Innehållsförteckning för Vol.65/No.49 från Beijing Review

China is implementing a more targeted COVID-19 containment strategy in places where virus outbreaks have flared up in recent weeks. On November 11, the central authorities rolled out 20 measures to optimize the country’s pandemic response by maximizing the protection of public health and minimizing the impact on economic and social life. Local authorities are required to cease the arbitrary closing of schools, unauthorized suspension of business and unapproved bans on travel. As case numbers in some parts of the country remain high, coordination is the key. The government must strike a balance between controlling the pandemic on the one hand and maintaining economic activity and ensuring those under quarantine have easy access to daily necessities and medical services on the other hand, in order to make containment measures less…

When Joe Biden took office in January 2021, it was believed in China, the United States and the wider world that the new administration would abandon the Donald Trump administration’s hostile policy toward China and return to normal bilateral relations. Unfortunately, the Biden administration has not only adopted its predecessor’s China policy, but is even outdoing it in some areas. A striking example is its stirring up of conflicts across the Taiwan Straits, so as to contain China’s development. However, as the result of the local elections on the Taiwan island has shown, the U.S.’ careful arrangements in Taiwan are falling apart. Taking advantage of the Taiwan question is part of the U.S. Government’s China-containment strategy. The Biden administration’s first move is helping Taiwan enhance its fighting capacity, which leads…

After being a backup for 24 years, 56-year-old taikonaut Deng Qingming finally saw his long-cherished space dream come true. He embarked on his first foray into space on November 29 aboard the Shenzhou-15 manned spacecraft. The next day, the spacecraft docked with the front port of Tianhe, the core module of China’s Tiangong space station. Along with astronauts Fei Junlong and Zhang Lu, he will wrap up the last stage of Tiangong’s construction and kick off the first stage of its application and development, according to the China Manned Space Agency (CMSA). A historic moment Shenzhou-15 is the sixth flight mission this year to build China’s space station and the last one in the station’s construction phase, according to the CMSA. At the space station, the three new arrivals were…

Underage Internet Users The number of underage Internet users in China hit 191 million in 2021, leading to an Internet penetration rate of 96.8 percent among Chinese minors, according to a report released on November 30. The report, jointly issued by the Chinese Communist Youth League Central Committee and the China Internet Network Information Center, found that the gap in the Internet penetration rate of the group between urban and rural areas had been bridged in 2021. China’s cybersecurity has continuously improved, with the proportion of cybersecurity incidents involving minors on the decline compared with 2020, according to the report, which further added video platforms have become an important source of information for minors. The report covers students from primary, junior high, senior high, and secondary vocational schools across 31…

HEAD OF THE UN’S TOP AUDITING BODY Hou Kai, Auditor General of the National Audit Office, will hold the chairmanship of the United Nations Board of Auditors for two years starting on January 1, 2023, the board decided at its 52nd Special Session held in Santiago, Chile, on November 29. Hou, 60, was appointed to his current post in June 2020. He is also a member of the 20th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC) and a member of the Standing Committee of the 20th Central Commission for Discipline Inspection of the CPC. The Board of Auditors was established in 1946 to independently audit the accounts and performance of the UN organization, as well as its funds and programs, and to report its findings and recommendations to…

Connectivity is one of the keys to global development, and a crucial threshold for granting the South access to the Fifth Industrial Revolution. Many governmental, nongovernmental and even private enterprises are working together to improve global connectivity in ways that foster sustainable, green development in the places that need it most, and to do so in ways that are both mutually beneficial and still profitable. The Fifth Industrial Revolution describes ongoing advances associated with the recognition that previous models of growth and development produced the Anthropocene––a period of geological time that correlates with the start of the First Industrial Revolution in the 18th century, and the tremendous impacts human industrial activity has had on climate change since then. In short, the Anthropocene corresponds with problems associated with extreme weather, as…

The first group of Chinese indentured laborers arrived in Cuba 175 years ago and made the country their home. Ever since then, the Chinese in Cuba have contributed to its independence and development. In the center of Havana, capital of Cuba, there stands a monument erected in 1931 in tribute to Cuban-Chinese soldiers who fought in Cuba’s two wars for independence from Spain, in 1868-78 and 1895-98. In 1960, 11 years following the founding of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) and one year after the victory of the Fidel Castro-led Cuban Revolution, China and Cuba established diplomatic ties. “Cuba was the first country in the Western hemisphere to establish diplomatic relations with the PRC, and China-Cuba relations have become an example of solidarity and cooperation between socialist countries and…

‘I was raised by my grandmother. When my sister and I were little, my parents were very busy with work. From 1996 to 2002, my grandma would fly to Taiwan twice a year––according to the two school terms––to look after us,” Peng Tzu Huan told Beijing Review. But back in the late 1990s and early 2000s, there were no direct cross-Straits flights, so his grandmother Li Jinyuan, a retired staff member of Peking Union Medical College Hospital, had to fly in via Hong Kong. It would take her a whole day to get to Taiwan from Beijing––an exhausting journey. Peng’s mother Li Tianyi is a Beijinger and his father hails from Hsinchu, Taiwan. They met while studying in Japan in the early 1990s and tied the knot soon after. After graduation,…

The Palace Museum was the imperial palace of the Ming (1368-1644) and Qing (1644-1911) dynasties. Built on the Central Axis of Beijing, it is a UNESCO World Cultural Heritage Site and one of the world’s largest and most intact ancient wooden structures. The red walls and yellow roof tiles contrast with the blue sky to create a beauty that is also profoundly cultural and historical. As a national treasure and home to priceless artworks and artifacts, the Palace Museum is a must-see for tourists in all seasons. Comments to weiyao@cicgamericas.com…

I first became acquainted with China through famous kungfu movies and I was especially deeply fascinated by Jet Li’s martial arts action movies. After receiving excellent results in the college entrance examination, I was admitted to the best medical university in Rwanda. My family was so proud of me. After studying for a year, the Ministry of Sports and Culture offered me an opportunity to visit the famous Shaolin Temple in Henan Province. I was very excited about the prospect of such an adventure, tried my best to perform well in the interviews and was lucky enough to be selected. After I told my family the good news, my mother was a little worried because she wished I would continue my medical studies. I explained that this was a once-in-a-lifetime…

‘Competition” is an unavoidable topic when discussing the Sino-American status quo. As the world’s two largest economies, they are still figuring out ways to get along. But there’s always the risk of vicious competition resulting in a lose-lose situation. Take the example of former Google CEO Eric Schmidt, who apparently wants the U.S. administration to implement his blueprint to fight what he perceives as “an existential threat posed by China’s artificial intelligence (AI) plans,” Protocol, a website focusing on the people, power, and politics of tech, reported on October 31. And so far, he’s managed to convince several influential insiders to assist in disseminating his ideas. But Schmidt may be exaggerating China’s AI advantage and its ability to influence U.S. policy in the field. The Protocol report mentioned that Schmidt…