a The Standing Committee of the National People's Congress

The 22nd Session of the National People's Congress Standing Committee (NPCSC) was held in Beijing from 24 to 26 August, presided over by Chairman Wu Bangguo. The Session reviewed some draft amendments to the Criminal Procedure Law (intended to stop judges accepting confessions obtained through torture or violence, and to allow the confiscation of money from corrupt officials or terrorists who have fled the country), ratified the Third Protocol Amending the Treaty of Amity and Co-operation in Southeast Asia, reviewed two cabinet reports on the implementation of the country's 12th Five-Year Programme for economic and social development, as well as the national budget, and deliberated a report on the enforcement of a law protecting the rights and interests of the elderly. The Session also gave an important interpretation of Articles 13 and 19 of the Hong Kong Basic Law on the question of state immunity. The ruling was requested by the Hong Kong Court of Final Appeal following a split decision on whether a sovereign country could be sued in the Hong Kong courts. The case centred on the principle of sovereign immunity, where a US investment fund was seeking the execution of two international arbitral awards against the Democratic Republic of Congo and the China Railway Group as a co-defendant. Congo claimed that it enjoyed state immunity and that the courts of Hong Kong had no jurisdiction. The interpretation followed China's own strict interpretations of state immunity and ruled that Hong Kong's laws should be consistent with the rules or policies on state immunity that the central government has adopted. It therefore ruled that Congo did have state immunity in this case (XHNA, 26 Aug.). The session also appointed Liu Jixin as President of the PLA Military Court, and made some other judicial personnel changes (XHNA, 28 Aug.).

Local-level direct elections to People's Congresses at county and district level began to be held across the country as part of the process that would eventually lead to the indirect election of deputies to the National People's Congress due to meet in early 2013. Hong Kong's Ming Pao reported that Wu Bangguo, Chairman of the NPCSC had ordered that all attempts by people to run as independent candidates should be suppressed with no effort spared (Ming Pao website, 8 Sept.).

b Party and Political Affairs

General Secretary Hu Jintao delivered a keynote speech on the occasion of the 90th anniversary of the Chinese Communist Party on 1 July (full text in XHNA, 1 July) and the Party issued a national circular calling for organized collective study of the speech which

Xinhua reported briefly on Premier Wen Jiabao's remarks on political reform at the World Economic Forum Meeting of the New Champions. He said that five areas needed to be addressed to improve reform of the political system in China: running the country according to the law; promoting social fairness and justice; safeguarding judicial justice; ensuring people's democratic rights; and combating corruption. Of these he said that the most important were to expand democracy, promote social justice and fairness and fight corruption (XHNA, 14 Sept.). Comment in the non-official media was more enthusiastic (SCMP website, 18 Sept.).

He Guoqiang, Secretary of the Discipline Inspection Commission of the Party, attended a meeting on combating corruption and upholding integrity on 23 September. The meeting heard a report on combating corruption in four key areas that were the current focus of attention: carrying out construction projects; the problem of “small coffers”; abuse of official cars; and the problem of excessive celebration activities, seminars and forums. Encouraging results had been achieved: 38,000 breaches of the law in respect of construction projects had been taken under investigation; 26.654 billion yuan of funds had been uncovered in 58,225 “small coffers” around the country, 172,600 official cars had been improperly used, and savings on entertainment and seminars of 840 million yuan had been made. He called for further efforts to be made on solving these problems that cause strong public resentment, and on winning the people's confidence with the results of improving the Party's work style, building clean government and fighting corruption (XHNA, 23 Sept.). The former Vice Mayors of Suzhou and Hangzhou, Jiang Renjie and Xu Maiyong, were executed for corruption on 19 July. Jiang had been sentenced in April 2008, and Xu in May 2011. Both had had their appeals rejected (XHNA, 19 July).

A number of provincial-level Party Secretary appointments were announced in late August: Chen Quanguo (aged 56) was appointed Secretary of the Party Committee of Tibet, replacing Zhang Qingli (aged 60); Qin Guangrong (aged 61) was appointed Secretary of the Party Committee of Yunnan, replacing Bai Enpei (aged 65); Luo Baoming (aged 59) was appointed Secretary of the Party Committee of Hainan, replacing Wei Liucheng (aged 65); and Zhang Qingli (aged 60) was appointed Secretary of the Party Committee of Hebei, replacing Zhang Yunchuan (aged 65) (XHNA, 25, 28 Aug.).

c Social Affairs

There was a horrific train crash on the new high-speed rail line near Wenzhou on 23 July. Initial reports suggested that at least 33 people were killed and 190 injured (the final death toll was 40, including two US citizens, and 192 injured). The crash was initially said to have been caused by lightning striking a train causing power failure. A following train then ran into the back of the stalled train (XHNA, 24 July). The leadership swung quickly into emergency mode; both President Hu Jintao and Premier Wen Jiabao were reported to have called for all-out effort to be made to rescue passengers, and the provincial Governor visited the scene the following day. The Minister of Railways was also reported to be hurrying to the site. The most senior initial visitor was Vice Premier Zhang Dejiang, who arrived on 25 July to assist the relief work and conduct an investigation (XHNA, 25 July). The Railway Ministry quickly announced that three railway officials, the Head of the Shanghai Railway Bureau, his deputy and the Head of the Bureau's Party Committee had all been dismissed and were subject to investigation. A State Council Group under Luo Lin, Head of the State Administration of Work Safety, was set up to investigate the accident (XHNA, 25 July). But all this formal activity failed to convince. The authorities tried hard to control press reporting of the event (it was hardly mentioned in the official national press at first) and to prevent any in-depth public examination of the causes and implications (Apple Daily, Hong Kong, 25 July). Nonetheless, widespread comment continued in the social media, much of it critical of the authorities and their handling of the disaster. Particularly disturbing was the apparent decision to bury one of the wrecked locomotives, in what seemed to be an attempt to cover things up. It was dug up again the following day and taken away for forensic examination, but the allegations of cover up and serious mishandling of the incident by the authorities continued to spread (Kyodo News Agency, 31 July). The spokesman for the Ministry of Railways, Wang Yongping, was dismissed on 16 August (XHNA, 16 Aug.).

On 26 July, the authorities announced that victims would be paid 500,000 yuan in compensation and Premier Wen ordered that there should be a swift, open and transparent investigation into the crash (XHNA, 27 July). By 28 July, it was being reported that flaws in the signal equipment had led to the crash (the equipment was designed in Beijing and had been put into service in 2009), and that the crash had revealed vulnerabilities in the safety infrastructure and management of the railways. The disaster led to widespread undermining of confidence in the high-speed rail, and concerns that the whole programme had been pushed through too fast, neglecting proper safety concerns. Even the People's Daily was commenting by 28 July that “safety must come first in China's development” and that China should say no to “blood-smeared GDP” (XHNA, 28 July). Premier Wen himself arrived on the scene on 28 July, apologizing that medical problems had delayed his visit. “I am ill, having spent 11 days in bed, but I managed to come today only after my doctor reluctantly allowed me to check out of hospital” (XHNA, 28 July). However, investigations revealed that he had actually been reported conducting official business in Beijing on several occasions during that period (Apple Daily, 29 July). Wen was in full emotive mode: I fully understand the pain you are feeling … I am as deeply grieved as you are … here is a bow from me to all of you.” He promised that a full investigation would take place, and expressed his sympathy over disputes over compensation saying that “I know what the families want is fairness. I believe that this matter will be settled in a fair and reasonable way.” Within a day, compensation was raised to 915,000 yuan. It was reported that the families of the dead had begun to accept this offer, although Xinhua was also obliged to point out that no ultimatum had been issued to force them into so doing (XHNA, 31 July).

The accident raised real concerns about the safety of China's railways, particularly high-speed rail. It was established quite quickly that the signalling equipment failed because of lightning strikes, and staff had failed to cope with the situation. The main immediate cause was a design flaw in the equipment developed by the Beijing National Railway Research and Design Institute of Signal and Communications Co. Ltd. But the overall suspicion was that too many safety corners had been cut in installing the new high-speed rail (Ming Pao, Hong Kong, 1 Aug.). The State Council held a meeting on 10 August to discuss the railway situation and ordered safety checks to be carried out on the railways system, and to slow down the operating speeds of the high-speed trains (XHNA, 10 Aug.). On 12 August it was announced that 54 of the high-speed trains used on the Beijing–Shanghai line would be recalled because of defects in the automatic protection systems (XHNA, 12 Aug.). On 22 August, an official of the State Administration of Work Safety said that preliminary investigations had shown serious design flaws in the signalling equipment and loopholes in the safety management systems. A technical report had now been completed and the next stage was to identify the individuals or entities responsible for the failure (XHNA, 22 Aug.). The railways woes were compounded on 27 September when a Shanghai subway train ran into the back of another injuring more than 270 people. It was caused by another signal failure from equipment supplied by CASCO, the same company that supplied the signalling equipment involved in the Wenzhou crash (XHNA, 27 Sept.).

Zhou Yongkang, the Politburo Standing Committee member in charge of security matters, chaired a meeting in Beijing on 21 July on how best to handle letters and visits from petitioners. He said that it was necessary to respond actively to reasonable appeals, safeguard people's fundamental interests and promote social harmony and stability. He said that the current situation was generally good, but that there was still a considerable volume of letters and visits coming in and these needed to be handled properly and the problems they raised solved (XHNA, 22 July). Zhou Yongkang, in his capacity as Director of the Central Committee for Comprehensive Social Management, said in a televised national conference that there should be better social management to address social problems and promote social justice and social order. He told government departments to simplify their procedures and enforce the law in a strict impartial and civilized manner. He said that more manpower and resources should be given to improving social management at grassroots levels, and that the legislation on social management should be improved (XHNA, 28 Sept.). Vice President Xi Jinping told a national meeting on the subject that building harmonious labour relations was an important and urgent political task. He said that it was necessary to improve legislation on labour relations, and to achieve a reasonable distribution of salaries, and enhance corporate management in a democratic way. Greater attention needed to be paid to solving labour disputes and to building grassroots Party units in enterprises. Workers' economic, political, social and cultural rights should be protected. Vice Premier Zhang Dejiang told the meeting that glaring problems in labour relations need to be solved, and that wages were overly low in some sectors, particularly labour intensive ones (XHNA, 16 Aug.).

The Minister of Public Security, Meng Jianzhu, visited Inner Mongolia from 8 to 9 July and called for efforts to maintain social harmony and stability in the region. He said that police should tackle issues of public concern and make innovations in serving the public. “As long as we treat the people as our family members, they will consider us as theirs” (XHNA, 10 July). The Inner Mongolian government issued new “Guiding Opinions on Further Regulating the Orderly Development of the Mining Industry to Protect the Environment and Guarantee the People's Livelihood in Accordance with the Law” presumably in response to an incident in May (XHNA, 21 July).

The State Council approved and issued the “Outline for the Development of Chinese Women, 2011–2020” together with the “Outline for the Development of Chinese Children, 2011–2020” on 8 August (XHNA, 8 Aug.). The former document covered the seven fields of health, education, economy, political participation, social security, environment and law, with 57 main objectives and 88 strategies and measures (http://www.chinahumanrights.org/Messages/feature/104/t20110811_780680.htm). The Children's Plan listed five development sections, including children's healthcare, education, welfare, social environment and legal protection, as well as the main objectives, strategies and measures of each section, with the aim of guaranteeing children's rights to survive, develop, participate and be protected, narrowing the gap between children in urban and rural areas, promoting children's healthcare and welfare levels, and improving the overall quality of children (http://news.bnu.edu.cn/englishnews/newsevents/35300.htm). The following week, the State Council endorsed a five-year Programme on Senior Citizens' Development (2011–2015). The population over 60 was projected to rise from 178 to 221 million in the period. It promised that all senior citizens would get pension insurance by 2015 (XHNA, 17 Aug.). Xinhua reported that the case of an elderly farmer, Zhong Yichun, sentenced to two years imprisonment for helping a friend commit suicide, had given rise to widespread debate on the subject of euthanasia. The friend, who had a history of mental illness, had repeatedly sought Zhong's help. Zhong had eventually provided him with sleeping pills and subsequently buried him, although the autopsy found that the victim had died of suffocation rather than the overdose. Zhong was found guilty of criminal negligence resulting in death. Xinhua reported that euthanasia is illegal in China, and was a complicated and difficult issue. Nonetheless it quoted a number of Chinese experts arguing for euthanasia: “China should first accumulate judicial experience in handling cases regarding euthanasia. The Supreme Court can then come up with judicial interpretations and guidance and finally legalize euthanasia at the proper time” (XHNA, 14 Aug.).

Eleven people involved in the disturbances in Guangdong on 10 June in a dispute between migrant workers and the authorities were charged with various public order offences on 7 July. The local Party Secretary was quoted as saying that the incident had been triggered by mounting anger among migrant workers, and that services for them needed to be improved to avoid further protests (XHNA, 7 July). Xinhua reported a large protest in Anshui town in Guizhou province on 26 July over the alleged beating to death of a one-legged street seller by “city management officers.” Police later detained a city management officer suspected of beating the seller during an argument, although it was stressed that the actual cause of his death remained unknown (XHNA, 29 July). The Head of the City Management Bureau in the district in which the incident took place was dismissed the day after the incident (XHNA, 28 July). Taxi drivers in Hangzhou went on strike for three days in early August complaining about price rises (and no commensurate increases in the fares they could charge) and worsening traffic jams. Their demonstrations were reported by the official press which noted that the authorities had promised to raise fares in the near future (XHNA, 1–3 Aug.). Other taxi driver strikes were reported in other parts of Zhejiang province, similarly demanding higher wages. The authorities promised to put up fares (XHNA, 9 Aug.). Provincial authorities promised a province-wide fare increase for low-paid taxi drivers later in the month (XHNA, 26 Aug.).

Six senior managers who had worked for the mining company Xinyi Zijin were sentenced to prison terms of up to six years for their negligence and liability in the collapse of dam that had killed 22 people in Guangdong in 2010 (XHNA, 5 Aug.). A large demonstration involving 12,000 local residents took place in Dalian on 14 August demanding the relocation of a large chemical plant that had been at serious risk of suffering a large toxic spill during the recent typhoon. There were minor scuffles with riot police but no serious injuries. The municipal authorities quickly promised that the plant would be relocated, and were forced to come up with a specific timetable, ordering the plant to cease operations immediately (XHNA, 14 Aug.). The plant began winding down its operation on 15 August. It had opened in 2009 and was a leading producer of PX, a carcinogenic petrochemical used to create raw materials for the production of polyester film and fabric. Xinhua reported that there were serious insider concerns over the quality of management and the management of risk and quality at the plant (XHNA, 16 Aug.). Xinhua reported that over a thousand workers had gone on strike at the Hainan Youmei Underwear Company over low pay and management demands that they increase their pace of work. The provincial trade union and local authorities sent officials to help mediate. This was the second strike at the plant since it opened in 1992 (XHNA, 8 Sept.). Villagers in Hongxiao Village, Zhejiang, protested outside a solar panel manufacturer (Jinko Solar Co. Ltd.) over a pollution incident which had killed the fish in a nearby river. The factory had been in breach of anti-pollution regulations since April, according to local officials. Thirty-one people were detained as the protests turned violent. The company was ordered to close down a number of production lines and was fined 470,000 yuan and ordered to clean up the river (XHNA, 17 and 20 Sept.).

The 15-year-old son of General Li Shuangjiang caused a national uproar over the behaviour of privileged youth when he assaulted a couple and damaged their car after they had slowed down in front of him to turn into their home. He had been driving an unlicensed BMW behind them and had been incensed by their behaviour, which led to him and an associate attacking the couple. The boys had tried to run away after the incident but had been apprehended. Li's son was later sentenced to one year's detention (XHNA, 15 Sept.).

d Economic Affairs

The National Bureau of Statistics announced on 9 July that the year-on-year inflation rate (Consumer Price Index, CPI) in June had risen to 6.4 per cent, exceeding the previous record month of 5.5 per cent, and well above the annual target of 4 per cent. Food prices were up by 14.4 per cent in June. An analyst with the Development Research Centre was quoted as saying that there was no need to get alarmed and much of the rise was due to a carryover effect that peaked in June (XHNA, 9 July). The National Bureau of Statistics announced on 12 July that the economy had grown by 9.6 per cent in the first six months of the year, tapering off slightly in the second quarter. The spokesman for the Bureau said that economic performance had been generally good, and the slowdown was an expected result of the ending of some of the stimulus policies. Overall the CPI had risen by 5.4 per cent above the target of 4 per cent (XHNA, 13 July). Premier Wen Jiabao attended a series of meetings from 4 to 11 July with leading provincial officials, businessmen and economists to discuss the problem controlling inflation which had risen to a three-year high. He said that stabilizing prices was the top priority for the government's regulatory policies, and that a stable monetary policy combined with a stable supply of food were necessary to tame inflation. He added that measures should also be taken to restrain the runaway property market (XHNA, 12 July). Inflation remained very much on the leadership's mind. Premier Wen published an article in the September issue of the Party theoretical journal Qiushi in which he said that control of consumer prices would remain the government's top priority. The economy was basically sound, but “our country's economic development continues to face a very complicated, unstable and uncertain environment both at home and abroad. We should keep a sober mind, enhance our awareness of risks, and have full expectations of the complexity and severity of the present situation” (XHNA, 31 Aug.). President Hu Jintao and Premier Wen attended a seminar on 22 July convened by the Central Committee for non-Party figures and set out China's current economic policies. President Hu said that the government would make real efforts to “handle the relationship between speed, structure and price and continue to gear economic development toward the direction of macroeconomic controls.” The government will maintain continuity and stability in its economic policies, while keeping close watch on economic developments and price increases, which had to be kept stable. Premier Wen supported his remarks, promising that there would be more effort on stabilizing prices and curbing excessive price increases. China would be looking for more self-initiated growth rather than the expansion spurred by the recent economic stimulus package. Growth in the second quarter had been 9.5 per cent year on year, slightly slower than the first quarter, and China still faced many instabilities and uncertainties, particularly while the world economic recovery remained fragile (XHNA, 22 July). The CPI rose to an annual rate of 6.5 per cent in July, but an official of the National Development and Reform Commission said that inflation was now reaching a turning point and would ease off in the rest of the year. He warned, however, that if the US introduced a third round of quantitative easing this might push up international prices and increase the pressure of imported inflation (XHNA, 9 Aug.).

The State Council met on 9 August to discuss the international economic situation following falls in stock markets around the world and fears of a double-dip recession and rising debt. In a statement issued after the meeting, the State Council said that China supported the joint statements made by finance ministers of the G20 on stabilizing financial markets. The statement noted that the international financial markets were experiencing great turbulence and global economic recovery was facing rising uncertainties and instabilities. It said that “we have to watch calmly and handle the situation with imperturbation while taking precautions against risks.” China would maintain “the continuity and stability of macroeconomic controls and properly handle the balance between managing inflationary pressures, maintaining economic growth and restructuring the economy.” China would make efforts to bring down consumer prices and keep stable and relatively fast economic growth. It urged the international community to step up communication and co-ordination about their macroeconomic policies in order to promote the strong, sustainable and balanced growth of the world economy (XHNA, 9 Aug.).

Premier Wen gave a speech on the domestic and international economy at the “Summer Davos” in Dalian. He said that China was now a fully open market economy, and expressed his confidence that China would continue to grow over a long period of time and contribute to robust, sustainable and balanced growth of the world economy. He said that the recent upheavals had not changed the fundamentals of China's development although he acknowledged that “China's development is not yet balanced, co-ordinated and sustainable and there are many institutional constraints hindering scientific development.” China would follow a strategy of expanding domestic demand while focussing on improved demand structure to drive economic growth. He urged the major developed economies to adopt responsible and effective fiscal and monetary policies, to properly handle debt issues and ensure the safety and stable operation of investment around the world. Governments should “fulfil their responsibilities and put their own house in order.” World economic recovery would be a long-term difficult and complex process with sovereign debt problems in some countries, high unemployment in major advanced economies and inflationary pressures in emerging economies. He said that the US currently faces the problems of controlling its external debt, reducing the fiscal deficit, and creating jobs through growth. “We hope the US will carry out appropriate economic policies and maintain fiscal and financial stability to protect the interests and confidence of investors.” He urged the US to allow more Chinese investment in the US market and to loosen controls on exports to China. In the face of the sovereign debt crises in Europe and inflationary pressure from the fluctuating dollar, China needed first to handle its own issues well and meanwhile promote reform of the international economic and financial systems (text in XHNA, 4 Sept.).

The Politburo held its 31st collective study session on the issue of land management on 23 August. General Secretary Hu Jintao chaired the session and told them that:

Premier Wen Jiabao presided over an executive meeting of the State Council on 20 July which studied arrangements for improving land administration, and ordered a crackdown on illegal land grabs and forced demolitions. The meeting identified four key areas for future work: a) to protect cultivated land and ensure that the total cultivated area did not decrease; b) to make sure that land was used strictly in accordance with the relevant laws and regulations, and in particular to investigate the spread of golf courses; c) to investigate and punish violations of the law in land acquisition, demolitions and relocation of people; and d) to ensure a supply of land for affordable and comfortable housing projects (XHNA, 20 July). In a meeting with provincial leaders on 21 July, Vice Premier Li Keqiang spoke again of the need to build more affordable housing and to address the needs of city dwellers at a time of rocketing property prices and high rents. Land supply for affordable housing in the first half of the hour reached 16,477 hectares, an increase of 24 per cent. The government planned to start building 10 million affordable housing units this year, and expected to complete 4 million (XHNA, 21 July).

A Foreign Ministry spokesman reacted sharply to reports that the German Chancellor, Angela Merkel, had commented that emerging economies should share the burden in reducing emissions. He noted that the current levels of per capita emission in developed countries were several times those of developing countries, and that China had already adopted reduction goals and achieved results that were “not less sufficient” than those of any developed countries. China had cut carbon emissions per unit of output by 19.1 per cent between 2005 and 2010, and had demonstrated a great sense of responsibility on climate change with “no empty talks and focus on action and results” (XHNA, 5 July). The State Council discussed China's performance over its energy saving and emission reduction goals in the 11th Five-Year Programme (2006–2010) on 19 July. Energy consumption had risen at a rate of 6.6 per cent over the period compared to GDP growth of 11.2 per cent. Most of the goals had been achieved, but Wen called for efforts to promote energy saving and emissions reductions in key areas over the next five years, to continue to eliminate out-of-date capacity, develop public transportation, implement energy-saving projects and promote the use of energy-saving products. The State Council also reviewed and approved a 2011–2015 work plan on energy-saving and emissions reduction in principle (XHNA, 19 July). The Ministry of Environmental Protection announced on 29 August that China had met its two major pollution control targets for 2006 to 2010. The index for sulphur dioxide emissions was 14.29 per cent lower in 2010 compared to 2005, and the index of chemical oxygen demand decreased by 12.45 per cent. The Plan had called for 10 per cent reductions in both (XHNA, 29 Aug.).

A serious oil spill occurred in the Penglai 19-3 oilfield in Bohai Bay at a rig operated by ConocoPhillips China. The spill was first detected on 4 June and the pollution covered some 5,500 square kilometres, causing damage to marine life. The failure of the company to deal rapidly and effectively with the spill aroused much public criticism (XHNA, 5 Sept.). The company reported on 31 August that it had thoroughly checked the position and stopped all leaks, but small amounts of leakage continued to be detected (XHNA, 18 Sept.).

e Military Affairs

The Russian press revealed that the Chinese had concluded a major contract for the supply of US$500 million worth of 123 AL-31FN aircraft engines with the Russian supplier Rosoboroneksport by 2013. These engines would be fitted in the Chinese developed J-10 fighter (Vedomosti website, 4 July). There was renewed speculation about China's development of an aircraft carrier capacity as it was reported that the refitted Varyag would be undergoing sea trials. The spokesman for the Ministry of Defence said that China was using the old carrier to carry out reconstruction for the purposes of scientific research, experiment and training. He noted that China was the only P5, and BRIC, member not to have such a capacity, and that China had 18,000 km of coastline and 3 million square kilometres of coastal waters to defend (XHNA, 27 July). Other military analysts commented that surrounded as it was by foreign aircraft carriers, China had to have aircraft carriers to safeguard its national security and development. The PLA Daily commented that the programme would not change China's defensive policy, and noted that it would be some time before China had an actual capability, even though it was perfectly legitimate that it should have such a capacity (XHNA, 29 July). The Varyag started five days sea trials on 10 August. Xinhua noted that: “there should be no excessive worries or paranoid feelings on China' s pursuit of an aircraft carrier, as it will not pose a threat to other countries, and other countries should accept and be used to the reality that we are developing the carrier” (XHNA, 10 Aug.). The Defence Ministry spokesman said that the carrier had completed its objectives during its sea trials, but did not elaborate (XHNA, 31 Aug.).

Six military officers were promoted to the rank of full General on 23 July. They were: Deputy Chiefs of the PLA General Staff Sun Jianguo and Hou Shusen; Deputy Chief of the PLA General Political Department Jia Ting'an; the Navy's Political Commissar Liu Xiaojiang, Commander of the Shenyang Military Area Command Zhang Youxia: and Political Commissar of the Lanzhou Military Area Command Li Changcai (XHNA, 23 July).

China launched its first space lab module, the Tiangong-1, on 29 September. It would orbit for two years and dock with China's Shenzhou 8, 9 and 10 spacecraft. A Ministry of Defence spokesman said on 28 September that China was only exploring outer space for peaceful purposes and was firmly opposed to the weaponization of space. In response to questions about the possible military use of Tiangong-1, he said: “The military enjoys unique advantages in organizing and co-ordinating such large-scale activities and its involvement in aerospace missions is an international practice” (XHNA, 28 Sept.). Premier Wen Jiabao met staff involved with the launch on 30 September, and watched the launch along with He Guoqiang (XHNA, 30 Sept.).

f Human Rights

The State Council Information Office announced on 12 July that China had put into effect and achieved all the measures set out in its National Human Rights Action Plan of 2009/2010 (published in April 2009 and text in http://www.china.org.cn/archive/2009-04/13/content_17595407.htm). Wang Chen, Director of the Office, told an official assessment meeting that citizens' awareness of human rights had been remarkably enhanced and that overall living standards had risen in line with the national economy. The fulfilment of the tasks in the plan showed that the cause of human rights in China had entered a new stage (XHNA, 12 July). China announced that it would publish a second action plan on human rights, to cover the period 2012 to 2015. It would cover economic, social and cultural rights as well as civil and political rights. It will also make commitments to improving the rights of ethnic groups, women, children, senior citizens and disabled people. The new plan would be formulated through discussion with more than 56 organizations including government departments and non-governmental organizations (XHNA, 28 Sept.). China rejected the US State Department's remarks on China in its 2010 International Religious Freedom Report saying that it was interference in China's internal affairs. The Foreign Ministry spokeswoman said that Chinese people of all ethnic groups enjoy full freedom to practice religious beliefs in accordance with the law (XHNA, 14 Sept.).

China published its first Blue Paper on human rights, “The No. 1 Report on the Development of Human Rights Undertakings in China.” The report was compiled from an academic perspective by the China Society for Human Rights Studies (XHNA, 8 Sept.). A panel of academic experts from the China University of Political Science and Law suggested at a Beijing Forum on Human Rights the setting up an independent human rights commission to monitor human rights violations and promote public awareness of human rights. Zhang Wei, a Deputy Director of the University's Institute of Human rights and Law, said that the commission should be established in compliance with the Paris Principles and could act as the independent commission to which government reports on the International Covenant on Economic Social and Cultural Rights could be submitted (XHNA, 21 Sept.).

Wang Lihong, a 56-year-old woman from Beijing, was put on trial in the capital on 12 August for stirring up trouble. Representatives from an UN human rights organization and the Canadian Czech Embassies were allowed to enter the courthouse but not the courtroom, while about 200 supporters protested outside. Her lawyer claimed that she was not allowed a proper defence and that both his and her closing statements had been cut short by the judge (Ming Pao website, Hong Kong, 13 Aug.). She was sentenced to nine months in prison for “provoking quarrels and creating a disturbance” when she had been part of protests in Fujian about the trial and sentencing of three bloggers who had posted the petition of an alleged rape victim's mother online (SCMP website, 10 Sept.).

The human rights activist, Jiang Tianyong, gave an interview to the SCMP in which he said he was under deep mental stress because of the physical and verbal abuse he had suffered while in detention, and was fearful of how the authorities would react as he had been forced to promise not to contact the media. He had been detained on 19 February and kept incommunicado for 60 days. He said he had been severely beaten for two nights and then made to sit motionless in a room for up to 15 hours a day while being interrogated (SCMP website, 14 Sept.).

Six individuals were sentenced to jail terms of between nine months and three and a half years for their part in the unrest by migrant workers in Xintang City in Guangdong in June, which had been sparked by a confrontation between a security worker and a pregnant migrant woman and her husband. All were convicted on charges of destroying public property (mainly police vehicles). The authorities acknowledged that the disturbances had been triggered by mounting anger among migrant workers and that public services for them needed to be improved. Several local officials including the local Party Secretary had been removed from their posts as a result of the incident (XHNA, 12 July). Five further individuals were sentenced to terms ranging from a year and a half to five years for their part in the same incident on 16 July (XHNA, 16 July). The Shandong-based dissident Li Hongwei was reported to have been sentenced to one year and nine months of labour reform for inciting the subversion of state power because of speeches she made in Jinan in January and February condemning corruption in the CCP (Information Centre for Human rights and Democracy, Hong Kong, 12 July). Human Rights Watch called on the Thai government to explain why it had apparently handed over a Uighur suspect to the Chinese without due process. Nur Mohammed had been detained by immigration authorities in Bangkok on 6 August, and taken to a detention centre where he was immediately handed over to Chinese officials (Bangkok Post website, 12 Aug.).

Chinese commentary made good use of the scandal over phone hacking affecting News Corporation in Britain to highlight on-going problems in the values of Western media such as the abuse of freedom, ethical dilemmas, cultural vulgarization and privacy issues. Leading Chinese journalists were quoted as having commented that the scandal showed how Western media infringed on the privacy and dignity of citizens under the guise of “freedom of the press.” A Deputy Head of the Central Propaganda Department said that the scandal would be used as vivid textbook in an education campaign to improve media practices in China (XHNA,1 Aug.). In a similar vein, Xinhua pointed out the UK government's apparent U-turn on web monitoring following the riots in England in August, when the Prime Minister spoke of looking at banning potential troublemakers from using on line services. The article concluded that “the internet is also a double-edged sword that cuts both ways. For the benefit of the general public, proper web-monitoring is legitimate and necessary” (XHNA, 12 Aug.). In an apparent attempt to rein in outspoken elements of the Chinese press, two newspapers, Xinjing bao and Jinghua shibao, which had originally been under central government departments, were placed under the management of the Beijing Municipal Propaganda Department. The net effect was to constrain their freedom to report as they would have had much greater leeway as national-level papers than they would as purely local ones. Both had earned a reputation for their investigative journalism, and had been in trouble with the authorities before. Jinghua shibao had been under the sponsorship of People's Daily, and Xinjing Bao had been under Guangming ribao and Nanfang ribao (ZXS, 3 September and Ming Pao website, 2 Sept.). Xinhua reported that a journalist with a Hong Kong-based website had complained that police in Langfang, Hebei province, had threatened him and his family and demanded that he delete a report about local government corruption (XHNA, 8 Sept.).

g Xinjiang and Tibet

On the anniversary of the 2009 riots in Urumqi, considerable domestic media attention was devoted to the progress that Xinjiang had made economically and socially. Foreign and domestic tourism had recovered, bringing in over 30 billion yuan. The Party Secretary, Zhang Chunxian, toured Urumqi's night market and said: “Xinjiang is a good place and home to all ethnic groups. We should love our home and build it into a better future” (XHNA, 6 July).

Xinhua reported on 18 July that “several mobs” had been “gunned down” by police in Hotan following an attack upon a police station. Later details showed that a police station had been attacked and hostages taken. Public Security personnel responded, killing several of those involved and freeing six hostages. Two hostages and two security personnel were killed (XHNA, 18 July). Subsequent reports revealed that 14 attackers had been killed, and four arrested out of a group of 18 who had come to Hotan on 16 July. The local police chief said that they had been shouting “frantic religious slogans” as they occupied the building and resisted attempts to retake it. He also said that the police station in question had jurisdiction over “the largest floating population in Hotan City. There are several large commercial and trade markets and mosques with dense floating population and illegal religious activities and illegal personnel. Many members of the terrorist group ‘Kulaixi’ were arrested in this jurisdiction by the police in 1997” (XHNA, 20 July). The SCMP reported that local residents believed that an immediate trigger for the attack might have been the gradual imposition of a ban on the wearing of black veils by Uyghur women (SCMP, 22 July). Xinhua reporting made a point of noting that there had been no disturbances leading up to the attack which seemed to have come from nowhere (XHNA, 22 July). A series of violent incidents took place in Kashgar in late July/early August. On 30 July, six people were killed when two individuals hijacked a lorry, killed the driver, and drove it into pedestrians at about 11.45 pm. Six people were said to have been killed and 28 injured. One of the suspects was killed and the other detained. Prior to that two explosions were heard (XHNA, 31 July). Three people, including a policeman, were killed in a bomb explosion on the afternoon of 31 July in Kashgar, and three others were injured. Two suspects were said to have been detained (XHNA, 31 July). On 1 August, there was a shootout at a restaurant in the city centre. Five suspects were shot dead by police, and four others were detained. They had broken into the restaurant and opened fire. Six civilians were reported killed and 12 injured (XHNA, 1 Aug.). Radio Free Asia reported that about 100 Uyghurs had been rounded up after the violence (Radio Free Asia, 1 Aug.). Chinese reports claimed that the perpetrators were terrorists and religious extremists who had been led by people trained in camps run by the East Turkestan Islamic Movement (ETIM) in Pakistan. Rewards of 100,000 yuan were offered for information leading to the capture of two named suspects in the attack on 30 July. An emergency meeting was held in Urumqi and the Party Secretary of Xinjiang ordered an immediate crackdown on terrorist attacks, religious extremist forces, and illegal religious activities (XHNA, 1 Aug.). The following day the two suspects were reported to have been shot in the suburbs of Kashgar (XHNA, 2 Aug.). The head of the Xinjiang government, Nur Bekri, went to Kashgar and visited some of the injured in hospital. He said that the terrorists were the enemy of people from all ethnic groups in the region and called for unity to protect people's safety and property (XHNA, 2 Aug.). The Xinjiang authorities called for a harsh crackdown on religious extremists, and local officials were ordered to follow the central government's policy “protecting the legitimate, banning the illegal, fighting infiltration and cracking down on crimes.” The Head of the local Ethnic Affairs Commission noted that “Illegal religious activities are a key factor influencing Xinjiang's stability. Hostile forces are using illegal religious gatherings to organize separatist activities” (XHNA, 8 Aug.). Four people found guilty of the attacks in July were sentenced to death by courts in Hotan and Kashgar on 13 September, and two of their accomplices were sentenced to 19 years (XHNA, 14 Sept.). Xinjiang authorities subsequently stated that there had been evidence suggesting that the actions had been masterminded by “overseas militant organizations,” and that all the perpetrators and their equipment had been local (SCMP website, 16 Sept.).

The first China Eurasia Expo was opened in Urumqi on 1 September, amid tight security (and Chinese claims that it had thwarted a number of attempts to sabotage public safety in advance of the meeting). Vice Premier Li Keqiang was the senior central government leader present and foreign visitors included President Zardari of Pakistan, the Kyrgyz interim President, Roza Otunbayeva, the Kazakh Deputy Prime Minister Asset Issekeshev, and the Vice Premier of Azerbaijan, Abid Sharifov. Donald Tsang, Chief Executive of the Hong Kong SAR, also attended as well as the Chief Executive of the Macau SAR (XHNA, 30, 31 Aug.). In his speech to the opening ceremony, Vice Premier Li said that China would speed up its opening of the western regions, fund cross border infrastructure projects, and roll out favourable policies to make Xinjiang a key economic hub at the heart of Eurasia. Special economic zones would be set up in two border cities, and the number of border trade ports would be expanded (XHNA, 1 Sept.).

China published a White Paper on the development of Tibet since 1951 on 11 July. Full text can be found in http://www.china.org.cn/government/whitepaper/node_7122743.htm. The paper had three main sections: “Realizing the peaceful liberation of Tibet,” “Sixty-years' development since peaceful liberation” and “Historic achievements that capture world attention.” The first section of the paper set out the basis of the Chinese historical claim over Tibet and described China's view of the events of 1951 and the signing of the eventual agreement on the “peaceful liberation of Tibet.” The second section was a political history of Tibet from a Chinese perspective from 1951 onwards. The third section of the paper concentrated on the economic and social development of Tibet. It noted that in the 60 years since its “peaceful liberation” Tibet had made two historic leaps “from a society of feudal serfdom to one of socialism and from a state of isolation, poverty and backwardness to one of opening prosperity and civilization.” The Paper stated that the central government had given over 300 billion yuan in direct subsidies to Tibet from 1952 to 2010, and made over 160 billion yuan of direct investment. It concluded that

Vice President Xi Jinping went to Lhasa to represent the central government at the celebrations of the 60th anniversary of the “peaceful liberation” of Tibet, and opened a new expressway between Lhasa and its airport on 17 July. A grand ceremony to mark the occasion was held in Lhasa on 19 July. In his speech, Vice President Xi said that: “We should fight against separatist activities by the Dalai group, rely on cadres and people of all ethnic groups, seek long-term policies and take measures that address the root cause, and completely destroy any attempt to undermine stability in Tibet and national unity of the motherland.” He said that social stability provided the basis for leapfrog development and a prosperous life for people of all ethnic groups in Tibet. He announced that the central government would be investing a further US$21.3 billion in Tibet over the next five years (XHNA, 19, 20 July).

Xinhua reported that a monk, Tsongwon Norbu, had set himself on fire on 15 August in Nyitso monastery in Garze Autonomous Prefecture in Sichuan. An investigation into the affair had been opened by the local government (XHNA, 15 Aug.). He died in hospital despite attempts to revive him and was cremated on 17 August in accordance with Tibetan rituals. An official of the monastery was quoted as saying that “His self-immolation was an individual act and ran counter to the commandments of Tibetan Buddhism” (XHNA, 17 Aug.). Three Tibetan monks were put on trial on 29 August for plotting, assisting and instigating the self-immolation of a fellow monk, Rigzin Phuntsog, in an earlier incident in the Kirti Monastery in March. They were accused of having hidden him away to prevent him getting emergency treatment, causing his death (XHNA, 26 Aug.). Two of them, who were said to have been behind the action, were sentenced to 13 and 10 years in prison on 30 August. The other, who had hidden him away, was sentenced to 11 years on 29 August (XHNA, 30 Aug.). In another incident, two monks had attempted to set themselves on fire in Aba County in Sichuan but were prevented by police from doing so and taken away for medical treatment (XHNA, 26 Sept.).

The Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman said on 9 July that the US Congress should stop indulging and supporting the Dalai Lama group in anti-China and separatist activities, following meetings between the speaker of the House of Representatives, the House Democratic Leader, Nancy Pelosi and other congressmen with the Dalai Lama (XHNA, 9 July). China also protested in vain against a meeting between President Obama and the Dalai Lama saying that the US should honour its commitment recognizing Tibet as part of China and oppose Tibetan independence, cancel the meeting and “avoid interfering in China's internal affairs and damaging China–US relations” (XHNA, 16 July). Formal protests were lodged in both Beijing and Washington after the visit which was said to have been a serious interference in China's internal affairs which damaged China's core interests and Sino American relations (XHNA, 17 July).

Zhu Weiqun, Vice President of the China Overseas Friendship Association, commented on 29 July on the Dalai Lama's announcement in March that he intended to retire from political life. He said that the move had a political purpose in order to develop successors for his “secessionist clique.” He said that the Dalai Lama's only choice was to abandon all secessionist acts, accept the requirements of the central government and seek the forgiveness of the Chinese people. He added that the Chinese government would talk only with representatives of the Dalai Lama and not with delegates from the exiled Tibetan government (XHNA, 29 July). The Prime Minister elect of the Tibetan Government in Exile, Lobsang Sangay, gave an interview to the Indian Press on 31 July in which he asked India to treat the Tibetan issue as a core issue in its relations with China. He said he was ready to meet with Chinese representatives, at any time and at any place, but had had no reaction from Beijing (PTI News Agency, 31 July). Lobsang Sangay was sworn in on 8 August, in a ceremony at which the Dalai Lama made a brief speech in which he declared that “We have handed over all political responsibilities and all the powers now vest in democratically elected leadership of Lobsang Sangay” (PTI News Agency, 8 Aug.). China made it clear that it was not interested in talking with the new exile Prime Minister. Xinhua quoted Dr Dramdul, of the China Tibetology Research Centre, as repeating China's clear policy that it would talk with representatives of the Dalai Lama, not with representatives of the government in exile. On the question of the reincarnation of the Dalai Lama he said that “the reincarnation institution of Dalai Lama and Panchen Lama, following a strict set of religious practices, has been carried on for several hundred years, and all the 14 generations of Dalai Lama has been acknowledged by the central government of China” (XHNA, 1 Sept.). Xinhua reported the Dalai Lama's statement of 24 September on his reincarnation on 26 September and his statement that China would have no say in the matter. The report noted that he had raised the issue of his reincarnation several times in the last few years, and insisted on guiding the choice of his successor although his assertions kept changing in form. In a remarkably mild report it said that:

The report recommended that he should “seriously follow the teachings of Sakyamuni, the founder of Buddhism, and seek the dharma that will liberate him from the rotation of life and death, in lieu of worrying about his reincarnation” (XHNA, 26 Sept.).

h Hong Kong and Macau Special Administrative Regions

Vice Premier Li Keqiang visited Hong Kong from 16 to 18 August to mark the founding of Hong Kong University and attend an economic co-operation forum. He also had talks with leading SAR officials and carried out a busy and varied programme, visiting local families and a care home. Li outlined 36 measures the central government would take to help Hong Kong, and told businessmen that the central government would actively support the growth of the Renminbi market in Hong Kong and its aim of building itself into an offshore Renminbi centre. A number of economic co-operation agreements were also signed (XHNA, 17 Aug.). On leaving he told reporters that he had acquired deep feelings and more knowledge about Hong Kong from the trip. He opined that Hong Kong's role in the nation's reform and opening up was irreplaceable, the people of Hong Kong were hard working and wise and that “one country, two systems” had strong vitality and was capable of maintaining prosperity and stability (XHNA, 18 Aug.). The visit was overshadowed by rows over the policing of the visit and control of protests, especially in relation to Li's attendance at the centenary of Hong Kong University. Three students were dragged to the ground and one locked up for an hour as police kept protestors well away from the venue of Li's speech. The Vice Chancellor later apologized to students for the handling of the incident (SCMP website, 19 Aug.). The Hong Kong Police Commissioner told the Legislative Council security panel that was looking into the handling of the visit that the main problems had been when people infringed on the “core security area.” This was a novel concept for Hong Kong and lawyers and journalists demanded to know what the zone was and what legal basis it had (SCMP website, 28 Sept.). The Secretary for Security told the panel that the Hong Kong police had communicated with their mainland counterparts over security for the visit, but denied that the mainland had ordered the Hong Kong police to suppress the media or make arrests during the visit (Hong Kong Standard, 29 Aug.). The panel failed to come to any firm conclusion over the visit's handling and the government later rejected pan-Democrat calls for an investigation into police action at the time, although internal reviews were being carried out by the police and by Hong Kong University (SCMP website, 13 Sept.).

The annual 1 July march in Hong Kong was claimed by its organizers to have been the biggest since 2004, with over 218,000 protestors. This was said to reflect increasing discontent with the government, particularly over high property prices and the administration of the Chief Executive. The demonstration was largely peaceful but ended in some scuffles. The pro-China press criticized opposition parties for organizing a rally with the aim of resisting Beijing, which caused harm to Hong Kong (SCMP, 2 July). Another issue was the government's determination to table a bill to scrap by-elections to the Legislative Council. On 5 July, the government announced the postponement of voting on the bill, originally scheduled for 13 July. There would be a two month period of public consultation, and the process would be resumed in the 2011–12 LegCo session (SCMP, 5 July).

The Hong Kong Journalist Association issued its annual report on 3 July, entitled “Two Systems Compromised: Free Expression under Threat in Hong Kong.” It claimed that Beijing was taking a more aggressive role in its policy towards Hong Kong and that the Hong Kong Government was becoming more sensitive to Beijing's wishes and becoming less tolerant of protests. The Association welcomed the decision not to enact national security legislation under Article 23 during the current term of the Chief Executive. It called on the future Chief Executive to resist such legislation and to enact freedom on information legislation as a matter of urgency (Hong Kong Journalist Association website, 3 July).

The revision of the Hong Kong educational curriculum to include classes in “national education” generated much discussion over exactly what was intended, and gave rise to the expression of concerns that Beijing style propaganda might be introduced to schools. Under the government's proposals, schools would have to provide up to 50 hours a year, or about two lessons a week, in the new subject. Pupils would be taught to sing the national anthem, attend flag-raising ceremonies, understand the Basic Law, support national sports teams, and appreciate and understand Chinese culture. Students would learn about such Chinese ideals as filial piety, broadmindedness and solidarity. There was a consultation period between May and September and much opposition was voiced, including from teaching unions (SCMP, 5 Sept.).

a General and Multilateral Affairs

China issued a White Paper entitled “China's Peaceful Development” on 6 September (text in XHNA, 6 Sept.). It was divided into five sections:

I. The Path of China's Peaceful Development: What It Is About

II. What China Aims to Achieve by Pursuing Peaceful Development

III. China's Foreign Policies for Pursuing Peaceful Development

IV. China's Path of Peaceful Development Is a Choice Necessitated by History

V. What China's Peaceful Development Means to the Rest of the World

The paper was a reasonably comprehensive outline of China's current foreign policy position. It listed a number of key foreign policy priorities: promoting the building of a harmonious world; pursuing an independent foreign policy of peace; promoting new thinking on security featuring mutual trust, mutual benefit, equality and co-ordination; actively living up to international responsibility; promoting regional co-operation and good neighbourly relations. It concluded:

Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi opened a high-level symposium on the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development. He said that the international community should follow five principles in development: “common but differentiated responsibilities; advancing sustainable development in a balanced manner in the areas of economy, society and environment; respecting the independent choices of countries regarding sustainable development; upholding the principle of building broad partnerships; and paying particular attention to meeting the concerns of developing countries” (XHNA, 8 Sept.).

Premier Wen Jiabao attended the “Summer Davos” (the World Economic Forum meeting of New Champions) which was held from 14 to 16 September in Dalian. He gave a keynote speech to the session (text in XHNA, 14 Sept.) and answered journalists' questions. He also met a number of world leaders who were attending the meeting (President Yayi Boni of Benin, President Alpha Conde of Guinea, Prime Minister Atambayev of Kyrgyzstan, and Emeritus Senior Minister Goh Chok Tong of Singapore).

Beijing hosted a presidium meeting of the World Media Summit (WMS) on 27 September attended by leaders of 11 international media organizations including WMS Executive Chairman and President of Xinhua, Li Congjun. They discussed media IPR protection, media co-operation in the new media era, journalists' safety and the media's role in natural disasters. The first WMS was held in Beijing in 2009 and founded by Xinhua and eight other media organizations including News Corporation, AP, Thomson Reuters, ITAR-TASS, Kyodo News, BBC, Turner Broadcasting System Inc and Google Inc. Al-Jazeera and the New York Times Inc. joined later. Liu Yunshan, Head of the Party's Propaganda Department, received the delegates and told them that China would always guarantee the legitimate rights of foreign news organizations and their reports and provide the necessary conveniences for their reporting work in China. He hoped that foreign media would be increasingly precise, balanced and objective in their reporting on China (XHNA, 27 Sept.).

b Diplomatic Tours

Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi visited Albania, Poland, Sudan and South Sudan from 2 to 9 August. In Albania, on a one-day visit on 3 August, he had talks with the Albanian Foreign Minister, Edmond Haxhinasto, and met the President Bamir Topi, Speaker of the Parliament Jozefina Topalli, and Prime Minister Sali Berisha. He said that China and Albania would become good friends with mutual trust, and good partners with mutual benefits. Foreign Minister Haxhinasto said that he hoped that the good relationship would lead to closer co-operation in the fields of trade, energy resources, infrastructure, finance and others (XHNA, 3 Aug.). In Poland, he had talks with the Prime Minister and with the Foreign Minister, Radoslaw Sikorski. One of the subjects was the failed project by China's COVEC consortium to build a motorway in Poland. The Ministers also reviewed the development of bilateral relations and economic co-operation (in infrastructure, energy, mining and environmental protection) as well as international issues (PAP News Agency, Warsaw, 5 Aug.). Yang Jiechi arrived in Sudan on 7 August. Yang told the press on arrival that China would not alter its policy of developing friendly relations with Sudan no matter how the internal or the regional situation changed. China was ready to step up co-operation in the oil industry and to encourage more Chinese companies to invest in Sudan. Co-operation in agriculture, mining, energy, water conservancy, electricity, roads and bridges engineering, and communications would also be increased. On the relationship between Sudan and South Sudan he said that China urged both sides to keep peace and seek solutions to their problems through dialogue and consultation, and revealed that China had recently made contacts with both sides to perform positive mediation between them. He described the Darfur issue as essentially a developmental one which could be solved only through the elimination of poverty and the realization of development, which would lead to peaceful co-existence. During his visit he had talks with Foreign Minister Ali Ahmed Karti, and with President Umar Al-Bashir (XHNA, 8 Aug.). He met the South Sudan Foreign Minister, Deng Alor Kol, for talks on 9 August. Yang said that China was willing to develop a comprehensive and friendly partnership with South Sudan, and that the two sides should enhance contacts at all levels. China was ready to assist South Sudan in its development and hoped to co-operate with South Sudan in areas such as energy, agriculture, mining, housing construction, communications, water conservancy and transportation. Minister Alor said that he hoped that China would become South Sudan's main partner in its development. Yang also had talks with President Salva Kiit Mayardit (XHNA, 9 Aug.). On the way back to China, Yang Jiechi stopped over in Turkmenistan, and met President Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov (Turkmen TV Altyn Asyr, 10 Aug.).

Wu Bangguo, Chairman of the NPCSC, visited Russia, Belarus, Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan from 14 to 27 September. He met Premier Putin on 14 September and told him that it was of vital importance to enhance Sino-Russian strategic trust and co-operation in order to safeguard the core interests of both countries, such as sovereignty, security and development. He said China would always treat Russia as a foreign policy priority. He urged a further expansion of trade and co-operation on major projects and more trade in mechanical/electrical and high tech products so as to reach the targets of increasing trade to US$100 billion by 2015 and US$200 billion by 2020. There should be more co-operation in energy matters and the construction of natural gas pipelines should be speeded up (XHNA, 14 Sept.). Wu also met President Medvedev and attended the fifth meeting of the China–Russia Parliamentary Co-operation Committee. He arrived in Minsk on 17 September, and met the Belarusian President, Alexander Lukashenko, the Prime Minister Mikhail Myasnikovich, and parliamentary leaders. Nine co-operation agreements were signed on economic and technical co-operation and the establishment of industrial zone parks (XHNA, 18 Sept.). In Uzbekistan, he had talks with President Karimov and with parliamentary leaders, as well as addressing the Uzbek Upper House. Wu said that the countries enjoyed a friendly co-operative partnership with large areas of complementarity. He said that co-operation should be expanded in energy, mining, new and high technologies, mechanical-electrical, communications, transportation, chemical industry, tourism, and in other non-energy areas. He welcomed Uzbek exports of natural gas, rare metals and cotton to China. They also discussed regional stability and cracking down on the “three evil forces,” drug smuggling and cross border crime (XHNA, 24 Sept.). He arrived in Kazakhstan on 23 September and had talks with President Nazarbayev and with parliamentary leaders. Wu said that President Nazarbayev was an old friend of the Chinese people and the bilateral relationship had now reached the level of all round strategic partnership. Wu proposed deepening their co-operation in energy projects, especially the project of the Chinese–Kazakh oil and gas pipelines and the project of Sino-Central Asian natural gas pipelines, and raising their bilateral trade to US$40 billion by 2015 (XHNA, 27 Sept.).

Zhou Yongkang, a Member of the Politburo Standing Committee, visited Laos, Cambodia, Tajikistan, Nepal and Mongolia from 16 to 26 August. He was invited by the ruling parties in Laos, Cambodia and Tajikistan, and by the governments elsewhere (XHNA, 11 Aug.).

c Countries, Regions and Territories

d Defence Diplomacy

Chinese and Belorussian airborne troops trained together in Baranovichi in a ten-day exercise beginning on 5 July. Over 80 Chinese paratroopers took part in the first such exercise carried out in a foreign country. The exercises concentrated on anti-terrorism training (XHNA, 19 July).

Chen Bingde, Chief of the PLA General Staff, visited Russia for talks with his opposite number, Nikolay Makarov, and the Russian Defence Minister, Anatoli Serdyukov. In a joint statement issued on 8 August, the two sides agreed to further enhance military exchanges and keep up their strategic co-ordination so as to deal better with new regional and global security threats. They would continue joint exercises within the framework of the Shanghai Co-operation Organization, improve their top level strategic consultation, with the next round of their dialogue in Beijing at the end of the year, and strengthen joint efforts in military education and student training (XHNA, 8 Aug.). After his trip to Russia, Chen Bingde visited Ukraine and Israel in early August. It was the first visit at this level for ten years to Ukraine and he had talks with his opposite number Gregory Pedchenko (XHNA, 11 Aug.). In Israel, he said that China's co-operation with Israel was contributing to regional stability. He had meetings with the Prime Minister and with the Defence Minister Ehud Barak, as well as with his host, the Chief of Staff (XHNA, 14 Aug.).

The Vietnamese Defence Minister, Nguyen Chi Vinh, visited China and had talks with Defence Minister Liang Guanglie on 29 August. Liang said that China was willing to work with Vietnam to protect their common strategic interests, as well as peace and stability in the South China Sea, by strengthening communication and consultation. He added that China was opposed to internationalization of the issue and insisted on solving disputes through consultations and negotiations (XHNA, 29 Aug.). The Swiss Head of the Federal Department of Defence, Civil Protection and Sport, Ueli Maurer, visited China in July. He had talks with the Defence Minister, Liang Guanglie, on 13 July and with Guo Boxiong, Vice Chairman of the Military Commission, the following day (XHNA, 13, 14 July).