Daily Briefs


Photo : Wall Street Journal

21 March 2024, Thursday | Vol.1 No. 37

Chinese youth employment rate sees a 15.3 per cent hike, says National Bureau Statistics

CPEC’s ‘Gwadar port’ attacked by the armed wing of Balochistan Liberation Amry, Majeed Brigade

CHINA READER DAILY WIRE

INTERNAL
Chinese youth employment rate sees a 15.3 per cent hike, says National Bureau Statistics
On 20 March, the Chinese National Bureau of Statistics released the Youth Unemployment data where the rate rose to 15.3 per cent in February while in January 2024, it was at 14.6 per cent. The result shows the persisting unemployment issue in China as they try to recover their economy, the young population's employment condition from the age of 16-24 remains the same. In June 2023, the NBS issued that they won’t declare the document anymore as they saw an all-time high in the youth unemployment rate, reaching 21.3 per cent. In January, the NBS introduced a new measuring technique where they excluded students from the report. This exclusion is considered unusual in most countries like the US and the European countries include students looking for jobs as part of census. (“China’s Youth Jobless Rate Edges Higher After Methodology Change,” Wall Street Journal, 20 March 2024)

CHINA & SOUTH ASIA
CPEC’s ‘Gwadar port’ attacked by the armed wing of Balochistan Liberation Amry, Majeed Brigade
On 20 March, Pakistan security forces curbed an attack at the Gwadar port, Pakistan, where eight armed attackers were killed. Gwadar Port in Balochistan is a multimillion project initiative between the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor. It is one of Pakistan's most ambitious infrastructure projects. Chief Minister of Balochistan Sarfraz Bugti said: “Whosoever chooses to use violence will see no mercy from the state. Kudos to all law enforcement brave hearts who fought bravely today for Pakistan.” The attackers are said to be part of the Majeed Brigade, which is an armed wing group of the Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA). BLA is a separatist group demanding secession of their province from the rest of Pakistan. They even accept the responsibility stating: “BLA accepts responsibility for the attack and further details will be released to the media.” This is not the first time it was attacked, the city of Gwadar consists of many Chinese families and citizens who work there. (“Pakistan’s Gwadar port attacked, eight armed fighters killed,” Al-Jazeera, 20 March 2024)

CHINA & THE AMERICAS
US signs bills prohibiting transfer of data to foreign firms, hinting at China
On 20 March, the US House of Representatives passed a bill to prohibit sensitive data from being transferred from Americans to foreign firms. The bill got 414-0 votes and now the bill would move to Democratic legislation and needs to be signed by the President to be made into law. The bills aim to block government-issued identifiers, account numbers, genetic information, geolocation, and private communication from being transferred. US Representative Frank Pallone said: “The breadth and scope of sensitive personal information aggregated by data brokers makes the sale of that data to our foreign adversaries a unique threat to national security and individual privacy.” He said that countries like China can use the information and share layered campaigns and propaganda. The provision forces the popular US app TikTok from divesting. Another representative Raja Krishnamoorthi said: “prevents our foreign adversaries from buying American data through other sources.” (“Eyeing China, US House unanimously passes bill prohibiting ‘sensitive data’ transfers to foreign adversaries,” South China Moring Post, 21 March 2024)

 

US recognizes Arunachal Pradesh to be part of India, rejects China’s claims
On 20 March, the US State Departments announced that they reject China’s claim to Arunachal Pradesh. The US State Department spokesperson Vedant Patel said: “The United States recognizes Arunachal Pradesh as Indian territory and we strongly oppose any unilateral attempts to advance territorial claims by incursions or encroachments, military or civilian, across the Line of Actual Control.” The Line of Actual Control is a demarcation of the controlled territories between the two nations. Director of the South Asia Institute at the Wilson Center Michael Kugelman stated that the statements stand true to the US efforts to consistently align itself with India which competes with China. The statements come in light of the diplomatic row going on between India and China after PM Modi's visit to Arunachal Pradesh, which China claims to be their territory and part of Southern Tibet. (“U.S. rejects China’s claim to Arunachal Pradesh, says it is a part of India,” CNBC, 21 March 2024 )
 

 

EAST ASIA & THE PACIFIC READER

EAST ASIA
South Korea announces new medical admission slots, amid doctors protest
On 20 March, the South Korean government announced that they would be allocating 2,000 new student admission slots nationwide. The government decided to move ahead with the reform plans as the trainee doctors and senior doctors continued to strike. Thousands of doctors walked out, hospitals cancelled crucial treatments and surgeries. The government brought this provision to fill the gap in the doctor-population ratio, especially in rural areas. Most of the new students have been granted admission to universities outside Seoul, in order to boost doctors’ capacity in the rural region. Some experts believe that the issue in their medical system is that most doctors are consolidated in the metropolitan city of Seoul. The Korean Medical Association criticized the announcement and said this has: “burned the last bridge for compromise” leading to “catastrophic consequences.” (“Seoul allocates new medical school slots despite doctors’ strike,” The Straits Times, 20 March 2024)3

Other Daily Briefs