IN BRIEF (Page 2)

China, Britain agree on Syria statement

China and Britain have agreed on a joint statement addressing the situation in Syria, the two countries' senior foreign affairs officials said on Jan 5. Foreign Minister Wang Yi said the two nations have decided to issue the statement to support a political solution to the Syrian issue and "support Syrian people to decide on their own future". He made the comments at a joint news conference held with visiting British Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond.

Indian ambassador bids quiet farewell

Unlike Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who has blazed a trail on social media with nearly 180,000 Chinese followers on his Sina Weibo microblog, the country's outgoing ambassador to China has kept a low profile, both online and offline.

The approach of Ashok K. Kantha, who was set to leave China on Jan 7 after a two-year tenure, is considered to have contributed to the success of "hometown diplomacy", a phrase capturing the essence of relations between the leaders of the two countries. The ambassador opened a Sina Weibo account, attracting about 120 followers. His quieter approach was evident at a farewell reception on the evening of Jan 4, at which Kantha gave no speech.

New standards bolster emissions crackdown

China's environmental watchdog has investigated 1.41 million companies suspected of polluting the environment since the new environmental protection law was implemented at the beginning of 2015.

Environmental authorities found 46,800 companies with illegal waste-discharging activities and 63,700 with illegal construction projects. A total of 47,000 were fined and 17,000 were shut down, according to the Ministry of Environmental Protection.

Capital plans to beat smog hazards by 2030

Beijing reached its annual target for reducing hazardous pollutants in 2015 and is drafting a long-term plan to improve air quality to the clean level by around 2030, the municipal environmental watchdog said on Jan 4.

In 2015, the capital saw 186 days with air quality that was better than the national safety standard, 14 days more than in 2014, said the annual report on air pollution control from the Beijing Environmental Protection Bureau on Jan 4.

Still, some residents have called for a bigger improvement, especially since experiencing spells of severe smog in the capital since November.

Planets named after top Chinese scientists

Five minor planets have been named after top Chinese scientists, including the country's first Nobel laureate scientist Tu Youyou, on Jan 4. The naming was suggested by the National Astronomical Observatories of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and approved by the International Astronomical Union Minor Planet Center.

Lunar landing site named Moon Palace

The landing site of China's first lunar lander, Chang'e-3, has been named Guang Han Gong or Moon Palace. The name was approved by the International Astronomical Union, the State Administration of Science, Technology and Industry for National Defense announced on Jan 5. The spacecraft made a successful soft landing on the moon in December 2013.

Environment inspection team grills Hebei leaders

China's environmental protection inspection team summoned Hebei province's top officials, including the governor and Party chief, on Jan 5 for talks on how to address its pollution problems. The province, which surrounds Beijing and Tianjin, is known for heavy industries such as coal, steel and cement, and has recently issued several high-level smog alerts. The team's inspection will end on Feb 4.

Pilot sees courts accept public-interest lawsuits

Five public-interest lawsuits regarding environmental pollution have so far been filed with courts, as part of a two-year pilot program introduced by the Supreme People's Procuratorate in July aimed at protecting public resources, authorities said on Jan 7. The pilot is running in 13 provinces and regions.

Firms offer fewer jobs as robot use rises

Demand for seasonal workers this winter has dropped more than 50 percent in Dongguan, a major production base in Guangdong province. HR experts say one reason could be the increasing use of robots.

Gay couple sue for right to legally marry

Two homosexual men have filed a lawsuit in Changsha, Hunan province, against their local civil affairs bureau after it refused to allow them to register their marriage in the summer. It is believed to the first case of its kind in China.

Dating site survey finds most want second child

A poll of 3,000 singletons by the dating website Zhenai found that roughly 70 percent would like to have two children, the company said on Jan 6. China said in 2015 that it was scrapping its one-child policy, which had been in place since the late 1970s.

Courts to see more foreign legal disputes

The number of legal disputes involving foreigners being heard in Chinese courts will continue to increase over the next five years, Zhang Yongjian, a Supreme People's Court judge, has predicted. Driving the rise will be China's expansion of maritime power and its plan to upgrade trade and cooperation through the Belt and Road Initiative.

Party expels official for breaching rules

Lyu Xiwen, the deputy Party chief for Beijing, has been sacked and expelled from the Party for serious discipline violations, it was announced on Jan 5. She is the third high-ranking female official to be investigated since China's new leadership took office in 2012.

Thousands punished in clampdown on graft

More than 29,000 people were punished for violating Party discipline and government violations in the first 11 months of 2015 as part of China's ongoing campaign against corruption, including eight officials at provincial or ministerial level, 441 at city level and 3,818 at county level.

Second avian flu case reported in South China

A 40-year-old woman from Zhaoqing, Guangdong province, became the second confirmed case of human H5N6 avian flu in a week on Jan 4. A 26-year-old woman in Shenzhen was the first case on Dec 29. Both women are receiving hospital treatment.

Fake cop said he wanted to curb prostitution

A 21-year-old migrant worker who posed as a police officer claimed he wanted to stop his father from seeking out prostitutes in Changzhou. Police who caught the man, surnamed Guo, patrolling in a fake uniform on Jan 1, said he confessed to wanting to crack down on prostitutes in order to stop his father from being a customer. Guo was detained and the case was being investigated.

(China Daily Africa Weekly 01/08/2016 page2)