Jasmine in the Middle Kingdom: Autopsy of China’s (Failed) Revolution

By Dale Swartz on March 31, 2011

China’s version of the Arab world’s “Jasmine Revolution” was a complete failure. Online calls for protests against Communist Party rule have elicited little response from would-be protesters. Yet Beijing’s reaction was swift and overwhelming—harassing reporters, jailing dissidents, and ramping up its already-aggressive censorship of the Internet. Such tactics have left those both inside and outside the country puzzled. Why are China’s leaders overreacting? Maybe they are not. The factors underlying this movement could prove lethal to the regime if left unaddressed. Future challenges will make tackling the problem even more difficult.

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Sara Segal-Williams
Topics: 
Politics
Keywords: 
Human Rights
Jasmine Revolution
Organization: 
American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research

Where Did the Internet/Salt Go?

By Kaiser Kuo, Gady Epstein & more on March 25, 2011

In less time than it took Chinese netizens to strip their supermarkets of common table salt, China ended its live-and-let-live policy with regards to the most commonly used tools for evading the country’s Internet restrictions. Recent weeks have seen an unprecedented crackdown on virtual private networks (VPNs), along with direct denial-of-service attacks by the government on Google itself, and infiltration efforts targeting foreign journalists.

How China Fears the Middle East Revolutions

By Perry Link on March 24, 2011

Chinese authorities have done what they can to stop news—and worse, from their point of view, any influence—of Tunisian and Egyptian people-power from spreading to China. They have been worrying especially about what social media like Twitter and Facebook can do to political power in the Internet age. On the morning of February 19, Chinese President Hu Jintao delivered a major speech to an audience of provincial governors and central government ministers on maintaining social stability.

The Exercise of Power

By Kaiser Kuo, Jeremy Goldkorn & more on March 11, 2011

In the last week, power and pageantry have engulfed Beijing as China has convened its Twin Congresses: the annual meeting of the country’s two highest decision-making councils. As the Communist Party has seized the opportunity to celebrate its grip on power and lay out China’s economic and political roadmap for the next five years, other changes have nearly slipped by, such as President Obama’s announcement of a surprise replacement for outgoing Ambassador Jon Huntsman. Join us on Sinica this week as we look behind the curtains of power and explore what these developments really mean.

Environmental and Social Impact Assessment: Urumqi District Heating Project

on March 11, 2011

The city of Urumqi, the capital of Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region in westernmost China, is experiencing rapid urbanization and economic growth, which poses challenges to Urumqi Municipal Government in providing adequate and efficient public services while cost-effectively controlling environmental pollution. Urumqi has been suffering serious air pollution in winter season, primarily caused by intensive use of coal in industrial sector and space heating. In order to improve air quality, the Urumqi Municipal Government has proposed a series of initiatives for clean air in the city. The Urban Heating Plan is one of the action plans among the initiatives, which calls for promoting expanded use of and larger district heating networks to replace those smaller heating networks, and phased adoption of natural gas to replace coal. This World Bank report describes the Urban Heating Plan project and analyzes its potential impact on Urumqi’s environment.

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Topics: 
Energy
Environment
Urban Life
Keywords: 
Urumqi
Xinjiang
Coal
Air Pollution
Organization: 
World Bank

Counter-Terrorism and Human Rights

The Impact of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization

on March 1, 2011

Throughout the world, terrorism continues to pose major threats to peace, security, and stability. Since September 11, 2001, intensified counter-terrorism debates and responses, including national, multilateral, and regional approaches, have been marked by trends posing complex challenges to the protection of international human rights and fundamental freedoms. The current normative international framework and consensus clearly recognize that respect for human rights is not only the legal and moral obligation of states, but an essential pillar in the promotion of sustainable and effective counter- terrorism approaches. Yet, human rights violations related to and resulting from counter-terrorism measures continue; at the same time, there is push-back in the international community against those measures that violate human rights, such as extraordinary rendition, secret detentions, and torture and other inhumane treatment and abuses prohibited by jus cogens norms.
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Topics: 
Society
Keywords: 
Terrorism
Counter-Terrorism
Shanghai Cooperation Organization
Human Rights
Organization: 
Human Rights in China

How Do Special Economic Zones and Industrial Clusters Drive China’s Rapid Development?

By Douglas Zhihua Zeng on March 1, 2011

In the past thirty years, China has achieved phenomenal economic growth, an unprecedented development “miracle” in human history. How did China achieve this rapid growth? What have been its key drivers? And, most important, what can be learned from China’s success? Policy makers, business people, and scholars all over the world continue to debate these topics, but one thing is clear: the numerous special economic zones and industrial clusters that emerged after the country’s reforms are without doubt two important engines of China’s remarkable development. This study briefly summarizes the development experiences of China’s special economic zones and industrial clusters (their formation, success factors, challenges, and possible areas or measures for policy intervention), based on case studies, interviews, field visits, and extensive reviews of the existing literature in an attempt to benefit other developing countries as well as the broader development community.

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Topics: 
Economy
Keywords: 
Economic Growth
Development
Special Economic Zones
Organization: 
World Bank