Thursday, January 22, 2009

China Internet addiction

Jan 20 - China has cemented its position as the world's largest Internet population, with the number of Internet users reaching a staggering 300 million at the end of 2008, according to the China Internet Network Information Centre.

At a newly created Internet addiction treatment centre, Cheng Jiawei had to finish one last exercise of arranging toy figurines in a sandpit, a way her doctors could understand how her mind worked.

Two men sentenced to death over tainted milk scandal

Two men connected with the tainted milk scandal were sentenced to death today while Tian Wenhua, former board chairwoman of the Sanlu Group at the heart of the scandal, was sentenced to life in prison.

Chinese TV Censors Part of Address by Obama

China Central Television broadcast the inauguration speech live until the moment President Obama mentioned “communism.”

China Announces Subsidies for Health Care

China announced Wednesday that it intends to spend $123 billion by 2011 to establish universal health care for the country’s 1.3 billion people.

Wednesday, January 21, 2009

Families File Suit in Chinese Tainted Milk Scandal

The filing is a rare instance of lawyers in China attempting to get a court to hear a class-action product liability case.

China Sees Separatist Threats

China said that it faced threats from several independence movements and that U.S. arms sales to Taiwan jeopardized Asia’s stability.

China Aims at Dalai Lama With New Tibet Holiday

Legislators in Tibet passed a bill on Monday mandating an annual celebration of the date that the Communists declared rule over Tibet.

Finding Treasures in a City’s Disappearing Past

Returning to Beijing after the Cultural Revolution, Li Songtang devoted himself to rescuing scraps of history, work made more urgent by today’s redevelopment.

Chinese Cars Inch Closer to U.S.

Chinese cars have still not arrived in the United States, despite promises from some of the companies at last year’s Detroit show that their arrival was imminent.

Would-Be Olympic Protester Sentenced to 3 Years in Prison

A legal advocate who was arrested after applying to hold a protest in Beijing during the Olympics in August has been sentenced to three years in prison, a lawyer said.

Chinese Officials Gamble, and Their Luck Runs Out

Communist officials have pillaged state funds to try their luck at casinos in Macao, government prosecutors say.

Chinese Chemical Plant Site Moves After Outcry

The Chinese Environmental Ministry has approved a petrochemical plant that drew fierce opposition over feared pollution. But the approval is based on the plant’s being built in another city.

Internet Usage Rises in China

The number of Internet users in China has reached 298 million, nearly equal to the population of the United States, according to official figures.

News Media Run by China Look Abroad for Growth

Plans include the creation of a 24-hour news channel modeled on Al Jazeera, the Arabic language network.

U.S. and China Mark 30 Years of Diplomatic Ties

At a two-day conference to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the normalization of relations, speakers focused on China’s stunning economic growth.

Trade Losses Rise in China, Threatening Jobs

China’s exports and imports shrank at an accelerating rate last month, a trend likely to set off more job losses in the country’s export-oriented coastal regions.

A Small Showing, but With Big Dreams

For the first time, two Chinese carmakers are exhibiting this year on the main floor of the Detroit auto show.

Friday, January 9, 2009

Chinese farmer robot inventor

Jan 9 - Robot inventor Wu Yulu, a self-taught Chinese farmer who accidentally burnt down his house and plunged his family into debt in the name of his art, is finally getting hard-earned recognition.

He now works with various universities and companies developing robotics, has traveled China to show his creations.

Police in China Halt Parents Seeking Investigation Into School Collapses

Parents who were trying to travel to Beijing to ask the government for a full investigation into school collapses during the May earthquake were stopped by local police.

Wednesday, January 7, 2009

Arrests Increased in Chinese Region

Arrests in the Xinjiang region for “endangering state security” grew rapidly last year, a report said.

China Criticizes Google and Others on Pornography

The Ministry of Public Security and six other agencies would work together “to purify the Internet’s cultural environment,” the government said in a statement.

Contradictions in China, and the Rise of a Billionaire Family

The story of Liu Yongxing — a former factory worker who is now listed by Forbes as the wealthiest person in China — is a peek into the changes facing China.

Town Asks Kung Fu Monks for Tourism Blessings

By striking a deal through which the warrior monks of Shaolin will maintain Guandu’s temples, local officials hope to share the group’s marketing success.

China Plans to License 3 Wireless Standards

The move opens the way for cellphone users in China to have faster downloads of video, data and Web-browsing services, and for companies to charge more for their high-speed services.

Former Head of Chinese Dairy Pleads Guilty

The former chairwoman of one of China’s biggest dairy producers pleaded guilty to selling fake milk powder.

In Flimsy Hut, Bond Grows Stronger After Ordeal Under a Quake’s Rubble

Li Wanzhi and Wang Zhijun are slowly piecing together a future after the May earthquake in Sichuan, China, that left 88,000 people dead or missing and five million homeless.

In Taiwan, Jail for Ex-President

Former President Chen Shui-bian of Taiwan was returned to jail on Tuesday because of the severity of the corruption charges against him.

China Begins Trials for 9 in Tainted Milk Scandal

Nine people accused of intentionally tainting China’s dairy supplies earlier this year went on trial in the country’s worst food safety case in decades.

China Says Man Confessed to Bus Bombings

Police officials say that a man who died Christmas Eve after trying to plant a bomb in Kunming was also responsible for a pair of bus bombings there in July.

Romance and Recovery in Quake Area

Months after an earthquake hit southwestern China, new couples are one sign of the beginnings of a recovery.

Tainted-Milk Victims in China to Be Paid

A group of Chinese dairy companies accused of selling tainted milk has agreed to compensate the victims, the state media announced.