China Two-Child Policy Not Valid Until March, Government Says

BBC
Couples must continue to obey the country's one-child policy until the law changes in March.

Conversation

11.02.15

How Far Have China’s Economic Reforms Come over the Past Year?

Houze Song & Arthur R. Kroeber
As the Chinese Communist Party leadership wrapped up its Fifth Plenum, the meeting at which the Party’s leadership set the Five Year Plan that will shape economic policy through 2020, what progress has been made on the “comprehensive deepening” of...

Amartya Sen: Women’s Progress Outdid China’s One-Child Policy

AMARTYA SEN
New York Times
The abandonment of the one-child policy in China is a momentous change.

China’s Communist Party Approves Five-Year Plan

Mark Magnier
Wall Street Journal
Economists will be watching to see whether it sets ambitious or moderate growth targets.

China to End One-Child Policy, Allowing Families Two Children

CHRIS BUCKLEY
New York Times
China’s Communist Party brought to an end the decades-old “one child” policy.

China Court: Rape Risk Higher for Women With ‘Bad Habits’ Like Smoking, Drinking

Xu Yangjingjing and Simon Denyer
Washington Post
Women who smoke, drink and dress provocatively are more likely to be raped.

White House Moves to Reassure Allies With South China Sea Patrol, but Quietly

HELENE COOPER and JANE PERLEZ
New York Times
Lawmakers and national security hawks have urged President Obama to stand up to China’s land reclamation of disputed islands.

Conversation

10.28.15

Making Waves in the South China Sea

Peter Dutton, Jessica Chen Weiss & more
Challenging China’s newly assertive behavior in the South China Sea, this week the U.S. Navy sailed some of its biggest ships inside the nine-dash line, exercising its claim to freedom of movement in international waters plied by billions in trade...

Can Xi Jinping Control China’s Wave of Change?

David Ignatius
Washington Post
“Party tightens grip on dissenting voices,” headlined the South China Morning Post on Friday.

Caixin Media

10.27.15

Does the Punishment Fit the Corruption?

After Chen Bokui, the deputy head of a government advisory body in the central province of Hubei, was convicted of taking 2.8 million yuan in bribes by a court in the eastern province of Fujian in April, he received a somewhat stiff sentence—17...

Where Does Britain Draw the Line with Saudi Arabia and China?

Michael White
Guardian
UK economy needs the cash flowing in, but politicians should be wary of throwing out all principle in favour of business.

China Says It Warned and Tracked U.S. Warship in South China Sea

Jim Sciutto and Katie Hunt
CNN
Chinese government: Don't push us

Two-Child Policy Is Too Little, Too Late

Adam Minter
Bloomberg
When Chinese leaders convene this week for a four-day meeting on the future of the country’s economy, the biggest news might have to do with babies.

Caixin Media

10.23.15

Hemingway's Literary Escape

Sheila Melvin
One noonday in 2002, a friendly acquaintance of mine—I’ll call him Q—left his office in a Beijing concert hall to go to lunch and never returned. After a series of inquiries, his wife and colleagues learned that he had been arrested. Various charges...

In China, Strong-Arm Tour Guides Are Forcing People to Shop

Julie Makinen
Los Angeles Times
It may sound like a spendthrift’s dream vacation: being “forced to shop.”

China Golf: Communist Party Bans Club Membership

BBC
Extravagant eating and drinking, and abuse of power, are also formally banned.

Human Rights: What Is China Accused of?

Camila Ruz
BBC
China's human rights record has been criticised for years.

Philippines Says Handing China Suspects in Diplomats' Shooting

MANUEL MOGATO
Reuters
Two Chinese diplomats suspected of killing two colleagues will be granted diplomatic immunity and handed over to Chinese authorities.

The 11 Deadliest Places to Drive

Eric Bellman
WSJ: China Real Time Report
More than 1.2 million people die in traffic accidents every year across the world.

Conversation

10.20.15

Britain: ‘China’s Best Partner in the West’?

Isabel Hilton, Sebastian Heilmann & more
This week, Xi Jinping is in Great Britain for a state visit, his first since assuming leadership of China nearly three years ago. Britain’s government under David Cameron has signaled—increasingly loudly in recent months—that it hopes to usher in a...

Feminism With Chinese Characteristics

David Volodzko
Diplomat
China is making progress on women’s issues, but anyone trying to publicize remaining issues faces a serious backlash.

Prince William to Give Ivory Trade Speech as China's President Xi Arrives

BBC
The Duke of Cambridge is to deliver a speech on the illegal ivory trade for broadcast on Chinese state TV.

Environment

10.19.15

Can the South-North Water Transfer Project and Industry Co-Exist?

from chinadialogue
Sixty-two years after Chairman Mao first envisioned the South-North Water Transfer project, the Middle Route (SNWT-MR) formally began transferring supplies of water from Danjiangkou reservoir on the border of Hubei and Henan in December 2014.In the...

Conversation

10.16.15

Is There a China Model?

Daniel A. Bell, Timothy Garton Ash & more
The most recent public event in our ChinaFile Presents series, which we held October 15 in New York, was a discussion of the philosopher Daniel A. Bell’s controversial book, The China Model: Political Meritocracy and the Limits of Democracy, co-...

China Tightens TV Censorship after Cleavage Controversies

Patrick Brzeski
Hollywood Reporter
New rules may require some Chinese shows to delay broadcasts by as much as six months.

How A 16-Year-Old Found Himself Caught Up in China’s Latest Crackdown

Emily Rauhala
Washington Post
He is not a lawyer, or a dissident. He is a 16-year-old with a bowl-cut fringe.

Caixin Media

10.13.15

Insider Trading Is Hindering Development of Stock Market

A series of investigations into apparent market violations emerged after the recent stock market turmoil, bringing down Zhang Yujun, an assistant chairman at the China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC); Cheng Boming, general manager of CITIC...

'A Brighter Future Beckons': China Tries to Get Xinjiang to Join the Party

Tom Phillips
Guardian
Yellow signs swing from lampposts urging citizens to “hold high the great banner of national unity”.

Escalator Death in China Heightens Safety Concerns

PATRICK BOEHLER
New York Times
A 4-year-old boy was killed after getting trapped in an escalator at a subway station in the southwestern city of Chongqing.

Why China Doesn’t Mind Being Left Out of the Trans-Pacific Partnership

Allison Jackson
Global Post
In case you hadn’t heard, the Trans-Pacific Partnership is a really big deal— unless you're China.

China Will Not Allow Violations of Its Territorial Waters

Adam Rose
Reuters
China said it would not stand for violations of its territorial waters in the name of freedom of navigation.

Chinese Hospitals Still Offering Gay 'Cure' Therapy, Film Reveals

Emma Graham-Harrison and Shaunagh...
Guardian
Channel 4’s Unreported World finds doctors prescribing drugs and electric shocks to gay men and lesbians despite Beijing legalising homosexuality in 1997.

A Year on, Mixed Views on What Hong Kong Protests Achieved

Vincent Yu
Associated Press
"Has the Umbrella Movement accomplished anything? If so, what?"

Conversation

10.06.15

What Will the TPP Mean for China?

Barry Naughton, Arthur R. Kroeber & more
On Monday, the U.S., Japan, and ten other countries concluded negotiations on the Trans-Pacific Partnership, or TPP—the largest regional trade accord in history. If approved, the agreement will set new terms for the nearly $28 trillion in trade and...

Caixin Media

10.06.15

Authorities Should Do More to Protect China’s Lawyers

A Communist Party group led by General Secretary Xi Jinping that was established to spearhead reform efforts finished a document on September 15 addressing the plight of lawyers. A day later, top judicial authorities, including the Supreme People...

U.S. Warns Against 'Egregious' Restrictions in Contested South China Seas

Lincoln Feast
Reuters
The U.S. and China have blamed each other for dangerous moves during recent incidents involving aircraft and ships.

China’s Xi Jinping Changes the Odds in Macau

Andrew Browne
Wall Street Journal
If there’s one skill that the U.S. gambling moguls who staked their futures here have mastered it’s calculating the odds.

At U.N., China Uses Intimidation Tactics to Silence Its Critics

Sui-Lee Wee and Stephanie Nebehay
Reuters
“When I was hiding in the mountains, the Chinese government announced a cash reward of 200,000 yuan (about $31,000) for whoever finds me.”

Artist Ai Weiwei Discovers Hidden 'Listening Devices' in Beijing Studio

Tiffany Ap
CNN
"When I found these bugs, I had a strange feeling," he said.

Gay Couples in China Look Abroad to Start a Family

Laurie Burkitt
WSJ: China Real Time Report
Xu Zhe decided a few years ago that he wanted to get married and have a baby—typical life plans for a young man in China.

Q. and A.: Johannes Chan on Academic Freedom in Hong Kong

MICHAEL FORSYTHE
New York Times
The governing council of the University of Hong Kong rejected this week the nomination of Johannes Chan.

Suspect in China Parcel Bombings Died in Explosion, Police Say

Bloomberg
Wei Yinyong, 33, a local man previously named as a suspect, was identified following DNA tests.

China’s 3,000-Acre Aircraft Carriers Could Change the Balance of Power in the Pacific

JAMES STAVRIDIS
Foreign Policy
That’s why the United States needs to act now.

Gay Subway Proposal an Internet Hit in China

Pamela Boykoff, Shen Lu and Serena Dong
CNN
Attitudes towards gay rights are gradually shifting in China. Two decades ago, gay couples could face arrest under sodomy laws.

Conversation

09.30.15

The Future of Autonomy in Hong Kong

David Schlesinger, Denise Y. Ho & more
Yesterday, the governing board of Hong Kong University, one of the territory’s most esteemed institutions of higher education, voted to reject the promotion of Johannes Chan, a former law school dean, over the objections of the faculty and students...

U.S. Pulls Spies from China After Hack

Evan Perez
CNN
The U.S. suspects that Chinese hackers were behind the breach at the U.S. Office of Personnel Management, which exposed the fingerprints of 5.6 million government employees.

China Says Arrests Two Japanese for Spying

Linda Sieg and Kaori Kaneko
Reuters
Japan's Asahi newspaper said one man was taken into custody in China's northeast province of Liaoning near the border with North Korea and the other in the eastern province of Zhejiang near a military facility.

Caixin Media

09.28.15

Xi and Obama Should Make a BIT Breakthrough

President Xi Jinping has begun his first state visit to the United States to meet U.S. President Barack Obama in what state councilor and former foreign minister Yang Jiechi has called “a pivotal meeting at a critical time.”Xi arrived in the United...

Rights Group Demands Chinese Supporters of Hong Kong Democracy Be Freed

CLARE BALDWIN
Reuters
Amnesty International called for the release of eight mainland Chinese activists.

Environment

09.25.15

Weak Case for UK’s China-Funded Nuclear Plant, Critics Say

Isabel Hilton from chinadialogue
The U.K. and China moved closer this week to finalizing the finance of a highly controversial plan to build the first new nuclear power plant in the U.K. for a generation. The plant, Hinkley Point C in Somerset, western England, is seeking Chinese...

Top Hong Kong Judges Defend Rule of Law in Face of China Pressure

STELLA TSANG AND CLARE BALDWIN
Reuters
Two top Hong Kong judges on Friday defended the rule of law in an apparent rebuke of China's top official.

Six Questions for Chinese President Xi Jinping

Steven Mufson
Washington Post
Chinese President Xi Jinping does not usually conduct open news conferences, but when in America, do as the Americans do.

Enacting Cap-and-Trade Will Present Challenges Under China’s System

CHRIS BUCKLEY
New York Times
White House officials have lauded President Xi Jinping's anticipated promise of a national market for China in greenhouse gas quotas.

Two Very Different Men Visit D.C.: China’s Leader And His Teenage Nemesis

Emily Rauhala
Washington Post
Xi Jinping will get a state dinner and a 21-gun salute while Joshua Wong is in town to talk about Hong Kong’s fight for self-determination.

China Dissident's Wife Rejects Invite to State Department

MATTHEW PENNINGTON
Associated Press
The United States has warned that the toughest crackdown in years on Chinese activists threatens to cloud the high-profile visit by Xi.

China to the U.S.: Return Our Fugitives

Sophia Yan
CNN
China has launched campaigns dubbed "Operation Foxhunt" and "Operation Skynet," aimed at returning suspected criminals from abroad to stand trial at home.