Must-read China news by Danwei

Berlin Fang muses on the rent-a-white-guy phenomenon:

An assumption in mind often can develop into discrimination in action. It is probably worse in China than it is in America, as anti-discrimination laws are not yet in place. In one of the universities I used to work for in the US, I had a friend who is a director of the International Office. He sometimes sent folks to China to recruit students and he found the least popular of his messengers are the Chinese Americans. When school administrators take photos with the visitors, they dislike taking a photo that does not apparently show an “American” because the Chinese American would look exactly like them. Their preferred choice would be a white American. I am wondering if the Canadian Chinese mentioned in the Atlantic Monthly article was renting a white guy just because of this? If so, then he is cheating his customers who in turn are cheating their customers.

Posted by Joel Martinsen at 4:24 PM | Permalink

The Economic Observer summarizes the reporting that made Qiu Ziming a wanted man:

In his first report, Qiu revealed that during the privatization of Zhejiang Kan Group (ZKSMC's parent firm) during the late 90s, the local government-owned company, which at the time of privatization had total and net assets of 136 million yuan and 7.09 million yuan respectively, was transferred to Wang Bailang and 15 other people at the heavily-discounted price of 890,000 yuan.

The transfer was made in accordance with an asset transfer agreement signed between the local county government and the 16 individuals. The agreement included vague wording in regard to the discount at which the company's net assets would be transferred.

The EO discovered that the agreement was signed in accordance with two county government documents from 1998 and 1999, which both clearly stated that the Zhejiang Kan Group was to be transferred with a 15 percent discount on its net assets.

Posted by Joel Martinsen at 10:17 AM | Permalink

The Socialist Worker turns its eye on the recent labor protests in China:

It's worth noting that very few rank-and-file leaders who built industrial unions in other countries have limited their ambitions to "pure-and-simple trade unionism." Some vision of a transformed society--whether based on socialist, anarchist or social-gospel Christian ideas--has been crucial to shaping the core cadres of activists committed to the life of risk, sacrifice and hard work that is necessary to building workers' combat organizations.

This kind of cadre, or leadership network, is what the CP fears most.

Also: the China Study Group features a roundup of some articles on the subject.

Posted by Joel Martinsen at 10:09 AM | Permalink

A deadly explosion at a chemical factory in Nanjing causes a stir in the Chinese media. Also of interest: how the next day's newspapers reported the story.

Posted by Joel Martinsen at 5:15 PM | Permalink

A China Computerworld cover story murders the Tencent mascot and curses at the company for its behavior within the industry. "Imitation is the most reliable form of innovation," says the founder.

Posted by Joel Martinsen at 5:11 PM | Permalink

The Beijing News takes a look at the funeral performance industry in Chongqing and Chengdu.

Posted by Joel Martinsen at 5:10 PM | Permalink

Feng Xiaogang's new movie had to choose among several different budget packages.

Posted by Joel Martinsen at 5:06 PM | Permalink

From the Economic Observer

Today we received notification that, after conducting an investigation, the Public Security Bureau of Lishui City in Zhejiang Province announced that the decision by Suichang County's Public Security Bureau to issue an arrest order for our reporter Qiu Ziming for the crime of "alleged damage to a company's business reputation" did not comply with the law and they ordered Suichang Public Security Bureau to immediately revoke the decision and to apologize to him.

At 10am on July 29, 2010, the Suichang County Public Security Bureau revoked the decision to list Qiu Ziming as a wanted criminal.

See Global Times or New York Times for more on this case.

Posted by Jeremy Goldkorn at 11:23 AM | Permalink

From The Financial Times:

US government agencies charged with reviewing sensitive acquisitions are engaged in a debate over how to handle Huawei, the Chinese software and telecoms equipment-maker viewed with deep scepticism by government security experts.

Last week, Huawei narrowly lost a bid to take over 2Wire, a privately held US maker of broadband internet software that was ultimately acquired by Pace of the UK for $475m, even though Huawei offered more than its rival, according to people familiar with the matter.

Posted by Jeremy Goldkorn at 11:13 AM | Permalink

China Digital Times has published some recent directives from various government propaganda organs, including this one:

The Propaganda Bureau of the Nanjing Party Committee has issued a directive: In all cases use circulated copy on today’s explosion; reporters are not allowed to interview or publish pictures.

Meantime, Chinese Twitter users are speculating that the official death toll went down from 12 to 10 yesterday because any disaster with more then 10 fatalities is classified as a large-scale accident (重大安全事故).

This means the accident is treated more seriously by the central government and therefore bad for the careers of the local officials under whose watch it happened.

Posted by Jeremy Goldkorn at 11:04 AM | Permalink

From The Wall Street Journal:

Twenty-one years ago, Li Lu was a student leader of the Tiananmen Square protests. Now a hedge-fund manager, he is in line to become a successor to Warren Buffett at Berkshire Hathaway Inc.

Mr. Li, 44 years old, has emerged as a leading candidate to run a chunk of Berkshire's $100 billion portfolio, stemming from a close friendship with Charlie Munger, Berkshire's 86-year-old vice chairman. In an interview, Mr. Munger revealed that Mr. Li was likely to become one of the top Berkshire investment officials. "In my mind, it's a foregone conclusion," Mr. Munger said.

Posted by Jeremy Goldkorn at 11:02 AM | Permalink

Rebecca MacKinnon:

As of this writing, numerous major American and European news outlets are reporting that Google is blocked in China, based on the information appearing on Google's Mainland China service availability page.

However no journalist has actually confirmed with a human being at Google that this information is correct. What's more, I've heard from several dozen people all over China who say that Google isn't blocked for them when they access it on their Internet connections from Beijing to Shanghai to Sichuan to Hunan.

Posted by Jeremy Goldkorn at 10:59 AM | Permalink

From The China Daily:

A top military officer has warned the Chinese military to keep a close eye on the changing situation amid a large-scale naval exercise in the South China Sea, held at the same time as a joint Washington-Seoul drill, State media reported on Thursday.

According to China Central Television, Chief of General Staff of the People's Liberation Army Chen Bingde, as well as the navy commander and other high-level military leaders, oversaw a naval exercise on Monday, the second day of the US-ROK maritime drill...

...At a meeting on Asian security in Hanoi last Friday, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, as well as foreign ministers of other countries, pressured Beijing on issues in the South China Sea, over which China has overlapping territorial claims with some neighbors.

However Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi characterized Clinton's comments as "an attack on China". Beijing has always opposed any effort to "internationalize" the issue.

Posted by Jeremy Goldkorn at 10:49 AM | Permalink

From Far West China:

On July 23rd, 2010, a Uyghur journalist, activist and blogger named Gheyret Niyaz (a.k.a. Heyrat Niyaz, 海莱特·尼亚孜) was sentenced to 15 years in prison. His crime, according to many reports, was “endangering state security” by conducting an interview with a Hong Kong newspaper shortly after the Urumqi riots of 2009. He played no role in the actual riots.

The posts examines the reasons behind the harsh sentence for an apparently insignificant act.

Posted by Jeremy Goldkorn at 12:21 PM | Permalink

The Associated Press reports:

Floods caused by heavy rains in northeastern China stranded tens of thousands of residents without power Wednesday, as the worst flooding in more than a decade continued to besiege many areas of the country.

Floods this year have killed at least 928 people with 477 missing and caused tens of billions of dollars in damage, the State Flood Control and Drought Prevention office reported. More heavy rains were expected for the southeast, southwest and northeast parts of the country through Thursday.

Posted by Alice Xin Liu at 11:05 AM | Permalink

An arrest warrant has been issued for journalist Qiu Ziming over three reports he filed for The Economic Observer about Zhejiang Kan Specialties Material Co. The newspaper has issued a statement.

As a public company, Zhejiang Kan Specialties Material Co. is responsible for meeting its obligations in relation to accurate, full and complete information disclosure, the public has the right to know and the media also has legal authority to supervise various organizations through their reports. In the process of reporting, journalists and others were repeatedly threatened and offered inducements. We strongly condemn the use of public power to suppress public opinion and any threats to the personal safety of media workers.

Posted by Joel Martinsen at 5:08 PM | Permalink

From China Daily:

Hunan TV represents a new era in television for China. After more than 30 years of rapid and sustainable development, China's television undertakings have made great progress. Statistics from the State Administration of Radio, Film and Television show that by the end of 2008, China had 277 city-level TV stations - 7.66 times the number in 1978. An overall 1,356 public television programs have been made by these TV stations - 32.9 times the number in 1980.

Posted by Alice Xin Liu at 11:48 AM | Permalink

From USA Today:

Centenary College, in New Jersey, is shutting down an M.B.A. program in Asia to contain a plagiarism epidemic. About 400 students are currently enrolled in the program at locations in Beijing, Shanghai and Taiwan.

Posted by Jeremy Goldkorn at 10:43 AM | Permalink

Newsweek presents a look at the comedian Xiao Shenyang in light of the ongoing campaign against vulgarity in popular culture:

The line between acceptable and taboo can seem very fine. In a more private performance at Zhao’s school, a man dressed as a woman exposed a fake breast and squirted milk into the face of a dying Chinese soldier—a scene Zhao says wouldn’t be allowed in a public performance because it bordered on bad taste.

The immense popularity of both Little Shenyang and Zhao relies on their ability to steer clear of political sensitivities—despite the obvious opportunities to take pot shots at Chinese politicians. (Satirical mimicry is another feature of er ren zhuan.) The young protégé says his performances “are disconnected from politics,” and he restricts his imitations of famous people to other singing stars.

Posted by Joel Martinsen at 4:49 PM | Permalink

The Global Times profiles Fang Zhouzi and his fight for integrity in science and academia.

And three years ago, the Ministry of Science and Technology set up an Office of Scientific Research Integrity, but Fang said he has not heard of the office investigating a single case. He believes the rules drawn up by the ministries are unlikely to be enforced, and some officials are corrupt and give the informer's personal information to the accused party.

"The situation of academic fraud can't change in China, because the society is full of fraud. It is a social problem, the academia can't make a change by itself," Fang said. "I don't have much confidence to make a fundamental change in today's society, but at least I'm making little progress with my efforts."

Posted by Joel Martinsen at 12:49 PM | Permalink

Mark MacKinnon in The Globe and Mail:

An artist goes into a local police station to raise a complaint about a friend’s landlord, is detained and beaten for his trouble, and then is himself charged with obstructing justice...

...[A]vant-garde artist Wu Yuren, is now awaiting trial and could spend up to three years in jail after accompanying his friend to the police station in Beijing’s Chaoyang district on May 31.

Posted by Jeremy Goldkorn at 10:54 AM | Permalink

Gady Epstein in Forbes:

Zijin Mining Group, China's largest gold producer, is getting battered in the Chinese press and elsewhere for a toxic spill at a copper mine that has poisoned a river and close to 2,000 tons of fish. So now, the mine is trying to pay journalists to stay quiet...

Posted by Jeremy Goldkorn at 10:52 AM | Permalink

In The Wall Street Journal:

The Chinese edition of GQ quietly recalled its July issue the day after it hit the newsstands to remove an unflattering feature on rich Chinese young people, but no one can say why...

...The piece is full of the kind of elitist comments that drive many Chinese up the wall. One man met an attractive woman and wanted to hang out — until he realized her car was “five years out of fashion.”

“Secondhand goods,” he said, losing interest immediately.

Posted by Jeremy Goldkorn at 10:47 AM | Permalink

Protesters in Guangzhou demonstrated in support of the local language on Sunday, the Global Times reports:

Occasionally, some youngsters took turns giving passionate speeches in Cantonese to cheering crowds.

"I stand for multiculturalism, and I strongly oppose the government's plan to promote Putonghua with administrative means," an editor at a local publishing house, surnamed Yan, told the Global Times.

As a dialect, Cantonese has its own unique charms and Guangzhou should keep its distinctive style and character, Yan continued.

Additional reporting at The Guardian. And a view from the north: a Beijing Evening News op-ed from last week cast the whole controversy as the work of a few news broadcasters worried about losing their jobs.

Posted by Joel Martinsen at 4:40 PM | Permalink

Tim Collard writes for a Telegraph blog about the Dalian oil leak:

A relief worker has already been drowned under a crust of sludge, part of a slick now covering 360 square miles and counting. In a sign of how serious the problem is, it has started being reported in the official media, although no attempt has yet been made to close the beach to tourists or rubbernecks – don’t want to cause panic, after all. Most of the real news is coming from Greenpeace; and the fact that Greenpeace has been allowed to send one of their excellent rescue teams is a sign that it’s being taken really seriously.

Posted by Alice Xin Liu at 12:50 PM | Permalink

In The China Daily:

Starting in September, minors in Chongqing in Southwest China will have the legal means to defend themselves against cases of "spying" by their parents.

Under a new regional law aimed to protect the rights of children, parents will be forbidden from secretly searching through children's computers or cell phones for emails, diaries, web chats or short messages.

The regulation, adopted on Friday by the Chongqing local legislature, is the first of its kind anywhere in China, the Chongqing Evening Post reported on Saturday.

Posted by Jeremy Goldkorn at 11:25 AM | Permalink