China begins policing of mobile text messages (AFP)

“China has issued new regulations on the filtering of mobile phone short text messages in a move that expands its censorship controls over wireless technologies and the Internet, state press said Friday. The “Self-Discipline Standards on Content in Mobile Short Messaging Services” were issued recently and are aimed at weeding out pornographic, fradulent and illicit […]

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Top Exec at Chinese Brokerage Replaced (AP)

Via Washingtonpost.com: “The chairman of one of China’s biggest securities companies has been replaced in an effort to rescue the ailing state-owned brokerage, officials and media reports said Thursday. The decision to replace Zhou Jipu as chairman of Huaxia Securities marks the second shake-up this year of a major Chinese brokerage following the government takeover […]

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Xinhua’s take on Hong Kong’s “celebrations”

China’s official media reported on Hong Kong’s “celebration” of the 7th anniversary of the handover, managing to not even mention the hundreds of thousands of protesters who took to the streets today. In the Xinhua report, one resident is quoted as saying, “Although we did encounter some hard times after Hong Kong’s return, I’m sure […]

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Disease control chief resigns over SARS

According to the VOA: “The head of China’s main disease control center has resigned to take responsibility for this year’s outbreak of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome linked to a Beijing research laboratory. ” The full report is here. Xinhua also reported this news.

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Thousands in HK protest march

Hundreds of thousands of people in Hong Kong took to the streets today to call for democracy, according to a BBC report. In the lead-up to the protest, pro-Beijing groups tried to disrupt the plans: “There were attempts to scupper the march entirely, according to its organisers, the Civil Human Rights Front. Computers hackers used […]

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US Emissary to Beijing Urges Floating RMB (Caijing Magazine)

Despite his low profile, Paul Speltz is in Beijing for serious business. In an exclusive interview with Caijing on June 13, the first he has given to the Chinese press since his latest assignment started two months ago, Speltz wore a sun-beaten polo shirt and repeatedly referred to his job as conducting “private, quiet dialogues.” […]

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Ministry of Public Security licenses China’s first system for monitoring and recording SMS (Interfax)

According to an Interfax report, the Ministry of Public Security has licensed a system for filtering SMS messages: “Venus Information Technology Inc. (Venus), a Chinese provider of network security solutions and services, has developed China’s first information resource and mobile short messaging service (SMS) filter system, according to a company statement. China’s Ministry of Public […]

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China’s middle class rebels

The BBC reports on Beijing residents who are protesting the destruction of the old city, and their homes, as the government rushes to create a modern city in preparation for the 2008 Olympics. One resident, whose house was torn down, says: “This unchecked demolition over the past few years has changed the way that people […]

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A Profile of an online writer: Murong Xuecun (China Daily)

“Murong Xuecun is one of a growing number of Chinese writers who are choosing to publish their work on BBSs (Bulletin Board Systems) and literary websites. These writers hide little from their readers and while a few years ago most stories were on personal subjects with frank descriptions of inner emotions and explicit accounts of […]

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Mu Zimei profile

Mu Zimei is back in the Chinese media spotlight, with a profile on Sohu.com subtitled “I don’t use sex to attract people. I use my personality,” Danwei reports. The Sohu article (in Chinese) is here. Mu Zimei rose to fame last summer with her blog, which described her sex life in graphic detail.

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China to set up ‘Green GDP’ index system (Asia Times)

The Chinese government is trying to devise a method to create a “Green GDP”, whereby the cost of environmental damage is deducted from the traditional GDP. An official with the State Environmental Protection Administration is quoted in the article as saying: “If the current high-cost growth and serious pollution continues, China will face a heavily […]

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The Chinese Divide

Washington Post political correspondent David Broder published this essay yesterday. He quoted a retired Chinese economist Mao Yushi in his article. “China is splitting into two countries,” he (Mao) told me and Philip Pan, The Post’s Beijing correspondent. “The cities are developing” under the policies of market capitalism that have been adopted by China’s communist […]

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China to issue high-speed mobile licenses in 2005 (Xinhua)

“China may issue its first licenses for high-speed mobile services next year, to boost competition for current operators China Mobile and China Unicom before the 2008 Beijing Olympics. The country may add licenses using so-called third-generation, or 3G systems to squeeze more calls on existing channels and avoid reallocating government or military airwaves, CRIENGLISH.com reported […]

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