Daily Briefs


Photo : Global Times

27 December 2021, Monday | China Reader Evening Brief | Vol.1, No. 72

China remembers Mao Zedong on 128th birth anniversary

Citizens pay homage to Mao Zedong's bronze statue in his hometown. Faith in his teachings stay strong in society as well as the party.

IN BRIEF
By Avishka Ashok, Keerthana Nambiar and Dincy Adlakha

INTERNAL
China remembers Mao Zedong on 128th birth anniversary
On 26 December, a public tribute to the greatest Chinese leader Mao Zedong was given to mark the 128th year of his birth. Several citizens traveled to his hometown, Shaoshan, to pay homage to his bronze statue despite heavy snowfall. The pandemic posed an obstacle as fewer people visited the statue this year; however, a significant tribute was paid by bringing the samples of lunar dust and soil through Cheng’e-5 to his hometown. Many political figures noted it as “We can bring down the moon from the Ninth Heaven” and maintained that the Communist Party of China still proceeds through the light of his teachings. (Cui Fandi and Zhao Yusha, “Chinese society memorize Mao Zedong on 128th anniversary of his birth,” Global Times, 26 December 2021)

China replaces official head in Xinjiang
On 26 December, Chinese state media announced that the Party CHief in Xinjiang has been replaced by another official who was earlier the coastal economic powerhouse, Guangdong province. Chen Quanguo, the earlier chief, was associated with strict surveillance and security crackdown targeting Uyghur and other ethnic minorities in the province. The change is in the context of a wider shuffle of roles and portfolios before the 20th CPC arrives in 2022. The change is also concurrent with the international pressure on Beijing over human rights abuses in Xinjiang. (Vincent Ni, “China replaces Xinjiang party boss associated with Uyghur crackdown,” The Guardian, 26 December 2021)

COVID-19 outbreak in Xian leads to high nationwide daily count
On 26 December, Reuters reported on the rising of COVID-19 cases in the northwestern city of Xian which is China’s current pandemic hotspot. Xian, a city of 13 million reported its highest daily rise of infections in 21 months, leading to a nationwide daily count of 158- the highest since China managed to contain the outbreaking early 2020. Although Xian did not report any Omicron variant cases, the Chinese authorities have reported few Omicron cases among international travelers. (“China's local COVID case count driven to 21-month high by Xian outbreak,” Reuters, 26 December 2021)

China sets new goals for rural development in 2022
On 27 December, Xinhua reported that China is preparing for the 20th CPC to arrive in 2022 and bring along the new priorities for significant rural development. President Xi Jinping is focused on rural vitalization after the achievement of complete poverty alleviation. The new rural priorities have concrete measures like the application of agriculture as a cornerstone, advancing rural vitalization and other reforms. The new priorities aim to improve 128,000 villages in China. (“Xinhua Headlines: China sets priorities for 2022 rural development,” Xinhua Net, 27 December 2021)

REGIONAL
University of Hong Kong performs a study on effects of pandemic on children from low-income countries
On 27 December, The Strait Times published an article on the study by the University of Hong Kong on the effects of COVID-19 on low-income families. According to the Strait Times, the study says that “the COVID-19 pandemic has been especially hard on students from low-income families.” It says that the pandemic led to an unhealthy diet, lack of sleep, confinement to small homes for long hours among children of low-income families. The findings were that more than 75 percent of children had excessive sodium intake, 12 percent lacked vitamin D and a digital divide emerged when schools were shut down and classes moved online. The study found out that the physical and mental health of the students in Hong Kong scored 6,97 points on the life satisfaction scale. (“Children from low-income Hong Kong families hit hard by Covid-19,” The Strait Times, 27 December 2021)

INTERNATIONAL
Chinese society report finds US guilty of weakening human rights governance
On 27 December, Xinhua published an article covering a report by the China Society for Human Rights Studies. The society is a non-governmental human rights research society that releases reports and analyzes data regularly. The latest report said that the US has seriously eroded the foundation of global human rights governance by politicizing the cause. It also said that US’ actions have destructive consequences as its attitude perceives human rights as a political agenda. The report also accused the US of maintaining double standards and hypocrisy on the matter. (“1st LD-Writethru: U.S. politicization of human rights erodes foundation of human rights governance: report,” Xinhua Net, 27 September 2021)

Global Times reports on the cancellation and delayed flights from US to China
On 26 December, the Chinese Consulate General in San Francisco lodged “solemn representation to airline company Delta” after its flight unexpectedly returned to the US halfway to China reported Global Times. According to a flight-tracking site FlightAware, Global Times reported that “there has been numerous flights from the US to China delayed or canceled.” The cancellation and delays have left numerous Chinese stranded with expired visas and health codes. (“Chinese Consulate General in San Francisco lodges solemn representation to Delta airlines after flight returns halfway to China,” Global Times, 26 December 2021)

Global Times reports on Soviet Union’s collapse – a valuable lesson for China, and parallels between USSR then and US today
On 26 December, Global Times reported on the collapse of the Soviet Union (USSR) and the success of China’s adaptation to socialism with Chinese characteristics. According to Global Times, “Chinese people hold mixed feelings over the collapse 30 years ago, as they hold sympathy toward Russian people who consequently suffered a series of tragedies, but they also find that the collapse of the red giant is a significantly valuable lesson for China to keep developing and improving socialism with Chinese characteristics.” The article says that the US today is following the path of the USSR in the 1970s-80s with the abuse of military expansion, overconfidence in ideology, and a Cold War mentality. (“Lesson of Soviet Union’s collapse ‘helps China develop socialism successfully’,” Global Times, 26 December 2021)

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