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Chinese sprinter cracks 10-second barrier

A young Chinese sprinter who broke the 10-second mark in a 100m race in the United States has rekindled the Chinese public's enthusiasm for track and field.

Chinese athlete Su Bingtian made history on May 30 after finishing third in 9.99 secs in the men's 100m final at the Eugene Grand Prix in Oregon, the first Asian-born sprinter to crack the 10-second mark.

Former world champion Tyson Gay of the United States won the race in 9.88 seconds, while compatriot Mike Rodgers finished second on 9.90.

Su's groundbreaking performance stirred a sensational response on Chinese social media.

Ancient city introduces tourist fees

Visitors to the ancient city of Dali, in Southwest China's Yunnan province, will be charged an entrance fee from Sept 1 to cover maintenance costs, the government has announced.

Tourists visiting the site as part of a tour group will be charged 30 yuan ($5), and the city will collect 1 percent of business income generated by traders in the city, according to the Dali Ancient City Protection Administration Bureau.

Individual travelers are exempt unless they enter specific scenic spots.

Official: Poll plan rules out opposition minority

The proposal to elect Hong Kong's next chief executive by universal suffrage excludes certain opposition members who view the region as an "independent" entity, distort the meaning of the Basic Law or subvert the central leadership, a central government official said on May 31.

Wang Guangya, director of the State Council's Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office, sent a clear message to the city's lawmakers at a meeting in Shenzhen, Guangdong province, attended by 14 of the 27 members of the opposition camp in the Legislative Council.

The meeting came about two weeks before Hong Kong's legislature votes on the electoral reform package. It requires a two-thirds majority to pass, but opposition members have pledged to combine and veto the proposal.

Wang said the proposal, drawn up to conform with parameters crafted by the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress in August, seeks to exclude a minority of opposition members appearing on the ballot for the chief executive election.

Hackers hit govt agencies, report says

An overseas hacking group known as Ocean Lotus has organized Internet hacks targeting the Chinese government's maritime administration, marine construction sector, research institutions and shipping companies, according to a new report by Qihoo 360 Technology's SkyEye.

The report said some of the most dangerous and persistent hacking probably had the support of overseas governments, as it requires significant financial resources.

Since April 2012, SkyEye said it had captured more than 100 examples of Trojan programs related to Ocean Lotus. It said nearly 30 provincial administrations had been affected.

Prosecutors to target judicial interference

The Supreme People's Procuratorate issued an order on May 31 to investigate and punish high-ranking officials who abuse their powers to pervert the course of justice.

Officials who attempt to influence or interfere in judicial proceedings beyond his or her authority will receive a disciplinary warning or administrative penalty, or even face criminal charges, the order said.

PLA deploys inspectors to scrutinize finances

The People's Liberation Army has sent inspectors to the seven headquarters of its military commands to check their financial affairs and management practices, PLA Daily reported on June 2.

"The inspectors' reports show all PLA units are actively performing self-examinations and steadily rectifying problems and improving money management," the newspaper said. However, some unit commanders had misunderstood the intent of the campaign.

To push inspections forward, the PLA said in a notice that commanders must lead financial checks, and warned that anyone who falsifies evidence, conceals facts or refuses to return irregular expenses or income will be subject to internal discipline or criminal investigation.

Airports monitor flights for MERS

Chinese airports have strengthened quarantine inspections on inbound passengers from countries with confirmed cases of Middle East respiratory syndrome, which has infected 25 people and caused two deaths in South Korea.

Beijing Capital International Airport and Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport said on June 2 they had adopted anti-epidemic measures at the request of the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine.

The Beijing airport will use infrared thermometers to monitor the temperatures of inbound passengers, while Chinese tourists returning from South Korea and the Middle East have been urged to report to authorities if they have a fever, cough or difficulty breathing.

Crack-down on cheating ahead of college exam

Agencies covering education, the Internet and law enforcement are increasing efforts to prevent cheating in this year's college entrance exam, known as the gaokao.

A campaign has been launched to crack down on the sale of wireless devices used for cheating, improper gaokao content online, and substitute exam candidates, the Ministry of Education said on June 2.

Police detain scalpers in railway ticket campaign

Railway police said on June 2 they have been running a campaign against scalpers of train tickets to the Tibet autonomous region, in preparation for the peak tourist season.

The five-month campaign, launched on April 15, has so far resulted in the detention of 11 suspects and confiscation of almost 1,000 tickets.

Commission: Postal fees based on market

The National Development and Reform Commission, China's top economic planner, said on June 1 that postal fees for "competitive parcels" - including express mail, postcards and parcels weighing less than 10 kilograms - will be market-based rather than fixed.

Postal enterprises can set charges, standards and methods according to market supply and demand, the commission said.

Central bank says it expands lending facility

The People's Bank of China said it expanded the Pledged Supplementary Lending facility by 262.8 billion yuan ($42.9 billion) in the first five months. Total PSL funds stood at 645.9 billion yuan as of the end of May. The credit extended via the PSL facility is being used to support urban renewal projects, the central bank said, adding that it will announce monthly figures for the facility starting this month.

Construction starts on natural gas pipeline

China started pipeline construction last week to receive Russian gas from the Power of Siberia pipeline, Russian state gas company Gazprom said on Tuesday. Russia and China signed a gas deal worth $400 billion last year, which requires construction of the pipeline. It requires $55 billion in investment for the Russian part only, including bringing new gas fields online.

Capital brings in new anti-smoking rules

Anti-smoking campaigners have hailed new smoking regulations in Beijing as a major step forward.

The rules, effective from June 1, are the toughest imposed in China, and senior health officials said the capital could serve as a model for national tobacco control to prevent smoking-related illnesses.

However, experts said the government's resolve to stamp out smoking will be crucial to the successful implementation of the measures.

The regulation, adopted by Beijing's top legislative body in November, extends existing smoking bans to include all indoor public areas and workplaces, plus a number of outdoor areas, including near schools, seating areas in sports stadiums and hospitals that treat women or children.

Violators will face fines of up to 200 yuan ($32), 20 times the previous penalty adopted in 1996. Owners of public places, such as restaurants, who fail to stop smokers lighting up face fines of up to 10,000 yuan.

IOC team's report positive on Beijing

Beijing's bid for the 2022 Winter Olympics has earned positive feedback from the International Olympic Committee.

A report released on June 1 by the IOC's evaluation commission, based on its visit this year to the two candidate cities - Almaty in Kazakhstan and Beijing -cited the Chinese capital's rich experience and abundant facilities from hosting the Games in 2008.

Beijing 2022 has the key elements in place to host a highly successful Winter Olympics, thanks to the expertise gained from the 2008 Games and the 2014 Nanjing Youth Olympics, the report said.

Wang Anshun, mayor of Beijing and president of the Beijing 2022 Bid Committee, said the positive evaluation had boosted the city's confidence in delivering successful Olympic and Paralympic Games in 2022.

Naval escort fleet arrives in Croatia

The 19th Chinese naval escort fleet arrived in the Croatian port of Rola, in Split, on June 1, welcomed by top Croatian naval officers and nearly 300 Chinese who live in the country.

The five-day visit of the fleet, which includes the missile frigates Linyi and Weifang, and supply ship Weishanhu, is the first made by the Chinese navy to Croatia.

"We are honored to host the navy ships of the People's Republic of China," Commodore Predrag Stipanovic, commander of the Croatian navy, said at the welcome ceremony.

Rear Admiral Jiang Guoping, commanding officer of the 19th Chinese fleet, said: "This visit will deepen friendship, understanding and partnership between the two countries. Warships are also a bridge for enhancing mutual understanding and trust between our people and militaries."

(China Daily European Weekly 06/05/2015 page3)