China Parliament Ratifies BRICS Bank Agreement

Ben Blanchard
Reuters
The BRICS Bank, is one of two international development banks that China is promoting as an alternative to western institutions such as the World Bank.

Taiwan Youth to China: Treat Us Like a Country

Michael Gold
Reuters
Activists tie themselves up in chains, block mountain roads, scale fences and throw red paint balloons in a wave of anti-China sentiment to turn politics in the next election.

Thousands Protest on Anniversary of Hong Kong’s Return to China

Alan Wong
New York Times
As Hong Kong marks the 18th anniversary of its handover from Britain from China, thousands take to the street to rally for democracy.

China's Military Must Help Xinjiang Modernize

Reuters
Guardian
China’ wants to bring “modern civilisation” to the southern areas of Xinjiang, where Muslim ethnic Uighurs are in a majority, and help develop its economy

China Concerned Over Turkish Religious Complaints

The Associated Press
Washington Post
China expressed displeasure with Turkey’s complaints about restrictions on worship and fasting by Uighur Muslims during Ramadan.

Who Would China Vote for in 2016?

Bethany Allen-Ebrahimian
Foreign Policy
Though media discussion of domestic politics remains muzzled in China, people there generally enjoy greater freedom to debate international news and politics.

China Invites Kim Jong Un to Beijing in September

Alastair Gale
Wall Street Journal
China has invited Kim Jong Un to attend events in Beijing in September to commemorate the 70th anniversary of the end of World War II.

Why it is Better to Stay Out of China A-shares

John Authers
Financial Times
Where did the argument for China A-shares go? In the last two weeks the case for the booming stock market of mainland China has turned at least two somersaults.

Environment

07.01.15

China Deepens Planned Cuts to Carbon Intensity

from chinadialogue
China has mapped out how it will try and peak greenhouse emissions by 2030 or before, details that could have a major bearing on U.N. climate talks aimed at delivering a deal in Paris later this year.The world’s largest emitter of greenhouse gases “...

See China’s Rapid Island-Building Strategy in Action

Kevin Uhrmarcher, Kevin Schaul and...
Washington Post
New satellite imagery of remote islands in the South China Sea shows Chinese island-building projects and how attention has turned to building military bases.

The Truth About China’s New National Security Law

Ankit Panda
Diplomat
China’s national legislature passed a national security law who's mandate covers politics, the military, finance, religion, cyberspace, and even ideology and religion.

China Parliament Ratifies BRICS Bank Agreement

Ben Blanchard
Reuters
China ratifies an agreement with the world's largest emerging nations to create a new development bank, alternative to western institutions such as the World Bank.

Features

07.01.15

Hong Kong’s Umbrella Protests Were More Than Just a Student Movement

Samson Yuen & Edmund Cheng
For almost three months in late 2014, what came to be known as the Umbrella Movement amplified Hong Kong’s bitter struggle for the democracy its people were promised when China assumed control of the territory from Britain in 1997. Originally a...

The Chinese Ride-Hailing Startup That’s Out-Ubering Uber

Davey Alba
Wired
Didi Kuaidi is taking on Uber for the title of largest ride-hailing company in the world’s largest country--or, Uber appears to be trying to unseat the homegrown favorite.

Russia Delivers Submarine To Vietnam For Defense Over South China Sea Dispute

Elizabeth Whitman
International Business Times
The submarines are Vietnam's effort to deter China's military from building up in the South China Sea.

Chinese Stocks Fall Into a Bear Market

Keith Bradsher
New York Times
China’s central bank cuts interest rates and fails to stem the route in Chinese share prices; the Shanghai and Shenzhen stock markets closes with steep losses.

Dalai Lama at Glastonbury Music Festival

Alex Ritman
Hollywood Reporter
The Dalai Lama praised the Pope's recent comments on climate change before Patti Smith and attendees sang "Happy Birthday" ahead of his 80th birthday

China Starts to Play Nice with Foreign Aid Partners

Eric Olander, Cobus van Staden & more
New research from the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) in China indicates Beijing is starting to be more open about its international aid programs. If so, this would mark a significant change from the past where the Chinese government was...

Episode 36 – Sim Chi Yin

Sharron Lovell & Sim Chi Yin
Multimedia Week
Sharron Lovell speaks with Sim Chi Yin about crossing the lines between journalism and advocacy. Chi Yin recently published her four year story following a Chinese gold miner suffering with the lung disease silicosis, caused by years of inhaling...

Media

06.26.15

A Chinese Feminist, Made in America

Nancy Tang
In August 2010, two weeks after turning 18, I traveled about 6,700 miles from Beijing, China to attend Amherst, a liberal-arts college in Massachusetts in the northeastern United States. I packed a copy of Harvard economist N. Gregory Mankiw’s...

China's Alibaba to Remove Listings with Confederate Flag Imagery

John Ruwitch and Jane Lanhee Lee
Reuters
Alibaba pledged to pull down links to products with Confederate flag imagery in the wake of the shooting in South Carolina.

Why is China's Female Prison Population Growing?

Celia Hatton
BBC
Women comprise just 6.3% of China's prison population. If trends continue, within five years, China will imprison more women than the United States.

China Reveals Misuse of $2.7 Billion in Lottery Funds

Sui-Lee Wee
Reuters
China uncovered the misappropriation of $2.72 billion from its state lottery program, used to buy and build office buildings and hotels.

China Invests in the World

Shannon Tiezzi
Diplomat
China’s outward foreign direct investment for the first five months of 2015 is up 50 percent from the same period in 2014, says Chinese Ministry of Commerce.

China to Boost Textile Industry in Xinjiang

Shanghai Daily
China's cabinet issued a guideline on Thursday to bolster the textile and garment industry in the western Xinjiang region in the hope of increasing local employment and exports.

South Africa Tourism in Crisis as Chinese Reject New Visa Regulations

Eric Olander, Cobus van Staden, David...
The number of Chinese visitors to South Africa has dropped 32 percent after new visa regulations make travel difficult.

Teaching Uighur Children Mandarin will not Bring Stability to Xinjiang

Economist
More schools move to use Chinese only, except a few hours each week in Uighur literature. President Xi Jinping emphasizes this policy as a way to fight terrorism.

Outcry in Russia over China land lease

Kathrin Hille
Financial Times
Plans to hand a stretch of remote Siberian territory to Chinese investors triggers protests in Russia, underlining how the relationship between both countries is undermined by deep-rooted distrust.

With Beijing’s Voting Plan Dead, Hong Kong Looks Ahead

Michael Forsythe
New York Times
The rejection of a Beijing-backed plan to let the public elect Hong Kong’s top officials begs the question of what happens next.

Books

06.25.15

City of Virtues

Chuck Wooldridge
Throughout Nanjing’s history, writers have claimed that its spectacular landscape of mountains and rivers imbued the city with “royal qi,” making it a place of great political significance. City of Virtues examines the ways a series of visionaries, drawing on past glories of the city, projected their ideologies onto Nanjing as they constructed buildings, performed rituals, and reworked the literary heritage of the city. More than an urban history of Nanjing from the late 18th century until 1911―encompassing the Opium War, the Taiping occupation of the city, the rebuilding of the city by Zeng Guofan, and attempts to establish it as the capital of the Republic of China―this study shows how utopian visions of the cosmos shaped Nanjing’s path through the turbulent 19th century.―University of Washington Press{chop}

China plays favorites with endangered species

Kristie Lu Stout
CNN
“The Chinese government has put so much money and so much effort into preserving pandas but there are so many other species that need addressing.”

China Aims to Move Beijing Government Out of City’s Crowded Core

Ian Johnson
New York Times
Officials finalize plans to move Beijing’s municipal government, including tens of thousands of civil servants to Tongzhou.

China Military Declines to Confirm Djibouti Base Plan

Ben Blanchard
Reuters
Though all countries have an interest in region peace and stability says China's Defense Ministry, it declines to confirm Djibouti military base.

A Partnership with China to Avoid World War

George Soros from New York Review of Books
International cooperation is in decline both in the political and financial spheres. The U.N. has failed to address any of the major conflicts since the end of the cold war; the 2009 Copenhagen Climate Change Conference left a sour aftertaste; the...

China Invites Former Soldiers in Taiwan to War Commemorations

Ben Blanchard and Nick Macfie
Reuters
China welcomes former soldiers in Taiwan who fought against Japan in WWII to take part in the commemorations, 70 years after the war.

Gas Leak Raises Fears Over China Network

Lucy Hornby
Financial Times
A brand new natural gas pipeline operated by CNPC in Yunnan sprung a leak, raising worries about the safety of China's network of oil and gas pipes.

At Least 18 Dead in Ramadan Attack on Police Checkpoint in Xinjiang

Joshua Lipes, Mamatjan Juma
Radio Free Asia
18 dead after a knife and bomb attack by a group of Uyghurs on a checkpoint in Xinjiang amid harsh restrictions on observance of Ramadan.

100,000 Tons of Smuggled Meat, Some From 1970s, Seized Across China

Crystal Tse
New York Times
Smuggled frozen meat has been seized across China, some of it more than 40 years old and valued at up to $483 million.

China Opens New Land Route to Tibet for Indian Pilgrims

Edward Wong
New York Times
The crossing of Nathu La, between India and Tibet, signals the opening of a new pilgrimage route for Indian pilgrims to holy sites.

Charleston Shooting: A U.S. Expat’s View From Afar

Alyssa Abkowitz
Wall Street Journal
There’s perspective that’s gained by watching the US from afar; it helps expats understand why locals may view America as dangerous.

Alibaba is Selling US E-Commerce Site 11 Main Just a Year After it Opened

Josh Horwitz
Quartz
Alibaba’s been more tentative in the U.S. than it has in China, because it is a latecomer in a mature market.

China Voice: Cooperation Prevails Over Confrontation in China-U.S. Ties

Xinhua
The dialogues will help pave the way for President Xi Jinping's state visit to the U.S. in September.

Caixin Media

06.22.15

Why Fukuyama Still Beats a Drum for Democracy

American author and political scientist Francis Fukuyama has long extolled the virtues of democracy against the backdrop of the Soviet Union’s collapse and the end of the Cold War.Fukuyama’s best-selling book The End of History and the Last Man...

Hunt for Deep Panda Intensifies in Trenches of U.S.-China Cyberwar

Jeremy Wagstaff
Reuters
Deep Panda is one of several hacking groups that cybersecurity companies accuse of hacking U.S. networks.

Attack Gave Chinese Hackers Privileged Access to U.S. Systems

David Sanger, Nicole Perlroth and...
New York Times
Chinese intruders' attack gave them “administrator privileges” into Office of Personnel Management computer networks.

State Department Stays Quiet About Exit from Chinese-Owned Waldorf Astoria

Mahita Gajanan
Guardian
UN general assembly will be held at different hotel for first time in decades.

China’s Annual Dog-Eating Festival Prompts Social Media Firestorm

Lindsey Bever and Nick Kirkpatrick
Washington Post
At a solstice festival in China 10,000 canines are said to be beaten, killed and cooked for human consumption.

China Extends Reach into Hong Kong to Thwart Democrats

James Pomfret and Greg Torode
Reuters
Democrats rejected a Beijing-backed Hong Kong electoral reform package but face an increasingly organized Chinese government.

The Truth About China’s South China Sea Land Reclamation Announcement

Prashanth Parameswaran
Diplomat
China's building of artificial islands is illegal and detrimental to peace and stability in the South China Sea.

China will welcome only anti-independence candidate for Taiwan president

Ben Blanchard
Reuters
For upcoming Taiwan presidential election, China will only accept anti-independence candidates.

Civil servants, students, teachers in Xinjiang banned from fasting during Ramadan

Agence France Presse
South China Morning Post
China bans fasting for Ramadan and orders restaurants to stay open in Xinjiang.

Electing the Chief Executive: Hong Kong’s Political Reform Voted Down

South China Morning Post
Hong Kong's 2017 Chief Executive election proposal  promises "one man, one vote."

CAA China’s Leader on Censorship, Why China Needs a Global Hit and Translating for Spielberg

Clifford Coonan
Hollywood Reporter
The first U.S. talent agency with full-time representation in China marks 10 years in Beijing.

Hong Kong Vetoes China-Backed Electoral Reform Proposal

Donny Kwok and Yimou Lee
Reuters
The rejection was expected and will likely appease activists who demanded a veto of what they call "fake" reforms.

Conversation

06.17.15

Has China’s ‘One Country, Two Systems’ Experiment Failed?

George Chen, Alvin Y.H. Cheung & more
As Hong Kong’s legislature began debate this week on the reform package that could shape the future of the local political system, the former British colony’s pro-democracy lawmakers swore again they will reject electoral reforms proposed by the...

Media

06.17.15

American Students in China: It’s Not as Authoritarian as We Thought

Bethany Allen-Ebrahimian
For some American students about to embark on a study abroad trip to China, the U.S. media reports of Chinese Internet censorship, jailing of dissidents, and draconian population control laws may dominate their perception of the country. But after...

Books

06.16.15

The Yellow River

David A. Pietz
Flowing through the heart of the North China Plain―home to 200 million people―the Yellow River sustains one of China’s core regions. Yet this vital water supply has become highly vulnerable in recent decades, with potentially serious repercussions for China’s economic, social, and political stability. The Yellow River is an investigative expedition to the source of China’s contemporary water crisis, mapping the confluence of forces that have shaped the predicament that the world’s most populous nation now faces in managing its water reserves.Chinese governments have long struggled to maintain ecological stability along the Yellow River, undertaking ambitious programs of canal and dike construction to mitigate the effects of recurrent droughts and floods. But particularly during the Maoist years the North China Plain was radically re-engineered to utilize every drop of water for irrigation and hydroelectric generation. As David A. Pietz shows, Maoist water management from 1949 to 1976 cast a long shadow over the reform period, beginning in 1978. Rapid urban growth, industrial expansion, and agricultural intensification over the past three decades of China’s economic boom have been realized on a water resource base that was acutely compromised, with effects that have been more difficult and costly to overcome with each passing decade. Chronicling this complex legacy, The Yellow River provides important insight into how water challenges will affect China’s course as a twenty-first-century global power.―Harvard University Press{chop}

Features

06.16.15

Does Xi Jinping Represent a Return to the Mao Era?

Andrew G. Walder, Roderick MacFarquhar & more
Following is an edited transcript of a live event hosted at Asia Society New York on May 21, 2015, “ChinaFile Presents: Does Xi Jinping Represent a Return to the Politics of the Mao Era?” The evening convened the scholars Roderick MacFarquhar and...

China Military Says Two More top Officers Probed for Graft

Reuters
Serving and retired Chinese military officers have said military graft is so pervasive it could undermine China's ability to wage war.