China seizes toilet paper bearing image of Hong Kong leader

Saturday, February 07, 2015 | 12:12 PM    

BEIJING (AP) — Authorities in southern China have seized about 8,000 rolls of toilet paper and another 20,000 packages of tissues containing unflattering images of Hong Kong’s pro-Beijing chief executive, according to an official of the small political party that placed the order.

The items were to be sold at a market in Hong Kong during Lunar New Year celebrations later this month, said Lo Kin-hei, a vice chairman of the Hong Kong Democratic Party.

The seizure came after Hong Kong was shaken by a massive pro-democracy movement in which demonstrators demanded greater electoral freedom than Beijing is willing to grant. During the demonstrations, protesters expressed anger at Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying, calling him a puppet of Beijing, and asked him to step down.

No reason was given for the seizure of the $12,900 worth of goods in the city of Shenzhen, outside of Hong Kong, Lo said.

“I guess (the Chinese authorities) don’t like people mocking government officials, especially high-ranking government officials, after the movement. They have become more cautious about criticisms about them,” he said.

The party’s 4,000 rolls of toilet paper with Leung’s image sold out at last year’s seasonal market, and it decided to get more this year from a factory in Shenzhen, Lo said.

The images of Leung on the novelty products are cartoonish and unflattering. One has him bearing two fangs, and another has the word “lying” on his forehead. The sickle-and-hammer symbol of the Communist Party of China also appears on some products.

The order was placed under the name of a friend to obscure the party as the true buyer, and all communications were done through the friend instead of the party, Lo said.

Citing the need to protect the manufacturer, Lo declined to reveal the factory’s name and said he had no information on the whereabouts of the factory owner. “We are worried about what has happened to him,” Lo said.

Calls to Shenzhen police rang unanswered on Saturday, and there was no official report about any seizure of toilet paper.

Lo said he found the act worrisome because it indicates further tightening by Chinese authorities on freedom of speech, which is guaranteed in Hong Kong’s constitution.

“Many productions in Hong Kong rely on the mainland. This kind of tightening means in the future it will be more difficult to make products in the mainland,” Lo said. “It’s alarmful for Hong Kong people that they keep suppressing freedom in Hong Kong. We will become the mainland if this kind of mocking will be not allowed in Hong Kong.”

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China seizes toilet paper bearing image of Hong Kong leader

China seizes toilet paper bearing image of Hong Kong leader

Saturday, February 07, 2015 | 12:12 PM    

BEIJING (AP) — Authorities in southern China have seized about 8,000 rolls of toilet paper and another 20,000 packages of tissues containing unflattering images of Hong Kong’s pro-Beijing chief executive, according to an official of the small political party that placed the order.

The items were to be sold at a market in Hong Kong during Lunar New Year celebrations later this month, said Lo Kin-hei, a vice chairman of the Hong Kong Democratic Party.

The seizure came after Hong Kong was shaken by a massive pro-democracy movement in which demonstrators demanded greater electoral freedom than Beijing is willing to grant. During the demonstrations, protesters expressed anger at Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying, calling him a puppet of Beijing, and asked him to step down.

No reason was given for the seizure of the $12,900 worth of goods in the city of Shenzhen, outside of Hong Kong, Lo said.

“I guess (the Chinese authorities) don’t like people mocking government officials, especially high-ranking government officials, after the movement. They have become more cautious about criticisms about them,” he said.

The party’s 4,000 rolls of toilet paper with Leung’s image sold out at last year’s seasonal market, and it decided to get more this year from a factory in Shenzhen, Lo said.

The images of Leung on the novelty products are cartoonish and unflattering. One has him bearing two fangs, and another has the word “lying” on his forehead. The sickle-and-hammer symbol of the Communist Party of China also appears on some products.

The order was placed under the name of a friend to obscure the party as the true buyer, and all communications were done through the friend instead of the party, Lo said.

Citing the need to protect the manufacturer, Lo declined to reveal the factory’s name and said he had no information on the whereabouts of the factory owner. “We are worried about what has happened to him,” Lo said.

Calls to Shenzhen police rang unanswered on Saturday, and there was no official report about any seizure of toilet paper.

Lo said he found the act worrisome because it indicates further tightening by Chinese authorities on freedom of speech, which is guaranteed in Hong Kong’s constitution.

“Many productions in Hong Kong rely on the mainland. This kind of tightening means in the future it will be more difficult to make products in the mainland,” Lo said. “It’s alarmful for Hong Kong people that they keep suppressing freedom in Hong Kong. We will become the mainland if this kind of mocking will be not allowed in Hong Kong.”

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China seizes toilet paper bearing image of Hong Kong leader

VIDEO: Smog engulfs parts of northern China

Parts of northern China have suffered the worst bout of smog since July, pushing pollution well past healthy levels and reducing visibility.

Martin Patience reports from Beijing.

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VIDEO: Smog engulfs parts of northern China

China busts smugglers of iPhone 6 in Shanghai

BEIJING (AP) — China in recent days has busted a slew of smugglers bringing Apple iPhone 6 models into the country ahead of their official release here, with officials on Sunday reporting the latest seizure of 453 smartphones in Shanghai.

Hundreds more were seized during three separate busts Thursday through Saturday in Hong Kong, including from men with a speedboat who were loading contraband onto a wooden sampan-style boat in a mangrove, the official Xinhua News Agency said.

The latest seizure was from the luggage of two passengers arriving at the Shanghai airport from Tokyo, one of them Chinese and one of them Japanese, a woman at the Shanghai customs agency said, confirming state media reports. She said hundreds more have been confiscated individually from passengers who did not declare them.

Apple delayed its original plans to introduce the iPhone 6 in China this month, but did not comment on reports that it still hadn’t received Chinese regulatory approval. The already-thriving black market for the phones in China, where Apple competes with less-expensive alternatives from local powerhouse Xiaomi, plus Lenovo and Samsung, has drawn a rebuke in Chinese state media.

The Global Times said in an editorial Friday that the frenzy over iPhone 6 — including a scuffle among Chinese nationals queuing up at an Apple store in the U.S. — was making China “lose face.” It said iPhones apparently were hip, but that buyer’s shouldn’t buy into their marketing hype. “Please show that you despise those who already have the iPhone 6,” the editorial read.

Apple became a target of state media critiques in March 2013 over alleged unfairness when it was reported that, under its warranty policy, it was fixing internal components of faulty iPhones in China while elsewhere it was replacing the entire phone. Apple later clarified that it would be replacing handsets in China and apologized about the concerns, and the furor subsided.

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China busts smugglers of iPhone 6 in Shanghai

Caribbean finance delegates attend event examining doing business with China

WASHINGTON D.C., United States, Friday September 12, 2014, CMC – Representatives from Caribbean financial institutions are attending the first China Insights Programme focusing on the economic, financial and cultural reality of China.

The Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) said that the Caribbean delegates are among 11 senior representatives of trade finance and international commerce departments of financial institutions from Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) attending the event.

The IDB, which is organizing the programme, said it is to help banks from Latin America and the Caribbean improve the commercial and financial ties between their client firms and companies from China.

The China Insights Programme will cover key aspects of the Chinese financial and commercial regulation, including current important trends such as the internationalization of the Renminbi.

“We know that the potential of the Chinese market is huge and yet, still quite unknown to the financial intermediaries of Latin America and the Caribbean,” said Gema Sacristan, Chief of the IDB’s Financial Markets Division.

“For that reason, a deeper knowledge of the Chinese financial system will help reinforce the commercial relations between both sides of the Pacific.”

The programme includes expert panels, networking events for the LAC bankers and their Asian counterparts and visits to the financial authorities, the People’s Bank of China and the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade.

“China is the first stop of the Insights Programme, expected to be replicated in other countries in order to help other banks from the region in their support of the internationalization of companies from Latin America and the Caribbean,” the IDB added.

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Caribbean finance delegates attend event examining doing business with China

Ronald Sanders: China will cast a huge shadow as Japan meets CARICOM

Sir Ronald Sanders

BRIDGETOWN, Barbados, Thursday July 2014 - The word will not be spoken in any formal speeches and it won’t be mentioned in final statements and declarations, but it will be talked about in the corridors and it will be at the back of everyone’s mind as Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe visits five Latin American and Caribbean (LAC) nations from July 25 to August 2. The word is “China”.

Animosity between China and Japan has been steadily increasing over the last few years and relations are now tense at best and hostile at worst. From the Chinese side, according to Professor Zhou Yong-Sheng at the China Foreign Affairs University, “Japan can develop as a military superpower and boss around the region again”. He adds “China is no longer the country it is was 120 years ago and, therefore, Japan should not commit the folly of starting a war with its western neighbour”. Those are fighting words and there have been skirmishes in both the sea and air over claims to sovereignty of five small islands known as the Senkaku in Japan and the Diaoyu in China. This had led to a military build-up in Japan that has been criticised by China on almost a daily basis. The heat generated over this was fanned into a flame by the Prime Minister’s insistence on visiting the Yasukuni shrine that venerates Japan’s war dead who China regards as invaders and from the World War 11 occupation of Chinese territory.

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The Japanese leader is visiting the five LAC nations in the wake of a very successful visit by Chinese President Xi Jinping in which he signed agreements that exceed US$10 billion with Argentina, US$5 billion with Venezuela, and US$1.8 billion with Cuba. Additionally, Xi offered to extend a line of credit of up to US$10 billion to members of the Community of Latin American and Caribbean states (CELAC) and to create a US$20 billion fund to finance infrastructure projects in LAC countries. China is also LAC’s second largest trading partner after the United States of America. In 2013, trade reached US$261 billion of which China enjoys a surplus. Nonetheless, Chinese investment, particularly in infrastructure, has helped to boost economies in LAC countries, including the 9 Caribbean Community (CARICOM) countries that have diplomatic relations with China.

The Japanese Prime Minister is very keen to boost trade with Latin America and the Caribbean which, while it nearly doubled over the past decade, still accounts for just 5% of Japan’s foreign trade. He will also want to expand Japan’s stock of foreign investment in LAC which is now lagging behind China at US$60 billion.

The name of the game is two-fold. The first is economic and includes access to LAC resources, such as oil, gas and minerals, as well as investment in large infrastructural projects that would give Japan a sizeable return. In this regard, Chile, Colombia, Brazil and Mexico are the main targets. The second part of the game is political influence particularly in Japan’s quest for a non-permanent seat on the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) for which elections will be held in October 2016. In both cases, Japan comes up against China.

While China is one of the five permanent members of the UNSC, it has been openly campaigning against Japan’s candidacy for the single UNSC seat that will be available to Asia. Japan is contending with Bangladesh whose candidature China avidly promotes in order to block Japan.

It is because of the vote for the UNSC that Japan is particularly interested in meeting the 14 independent CARICOM nations in Trinidad and Tobago on July 28. If they all vote for Japan, Prime Minister Abe would be delighted.

And that is where the challenge and the opportunity arise for the 14 independent CARICOM states. For the five that do not have diplomatic relations with China (they are tied to Taiwan), supporting Japan poses no challenge at all, but the others do have to be mindful of the consequences of supporting Japan for the UNSC. Dealing with this issue will call for skilful diplomacy.

The opportunity for the 14 independent CARICOM nations is the face-to-face meeting with Prime Minister Abe. It presents an opportunity to bargain in the region’s interest just as the Japanese leader will be seeking benefits for Japan.

On the economic front, like China, Japan has been pledging large regional aid and investment packages to Africa and Southeast Asia, the value of which are US$43 billion and US $20 billion, respectively. It is unlikely that transactions of such sizes will be extended to all of the LAC countries. The LAC nations are a low priority for the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) which provided only US$450 million to the entire region in 2012. This means that the CARICOM countries got only a fraction of that total.

It would be worth drawing that reality to Prime Minister Abe’s attention even as CARICOM leaders describe the plight of their economies and the restricted space in which they operate because of rules made by institutions in which Japan has a powerful voice. The face-to-face meeting with the Japanese Prime Minister offers a golden opportunity to remind him that his country has enjoyed a sizeable trade surplus with CARICOM countries for many years – a trade surplus that is greater than the amount of official development assistance Japan provides.

The value of the trade surplus may not be huge in Japanese terms, but it is large for CARICOM states.

Additionally, the meeting with Mr Abe also provides a chance to lever support from Japan in critical areas such as: providing help to address debt (many of the CARICOM countries now have a debt-to-GDP ratio of over 60%); active support in the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development and the Financial Action Task Force for compensation for the high costs that result from compliance with their rules; financing for Climate Change adaptation; advocacy in the IMF and World Bank to make CARICOM states eligible for concessionary loans; and more Japanese investment in renewable energy and infrastructure.

Over all these discussions, of course, China casts a long shadow.

The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of Sir Ronald Sanders. Sir Ronald Sanders is a Consultant and former Caribbean diplomat. Copyright to this article is held by Sir Ronald Sanders and may not be reproduced, republished, shared, hosted, transmitted, or distributed without prior written permission unless indicated otherwise.

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Ronald Sanders: China will cast a huge shadow as Japan meets CARICOM

China pushing for close economic ties with Cuba

Chinese President Xi Jinping has declared that Cuba’s economic reforms could lead to greater commercial ties between the two nations.      
Mr Xi made the comment while he was in Cuba on Tuesday as part of  a nine-day tour of  Latin America that has highlighted China’s growing ties to the region. He previously visited Brazil, Venezuela and Argentina.      
The Chinese President said, given the reforms, Cuba could attract significant Chinese investments.    
Under Raul Castro, Cuba has decentralised state-owned enterprises, legalised home and used car sales and let hundreds of  thousands of people open or work for small businesses.     

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China pushing for close economic ties with Cuba

$5b from new China loan for JEEP

BY BALFORD HENRY Senior staff reporter balfordh@jamaicaobserver.com

Monday, February 03, 2014    

MINISTER of Finance and Planning Dr Peter Phillips says that the Jamaica Emergency Employment Programme (JEEP) will be back in motion again by March.

The Government is planning to spend US$50 million (J$5 billion) of the US$352 million (J$35.2 billion) Chinese loan to finance its new infrastructure development programme, the Major Infrastructure Development Programme (MIDP), to revive JEEP.

Members of Parliament are expected to be the first to benefit with each constituency set to receive $10 million.

Dr Phillips told the House of Representatives last week Tuesday that funds to finance the aspects of the programme under which members of parliament (MPs) can make recommendations will be disbursed by next month.

“What the Government has done first is to ensure that there is the emergency employment programme. The resources from the Chinese loan are there and will be disbursed in this quarter for, first of all, that section having to do with your JEEP programme,” he told the MPs.

He was responding to questions from Opposition spokesman on finance and planning, Audley Shaw, on the unemployment situation.

A draft report prepared by Parliament’s Public Administration and Appropriations Committee (PAAC) for Parliament states that the new phase of JEEP will be funded under MIDP.

The report states that US$50 million ($5 billion) of the US$352 million ($35.2 billion) loan to finance MIDP, which was finalised by Prime Minister Portia Simpson Miller on her trip to China in November, will be dedicated to JEEP.

Of the JEEP allocation, $10 million will be allocated to each constituency to cover infrastructural projects such as construction of retaining walls and sidewalks as well as work to be done on roads and gullies.

MIDP will replace the Jamaica Development Infrastructure Programme (JDIP), which was concluded recently at a cost of $366 million, of which US$340 million was a loan from China negotiated by the previous Government.

It was reported to the committee in November that the completion certification for JDIP had already been prepared, and US$5.2 million was needed to complete the works. The value of the measured works performed was US$366.5 million.

The PAAC said that it was “pleased” that works under JDIP were completed within budget.

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$5b from new China loan for JEEP

China faces obstacles on road to consumer society

“Prices are rocketing up. People’s incomes can hardly catch up,” said Zhao, 38. “Daily necessities, yes, I still have to buy them. But anything I don’t necessarily need, then no.”

The reluctance of Zhao and his customers to open their wallets wider is one of a thicket of obstacles facing communist leaders as they try to rebalance China’s economy away from reliance on investment, a big share of which comes from the government and is losing its ability to boost growth.

The government is walking a fine line, however, as an abrupt shift in the economy could hurt growth, with consequences not just for the country but the global economy. China’s economic importance was laid bare last month, when a report showing a drop in manufacturing activity caused turmoil on world markets.

Combined with an export boom, a flood of spending on new factories, highways and other assets powered the past decade of explosive growth. That helped China rebound quickly from the 2008 global crisis. But it was paid for with a surge in borrowing that economists warn looks like debt booms in other developing countries that spiraled into financial crises.

As urgency for change mounts, so do potential hurdles. Consumer spending accounts for only about 35 percent of gross domestic product, well below neighboring India’s 60 percent, and that percentage declined last year. Curbs on investment will mean less money flows to wages in construction and building materials industries such as steel and cement.

“It is a pretty narrow path that policymakers have to push the economy along,” said Mark Williams, chief Asia economist for Capital Economics. “The risk is that if investment spending slows too much, then that starts to undermine consumer spending and you get a downward spiral.”

Forecasts of this year’s growth range from 7 to 8 percent, far ahead of the United States and Europe but down from China’s double-digit rates of the past decade. Last year’s 7.7 percent growth tied with 2012 for the weakest performance in two decades. And it hit that only after the government launched a mini-stimulus in mid-2013 with more spending on building new railways and other public works.

The impact of a government clampdown on lending and construction is showing in slower economic activity, raising the risk of politically difficult job losses.

A survey by HSBC Corp. found manufacturers cut jobs in January at their fastest rate in five years. Profits at China’s biggest companies grew in December at their slowest rate in nine months. Growth in factory output and retail sales weakened, suggesting that the quarter’s headline growth of 7.7 percent might mask a deepening downturn.

Moves to encourage consumer spending are part of a marathon effort by the Communist Party to transform China from a low-wage factory into a high-income creator of technology with self-sustaining economic growth.

A broad-strokes plan issued by the party leadership in November promises to give entrepreneurs who generate most of China’s new jobs and wealth more access to state-dominated industries.

Regulators announced last month that they will allow the creation of five privately financed banks this year. The government has announced plans for a dozen new free-trade zones in Shanghai and other cities with promises of easier restrictions on business.

But such changes will take time to show results.

“Our expectation is that there isn’t going to be any national-level substantive reform within 2014,” said economist Brian Jackson of IHS Global Insight. “They’re going to launch small experiments.”

The biggest potential growth risk cited by many analysts: A rapid buildup of debt in China’s government-owned banking system.

China’s banks avoided mortgage-related turmoil that battered Western lenders but ramped up lending under orders from the government to help fend off the effects of the 2008 global slowdown.

The IMF and industry analysts warn they might be hit by a rise in defaults if toll roads and other projects approved in haste fail to earn enough.

The central bank says debt levels are manageable, but economists say the speed of the increase is a warning sign. Outstanding bank loans have swelled by the equivalent of 70 percent of China’s gross domestic product over the past five years. Analysts point to countries such as Thailand that have plunged into financial crises after seeing smaller debt increases of as little as 30 percent.

China “needs to contain the building of risks in the financial sector without excessively slowing growth,” said the IMF chief economist, Olivier Blanchard, at a news conference last month. “This is always a very a delicate balancing act.”

At the same time, the government’s effort to clamp down on credit and tighten control over informal lending that support entrepreneurs has sent shock waves through financial markets. Markets in which banks lend to each other ran short of cash twice last year, causing interest rates to spike and fueling unease about the availability of credit.

“The uncertainty related to rate spikes and liquidity squeezes may affect business spending more broadly,” said UBS economist Tao Wang in a report.

Wages in some areas such as the manufacturing-intensive southeast are forecast to rise this year by as much as 10 percent. But workers complain that gains are eaten up by rising living costs — a bad sign for government hopes for higher consumer spending.

Lei Qiang, a logistics manager in Shanghai, said he and his wife have little left every month after paying for basics and save whatever they can. They plan to return to their hometown of Xi’an in western China with their 2-year-old daughter to escape Shanghai’s high cost of living.

“Living in Shanghai for three years, my rent went up every year by 20 to 30 percent,” said Lei, 38. “That was far more than my pay rose.”

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China faces obstacles on road to consumer society

Jamaica offers sports scholarships to China

BEIJING, China (CMC) — Jamaica is willing to help China train track and field athletes, according to Prime Minister Portia Simpson Miller.

The Prime Minister, who is on the final leg of a five-day official visit to China, said that Jamaica has offered 10 sports scholarships to China. The scholarships, tenable at the GC Foster College, are for sportsmen, administrators or coaches.“I indicated to China’s sports administration that we are quite willing to offer, in the first instance, 10 scholarships to athletes and if they would want us to train an administrator or a physical education teacher, we are quite willing,” the prime minister said.Simpson Miller said China’s development is an important opportunity for Jamaica and other Caribbean countries and Jamaica is willing to actively boost friendly co-operation between Caribbean countries and China.In announcing the acceptance of the offer, the Prime Minister noted that while Jamaica is blessed with naturally gifted athletes, the country’s success, particularly in track and field, has been greatly assisted by the nurturing of talents.She said the offer is a result of the long years of friendship, dating back some 40 years in terms of diplomatic relations.Simpson Miller, who, on Friday, visited the Bird’s Nest Stadium where Usain Bolt sped to Olympic and World Records in the 100 and 200 metres at the 2008 Games, said the sprinter is special to the country.“Sports for us is a big thing. When we get a world champion, Jamaica celebrates. We have had a number of outstanding athletes, and Usain Bolt is one very special to us, and Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce is now the fastest woman,” the Prime Minister said.Of Bolt, she said: “He is very famous, everybody would like to be like lightning Bolt. He is very special to us and a very humble, nice, young man”.The Prime Minister said in addition to the role GC Foster has played in the development of Jamaica’s athletics, the food eaten on the island as well as the way of life of rural folks contribute to the development of their talents.“Perhaps it is in our food, the yams, the bananas, and whatever they consume,” she said.“The rural athletes do walk very far, the distance to get to school is quite challenging,” she said, while adding that Jamaica’s success in track and field is not a flash in the pan.She chronicled Jamaica’s success from the 1948 Olympic Games, and noted that athletes such as Cynthia Thompson, Merlene Ottey, Herb McKenley, and Donald Quarrie have long been world beaters.The Jamaican leader is on a visit as guest of Chinese Premier Li Keqiang.SIMPSON MILLER… I indicated to China’s sports administration that we are quite willing to offer, in the first instance, 10 scholarships

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Jamaica offers sports scholarships to China

EU and China reach solar panel deal

27 July 2013 Last updated at 05:06 ET The EU had threatened to impose anti-dumping levies on Chinese solar panels The European Commission says it has reached “an amicable solution” with Beijing in a row over imports of Chinese solar panels.

Both sides have agreed a minimum price for the panels, EU Trade Commissioner Karel De Gucht said.

The dispute erupted after the Commission – the EU’s executive arm – imposed temporary anti-dumping levies on the imports.

It argued that Chinese firms were undercutting rivals.

China is the world’s largest producer of solar panels. Its exports to Europe totalled 21bn euros ($27bn; £18bn) in 2011.

“After weeks of intensive talks, I can announce that I am satisfied with the offer of a price undertaking submitted by China’s solar panel exporters,” Mr De Gucht said on Saturday.

“This is the amicable solution that both the EU and China were looking for.”

He added that the agreement would “lead to a new market equilibrium at sustainable prices”.

The anti-dumping case was the biggest ever undertaken by the Commission.

In June, the EU accused China of “dumping” solar panels in Europe – selling them at below cost to steal market share – and then said it would impose import tariffs of up to 47.6% on them.

China said EU farm subsidies had resulted in European countries “dumping” wine on China, and warned it may respond in kind.

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EU and China reach solar panel deal

China "dumpling poisoner" tried

30 July 2013 Last updated at 02:57 ET Ten people, including a little girl, fell ill in Japan after eating the dumplings A trial has been held for a Chinese man accused of poisoning dumplings which sickened 10 people in Japan, Japanese and Chinese media say.

Factory worker Lu Yueting admitted putting insecticide in frozen dumplings that were later exported to Japan, Xinhua news agency said.

The 2008 incident led to a scare over Chinese food and strained diplomatic relations between the two countries.

The trial comes as a senior Japanese minister visits China.

Lu Yueting worked in Tianyang Food company in China’s Hebei province from 1993 to 2009.

He was accused of using a syringe to put insecticide into the frozen dumplings over frustration with his wages and colleagues.

In January 2008, at least 10 people in Japan fell ill after eating the dumplings. One five-year-old girl was seriously ill and hospitalised.

Investigators then found that the dumplings contained a highly toxic pesticide, methamidophos.

Diplomatic ties were strained as both sides debated whether the contamination occurred on their territory.

Mr Lu was arrested and charged in China in 2010. On Tuesday, his trial opened in Shijiazhuang, Hebei.

Mr Lu pled guilty and apologised to the families of the victims. He said he had not thought that his actions would have such a big impact, and hoped the court would be lenient with him, Chinese state-run news agency Xinhua reported.

His lawyer said that Mr Lu had co-operated with the authorities, shown remorse, and had no previous convictions, and the court should take that into account, Xinhua added.

The trial concluded within three hours, although no sentencing date was announced.

Summit call

The trial comes on the second day of a visit by Japanese Vice Foreign Minister Akitaka Saiki to China, amid strained ties.

Sino-Japanese tensions have been heightened due to a territorial dispute over an uninhabited island chain in the East China Sea.

Shinzo Abe, Japan’s prime minister, has been seeking to improve relations, and has called for “unconditional, frank dialogue” between the two countries.

Isao Iijima, an adviser to Mr Abe, said on Sunday that a leaders’ summit could be held in the “not-too-distant future”.

However, a Chinese government official appeared to rule out the possibility of a summit anytime soon.

The official, who declined to be named, told state-run newspaper China Daily that Japan was brandishing “empty slogans” and that the statements were “based on the needs of Japan’s domestic politics”.

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China "dumpling poisoner" tried

China Harbour continues to support Jamaican athletes

JAMAICA’S Paralympians were given a further financial boost towards participating at the IPC Athletics World Championships in France, as China Harbour Engineering Company (CHEC) pumped in $500,000 towards their expenses.

With the games set to run from July 20-29, the total sponsorship package to date is $4.4m following Digicel’s $2.4m, and Supreme Ventures’ $1.9m . The opening ceremony was held Friday in Lyon.Jennifer Armond, CHEC’s communications manager, told the Jamaica Observer that her organisation is continuing its support for Jamaican athletes.“China Harbour has projects in 80 countries around the world and they always try to find ways where they can blend in with the culture of each country they enter, and being an engineering and construction company, mostly male-oriented, sports tends to be a definitive way to do so. Then, of course, Jamaica being a “Track Star” country, makes it an added attraction in the decision-making process,” said Armond.“CHEC’s sponsorship of sporting activities started in 2011 with a $300,000 donation to the Christina High School daCosta Cup football team for their purchase of gear and other items needed to compete.“This school was located adjacent to our Christiana Development Road JDIP project, so we granted their request as part of our corporate social responsibility policy that is integral to CHEC’s company culture of assisting worthwhile causes as for community development,” she noted.“China Harbour then caught the Olympic fever in August 2012 and handed over US$20,000 to the Jamaica Olympic Association in support of the Jamaican athletes in their 2012 London Olympics Games competition. Soon after their victorious return, CHEC spent an additional $2m towards a celebratory concert at the National Arena in October 2012, to honour the athletes, coaching staff and officials to the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games,” Armond added.She noted that these donations sparked the interest of other sporting bodies and requests started arriving in their numbers.“A decision was made by our regional general manager, Zhongdong Tang, that China Harbour Engineering Company should support the sport of football through the local Premier League Clubs Association, and they did by donating a whopping $22 million. He felt that as a main contractor for projects all across the country, the boost in football would be a formidable way to reach to the hearts and pockets of the young men that live in the communities who enjoy playing and watching the sport. The donation was used to help maintain the welfare of the football clubs across Jamaica.“The $30,000 ‘Starballer of the Month’ prize was an added incentive to encourage the players, on an individual level, to perform at their best so that in the short term they could win an immediate cash reward and in the longer term add an accolade to their resume, which worked out well for the April 2013 Starballer, Jermie Lynch, who was signed on for a six-month loan contract at Club Deportivo Luis Ángel Firpo in El Salvador,” she added.“At the moment we are reviewing our past experience in sponsoring the 2012-2013 PCLA competition before we make a decision on the coming season, but meanwhile we have continued our interest in track and field events.“As CHEC’s investments and interest deepen in Jamaica and the region, so will their support for cultural exchange; the company’s approach of inclusion and collaboration will prove itself in the days ahead,” said Armond.Jamaica will be represented by seven athletes of which the Championships are expected to draw nearly 2,000 athletes from 118 countries.The team will be captained by Tanto Campbell, who will participate in the F54/56 discus throw. The 2012 Olympic champion Alphanso Cunningham will be looking to continue his rich vein of form at Championships in the F52/53 javelin and discus events. Sylvia Grant is the only woman and will be in the F57/58 javelin and discus. The team is completed by Shane Hudson (T46 200m and 400m); Davis Bascoe (T46 200m and 400m); Romadeo Williams (T46 200m and 400m); and Isaiah Simms (T13 100m and 200m).Neville Sinclair will be the coach with Suzanne Harris-Henry the chef de mission, among the five officials with the team. Jennifer Armond (left), CHEC’s communications manager, handing over the symbolic cheque to Randy Jones (second right), director of the Jamaica Paralympics Association, and Christopher Samuda (right), president, JPA. Also sharing in the moment is Xiao Yanming, general affairs manager, CHEC.

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China Harbour continues to support Jamaican athletes

China provides EC$18 m for projects in Dominica

News

Tuesday, July 16, 2013 | 10:59 AM

ROSEAU, Dominica (CMC) – China is providing more than EC$18 million to Dominica for a number of community-based projects and the construction of a new hospital in the capital.“This assistance is being granted to us by China at a very difficult time for all of us in the world including China, but because of the extra ordinary friendship between the two countries. China continues to be a very dear and sincere friend to the Government and people of Dominica and we are indeed very grateful for this” Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit said.Skerrit and Charge D’affaires of the People’s Republic of China, Qui Wei Wei signed the two agreements, according to a government statement.It said the accord follows the promise made by Chinese President XI Jing Ping when he met with Prime Minister Skerrit and other Caribbean leaders in Trinidad and Tobago last month.“The first agreement is for $50 Million RMB, as grant aid from the Government of the People’s Republic of China coming out of our meeting with the President of China in Trinidad who offered this assistance to the Government and people of Dominica. This sum will be used largely to assist in addressing some community based projects in various parts of the country,” said Skerrit.He said the second agreement will cover the plans for the construction of the new Princess Margaret Hospital.“There is a delegation which will visit Dominica in the next few days that will put forward the designs for the new Princess Margaret Hospital. This assistance will no doubt trigger that process,” he added.The Chinese diplomat said that the agreements are testimony of the growing cooperation existing between Dominica and China.“This agreement is another step in the cooperation between our two countries. We are very glad to see that this aid will be put into programmes which will benefit the local people. The Chinese government will continue to provide this type of aid to Dominica and we will continue to work together with your government”.

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China provides EC$18 m for projects in Dominica

T"was another wonderful Caribbean party in China!

SHANGHAI, China — Just over 200 people turned out to Shanghai Pudong’s Crowne Plaza hotel to celebrate another Caribbean Association in China (CAC) anniversary party recently.

The theme was “Pirates of the Caribbean” and about a third of the patrons opted to don pirate or wench costumes. As customary, once the Caribbean beats got thumping, it was easy to forget that one was in China. The annual CAC party is one of the few occasions when foreigners are in the majority and the music and the food reminiscent of home.The event was slated to begin at 7:00 pm but that too was on Caribbean time, which was barely noticeable as while we waited outside the entrance of the ballroom, many drifted to the far left to a coconut booth where one could enjoy jelly coconuts cut to order, with an extra special rum kick added. Many sipped on their spiked coconuts while catching up with friends they hadn’t seen since the last Caribbean event.The band, Voicexpanders from the Phillipines set the mood with tunes from Jamaica’s Bob Marley. All around there was the smell of Caribbean flavours in the air. The buffet fare did not disappoint with its wide variety of dishes from the islands, including green banana and salted fish salad, rice and peas, Jamaican pumpkin soup, sweet-and-spicy black bean salad, creole fish stew, Caribbean seasoned tofu with vegetables, coconut rum cream pie, and plantain tart.Once most people had started to enjoy their first course, the MC for the evening, Camille Lindo, who hails from Jamaica, got the evenings proceedings under way. There were two raffle draws throughout the evening. Raffle prizes included gift vouchers, notably from Shanghai’s first Jamaican owned hair salon, Studio Hair Ebony. There was a silent auction, from which the proceeds will fund various children charity events organised by the CAC, including the One Heart Foundation which was represented at the party.The fashion show featured paper dresses and designs from Reecia Charles who hails from Grenada. Following the formal fashion show, those in costume had the opportunity to display their get-up on stage. The audience voted for the best male and female costumes by way of cheers.“I really enjoyed the pirates theme, it allowed imagination and creativity to run free, and the air of ‘silliness’ was ice-breaking!” said Bettina Wilson who had a great time at the party.Then it was time for DJ Laobang who took over the music reins from the band. South Korean-born, Japanese-raised Kim Young Soo aka DJ Laobang has lived in Shanghai for almost 10 years and has visited Jamaica on numerous occasions.As Caribbean beats blared, the limbo competition, which has now become a tradition at this event, lived up to its reputation for fun and laughter. Many bent back, but as the stick got lower the competitors got fewer and in the end Christal Oliver from Antigua, once again reigned as the champion of the limbo, with Raphael Ewin from Jamaica coming in second.Free rum punch was served while DJ Laobang played some Caribbean oldies but goodies mixed with some modern goodies. Many got down to beats like It Wasn’t me, The girls dem sugar, Informer, Murder she wrote and Living dangerously.The party drew to a close at midnight and for those who hadn’t had enough there was an after-party jam in the hotel’s Charlie’s Bar which is inspired by Charlie Chaplin. Caribbean citizens living or studying in China show off their Pirates of the Caribbean costumes at the annual Caribbean Association in China anniversary party in Shanghai.

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T"was another wonderful Caribbean party in China!