News digest

First lady urges greater steps to fight HIV/AIDS

China should do more in the fight against HIV/AIDS despite the disease affecting only 0.06 percent of its population, first lady Peng Liyuan said on Oct 20.

Peng said efforts should be stepped up to help sufferers, especially those in hard-hit areas.

There were 810,000 people with HIV/AIDS living in China at the end of last year, according to the latest update issued on Oct 20 by the National Center for AIDS/STD Control and Prevention. But only 490,000 of these people have been detected, the remainder being unaware of their status.

The estimate is updated every two years, and the previous one stood at 780,000.

Speaking at the National Conference on HIV/AIDS in Beijing, Peng said efforts must be promoted in caring for those with HIV/AIDS, in fighting discrimination, in giving patients access to medical care and in ensuring social justice.

Beijing, New Delhi establish hotlines

Beijing praised the "strong" determination that both China and India showed in handling border problems after the neighbors agreed to establish hotlines and hold regular military meetings to handle such issues.

Both governments have made remarkable progress in recent years in defusing border tension, observers said.

A key meeting on border issues was held in New Delhi on Oct 16-17, gathering senior officials from diplomatic and defense authorities on both sides.

The meeting reached a consensus on a range of measures and agreed to establish "regular meetings" involving the headquarters of the two militaries, adjacent combat units and border defense forces.

"A telephone hotline will be established between the two headquarters and a telecommunication liaison will be set up between the frontline forces of both countries," Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said in Beijing on Oct 20.

Drunken driving crashes, injuries decline

After drunken driving was listed as a crime in 2011, the number of road accidents caused by driving under the influence of alcohol has dropped by 25 percent, with casualties down nearly 40 percent, the Ministry of Public Security says.

Police nationwide dealt with 1.3 million cases of drinking and driving, and 222,000 cases of drunken driving in the past three years, the ministry released on Oct 20.

"Alcohol-related driving seriously threatens the lives and safety of drivers and pedestrians, and we have zero tolerance for it and severely punish the drivers who break the laws," said Liu Chunyu, press officer of the ministry's Traffic Management Bureau.

Under the Chinese Criminal Procedural Law, drivers are considered drunk if they have 80 milligrams or more of alcohol for every 100 milliliters of blood. Drivers who test at more than 20 milligrams but less than 80 milligrams of alcohol per 100 milliliters of blood are considered to be under the influence.

University breaks ground overseas

Construction of Xiamen University's Malaysia branch campus began on Oct 17, marking the first overseas outreach by Chinese higher education institutions.

The university's publicity department said on Oct 20 that the Malaysia campus is located on about 60 hectares in Salak Tinggi, a 15-minute drive from Putrajaya, the federal administrative center of Malaysia. Construction will be finished in about two years.

Student enrollment will begin in late next year. The first class will have 500 students, and the student population is expected to reach 5,000 by 2020. The campus aims to eventually have 10,000 students, including undergraduate and graduate students.

Five schools will be open to students in the first stage at the Malaysia campus: Chinese language and culture, medicine and information communication technology.

Asia-Pacific must take lead in global growth

China will use the upcoming Finance Ministers' Meeting of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum to better coordinate macroeconomic policy among member economies and to achieve cooperation in the infrastructure financing sector, Finance Minister Lou Jiwei said.

He made the comment in a written interview with China Daily ahead of the Finance Ministers' Meeting in Beijing on Wednesday.

"We will seize the opportunity offered by this meeting to increase dialogue and cooperation in macroeconomic policy, and to promote the strong, balanced and sustainable economic development of this region," Lou said.

Smog forces marathon runners to don masks

The annual Beijing Marathon was run on Oct 19 as planned despite heavy smog, and competitors wearing masks triggered controversy.

The organizers said they are considering changing the date of the event to avoid the capital's peak smog season.

The marathon is one of China's biggest athletic events.

The race, from Tian'anmen Square to the Bird's Nest, was expected to have 30,000 participants who qualified through a lottery. After the smog hit the capital and raised health concerns, many chose to drop out of the race.

China Daily

(China Daily Africa Weekly 10/24/2014 page3)