Indholdsfortegnelse for Vol.66/No.14 i Beijing Review

The Boao Forum for Asia (BFA) Annual Conference 2023, which took place in Boao, Hainan Province, on March 28-31, centered around the theme An Uncertain World: Solidarity and Cooperation for Development Amid Challenges. The conference drew approximately 2,000 attendees from over 50 countries and regions to seek pathways for development in the post-COVID-19 era. In light of the turbulence that haunts today’s world, humanity has come to a new crossroads. Now more than ever, the international community needs dialogue and exchange, as well as solidarity, cooperation, openness and inclusiveness to achieve mutual benefit. Given uncertainties in the current world economy and international landscape, this year’s BFA annual conference attracted great attention. It demonstrated China’s determination to advance high-level opening up as well as in promoting international cooperation and building consensus…

Under the theme An Uncertain World: Solidarity and Cooperation for Development Amid Challenges, the Boao Forum for Asia (BFA) Annual Conference 2023 was held on March 28-31 in Boao, in the southern island province of Hainan. With key issues including energy, geopolitical tensions and climate change at the top of the agenda, the forum again targeted development and security concerns of the international community. China has been exploring ways to play its part in addressing current global challenges, including regional conflicts and the lingering impacts of COVID-19. While delivering a keynote speech at the opening ceremony of last year’s BFA annual conference, President Xi Jinping encapsulated China’s approach to global security issues by using the quote: “One must not change one’s commitment or give up one’s pursuit even in the…

‘There should not be just one door leading to the sanctuary of democracy, but many.” “Democracy should come in many flavors, like ice cream.” These are views expressed by participants in the International Forum on Democracy: The Shared Human Values, held in Beijing both onsite and online on March 22-23. At the event, about 200 participants, including politicians and diplomats, as well as scholars and other experts on democracy, from more than 100 countries, regions and international organizations, brainstormed and exchanged views on democracy-related issues. They reached the consensus that democracy is diversified and no one form is superior to another. This year’s event is the second edition of the annual forum, which first launched in 2021. The forum was hosted by the Publicity Department of the Communist Party of…

If it hadn’t been for my interest in Chinese culture, I wouldn’t have enrolled at University of Electronic Science and Technology of China (UESTC) in Chengdu, Sichuan Province. As a graduate student at the university’s School of Public Affairs and Administration, I participated in many seminars and cultural activities, which made me all the more passionate about China. I first became interested in Chinese culture as a teenager. I have always been curious about this ancient civilization and its highly complex language and distinctive cuisines. To a Moroccan like me, China looked like another planet I wanted to explore. The first step I took was to learn the language, even though I was expected to learn Spanish as a third language like everyone else and choose Europe as the destination…

Soon after taking the oath of office on March 11, Premier Li Qiang paid a visit to Hunan Province to learn about local advanced manufacturing. Other top officials also undertook study trips around the country, including Li Xi, Secretary of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection of the Communist Party of China (CPC), who traveled to Hubei Province. The General Office of the CPC Central Committee recently issued a document requiring the whole Party to promote the practice of research. The officials’ projects focus on issues related to economic and social development. After exploring these problems, solutions will be identified through further research. At his press conference following the conclusion of the First Session of the 14th National People’s Congress, during which he was sworn in, Premier Li said the…

Although it will face continued global uncertainty, high global inflation and a slowdown in the world economy and trade, China’s economy has signaled a rebound as pressure from contraction of demand, supply shocks and weakening expectations eases, a report released during the China Development Forum 2023 read. Themed Economic Recovery: Opportunities and Cooperation this year, the annual event, which took place offline again for the first time since the onset of COVID-19 in 2020, gathered political bigwigs, business magnates, experts and scholars from the world over in Beijing on March 25-27. The forum came as China seeks to revive its economy after adjusting its pandemic control policy in late 2022. The International Monetary Fund has raised its projection for China’s economic growth in 2023 to 5.2 percent. “For the world…

On March 25, at the ruins of Jinyang Ancient City in Taiyuan, Shanxi Province, a piece of land was divided into 32 squares, each with a side length of 5 meters. Dotting the plot were 32 archaeological workers from all over China who had come to the area to participate in an archaeological exploration competition. The first task at hand for contestants was to drill three holes in the soil in three hours using a Luoyang shovel, one of the most important tools in Chinese archaeology. The robust shovel can be used for vertical excavation and collection of soil samples. When the shovel is pulled out of the ground, a cylinder of soil attaches itself to the inner surface of the shovelhead and is lifted out as well. By analyzing…

ACTOR MAKES HISTORY Hong Kong actor Tony Leung Chiu-wai made history on March 27, when it was announced he will be the first Chinese actor to receive a Golden Lion Award for Lifetime Achievement bestowed by the Venice Film Festival. Leung and Italian director Liliana Cavani will both receive the award. The Golden Lion Awards will be presented at the 80th edition of the Venice Film Festival, which will run from August 30 to September 9. Leung, 61, started his career in the 1980s and is considered one of Asia’s most successful and internationally recognized actors. He has starred in three movies that have won Golden Lion Awards: A City of Sadness (1989), Cyclo (1995) and Lust, Caution (2007). He has won many other international acting awards, including the Cannes…

For Shou Zi Chew, who has served as CEO of the massively popular short video app TikTok since 2021, March 23 was a tough day. During a five-hour hearing of the U.S. House Committee on Energy and Commerce, more than 50 lawmakers from both the Republican and Democratic parties grilled him on the app’s data privacy and child protection. Although Chew showed professionalism and decorum, his sincerity did not seem to quell the many concerns of American lawmakers about TikTok’s meteoric growth and whether data from U.S. users could end up in the hands of the Chinese Government through its Beijing-based owner, ByteDance—which also operates the app’s Chinese counterpart, Douyin. Concerns that the Chinese Government could be using TikTok to influence American users or control their devices are nothing new.…

On March 14 this year, Honduran President Xiomara Castro posted on her personal Twitter account that she had instructed the country’s Foreign Minister Eduardo Reina to oversee the start of Honduras’ diplomatic relationship with China. On March 25, Honduras announced it was ending its decades-long “diplomatic relations” with China’s Taiwan region. The next day, Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Qin Gang and Reina signed the Joint Communiqué on the Establishment of Diplomatic Relations Between the People’s Republic of China (PRC) and the Republic of Honduras in Beijing. The two sides decided to establish diplomatic relations at the ambassadorial level, effective from the date of signature, making Honduras the 182nd country to forge diplomatic ties with China and recognize the one-China principle. Following the signing ceremony, the Honduran Foreign Ministry…

In the face of a deep market downturn since the beginning of the year, China’s car brands are engaged in a brutal price war to win over consumers. However, although the price cuts have lasted almost a month, they seem to be doing little to ease pressure on the industry, partly caused by the ending of stimulus policies and the introduction of new emissions standards. The wave of decreasing car prices began in Hubei Province at the beginning of March. The provincial government, in collaboration with local automaker Dongfeng Motor and dealers, offered subsidies of up to 90,000 yuan ($13,158) on each purchase of cars manufactured by the firm, headquartered in Wuhan, capital of Hubei. Following that, more than 30 other automobile companies have launched promotional campaigns across the country,…

The opening ceremony of China Fashion Week Autumn/Winter 2023, one of the country’s most prominent fashion extravaganzas, got on the runway in Beijing on March 24. Featuring nearly 100 events such as shows, forums and open lectures catering to the trendy tastes of aficionados, the week helped reenergize the industry in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. Comments to weiyao@cicgamericas.com…