Chinese Daily Photos, 2011 to 2019!

WASHINGTON, DC - MARCH 9: U.S. President Barack Obama (L) announces the nomination of Secretary of Commerce Gary Locke, a Chinese-American. to be the next U.S. ambassador to China, at the White House March 9, 2011 in Washington, DC. If confirmed by the Senate, Locke would take over the diplomatic mission in a country that is a linchpin in Obama's trade policy.

Commerce Secretary Gary Locke will be the first Chinese American to serve as U.S. ambassador to China.

Locke was born on January 21, 1950 in Seattle, Washington. A third-generation American with paternal ancestry from Taishan, Guangdong in China, Locke is the second of five children of James and Julie Locke from Hong Kong, which at that time was a dependent territory of the United Kingdom. His parents gave him the Chinese name of 駱家輝 (pronounced Lok Gaa-Fai in Cantonese). He did not learn to speak English until he was five years old.

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Wang Zheng attends the Makadara Law Courts January18, 2011 where he pleaded guilty to charges of being in possession of illegal ivory trophies and tusks weighing 64.5 kilogrammes valued at a local street value of Ksh 350,000. Wang Zheng, 29, was arrested Monday night at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport in Nairobi on transit from Kinshasa in the Democratic Republic of Congo to Guangzhou in China on a Kenya Airways flightwithout a certificate of ownership for some 278 pieces of worked and raw ivory weighing 65kg.

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NPC delegates leave after the opening session of the National People's Congress (NPC) at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on March 5, 2011

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A vendor takes steamed buns for customers at a market in Xiangyang, Hubei province March 9, 2011. You might call it the Steamed Bun Party.

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NANNING, CHINA - MARCH 08: A Chinese folk artist performs acrobatics during a celebration on International Women's Day at Nanning Zoo on March 8, 2011 in Nanning, Guangxi Province of China. The official theme of International Women's Day 2011 is 'Equal access to education, training and science and technology: Pathway to decent work for women'.

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Taiwan President Ma Ying-jeou (3rd R), Premier Wu Den-yih (2nd R) and Chiang Pin-kung (2nd L), chairman of the Straits Exchange Foundation, cut a cake at a ceremony marking the 20th anniversary of the foundation's establishment in Taipei on March 9, 2011. The semi-official foundation handles civil exchanges with China in the absence of officials ties between Taipei and Beijing.

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A woman walks past the local taxation bureau in Hefei, Anhui province March 9, 2011. The emergence of taxes as a public concern has been on display this week at the National People's Congress, the country's annual session of parliament which features scripted meetings and next to no real debate

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Children ride their bicycles before the Hong Kong skyline along the promenade of the West Kowloon Cultural District of the city on March 5, 2011.

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Retired football star Pele of Brazil (C) watches pupils of the San Wui Commercial Society School during a football clinic in Hong Kong on March 8, 2011. Pele is in Hong Kong accompanying the New York Cosmos on their Asian tour.

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People spray each other with water from toy pistols to express good wishes for the New Year during a local traditional festival in Dongguan, Guangdong province on March 6, 2011.

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BEIJING - MARCH 10: Chinese military delegates arrive at the Great Hall of the People before a meeting for the plenary session of China's National People's Congress (NPC) on March 10, 2011 in Beijing, China. The NPC will take place until March 14.

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Hostesses pose for photos in front of the Great Hall of the People during an ongoing session of the National People's Congress, China's annual parliament, in Beijing on March 10, 2011.

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A woman mourns for her loss after an earthquake jolted Yingjiang county in southwestern China's Yunnan Province on Thursday, March 10, 2011. The earthquake toppled houses and damaged a hotel and supermarket in China's extreme southwest near the border with Myanmar on Thursday, killing at least 14 people and injuring more than 150, officials and state media said. (AP Photo)

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Residents tend to the injured after an earthquake jolted Yingjiang county in southwestern China's Yunnan Province on Thursday, March 10, 2011. The earthquake toppled houses and damaged a hotel and supermarket in China's extreme southwest near the border with Myanmar on Thursday. (AP Photo)

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BEIJING - MARCH 10: Two Chinese ethnic minority language translators work in the Great Hall of the People during a meeting for the plenary session of China's National People's Congress (NPC) on March 10, 2011 in Beijing, China. The NPC will take place until March 14.

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South Korean newspapers dated on March 9, 2011 carry stories and pictures of a Chinese woman, who was suspected of having affairs with South Korean diplomats in an alleged steamy sex-for-favor scandal that has rocked South Korea's consulate in Shanghai. South Korea's government said it has launched an investigation into an alleged steamy sex-for-favours scandal that has rocked its consulate in Shanghai. Media reports say three Korean diplomats based in China's biggest city were suspected of having affairs with the same Chinese woman, who allegedly used her influence over them in seeking visas for Chinese workers.

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A beautician applies make-up to a model at the " 34th Guangzhou international cosmetics fair" in Guangzhou, capital of south China's Guangdong Province, March 9, 2011. The cosmetics fair opened here Wednesday, with some 2,000 cosmetics makers worldwide bringing their products to the fair. [Xinhua/Yuan Hongwei]

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Models display new products at the " 34th Guangzhou international cosmetics fair" in Guangzhou, capital of south China's Guangdong Province, March 9, 2011. [Xinhua/Yuan Hongwei]

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Rescuers search for survivors in a damaged building after the 5.8-magnitude earthquake hit Yingjiang County in southwest China's Yunnan Province, March 10, 2011. The death toll has risen to 24 as of 7:00 p.m. Thursday, at least 207 others were injured, with 33 in serious condition. (Xinhua/Xiao Lin)

BEIJING – The death toll from an earthquake that hit Yingjiang County in southwest China's Yunnan Province Thursday noon has risen to 25, local authorities said.

So far, 250 people are confirmed injured in the 5.8-magnitude earthquake, with 134 in serious condition, the provincial civil affairs department said in a statement late Thursday.

The earthquake has toppled the homes of 1,039 families and left 4,994 others seriously damaged, mainly in the county seat near the border with Myanmar, it said.

The National Committee of Disaster Reduction, Ministry of Civil Affairs and Yunnan's provincial government have dispatched 9,700 tents, 15,000 quilts, 15,000 clothes and other materials to the quake-hit region.

Photos from the scene showed buildings that buckled, crushing their lower floors in Yingjiang county, Yunnan province. Police, firefighters and soldiers rushed to the area to pull out people trapped in the rubble, including a man and girl stuck in the stairwell of a four-story building, according to state broadcaster China Central Television.

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China strives to evacuate nationals from Libya
2011-02-25 01:54:29 GMT2011-02-25 09:54:29(Beijing Time) Xinhua English

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Microblogs raise social awareness in China
By Channel NewsAsia's Beijing correspondent Maria Siow | Posted: 10 March 2011 1207 hrs

BEIJING: Microblogging is making its presence felt in China, even though authorities have blocked popular sites such as Facebook and Twitter.

Apart from serving as a networking vehicle, microblogging has also help raised social awareness and much more.

One of these microbloggers is 24-year-old Sun Yijing, a self-confessed mircoblogging addict. She spends several hours a day updating her status, and swopping stories with friends and followers.

"I'm interested in music and I also follow the microblogs of music lovers and critics. I've gained lots of music-related information," said Miss Sun.

Like users on Facebook and Twitter, microbloggers can share photos and videos, record voicemail, follow famous personalities and leave comments.

In the past year, the number of microbloggers has exploded to some 100 million.

To be a microblogger in China, all one needs is an email address, a password, and a username or pseudonym, and they are all set. However during this year's National People's Congress, one delegate was so worried that microblogging can be used to spread rumors that she has suggested that real names be used before one can sign up as a microblogger.

Recently, microblogs were used to save children from trafficking and abuse. Microbloggers were urged to take photos of children begging on the streets, post them online, so as to help parents search for missing children.

Another microblogger, Pan Yunbo, said: "Microblogs have also helped raised funds for children suffering from dreaded illnesses as some of these posts for help get re-posted. This allows more people to know and help, including hospitals, and this is really a good thing."

There are about 457 million internet users in China, and the government has recently identified microblogging as powerful drivers of public opinion. That is why in recent months, many government departments and police at the local level set up microblogs to interact with and obtain feedback from the public.

Zhang Zuoli, a Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) Delegate, said: "In the reconstruction of shanty dwellings, some local departments have turned to microblogging and other internet options to obtain opinion. Only when 80 or 90 per cent approval is given would the construction be carried out."

The highest ranking official to launch a personal microblog is Xinjiang party chief Zhang Chunxian.

Even though some have described the official moves as yet another online public relations stunt, others said that keeping such channels open is not a bad thing.

Like other forms of internet sites, microblogging is also subjected to control. In recent weeks, certain sensitive terms relating to the Middle East situation, and the Jasmine rallies, were blocked by the authorities.

This seems to be a clear sign that Beijing wants to strike a balance between tapping on the benefits, and avoiding the pitfalls, of new technology.

-CNA/ac

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China internal security spending jumps past army budget
By Chris Buckley

BEIJING | Sat Mar 5, 2011 5:47am EST

BEIJING (Reuters) - China's spending on police and domestic surveillance will hit new heights this year, with "public security" outlays unveiled on Saturday outstripping the defense budget for the first time as Beijing cracks down on protest calls.

China's ruling Communist Party also issued its loudest warning yet against recent Internet-spread calls for "Jasmine Revolution" protest gatherings inspired by popular uprisings in North Africa and the Middle East.

The 13.8 percent jump in China's planned budget for police, state security, armed civil militia, courts and jails was unveiled at the start of the annual parliamentary session, and brought planned spending on law and order items to 624.4 billion yuan ($95.0 billion).

By contrast, China's People's Liberation Army budget is set to rise 12.7 percent to 601.1 billion yuan ($91.5 billion).

"This would be the first time that the openly announced domestic security budget has surpassed military spending," said Xie Yue, a political scientist at Tongji University in Shanghai. He called the figure a gauge of China's spending on what officials call "stability protection."

"This shows the rising costs of maintaining internal control," said Xie, who studies China's domestic security policies and spending. "This system is very sensitive to any instability or contention."

THE BLESSINGS OF STABILITY

The Beijing Daily, a Party mouthpiece, signaled that China would not relax its crackdown against Internet-spread calls for pro-democracy protests inspired by Middle Eastern uprisings.

"Everyone knows that stability is a blessing and chaos is a calamity," said the newspaper, which is the mouthpiece of the Communist Party administration for China's capital.

The bulk of China's spending growth on internal security and law and order comes from provincial and local government outlays, tables in the Chinese-language version of the Finance Ministry report showed. The central government's "public security" budget for 2011 is 161.7 billion yuan, a rise of 9.6 percent in that figure from 2010.

The budget figures and protest warning show how jumpy China's leaders are about potential unrest, despite robust economic growth and powerful security forces. The forces were on show in Beijing on Saturday, with police and troops stationed at nearly every major street corner.

Last year, central and local agencies spent 548.6 billion yuan on public security, more than the 514.0 billion yuan the government initially budgeted. As a result, actual spending on internal order last year was slightly higher than spending on national defense, which hit 532.1 billion yuan.

Chinese scholars have said spending on enforcing domestic security is diverting money from welfare spending and other initiatives that could ease causes of social unrest.

"When a goal as vast and vague as 'stability maintenance' becomes an obvious leadership priority, and there is money about, people will come rushing out of the woodwork arguing that the thing they want to do is critical to stability maintenance," said Murray Scot Tanner, a researcher who studies China's domestic security policies for CNA, a private research group in the United States.

Many foreign experts believe China's real military budget is much bigger. Xie, the Shanghai professor, said spending on "stability maintenance" was also far higher than official data.

China's most immediate security fear is the online move for "Jasmine Revolution" protest gatherings inspired by the political flux across the Middle East and North Africa, but protest calls in China have little chance of taking off.

Police have rounded up dozens of dissidents. Internet censorship also means that few Chinese residents are aware of the calls for protests spread by an overseas Chinese website.

"Those people intent on concocting and finding Middle East-style news in China will find their plans come to nothing," said the Beijing Daily commentary.

(Reporting by Chris Buckley, Editing by Don Durfee and Daniel Magnowski)

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BEIJING, March 10 (Xinhua) -- China will stress law enforcement even more after the socialist legal system with Chinese characteristics has been established in the country, legislator Li Fei said Thursday.

"First of all, we will continue to publicize the knowledged of laws in the whole society and tell the public to protect their legitimate rights by using legal weapons," Li told a press conference on the sidelines of the annual session of the National People's Congress (NPC), China's top legislature.

Li serves as vice director of the Commission for Legislative Affairs of the NPC Standing Committee, and a member of the NPC Law Committee.

He said government officials and civil servants are the most important group of people who demonstrate law enforcement.

"We have set up various oversight mechanisms to supervise their work, such as the oversight system by the people's congresses," he said.

In addition, China has other oversight mechanisms, including the disciplinary inspection within the Communist Party of China, supervision from the public and the media, he said.

"All those are practised to ensure that civil servants at various levels strictly enforce laws," he added.

China's legislative goal of forming a socialist system of laws with Chinese characteristics by 2010 was set forth at the Fifteenth National Congress of the Communist Party of China in 1997.X Top legislator Wu Bangguo announced Thursday that the goal had been fulfilled "on schedule," hailing it as a "major milestone" in the history of the development of the country's socialist democratic legal system.

"The formation of a socialist system of laws with Chinese characteristics has generally solved the problem of having laws for people to follow," Wu said while delivering a work report of the 11the NPC Standing Committee.

He said the problem of ensuring that laws are observed and strictly enforced and that lawbreakers are prosecuted has become more pronounced and pressing.

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Geographer said:

Internal security refers to fighting crime as well as suppressing protests. Fighting crime is a virtue so why does the article have such a cynical tone? I bet a lot of countries spend more on their police forces than militaries. China's military spending is still less than 3 percent of its GDP, far lower than the United States' 4-5 percent.

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Chinese President Hu Jintao takes off his glasses during the opening session of National People's Congress at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on March 5, 2011. Premier Wen Jiabao on March 5 acknowledged 'great resentment' in China over growing income disparity, corruption and other problems, and vowed his government would work harder to meet public demands.

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Chinese policemen ride segway's as they patrol Tiananmen Square outside the Great Hall of the People in

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, Friday, March 11, 2011. Chinese justice officials are vowing to crush all threats to state security, social stability and the country's economy.

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A military officer gets out from a bus as delegates arrive for a plenary session of the National People's Congress held at the Great Hall of the People in

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, Friday, March 11, 2011. Chinese justice officials are vowing to crush all threats to state security, social stability and the country's economy.

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Chinese hostesses pose with an ethnic minority delegate prior to a session of the National People's Congress at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on March 11, 2011. China said that inflation remained stubbornly high at 4.9 percent in February, but authorities fearful of social unrest insisted they can deliver on a pledge to keep prices in check this year.

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An accident site at Majiang County section of Shanghai-Kunming Freeway on March 10, 2011 in Majiang County, Guizhou Province of China. The truck fire started at the wheel and burned down 180 motorcycles on the truck, resulting in more than 1,000,000 RMB (152,000 USD) economic losses.

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Quan Li, founder of "Save China's Tigers", plays with "Miss X tiger" in the Lory Park Zoo, South Africa, March 7, 2011. Now the little female tiger, born on Jan. 31, 2011, is soliciting name in China. (Xinhua/Li Qihua)

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Customers shop on Thursday at a Mannings store in Hong Kong, where five shoppers were involved in a physical altercation over baby formula powder. [Photo/China Daily]

Hong Kong/Beijing - Five people involved in a physical altercation over baby formula powder in Hong Kong on Wednesday were convicted of fighting in a public place by a local court on Thursday.

The two women and three men had been arrested before their conviction by the Eastern Magistrate.

The clash started at a chain store in Wan Chai, where people rushed to buy imported baby formula when the store opened in the morning.

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Visitors take part in a parade in Hong Kong Disneyland in Hong Kong, south China, March 10, 2011. Hong Kong Disneyland launched a new Magic Access membership on Thursday, with the price ranging from 370 to 2,400 Hong Kong dollars, up 30 to 40 percent compared to the previous membership plan. (Xinhua/Chen Xiaowei)

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As for military vs police spending, I doubt most countries spend more on their police than their militaries simply because police hardware is considerably cheaper than military hardware. Police don't operate super-sonic fighter jets, main battle tanks, advanced warships (including submarines for some navies) and in the case of the PLA, ballistic missiles.

Furthermore, the PLA is the largest standing military in the world. With an estimated 2.3 million military personnel. I don't suppose there are 10 times that number of internal security personnel in the PRC (i.e., 23 million) to account for the cost of internal security?

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