China issues commemorative coins marking PLA's 80th founding anniversary

China issues commemorative coins marking PLA's 80th founding anniversary


www.chinaview.cn 2007-07-29 11:14:03 Print

BEIJING, July 29 (Xinhua) -- The People's Bank of China, China's central bank, has issued a set of golden and silver coins to commemorate the 80th founding anniversary of the Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA), which falls on August 1 this year.
The set of coins, including a golden coin and a silver one, were issued by the central bank on Saturday as legal tender.

The obverse side of both coins bears the design of PLA's oriflamme, images of China's armed forces figures and the engraving of "PLA's 80th Founding Anniversary" in Chinese, marked together with the name of the country and the year .

The back side of the golden coin carries the design of the venue of the Gutian Meeting held in the late 1920s. During the meeting, founding fathers of the PLA agreed on a series of guiding principles, which were widely believed to be crucial to the development of the PLA.

The reverse side of the silver coin displays modern weaponry equipment of the PLA.

The golden coin, 10,000 of which were issued for circulation and27 millimeters in diameter, is made of 1/2 ounce of pure gold, with a face value of 200 yuan each.

The silver coin, 30,000 of which were issued for circulation and 40 millimeters in diameter, is made of one ounce of pure silver with a face value of 10 yuan.


Editor: Feng Tao

Chinese army aviation unit for anti-terror drill flies to Russia

Chinese army aviation unit for anti-terror drill flies to Russia


www.chinaview.cn 2007-07-29 14:31:20 Print

URUMQI, July 29 (Xinhua) -- A Chinese army aviation unit, consisting of 16 helicopters, flew to Russia on Sunday for a joint anti-terrorism drill to be held by the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO).
The helicopters took off from an airport based in northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region at 9:54 a.m. and would fly 2,700 kilometers to get to the drill venue, said Major General Ma Xiangsheng, one of the top Chinese officers in charge of the drill.

"The flight will be a good test for China's army aviation troops due to its long distance, complicated topographic and climatic conditions on the way as well as possible language barriers with the ground service in Russia," Ma said.

"The formation will fly over Altay Mountains with an altitude over 4,000 meters when it crosses the Sino-Russian border, which demands full technical preparations," Ma said.

"The unit has carefully studied the map, made several counterplans and loaded the helicopters with sufficient aviation materials to ensure a successful flight," he said.

According to him, China will send to Russia a total of 16 Mi-17transportation helicopters and 16 Z-9 armed helicopters, which are mixed into two units to fly to Russia, Ma said.

The "Peace Mission 2007" drill will be carried out in Chelyabinsk in Russia and in Urumqi, capital of Xinjiang.

The six member countries of the SCO -- China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan -- will stage the joint anti-terrorism drill from Aug. 9 to 17.

It will involve 6,000 military personnel, including 4,700 Russian soldiers and 36 aircraft.


Editor: Feng Tao

Egypt, Israel agree to transfer stranded Palestinians to Gaza

Egypt, Israel agree to transfer stranded Palestinians to Gaza


www.chinaview.cn 2007-07-29 05:37:02 Print

CAIRO, July 28 (Xinhua) -- Egypt and Israel have agreed to transfer some 6,000 Palestinians stranded in Egypt for weeks to the Gaza Strip, Palestinian Embassador to Egypt Monzer Eldigany told Xinhua on Saturday.

The Palestinians, which have been stranded at the Egyptian side of Rafah terminal on the Gaza-Egypt border since mid June, will enter Israel via Aloja terminal, Eldigany said.

He added that they will then enter the Gaza Strip through an Israel-Gaza crossing according to the agreement.

The embassador said the deal will be carried out on Sunday morning and the stranded Palestinians will cross Aloja, which is under control of Egypt and Israel, on many stages.

Earlier on Saturday, a Palestinian minister said the crisis of the stranded Palestinians would end soon, most probably on Tuesday.

Palestinian Minister of Prisoners Affairs in Salam Fayyad government Ashraf el-Ajrami told reporters that an agreement was reached with the Israelis to let the Palestinians go home through other terminals.

But the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas), which took over the coastal strip on June 14 after defeating its rival Fatah movement, rejected this idea, insisting that the 6,000 Palestinian travelers should pass through the Rafah terminal on the Gaza-Egypt border, the only gateway to the outside world bypassing Israel.

Thousands of Palestinians, who left the Gaza Strip through Rafah crossing before Hamas took control of the Gaza Strip, were not able to go back to Gaza after the crossing was shut down.

The stranded Palestinians in Egypt have been living in harsh conditions. International aid groups have repeatedly called for a speedy solution to the crisis.


Editor: Mu Xuequan

Three killed in plane crashes in U.S.

Three killed in plane crashes in U.S.


www.chinaview.cn 2007-07-29 05:40:28 Print

WASHINGTON, July 28 (Xinhua) -- Three people were killed Saturday in two separate plane crashes in the United States, media reports said.

In Dayton, Ohio, a plane crashed on a runway of the Dayton International Airport while performing stunts during the Vectren Dayton Air Show. The pilot, Jim LeRoy, was taken to Miami Valley Hospital and was pronounce dead.

The air show was canceled for the rest of Saturday.

In Oregon City, Oregon, a seaplane crashed, killing two people inside, fire officials said.

In other developments, a medical helicopter with four people onboard crashed early Saturday in Mississippi, injuring one person aboard, and in Phoenix, Arizona, on Friday, two news helicopters covering a police chase collided and killed all four people aboard.

Also on Friday, two single-engine war planes at an experimental air show collided in Wisconsin while landing, killing one of the pilots and injuring the other.




Editor: Mu Xuequan

Voting in parliamentary election starts in Japan

Voting in parliamentary election starts in Japan


www.chinaview.cn 2007-07-29 07:38:17 Print


Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe speaks to voters on the last day of a stumping tour before the Sunday's upper house election in Tokyo July 28, 2007. Abe made a last-ditch effort to woo voters on Saturday ahead of an upper house election in which his ruling bloc looks set to lose its majority, a result that could cost him his job.(Xinhua/Reuters Photo)


TOKYO, July 29 (Xinhua) -- Voting began Sunday morning in Japan's upper house election, the first national election since Prime Minister Shinzo Abe formed his cabinet in September.

Voting started at 7:00 a.m. (2200 GMT, Saturday) across Japan and ends at 8:00 p.m. (1100 GMT) in most stations.

The election for half the seats in parliament's 242-member upper house comes just 10 months after Abe, 52, took over and pledged to bolster Japan's global security profile, rewrite its U.S.-drafted constitution and nurture economic growth.

According to recent media surveys, Abe's ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) is fighting an uphill battle to maintain majority, while major opposition Democratic Party of Japan seems to have gathered momentum to fight for the controlling power in the House of Councilors.

Half of the seats in the upper chamber are up for grabs every three years in Japan. A total of 377 candidates are contesting for 121 seats at stake this time.

Of the 121 seats, 73 are from single- or multi-seat prefectural constituencies and the rest 48 are from the national proportional representation block.

Before Sunday's election, the ruling coalition of the LDP and the New Komeito party jointly held 133 seats. Of the total, 57 seats and another of a pro-LDP independent are uncontested this time. Thus the two parties need to secure at least 64 seats to control the upper house.

According to the ministry of internal affairs, some 8.82 million absentee ballots have been cast as of Friday. The number of eligible voters in Japan stands at around 104 million.

As the ruling coalition has a commanding majority in the lower house of the parliament, a failure to maintain majority in the upper house would not immediately reverse the political picture. However, losing the battle would definitely add pressure to Abe, whose support rate has been dropping due to pension-recording errors, as well as scandals and controversial remarks involving his cabinet ministers.

In 1998, the then prime minister Ryutaro Hashimoto was forced to resign after suffering a major setback in the election. Japan's top government spokesman Yasuhisa Shiozaki suggested Friday that Abe does not intend to step down even the election turned out to be a defeat for the governing bloc.

Cargo plane crashes in Russia, killing 8

Cargo plane crashes in Russia, killing 8


www.chinaview.cn 2007-07-29 11:31:19 Print

MOSCOW, July 29 (Xinhua) -- A cargo plane crashed in Russia early on Sunday, killing at least eight people on board, the Itar-Tass news agency reported.

The plane hit the ground just after it took off from southeastern Moscow's Domodedovo airport at 04:16 Moscow time (0016 GMT), Itar-Tass said, citing a spokesperson of the Emergencies Ministry.

The An-12 cargo plane, which belonged to the Atran Company, fell down four km away from the runway and went on fire with eight people onboard, said spokesperson Viktor Beltsov.

"The plane left Domodedovo for Bratsk at 04:16 Moscow time and was supposed to make an interim landing in Omsk. There were eight people onboard, including five crewmen and three passengers," Beltsov was quoted as saying.

The aircraft's oil tanks were filled with petrol for taking-off and it was smashed into pieces scattering at a large range of field, he said.

Another source with the ministry, however, was quoted by Itar-Tass as saying that there were seven people onboard and all of them were crewmen.

The Domodedovo airport was operating normally after the crash. "All planes take off and land according to schedule," Itar-Tass said, citing an airport representative.

The four-engining propeller-driven An-12 was one of the most dated plane series in Russia. They were first put into service in 1958 and were now used for middle-and-long range cargo transport.


Editor: Sun Yunlong

Deputy Russian commander: SCO exercise prototype of anti-terror operation

Deputy Russian commander: SCO exercise prototype of anti-terror operation


www.chinaview.cn 2007-07-29 04:02:30 Print

·The drill of the SCO member states will be a prototype of anti-terrorist operations.
·The major task of the drill is to neutralize resistance and destroy terrorists.
·"The maneuvers will be broadcast on television," the Russian general said.
Special Report: Year of China in Russia

MOSCOW, July 28 (Xinhua) -- The upcoming military exercises of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) member states will be a prototype of anti-terrorist operations, a deputy commander of Russia's Ground Forces said Saturday.

The SCO exercise, code-named Peace Mission-2007 is, "in essence, a prototype of an anti-terrorist operation, the major task of which is to neutralize resistance and destroy terrorists," Lieutenant-General Vladimir Moltenskoy was quoted as saying by the Itar-Tass news agency.

"The maneuvers will be broadcast on television. A documentary film will be made and used as a training aid for the Armed Forces of the SCO member states," the Russian general said at the Cherbarkul training area, near the southern Ural city of Chelyabinsk.

"The SCO military-political leadership will assess the troops' actions during the exercise," Moltenskoy said.

"We shall teach leaders of the armed forces how to act in the complex conditions where there is neither a front or a rear line," he said earlier.

The general said preparations for the maneuvers were complete. "The leadership of the Russian Defense Ministry worked here on Thursday, checked the infrastructure of the area of the exercises and made a conclusion about our preparedness for them," Moltenskoy said.

"China's army aviation group should arrive at the Shagol airfield, near Chelyabinsk, today to take part in the SCO Peace Mission-2007 exercise," Colonel Igor Konashenkov, deputy head of the Peace Mission-2007 exercise, said earlier in the day.

The Peace Mission-2007 exercise will be held in the territory of the Volga-Urals military district from Aug. 9-17 with the participation of the Russian Armed Forces, units of the 34th motorized rifle division, army and tactical aviation units of the 5th Army of the Air Forces and Air Defense, units of Airborne Forces, Interior Forces, the Central Corrections Department, Border Service and other departments.

The exercise will involve almost 6,000 servicemen, including 2,000 from Russia, 1,600 from China, regiments from Kazakhstan and Tajikistan, and separate special units from other SCO member states.


Chinese troops cross border for joint exercise with Russia and central Asian countries

MANCHURI, July 28 (Xinhua)-- "Harasho (Good)!" Chinese soldiers tried to greet Russian attendants, by spelling the first Russian word they ever learned, after they took a Russian military train particularly assigned to transport the Chinese troops to join in a joint military exercise in Russia. Full story

Chinese soldiers study law before going to Russia for joint exercise

URUMQI, July 28 (Xinhua) -- Chinese soldiers and officers who are going to Russia for a joint military exercise with Russian troops, are not only armed with military equipment, but also books like "Guide for Troops to Join in Exercise in Russia" and "A Brief Introduction about Russia".Full story


Editor: Mu Xuequan

Libya asks Arab League to condemn Bulgaria's medics pardon

TUNIS, July 28 (Xinhua) -- Libya has called on other Arab countries to review their ties with Bulgaria in protest at Sofia's pardoning of the six Bulgarian medics that were jailed in Libya for infecting hundreds of children with HIV, said the Libyan government on Saturday, according to news from Tripoli.

Libya has "submitted a memorandum to the Arab League and demanded a review of the Arab position with regard to Bulgaria," Libyan Foreign Minister Abdul-Rahman Mohammad Shalgam told reporters in the Libyan capital Tripoli.

The Libyan government will also seek support from the African Union and the Organization of the Islamic Conference, he said, denouncing Bulgaria's pardoning of the medics as "betrayal" and "illegal."

The five Bulgarian nurses and one Palestinian doctor with Bulgarian citizenship had been jailed in Libya since 1999 and were sentenced to death for deliberately causing an HIV outbreak at a Benghazi hospital by infecting 426 children with the AIDS-causing virus.

Their death sentences were commuted to life imprisonment on July 17, and they were sent to Bulgaria on Tuesday under a deal allowing them to serve their life sentences there following mediation by France and the European Union, of which Bulgaria is a member.

But Bulgarian President Georgi Parvanov granted them a presidential pardon immediately after their arrival in Bulgaria on Tuesday, arousing strong protest from the Libyan government and the victims' families.

Le Premier ministre chinois appelle à prendre des mesures pour encourager l'élevage de porcs

Le Premier ministre chinois appelle à prendre des mesures pour encourager l'élevage de porcs


2007-07-29 09:19:49


BEIJING, 28 juillet (XINHUA)-- Le Premier ministre chinois Wen Jiabao a appelé à prendre des mesures pour encourager l'élevage de porcs, la faiblesse de l'offre ayant contribué à augmenter les prix, provoquant l'inquiétude des consommateurs et du gouvernement, qui redoute un possible effet inflationniste.

Wen a encouragé mercredi les gouvernements locaux à redoubler d'efforts pour aider les éleveurs de porcs, lors d'une conférence exécutive du Conseil des Affaires d'Etat.

La production de porcs du pays a chuté dramatiquement ces derniers mois à cause du faible enthousiame des éleveurs, échaudés par la hausse du coût de la nourriture ainsi que par l'abattage massif de porcs après l'arrivée de la maladie de l'oreille bleue dans certaines régions. La faiblesse de l'offre de porcs a contribué à l'augmentation des prix. Le prix de gros du porc représentait en juin une hausse de 74,6% par rapport au même mois de l'année dernière.

Wen a dit qu'il fallait augmenter la production de porcs pour stabiliser les prix et satisfaire la demande du public.

Ministre palestinien: le blocage des Palestiniens à Rafah sera bientôt réglé

Ministre palestinien: le blocage des Palestiniens à Rafah sera bientôt réglé


2007-07-29 08:47:06


RAMALLAH, 28 juillet (XINHUA) -- Le ministre des Prisonniers du gouvernement palestinien dirigé par Salam Fayyad, Achraf Al-Ajrami, a annoncé samedi que le blocage de plusieurs milliers de Palestiniens à la frontière entre la bande de Gaza et l'Egypte serait bientôt réglé.

"La crise des Palestiniens coincés à la frontière entre la bande de Gaza et l'Egypte pourrait être bientôt résolue, probablement mardi, au milieu de la semaine", a indiqué M. Al- Ajrami lors d'une conférence de presse tenue à Ramallah.

M. Al-Ajrami a révélé à la presse qu'un accord avait été conclu avec les Israéliens afin de permettre à 6.000 Palestiniens, bloqués dans la ville de Rafah à la frontière entre la bande de Gaza et l'Egypte, de rentrer chez eux par d'autres terminaux.

Il a ajouté que des autocars égyptiens transporteraient les Palestiniens à un terminal isrélien à la frontière israélo- égyptienne, via lequel les Palestiniens pourraient retourner dans la bande de Gaza.

"Etant donné l'absence des forces de sécurité palestiniennes au terminal de Rafah et le refus égyptien, isrélien et européen de rouvrir le terminal, nous sommes mis d'accord avec les Israéliens pour permettre à ces personnes de passer par un terminal israélien ", a précisé le ministre.

Des milliers de Palestiniens, qui ont quitté la bande de Gaza par le terminal de Rafah avant que le Hamas n'ait pris le contrôle de la bande de Gaza le 14 juin, ne pouvaient pas jusqu'à présent rentrer à Gaza après la fermeture du terminal.

Toute action militaire unilatérale des Etats-Unis au Pakistan serait inacceptable

Toute action militaire unilatérale des Etats-Unis au Pakistan serait inacceptable


2007-07-29 09:18:14


ISLAMABAD, 28 juillet (XINHUA) -- Le Comité des relations extérieures du Sénat pakistanais a pris note avec sérieux, samedi, des menaces des Etats-Unis de mener des attaques sur le territoire pakistanais et il a qualifié d'inacceptable toute éventuelle action militaire unilatérale des Etats-Unis sur son sol.

Condamnant fermement toute suggestion d'incursion sur le territoire pakistanais par des forces étrangères, le comité a jugé "irresponsables" les déclarations émanant de Washington et en cas d'action de ce type, le Pakistan cessera de soutenir les Etats- Unis dans leur guerre contre le terrorisme.

Dans une résolution adoptée à l'unanimité, le comité a indiqué que le Pakistan ne pouvait être tenu responsable des échecs et des faiblesses de l'OTAN et des forces américaines en Afghanistan, selon Associated Press of Pakistan, média d'Etat.

Citant des sources des renseignements, des médias occidentaux informent qu'al-Qaïda se regroupe dans les zones tribales du nord- ouest du Pakistan qui, selon des officiels américains, sont devenues des havres de paix pour les militants.

Les officiels pakistanais ont catégoriquement rejeté ces affirmations, estimant que si Washington avait des informatoins avérées et exploitables, il fallait les fournir au Pakistan qui prendrait les mesures nécessaires, et que toute action des Etats- Unis au Pakistan nuirait à la capacité du pays à coopérer dans la lutte contre le terrorisme.

Le président pakistanais Pervez Musharraf a fermement condamné les menaces d'intervention américaine vendredi devant la presse à Islamabad, avant son départ pour une visite de deux jours en Arabie saoudite et dans les Emirats arabes unis.

Il a ajouté que le Pakistan était entièrement capable d'agir contre les terroristes et n'avait besoin d'aucune aide extérieure.

L'envoyé sud-coréen devrait rencontrer le président afghan au sujet des otages

L'envoyé sud-coréen devrait rencontrer le président afghan au sujet des otages


2007-07-29 09:23:57


SEOUL, 28 juillet (XINHUA) -- L'envoyé présidentiel sud-coréen devrait rencontrer le président afghan Hamid Karzai samedi pour rechercher un moyen de secourir les 22 otages sud-coréens en Afghanistan, selon l'agence de presse sud-coréenne Yonhap.

Baek Jong-chun, conseiller pour la sécurité nationale du président sud-coréen Roh Moo-hyun, est arrivé à Kaboul vendredi et a rencontré des officiels afghans samedi, d'après Yonhap.

A Séoul, un officiel sud-coréen a dit à Yonhap que Baek devrait rencontrer Karzai samedi, bien qu'aucun agenda n'ait été prévu pour cette rencontre.

Baek devrait demander au gouvernement afghan de se montrer flexible dans son traitement des enlèvements et apporter un message de Roh Moo-hyun à Karzai, selon Yonhap.

Le gouvernement de Corée du Sud a décidé de mandater un envoyé après l'exécution par balle d'un des otages sud-coréens le 25 juillet, soit 6 jours après son enlèvement et celui de ses 22 compatriotes.

Le ministère sud-coréen des Affaires étrangères a affirmé vendredi que les 22 otages étaient en sécurité et que les contacts avec les ravisseurs s'établissaient.

Plus tôt samedi, des officiels sud-coréens à Séoul ont informé que des médicaments et de la nourriture avaient été remis au gouvernement afghan pour les otages.

La Ligue arabe réaffirme son adhésion à la politique d'une Chine

La Ligue arabe réaffirme son adhésion à la politique d'une Chine


2007-07-29 09:37:13


LE CAIRE, 28 juillet (XINHUA) -- La Ligue arabe basée au Caire a réaffirmé samedi son soutien au principe d'une Chine et son opposition aux tentatives et aux activités des autorités taiwanaises d'adhérer à l'Organisation des Nations unies.

Lors de ses discussions avec Li Chen, chargé d'affaires de l'ambassade de Chine au Caire, Hisham Youssef, chef du bureau du secrétaire général de la Ligue arabe Amr Moussa, a souligné que son organisation s'attachait à sa position claire et définitive en ce qui concerne Taiwan, selon laquelle il n'y a qu'une Chine dans le monde et Taiwan est une partie intégrante de la Chine.

Evoquant les efforts des autorités taiwanaises destinés à organiser un "référendum sur l'adhésion à l'ONU" et à tenter d'avoir un statut de "membre de l'ONU sous le nom de Taiwan", Hisham Youssef a réaffirmé que la Ligue arabe pratique la politique d'une Chine et rejette toute tentative d'"indépendance de Taiwan".

Le Premier ministre palestinien assistera à la réunion d'urgence des ministres arabes des A.E.

LE CAIRE, 28 juillet (XINHUA) -- Le Premier ministre palestinien Salam Fayyad assistera à une réunion des ministres arabes des Affaires étrangères, lundi, au siège de la Ligue arabe dans la capitale égyptienne du Caire, a rapporté samedi l'agence de presse égyptienne MENA.

Fayyad, également ministre des Affaires étrangères du gouvernement par intérim palestinien basé à Ramallah, devrait arriver au Caire dimanche, selon la MENA citant le délégué en chef palestinien à la Ligue arabe, Hussein Abdel-Khaleq.

Fayyad discutera avec d'autres hauts diplomates arabes des moyens de relancer le processus de paix au Moyen-Orient et l'Initiative de paix arabe pour parvenir à une résolution juste et durable du conflit israélo-arabe, a ajouté Abdel-Khaleq.

Le 13 juillet, le gouvernement d'urgence de Fayyad a démissionné et un gouvernement par intérim a été constitué, mais ce 12ème gouvernement palestinien n'a toujours pas été approuvé par le parlement dominé par le Hamas et qui n'a pu tenir séance en raison de divergences entre le Hamas et son mouvement rival, le Fatah.

L'Initiative de paix arabe, approuvée pour la première fois en 2002 et relancée lors d'un sommet arabe à Riyad fin mars, propose la reconnaissance d'Israël par tous les pays arabes à condition qu'Israël se retire de tous les territoires arabes occupés depuis la guerre de six jours en 1967, Jérusalem-est inclu.

Did you ever have this before?

Did you ever have this before?
Doctor: Have you ever had this before?

Patient: Yes.

Doctor: Well, you've got it again!

Preventive medicine belief

Preventive medicine belief
Mary: My daughter believes in preventative medicine, doctor.

Doctor: Oh, really?

Mary: Yes, she tries to prevent me from making her take it!

Driving exams worry me

Driving exams worry me
Liz: I get so nervous and frightened during driving tests!

Doctor: Don't worry about it. You'll pass eventually.

Liz: I'm the examiner!

You're in great health

You're in great health
Doctor: You're in good health. You'll live to be eighty.

Patient: But, doctor, I am 80 right now.

Doctor: See, what did I tell you.

Put me into a fighting mood

Put me into a fighting mood
Patient: Doctor, what I need is something to stir me up; something to put me in a fighting mood. Did you put something like that in this prescription?

Doctor: No need for that. You will find that in your bill.

jokes

Will I live any longer?
Patient: Doctor, if I give up wine, women, and song, will I live longer?

Doctor: Not really. It will just seem longer.

Get a heart transplant

Get a heart transplant
A new arrival, about to enter hospital, saw two white coated doctors searching through the flower beds.

"Excuse me," he said, "have you lost something?"

"No," replied one of the doctors. "We're doing a heart transplant for an income-tax inspector and want to find a suitable stone."

Bad temper problem

Bad temper problem
Patient: Doctor, you must help me. I'm under such a lot of stress, I keep losing my temper with people.

Doctor: Tell me about your problem.

Patient: I just did, didn't I, you stupid fool!!

An invisible man is here to see you

An invisible man is here to see you
Nurse: Doctor, there is an invisible man in your waiting room.

Doctor: Tell him I can't see him now. Next.

Benefits of having Alzheimer's disease

Benefits of having Alzheimer's disease
5. You never have to watch reruns on television.

4. You are always meeting new people.

3. You don't have to remember the whines and complaints of your spouse.

2. You can hide your own Easter eggs.

1. Mysteries are always interesting.

Would you please do me a favor?

Would you please do me a favor?
A dentist, after completing work on a patient, came to him begging.

Dentist: Could you help me? Could you give out a few of your loudest, most painful screams?

Patient: Why? Docor, it wasn't all that bad this time.

Dentist: There are so many people in the waiting room right now, and I don't want to miss the four o'clock ball game.

I think I need a pair of glasses

I think I need a pair of glasses
Patient: Doctor, I think I need glasses.

Teller: You certainly do! This is a bank.

I have bad and very bad news

I have bad and very bad news
Doctor: I have some bad news and some very bad news.

Patient: Well, might as well give me the bad news first.

Doctor: The lab called with your test results. They said you have 24 hours to live.

Patient: 24 hours! That's terrible! What could be worse? What's the very bad news?

Doctor: I've been trying to reach you since yesterday.

Can I play the piano once these are off?

Can I play the piano once these are off?
A doctor has come to see one of his patients in a hospital. The patient has had major surgery to both of his hands.

"Doctor," says the man excitedly and dramatically holds up his heavily bandaged hands. "Will I be able to play the piano when these bandages come off?"

"I don't see why not," replies the doctor.

"That's funny," says the man. "I wasn't able to play it before."

I have good news and bad news

I have good news and bad news
Patient: I'm in a hospital! Why am I in here?

Doctor: You've had an accident involving a bus.

Patient: What happened?

Doctor: Well, I've got some good news and some bad news. Which would you like to hear first?

Patient: Give me the bad news first.

Doctor: Your legs were injured so badly that we had to amputate both of them.

Patient: That's terrible! What's the good news?

Doctor: There's a guy in the next ward who made a very good offer on your slippers.

A very interesting fact

A very interesting fact
Doctor: Did you know that there are more than 1,000 bones in the human body?

Larry: Shhh, doctor! There are three dogs outside in the waiting room!

Letters from charities

Letters from charities
I am always getting those return address labels from charities wanting money.

The other day, I got one from an Alzheimer's group. Funny though, they forgot to put my street name on them!

The results of the X-ray

The results of the X-ray
Patient: Doctor, what does the X-ray of my head show?

Doctor: Absolutely nothing!

Cannabis Use May Increase Risk of Psychotic Illness

Cannabis Use May Increase Risk of Psychotic Illness

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A British study showed Friday that using cannabis may increase the risk of developing psychotic illnesses such as schizophrenia later in life.



Researchers from the University of Bristol, Imperial College and Cambridge University reviewed 35 studies that tracked tens of thousands of people for periods ranging from one year to 27 years to examine the effects of marijuana on mental health.



They found that people who used marijuana had roughly a 41 percent higher chance of developing a psychotic disorder later in life, and the likelihood increases with increasing marijuana use, with heavy users three times as likely as non-users to develop mental illnesses.



They reported the findings in the latest issue of British medical journal The Lancet which is published Friday.



Marijuana is the most frequently used illegal substance in many countries. About 20 percent of young adults report taking pot at least once a week, according to government statistics in Britain.



According to the researchers, if marijuana does cause psychosis, it could account for at least one in every 10 cases of diagnosed psychotic illness.



Previous research has suggested a link between cannabis and schizophrenia-like symptoms such as paranoia and hallucinations.



(Xinhua News Agency July 28, 2007)

Move to Ease Burden of Medical Bills

Move to Ease Burden of Medical Bills

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Basic healthcare insurance is to be provided to primary and high school students, senior citizens and the unemployed in 79 cities on a trial basis. A document released by the State Council on Wednesday said the system will cover all cities by 2010.



This is one of the steps the central government has taken to extend to all its citizens the benefits of the country's economic development. The subsidies, from both local and central governments, will be at least 40 yuan (US$5.30) per person per year.



When combined with the healthcare insurance provided to workers in urban areas and the new rural cooperative healthcare system for villagers, the new scheme is expected to complete the healthcare security net that will hopefully cover all residents nationwide in the near future.



It is, of course, the duty of the government to relieve the burden of people's medical bills when the rapid increase in its revenue from taxes makes it possible for it to do so.



But we can't expect the net will be established overnight. It is first carried out in some cities on a trial basis because we need a gradual process to find out the problems and prepare to roll it out to all in need of it.



Also, a sound mechanism needs to be established to manage the security fund.



The misappropriation and embezzlement of social security funds in the past should serve as a warning that a sound management system and supervision mechanism are as essential as the fund itself.



With this health insurance, we have reason to believe there will not be so many sensational incidents involving hospitals refusing to save the life of a dying patient simply because he or she cannot pay the deposit, as that will be covered by the insurance.



Nevertheless, this subsidy won't solve the problem of high medical bills. Bills can be as high as several hundred yuan for the treatment of a common cold, which will not be covered by the insurance system.



So a reform of the medical care system needs to be carried out simultaneously to allow hospitals to provide good service at a reasonable price. Then medical bills will cease to be a burden on ordinary people.



(China Daily July 28, 2007)

Fragile Volleyballer's Return Postponed

Fragile Volleyballer's Return Postponed

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Chinese women's volleyball head coach Chen Zhonghe has decided to again postpone the comeback of fragile spiker Zhao Ruirui for fears of unexpected relapses.




Beijing-based sports newspaper, The First, reports that the coach on Tuesday ruled out the possibility of Zhao's return at the Asian Championships, set in September, saying the event is unlikely to help the player regain her match fitness.

Chen said he hoped Zhao's recovery to her original form could be felt smoothly.

Zhao's physical condition has turned for the better since treatment earlier this year in the United States. The surgery aims to cure the injury in her leg that has affected her for years, and kept her sidelined in Athens in 2004, where China re-claimed the women's volleyball title after a 20-year wait.

(CRI July 25, 2007)

Yushu, Qinghai: Tibetan Kangba Art Festival (I)

Tibetans perform a traditional dance during a cultural festival in Yushu, west China's Qinghai province July 27, 2007. The five-day arts festival includes folk performances, costume displays and horse racing, local media reported. [Reuters]



Link: Yushu, Qinghai: Tibetan Kangba Art Festival (II)

Yushu, Qinghai: Tibetan Kangba Art Festival (III)


Tibetans perform a traditional dance during a cultural festival in Yushu, west China's Qinghai province July 27, 2007. The five-day arts festival includes folk performances, costume displays and horse racing, local media reported. [Reuters]


A Tibetan performs a traditional dance during a cultural festival in Yushu, west China's Qinghai province July 27, 2007. The five-day arts festival includes folk performances, costume displays and horse racing, local media reported. [Reuters]


Tibetan riders take part in a yak racing event during a cultural festival in Yushu, west China's Qinghai province July 27, 2007. The five-day festival also includes folk performances, costume displays and horse racing, local media reported. [Reuters]



Tibetans perform a traditional dance during a cultural festival in Yushu, west China's Qinghai province July 27, 2007. The five-day arts festival includes folk performances, costume displays and horse racing, local media reported. [Reuters]

Financial Muscle for Energy Conservation

Financial Muscle for Energy Conservation

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China has put muscle into its drive for saving energy and reducing pollution with 10 billion yuan funded by the central government, according to the website of the country's top economic policy-planning agency.



Through the allocation of 6.3 billion yuan in treasury bonds and 5 billion yuan from the national budget appropriated at the start of the year, the country now has a total of 21.3 billion yuan in its green drive war chest.



The National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) said that as part of the effort, about 9 billion yuan, 13 times of the amount allocated last year, will be used in 10 key energy saving and pollution reduction projects.



"It is great that a government's efforts are reflected in its policies and fund allocations, which correspond with its commitments," said Zhang Jianyu, an environmental visiting scholar in Tsinghua University.



"It also shows that the government is taking this (energy conservation and emission reduction) as its own, rather than allocating the responsibilities to enterprises," Zhang said.



China has set a target to cut energy consumption per unit of gross domestic product by 20 percent from 2006 to 2010 compared to the 2005 levels and reduce major pollution emissions, such as sulphur dioxide and chemical oxygen demands, by 10 percent.



Ten key projects for energy saving and pollution reduction are a significant part of the green effort, which planners estimate can save 240 million tons of coal equivalent.



The projects include saving and seeking substitutes for oil, improving coal-burning industrial boilers, developing regional combined circular power plants (CCPP), increasing energy efficiency in power generation systems, improving overall energy system performance, developing energy saving construction and lighting systems and requiring governmental lead in energy conservation, as well as providing monitoring systems and related service development.



Through saving and seeking substitutes for oil, the country is projected to conserve 38 million tons of oil by 2010.



Improvement in coal-burning industrial boilers will help the nation save 35 million tons of coal equivalent, while adoption of regional CCPP technology is estimated to save 35 million tons of coal equivalent.



The country's new buildings for both domestic and public use are required to save 50 percent of energy from 2006 to 2010 by adopting green technology and materials, which the NDRC estimates can conserve at least 100 million tons of coal equivalent.



(China Daily July 28, 2007)

Giant Panda Expands Habitat in W. China

Giant Panda Expands Habitat in W. China

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China's endangered giant panda is expanding habitat in bamboo forests stretching across two western provinces, recent discovery of its dung indicates.



Forestry researchers have identified panda's droppings in areas beyond its known habitat, in Baishuijiang Nature Reserve, a 220,000-hectare area bordering the northwestern Gansu Province and the southwestern Sichuan Province.



"This indicates an expansion of the giant panda's habitat -- and probably of its population, too," says Huang Huali, vice director of the Baishuijiang Nature Reserve Administration.



The latest national census on giant pandas, which lasted from 1999 to 2001, counted 103 pandas in Baishuijiang, the largest of China's 55 giant panda reserves.



Huang says the reserve has proven an ideal home for the cuddly bears with its good ecosystems and rich resources of arrow bamboo -- giant panda's favorite food.



To ensure ample food supply for the pandas, forestry experts have identified more than 20 bamboo-eating insects and curbed the plague of insect pests since 2002, said Huang.



"Our bamboo forests have been effectively restored after the massive flowering and die-off in the 1980s," he said.



Flowering bamboos in the mid 1980s triggered a severe food shortage for the critically-endangered giant pandas and nearly the whole nation made donations to help save the bears.



Giant pandas are among the world's most endangered species. Statistics from the State Forestry Administration show around 1,590 panda live in the wild, mostly in the mountains of Sichuan. More than 210 pandas are kept in captivity.



Links: Sichuan Giant Panda Sanctuaries -- Wolong, Mt. Siguniang and Jiajin Mountains



(Xinhua News Agency July 28, 2007)

Shanghai to Blacklist Office Buildings with Poor Air Quality

Shanghai to Blacklist Office Buildings with Poor Air Quality

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Shanghai plans to launch a survey of the indoor air quality in downtown office buildings and publish a list of buildings where air doesn't meet health standards, according to a local environment association.



The project aims to improve the general air quality of office buildings as a recent survey shows that most professionals are not satisfied with the air quality in their offices.



"We want to promote public awareness of building a healthy working environment," said Wang Fang, an official with the Shanghai Association of Environmental Protection Industries who is in charge of the project.



During the survey, environmental experts from the association will use scientific devices to test the density of harmful chemicals in the air within a batch of downtown office buildings. They will also design a questionnaire to ask people working in office buildings about their health.



Wang said the association is currently picking the buildings it will study during the survey, which will begin later this year.



The ultimate purpose of the survey is to stimulate building managers to improve the maintenance of air-conditioning systems or to install air purifying equipment.



Wang said the project was inspired by Hong Kong's action during the outbreak of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome in 2003. During that period, Hong Kong initiated a citywide survey of indoor air quality in major office buildings.



According to a recent preliminary survey of 100 randomly selected professionals in office buildings in Xujiahui and the Bund, some 70 respondents said they were not happy with the ventilation system in their office and 60 respondents said they were victims of second hand smoke.



Poor air quality is caused by the use of substandard materials during construction, poor maintenance of air-conditioning systems, and ineffective ventilation systems, experts said.



"I am very curious about the sanitation of our central air conditioning system as I never noticed our property guys cleaning them," said Wang Jianqun, a professional working in a highrise office building near People's Square.



(Xinhua News Agency July 28, 2007)

First High-level Translation Teaching Forum Held in Beijing

First High-level Translation Teaching Forum Held in Beijing

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A prestigious forum on teaching the art of translation and interpreting began today at Beijing's esteemed Tsinghua University. The first high profile professional forum of its kind, it will close on July 28.



Organized by the Translators Association of China and sponsored by CASIO (Shanghai), the forum has brought together over 200 participants, including illustrious names from Chinese ministries as well as translators and researchers from the Chinese mainland, Hong Kong and Macao.








Huang Youyi delivers a speech.



Comprehensive discussions are covering topics such as: translation teaching goals, course curriculums, textbooks concerning translation instruction, translation teaching methodology, evaluation standards and how to mentor successful translation majors.



Experts gathered for the forum echoed one another in stressing the need to foster high-level translation talents. With China's recent reforms and open door policies intense communication has been taking place between China and other countries. There is a constantly increasing demand for high-level translation professionals and stricter requirements are being placed on translation work.



In recent years, translation majors have been appearing everywhere. Translation departments, colleges and translation research institutes have been sprouting up madly. China has carefully cultivated qualified, talented students. In 2006, a BA degree in Translation in some universities was allowed a trial run by the Ministry of Education. Moreover, in January 2007 the Academic Degree Committee of the State Council agreed to set up a Master of Translation and Interpreting (MTI).








However, traditional Chinese foreign language pedagogy lags behind modern international translation teaching methodology. Currently Chinese translation instructors are challenged with both creating a workable methodology and a contemporary curriculum to suit the growing need.



Huang Youyi, vice president for both the International Federation of Translators and the China International Publishing Group (CIPG), said that MTI should be intimate with the China Aptitude Test for Translators and Interpreters (CATTI), thus marrying the degree to the vocation. CATTI is used now as a national qualification test for translators and interpreters.



Besides the main forum, there are also three branch forums covering various translation concepts: creating successful translation majors, translation teaching methodology, and translation theories combined with the practical art of translation.



(China.org.cn by Li Xiaohua, July 27, 2007)

Move to Ease Burden of Medical Bills

Move to Ease Burden of Medical Bills

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Basic healthcare insurance is to be provided to primary and high school students, senior citizens and the unemployed in 79 cities on a trial basis. A document released by the State Council on Wednesday said the system will cover all cities by 2010.



This is one of the steps the central government has taken to extend to all its citizens the benefits of the country's economic development. The subsidies, from both local and central governments, will be at least 40 yuan (US$5.30) per person per year.



When combined with the healthcare insurance provided to workers in urban areas and the new rural cooperative healthcare system for villagers, the new scheme is expected to complete the healthcare security net that will hopefully cover all residents nationwide in the near future.



It is, of course, the duty of the government to relieve the burden of people's medical bills when the rapid increase in its revenue from taxes makes it possible for it to do so.



But we can't expect the net will be established overnight. It is first carried out in some cities on a trial basis because we need a gradual process to find out the problems and prepare to roll it out to all in need of it.



Also, a sound mechanism needs to be established to manage the security fund.



The misappropriation and embezzlement of social security funds in the past should serve as a warning that a sound management system and supervision mechanism are as essential as the fund itself.



With this health insurance, we have reason to believe there will not be so many sensational incidents involving hospitals refusing to save the life of a dying patient simply because he or she cannot pay the deposit, as that will be covered by the insurance.



Nevertheless, this subsidy won't solve the problem of high medical bills. Bills can be as high as several hundred yuan for the treatment of a common cold, which will not be covered by the insurance system.



So a reform of the medical care system needs to be carried out simultaneously to allow hospitals to provide good service at a reasonable price. Then medical bills will cease to be a burden on ordinary people.



(China Daily July 28, 2007)

Men Sentenced to Death for Seabed Petroleum Theft

Men Sentenced to Death for Seabed Petroleum Theft

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An east China court has sentenced 10 people whose attempt to steal seabed petroleum two years ago caused an oil and gas leak costing 400 million yuan (US$51 million) in direct economic loss.



Wang Yujiang and Liu Linbin, two principals who masterminded the theft, were sentenced to death at first trial on Friday at the Intermediate People's Court in Dongying, a city in the eastern Shandong Province, a spokesman with the court said.



Shi Guoyong, another principal, got a suspended death sentence, and seven others were sentenced to prison terms ranging from three years to life.



Investigators found the gang, at Wang's instruction, stole into a seabed oil extraction center of the country's second largest oilfield Shengli Oilfield in June 2005 to drill what they thought was an oil pipeline. They succeeded in perforating the pipe but fled when they found it contained natural gas instead of oil.



In July, they stole 10 tons of crude oil, valued at more than 30,000 yuan, from a pipeline in a different location. The perforated pipeline was not capped until after employees of Shengli Oilfield detected an oil leak five months later.



Natural gas leak from the pipeline damaged earlier was discovered only in March 2006.



Emergency repairs and cleanup at the two locations plus the damages to the local fisheries cost an estimated 400 million yuan, the court said.



(Xinhua News Agency July 28, 2007)

Ministry Strengthens Water Quality Monitoring

Ministry Strengthens Water Quality Monitoring

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The Ministry of Construction said on Friday it has started to establish a water quality monitoring and pre-warning system and also a rapid-response mechanism to deal with urban water supply emergencies.



Vice-Minister of Construction Qiu Baoxing said that the growing frequency of water pollution accidents meant that it was increasingly difficult for the country to ensure safe supplies of drinking water.



Severe water pollution accidents in recent years have affected the normal water supplies of millions of people and caused huge economic losses.



"The frequency, harm and complexity of these pollution accidents are unprecedented," he said.



"On the one hand, there are more and more chemicals and organic substances," he said.



"On the other hand, we don't know their impact once they get into the water, which places a heavy burden on us as we try to work out emergency response plans."



Zhang Yue, director of the ministry's urban construction bureau, said it is drawing up emergency plans on how to deal with more than 100 pollutants such as pesticides, heavy metals and some persistent organic substances.



And solution to reduce or eliminate about 50 kinds of pollutants, like algae, which polluted several fresh lakes this year and benzene compounds, which forced Harbin, the capital of northeastern China's Heilongjiang Province to suspend water supplies for four days.



"Our goal is to ensure normal supplies," said Zhang, adding that China is setting up an urban water quality monitor system.



"We are trying to get access to the real-time water quality conditions of major water sources nationwide within the 11th Five-Year Plan (2006-10), to ensure the timely detection of any abnormal changes to water quality," he said.



(China Daily July 28, 2007)

US Treasury Opposes Currency Bill

US Treasury Opposes Currency Bill

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The US Treasury Department said it continues to believe that the robust Strategic Economic Dialogue (SED) is the best means of achieving progress, when opposing a bill aimed at pressing China to raise the value of its currency.



The Treasury said in a statement the bill represents the wrong approach in achieving essential currency and economic reforms in China that would reduce trade imbalances.



The US Senate Finance Committee voted 20-1 on Thursday to pass a bill that would give the US government new tools to pressure China to float the yuan currency in open markets.



"It distances the US from a multilateral approach and raises serious concerns regarding US compliance with international rules governing anti-dumping investigations," the statement said.



The Treasury said it recognized that members of Congress want to send a strong message to China through this bill and others under consideration, adding that Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson would tell the Chinese leadership that "it is vital to the health of the global economy, including the US economy, that China reform its currency and take other steps to reduce imbalances."



Paulson will start his fourth visit to China next week and is scheduled to hold talks with President Hu Jintao and Vice Premier Wu Yi.



But the Treasury said it cannot support the bill's approach and "continues to believe that direct, robust discussions with the senior Chinese leaders, not legislation, is the best means of achieving progress."



The bill requires the Commerce Department to take "currency undervaluation" into account when calculating anti-dumping duties on foreign goods, which could lead to higher duties already in place on many Chinese products, and encourage US companies to seek new duties on additional Chinese goods.



The bill also would require the Bush administration to take action through the International Monetary Fund and eventually the World Trade Organization against targeted countries that refuse to reform their currency policies.



The overwhelming vote shows Congress is headed toward passing legislation by a big enough margin to overcome any presidential veto, said Senator Charles Schumer, a New York Democrat who helped craft the measure.



A faster appreciation of the yuan is not a panacea to the broadening US-Chinese trade deficit or other ills, such as losses in manufacturing jobs, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke said last week.



Vice Premier Wu told a dinner in Washington in May attended by Paulson and Bernanke that the yuan's value was not the cause of the deficit.



She added that about 85 percent of China's surplus with the US is from foreign companies exporting products no longer made in the United States, such as shoes.



Meanwhile, China has made it clear on many occasions that the country would carry out the exchange rate reform in an independent, controllable and gradual way to maintain the yuan's strength.



The yuan has seen seesawing fluctuations versus the dollar since 2005.



China promised to deepen the exchange rate reform to allow the yuan to fluctuate in line with market supply and demand during the second strategic economic dialogue between the two countries.



(China Daily July 28, 2007)

China Stocks Unscathed After Asian Markets Tumble

China Stocks Unscathed After Asian Markets Tumble

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Most Asian markets tumbled on Friday in the wake of one of Wall Street's biggest drops of the year, although European markets rebounded modestly from sharp losses the previous day.



Japanese stocks fell to nearly three-month lows, Philippine stocks marked their steepest decline in 10 years, and South Korea's benchmark index - which had hit a record on Wednesday - sank 4.1 percent, its biggest slide in more than three years. Chinese stocks, however, ended the day flat.



Investors in Asia were rattled after US and European markets plunged on Thursday amid worries over the US mortgage and corporate lending markets. Those woes could cause global liquidity to dry up as international investors pull out of riskier assets, including Asian emerging markets, analysts said.



"If big foreign funds have selling orders, they tend to go by region. If they sell Asia funds, they do it to reevaluate portfolios or cover losses in the US," said Rommel Macapagal, chairman of Westlink Global Equities, in Manila.



"But for local investors, it's a sentiment. When big drops occur, they tend to get jittery because of expectation of foreign funds selling. They tend to get out," he said.



"The big fall in New York stocks mainly has a psychological impact on China's stock market. The real impact is not very big because the liquidity of the A-share market remains very sufficient," said Chen Xingdong, chief economist from BNP Paribas Peregrine Securities Ltd.



According to Chen, three factors prevented China's A-share market from rising on Friday. "First, the A-share stock market already reached a record high on Thursday. Second, the government believes the economy is overheating and may take a series of control measures, and third, there is an impact from the big fall in New York."



"It will have little impact on the A-share market," Li Zhikun, senior analyst from China Jianyin Investment Securities Co Ltd said. "The fall in the American stock market was mainly due to a credit concern in the US financial system, and it will not have an impact on China's economy," he said.



In Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 index sank 418.28 points, or 2.36 percent, to close at 17,283.81 - nearly a three-month low. Concerns about the yen's recent strength, which hurts exporters, and uncertainty over weekend parliamentary elections also weighed on the Japanese market.



The sell-offs in Asia came after stunning rallies in the region - markets in South Korea, China and India hit records just this week - and some investors viewed Wall Street's drop as a good opportunity to sell and lock in their profits.



Hong Kong's Hang Seng index fell 2.8 percent, while stocks in the Philippines tumbled 3.9 percent. Australia's benchmark index slid 2.8 percent Indian stocks were down over 3 percent.



But as the day progressed, key European markets, which had fallen sharply on Thursday in reaction to the slide on Wall Street, climbed higher on Friday.



The UK's FTSE 100 index, which had tumbled 3.2 percent on Thursday - its worst single-day percentage drop since March 2003 - was up 0.2 percent to 6,261.00. France's CAC-40 index gained 0.7 percent to 5,712.37, while the German DAX 30 index slipped 0.1 percent to 7,499.51.



US stocks plunged on Thursday amid mounting concerns that sluggish home sales and continued defaults in subprime loans would spur debt defaults and weigh on corporate earnings.



Investors also worried that higher corporate borrowing costs will curb the rapid pace of takeovers that had driven stocks higher this year.



The Dow Jones industrial average sank 311.50 points, or 2.26 percent, to 13,473.57, its biggest point drop since February 27, when a drop in the Shanghai market sparked a global rout.



At miday New York time, the NYSE Composite Index stood at 9547, down 106 points.



The drop in Japanese shares was aggravated by the yen's rise to a three-month high versus the dollar, which fell as low as 118.02 yen.



Later it recovered some to 118.56 yen, but that was still down sharply from 119.46 yen late on Thursday in New York.



"A stronger Japanese yen has a greater impact on today's Nikkei than overnight losses on US stocks," said Hiroyuki Fukunaga, chief strategist at Rakuten Securities.



(China Daily July 28, 2007)

Financial Muscle for Energy Conservation

Financial Muscle for Energy Conservation

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China has put muscle into its drive for saving energy and reducing pollution with 10 billion yuan funded by the central government, according to the website of the country's top economic policy-planning agency.



Through the allocation of 6.3 billion yuan in treasury bonds and 5 billion yuan from the national budget appropriated at the start of the year, the country now has a total of 21.3 billion yuan in its green drive war chest.



The National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) said that as part of the effort, about 9 billion yuan, 13 times of the amount allocated last year, will be used in 10 key energy saving and pollution reduction projects.



"It is great that a government's efforts are reflected in its policies and fund allocations, which correspond with its commitments," said Zhang Jianyu, an environmental visiting scholar in Tsinghua University.



"It also shows that the government is taking this (energy conservation and emission reduction) as its own, rather than allocating the responsibilities to enterprises," Zhang said.



China has set a target to cut energy consumption per unit of gross domestic product by 20 percent from 2006 to 2010 compared to the 2005 levels and reduce major pollution emissions, such as sulphur dioxide and chemical oxygen demands, by 10 percent.



Ten key projects for energy saving and pollution reduction are a significant part of the green effort, which planners estimate can save 240 million tons of coal equivalent.



The projects include saving and seeking substitutes for oil, improving coal-burning industrial boilers, developing regional combined circular power plants (CCPP), increasing energy efficiency in power generation systems, improving overall energy system performance, developing energy saving construction and lighting systems and requiring governmental lead in energy conservation, as well as providing monitoring systems and related service development.



Through saving and seeking substitutes for oil, the country is projected to conserve 38 million tons of oil by 2010.



Improvement in coal-burning industrial boilers will help the nation save 35 million tons of coal equivalent, while adoption of regional CCPP technology is estimated to save 35 million tons of coal equivalent.



The country's new buildings for both domestic and public use are required to save 50 percent of energy from 2006 to 2010 by adopting green technology and materials, which the NDRC estimates can conserve at least 100 million tons of coal equivalent.



(China Daily July 28, 2007)

Former French PM Indicted over Clearstream Scandal

Former French PM Indicted over Clearstream Scandal

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Former French Prime Minister Dominique de Villepin was indicted Friday for "complicity in a case involving false accusations" over the infamous Clearstream scandal, according to one of his lawyers.

The former prime minister Friday appeared before judges, who are charged with handling investigations into the scandal, in which a plot was hatched "to tarnish the names" of prominent French politicians.



Speaking at the end of the hearing, Villepin said that "at no moment" had he "ordered investigations into political personalities," nor had he "participated in organizing such apolitical maneuver."



In 2004, a "slanderer" sent anonymous letters containing a list of prominent personalities, who were accused of operating dubious accounts purportedly held at Luxembourg-based securities clearinghouse Clearstream Luxembourg. Current French president Nicolas Sarkozy, Dominique Strauss-Kahn who has been proposed as new IMF chief, former ministers Alain Madelin and Jean-Pierre Chevenement were some of the senior politicians mentioned in the letters.



Preliminary investigations into the claims revealed that it was a smear campaign and investigations were launched into the "smear campaign," at the request of some of those who were mentioned in the letters.



In June 2006, Jean-Louis Gregorian, a former vice-president with the EADS group, was indicted in connection with the scandal and acknowledged having sent the anonymous letters. In December 2006, Villepin appeared before the judges handling the Clearstream scandal as a witness and subsequently denied any wrongdoing.



In June 2007, Philippe Rondot, former senior French intelligence officer, who had led investigations into the matter unearthed new evidence in the form of notes showing that De Villepin had "instructed" Gregorian to send the anonymous letters to law enforcement agencies.








Questioned once again over the anonymous letters, Gergorinac knowledged that he had received instructions from the former prime minister but added that Villepin had, at the time, believed in the authenticity of the accusations.



In July 2007, the judges handling investigations into the scandal ordered Villepin's offices to be searched in connection with the matter.



(Xinhua News Agency July 28, 2007)

US, India Reach Deal on Nuclear Cooperation

US, India Reach Deal on Nuclear Cooperation

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The US and India have reached an operating agreement on peaceful nuclear cooperation, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice announced Friday.



"The US and India have reached a historic milestone in their strategic partnership by completing negotiations on the bilateral agreement for peaceful nuclear cooperation," she said in a statement jointly issued with Indian Foreign Minister Shri Pranab Mukherjee.



"The conclusion of negotiations on this agreement marks a major step forward in fulfilling the promise of full civil nuclear cooperation as envisioned by President (George W.) Bush and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh," said the statement.



The civil nuclear cooperation will offer enormous strategic and economic benefits to both countries, including enhanced energy security, a more environmentally friendly energy source, greater economic opportunities, and more robust nonproliferation efforts, the statement said.



Rice did not provide details of the long-delayed, controversial accord, which, according to local reports, has gone beyond the terms approved by the US Congress.



The Washington Times reported Thursday that the US has agreed to help India secure fuel for its reactors, even if it conducts another atomic test.



The Bush administration made the major concession in closed-door talks with visiting Indian officials last week to save the civilian nuclear-energy deal with India, the newspaper quoted diplomats and nonproliferation experts as saying.



Sources familiar with the new proposal said the United States had offered to "consider the circumstances" before cutting off cooperation in the event of a nuclear test by India. In fact, Washington has even offered to help New Delhi secure alternative supplies of nuclear fuel as a way of getting round a US embargo.



The sources said deal had been negotiated under pressure from India, which was determined to avoid having its hands tied in its nuclear rivalry with neighboring Pakistan.



One source with knowledge of the proposal said, "The US would join India in seeking a fuel-supply agreement with the IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency)."



"If there were an interruption, the U.S. and India will convene a group of friendly supplier countries, such as Britain and Russia, to restore the supply," the unidentified source said.



Christopher Griffin, a research fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, said the Bush administration's concessions are not a "real surprise, because its interest is not as much in nonproliferation as in removing the barrier to strategic cooperation with India on a broader agenda."



The US and India reached a historic agreement on civil nuclear cooperation in March 2006, giving India access to US civil nuclear technology, and opening its nuclear facilities to inspection.



US President George W. Bush in December 2006 signed into law a bill approved by Congress allowing the deal to go through, a major step toward letting India buy US nuclear reactors and fuel for the first time in 30 years.



But US Congress attached several conditions to the law which were unpopular in New Delhi, and the two countries had to return to negotiations.



Under the bill, the US president would be required to end the export of nuclear materials if India tests another nuclear device. India last performed nuclear tests in 1998.



The bill also does not guarantee uninterrupted fuel supplies for reactors and prevents India from reprocessing spent atomic fuel.



Indian critics have said the agreement would put restrictions on the country's nuclear weapons program.



(Xinhua News Agency July 28, 2007)

Two Television Helicopters Collide, Killing Four

Four people were killed on Friday when two television news helicopters collided while following a police chase in Phoenix, Arizona.


A pilot and photographer aboard each chopper were killed, police confirmed.



Local television station KNXV reported that it owned one of the choppers. The other was from KTVK.



Within a minute, other stations with helicopters in the area began reporting news of the crash.



The men on the choppers were doing live coverage as police chased a man driving a construction truck who had fled a traffic stop and was driving erratically, hitting several cars and driving on the sidewalk at times.



The man fleeing from police was later taken into custody after barricading himself inside a house, police said



Both helicopters went down in a park in central Phoenix and caught fire. No one on the ground was hurt.



(Xinhua News Agency July 28, 2007)

New Peacekeeping Troops Organized for Lebanon

Chinese soldiers stand during a ceremony to organize the third batch of Chinese peacekeeping troops for Lebanon in Chengdu, Southwest China's Sichuan Province, July 27, 2007. The force, an engineering battalion comprising 275 officers and soldiers, will have an eight-month operation, replacing the second batch peacekeepers in Lebanon in early September. [Xinhua]


Chinese soldiers stand during a ceremony to organize the third batch of Chinese peacekeeping troops for Lebanon in Chengdu, Southwest China's Sichuan Province, July 27, 2007. The force, an engineering battalion comprising 275 officers and soldiers, will have an eight-month operation, replacing the second batch peacekeepers in Lebanon in early September. [Xinhua]

Chinese soldiers arrive at a ceremony to organize the third batch of Chinese peacekeeping troops for Lebanon in Chengdu, Southwest China's Sichuan Province, July 27, 2007. The force, an engineering battalion comprising 275 officers and soldiers, will have an eight-month operation, replacing the second batch peacekeepers in Lebanon in early September. [Xinhua]

Men Sentenced to Death for Seabed Petroleum Theft

Men Sentenced to Death for Seabed Petroleum Theft

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An east China court has sentenced 10 people whose attempt to steal seabed petroleum two years ago caused an oil and gas leak costing 400 million yuan (US$51 million) in direct economic loss.



Wang Yujiang and Liu Linbin, two principals who masterminded the theft, were sentenced to death at first trial on Friday at the Intermediate People's Court in Dongying, a city in the eastern Shandong Province, a spokesman with the court said.



Shi Guoyong, another principal, got a suspended death sentence, and seven others were sentenced to prison terms ranging from three years to life.



Investigators found the gang, at Wang's instruction, stole into a seabed oil extraction center of the country's second largest oilfield Shengli Oilfield in June 2005 to drill what they thought was an oil pipeline. They succeeded in perforating the pipe but fled when they found it contained natural gas instead of oil.



In July, they stole 10 tons of crude oil, valued at more than 30,000 yuan, from a pipeline in a different location. The perforated pipeline was not capped until after employees of Shengli Oilfield detected an oil leak five months later.



Natural gas leak from the pipeline damaged earlier was discovered only in March 2006.



Emergency repairs and cleanup at the two locations plus the damages to the local fisheries cost an estimated 400 million yuan, the court said.



(Xinhua News Agency July 28, 2007)

Anti-money Laundering Screws Tightened

The central bank has directed insurance and securities institutions to set up an anti-money laundering mechanism this year, and is likely to ask some non-financial sectors to do the same.



"We need the insurance and securities sectors to set up an (internal) arm and devise rules against money laundering this year," Tang Xu, head of the anti-money laundering department of the People's Bank of China (PBOC), the country's central bank, said during a live Internet conference yesterday.



This is PBOC's latest move to intensify its fight against money laundering. Earlier, it ordered the banking industry to devise a system to monitor and report dubious money flow.



Some specific non-financial institutions such as law and accounting firms and auction houses are the others that could be directed to set up similar mechanisms, Tang said.



"We will study these sectors one by one and map out reporting and inspection regimes for dubious transactions."



Securities and insurance companies will have to send data on dubious deals to the anti-money laundering monitoring center of the central bank from October 1, he said.



China intensified efforts to improve its anti-money laundering regime by passing an anti-money laundering law late last year and issuing rules on checking the possible flow of funds for terrorists last month.



It has joined hands with the Ministry of Public Security to set up a network to check the identity of banks' customers. The system went into force in late June, and all the country's banks have joined it, PBOC deputy governor Su Ning told a press briefing yesterday.



If a bank official wants to check a customer's identity he just needs to click a few times for the computerized image of his ID to pop up on the screen, the PBOC official said.



(China Daily July 27, 2007)

Newest Potter E-Book May Transform Publication Norms

Although the last chapter of J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter book series Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows was officially on sale globally on July 21, it's the English version. Some enthusiastic Chinese fans have bought it, but most Chinese are still waiting for the Chinese language version, expected in late October.




However, many fans just can't wait another three months. Despite the fact that translation rights and publishing rights for the Chinese Harry Potter book series were exclusively obtained by the People's Literature Publishing House, a translated version of the book has appeared on the Internet in less than a week. Many industry insiders are now wondering if this will alter Chinese publication standards in China, and finally also address the piracy issue.

After the English language version of the book was released, many Chinese Harry Potter fans voluntarily formed Internet translation groups. To date, 29 of the 36 major chapters of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows have been professionally translated. Various Chinese online forums and blogs posted and spread the text around the Internet. Indeed, a few groups even claimed that they have already completely translated the book.

In order to ensure a professional quality translation, translation group members were carefully selected by veteran Harry Potter fans, all of whom supervised Harry Potter fan clubs or Bulletin Board System forums, China.org.cn learned. All of them had to take exams to qualify. Some are high school or university students, the rest are white-collar employees in foreign enterprises or even Chinese youngsters living or studying abroad. Most of them have never met each other in person.

Such Chinese Internet translation campaigns sprouted into existence when the last Harry Potter books were introduced. A few webmasters controlling the Harry Potter fan sites explained to CCIDnet, China's famous IT portal, that they are trying to meet the demands of tens of thousands of Chinese fans who just can't wait until October. They said that the translation is just a preliminary text and for sharing purposes only, it is not for commercial use.

The miscellany of young translators also said that they are doing the translation simply because they love the book. None of them want even a dime in payment, because it would be, according to them "an insult to our beloved Harry Potter". In fact, one of the young translators was quoted as stating, "If anyone asks for money for this, he is not really a Potter fan," reported an initiator of a translation group.

But those translation works may infringe upon the copyright laws in China and the rest of the world. So some translation groups have been disbanded, while others have ceased updating and uploading information. Yet the work continues.

Yang Hong, deputy director of the Guangzhou Copyright Association, said that even though the Internet translation was for sharing purposes only, it has already challenged the exclusive translation and publishing rights of the Chinese publishing houses. He said that good intentions couldn't guarantee that illegal book brokers would not make use of those translations to print illegal pirated books. This would hurt the interests of both the author and the publishers.

Among Chinese Harry Potter fan clubs, 52Harrypotter.com is one of a few sites which call for fans to stand against the Internet translation.




Putting aside the piracy controversy, insiders said this phenomenon might become a vanguard for new standards in the Chinese publication industry. Yang Hong said that a publisher could publish two translated versions of a foreign book like Harry Potter. The Internet version is a fast version, like fast food for fans who want to read the book as soon as possible. Later, the higher quality, professional translation could be a classic. Both will sell well, he added.

But Harry Potter fans said they never thought about financial gains. They said that if the publisher wished, they would give their translated version to the publisher for free and for reference. They noted that complaints concerning translation mistakes were widespread in the publisher's previously translated Harry Potter books. This is because Chinese translators may not be intimate with British culture and customs.

Officials from the People's Literature Publishing House said that they have reported this illegal problem to relevant authorities, such as the General Administration of Press and Publication. Wang Ruiqin, executive editor of the publishing house who brought the Harry Potter series to China, said she could understand her fans' urges and passions. But she added that it is also a challenge for the publishing house to hold anyone responsible for the illegal translation.

"We are facing a group of net citizens who have committed a serious infringement. The problem is that one person may have just translated one paragraph. If we sue, then we may have to sue tens or hundreds of fan translators for one single translated version. Furthermore, we cannot know how widespread the translation really is or how much damage it has caused," she admitted.

The official Chinese version of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows was scheduled to be released on October 28 of this year. The professional translators Ma Ainong and Ma Aixin are two sisters. Both worked together to translate several of the previous Potter books. They started working on the official Chinese translation the day the book was released worldwide.

(China.org.cn by Zhang Rui, July 27, 2007)

Top Leadership Warns on Overheated Economy

The economy has to be stopped from becoming overheated and to ensure that officials at all levels will implement the central government's policies, the country's highest leadership said yesterday.

The Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee gave the call after central government inspection teams found some local governments are ignoring the State Council's decision to save energy and cut greenhouse gas emission, and are still investing heavily in high resource-consuming sectors.

"All the local governments, especially leading officials, should implement the central government's measures to the letter," the Political Bureau said at its meeting, chaired by President Hu Jintao.

It told all local governments to understand the consequences of the blistering economic growth: 11.9 percent in the second quarter, and 11.5 percent in the first half of the year.

Fixed-asset investment in urban areas jumped 26.7 percent in the first half year-on-year and a large part of the money went into industries that consume huge amounts of energy.

"The priority now is to prevent the economy from overheating," the meeting said.

Hu emphasized the importance of seeing the ever-changing domestic and international economic environment in the right perspective, and called for continual effort to tackle issues such as excessive liquidity and overcapacity.

Agricultural production, especially grain output, should be increased and the development of agricultural infrastructure accelerated, he said.

Efforts to save energy and reduce greenhouse gas emission should be intensified, Hu said. People's lives should be improved by tackling problems that concern them, such as those associated with education, employment, healthcare, housing, and work safety.

The "commitment" to cutting energy consumption per unit of GDP by 20 percent during the 11th Five-Year Plan (2006-2010) is a "challenge", the CPC Political Bureau said.

Experts said some local governments don't have enough funds to meet the goal.

Huang Shengchu, president of the China Coal Information Institute, said the current situation is not because of difference in thinking but because some local governments lack funds.

(China Daily July 27, 2007)

Corruption in Medical Equipment Purchase Targeted

The Ministry of Health will get professional advice in the purchase of medical equipment in a bid to clean up the corruption-plagued healthcare sector.



A 800-member team of medical and healthcare experts has been formed by the China Medical Equipment Association (CMEA), under the ministry.



The team is tasked with securing quality medical equipment at reduced costs.



"The team will draw up a recommended list of medical equipment after examination of information provided by manufacturers about their products," said CMEA Director Li Banling.



The assessment will take into consideration the practical needs of all involved partners, including the government, hospitals and medical equipment manufacturers, Li said.



To guarantee an open, fair assessment, members of the team will be randomly selected for each task.



"No medical institution above county level will be allowed to evade the purchasing conducted by the medical authorities," said Zhao Zilin, director of the ministry's Budget and Financial Planning Department.



Each item of equipment bought by hospitals must be on the recommended list, he said.



"The ultimate goal is to benefit the general public in terms of a reduction in health expenditure," Zhao said.



China's total medical health expenditure was more than 800 billion yuan in 2006, according to official statistics. About half of it was shouldered by patients.



Healthcare insiders said many medical institutions purchase unnecessary state-of-the-art equipment, to realize fat profits from patients.



To relieve the burden on the public from over-priced health services, the government has kept capping the price of a variety of medicines, but not the fees for physical check-ups.



The government will invite bids and use competitive negotiations in its collective purchasing of equipment, to be undertaken by the ministry's International Communication and Cooperation Center.



"All stakeholders, the government and the producers alike, should practise self discipline to jointly contribute to 'transparent purchasing'," said Li Hongshan, director of the center.



Gerard Kleisterlee, Philips' president and chief executive officer, said he expects the market to grow about 10 percent over the next three years, making it the third-largest medical equipment market, after the United States and Japan.



In the next five to seven years, the Chinese market is expected to surpass Japan to become the world's second-largest medical equipment market.



(China Daily July 28, 2007)

Import of Petrochemical Equipment Likely to Be Restricted

China's top economic policy-making agency is planning to limit imports of petrochemical equipment to secure local machinery producers a larger market share.



According to a proposal by the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), no less than 75 percent of the equipment used in the petrochemical industry should be sourced from domestic producers by the end of the 11th Five-year Plan period (2006-2010), the Shanghai Securities News reported Friday.



The NDRC is soliciting advice from local petrochemical companies including the China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC) and the China Petroleum and Chemical Corporation.



The proposal may bring 75 billion yuan worth of orders for domestic machinery producers as the petrochemical industry spends around 100 billion yuan in equipment procurement annually, an official with the CNPC said, declining to give his name.



The proposal on further promoting home-made large-scale petrochemical equipment requires petrochemical firms to submit a list of equipment they plan to buy for new projects.



It said China will ban the import of equipment that can be made by domestic producers and is already widely used, while limiting those that can be made in China but are not widely used, with tax policies.



On the banned list are hydrocrackers with an annual production capacity ranging from 800,000 tons to 2 million tons, 700,000-ton-charge gas compressors, and 300,000-ton-propylene compressors.



Also on the restriction list are one-million-ton-charge gas compressors and 600,000-ton-PTA air compressors.



Chinese manufacturers have the ability to produce world-class petrochemical equipments, said an unnamed expert who participated in the formulation of the proposal, adding the petrochemical industry lags behind the power, metallurgy and steel industries in buying domestic-made production facilities.



China has imported 18 large-scale items of equipment for ethylene projects and PTA projects in the past 20 years. Currently most of the equipment for the ethylene projects with a production capacity of more than one million tons comes from imports, the expert added.



(Xinhua News Agency July 28, 2007)

SAIC, Nanjing Auto Set to Join Forces

Two of China's State-owned carmakers - Shanghai Automotive Industry Corp (SAIC) and Nanjing Automobile Corp (NAC) - signed a letter of intent on Friday for a much-heralded association.



According to a statement from SAIC, the two companies will form a working group to discuss "possibilities and programs for all-round collaboration" in vehicles, spare parts, auto trading and services.



They will also talk about "an asset re-organization to achieve an all-round amalgamation", the statement said.



It said the expected consolidation between the two carmakers will help them use State assets more efficiently, build synergies in research and development, purchasing, manufacturing and sales, and improve their product mix and the value of their own brands.



However, no details have been revealed.



The move is widely seen to have been ignited by the fact that the two firms are bitterly going head-to-head with their own brands born from the same foreign technology, a battle government officials have said in the past they don't want to see.









SAIC, China's top carmaker, started selling its Roewe mid-sized sedan in March, while NAC, a much smaller concern, will launch a MG 7 sedan in the market in the second half of this year. Both models are based on the Rover 75 from collapsed British carmaker MG Rover.



SAIC, the partner of General Motors and Volkswagen, in 2004 bought the intellectual properties of the Rover 75 and 25 sedans, and K-series engines from MG Rover.



NAC, which runs a car venture with Fiat Auto, in 2006 purchased the MG brand, a plant in England and Powertrain, the engine arm of the British carmaker.



SAIC, China's top carmaker, plans to spend 10 billion yuan to roll out more than 30 models and aims to sell 200,000 of its own-brand cars a year by 2010.



NAC is building a production capacity of 200,000 MG cars, 250,000 engines and 100,000 gearboxes in eastern city of Nanjing with a total investment of 3.5 billion yuan.



An official from the National Development and Reform Commission, China's top industry watchdog, in April said the two firms' own-brand cars are overlapping and they should join forces. Both would fail if they continued to contest fiercely, the official warned.



Commenting on the two carmakers' planned tie-up, Zhang Xin, an auto analyst with Guotai & Jun'an Securities Co, said one likely option is to create a joint venture in which both of the two firms inject their main assets.



"This will avoid a sensitive word like merger, which could be a face-saving deal for NAC as it is much weaker than SAIC. However, the latter should have a bigger stake in the joint venture," Zhang said.



SAIC's sales surged by 27 percent to 1.34 million vehicles last year from 2005.



Meanwhile, NAC moved 105,050 units, down 5.8 percent.



SAIC, one of the top Fortune 500 multinationals over the past three years, is the most profitable carmaker in China. But NAC has been in the red for years.



Consolidations are badly needed for China's fast-growing but fragmented auto industry, analysts say. There are more than 100 vehicle producers in China, the world's second-biggest auto market.



Vehicles sales in China are forecast to total 8.5 million units this year, up from 7.22 million in 2006.



(China Daily July 28, 2007)

Fake Drug Ring Busted

Chinese police have arrested 15 members of a gang who allegedly made and sold dozens of types of fake drugs in northeastern Heilongjiang Province.



The drugs were counterfeits of 67 types of pharmaceuticals produced by 53 companies, including vaccines against rabies and blood protein used to treat patients during surgery, the provincial Public Security Department announced on Friday.



Police seized 10,000 doses of rabies vaccine, 20,250 bottles of an injection used to treat cardiovascular disease and 211 bottles of blood protein, it said.



The gang allegedly either bought fake drugs from outside Heilongjiang and packaged them, or processed them using materials such as distilled water and starch, in Harbin, the provincial capital.



The fake drugs were mainly sold in Heilongjiang and some were sold to other provinces, the department said.



The Heilongjiang food and drug inspection bureau has issued an emergency notice to local drug authorities to search for and confiscate the fake drugs, it added.



Police are still investigating the case.



(Xinhua News Agency July 28, 2007)

Men Sentenced to Death for Seabed Petroleum Theft

An east China court has sentenced 10 people whose attempt to steal seabed petroleum two years ago caused an oil and gas leak costing 400 million yuan (US$51 million) in direct economic loss.



Wang Yujiang and Liu Linbin, two principals who masterminded the theft, were sentenced to death at first trial on Friday at the Intermediate People's Court in Dongying, a city in the eastern Shandong Province, a spokesman with the court said.



Shi Guoyong, another principal, got a suspended death sentence, and seven others were sentenced to prison terms ranging from three years to life.



Investigators found the gang, at Wang's instruction, stole into a seabed oil extraction center of the country's second largest oilfield Shengli Oilfield in June 2005 to drill what they thought was an oil pipeline. They succeeded in perforating the pipe but fled when they found it contained natural gas instead of oil.



In July, they stole 10 tons of crude oil, valued at more than 30,000 yuan, from a pipeline in a different location. The perforated pipeline was not capped until after employees of Shengli Oilfield detected an oil leak five months later.



Natural gas leak from the pipeline damaged earlier was discovered only in March 2006.



Emergency repairs and cleanup at the two locations plus the damages to the local fisheries cost an estimated 400 million yuan, the court said.



(Xinhua News Agency July 28, 2007)

Pan-Beibu Bay Funding Would Link 7 Nations

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A proposed association within the Pan-Beibu Bay region would provide a strong foundation for economic cooperation between China and other countries surrounding the bay, a top local official said.



The proposal, put forward by officials from South China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region and domestic banks, was a hot topic among participants of the Pan-Baibu Bay Economic Cooperation Forum, which closed on Friday in Nanning, Guangxi's capital city.



"The proposed association is of great importance to building a financial platform between China and the other six countries in the Pan-Beibu Bay region since financial injection is a fundamental element for cooperation in the region," said Liu Qibao, Party secretary of Guangxi.



The Pan-Beibu Bay area includes China, Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore and Vietnam.



Under the proposal, a joint financial database for cooperative projects would also be established to help economic development in the Pan-Beibu Bay region, according to Liu.



"We welcome domestic and overseas banks, including the Asian Development Bank and State-owned banks in other Pan-Beibu Bay countries, to join the association. Private investment organizations are also encouraged," said Liu.



Both domestic and overseas financial institutions have shown interest in supporting the effort.



"We have given priority to regional economic cooperation in the Pan-Beibu Bay area, and later we will dispatch a number of working groups to countries surrounding the bay to work out details of cooperation in the financial sector," Chen Yuan, governor of China Development Bank (CDB), said.



According to Chen, the CDB has promised 24.8 billion yuan to support development.



The proposal to establish a joint financial entity in the Pan-Beibu Bay area was also supported by Chen.



"The entity, which would be of great importance in providing financial services for economic cooperation, would push forward development of big projects between countries surrounding the bay," Chen said.



(China Daily July 28, 2007)