The Age looks at the destruction of historic Harbin: THE cluttered beauty of this old Harbin courtyard apartment compound exists only in a photograph. The homes burnt down four years ago, along with more than 30 residents, in a story that never made it past the city’s news censors. The offending coal stove was said […]
Read MoreFrom AP via SignOnSanDiego: When freelance writer Wang Jian shops for toys for her 5-year-old son, she’s happy to pay extra for Legos blocks and Japanese-brand train sets. The reason, she and other parents say: Foreign brands enjoy a reputation for higher quality – a perception reinforced by the product scares of recent months. “We […]
Read MoreFrom The International Tribune: The blast occurred at 11:15 at night in the village-run mine in Shanxi Province, the heart of China’s coal mining country. At least 128 men were believed to be in the shaft, more than double the number allowed. But rather than notify the authorities to organize a proper emergency response, the […]
Read MoreIn the New York Times, the latest in their Choking on Growth series: Fuqing is one of the centers of a booming industry that over two decades has transformed this country into the biggest producer and exporter of seafood in the world, and the fastest-growing supplier to the United States. But that growth is threatened […]
Read MoreThe Bali climate change conference turned acrimonious as India and China objected to language in the draft resolution. From Bloomberg: Yvo de Boer, executive secretary of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, left the auditorium in tears after China’s delegation demanded to know why the session had twice been started while separate talks were […]
Read More[Editor’s note; Josie Liu is a journalist from China who once worked for the South China Morning Post and other newspapers in Beijing. She currently writes the “China in Transition” blog and will also be guest blogging for CDT.] Hong Kong director Peter Ho-Sun Chan’s newly released movie, The Warlords, has generated not only tens […]
Read MoreFrom International Herald Tribune: In three days of talks on economic issues, a half dozen Bush administration cabinet members and their aides sat in rows of tables facing their Chinese counterparts this week in an ornate conference room. The talk was polite, the atmosphere convivial and the pledges of cooperation profuse. But it was also […]
Read MoreThe following is a satirical look at U.N. Undersecretary-General for Economic and Social Affairs Sha Zukang, from The Onion: From the moment I showed up at the General Assembly, the other countries knew I was trouble. They took one look at my three- button navy suit jacket and my dark, searing eyes, and prayed to […]
Read MoreFrom Asia Times Online: “Inflation is always and everywhere a monetary phenomenon.” Milton Friedman‘s eternal quote must be ringing around the corridors of power in Beijing, after official statistics showed a surge in inflation to 6.9% in November, the highest level recorded recently. Notably, it is not only food but also other items in the […]
Read MoreFrom Xinhua: Almost 3.63 million urban Chinese received healthcare benefits in the first nine months of the year, up more than 70 percent over the same period last year, Vice-Minister of Civil Affairs Li Liguo said on Wednesday. Li said about 2.11 million urban Chinese received medical assistance from January to September last year. “This […]
Read MoreFrom Shanghai Daily: The benefits of the new Labor Contract Law, which takes effect January 1 next year, have been exaggerated. Many people have the illusion that the new law will entitle all workers to an “iron rice bowl” – a permanent job. What causes the misunderstanding is the article concerning open-ended employment contracts. [Full […]
Read MoreFrom Chinanews: The employment rate among Chinese youth is on the decline. Currently, China has thousands of young people who are not in education, employment or training, according to a report released by the Renmin University of China’s Population Development Studies Center, the China Youth Daily reported. The report shows that in China, employment rate […]
Read MoreDanwei has the latest on the public reaction to the recent environmental assessment of the proposed Xiamen PX chemical project: When the environmental report was made public last week, Xiamen Online launched a poll to measure the public’s reaction to the study. The poll was closed the following day after 55,376 of 58,454 votes were […]
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