Innholdsfortegnelse for Vol.65/No.19 i Beijing Review

How will China develop? What kind of country will it grow into? Will it seek global hegemony? These are some of the questions that confuse the West. Their answers vary across the international spectrum: Some support China, some are confident in its development trajectory, some worry about China, and others disapprove of it altogether. All these reactions are understandable. After all, China is a huge country with a population of over 1.4 billion. With rapid economic growth and ever more comprehensive national power, China has become a force to be reckoned with. It’s only natural to look at this new big man in town and question his motives. China is on a development path with its own characteristics, making it impossible to analyze its achievements from the perspective of Western…

‘Omicron” first appeared in my diary on November 29, 2021, five days after the COVID-19 variant was first detected in South Africa. It was said to be more transmissible than Delta and several cases had been confirmed in Hong Kong within days. Zhong Nanshan, China’s top respiratory expert, said back then it was too soon to assess Omicron’s full impact. “How will it affect our lives? Will it enter my community?” I wrote, sitting in my apartment in the east part of China’s capital on that late autumn day. Five months later, I got my answer: Omicron has arrived at our doorstep. Entering the bubble As I am writing this, it is May 5 and most of China has wrapped up the May Day holiday and is back at work.…

The Extraordinary Ministerial Meeting of the Forum for Economic and Trade Cooperation Between China and Portuguese-Speaking Countries took place in Macao Special Administrative Region on April 10. In 2015, China and Brazil signed a framework agreement on production capacity investment and cooperation, designed to promote bilateral investment and collaboration in infrastructure, logistics, energy, mining, manufacturing and agricultural trade. But seven years have passed by, and this mutually beneficial agreement has yet to be fully implemented, revealing the difficulties and challenges of Sino-Brazilian economic and trade cooperation. Despite current Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro’s at times antagonistic rhetoric in recent years, China and Brazil have maintained a relatively steady relationship since establishing diplomatic ties in 1974. Almost five decades of frequent high-level exchanges and broadened cooperation in science and technology, culture and…

A big agricultural country endowed with rich agrarian resources, China has a longstanding tradition of intensive cultivation as well as a huge rural population. But for many years, premium agricultural products were unable to sell in faraway provinces due to a lack of efficient marketing channels, preventing them from accessing a wider, urban clientele. In most cases, because farmers failed to directly reach consumers, their heavy physical labor resulted in very little income; many profiteering middlemen, however, would make astonishing 100- to 200-percent margins on farm produce. In sum, cultivators and consumers were getting the short end of the stick. Following the rapid development of e-commerce and, more recently, live-stream marketing, farmers and agricultural vendors in remote regions are now selling their goods directly to urban customers via interactive live-streams…

Grand Canal Refilled Water pours into the Grand Canal in Dezhou City, Shandong Province, on April 28. This long waterway connecting the northern and southern parts of China had all of its dried-out sections refilled after a water-supply project kicked off on April 14. Better Life for Migrants China’s migrant workers from rural areas enjoyed higher incomes and better living conditions in 2021, Xinhua News Agency reported on May 4. In 2021, migrant workers in the country earned an average of 4,432 yuan ($669.7) per month, increasing by 8.8 percent year on year, according to a report released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS). Migrant workers in the manufacturing industry saw their monthly income surge 10.1 percent last year, the NBS said. The living area per capita of China’s…

NEW HEAD OF CASS Shi Taifeng is the new president of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (CASS). Shi was born in September 1956 in Yushe, Shanxi Province. In 1978, Shi embarked on his studies at the Law School of Peking University and obtained a master’s degree in jurisprudence. In 1985, he started working at the Party School of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC). In 2010, he left the school to work first as a Party official in Jiangsu Province, and in 2016, became the governor of that province. He then held posts in Ningxia Hui and Inner Mongolia autonomous regions. As secretary of the Inner Mongolia Regional CPC Committee from October 2019 to April this year, he pushed forward local anti-corruption measures in coal-related…

Bing Dwen Dwen, the roly-poly panda mascot of the Olympic Winter Games Beijing 2022, became a global sensation during the Games. Demonstrating flair, excitement and humor, it was so sought-after that the manufacturers were unable to keep up with demand. A similar reaction often is seen when China sends pandas to American zoos. The animals become instant favorites. Of course, the pandas have no idea of the degree to which they are entering the consciousness of Americans. They are content, surrounded by a habitat and food familiar and comfortable to them. They are the happiest of cultural phenomena. The Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute in Washington, D.C. has outlined the history of Chinese pandas at that zoo. According to the Smithsonian’s website, “On April 16, 1972, the giant…

The victory of Emmanuel Macron in the presidential runoff on April 24 signals continuity in French politics. While his opponent and leader of the Rassemblement National (National Rally) party, Marine Le Pen, might have presided over a dramatic political change both domestically and internationally, Macron’s agenda is well-known and was already tested in the previous five years. Against this backdrop, the EU welcomed the electoral result in the hope of harmonious cooperation with Paris under particularly complicated external conditions. The economy is the priority in a period during which growth remains weak. Macron has promised to proceed to a reduction of 15 billion euros ($15.7 billion) of taxes to boost the country’s competitiveness and support those citizens suffering from the new challenges stemming from both the pandemic and the Russia-Ukraine…

One hundred years ago, American journalist Walter Lippmann first popularized the term “stereotype” in his book Public Opinion, describing it as “the distorted picture or image in a person’s mind, not based on personal experience, but derived culturally.” Part of the reason stereotypes exist lies in geographical distance and cultural barriers, and can be gradually changed or eliminated with the deepening of communication. In Western nations, particularly in the era of social media, the overall image of the Chinese has become even more polarized than before. They sometimes appear as hard-working, wise and peace-loving, and then may be depicted as rude aggressors. Sometimes they are portrayed as downtrodden under so-called “authoritarian oppression,” but can also be labeled as system defenders who support whatever their government decides. Which can portray the…

Lu Jianxin, now an engineer with China State Construction Engineering Corp., has been dedicated to the innovation of construction engineering technology and has won multiple national patents and prizes. Lu is one of the craftsmen who have contributed to the country’s industrial development over recent decades, and a participant of the First Innovation Exchange Conference for Craftsmen of the Nation, held both online and offline from April 25 to 27. The meeting received high level attention. In a congratulatory letter sent to the conference, President Xi Jinping called for contributing wisdom and strength to high-quality development. He said that skilled workers are a significant force to shore up China’s manufacturing and innovation. Encouraging workers to strive to meet the needs of scientific and technological revolution and industrial transformation in today’s…

Danish author Hans Christian Andersen (1805-1875) once described music as “the international language that expresses feelings we all understand.” For anyone who has found themselves enveloped by a compelling concerto or an energetic folk song, this sentiment rings true. Music, in one guise or another, permeates every human society. Just ask Colombia-born, China-based musician Héctor Palacios. With a cheerful and warm spirit seeping through the staves, Palacios seeks to integrate Latin America and China through some unique musical beats. Originally from the southwestern Colombian department of Nariño, this artist refers to China as his second home. His extensive travels across the country have taken him to cities including Beijing, Shanghai, Hangzhou, Xiamen and Sanya, as well as Taiwan. The soul of a musician Though currently representing a Colombian company in…

With cities like Beijing and Shanghai trying their utmost to contain COVID-19 resurgences and locking down many residential communities, people in other parts of China were able to spend their Workers’ Day holiday from April 30 to May 4 visiting popular tourist destinations and engaging in fun outdoor activities. Comments to dingying@cicgamericas.com…