China has lodged stern representations with Japan over its so-called resolution expressing concerns about China's human rights situation, said Foreign Ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian on Feb. 1.

 

He made the remarks after the House of Representatives of the Japanese parliament adopted a resolution on what it called the "serious human rights situation" in China, referring to the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, the Tibet Autonomous Region, the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region and the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, among others.

 

From: CGTN

 

 

Before athletes from around the world began competing for the highest honors in winter sports in Beijing 2022, a group of Chinese kids from a remote mountainous village had basked in their own Olympic glory.

 

Exuding confidence with crystal-clear voices, a choir of 44 children sang the Olympic Anthem, in Greek, at the iconic "Bird's Nest" stadium during the opening ceremony of the Beijing 2022 Olympic Winter Games on Feb. 4.

 

From: Xinhua

 

 

An estimated 130 million passenger trips were made during the just-concluded Spring Festival holiday, official data showed on Feb. 7.

 

The figure represented a 31.7-percent increase compared with that of the Spring Festival holiday last year, according to the Ministry of Transport.

 

From: Xinhua

 

 

China will enhance its regulation of off-campus tutoring by stepping up legislation and enhancing supervision, said the Ministry of Education in its 2022 work plan.

 

According to the plan, posted on its official website on Feb. 8, the ministry will conduct regular inspections on national holidays, at weekends, as well as in winter and summer vacations. Any off-campus tutoring activities featuring curriculum subjects during these periods will be shut down, said the ministry.

 

From: Xinhua

 

 

China will continue to advance the opening-up of its high-level education, the Ministry of Education (MOE) said in its key tasks for 2022 released on Feb. 8.

 

Efforts will be made to step up cooperation with other countries in the sector, such as advancing the high-quality development of the Education Action Plan for the Belt and Road Initiative and stepping up cooperation with ASEAN countries in vocational education and mutual recognition of academic qualifications, according to the ministry.

 

From: Xinhua

 

 

Taiwan will allow imports of Japanese food from areas affected by the 2011 Fukushima nuclear disaster by the end of February, said the island's executive authority at a press briefing on Feb. 8, ending an import ban that has been in place for 11 years.

 

Taiwan will lift the ban on food imports from five prefectures in Japan - Fukushima, where the disaster occurred, and neighboring Gunma, Chiba, Ibaraki, and Tochigi, but some restrictions will remain, the authority said.

 

From: Xinhua

 

 

The restriction on the use of loudspeakers on public transportation will now include buses, the Shanghai Municipal Transportation Commission announced on Feb. 8.

 

The restriction on the use of loudspeakers on buses is a new addition to the updated rules for bus transportation, which took effect on Dec 28.

 

From: chinadaily.com.cn

 

 

The government of China's Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) on Feb. 9 strongly condemned a totally erroneous statement issued by the British government in the name of a number of foreign entities under the so-called "Media Freedom Coalition" concerning the implementation of the national security law in Hong Kong.

 

"We express our deep regret and must rebuke those foreign entities for signing a 'media freedom-related' statement that contained no more than the usual fact-twisting and opinionated attacks against the National Security Law in Hong Kong," said a spokesperson for the HKSAR government.

 

From: Xinhua

 

 

The expanding list of drugs and medical consumables included in China's bulk-buy program is expected to cover traditional Chinese medicines and more orthopedic and dental implants this year, the National Healthcare Security Administration said on Feb. 11.

 

Since 2018, China has launched six rounds of a centralized procurement program that is estimated to have saved more than 260 billion yuan ($40.7 billion) in medical insurance costs and patient expenditure, said Chen Jinfu, deputy director of the administration.

 

From: China Daily

 

 

Vaccination among students should occur according to the basic principles of informed consent and voluntariness, the Beijing Municipal Education Commission said on Feb. 13.

 

The commission said, in a statement, that it opposes mandatory vaccination or taking vaccination as a prerequisite for students to participate in classes and activities in schools and kindergartens.

 

From: Xinhua

 

 

Chinese Premier Li Keqiang on Feb. 14 urged efforts to "gather wisdom from all sides" to improve the government's work, and specified measures to bolster China's industrial economy and service sectors.

 

While chairing a State Council executive meeting, Li was briefed on the handling of suggestions from deputies to the National People's Congress (NPC) and proposals from members of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) in 2021.

 

From: Xinhua

 

 

A Chinese envoy on Feb. 14 called for the prioritization of four key issues related to poverty and hunger reduction: food security, protection of vulnerable groups, sustainable development, and social justice.

 

Zhang Jun, China's permanent representative to the United Nations, made the appeal at the 60th session of the Commission for Social Development.

 

From: Xinhua

 

 

China has managed to greatly reduce the number of accidents and casualties in its chemical industry since 2019, according to the Ministry of Emergency Management.

 

"Thanks to the joint endeavors of various government bodies, the safety situation in the hazardous chemical sector continues to be stable," Sun Guangyu, a senior official for hazardous chemical supervision at the ministry told a news conference on Feb. 15.

 

From: chinadaily.com.cn

 

 

A central-level disease control and prevention body, which was established amid the COVID-19 pandemic, will take charge of a range of work regarding China's emergency response capacity, monitoring of infectious diseases and oversight of the public health sector, according to a circular issued on Feb. 16.

 

The document, issued by the general offices of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and the State Council, stipulates that the National Administration of Disease Prevention and Control will also be tasked with supervising and managing local disease control agencies and disease control work at medical institutions.

 

From: CHINA DAILY

 

 

China's inflation was further tamed in January as food prices saw a decline, while price retreats in coal and steel sectors prompted factory-gate inflation to moderate, official data showed Feb. 16.

 

The consumer price index (CPI), a main gauge of inflation, rose 0.9 percent year-on-year in January, down from the 1.5-percent increase a month ago, data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) showed.

 

From: Xinhua

 

 

China's National Health Commission (NHC) on Feb. 17 said it will continue fully supporting the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region government and meet its demands in containing the current COVID-19 outbreak.

 

The commission said in a statement on the website that it has been paying close attention to the fifth wave of the COVID-19 pandemic in Hong Kong.

 

From: Xinhua

 

 

Every primary and secondary school in China should have at least one part-time vice-principal from law enforcement authorities who can take charge of law-related affairs and better protect children, a new guideline said on Feb. 17.

 

The guideline, issued by the Ministry of Education and approved by the Supreme People's Court, Supreme People's Procuratorate, and the ministries of public security and justice, will take effect on May 1.

 

From: CHINA DAILY

 

 

Primary and secondary schools in China will appoint vice principals who will be in charge of law-related affairs to ensure better protection for students and tackle juvenile delinquency and school bullying.

 

The relevant measures that will come into effect on May 1 require that at least one vice principal responsible for such work is appointed in each primary or secondary school, the Ministry of Education said on Feb. 17.

 

From: Xinhua

 

 

China welcomes UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet to visit the country, including a visit to Xinjiang, Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi said on Feb. 19.

 

Wang attended the 58th Munich Security Conference via videolink and made the remarks in responses to queries concerning China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region.

 

From: Xinhua

 

 

The No 1 Central Document for 2022 was released on Feb. 22, underscoring ensuring food security and preventing a large-scale reoccurrence of poverty as the priorities for this year's work on agriculture and rural affairs.

 

The document, unveiled by central authorities, stressed advancing rural vitalization, while pushing ahead with continuing breakthroughs in core agricultural technology and increasing farmers' incomes.

 

From: CHINA DAILY

 

 

The Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region has seen great achievements in education, healthcare and employment after stepping up efforts to improve the people's livelihood over the past few years, an official from the local government said.

 

Erkin Tuniyaz, chairman of the regional government, shared these and other achievements with guests from home and abroad during a seminar themed "People First" on Feb. 22 via video link, which was jointly held by the government and the Permanent Mission of China to the United Nations Office at Geneva.

 

From: chinadaily.com.cn

 

 

The quality of legal services provided through a mini program on popular instant messaging tool WeChat, will be improved to meet increasing demand, an official with the country's top court told media on Feb. 22.

 

Sun Fuhui, deputy director of the Information Center at the Supreme People's Court, said it plans to link several online platforms, including those dealing with mediation, case filing and the delivery of rulings, to create unified access via the WeChat mini program for nationals.

 

From: chinadaily.com.cn

 

 

The domestic job market has performed better than expected in 2021, the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security said on Feb. 22.

 

Around 12.7 million jobs were created in urban areas last year, surpassing the target of 11 million. The average surveyed unemployment rate was 5.1 percent, falling by 0.5 percentage points from the previous year.

 

From: chinadaily.com.cn

17 held accountable for alleged woman abuse in China's Jiangsu
 
Seventeen people have been held accountable for an alleged woman abuse case in Fengxian county, East China's Jiangsu province, the provincial authorities said on Feb. 23.
 
Among them, Lou Hai, Party chief of Fengxian, has been removed from his post, and Zheng Chunwei, head of the county government, has been demanded to resign, according to a report issued by an investigation team of the Jiangsu Provincial Committee of the Communist Party of China and the provincial government of Jiangsu.
 

From: Xinhua

 
China to ensure summer grain harvest despite fall setbacks
 
China's agricultural authorities will make all-out efforts to ensure a harvest of summer grains despite the challenges caused by floods during the sowing period last fall, a senior official said on Feb. 23.
 
Tang Renjian, minster of agriculture and rural affairs, said that a third of the country's wheat-growing areas were planted late due to the floods in Hebei, Henan, and Shandong provinces.
 

From: chinadaily.com.cn

 

The United States abused force and sanctions, violating human rights in other countries, according to the Report on Human Rights Violations in the United States in 2021, which was released on Feb. 28.

 

The U.S. has always pursued hegemonism, unilateralism and interventionism. The country frequently used force, resulting in a large number of civilian casualties, said the report released by the State Council Information Office.

 

From: Xinhua

Chinese FM urges sound development of global human rights