Taiwan Compatriot Pass(Issued in PRC)

According to the news from DDP-run newspaper"Liberty Times", there are 1,6 million Taiwanese people who holds "Taiwan Compatriot Pass"(Issued in People's Republic of China) although the population of Taiwan is 2.3 million.
There is a saying that this "Taiwan Compatriot Pass" would be Taiwanese people's passport which would replace "ROC"passport.

This is the true case reported by "Mingsheng Bao"

This is the true case reported by "Mingsheng Bao"(A newspaper from Taiwan)


Title:I want more money-A poor story of our Taiwanese employees

I used to work in an ASE(Advanced Semi-Conductor Engineering 日月光)company,but last August, my company forced our 1500 employees(including to resign from work,and i was unemployeed in one year, later I joined a company "Champion"(長宏人力仲介公司) which provides us a job opportunity with less money(only 17000 NT )and with working 12 hours a day, 5 days a week and without giving health insurance(which means I have to pay 650 NT a month by myself)

But money what i earned is not enough to pay all cost to my living,eating,etc.

Am I unlucky? Sure, but i'm not the only one. Most people in Taiwan have lost their job and they need to accept this opportunity of a job with "working in a long hours and receiving less money"
I've been disappointed to our DDP government(although i voted them in 2004). They don't do anything to change our bad economic situation but all of us Taiwanese at least want to see "some changes".
Just wanna "some changes", ok? If either Chinese Communist Party or KMT can do some changes on this bad economic situation, then why not voting them?
Now, this thing comes to my mind:"DDP always wants the independence of Taiwan and it's not independent now. If it is independent , we will have more unfortunate life than now in future"


Is Taiwan very rich? Yes, but only 25% of Taiwan's population is very rich.
And there're 75% of Taiwan's population living like my standard,so i'm not the first who has this case.

Currency bill reveals U.S. protectionism, risking Sino-U.S. ties

As U.S. Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson kicked off his Beijing visit on Monday, observers warned that trade protectionism in Washington posed a threat to China-U.S. trade relations.

Three days before Paulson's China trip, the Senate Financial Committee overwhelmingly passed a bill that allowed the U.S. government to use a wide array of measures to force other countries to adopt more market-oriented currency policies.

"This bill has ominous implications for U.S.-China trade and stands a very good chance of becoming law," said Stephen S. Roach, chairman of the Morgan Stanley Asia Limited, in an interview with Xinhua.

He said Paulson had an important job ahead in impressing on the Chinese leadership the gravity of the political situation in Washington. "Nothing happens by coincidence in the political realm. Washington's protectionist tilt is unmistakable," he said.

The economist who has spoken three times this year in the U.S. Congress on U.S.-China trade relations predicted that the final legislation would be passed at the end of the year with the bi-partisan support of at least two-thirds of the members in both the House and the Senate, ruling out the possibility of a veto by President George W. Bush.

As the U.S. trade deficit with China shows little sign of declining, U.S. politicians increasingly claimed the yuan was undervalued.

"I am not a believer in the currency elasticity theory of the bilateral trade fix. Without an improvement in U.S. saving, any such efforts on the currency front are doomed to failure," he said.

The net national saving rate of the United States averaged a record low of one percent over the past three years.

With little saving, U.S. economic growth had to rely on massive capital inflow. Unfortunately, U.S. dollar's position was being undermined by the strengthening euro and RMB yuan, said Tan Yaling, a research analyst with the Bank of China.

"Although the dominant position of the U.S. dollar will not weaken easily, the currency bill has unveiled a strong political hint that the American politicians want other countries to dance to their tune," she said.

The legislation allows U.S. companies to seek anti-dumping duties on goods from any country that maintains what the U.S. government calls a "fundamentally misaligned" exchange rate.

U.S. consumers and multinationals would stand to lose rather than benefit, because more than 60 percent of the total growth in Chinese exports originated from "foreign-invested enterprises", both Roach and Tan warned.

"By putting pressure on the RMB-dollar cross rate," Roach said," Washington is unwittingly squeezing the efficiency solution of U.S. multinationals and imposing the functional equivalent of a tax hike on American consumers."

The central parity rate of yuan against U.S. dollar has grown by more than eight percent accumulatively from 8.28 yuan in July 2005 to the latest high of 7.5725 yuan. The country's trade surplus, however, snowballed to 112.5 billion U.S. dollars in the first half of the year, up 83 percent from the same period last year.

The comparative advantages of China in production costs and productivity remained strong and punitive duties would only encourage China to expand its export market elsewhere, Tan said.

"The bill has predicated a hazardous tendency for the U.S. government to attempt to manipulate international organizations for its own good. This is unprecedented behavior and unacceptable," she said.

The legislation urges the Bush administration to take action through the International Monetary Fund and the World Trade Organization against targeted countries that declined to reform their currency policies while allowing the Federal Reserve to intervene in global markets against the misaligned currency if the country fails to make appropriate reforms one year after being cited by the United States.

Roach said the worst-case scenario would be an escalation of retaliatory trade actions between the U.S. and China, which would have devastating implications for U.S. consumers and Chinese producers alike.

"I am hopeful that the political leadership in both the U.S. and China might come to their senses before sliding down what could be a very slippery slope," he said.

Taiwan's poor human rights record: Demonstration Law

A letter sent to "Universal Human Rights Watch" for accusing Taiwan of violating Taiwanese people's human rights

Writer: Zhong Shao Hang

IP code: X.X.64.48

The government of Taiwan pro-independence oppose abandoning "Demonstration Law"(集會遊行法) which have limited Taiwanese people's right to demonstration.
Please, "Human Rights Watch"! Where are you? Please criticize our damn corrupt government for violating our human rights! Otherwise, Human Rights Watch is only a USA's running dog!

Taiwanese self-proclaimed a "Taiwan Province branch" of Chinese Communist Party

Headline from Taiwan
Taiwanese resident "Dai Zhong" self-proclaimed a "Taiwan Province branch" of Chinese Communist Party




Dai Zhong (戴忠) , a Taiwanese resident, self-proclaimed a "Taiwan Province branch" of the Communist Party of China without applying for official status as a political party and without any support or interest from the Communist Party of China.

A Taiwanese soldier who wanna murder Chen Shui-Bian

Not only many Taiwanese ordinary people but also the military soldier(who doesn't have right to vote) would like to step down Chen Shui-Bian and Taiwan pro-independence politicians.
MND under fire for response to threat to Chen Shui-Bian

Former army honor guard Qu Zhao-kang (屈肇康), who left a message in an Internet chatroom saying that he wanted to harm the president, was indicted last week, with prosecutors seeking a seven year prison sentence.
But the response of the Ministry of National Defense, which initially branded his act as being "mere personal conduct" has drawn criticism.
Qu, who will finish his military service at the end of this year, posted the message online in March, but it was not exposed until two weeks ago.
Qu is a graduate of the department of Japanese at Dongwu University(東吳大學). He had been planning to devote himself to a military career.
Qu left a message in a Yahoo chatroom identifying himself as an army honor guard. He wrote that when President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) welcomed Nauru President Ludwig Scotty with an honor guard from the air force, the army and the navy on March 7, "I almost could not resist the urge to poke my M-1 rifle into the president's head."
The M-1 rifles carried by the guards are unloaded, but they are fitted with bayonets.
Internet surfers reported the matter to the army.
The army immediately relieved Qu of his duties as an honor guard.
When first approached by the press for comments on June 30, army spokesman Zhou Yan-Zhong (周彥中), who was just promoted as a lieutenant general this month, said the military would regard Qu's comments as "personal conduct" and officials had been discussing the matter with him.
The army regarded Qu's post as "comments from outside the military" because Qu posted his messages during his vacation.
As such, Qu "did not distribute the wrong message as a soldier," Qu said.
However, some critics panned the ministry's response.
Branding Qu's act as "personal conduct" sent out the wrong message to other people doing military service, critics said.
Zhang Jia-lun (張家倫), public affairs secretary-general at a non-profit group called Taiwan Youth which advocates on issues concerning young people, said the ministry should not have so casually dismissed the case.
"If Qu is forgiven, will it mean that any soldier will be allowed to threaten his superior officers if he hates them?" Zhang said. "How will they [superior officers] lead their soldiers in the future?"
Zhou said that Qu earlier this month was charged under Article 16 of the Military Criminal Code (陸海空軍刑法), which stipulates that anyone who distributes messages encouraging soldiers to carry out any form of seditious activity faces a sentence of no less than seven years.
The ministry did not explain why the military initially regarded Qu's message as not violating the Military Criminal Code.
People First Party (PFP) Legislator Lu Xue-Zhang (呂學樟) said that the military had been wrong to indict Qu.
"I am not saying that Qu's remarks are absolutely OK. But, he simply posted a message, and didn't `distribute the message and encourage' fellow soldiers to assassinate the president. Article 16 of the Military Criminal Code does not apply to his case at all," Lu said.


---------------------------------------------------------
Response from Wang Lijun , Gaoxiong City , Taiwan. IP code: X.X.146.236

Our damn and corrupt government of Taiwan has violated Qu's human rights, then where is "Human Rights Watch"? Why not saving Qu?


Oh, I forget one thing:"Human Rights Watch" is only a store which has been opened by American imperialism, and they(members of Human Rights Watch) don't like to accuse their running dog!

The pro-independence govt of Taiwan become gradually unfavored by Taiwanese people

The DDP gov(pro-independence) of Taiwan is really corrupt. The officials in Taiwan don't know how to solve the problem of "unfair rise of dairy products" even though Taiwan workers' salary doesn't rise. The living of Taiwanese people is gradually becoming poorer than poorer.

Down DDP! Down Taiwan-independence!





Local consumers of dairy products are expected to see their wallet shrink significantly, as retail prices for various brands of fresh milk and powdered milk are poised to rise by 15 to 20 percent, starting August 1, according to industry sources.
The sources said the price hike is certainly inevitable, given the sharp rise in international raw material prices, and the government's decision to allow dairy farms to raise their milk prices by NT$3.52 per liter.

Such famous domestic dairy farms as Uni-President, Guangchuan and Weichuan have all decided to raise prices for their fresh milk by 15 percent starting next month.

In terms of milk powder, such brands as Fernleaf and Anlene took the lead to hike their prices by over 20 percent, while other brands including Quaker, Nestle and Abbot will also follow suit, with a 20 percent price rise.

After the price hike, a bottle of 980ml Kuangchuan fresh milk will sell for NT$63, up NT$8 from the current price of NT$55, while half a gallon of the same brand of milk will be retailed at NT$122, representing a rise of NT$14 from the existing price of NT$108.

Meanwhile, a bottle of 290ml Juisui milk supplied by the Uni-President Group will be hiked by 12 percent to NT$28 from the existing price of NT$25.

As to Weichuan, the company will determine the size of the price hike after negotiating with local distributors and weighing its operating costs.

Abbot, the U.S. baby food giant, may hike its sales prices in Taiwan for the first time this year, but the size of the hike will be kept under 5 percent.

Nestle noted that it is still evaluating the timing and size of the price hike for its milk powder products sold in Taiwan, and will make a final decision on the matter by the end of July.

Local hypermarts said that in order not to violate the fair trade law, major brands of milk powder have kept it a top secret as to when to raise their retail prices.

Taiwan DPP(pro-independence) defeated in local election

TAIPEI, Dec. 3

The ruling party in China's Taiwan Province, the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), was defeated by the Pan Blue Alliance led by the Chinese Kuomintang Party (KMT),in a local election on Saturday.

Among the total 23 seats of county-level mayors, the KMT won 14 seats, compared with the former eight seats, and the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) won six, down from 10, according to the results announced by the Taiwan authorities late Saturday.

The DPP President Su Tseng-chang announced to resign for the debacle in the election at about 8 p.m., though the votes we reaffirmed by the authorities later.

The election began at 8:00 a.m. Saturday.

The KMT also won Taipei county, the largest county in the island with more than 3.4 million people and thus the focal grabbing point - while its allies, the People First Party (PFP),the New Party and personages without party affiliations each won one.

"The election results indicate a vote of nonconfidence of the public in the Taiwan authorities led by the DPP," said MaYing-jeou, chairman of the KMT on Saturday evening. According to relevant statutes in Taiwan, the new mayors at county-level will be installed on Dec. 20.

Among the 901 seats of county councilors, the KMT won 408, the DPP 192, the PFP 31, the "Taiwan Solidarity Union" 11, the NP two, and personages without party affiliations 256.

Another seat will be decided through drawing lots due to two people getting the same votes, according to the authorities. Among the 319 positions of town level mayors, the KMT won 173,the DPP 35, the PFP three, the "Taiwan Solidarity Union" one and personages without party affiliations 107.

Anti-Chen Shui-Bian Campaign

"Anti-Chen Campaign" ( Hanyu Pinyin: Daŏbiăn Yùndòng) is a mass campaign led by former DPP leader and Taiwanese politician Shi Ming-De to pressure Republic of China President Chen Shui-bian to resign.


Background

Taiwan's political scene is divided into two major groups. On one side are the pan-Blues, consisting of the Chinese Nationalist Party (Kuomintang, or KMT) and two spin-off parties, the People First Party (PFP), and the New Party. Facing them are the pan-Greens, led by the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), and its ally the Taiwan Solidarity Union (TSU). Since the accession of Chen Shui-bian of the DPP to the Presidency in 2000, the Blue-controlled legislature has struggled to oust him, making changes to the impeachment process early in his administration, and attempting to recall him several times.

The latest round of recalls by the Blue side began in the summer of 2006, following a series of accusations of corruption against Chen and members of the first family. Allegations include insider trading by Chen's son-in-law, buying and selling of shares, and improper use of government funds. The recall motion was defeated due to a lack of votes.

Chen has denied any wrongdoing and not been found guilty by the Taiwanese judicial system. But his approval ratings fell, though the polls that show this is either from pro-Blue news media (which put him at about ~20%) or of completely unsupportable methodology, such as the notorious TSU poll that had him at just 5.8%. Hence, the actual extent of the decline is unknown. There have been calls from within his own party calling for his resignation, since there was some fear among the Greens that the scandals will affect the legislative election of 2007 and the Presidential election in 2008.

The "Million Voices Against Corruption" campaign began in August of 2006 when former DPP chairman and long-time democracy and independence activist Shi Ming-De announced that he would launch a protest campaign to force the President to resign. Shih had stepped down as chairman of the DPP in 1995, and began a long political drift from the Green side over to the Blue. According to his own version, he left the DPP in 1999, though party members said they kicked him out in 2000, blaming his grandstanding and repeated public attacks on his colleagues. In 2001 he became convener of a local pro-Blue thinktank called the Mountain Alliance, along with two other DPP turncoats, Sisy Chen and Xu Xin-liang. He ran unsuccessfully for mayor of Gaoxiong, garnering 1% of the vote, and also lost legislative elections in Taipei, both times running against DPP candidates. Shih's political career appeared to be in eclipse. Several years passed.

In August of 2006 Shih came back to prominence. During questioning at the Presidential Office on the afternoon of August 7, 2006, the president detailed to the prosecutor how he spent the fund and presented relevant receipts and bank remittance statements. On the same day, Shi Ming-De, a former ally of Chen, wrote a letter to Chen urging him to resign from office and to admit wrongdoing so as to "set a good example for the Taiwanese people". The proposal was rejected. On August 8th Shih announced his intention to open a bank account and collect NT$100 from supporters, which would be used to fund a protest in Taipei aimed at ousting the President.



On August 10, 2006, Shi Ming-De began to plan the "Million Voices against Corruption, President Chen Must Go" campaign. Shih offered to lead the Taiwanese people in street demonstrations if he were able to raise at least 100,000,000 New Taiwan Dollars (NTD) in fundraising for his campaign. On August 14, 2006, Shih and his allies began the fundraising event, raising 9,340,000 NTDs on the first day.[citation needed] On August 24, 2006, all donation accounts were closed, and the next day Shih announced that the fundraising campaign had raised 111,211,563 NTDs, well over the original goal.[citation needed]

In the meantime the Pan-Green supporters criticized. Initially the they recovered letters from his past begging the government for mercy when he was a political prisoner, but such tactics were widely seen as unseemly. More effective was the fact that Shih, supposedly battling against corruption, had personal connections to former Tuntex Group chairman Chen Yu-hao, one of the island's most famous embezzlers , a connection that Shih boasts of. Chen Yu-hao is widely known to be strongly opposed to President Chen. The Greens also raised questions about Shih's own finances, and made allegations that Shih was a tool of China. Security agencies found no connection to China, however.

On September 5, 2006, Shi Ming-De held a press conference in response to government responses, particularly from Premier Su Tseng-chang, indicating that the government "will not tolerate the protest"[citation needed]. Shih Ming-te urged Chen Shui-bian supporters not to believe that "[they] can master the people after mastering the government"[citation needed], and he quoted the verse, "Those who live by the sword shall die by the sword", from the New Testament. Shih called for various prominent Taiwanese (Republic of China) politicians to join in demonstrating for the resignation of Chen Shui-bian. However, although the demonstration was attended by all the major Blue politicians, no prominent Green politicians appeared.



Demonstrations

On September 9, 2006, the demonstration began as a gathering in front of the presidential office. Demonstrators were organized into the shape of a compass (as viewed from the sky) to symbolize the protesters' demands for integrity within government. Free meals were offered to the demonstrators by the organizers, and various events were held, including performances by children reciting Daxue, an ancient Chinese text by Confucius and his followers. Organizers estimated the number of participants to be around 300,000 at the start of the campaign (the police estimated the number to be closer to 90,000). Demonstrators were dressed in red as a sign of anger, gestured thumbs-down as a sign of disapproval, and chanted "Ah-Bian, step down! Ah-Bian, step down!" (Traditional Chinese: 「阿扁，下台！」)[1] as they marched through downtown Taipei.

Various pro-Blue national celebrities and pan-Blue politicians (current and former) took part in the event. Demonstrators consist of Taiwanese (ROC) citizens and foreign nationals of all age groups, including students from various international schools located in Taipei and a number of Japanese-immigrated ROC expatriates.[citation needed] However, as numerous sources pointed out, the bulk of Shih's followers were not disappointed moderates from across the political spectrum, as campaign planners claimed, but longtime Blues. Shih himself would later concede this in an interview published in the New York Times on Sept. 28, 2006.


The "Surround the City" protest


On the night of September 15, 2006, demonstrators organized an effort to "surround the city" ( Hanyu Pinyin: Weíchéng) with people holding glowsticks (especially red ones), in order to "block" Chen from leaving the city, as well as to relocate the demonstrations from its original location near the presidential office to Taipei Main Station. The event proved successful despite the inclement weather. Demonstrators in red shirts held glowsticks as they marched from GongYuan Rd. to the station, filling the entire road.

MRT officials announced that additional trains would run until 1 A.M. The next day, the Taipei Rapid Transit Corporation announced a new record of 1.51 million passengers passing in and out of the stations during the night of the protest. Currently, it seems the Main Station has become the most popular public resting place for the protesters past midnight because of its proximity to the protest center as well as conveniences the station provides, including shelter, food, and hygiene facilities. Critics of the demonstrations have pointed out that the protests have increased MRT ridership congestions, as the daily commuters now must cope with the additional riders. In addition, the protests have also caused havoc on Taipei's already congested traffic, and the cost of the protests has become burdensome for the city's residents.


The "Surround the Island" protest

After the September 15, 2006 demonstrations, Shih led a team of people through every major city in Taiwan ( Hanyu Pinyin: Huándaŏ Piàndì Kaīhuā) using tour buses to join local demonstrations. Organizers claim that anti-Chen protests occurred every day in October. The protests were mainly peaceful. Nonetheless, minor incidences of violence erupted when the protesters entered the Pan-Green south Taiwan.


The "Besiege the Presidential Office" demonstration

On October 10, 2006, ROC (Taiwan)'s National Day, the protesters returned to Ketagalan Avenue for another "Besiege the Presidential Office" demonstration ( Hanyu Pinyin: Tiānxià Weígōng) without first seeking demonstration permits from the police. Chen was heckled by opposition legislators of the Pan-Blue Coalition during a state ceremony attended by foreign dignitaries. There were also isolated, minor incidences of violence, including fist fights between Pan-Blue and Pan-Green legislators. In response, President Chen threatened to cancel the National Day celebration for 2007 because "everyone has different opinions and doesn't care"[citation needed]. Chen also stated his commitment to clean politics and his intolerance of governmental corruption. [5] After the ceremony, the government criticized the demonstrators [6], characterizing the demonstrations as disrespectful and illegal. Notably, while attending the ceremony, the AIT (American Institute in Taiwan) top official (and de facto United States ambassador) asked the protesters "to maintain politeness" [7]. An interesting idea concerning the protests: it is claimed that as people protested before the Presidential Office, the guards protecting and surrounding the office wore red underwear underneath their uniforms, signifying solidarity with the protesters, although they could not show the color on their actual guard uniforms.



Aftermath

Indictment of President Chen's wife

On November 3, 2006, Chen's wife Wu Shu-zhen and three other high ranking officials of the Presidential Office were indicted of corruption of NTD 14.8 million (USD$450,000) of government funds using faked documents. Due to the protection from the Constitution against prosecution of the sitting president, Chen could not be prosecuted until he left office, and he was not indicted, but was alleged to be an accomplice on his wife's indictment.

The prosecutor of the case has indicated that once Chen leaves office, his office will start the procedures to press charges against Chen. His wife Wu becomes the first sitting First Lady of the Republic of China to face criminal charges since the foundation of the Republic in 1911.

The indictment filed by prosecutors states that the indicted persons obtained government funds earmarked for secret foreign affairs, yet of six supposed secret diplomatic missions, there was sufficient evidence presented for only two. Of the remaining four, it was concluded that one did not exist, and in the case of the other three, the invoices presented were not found to be related to the secret missions.

The Pan-Blue coalition, after receiving the news, demanded to call for another recall motion unless Chen resigned immediately. Another small party that backed Chen previously, Taiwan Solidarity Union, founded by former KMT Chairman and ROC President Lee Teng-hui, said Friday they would likely to support the upcoming recall measure. However, the TSU said it would only support the new recall motion if "concrete evidence concerning corruption is presented." If the recall passed, it would be up to the voters to decide Chen's fate in an island-wide referendum.

Leaders of the Democratic Progressive Party met together on Friday to discuss the unfavorable charges. The meeting ended when party leaders demanded Chen to explain the accusation within three days. There has long been rumbles inside the DPP that Chen has become their liability and that they should recall him before the presidential election. If Chen resigned, he would be the first Taiwanese president to step down and the outspoken vice president Annette Lu would likely take power.

After the prosecutor announced the indictment news, the campaign leader Shih proclaimed in a rally in Friday that the indictment was the historical high point in Taiwan and the month long campaign was a success. Then, Shih led the protesters back to Ketagalan Avenue for more sit-in demonstrations.

In a press conference November 5, 2006, Chen rebutted the charges against his wife and members of his Presidential office. He said that Taiwan government offices advised him to prepare the receipts in such a fashion, and that after 6 years of doing so, it is strange that they would never mention an irregularity if it wasn't the right way to do it. He promised that all of the money actually went to diplomatic missions and did not go into any private pockets. Furthermore, he mentioned that when he took office, he thought his salary was so excessive that he cut his own salary in half, and that reduction is more than the amount he is accused of embezzling, so there is no need for him to take those money. In addition, he said that if the charges against his wife were proven in a court of law just as they were charged, then he would at that time step down as President of the Republic of China.

After Chen claimed his innocence, campaign leader Shih Ming-te said that all Chen statements are fabrications. The KMT party also said that it refuses to believe what Chen said and his words show his insistence to stay in office till his term ends. In addition, the KMT urged Chen to resign.[citation needed]

The First Lady claimed to have fainted during a press conference, and is currently staying in the NTU Hospital. However, many dispute that Wu truly lost consciousness, as she grabbed a bodyguard after she collapsed.

Pentagon fears baseless

BEIJING, May 28 -- The Pentagon has again made China one of America's causes for anxiety, creating tension in the air in Washington.

In its annual report to Congress, the Pentagon said on Friday that China is modernizing its military with the option for surprise attacks, potentially far from its borders.

The Pentagon is worried that China is acquiring better missiles, submarines and aircraft. In fact, most of the world is sharpening its military edge in one way or another without necessarily planning to go to war.

The United States has long taken the lead, with military strength without rival.

However, the Pentagon cannot tolerate military modernization by countries not allied with the U.S.

China has been asked to fully explain the purpose of its military buildup, which the Pentagon considers a threat.

In fact, the Pentagon is not on firm footing in painting its picture of China's military.

The U.S. has consistently criticized China for not being transparent about its military strategy. At the same time, it has ignored the reports China released.

The latest Pentagon report reflects both its deep distrust and bias against China.

The report concluded that China may engage in preemptive strikes, perhaps far from its borders, if the use of force protects or advances core interests, including territorial claims.

China has never launched preemptive strikes against any country. It is not part of its defensive military strategy.

China's code of conduct is: We will not attack unless attacked; if attacked, we will certainly counterattack.

Preemptive strikes top the U.S. military strategy. The Pentagon is using its own mindset to probe the minds of others.

It refuses to understand China's strategy, which embraces the declared policy of never starting a nuclear war. With the Pentagon's limited thinking, it is likely to label many areas of the Chinese design as ambiguous. It is likely to conclude that China may be exploring "new options" provided by its military modernization.

Yes, China is exploring new options - for economic growth. It has been devoting substantial resources to social and economic progress, not to military buildup.

How China won its bid for 2008 Olympics

BEIJING, June 8 -- One of the great leaps leading up to the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games was the remarkable change in China between its near-miss bid in 1993 and the successful bid eight years later.

Overseas media say that two events in the late 20th century and early 21st century will go down in history as events of historic significance for China. One was the smashing of the Gang of Four and launching of the reform and opening-up. The other is Beijing's hosting the Games.

Chinese are passionate about hosting the Olympic Games because it is a symbol that China is switching from an ancient nation to a youthful one and from a big country to a powerful one.

As a matter of fact, winning the bid to host the Olympic Games demonstrates the country's rising standing among its world peers and its ever stronger national strength.

In their intensified rivalry to host the Games, countries are actually competing with one another in the fields of economic power, development potential, cultural tradition, education and science as well as international image.

In the course of Beijing's bid for the Games, the coherence of the Chinese nation and the Chinese people's passion for hosting the Games were fully demonstrated to the world. This helped in Beijing's outbidding its rivals.

All these historical and emotional factors are superficial compared to the most important ones: China's rapidly rising national strength since the reform and opening-up were launched in the late 1970s, the growing role played by the country in international affairs, and the trust it widely enjoys among the world's nations.

By comparing Beijing's failure to win its Olympics bid in 1993 and its success in 2001, we can see these factors at work.

In 1993, Beijing lost to Sydney by two votes. The defeat could be regarded as a kind of success, taking into account the unfavorable international climate China found itself in.

To begin with, the economic sanctions imposed on China by Western countries still existed and some people were skeptical about socialism with Chinese characteristics in the wake of the Soviet Union's collapse.

By the way, the influence of politics is still felt in many areas, although the Olympic credo is that sports goes beyond ideology, culture and race.

Eight years had passed and now it was 2001, time for another bid.

In the intervening years, extensive and intensive changes had taken place in China and in the rest of the world as well.

The country's GDP had risen 2.5 fold. China's transportation and communications infrastructures had been significantly improved. The construction of sports venues and environmental protection projects had also made impressive progress.

Furthermore, democracy and rule of law were being pushed forward.

In Beijing, the bidding city, GDP reached 24 billion U.S. dollars in 2001, increasing at an annual rate of 10 percent.

Hong Kong in 1997 and Macao in 1999 returned to the sovereignty of China. They were functioning smoothly as two special administrative regions of China, which helped enhance China's international status.

Internationally, the country's relations with the United States and European countries began to develop in directions favorable to China, thanks to effective diplomatic strategy and policy.

To cope with the impact of the 1997 Southeast Asian financial crisis, China adopted effective monetary policies, including maintaining the stability of the RMB foreign exchange rate. This helped keep the crisis from spilling over to larger areas, while maintaining the stability of China's own economy.

The economies of China's neighboring countries began to recover, thanks in part to the Chinese economy. China's role in maintaining regional economic stability was recognized by its neighbors and the world community.

Against this background, Beijing outbid rival cities in 2001.

We often say that we are capable of doing something because we are standing on the shoulders of a giant. In winning the bid to host the Games, we were standing on the shoulders of the increasingly powerful motherland and the Chinese people.

The author is a researcher with the China Foundation for International and Strategic Studies.

Fewer death sentences

BEIJING, June 8 -- A major reason for the Supreme People's Court to reassume the authority to review and approve all death sentences was to rein in irresponsible use of capital punishment at local levels.

Initial statistics from the first five months indicate that the change has worked. The remarkable drop in the number of death sentences meted out by local courts testifies to that.

It is good to have fewer people on death row. After all, few crimes deserve the ultimate punishment. And this country's judicial philosophy has an expressed commitment to helping erring souls to correct them.

It is encouraging to see the drop in death sentences in the provinces. The local courts have demonstrated a new degree of prudence in a matter of months.

Our national legislative and judicial authorities have worked extensively to refine the rule of law in criminal justice. The approach implemented last year, incorporating both leniency and severity - with the accent on leniency - is a break from China's traditional emphasis on harshness in law enforcement.

The general appeal for leniency in criminal justice and, more specifically, the call for prudent use of the death sentence are both indications of civilized law enforcement. But a more direct cause for the decline in the number of death sentences in the past months could well be the new requirement that all such verdicts be scrutinized by the Supreme Court.

This is additional proof that people behave more responsibly with proper oversight.

Returning authority over death sentences to the Supreme Court is targeted not only at reducing the number of such sentences. With its life-and-death power, the Supreme Court has the obligation to make sure every death sentence it approves can stand the test of time. There is no remedy for execution.

HK remains prosperous under "one country, two systems"

HONG KONG, June 22 (Xinhua) -- Director of the Liaison Office of the Central People's Government in Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) Gao Siren said that "one country, two systems" has been proved a success and Hong Kong remained prosperous under the principle.

Before Hong Kong's return to the motherland, some people doubted whether the concept could be successfully carried out, said Gao when interviewed by Xinhua. Now a prosperous and stable Hong Kong has enhanced the confidence of Hong Kong compatriots and international community towards the concept, said Gao.

Gao said the "two systems", namely capitalism and socialism, have harmoniously existed in Hong Kong and the principle of "high autonomy of Hong Kong people governing Hong Kong" has been fully implemented.

Under the precondition of "one country", Hong Kong's social and economic systems and life style remained unchanged, while its legal system also basically remained unchanged. The Hong Kong residents now enjoy more democratic rights than under the British control.

In the meantime, under the principle of "one country, two systems", Hong Kong has maintained its competitive edge. Hong Kong, with the help of the central government, had successfully dealt with such difficult experiences like Asian financial crisis and SARS since its return to the motherland in 1997, said Gao.

Currently, Hong Kong's economy is in its best performance of the past 20 years, enjoying "high growth and low inflation" for three consecutive years. It also enjoys a booming stock market and real estate market, a historically high tax income and a new low unemployment rate.

On the relations with the Chinese mainland, Gao said the central government pays close attention to the development of Hong Kong and gives an "all-out support" to the cooperation between Hong Kong and mainland areas.

In China's 11th Five-Year plan (2006-2010), the central government has clearly positioned Hong Kong still as a financial, trade and shipping center, said Gao.

Gao noted that though Hong Kong faces challenges of economic structure readjustment and cultivating new economic driving force, Hong Kong still has the advantages which no other big cities in mainland could compare with.

In the past more than 20 years of China's opening up, Hong Kong has been the largest source of overseas investment in the Chinese mainland. Capitals from Hong Kong or those from foreign countries via Hong Kong accounted for 41 percent of the country's total. The proportion is lower in recent years but Hong Kong is still listed No. 1 capital source for the Chinese mainland and the sum is still going up.

Top discipline official underlines prevention of corruption

BEIJING, July 16 (Xinhua) -- Wu Guanzheng, the top discipline official of the Communist Party of China (CPC), again underscored the importance of preventing corruption on Monday.

Wu, member of the Standing Committee of the CPC Central Committee Political Bureau, made the remarks when addressing a training course for ministerial officials and provincial heads at the CPC Central Committee's Party School.

The senior Party official, who is also secretary of the CPC Central Commission for Discipline Inspection, proposed four measures to curb corruption over the long term: intensifying party discipline, supervision, building more efficient systems and ensuring official's healthy lifestyles.

"Top leaders at various government levels should be under special supervision," Wu said.

Wu called on discipline inspectors to analyze typical corruption cases and subject themselves to the supervision of the Party and people.

In a keynote speech delivered at the CPC Central Committee's Party School last month, Chinese President Hu Jintao also urged officials to improve their ideology, leadership and lifestyles, oppose formalism, bureaucracy and extravagance, and fight a long, tough war against corruption.

"Punishment of embezzlers will not be relaxed at any time," Wu said.

95 Chinese officials punished over forced labor scandal

TAIYUAN, July 16 (Xinhua) -- China's forced labor scandal has led to the punishment of a total of 95 officials in north China's Shanxi Province, with some sacked of their Party or government posts and others given disciplinary warnings for lax supervision and dereliction of duty.

The provincial disciplinary commission of the Communist Party of China (CPC) handed out the penalties on Monday to officials in eight counties in Linfen and Yuncheng.

Commission secretary Yang Senlin said the officials included 12 county level staffs and six city level officials.

In Hongtong, the center of the scandal, Sun Yanlin, head of the county government and concurrently the deputy Party secretary was fired from his Party post. The commission also advised the county people's congress to dismiss him from his government post.

Gao Hongyuan, Party secretary in Hongtong was given a "serious warning", Yang said. The commission gave Wang Zhenjun, deputy head of the County government, a serious warning, and advised the county people's congress to deprive him of his government post.

The commission also advised dismissal of two township officials in Hongtong.

Yang said eight officials are being investigated by the judicial department.

The use of forced laborers hit the headlines after more than 400 parents in central China's Henan Province posted a help letter on the Internet last month, saying their missing children had been sold to small brick kilns in Shanxi and Henan as forced laborers.

By June 22, 359 people, including 12 children, had been rescuedfrom illegal brick kilns in Shanxi and police had arrested 38 people. Police in Henan rescued 217 people, including 29 children,and arrested 120 people in a four-day crackdown, in which more than 35,000 police checked 7,500 kilns.

The Standing Committee of the National People's Congress (NPC), China's legislature, on June 29 adopted the Labor Contract Law following the exposure of the practice in order to help protect workers' rights by making written contracts obligatory.

Under the new law, if employers fail to sign written contracts with their employees within a year after employees begin working, then they are considered to have signed a permanent labor contract.

"Employers should not force employees to work overtime and employees can terminate the contract without fulfilling the notice period if they are forced to work by violence, threat or restriction of personal freedoms," the law reads.

The law will come into effect on Jan. 1, 2008.

So far, more than 30 kiln bosses and employees have gone on trial in connection with the forced labor scandal. They face charges such as forcing people to work in unspeakable conditions and intentionally injuring other people.

The Yangshan deep-water port of Shanghai

Location Map for Yangshan Deep-Water Port in China(Picture)

The Yangshan deepwater port is needed to service the Kangqiao development zone.

The Yangshan deep-water port (洋山深水港) is a new port in Hangzhou Bay south of Shanghai, at 30°35′N, 122°04′E. Built to circumvent growth limitations for the Port of Shanghai as a result of shallow waters, it allows berths with depths of up to 15 metres to be built, capable of handling the largest container ships today. The port achieves this by building on the offshore islands of Yangshan, which are amalgamated by land reclamation and connected to the mainland via the Donghai Bridge, the later of which was opened on 1 December 2005 as the third-longest bridge in the world at 32,5 km in length.

Berths

In 2000/2001, the decision to commence construction on the first of four phases was made. The first two phases are currently operational, with nine berths in total along a 3 km quayside. The first phase, which was in operation since 2004, can accommodate 2.2 million containers annually and includes 10 quay cranes. The second phase was opened in December 2006, comprising of an area of 72 hectares with 15 quay cranes.
The third phase, to be opened in stages, will be completed by 2010 with seven berths, with phase 3A to be opened in end 2007. When fully completed in 2012, the port will have four phases in operation with 30 berths capable of handling 15 million TEUs annually

Cost

The total cost of Yangshan port may reach US$ 12 billion over 20 years

Law of the People's Republic of China on the Standard Spoken and Written Chinese Language

Law of the People's Republic of China on the Standard Spoken and Written Chinese Language


(Order of the President No.37)



　　The Law of the People's Republic of China on the Standard Spoken and Written Chinese Language, adopted at the 18th Meeting of the Standing Committee of the Ninth National People's Congress of the People's Republic of China on October 31, 2000, is hereby promulgated and shall go into effect as of January 1, 2001.
　　
　　


Jiang Zemin
　　President of the People's Republic of China
　　October 31, 2000
　　
　　

　　(Adopted at the 18th Meeting of Standing Committee of the Ninth National People's Congress on October 31, 2000)

　　

Chapter I General Provisions
　　Chapter II Use of the Standard Spoken and Written Chinese Language
　　Chapter III Administration and Supervision
　　Chapter IV Supplementary Provisions

Chapter I

General Provisions

　　Article 1 This Law is enacted in accordance with the Constitution for the purpose of promoting the normalization and standardization of the standard spoken and written Chinese language and its sound development, making it play a better role in public activities, and promoting economic and cultural exchange among all the Chinese nationalities and regions.

　　Article 2 For purposes of this Law, the standard spoken and written Chinese language means Putonghua (a common speech with pronunciation based on the Beijing dialect) and the standardized Chinese characters.

　　Article 3 The State popularizes Putonghua and the standardized Chinese characters.

　　Article 4 All citizens shall have the right to learn and use the standard spoken and written Chinese language.
　　The State provides citizens with the conditions for learning and using the standard spoken and written Chinese language.
　　Local people's governments at various levels and the relevant departments under them shall take measures to popularize Putonghua and the standardized Chinese characters.

　　Article 5 The standard spoken and written Chinese language shall be used in such a way as to be conducive to the upholding of state sovereignty and national dignity, to unification of the country and unity of the nationalities, and to socialist material progress and ethical progress.

　　Article 6 The State promulgates standard norms of the spoken and written Chinese language, administers its use in the community, supports the teaching of and scientific research in the language in order to promote its normalization, enrichment and development.

　　Article 7 The State rewards the organizations and individuals that have made outstanding contribution in the field the standard spoken and written Chinese language.

　　Article 8 All the nationalities shall have the freedom to use and develop their own spoken and written languages.
　　The spoken and written languages of the ethnic peoples shall be used in accordance with the relevant provisions of the Constitution, the Law on Regional National Autonomy and other laws.

Chapter II
Use of the Standard Spoken and Written Chinese Language

　　Article 9 Putonghua and the standardized Chinese characters shall be used by State organs as the official language, except where otherwise provided for in laws.

　　Article 10 Putonghua and the standardized Chinese characters shall be used as the basic language in education and teaching in schools and other institutions of education, except where otherwise provided for in laws.
　　Putonghua and the standardized Chinese characters shall be taught in schools and other institutions of education by means of the Chinese course. The Chinese textbooks used shall be in conformity with the norms of the standard spoken and written Chinese language.

　　Article 11 Publications in Chinese shall be in conformity with the norms of the standard spoken and written Chinese language.
　　Where foreign languages need to be used in publications in Chinese, necessary explanatory notes in standard Chinese shall be applied.

　　Article 12 Putonghua shall be used by the broadcasting and TV stations as the basic broadcasting language.
　　Where foreign languages need to be used as the broadcasting languages, the matter shall be subject to approval by the broadcasting and television administration under the State Council.

　　Article 13 The standardized Chinese characters shall be used as the basic characters in the service trade. Where both a foreign language and the Chinese language are used in signboards, advertisements, bulletins, signs, etc., as is needed by the trade, the standardized Chinese characters shall be used as far as the Chinese Language is concerned.
　　People working in the service trade are encouraged to use Putonghua when providing services.

　　Article 14 The standard spoken and written Chinese language shall be used as the basic spoken and written language in the following circumstances:
　　(1) spoken and written language for broadcasting, films and TV programs;
　　(2) written language for the facilities in public places;
　　(3) written language in signboards and advertisements;
　　(4) names of enterprises and other institutions; and
　　(5) packaging and specifications of commodities marketed in the country.

　　Article 15 The standard spoken and written Chinese language used in information processing and information technology products shall be in conformity with the norms of the State.

　　Article 16 Where the relevant provisions of this Chapter are concerned, local dialects may be used under the following circumstances:
　　(1) when State functionaries really need to use them in the performance of official duties;
　　(2) where they are used in broadcasting with the approval of the broadcasting and television administration under the State Council or of the broadcasting and television department at the provincial level;
　　(3) where they are needed in traditional operas, films and TV programs and other forms of art; and
　　(4) where their use is really required in the publishing, teaching and research.

　　Article 17 Where by the relevant provisions of this Chapter are concerned, the original complex or the variant forms of Chinese characters may be retained or used under the following circumstances:
　　(1) in cultural relics and historic sites;
　　(2) the variant forms used in surnames;
　　(3) in works of art such as calligraphy and seal cutting;
　　(4) handwritten inscriptions and signboards;
　　(5) where their use is required in the publishing, teaching and research; and
　　(6) other special circumstances where their use is approved by the relevant departments under the State Council.

　　Article 18 The "Scheme for the Chinese Phonetic Alphabet" shall be used as the tool of transliteration and phonetic notation for the standard spoken and written Chinese language.
　　The "Scheme for the Chinese Phonetic Alphabet" is the unified norm of the Roman letters for transliterating the names of Chinese people and places as well as Chinese documents and is used in the realms where it is inconvenient to use the Chinese characters or where the Chinese characters cannot be used.
　　Chinese phonetic alphabets shall be used in primary education.

　　Article 19 All staff members who need to use Putonghua as their working language shall have the ability to speak Putonghua.
　　The Putonghua level of those who use Putonghua as their working language, such as broadcasters, program hosts and hostesses, actors and actresses of films, TV series and plays, teachers and State functionaries shall reach the respective standards set by the State; those who have not yet reached such standards shall receive different training, as the case may be.

　　Article 20 Putonghua and the standardized Chinese characters shall be taught in classes for foreigners who are learning Chinese.

Chapter III
Administration and Supervision

　　Article 21 The department in charge of the work related to spoken and written language under the State Council shall be responsible for planning, guiding, administering and supervising the work related to the standard spoken and written Chinese language.
　　The departments concerned under the State Council shall administer the use of the standard spoken and written Chinese language in their own departments.

　　Article 22 Local departments in charge of the work related to spoken and written language and other departments concerned shall administer and supervise the use of the standard spoken and written Chinese language within their own administrative areas.

　　Article 23 The administrative departments for industry and commerce under the local people's governments at or above the county level shall administer and supervise the use of spoken and written language in the names of enterprises and commodities as well as in advertisements.

　　Article 24 The department in charge of the work related to spoken and written language under the State Council shall issue standards for the test of Putonghua at different grades.

　　Article 25 The department in charge of the work related to spoken and written language under the State Council or other departments concerned shall make arrangements for the examination of the translation of the proper nouns like the names of foreigners and foreign places and the scientific and technical terms into the standard spoken and written Chinese language.

　　Article 26 Any citizen may make criticism and put forward suggestions where the use of spoken and written language is at variance with the norms of the standard spoken and written Chinese language and is in violation of the relevant provisions in Chapter II of this Law.
　　Where persons mentioned in the second paragraph of Article 19 of this Law use the language in violation of the relevant provisions of Chapter II of this Law, the units concerned shall, by way of education, criticize the persons who are directly responsible; anyone who refuses to put it right shall be handled by the units concerned.
　　Where the characters used in the facilities and signboards in public places of cities and in advertisements are in violation of the relevant provisions of Chapter II of this Law, the administrative departments concerned shall give orders for them to be corrected; anyone who refuses correct them shall be given a disciplinary warning and be urged to put them right within a time limit.

　　Article 27 Anyone who, in violation of this Law, interferes with other persons' learning and using of the standard spoken and written Chinese language shall be ordered by the relevant administrative departments to put it right within a time limit and be given a disciplinary warning.

Chapter IV
Supplementary Provisions

　　Article 28 This Law shall go into force as of January 1, 2001.

Hanyu Pinyin

Pinyin, more formally called Hanyu Pinyin (Simplified Chinese: 汉语拼音), is the most common variant of Standard Mandarin romanization system in use. Hanyu means the Chinese language, pin means "spell" and yin means "sound". It is also known as scheme of the Chinese phonetic alphabet (Chinese: 汉语拼音方案).
Pinyin uses the Latin alphabet to represent sounds in Standard Mandarin. The way these letters represent sounds in Standard Mandarin differ from other languages that use the Roman alphabet. For example, the sounds indicated in pinyin by b and g correspond more closely to the sounds indicated by p and k in some Western uses of the Latin script, e.g., French. Other letters, like j, q, x or zh, indicate sounds that do not correspond to any exact sound in English. Some of the transcriptions in pinyin, such as the ang ending, do not correspond to English pronunciations, either. However, as with any foreign spellings, it also means that a person who has not studied Chinese or the pinyin system is likely to severely mispronounce some words if they were to attempt to pronounce pinyin according to their own language spellings.




Hanyu Pinyin was approved in 1958 and adopted in 1979 by the government in the People's Republic of China. It superseded older romanization systems such as Wade-Giles (1859; modified 1892) and Chinese Postal Map Romanization, and replaced Zhuyin as the method of Chinese phonetic instruction in mainland China. Hanyu Pinyin was adopted in 1979 by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) as the standard romanization for modern Chinese (ISO-7098:1991). It has also been accepted by the Government of Singapore, the Library of Congress, the American Library Association, and many other international institutions. It has also become a useful tool for entering Chinese language text into computers


The primary purpose of pinyin in Chinese schools is to teach Standard Mandarin pronunciation. For those Chinese who speak Standard Mandarin at home, pinyin is used to help children associate characters with spoken words which they already know; however, for the many Chinese who do not use Standard Mandarin at home, pinyin is used to teach them the Standard Mandarin pronunciation of words when they learn them in elementary school.