Inside China’s Secret ‘Magic Weapon’ for Worldwide Influence

By James Kynge, Lucy Hornby, and Jamil Anderlini on October 26, 2017

On the Google map of Beijing there is an empty quarter, an urban block next to the Communist party’s leadership compound in which few of the buildings are named. At street level, the aura of anonymity is confirmed. Uniformed guards stand by grand entrances checking official cars as they come and go. But there are no identifying signs; the sole information divulged is on brass plaques that bear the street name and building numbers.

Politics
Chinese Communist Party, 19th Party Congress, Xi Jinping, Chinese Influence, Economic Growth, Soft Power

Sexual Life in Modern China

By Ian Johnson on October 26, 2017

Throughout the late 1970s and 1980s, Chinese writers grappled with the traumas of the Mao period, seeking to make sense of their suffering. As in the imperial era, most had been servants of the state, loyalists who might criticize but never seek to overthrow the system. And yet they had been persecuted by Mao, forced to labor in the fields or shovel manure for offering even the most timid opinions.

China Has the World’s Biggest Military Force. Now Xi Jinping Wants It to Be the Best

By Minnie Chan on October 25, 2017

The Chinese military will embark on a massive hardware upgrade and top personnel shake-up under President Xi Jinping’s orders for the PLA to become a world-class fighting force in the next three decades.

Military
Military, Chinese Influence, Military Leadership, Military Modernization, People’s Liberation Army

Singapore’s Delicate Balancing Act between the US and China

By Jamie Tarabay on October 25, 2017

Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong may have been in Washington on Monday to consolidate his country's economic and political partnerships with the US, but he appeared to dedicate much of his time concentrating on another nation whose presence in the region is pivotal for the tiny city-state: China.

Politics
Singapore, U.S.-Asia Relations, U.S.-China Relations, South China Sea, Diplomacy

Tesla Strikes Deal with Shanghai to Build Factory in China

By Tim Higgins, Trefor Moss, and Eva Dou on October 25, 2017

Electric-car maker Tesla Inc. has reached an agreement to set up its own manufacturing facility in Shanghai, according to people briefed on the plan, a move that could help the company gain traction in China’s fast-growing EV market.

Business, Technology
Tesla, Shanghai Auto Industries, Clean Energy, Electric Vehicles, Factories, Automobile Industry

China Shuts Down Tens of Thousands of Factories in Unprecedented Pollution Crackdown

By Rob Schmitz on October 25, 2017

In the gritty industrial town of Yiwu, workers prepare jeans to be dyed in a vivid range of colors.

Two months ago, this factory — and this entire city, located in China's eastern province of Zhejiang — was a much quieter place. Inspection crews from the environmental bureau had shut businesses down, cutting electricity and gas so that they could determine who was following China's environmental laws and who wasn't.

Business, Economy, Environment
Pollution, Air Pollution, Yiwu, Factories, Environmental Law, Environment

A Chinese Exhibit Comparing Africans to Animals Shows the Problematic Racial Attitudes in China

By Zahra Baitie on October 25, 2017

As a black woman in China, I’ve been relatively fortunate. My negative experiences have mostly consisted of being photographed and gawked at by Chinese people. While many of my fellow Africans have had much more traumatic experiences, my experience has been largely positive. I’ve encountered warmth, kindness, support and a real desire to engage from the Chinese people I’ve met.

Society
China-Africa Relations, Africa, Racism, Art, Foreigners

New Flowchart Comparing Representative Office and Temporary Activity Processes

on October 25, 2017

We’ve just posted a new analysis juxtaposing the process for registering a representative office and for filing a temporary activity. In particular, the flowchart highlights the differing points in the process during which an application or filing might get stalled. We welcome feedback on how to improve the chart based on organizations’ own experiences.

Representative Offices Registration and Temporary Activity Filing Processes: A Flowchart

By Jessica Batke on October 25, 2017

Based on its discussions with various foreign NGOs (and with much-appreciated assistance from several experts), The China NGO Project has created the following flowchart to help show the differences between registering for a representative office and filing for a temporary activity. In particular, we wish to highlight that when filing for temporary activities, Chinese Partner Units may have their own external supervisory units that have to grant approval before the Partner can submit the filing to a Public Security Bureau office. As we noted in a previous post, temporary activity filings can stall out at this phase of the process, meaning they never go to Public Security Bureau and therefore are never officially rejected—but nonetheless they are never realized.