Spotlights (2015.04-05)

 

 

 

On Apr. 1, China's central authorities rolled out plans to support rural teachers, overhaul public hospitals and improve public supervision of court cases.

 

The plans were adopted at the 11th meeting of the central leading group for deepening overall reform on Wednesday, during which President Xi Jinping, who is also head of the group, called on authorities to "show courage and guts" in reform. President Xi called for the country's deepening reform to be carried out based on the "Four Comprehensives," his new political mantras.

 

From: Xinhua

 

 

China has for the first time set a goal for hospital beds per 1,000 citizens, a key indicator measuring a country's medical service level.

 

According to a healthcare service plan (2015-2020) published by China's cabinet on Monday, the country will aim to provide six hospital beds per 1,000 of its citizens by 2020. This compares to 4.55 in 2013.

 

From: Xinhua

 

 

The Ministry of Justice has asked provincial prison administrations to launch websites to publish information about remission, parole and other prison affairs.

 

The websites, to be launched in a drive to improve transparency, should allow citizens to search for information and make enquiries, according to a statement issued by the ministry on Apr. 7.

 

From: Xinhua

 

 

The Chinese government's latest assertion on workers' rights may bode well for the country's vision of a harmonious society and its course of improving human rights protection.

 

In a guideline published Wednesday, the ruling Communist Party of China (CPC) and the State Council said improving labor relations is an urgent task as the country is undergoing major economic and social changes with diversifying employee appeals and increasing labor disputes.

 

From: Xinhua

 

 

China has rolled out the roadmap to the country's judicial and social reform, setting a timetable and verifiable targets for specific reform measures.

 

On Apr. 9, the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee's General Office, and the General Office of the State Council published the plan to implement the decisions on deepening judicial and social reform made at the fourth plenary session of the 18th CPC Central Committee held in October 2014.

 

From: Xinhua

 

 

President of China Association for Human Rights of Taiwan Li Yongran and his seven companions were invited by China Society for Human Rights Studies to visit the motherland from March 29 to April 2. Vice-chairman of the National Committee of the 10th CPPCC also president of China Society for Human Rights Studies Luo Haocai met the delegation. Vice president of China Society for Human Rights Studies and relative scholars held discussions with the delegation.

 

From:chinahumanrights.org

 

 

On Apr. 15, the State Council Information Office, China's cabinet, published a white paper on the development path of Tibet, applauding its development path and denouncing the "middle way" advocated by the Dalai Lama.

 

The end of the theocratic feudal serfdom in Tibet was a historical inevitability, as the system went completely against the progressive trend in China and the rest of the world. The system trampled on human dignity, infringed upon human rights and impeded development in Tibet, says the white paper.

 

From: Xinhua

 

 

On May 14, a plan intensifying the fight against water pollution in China was released. The Action Plan for Water Pollution Prevention and Control aims to reduce pollutants, improve drinking water and promote water saving, according to the State Council, China's cabinet.

 

From: Xinhua

 

 

China-Europe Seminar on Human Rights was held in Strasbourg of France recently. European experts on human rights attending the seminar said China's criminal law system has seen remarkable progress in human rights protection.

 

From: chinahumanrights.org

 

 

The total revenue of the China Foundation for Disabled Persons (CFDP) in 2014 reached 384 million yuan (62 million U.S. dollars), with 354 million yuan coming through donations.

 

From: Xinhua

 

 

Tougher regulations on infant milk formula will be introduced to restore public confidence in the domestic dairy industry.

 

Producers will be required to register powdered baby milk formula with the food and drug regulatory agency, according to a draft revision to the Food Safety Law, submitted to the bi-monthly legislative session of the National People's Congress (NPC) Standing Committee for its third reading on Apr. 20.

 

From: Xinhua

 

 

China' political advisors discussed air pollution in the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region, during a consultation session on Apr. 22.

 

According to a statement issued after the session presided over by Yu Zhengsheng, chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), political advisors discussed the issue in connection with a broader strategy for coordinated development of Beijing and its neighboring Tianjin Municipality and Hebei Province.

 

From: Xinhua

 

 

Vice director of the Department of International Affairs of China's Foreign Ministry Shi Zhongjun and director of the Department of Asian and Pacific Affairs of Foreign & Commonwealth Office Li Feng co-chaired the 22nd China-UK Dialogue on Human Rights in Beijing on Apr. 22. Officials of departments on foreign affairs and justice from both sides attended the meeting.

 

From: chinahumanrights.org

 

 

On Apr. 24, the Standing Committee of China's National People's Congress (NPC), the country's top legislature, adopted an amendment to the 2009 Food Safety Law with the heaviest penalties yet for offenders.

 

From: Xinhua

 

 

China's top legislature will carry out a nationwide inspection on the implementation of the Water Pollution Prevention and Control Law.

 

Four or five teams will carry out inspections across provincial-level regions in May and June, the water pollution prevention and control committee of the National People's Congress (NPC) Standing Committee said on April 28.

 

From: Xinhua

 

 

China's Ministry of Education issued a document supporting further application of online open courses in college education on Apr. 28. Colleges have been encouraged to adopt a teaching mode combining the increasingly popular Massive Open Online Course with traditional methods, the ministry said in the concise document.

 

From: Xinhua

 

 

 

On May 1, China's State Council, the country's cabinet, rolled out four measures encouraging entrepreneurship and innovation and creation of more jobs.

 

The four measures were included in the guidelines on employment and entrepreneurship work under the new situation, which underscored pressure in the job market, and urged proactive employment policies to be implemented.

 

The government should refine policies and continue encouraging widespread entrepreneurship and startups in order to create a new engine of economic growth, according to the guidelines.

 

From: Xinhua

 

 

A total of 108,300 people currently residing in remote or poor areas in south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region are to be relocated this year, the regional poverty relief office said.

 

From: Xinhua

 

 

Nine million residents in Beijing are drinking water from the Yangtze River in the south, four months after the completion of the south-north water diversion project.

 

From: Xinhua

 

 

China's cabinet on May 5 published a guideline on improving the country's environment, vowing to achieve "major progress" in the area by 2020. In the 35-clause guideline, the State Council stressed the need to consider environmental protection when planning economic and social development, and to raise public awareness about the environment.

 

From: Xinhua

 

 

A campaign began in April to clampdown on illegal prenatal gender tests and sex-selective abortions to address the gender-ratio imbalance, health authorities said.

 

According to the National Health and Family Planning Commission (NHFPC), the campaign, which will run until November, will concentrate on medical, health and family planning institutions, as well as illegal fertility agencies, clinics and itinerant physicians.

 

From: Xinhua

 

 

Chinese Premier Li Keqiang has called for accelerated development of vocational education.

 

Li made the remarks in his instruction to the Vocational Education Week that opened on the morning of May 10. He said developing modern vocational education is an effort to exert China's abundant talent advantage, encourage people to start businesses and make innovations.

 

From: Xinhua

 

 

Residents in Beijing can report on indoor smoking in public venues after the smoking ban takes effect in June, a government official said on May 10. The Beijing municipal legislature passed a bill in November last year, banning smoking in all indoor public places, workplaces, and on public transportation.

 

From: Xinhua

 

 

China had 2.95 million registered drug users by the end of 2014, but the actual number is estimated to be in excess of 14 million, according to China National Narcotics Control Commission (NNCC) on May 11.The number of synthetic drug users has seen an average annual rise of 36 percent over the past years, reaching 1.46 million in 2014.

 

From: Xinhua

 

 

China's government is trying to involve the private sector in more public services related to culture by offering government procurement contracts. On May 11, The State Council, China's cabinet, issued an instruction to expand government procurement of cultural services such as sporting events, museums and libraries, as well as a list of 38 different cultural services that are open to private contractors. The policy is an effort to supplement the limited funds and resources the government spends on public cultural services.

 

From: Xinhua

 

 

China issued detailed guidelines to pilot preferential personal income tax policies for commercial health insurance buyers on May 12. The trial program offers pre-tax reductions for premium payments of less than 2,400 yuan (392 U.S. dollars) per year for qualified employees, according to a joint statement released by the Ministry of Finance, State Administration of Taxation and China Insurance Regulatory Commission.

 

From: Xinhua

 

 

China will push forward reform in more public hospitals amid a broader overhaul of its health care system, according to a guideline issued by the State Council on May 17. China launched a pilot medical reform on public hospitals in 17 cities in 2010, and the guideline stipulates the reform should cover all of the country's 6,800 public hospitals by 2017.

 

From: Xinhua

 

 

China has spent over 100 billion yuan (16 bln U.S. dollars) in the past 6 years aiding people who can't afford medical services, a senior Ministry of Finance official said on May 21. The central budget for medical assistance in 2015 stands at 14.1 billion yuan, excluding funds from local treasuries, said Song Qichao, deputy head of the ministry's social security department, at a press conference.

 

From: Xinhua

 

 

China Society for Human Rights Studies (CSHRS) delegation visited Thailand from May 18 to May 20. During the visiting, the delegation inspected and communicated with Thailand's MFA, National Commission on Human Rights (Thailand), and higher education institutes on human rights protection, human rights theory studies, choices of human rights development road. This visit marked an important step for CSHRS's "going out and bringing in" strategy, which was also significant for communicating human rights issues with neighboring countries especially southeastern countries and vital to introduce China's human rights achievements, strengthen the economic and cultural relationship between two countries.

 

From:chinahumanrights.org

 

 

China Society for Human Rights Studies (CSHRS) delegation led by Luo Haocai visited Kuala Lumpur, capital of Malaysia and held seminars with Malaysia's MFA, National Commission on Human Rights (Malaysia), and Asian Strategy & Leadership Institute respectively on May 21 and 22. Chinese and Malaysian scholars and personnel concerned on seminar respectively introduced measures, experiences and achievements on human rights protection and human rights theory studies.

 

From:chinahumanrights.org

 

 

China will encourage entrepreneurship and innovation in an effort to create more jobs and stabilize employment, said Xin Changxing, vice minister of the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security, during an online interview on May 26.

 

China's State Council, the country's cabinet, rolled out specific measures on employment and entrepreneurship last month, which underscored pressure in the job market and urged proactive employment policies to be implemented.

 

From: Xinhua

 

 

On May 25 and 26, China Society for Human Rights Studies (CSHRS) delegation led by chairman Luo Haocai visited Singapore and exchanged views with Singapore's MFA, Law School and East Asian Institute of National University of Singapore on measures of human rights protection and social governance, human rights researches, the relation between human rights and economic development and social stability.

 

From:chinahumanrights.org