Ousted S. Korean leader goes on trial

SEOUL - South Korea's ousted president Park Geun-hye, grim-faced and brought to court in handcuffs, went on trial on Tuesday over a sprawling corruption scandal that saw millions of people take to the streets and led to her downfall.

Trump, Abbas stress longing for Middle East peace

BETHLEHEM, Middle East - US President Donald Trump arrived in the West Bank city of Bethlehem on Tuesday to hold talks with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas. Both leaders stressed their longing for peace and for achieving a peaceful settlement for the Palestinians-Israeli conflict through peace negotiations.

'Conspiracy bill' draws backlash in Japan

TOKYO - Japan's lower house of parliament approved a bill on Tuesday allowing authorities to punish those found guilty of planning serious crimes, legislation that opponents said could be used to undermine basic civil liberties.

Brennan to answer questions about meddling

WASHINGTON - Former CIA director John Brennan was set to testify publicly about the intelligence underpinning the Obama administration's conclusion that Russia interfered in last year's election, and could shed light on concerns about the security risk posed by President Donald Trump's first national security adviser, Michael Flynn.

IN BRIEF (Page 12)

Rental regulation can help tame unreasonable housing market

Since March about 60 major cities have reportedly unveiled 170 measures that set stricter mortgage restrictions and higher down payment requirements to root out market speculation. In the most recent case, Baoding, a city 200 kilometers southwest to Beijing, announced over the weekend that owners of property to be developed on a newly released piece of land will not be allowed to sell it within 10 years.

People's happiness Xi's goal

"People's happiness is always the goal of our endeavors", Xi Jinping said in late 2012 when he made his debut as the Party's top leader to the media together with other members of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the 18th Communist Party of China Central Committee.

Growing number of shortsighted youngsters is a sign of the times

ACCORDING TO REPORTS, more than half of the primary school students around the age of 10, and nearly 10 percent of the first year ones aged 6 or 7 in Shanghai, have shortsightedness. Rednet.cn commented on Sunday:

Students have right to a private life

SHANDONG FOREIGN LANGUAGE VOCATIONAL COLLEGE recently provoked fierce debate because it insisted on shooting videos of student couples with pre-installed cameras on campus and posting them on their website as a "warning" to other students. Many people criticized the college, but the college administrators responded that "campus love was uncivilized". Beijing News comments:

Bangkok's stalls show development fruits yet to be shared by all

THE THAI MINISTRY OF TOURISM AND SPORTS has denied reports that the municipal government of Bangkok plans to prohibit roadside stalls, which had sparked heated discussion, as many believe the street sellers are an essential part of the city's character. People's Daily comments:

Trump's tax reform raises many questions

News reports on US President Donald Trump's tax reform have focused on the tax cuts, but there is more to it than just that. Trump's tax reform can be divided into four main parts: tax cuts, simplification of the taxation process, fixing the loopholes in the system, and a shift toward a territorial tax system that taxes domestic income but not foreign income.

A culinary warning to protect the wildlife

Chinese people, known for their love for food and exquisite cuisines, were naturally drawn to reports on two seafood products in foreign countries. In late April, a post in the official account of Denmark's embassy in Beijing on Weibo, a Twitter-like Chinese website, said the coastline of the Scandinavian country has been plagued by a large number of "wild" oysters from the Pacific. The post also said local residents don't know how to deal with the oyster "invasion" and asked Chinese tourists to visit the country on a special "oyster-eating tour".