Students ought to be praised, not punished

TWO STUDENTS in the Middle School Affiliated to Northwestern Polytechnical University in Xi'an, Northwest China's Shaanxi province, complained to the local authority that the school did not obey the regulation to stop classes when there was a red alert for smog. The two students were later called to talks with school staff, one of them missing a day's class. The Paper.cn commented on Wednesday:

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Allow 'great meeting' to produce great results

Many businesspeople outside the United States have been worried about the potential havoc the incoming administration in the United States may cause to global trade and the possibility of souring relations with the world's second-largest economy, given some of the comments made by Donald Trump and his team members during and after his presidential election campaign.

More inputs into core tech

China produces more than 40 billion ballpoints annually, but nearly 90 percent of its ballpoint pen nibs and refills are imported.

End forced demolitions as they make a mockery of rule of law

"RULE OF LAW? It sounds like a joke to me." "Our power is beyond the law, and when my boss wants to demolish your house, we will do it." Such are the quotes of two officials from Zixi county in East China's Jiangxi province who forcibly demolished the house of a local farmer. The officials have already been held accountable for their action, Southern Metropolis Daily comments:

Awarding scientists for their work not titles

PRESIDENT XI JINPING presented the Preeminent Science and Technology Award to Tu Youyou, co-winner of the 2015 Nobel Prize in physiology or medicine, and Zhao Zhongxian, a physicist at the Chinese Academy of Sciences who has spent four decades working on superconductors. China Youth Daily commented on Tuesday:

False ratings an unwanted link in TV profit chain

COMPANIES MEASURING viewing figures have been in cahoots with TV stations and content producers for more than a decade to falsify the ratings of programs. Beijing News commented on Tuesday:

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Innovation a solid foundation for competitiveness

Editor's note: Premier Li Keqiang delivered a speech at the National Science and Technology Awards Conference on Monday. Below is the full text:

A change in macro policy tone for this year

The Central Economic Work Conference in December outlined the Chinese government's key economic objectives and policy directions for 2017. The overall message that "stability is the main theme", from "development is the number one task" a year ago, suggests more emphasis on reducing financial risks and less on ensuring growth is at least 6.5 percent. That is in recognition that China's credit growth - almost 17 percent in 2016 - is unsustainable.

BRICS still playing an important role in international affairs

This year, China assumes the rotating presidency of BRICS, the group comprising Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa. This presents a rare opportunity for the bloc to deepen cooperation in a wide range of fields, and thus, help anchor the international organization in a better position to tackle global challenges and uncertainties.

Row reveals weakness of superficial reconciliation

The diplomatic row that has erupted between Japan and the Republic of Korea once again highlights the raw nerve in the region that the current administration in Japan keeps rubbing with its stance on history.