Indholdsfortegnelse for Vol.66/No.29 i Beijing Review

Chinese modernization, since being written into the report to the 20th Communist Party of China (CPC) National Congress in October 2022, has become a widely discussed topic. The CPC National Congress, held every five years, and the Central Committee elected during the congress are the highest leading bodies of the Party. The concept’s inclusion in the report shows how it has become a policy priority of the Party and an important guideline for China’s development. But what exactly is Chinese modernization? What are the traits that may be of interest to international observers? At its core, Chinese modernization is socialist modernization pursued under the leadership of the CPC. To understand China today, one must understand the CPC, the country’s ruling Party. Beginning in the mid-19th century, China, a country that…

The recent meeting of the Council of Heads of State of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) demonstrates the group’s commitment to world peace and development. Differences are well-managed and the organization shows unity and vision in contrast to the Western system dominated by NATO. Significantly, the SCO cooperates with the United Nations. President Xi Jinping, at this year’s virtual meeting hosted by India on July 4, emphasized that the organization was effectively carrying forward the vision of “a community with a shared future.” “The concept of a community with a shared future for humanity has gained extensive recognition and support from the international community, and has been transforming from an idea to action and a vision to reality,” he said. The SCO is an intergovernmental organization founded in Shanghai on…

In the sweltering summer heat on the streets of China’s cities, it’s not unusual to see people covered from head to toe to protect themselves from the sun. Pang Shuo is one of them. Pang, a lady in her 20s who works for an Internet company in Shanghai, commutes between her home and office on an electric scooter every day. The trip takes just 15 minutes but she has on hand a whole set of equipment to protect herself from the scorching sunshine. She wears a helmet, a sunproof light jacket, a mask that can shade not only her face but also her neck, and a pair of sunproof gloves to ensure that not one single inch of her skin is exposed during her ride. Data from market consultancy QuestMobile…

‘How did the Communist Party of China (CPC) evolve into its contemporary state?” It’s fascinating to think that at the time of its first national congress more than 100 years ago, the Party had some 50 members. Today, it has over 98 million who maintain the same idealism attendees of that first-ever gathering had. With this question in mind, 17 young people from 12 countries, including China, Russia, Spain, Argentina and Brazil, on July 4 and 5 visited Shanghai—where the First CPC National Congress took place in 1921—to familiarize themselves with both the traditional and contemporary factors of the city, which in itself bears testimony to the long way China has come. On the evening of July 5, they also shared their observations and thoughts at an international youth dialogue…

When U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen arrived in Beijing on the afternoon of July 6, it was pouring rain. As she disembarked from the plane, the rain subsided and a rainbow appeared on the horizon. This detail was captured by both American and Chinese netizens and made the social media rounds in the days that followed. In the cultures of both countries, the rainbow is seen as a symbol of hope, as well as of the harmonious coexistence of different thoughts and values. Following U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s trip to China on June 18, high-level contact between China and the U.S. occurred twice within 20 days, a positive signal of warming bilateral relations in the eyes of the international public. During her four-day trip, Yellen had no fewer…

After a news conference hosted by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi made his way out of the room surrounded by guards on July 4 in Tokyo, Japan. Amid the chaos, a reporter from the Republic of Korea (ROK) followed closely behind him, pushing and elbowing the guards and repeatedly shouting at Grossi, “You received 1 million euros ($1.12 million) from Japan?” Grossi, just moments after stepping out the door, abruptly halted and turned back, responding angrily, “I didn’t receive anything. This is absurd. Absurd!” Earlier that same day, the IAEA had issued a report announcing the Japanese Government’s plan to discharge nuclear-contaminated wastewater from the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant “meets the IAEA’s safety standards.” Within weeks, Japan is scheduled to start releasing more…

The rise of today’s China as a financial superpower might seem surprising to most observers, but the truth is the country has a very long tradition of businesses dealing with money, with so-called “counting houses” (or guifang) operating during the Tang Dynasty (618-907). Counting houses emerged during the dynasty’s heyday in the 600s as places where merchants could deposit funds for protection and draft checks third parties could in turn cash for those deposits. I came to China in 2013 to spend a year at the Dalian-based Liaoning Normal University, with the goal of making the most of my time through an intensive study of Chinese language and culture. In summer 2014, I moved to Beijing to attend an MBA program organized by the National School of Development at Peking…

Manned Lunar Landing China plans to land its astronauts, also called “taikonauts,” on Moon before 2030 to carry out scientific exploration, according to a preliminary plan released by the China Manned Space Agency (CMSA) on July 12. The plan is to launch two carrier rockets to send a lunar lander and a manned spacecraft into a lunar orbit, respectively. The craft and lunar lander will rendezvous and dock with each other, and then taikonauts will enter the lander. As the lunar lander descends and arrives at the preset area on the lunar surface, the taikonauts will carry out scientific tasks and collect samples. After completing the planned tasks, they will return to the lander, which will lift them back into the lunar orbit to dock with their spacecraft. In the…

SOCIAL WORK DEPARTMENT HEAD Wu Hansheng, 60, has recently been appointed as the first head of the Social Work Department of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee. The new department was announced in March as part of a plan to reform Party and state institutions. Its tasks include collecting suggestions from the public, ensuring the Party plays a leading role in community-level governance, exercising leadership over Party affairs in national industry associations and chambers of commerce, and training social workers. It also oversees the National Public Complaints and Proposals Administration. Before heading the newly established department, Wu was deputy secretary of the Party Affairs Commission for Central CPC and Government Departments. He had also served as secretary of the CPC Committee of Yingkou City, Liaoning Province, and head…

Known to many Chinese as the Magic City, Shanghai, an international metropolis famous for its economy, culture, tourism and swag style, also has an equally important identity: It is the birthplace of the Communist Party of China (CPC). Largely because of this identity, the city was chosen as the site of the CPC International Image Innovation Forum, which took place there on July 6. Jointly hosted by China International Communications Group (CICG) and the Central Institute of Socialism, the forum gathered around 200 experts from government institutions, universities, media outlets and think tanks, who exchanged ideas about how to help the international community understand the CPC, including its role in advancing China’s modernization. As one of the keynote speakers invited to the forum, Rose Oliver, a British cultural exchange specialist…

According to the National Bureau of Statistics, the purchasing managers’ index (PMI) for China’s manufacturing sector edged up by 0.2 percentage points in June over that of May to 49 percent, pointing to a stable recovery of the Chinese economy. The PMI is an indicator of the prevailing direction of economic trends. The index is calculated by surveying purchasing managers in various industries, who are asked about their perceptions of changes in key variables such as production, new orders, employment, raw material inventory and supplier delivery. When released, a PMI reading over 50 percent indicates economic growth or expansion; a reading under 50 percent suggests contraction; and a reading at 50 percent indicates no change when compared with the previous month. In February, an array of policies to stabilize the…

The release of ChatGPT late last year has driven global enthusiasm for artificial intelligence (AI) to new levels of frenzy. Overnight, the AI chatbot sparked a zeal among both industry insiders and the general public for equipping themselves with AI knowhow, lest they be left behind by the new revolutionary trend. Driven by the AI-mania, many cast their eyes on this year’s World Artificial Intelligence Conference (WAIC), which took place in Shanghai from July 6 to 8. First inaugurated in 2018, the annual WAIC gathers industry leaders, officials and experts to discuss the latest AI trends and developments. Over the past five editions of the annual conference, agreements have been signed for 200 major projects, with a combined investment of 70 billion yuan ($9.7 billion). More than 400 companies participated…

Located on the southeast coast of Fujian Province, Quanzhou was once one of the biggest ports in the world. About 700 years ago, when Italian explorer Marco Polo departed from ancient China, it was from Quanzhou that he began his journey home along the Maritime Silk Road. Quanzhou, then known as Zayton overseas, attracted a large number of merchants from across the world and their goods were piled up on its docks, in its warehouses and across its markets. Polo was surprised by its prosperity and hailed it as “a great and noble city.” In 2021, Quanzhou: Emporium of the World in Song-Yuan China (960-1368), which features 22 historical sites and monuments in the city, was included on the UNESCO World Heritage List. The listing not only recognizes the significance…