IN BRIEF (Page 2)

China takes steps to ward off Zika virus

China is taking steps to avert a potential outbreak of the Zika virus after the World Health Organization declared the mosquito-borne virus an international public health emergency on Feb 2. The virus has been linked to thousands of birth defects in Brazil, but no travel or trade restrictions have been imposed so far. This will potentially require a coordinated international response, the statement added.

Capital to improve facilities for disabled

The municipal government is pushing ahead with renovating existing facilities and older residential areas, as well as creating more accessible public transport hubs, for Beijing's nearly 1 million disabled residents.

A navigation system to help locate barrier-free public facilities would also be established, while a program to help disabled people improve their own homes is also expected, according to the Beijing Disabled Persons' Federation.

Teen calls for reform of education policy

Liu Bo, a 14-year-old student from Shenzhen, suggested that the government step up educational reform when he took part in the annual meeting of the local political advisory body.

His appearance at the meeting attracted widespread attention and marked the first time that young people from the city in Guangdong province had been invited to the local policy-related sessions. Liu said the sessions differed from other youth-related meetings he had attended, since they focused on social issues.

Tough rules to cut marine pollution

China has finalized a plan setting tough fuel standards for large ships in an effort to slash marine emissions, the Ministry of Transport said on Feb 1. When fully implemented, the coordinated effort would reduce oxysulfide emissions from ships by 65 percent and particulate emissions by 30 percent by 2020, compared with current emissions.

Excessive emissions found in 59 cities

The national environmental authority found severely excessive pollution emissions during inspections of 648 companies in 59 cities in December, and it promised tougher punishment this year under a newly enacted air pollution control law.

In December's monthly inspections targeting companies that discharge air pollutants, the Ministry of Environmental Protection found that excessive emissions were a big problem in the 59 cities that were inspected, said Zou Shoumin, head of the ministry's Environmental Inspection Bureau.

Flight transfers via Taiwan begin

Flight transfers to and from the Chinese mainland through Taiwan were started on Feb 1 in Nangchang, Kunming and Chongqing, according to the Association for Relations Across the Taiwan Straits. Mainland passengers would not officially enter Taiwan nor would they be checked when transferring through the island's Taoyuan International Airport to other destinations.

Airlines get tough on 'bad' passengers

Five airlines signed a joint statement on Feb 1 in Sanya to limit services to passengers deemed "uncivilized". Air China, China Eastern Airlines, China Southern Airlines, Hainan Airlines and Spring Airlines will blacklist passengers who misbehave and restrict their access to services.

Busted gang dealt in heroin, meth

Police in Kunming have arrested 13 suspected members of a drug ring, they announced on Feb 1. A total of 56.4 kilograms of methamphetamine and about 290 grams of heroin were seized at the time of the arrests, police said. The cross-border syndicate distributed the drugs across the provinces of Hunan, Hubei and Sichuan.

Police target crooks preying on tourists

Five new police units will be formed in Yunnan province to combat fraudsters, con artists and other criminals targeting tourists. The teams will be tasked with increasing security in cities and towns such as Dali, Kunming and Lijiang, as well as receiving complaints from the public about fraud, unlicensed guides and ticket scalpers. Officials hope the move will bring some order to the province's often chaotic tourism market and follows the release of a video widely circulated on social media showing a tour guide in Xishuangbanna venting her frustration about a lack of spending in scenic spots.

Hainan looks to boost visitor numbers

Hainan province, with its warm climate, tropical forests and natural beauty, aims to remake itself as a global tourism destination by the end of the decade. Planned measures include expanding duty-free shopping zones, improving international transport links and introducing more activities catering to tourists, Governor Liu Cigui said as he delivered a government work report in the capital, Haikou.

Companies fined in KFC defamation

The Xuhui District People's Court on Feb 2 said it had ordered three companies to pay KFC 600,000 yuan ($91,190; 83,600 euros) for damaging the US fast-food chain's reputation.

The companies were sued by KFC in May for spreading rumors on 10 public accounts on the WeChat messaging app.

Students separated to prevent 'puppy love'

A high school in Shenmu county is feeding boys and girls in different dining halls to prevent them from developing crushes on their classmates. Principal Qiao Zhenyi said the move aims to prevent "puppy love" from affecting the students' studies. Teachers have been instructed to reprimand those who violate the rule. Many students and residents said it was unnecessary to separate the students by gender, as the rule was unlikely to achieve its goal, and psychologists said the move may have the opposite effect.

Anti-graft code violations published

The Communist Party of China's top discipline watchdog has named and shamed officials found guilty of violating the Party's code of conduct in its latest disclosure. The violations, details of which were published on the website of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection, related to 96 cases, including over-the-top weddings and funerals, illegal bonuses, misuse of official vehicles and banquets paid for with public funds.

13,000 substandard school buses removed

School safety inspections in rural China last year removed 13,000 substandard school buses from service. The inspections, jointly organized by the ministries of education and public security and the State Administration of Work Safety, also identified 32,000 unlicensed school bus drivers, according to official figures.

23 tons of illegal narcotics seized

Police in the border province of Yunnan cracked 22,000 drug cases and seized 23.3 metric tons of illegal narcotics in 2015, the provincial public security department reported on Jan 31. Local rehab centers treated more than 67,000 drug users last year, the authority said. Last year marked the end of the province's special five-year campaign against drug crimes.

Beijing tops cities in consumer spending

For the eighth consecutive year, Beijing led the nation's cities in consumer spending, racking up more than 1 trillion yuan ($152 billion; 139 billion euros) in retail sales in 2015 on the back of online shopping. Retail sales of consumer goods reached 1.03 trillion yuan last year, once again reinforcing the capital's title as China's biggest shopping city, according to a report released by the Beijing Statistics Bureau. Shanghai and Guangzhou were second and third in retail sales of consumer goods.

Overseas sports tours expected to sell well

As increasing numbers of sports savvy Chinese tourists take vacations abroad, the country's travel agencies are busy providing sports tourism tours and packages. Sports-related tours, such as soccer summer camps in Madrid, ski visits to Switzerland and spectator packages for the Wimbledon Championships, World Cup and the Olympics, are popular among young Chinese tourists heading overseas, said Chen Xiaobing, president of Beijing Caissa International Travel Service Co, a Beijing-based travel agency.

Sichuan-Tibet railway work picks up speed

China plans to accelerate construction of a 1,629-kilometer Sichuan-Tibet railway starting this year, heads of the two regions' governments confirmed. The government will start a preliminary survey and research the Kangting-Lyingchi railway project this year, and accelerate the construction of Sichuan-Tibet railway in the 13th Five-Year Plan (2016-20), according to the government of Tibet autonomous region.

Cold causes shortage of natural gas supplies

Beijing's natural gas supplies temporarily ran short starting Jan 29, according to the Beijing Municipal Commission of City Administration and Environment. China National Petroleum Corp encountered a gas shortage due to growing demand in the continued cold weather, the commission said. Temperatures at public buildings were maintained no higher than 14 C, and supplies were limited for major boilers.

Yangtze basin to ship containers directly

The first direct container shipping line linking the Yangtze River basin and Southeast Asia opened on Jan 28. Taicang Container Lines will operate the regular service once a week. The container ship operates from Taicang Port in East China's Jiangsu province, and will travel as far as Laem Chabang and Bangkok, Thailand, and Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. The line is expected to help import and export companies along the Yangtze River and the Yangtze River Delta and save about 50 million yuan ($7.6 million; 7 million euros) a year in logistics costs.

China to expand duty-free shopping

China hopes to unlock the potential of tourism spending by establishing more duty-free shops, officials said. Li Jinzao, head of the China National Tourism Administration, said on Jan 29 that one of the major tasks in 2016 is to expand the tax refund policy to more cities to attract more overseas tourists and promote spending.

1,148 derelict officials punished after probe

The government has punished 1,148 officials for laziness and poor performance following an internal probe last year. Punishments ranged from removal from office or demotion to demerits, the State Council, China's Cabinet, said on Jan 28 in a statement. Violations included delaying major projects such as low-cost housing, and turning a blind eye to safety issues, the statement said.

ROK to return soldiers' remains

The Republic of Korea has agreed to return more remains of Chinese soldiers killed in the Korean War, the Ministry of Civil Affairs announced on Jan 28. The ministry said the countries would hold a transfer ceremony for the remains of 36 soldiers on March 31. Since 2014, the ROK has handed over the remains of 505 Chinese volunteer soldiers killed in the war.

China's highest heating project ready in fall

China's highest-altitude heating project will be operational by October, it was announced on Jan 28 during meetings of the regional legislature and political advisory body in the Tibet autonomous region. Heating will cover Nagqu town, which is at an altitude of more than 4,500 meters in Nagqu prefecture. More than 70 percent of the heating project has been completed, and trials across Nagqu have been successful.

Survey: Habitat loss top threat to wildlife

Habitat loss is the single biggest threat to the country's wildlife - more than disturbances from major construction projects near nature reserves, and more than direct human interference such as poaching, according to a national wildlife survey. Officials from the State Forestry Administration disclosed the results of the survey on Jan 28.

Hebei planning for winter sports boom

A multibillion-yuan winter sports industry is being planned for Hebei province to transform it into a premier destination for cold weather athletes in time for the 2022 Winter Olympic Games. More than 30 million residents, or 40 percent of the province's population, are expected to regularly strap on skates and skis by the time the Games come to China, according to the Hebei Provincial Administration of Sport's eight-year Winter Sports Development Plan (2015-22), unveiled recently.

(China Daily European Weekly 02/05/2016 page2)