday morning, though without referring to Wang by name. The entry was deleted within six hours, but has caused fierce discussion on the internet in a case where much of what has been spread online as rumor has later proved to be true. Earlier reports by the Hong Kong-based South China Morning Post in May said Beijing will try to end Wang's trial before August to lessen its influence over the 18th National Congress. Source: Want China Times You might also like： People's Daily editorial a veiled attack on Bo Xilai: Duowei Bo Xilai inquiry complete: Duowei Life for Bo Xilai, Wang Lijun; death for Gu Kailai: Boxun Gu Kailai retains veteran lawyer for murder trial: sources Did Gu Kailai really confess Heywood murder to Wang Lijun? 无觅

Managing South Asia’s Himalayan Rivers: A Human Development Framework Posted: 19 Jun 2012 03:48 PM PDT Memo #164 By Tashi Tsering – ttsering [at] interchange.ubc.ca What would an ideal regulatory system to manage an international river look like? Some have called for an innovatively designed regulatory authority for international rivers, such as the Ganga-Brahmaputra river system in the Himalayan region. Existing models are not compatible with the geopolitical conditions in South Asia. Rather than furthering traditional nationalist approaches, the new design must take into account the people living in the region. Existing models are designed mainly for developed countries. When applied to developing countries, they tend to produce a host of problems including corruption, forced relocation, military crackdown, and environmental destruction. In addition, the sharing of economic benefits of joint management is not sufficient for bringing India and China, the two main riparian countries, to work together. They have differing priorities in the region, evident in the issue of political stability. Aside to being the home of the Himalayas, a world "Biodiversity Hotspot,"  the Ganga-Brahmaputra region is also a zone of conflict and ethnic unrest. This area is home to a significant "tribal" population in Northeast India and Tibetans in China, who are embroiled in conflict with the state. There are also border disputes in the region between India and China, making the design of a regulatory authority for the basin extremely complex. Traditional nationalist approaches to managing international rivers, such as those used by the Mekong River Commission, are most likely to further marginalize the "tribal" or "minority" peoples living in the region. The challenge is to design a river basin authority that will directly improve people's livelihood and cross-border relations. One possible approach in designing an ideal regulatory system would be to reformulate the task from the development and strategic interest of member states to the development and livelihood security of people living in the region. A framework for multilateral cooperation based on human interest or a human development approach is essential to produce desirable social, environmental, and economic benefits. Such an approach is also more likely to improve cross-border relations. If you enjoyed this memo, subscribe to our e-newsletter for free and receive new memos 2+ times per week via email. Links: Managing South Asia's Himalayan Rivers, East Asia Forum, June 9, 2012. Overview – Himalaya, Conservation International. China's Water Politics: In Whose Interests? Portland State University, 2003 (By Tashi Tsering). Human Development, United Nations Development Programme. Indian Media and Misinformation on Chinese Dam on the Brahmaputra, The Tibetan Plateau Blog (By Tashi Tsering). Related Memos: See Tashi Tsering's Memo, China's Plans to Divert Water on the Tibetan Plateau (Memo #110) Theme: Water, Scarcity, and Tibetan Plateau Frontiers

Safety Scandals Give Foreign Dairies a Boost Posted: 19 Jun 2012 02:27 PM PDT With the safety of dairy products, especially infant formula, constantly under question in China, foreign brands are finding an opening into the China market. From Reuters: The latest foreign bet comes from Danish-Swedish dairy group Arla, which said on Friday it would buy what amounts to a 6 percent stake in Yili's main competitor, China Mengniu Dairy Co, from private equity fund Hopu for 1.7 billion Danish crowns ($289 million). The deal lifted Mengniu shares by 7 percent on Monday. "If you have an international brand, then there's a premium in the market, because food safety is a concern," said Kevin Bellamy, dairy analyst at Rabobank in the Netherlands. For some global milk producers, finding new markets is also crucial as they consolidate and expand production faster than their traditional, and mature, milk markets can grow. Milk and formula safety became a deep concern for Chinese parents after a 2008 scandal in which at least six babies died and 300,000 were sickened from drinking milk formula contaminated with melamine, a chemical used in fertilizer and plastic. Earlier this year, Nestle bought out two infant formula brands which are popular in China. Read more about milk contamination and food safety in China, via CDT. © Sophie Beach for China Digital Times (CDT), 2012. | Permalink | No comment | Add to del.icio.us Post tags: children's health, contaminated milk, food safety, foreign companies, infant formula Download Tools to Circumvent the Great Firewall

Lhasa Under Lockdown, June 2-14 Posted: 19 Jun 2012 02:16 PM PDT Armed police in Lhasa. Most foreigners, with some notable exceptions, will be allowed back in Tibet starting tomorrow. Foreigners were banned from visiting following two self-immolations in the capital, Lhasa, on May 27. What did Tibet look like during the ban? Tibetan poet and activist Woeser compiled reports and photos from Lhasa and beyond via Weibo on her blog. One of the original signatories of Charter 08, Woeser is currently under police surveillance in Beijing. She wrote an appeal to her fellow Tibetans this spring to "stay alive to struggle and push forward," rather than end their lives in protest. More comments and photos are available from CDT Chinese.   WeaselPauper: The train arrived on schedule in Lhasa. The most outstanding thing was that they didn't check our tickets as we left the station, but instead our ID cards. The riot police carrying guns and the hoards of city police make you feel nervous, hinting at the lack of peace. (June 2) 黄狼财尽：列车准点抵达拉萨，出站不查车票只查身份证可能是其最大的特色。荷枪的武警与大量的警察给人一种紧张的感觉，预示着这个城市的不平静。（6月2日） Desert-WolfKing: Lhasa is crawling with riot police. In gas stations, temples, power stations, intersections—everywhere there are riot police carrying guns. There are even armored cars in the pedestrian walkways. There are lots of places where you can't take photos! (June 5) 沙漠-狼王：拉萨什么情况满街都是武警，加油站，寺庙，电力公司，十字路口都是带枪的武警。连步行街都有装甲车。很多地方都不让拍照！（6月5日） ChenMengshengTravels: When taking pictures in front of the Potala Palace, you can't sit or lie down on the ground. Otherwise Uncle Riot Police will come get you. (June 7) 陈梦生京粤行：在布达拉宫附近拍照，不能坐地上或是趴地上。不然武警叔叔会找你。（6月7日） CoolSummerBreeze: The Lhasa police all drive Infinitis. They sure do have money. (June 12) 夏天小凉风：拉萨武警当官的开私家车牌的INFINITI上班，真有钱啊 。（6月12日） TuoZhenguo: When traveling in certain places in Ti_bet—Mount Everest, Ngari, Shannan, Yadong, Medog—you need a border pass in addition to your ID card in order to get past the border police. In Lhasa you can find a travel agency to get the pass for you, which will allow you one month of travel in up to four different locations. The situation is really tense now. Whether or not you get your pass in Lhasa depends on how you present yourself. (June 14) 脱镇国： 在西_藏旅行，除了必须带好身份证，珠峰、阿里、山南、亚东、墨脱等一些地区还必须办边境证，否_则通不过边防武警的关卡。在拉萨可以找旅行社代办，有效期一个月，可填4个地方。最近局势紧张，在拉萨办不办得出来要看人品。（6月14日） LiMumuStudent: I'm here #PotalaPalace I touched the Potala Palace!! It feels so holy… The square [in front of the palace] is heavily guarded. There are riot police, and there's a security check… (June 14) 黎木木同学：我在這裡：#布达拉宫广场#摸得着的布宫啊！！感觉到很神圣……广场守卫深严，有武警，还要过安检…（6月14日） © Anne.Henochowicz for China Digital Times (CDT), 2012. | Permalink | One comment | Add to del.icio.us Post tags: lhasa, Potala Palace, self-immolation, self-immolations, Tibet, Woeser Download Tools to Circumvent the Great Firewall

Foreigners in Guangzhou Protest Death of Expat Posted: 19 Jun 2012 12:11 PM PDT Foreigners living in China have been in the spotlight recently as the behavior of a few has inspired the government to crack down on the group as a whole. In Guangzhou, tensions have flared between expats and authorities when a foreigner was found dead after being detained following a dispute with a electric bicycle driver. The Guardian reports: Guangzhou police said via its microblog account it had opened an investigation into the death of a foreign national on Monday. It said officers in Yuexiu district had been called because of a fight between a foreigner and an electric bicycle driver over a fare dispute. Police took both men back to the police station to investigate, it said. But hours later the foreigner suddenly became unconscious and died despite officers summoning medical help. In a separate post, the police said foreigners had blocked traffic on Guangyuan West Road – where the fight broke out – on Tuesday afternoon but were dispersed by officers. They appealed to expatriates living in China to "abide by Chinese laws, not harm public interests or disrupt public order" and said police would investigate the death in strict accordance with the law. Reports have said the victim is Nigerian. Deutsche Welle recently looked at the growing number of African immigrants in China, many of whom settle in Guangzhou: Life is not always easy for Africans living in China. "Chinese people hate blacks," Toyin says. "Very few taxis stop for me, for example. "It is also difficult to get through the red tape and to get papers for extended stays. Many Africans in China register as students as this is simpler and cheaper. There are also specialized agencies which charge up to $3,000 for visas, but these are often issued for six months only and do not allow multiple entries. Many foreigners end up in jail when their visas expire and recently the Chinese government announced it was going to step up checks even more. Toyin and Kabir refuse to have their photos taken even though their papers are in order. They do not want to draw any unnecessary attention to themselves. Nevertheless, they say they like living in China. Kabir has married a Chinese woman and Toyin says she feels safer in China than in Nigeria. "There are so many attacks and so much violence in my country. Here I can go home at 3 in the morning. I love China because of that." Read more about foreigners in China and about Africa immigrants living there. © Sophie Beach for China Digital Times (CDT), 2012. | Permalink | No comment | Add to del.icio.us Post tags: Africa trade, Africans in China, foreigners in China, Guangzhou, police violence Download Tools to Circumvent the Great Firewall

Discussing Why Weibo Matters To Journalism’s Future Posted: 19 Jun 2012 11:49 AM PDT What is the future of journalism? How do you even define "journalism"? Why is Weibo, China's Twitter, an important part of this discussion? Tea Leaf Nation editor David Wertime sat down this morning to discuss these important questions with speakers from Global Voices, GlobalPost, Upworthy and The Awesome Foundation at this year's MIT-Knight Civic Media Conference. Luckily, MIT's Stephen Suen was live-blogging the talk and hit upon the major China-related points here, which we summarize below. The entire (fascinating) video discussion is also viewable at bottom.  Some reasons Chinese social media matters: Weibo is the closest thing China has for free speech and free debate. This window into grassroots opinion in China can help inform the political decisions that other countries make. Redefining the quote: One thing we are trying to do at TLN is to redefine the quote. Getting quotes used to be an extractive activity; you had to go out on the street and canvas. But with social media, people are projecting their sentiments out into the world, and all we have to do is read then.  Linguistic/cultural arbitrage: Because China's Internet is still siloed culturally, linguistically and technologically, there's a lot of inefficiency in Western coverage of China. Tea Leaf Nation stands in a unique place, bringing Chinese Internet content to the West. This could be called "language arbitrage," or "cultural arbitrage."  Local people set the news agenda, not journalists: It's hard to miss the time when journalists had monopolies on what constitutes a big story, and a lot of trending stories within China got missed. It's crucial to look at the top searched terms on Baidu, or the trending topics on Weibo—they can only be avoided for so long. Breaking news won't cut it: Journalism can be exhausting. If news breaks on Twitter, or Weibo, it's only "breaking" for around 10 minutes—it's an almost instantaneous process. The race to be "first" is no longer meaningful. Lessons from Panhe: In February, TLN noticed tweets about an uprising in a village called Panhe. TLN then appears to have been first to report about Panhe in the West. Reporters who later braved the trip  to Panhe were violently turned away. There's no comparison between the courage and moxie of the "boots on the ground" reporters and TLN's timely, but risk-free, reporting. No matter how futuristic things get, there will always be a need for journalists with the courage to go out into the field.  Why post on Weibo? When China's netizens post on Weibo, it's because they want to be heard. Fear not–Tea Leaf Nation is listening! Watch live streaming video from knightfoundation at livestream.com

China Blasts into Space Posted: 19 Jun 2012 11:18 AM PDT As China launched and successfully docked it's first manned spaceship since 2008, the country's first female astronaut, Liu Yang, joined two other astronauts to carry out their first manned docking mission. The New York Times reports: The successful launching of the Shenzhou 9 spacecraft, powered by a Long March 2F rocket, was shown live on state television from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in the Gobi Desert in western China. The crew is expected to spend up to 20 days in space and dock with the orbiting Tiangong 1 space lab module, a kind of miniature space station, which China launched in September 2011. The crew will conduct experiments and live for a time in the space module. China has spent billions in the past decade to build a space program to compete with the United States and Russia, and it plans to eventually put a Chinese astronaut on the moon, perhaps by 2016. The launching put China's first woman into space, a 33-year-old air force pilot named Liu Yang. Along with reports on the launch, the BBC also ran a profile of Liu. State TV, which has aired documentaries about her, says she trained to fly transport planes and was cool under pressure after a multiple bird strike disabled one engine on her plane. Hailing from the central province of Henan, she is also described as an eloquent speaker, an avid reader and a lover of cooking. "From day one I have been told I am no different from the male astronauts," she told state media. "As a pilot, I flew in the sky. Now that I am an astronaut, I will fly in space. This flight will be much higher and further away." Aside from reports about China's first female astronaut, analysts are also claiming that space missions could have implications beyond scientific advancement, according to the New Yorker: There are arguments for space programs, of course: They rally national pride, attract talent to science, and throw off inventions with valuable new military and civilian uses. But watching China hurl one object after another into orbit, one can't help but wonder if it says less about China's dynamism in technology than about the obstacles it faces in becoming a true world leader. As the Wall Street Journal notes today, When Chinese leaders approved the plan for a space station in 1992, "Chinese space professionals believed they would be latecomers to an expanding human presence in low Earth orbit," Gregory Kulacki, a senior analyst for the Union of Concerned Scientists, wrote in a recent research note. "Ironically, by the time they finish their space station in the early 2020s, the Chinese might be the only people left up there." Over the last decade, China has moved with purpose, putting its first person into space, completing an inaugural spacewalk, and launching two lunar orbiters. But it is not doing anything rash; the pace, four missions in four years, is a stately one. "China's careful, sustainable approach cannot be compared to some early Soviet 'firsts,' which took safety shortcuts in order to achieve politically-timed space spectaculars," according to Andrew Erickson, of the U.S. Naval War College. "By working on its own terms, on its own time, Beijing is building for the future." The caution also reflects the risk that when a project becomes so closely identified with national pride, its success or failure becomes doubly significant. This mission is the first step to build a Chinese space station by 2020, but there are also reports about further developing China's space program. The Wall Street Journal adds: Now that docking technology has been achieved, analysts say, other significant hurdles to establishing a space station include the logistics of keeping humans alive in space for extended periods. A Chinese space station's launch will also rely in part on the successful development of the Long March-5 rocket, which officials have said will make its maiden flight in 2014. Additionally, according to defense analysts, China is developing optical imaging technologies and near-real-time data-communication systems that will allow it to monitor U.S. naval activity in the Asia-Pacific region. Beijing also is seeking to cut its reliance on the U.S. Global Positioning System, which the U.S. could in theory deny access to in the event of a conflict. While the launch was successful, Global Times editor Hu Xijin's post on the success of the launch garnered criticism, and he responded to critics telling them to get their 'heads checked.' From The Shanghaiist: Global Times editor Hu Xijin (胡锡进) rallies the troops over the successful launch of Shenzhou 9 in a post on Sina Weibo that has attracted 6,000 retweets and 3,000 comments: With the successful launch of Shenzhou 9, yet another great step has been made by Chinese space research. This progress has created conditions for China's overall advancement and China should wisely use opportunities like this to do good for all the people. If China can do space well, it shows that as long as we put our mind to it and work hard, we can solve all of the most complex problems. Let us make that determination! May our astronauts complete their mission and come back safely. When his remarks ignited an avalanche of criticism and debate, he followed up with a word of advice to critics: If you're happy for the successful launch of Shenzhou 9, you're a normal Chinese person. If you have not the slightest care for it, you are also a normal Chinese person. But if it has made you unhappy, or even angry, my advice to you is to get your heads checked. Because you're probably very special, often depressed, and seldom happy. This can't be good for your health. Read more about developments in China's space program, via CDT. © Melissa M. Chan for China Digital Times (CDT), 2012. | Permalink | No comment | Add to del.icio.us Post tags: astronauts, manned spacecraft, Shenzhou 9, space exploration, space program, women Download Tools to Circumvent the Great Firewall

Beijing Eases Tensions with Manila Posted: 19 Jun 2012 11:10 AM PDT As the Philippines removes their ships from the disputed Scarborough shoal, China has  welcomed their withdrawal. The BBC reports: China has welcomed the Philippines' decision to pull out from a disputed part of the South China Sea, saying it hopes that this will ease tensions. "The Chinese side has been urging the Philippine side to take measures to de-escalate the situation," Chinese embassy spokesman, Zhang Hua, was quoted by local media as saying. "We have noticed the withdrawal of government vessels by the Philippine side, and hope this action will help ease the tension." Initially, China  had kept their ships in the shoal, but due to weather conditions they had to withdraw their ships as well. The Wall Street Journal adds: Inclement weather appears to have achieved what diplomacy couldn't in the South China Sea as Beijing announced it was withdrawing its fishing vessels from the disputed Scarborough Shoal due to storms and rough seas, following a similar announcement by Manila over the weekend. Nonetheless, Beijing indicated its ships could soon return to Scarborough, known as Huangyan Island in China. Neither side appeared to be budging on the underlying issue of how to resolve the dispute over the resource-rich area, analysts said. Deeper concerns regarding territorial disputes in the South China Sea remain unresolved. The sea is thought to hold vast oil and gas reserves, and includes some of the world's busiest shipping lanes. In addition to China and the Philippines, Other South China Sea claimants include Malaysia, Vietnam, Brunei and Taiwan. Despite both countries pulling their ships from the South China Sea, there seemed to be continuing tensions due to the territorial dispute over the shoal.  Amid this dispute, Beijing has expressed interest in easing tensions with Manila. According to the New York Times: The underlying antagonism between China and the Philippines over disputed islands in the South China Sea remained unresolved, but diplomats said they hoped the absence of the vessels would lead to a cooling-off period. "We hope there will continue to be an easing in the situation, and hope bilateral cooperation will recover and be safeguarded," a Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman, Hong Lei, said Monday at a regular news briefing. It was expected that China would follow suit, Philippine officials said, in what appeared to be a carefully choreographed withdrawal. "When weather improves, a re-evaluation will be made," said Albert del Rosario, the Philippine foreign secretary. At the core of the dispute are sovereignty claims by the Philippines and China, highlighting increasing concerns about the freedom of navigation and territorial rights in one of the world's busiest waterways. Complicating the situation is a 1951 mutual defense treatybetween the United States and the Philippines that Manila interprets as meaning that Washington would defend the Philippines in case of any conflict. Read more about the conflict in the South China Sea, via CDT. © Melissa M. Chan for China Digital Times (CDT), 2012. | Permalink | No comment | Add to del.icio.us Post tags: maritime disputes, philippines, South China Sea, territorial disputes Download Tools to Circumvent the Great Firewall

Foreigner Dies in Police Custody, Leading to Mass Protest by Africans in Guangzhou Posted: 19 Jun 2012 09:38 AM PDT According to media reports and photos posted on Weibo, China's Twitter, a mass protest took place in Guangzhou on June 19 following the death of an African man in police custody. One netizen, @GingerYip reports, "According to a black brother at the scene, this morning a black brother got involved in a physical altercation with an electric bike driver over a RMB10 fare (less than US$2). The police took the black brother away. Then they told his family that he died and his family asked for his body. According to the police's account, the fight happened around 1pm on [the 18th], and the man lost consciousness around 5pm, and he died despite emergency medical attention." [1] As can be seen in the photos below, some protesters held up placards asking the police to "Give Us the Dead Body." Other protesters reportedly attacked police and threw rocks at police vehicles. Online sentiments on Chinese social media were overwhelmingly in favor of the police, with many netizens resorting to xenophobic and racist taunts against the estimated 200,000 African migrants living in Guangzhou. @马娅会长, an eye witness, complained, "I saw them blocking traffic. A strong black man blocked a bus with a tree from the sidewalk. They threw water bottles and wood blocks and did African dances at the cross section. Millions could not get home because of the traffic jam. Troublemakers with no morals or civic values, don't treat us as people. This is our country, can't let outsiders run wild and trample everything."[2]   Footnotes    (? returns to text)  :据现场一名黑兄称，今天早上一黑兄与电动车司机因十元车资发生肢体冲突，警察到场后带走黑兄，其后通知家属该黑兄身亡，家属要求归还尸。但据警方通报打斗发生在昨天中午13时许，17时许该外籍男士昏迷。最终该男子抢救无效身亡。? 目睹拦住公交，黑壮汉拔起路边绿树插在大巴前玻璃拦路，扔水瓶木头，在十字路口群跳非洲舞，千万人受堵回不了家，没品行无公德心刁民，真不把人当人，这是我们的祖国，哪容外来鸟人横行霸道践踏.?

Xiong Peiyun on Land and Revolt Posted: 19 Jun 2012 08:45 AM PDT Europe correspondent for Window on the South (南风窗) Xiong Peiyun shared his thoughts on land ownership and stability in a June 12 Weibo post: XiongPeiyun: Only if the land is returned to the people will the people feel a true sense of belonging to the country. Those with land won't take it with them when they die; those without will struggle to acquire it. There is hope for such a society. The significance of private land ownership lies not only in the decentralisation of power, but in encouraging people to better arrange their lives, to persevere in their work, to make long-term plans for the future. Only if the people have their own land will the risk of social upheaval be averted. 熊培云：把土地还给人民，人民对国家才会有真正的归属感。有土地的人，死后不会将土地带走；没土地的人，通过奋斗会拥有自己的土地。这样的社会是有希望 的。土地私有的意义，不仅在于分权，还在于它可以让人更好地安排人生，更有恒心地创造，为未来作更长远的打算。人民有了自己的土地，社会才不至于被颠覆。 Under Chinese property law, no land is privately owned; private property is leased by the state for a 70-year period, while land for cultivation is collectively owned and leased for 30 years. But local governments frequently seize property in both urban and rural areas to sell for real estate development. Residents are illegally evicted, often without adequate compensation. The villagers of Wukan, Guangdong fought government land grabs, eventually leading them to seize control from local authorities and successfully negotiate with the provincial authorities for elections. Via SneezeBloid. Translated by Samuel Wade. © Anne.Henochowicz for China Digital Times (CDT), 2012. | Permalink | No comment | Add to del.icio.us Post tags: farmers, forced evictions, land grab, land rights, nailhouse, rural development, Samuel Wade, Wukan, Xiong Peiyun Download Tools to Circumvent the Great Firewall

Congress Apologies for Anti-Chinese Immigration Laws Posted: 19 Jun 2012 08:02 AM PDT Following a similar motion passed by the Senate last year, the U.S. House of Representatives has issued an apology for discriminatory laws which targeted Chinese immigrants in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. From The Los Angeles Times: The rare apology came on a resolution sponsored by Rep. Judy Chu (D-Calif.), the first Chinese American woman elected to Congress. "This is a proud moment for all Americans who treasure justice and equality,'' said Carolyn Hong Chan, national president of the Chinese American Citizens Alliance. Chu, whose grandfather was forced to register and carry a certificate of residence for about 40 years because of the laws, told House colleagues Monday: "It is for my grandfather and for all Chinese Americans who were told for six decades by the U.S. government that the land of the free wasn't open to them that we must pass this resolution. "We must finally and formally acknowledge these ugly laws that were incompatible with America's founding principles," she added. "By doing so, we will acknowledge that discrimination has no place in our society." Xinhua News has more on the legislation at the center of the apology: The Chinese Exclusion Act, approved in 1882 in Congress and lasted for 60 years, was the first and the only federal law in U.S. history that excluded a single group of people from immigration on no basis other than their race. It explicitly banned Chinese workers from immigration and existing residents from naturalization and voting. The Act was later expanded several times to apply to all persons of Chinese descent, each time imposing increasingly severe restrictions on immigration and naturalization. The resolution was applauded by Congressional leaders. House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi said the resolution "reiterates our commitment to equal rights for all Americans, regardless of race, now and in the future." Congressman Mike Honda, chair emeritus of Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus, said the passage of the resolution is an "opportunity to learn from our mistakes." © Scott Greene for China Digital Times (CDT), 2012. | Permalink | No comment | Add to del.icio.us Post tags: Chinese Exclusion Act, discrimination, immigration, racism, Sino-U.S. Relations, U.S. Congress Download Tools to Circumvent the Great Firewall

China, Hong Kong: ‘Happy Ad' for Student Abortions Ignites Debate Posted: 19 Jun 2012 06:56 AM PDT A hospital in mainland China has advertised a special installment payment package for university students, for getting abortions conveniently, in the event of accidental or unwanted pregnancies. The hospital's marketing poster has caught the attention of Hong Kong's netizens and has triggered a moral debate. Hospital's happy ad The hospital's poster, showing three girls jumping with joy because now they can pay by installment for abortion. Public Image. The advertisement copy states that: 大學期間，意外懷孕了 做人流也可 "分期付款"了 此活動只限學生 本人只需憑身份證或學生證到沈陽市中山醫院做人流，即可辦理分期付款手續，首付30﹪起各型套餐任選，在保證學生的私密性的同時，方便快捷。 If you get pregnant by accident during your university year Now there is installment payment package for abortion This offer is limited to students only You just need to bring your ID or student card, in person, to Shenyang Sun Yatsen hospital and then you can enjoy our installment payment facility for abortion. The first installment is as low as 30% and there are other packages of your choice. The process is very convenient and we will make sure your privacy is protected. While abortion is a common practice in China, the poster has triggered a moral debate [zh] in Hong Kong: @Aris Coffee: 若拋開宗教反對墮胎的話，我就看不出有何不妥？若可以分期付款，那對一些經濟不好但意外懷孕又沒成熟到可以養育子女的女學生也是一種幫助，難道要她們冒險去那些黑市無牌醫生去流產嗎？其實分期付款，跟買醫療保險每月供款及買電視冰箱分期付款沒有什麼大分別。 @Aris Coffee: If we put aside religious reasons against abortion, I don't see any problem in this advertisement. The installment payment is helpful to those university-going women who get pregnant by accident and who are not mature enough to become parents. They don't need to go to the unlicensed doctors for abortion. The installment payment arrangement is no different from buying medical insurance or electrical appliances by installment. @俞火: 這不是宗教與是否合法的問題。在說的是生命，無論因為什麼原因，最後需要如何善後都是該嚴肅面對，而不是「開心到飛起」的事情。同一件事、同一個做法，但心態、道德就是決定你做事的態度，在同一件事上下來將再怎樣學習和面對，會否重蹈覆轍！ 不要這些孩子去黑市墮胎，不就等如要興高采烈的如此 promote 「開心到飛起」的墮胎, 把這必要時的服務當成派對商品的！ @俞火: I don't think this is a legal or religious issue. We are talking about life here. No matter what the circumstances, it is a serious issue, rather than being a joyful decision for jumping up and down. The choice may be the same, but the attitude makes a difference. Whether you would learn from the incident and avoid making the same mistake again depends on the attitude.We don't want these kids to go to unlicensed doctors for abortion, but it doesn't mean that they have to so happily promote abortion as "joyful and exciting", as if it is for some merchandise for a party! @Carmen Tong: 我是不反對墮胎的, 正如你說的情況, 女性是能該擁有the control of their own body. 反感的是此廣告promote的價值觀: 處理掉一個生命很害易, 冇錢都唔緊要. 不安全性行為也冇所謂, 一旦出事有我們提供方便! 這和叫你成身card數去借那些"card數一筆清",然後繼續放縱消費的廣告就真係冇乜分別了~ @Carmen Tong: I am not against abortion and as you have mentioned, women should be able to take control of their own body. What I dislike is the value that this advertisement is promoting: that it is easy to get rid of a life. You don't need to have all the money ready, you don't need to have safe sex - when accident happens, we can take care of it.This is similar to those easy loan ads, encouraging you towards wasteful consumption even if you are in debt. @Joyce Ho: 覺得呢張廣告無問題噶人，你地知唔知道，大陸系無性教育噶？就係因為到處充斥呢種漠視生命，美化人流噶廣告，有唔少女學生，從來都唔做防護措施，一年做幾次人流。我先唔講坯胎的生存權，無保護的性交，與無數次人流，對女性噶身體傷害有幾大，任何一個正常人都應該知道。但好可惜，系大陸，好多少女，包括大學生都唔知道。難道這些商業醫療機構和政府，沒有任何責任嗎？ @Joyce Ho: For those who think this advertisement has no problem, do you know that in China they don't have sex education? Such kind of advertisements which look down upon life and beautify abortion, has led to the extremely careless sexual acts among teenage girls. They don't perform safe sex and may undergo several abortion operations within a year. I don't want to entangle in the debate about the right to life of the embryo, but unprotected sexual intercourse and frequent abortions are very harmful to women's health. This is common sense. However, in mainland China, so many young girls, even university students, are ignorant about such facts. Shouldn't the medical companies and the government take responsibility for the situation? Written by Oiwan Lam · comments (0) Share: Donate · facebook · twitter · reddit · StumbleUpon · delicious · Instapaper

The reign of Hu and Wen through the eyes of Jonathan Watts Posted: 19 Jun 2012 06:46 AM PDT Today, Jonathan Watts of the Guardian filed his last article from Beijing entitled, "China: Witnessing the birth of a superpower." While I will sorely miss his reporting, his lengthy 4,000 word post neatly encapsulates the decade long rule of Hu Jintao and Wen Jiabao who came to power just months before Jonathan's arrival. It is absolutely worth reading in its entirety, but I created this handy chronological cheat sheet to the pieces linked to in it (his article cleverly clumps them by topics). 2003 John Gittings: Goodbye to China Nervous Beijing orders TV blackout as Chinese astronauts reach for the stars After the flood 2004 10,000 animals to be culled as SARS returns to China Taiwan president shot in election attack 2005 A bloody revolt in a tiny village challenges the rulers of China China in denial over foot and mouth cull Avian flu casts shadow over beauty of China's bird lake The railway across the roof of the world The new China: A hunger eating up the world Harbin's poor left out in the cold as city runs dry Interview: Robin Li, founder of Baidu.com 2006 China overtakes UK with Japan and Germany in its sights (GDP) The megalopolis you've never heard of (Chongqing) Concrete paves peasants' long road from poverty The thoughts of chairman Ma The savannah comes to Beijing as China hosts its new empire On the trail of the Yangtze's lost dolphin 2007 Reports of China's 'satellite killer' meet wall of silence Going under (Morecambe bay cockle pickers tragedy) 2008 Behind the Great Firewall Seven days not in Tibet Light fades for victims in town hit by apocalypse Faces in a billion Countdown to Beijing 2008 2009 Thirst of the cities drives giant drills to water China's parched north Old suspicions magnified mistrust into ethnic riots in Urumqi China closes Yeeyan website that translated Guardian articles 2010 China's 'cancer villages' reveal dark side of economic boom China overtakes US as world's biggest energy consumer Australian Greens: 'We don't want to be just a coal mine for China' 2011 Chinese jet fighter 'sighting' raises fears over region's military power balance China warns of 'urgent problems' facing Three Gorges dam China admits 'secret' aircraft carrier is nearly ready for launch China told to reduce food production or face 'dire' water levels China's love affair with the car shuns green vehicles Gobi mega-mine puts Mongolia on the brink of the world's greatest resource boom 2012 Air pollution could become China's biggest health threat, expert warns Chen Guangcheng's nephew charged with voluntary manslaughter After reading his article, one gets the feeling that China's political system is speeding toward a cliff, but nobody is really sure how far away that cliff is. This however implies that the car (or Party) is humming along without problems, and that the certain doom that lies ahead will either be a complete wreck or a near miss. However looking at the last decade I think China's system is a bit more like the car I had in high school. From a brief first impression, it looked pretty nice; if you drove it once or twice, you might notice a few small nicks and dings but would still find it pretty great; but once you spent a decent amount of time in it you started to wonder how the whole thing even held together. Every trip could be the last one the car took, or a new timing belt might keep things together for another 5,000 miles. It was really impossible to know. For the past few weeks I've been contemplating the question "Will Xi Jinping be the last ten year leader appointed in the current fashion?" I've been thinking the answer is yes, but that the change may be very small. After reading Watts' article though, I was reminded that how China looks today with all its problems, challenges and achievements, isn't so terribly different from how it has looked in the past decade, and that perhaps all the Party needs to stay in power is a new timing belt. Filed under: Current Events Tagged: Australian Greens, Beijing, China, Hu Jintao, John Gittings, Jonathan Watts, Wen Jiabao

You are subscribed to email updates from Update » Blogs » Politics To stop receiving these emails, you may unsubscribe now.	Email delivery powered by Google
Google Inc., 20 West Kinzie, Chicago IL USA 60610