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China Daily Website

IN BRIEF (Page 2)

Updated: 2014-03-07 10:01
( China Daily Africa)

President calls for strong ethnic unity

President Xi Jinping has called for resolute opposition to any words and actions that damage the country's ethnic unity.

"We will build a 'wall of bronze and iron' for ethnic unity, social stability and national unity," Xi said while joining discussion of the second session of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference National Committee.

"Unity and stability are blessings, while secession and turmoil are disasters. People of all ethnic groups in the country should cherish ethnic unity."

Knife-wielding terrorists killed 29 people and injured 143 in an attack at Kunming Railway Station on March 1. Police shot and killed four of the attackers and wounded another, a woman. Three other suspects were arrested on March 3.

Authorities say evidence at the station points to separatists from the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region.

(See story on page 3)

Leader vows to intensify reform drive

The nation's top political adviser, Yu Zhengsheng, pledged on March 3 to further efforts to deepen the country's reforms.

"We will perform all our functions in a spirit of reform and innovation throughout the course of our work and will strive to play a bigger role in the development of the Party and country," he said.

Yu, chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, was speaking as the second session of the 12th National Committee opened in Beijing.

In the past 12 months, more than 2,000 national political advisers have submitted 5,884 proposals, with 5,403 of these being passed to authorities.

By Feb 20, the government had handled 5,396 proposals, accounting for 99.8 percent of the total. Over 24 percent of them have been resolved or adopted, said Han Qide, vice-chairman of China's top political advisory body.

Michelle Obama's visit to boost ties

A visit to China this month by US First Lady Michelle Obama will showcase US intimacy with China, draw the two nations closer and increase Chinese people's curiosity about the US first family, according to observers.

On March 3, the White House announced that the visit will take place from March 19 to 26. Obama will be accompanied by her mother, Marian Robinson, and her daughters, Malia and Sasha.

It will be her first trip to China, as she did not accompany her husband on his visit in 2009.

During the trip, she will meet Peng Liyuan, the wife of President Xi Jinping.

She will visit Beijing from March 20 to 23, Xi'an on March 24 and Chengdu from March 25 to 26, the office of the first lady said in a statement.

Japan back on itinerary for tourists

The number of Chinese tourists traveling to Japan may return to the level before September 2012, when territorial disputes erupted between the two neighbors, according to Chinese experts and industry players.

There has been a rapid recovery in the figures in recent months, showing the effects of the disputes are fading, said Jiang Yiyi, director of the International Tourism Development Institute.

Relations became strained following Japan's illegal "purchase" of China's Diaoyu Islands in September 2012.

Japan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs says 145,799 Japanese visas were given to Chinese residents in January, a record high since Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe took office in late 2012.

"Chinese residents have started accepting Japan as a destination again," Jiang said, adding that a weak yen and a relaxation in visa policies helped attract Chinese tourists.

Xi urges boost to Internet security

President Xi Jinping pledged to strengthen China's Internet security and build the nation into a strong cyberpower.

He made the remarks during the first meeting of a central Internet security and informatization leading group, which he heads.

Premier Li Keqiang and senior official Liu Yunshan are deputy heads.

Xi said Internet security concerns a country's security and development as well as people's lives and work.

The group is designed to lead and coordinate Internet security and informatization work among different sectors, as well as draft national strategies, development plans and major policies in this field, Xi said.

China is a major victim of criminal activities in cyberspace, and up to 3,000 government websites have been hacked, according to the National Computer Network Emergency Response Technical Team Coordination Center of China.

Nation won't take 30 years to clear smog

The Ministry of Science and Technology said on March 3 that China will not need 30 years to clear smog as developed countries did.

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Ma Yanhe, an official from the ministry, said developed countries also experienced serious air pollution and they spent about 30 years battling the problem.

Ma said that with more demanding requirements and more advanced technologies, China will not take that long to handle pollution. However, it is not an easy task, and China will have to strengthen controls over the sources of pollution, improve the monitoring and early warning system, adjust the industrial structure and use more technical innovation.

China becomes world's top trader

China replaced the United States as the world's largest merchandise trader in 2013, a milestone in the country's decades-long trade expansion path, the Ministry of Commerce said on March 1.

"According to the preliminary statistics of the World Trade Organization, China was the leading merchandise trader in 2013. China's merchandise trade totaled $4.16 trillion in 2013 with exports reaching $2.21 trillion and imports $1.95 trillion," the ministry said.

The statistics matched the figures released by China's General Administration of Customs on Jan 10.

Data from the US Commerce Department showed on Feb 6 that the US' combined exports and imports stood at $3.91 trillion in 2013, about $250 billion less than China's.

In 2012, the US was still the world's biggest trader in merchandise, with imports and exports totaling more than $3.88 trillion. China closely followed, with merchandise trade totaling almost $3.87 trillion, according to the WTO.

In 2009, China became the world's largest exporter and second-largest importer.

China Daily-Xinhua

 IN BRIEF (Page 2)

President Xi Jinping shakes hands with a member of the ethnic Uygur community during the annual session of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference in Beijing on March 4. The president called for the nation to maintain a strong sense of ethnic unity. Ding Lin / Xinhua

(China Daily Africa Weekly 03/07/2014 page2)

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