The Beijing Hour
Evening Edition
Today is Monday, September 30, 2013.
Coming up on our program this evening.
President Xi Jinping calls on all out rescue efforts following Typhoon Wutip, so far leaving 74 people missing and thousands evacuated from their homes
Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad vows to abide by the UN’s resolution calling for the destructions of it’s chemical weapons.
Kenyan security services make another arrest in connection with the Westgate shopping mall attack.
Business
New data shows that China's operating conditions improved fractionally in September.
Weather
Beijing will see some showers tonight with a low of 17 degrees Celsius. Tomorrow we'll see moderate rain with a high temperature of 20.
Meanwhile Shanghai will be cloudy tonight, with a low of 20, tomorrow will also be cloudy, with a high of 27.
Lhasa will see showers tonight, 5 degrees the low, cloudy tomorrow with a high of 18.
Elsewhere in the world, staying in Asia
Islamabad, clear, with a high of 23.
Kabul, clear, 16.
Over in Australia
Sydney, overcast, highs of 17.
Canberra, overcast, 11.
Brisbane, clear, 17.
And finally, Perth will also be clear with a low of 7 tonight.
Top News
President Xi urges all-out rescue effort
President Xi Jinping has demanded all-out rescue efforts following Typhoon Wutip, which sank fishing boats near the Xisha Islands on Sunday, leaving 74 people missing.
Chinese President has urged local authorities to do their utmost to find the missing or stranded and minimize casualties.
Xi Jinping has also ordered the armed forces and central government departments to help in the rescue.
Premier Li Keqiang has made similar calls. He also asked local authorities to ensure the safety of rescue personnel.
Seventy-four missing after typhoon sinks fish boats in South China Sea
74-people are missing after 3-fishing boats from China's Guangdong Province sank in a typhoon in the South China Sea on Sunday.
Despite repeated warnings about Typhoon Wutip, the fisherman did not return ashore.
Local government in Sansha City, Hainan Province have mobilized 350-island residents and soldiers to search for survivors.
Hainan provincial government has also dispatched 6-planes and 10-ships.
Zhang Jie is a spokesman and deputy director for the Hainan Maritime Safety Administration.
"According to our statistics, a total of nine boats have reached the site. Another five are rushing towards there. We have outlined the searching areas for them and they are expected to arrive at the destinations between 16:00 and 18:00 Monday. The main problem affecting the aerial rescue is the weather. The helicopters are all ready for departure."
A total of 5-boats with 171-people on board were caught up in Typhoon Wutip near the Xisha Islands.
Meanwhile, China's maritime authority has upgraded its typhoon warning to orange, the second-highest of a four-tier color-coded weather warning system.
It is expected to make landfall on Vietnam's central coast later on this Monday or early Tuesday
Tens of thousands of residents evacuate as Typhoon Wutip nears the coast
Tens of thousands of people have been evacuated from high-risk areas in central Vietnam in anticipation of the typhoon that earlier sunk 3-Chinese fishing boats.
Typhoon Wutip is expected to hit Vietnam's central coast later on this Monday or early Tuesday.
Wutip's winds have been recorded at reaching a high of 200-kilometers an hour.
Hoang Trung Hai, Deputy Prime Minister of Vietnam, ordered the mass evacuations.
"The typhoon is very powerful. We must evacuate people near the coast and also deep inland."
140-thousand people in 4-central provinces have been evacuated, as well as 35-thousand people who live in areas facing severe flooding and landslides.
Thousand of villagers living coastal regions have also been evacuated.
Wutip is the strongest typhoon to hit Vietnam this season.
The country is prone to floods and storms, which kill hundreds of people and cause millions of dollars in damage each year.
President Xi visits Southeast Asia
Anchor:
Chinese President Xi Jinping is to pay a state visit to Indonesia and Malaysia to attend the 21st economic leaders' meeting of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum.
The forum will meet on Indonesia's island of Bali from October 2nd to 8th.
Chinese Foreign Ministry says the trip is important for deepening China-Indonesia and China-Malaysia relations as well as promoting trade liberalization.
CRI's Ding Lulu has the story.
Reporter:
During his visit, President Xi Jinping will hold talks with Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and deliver a speech at Indonesia's House of Representatives.
The speech will elaborate on China's vision to promote bilateral ties, China-ASEAN relations and China's peaceful development.
In Malaysia, the Chinese President will meet with the Supreme Head of State Abdul Halim Mu'adzam Shah and hold talks with Prime Minister Najib Razak.
He is also due to attend a high-level forum of economic cooperation.
According to Chinese vice Foreign Minister Liu Zhenmin, Indonesia and Malaysia are the first Southeast nations that President Xi Jinping will visit.
"Indonesia and Malaysia are China's friendly neighbours. The Chinese Government highly values the development of the friendly relations with the two countries. Chinese President Xi Jinping's maiden visit to Southeast Asia in October is significant to further deepening China-Indonesia, China-Malaysia relations as well as ties between China and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations."
During the trip, President Xi Jinping is set to address the 21st economic leaders' meeting of the APEC forum and expand on China's economic situation and reform measures.
Vice Foreign Minister Li Baodong has explained that this year's summit is themed "Resilient Asia-Pacific, Engine of Global Growth."
"Asia-Pacific is a bellwether in the global economy. For many years, everybody thought the economy of Asia-Pacific region was in good condition, but it has also been affected by the uncertainty and instability of the global economy. The market may be volatile again and the volatility may cause concerns for the economic prospect of the region. Therefore, what will be discussed at this year's APEC and what signal will it send out has received wide attention from the international society."
Li says the summit has three priorities: achieving sustainable growth with equity, promoting connectivity and attaining the Bogor Goals, a timeline for achieving free and open trade and investment in the Asia-Pacific.
Meanwhile, Yu Jianhua, who is deputy representative of international trade negotiation for the Ministry of Commerce says that China hopes the meeting will promote trade liberalization, facilitation and integration of multiple free trade agreements in Asia and the Pacific.
"China holds an open attitude to all regional cooperation mechanisms in Asia and the Pacific. We hope the economies in FTA negotiations will adhere to principles of openness, inclusion and transparency and show flexibility to economies of different levels."
Yu Jianhua also said China is ready to work against the emergence of new trade barriers while promoting the eradication of traditional trade barriers.
China will host the APEC economic leaders' meeting next year.
For CRI, I'm Ding Lulu.
China and Indonesia to boost strategic partnership
Chinese president Xi Jinping is set to pay a state visit to Indonesia starting this Wednesday.
It is Xi Jinping's first visit to any Southeast Asian countries since taking office.
Liu Jianchao, China's ambassador to Indonesia, says the visit will further consolidate neighborly relationship between the two countries.
"After President Xi Jinping's visit to Indonesia, settings of the bilateral relationship between the two countries will be improved a lot, mainly focusing on strategy and comprehensiveness. I think cooperation between the two sides will cover all social domains, develop in three dimensions including the sea, land, and air."
Liu adds that Indonesia, as the biggest country in East Asia, has played an important role in boosting China-ASEAN multilateral cooperation.
"Indonesia attaches great importance to the cooperation between China and ASEAN countries, and has been positively boosting cooperation among them. When handling disputes in this area, Indonesia can hold a mutual and fair stance. For this part, we have many things in common."
During his stay in Indonesia, Xi Jinping is also scheduled to attend the 21st economic leaders' meeting of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation, or APEC forum in Bali.
Japan arrests Chinese crewman after fatal collision: Chinese embassy
Chinese embassy in Japan has confirmed that a Chinese crewman has been arrested by Japanese authorities following a deadly crash between a Japanese boat and Sierra Leone- registered cargo.
The embassy has said the Japanese side arrested the sailor, Xia Hongbo on Sunday after their cargo collided with the 500-ton Japanese ship on Friday.
The embassy has urged the Japanese side to investigate the accident as soon as possible and provide legal assistance to the Chinese crewman.
Five out of a total of six Japanese crew members died when their vessel collided with the 3-thousand ton cargo.
A 61-year-old Japanese man remains missing.
A total of 13 crew members onboard the cargo are reported to be safe following the accident.
US Defence Secretary visits DMZ as he continues his visit to SKorea
US Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel has paid his first visit to South Korea's Demilitarized Zone on Monday.
Hagel toured the area with South Korean Defense Minister Kim Kwan-jin and spoke about the relationship between both countries.
"We probably have clear identification of the ROK-US partnership here more than anywhere else. The coordination of our efforts, this is obviously a critical area that assures with our joint vigilance, the security and safety of South Korea and peace in this region."
During his 4-day trip, Hagel and South Korean officials will discuss whether to extend the US' wartime control over South Korea's armed forces.
The target date when Seoul was supposed to assume wartime control of its country's defensive forces was delayed from 2012 to 2015.
However, the US officials say the south still needs to strengthen a number of its military and intelligence capabilities.
US control of the forces is a holdover from the Korean War 60-years ago.
Later in the day, Chuck Hagel also met with South Korean President Park Geun-hye in Seoul.
Austrian centrist coalition survives far-right gains
Austria's governing coalition has gained enough votes to form another coalition government, staving off a strong challenge from the Euro-sceptic right wing.
The Social Democrats and the conservative People's Party have gathered just enough votes for a parliamentary majority.
Together, the two parties coalition gained 99-seats in the lower house of parliament.
Austrian Chancellor and leader of Social Democrats, Werner Faymann.
"The past five years have been difficult. Our government has led this country during the crisis of the financial markets, trying to avoid the mistakes others have made. We did this with high employment, programmes for boosting the economy (which are) on the side of the workers, the employees and the entrepreneurs - the people of Austria!"
The election, which was held this weekend, has seen the far-right Freedom Party garner nearly 22-percent of the vote.
Austrians, with an electorate of 6-million, voted to elect 183 deputies for parliament.
Assad says Syria will abide by the UN resolution calling for its chemical weapons to be destroyed
Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad has issued a new statement, vowing to abide by the United Nations resolution calling for the country's chemical weapons stockpile to be destroyed.
Assad's government has now approved the UN Security Council plan to eliminate Syria's chemical weapons programme.
The government has also agreed to join the international convention on chemical weapons.
"We joined the international agreement for preventing the use and the acquirement of chemical weapons before that resolution came to light. The main part of the Russian initiative based on our will to do so. So, it's not about the resolution, actually it's about our will."
Meanwhile, a prominent figure of Syria's domestic opposition has also hailed the UN resolution on chemical weapons.
Safwan Akkasheh is with the National Coordination Body, a group which advocates a peaceful political transition in Syria.
He says the resolution would prevent a U.S military strike that could spark a broader regional war.
U.N. Security Council voted unanimously on Friday to adopt a resolution aimed at ridding Syria of chemical weapons.
Under the US-Russia brokered deal, the Syrian government will abandon its chemical weapon stockpiles by the middle of next year.
Syria - Families shelter in Roman Ruins
Meanwhile, Bombings in Syria has forced dozens of families to seek shelter in Roman ruins in the northern part of the country.
The 15-hundred-year-old settlement is known locally as "The Forgotten Cities".
"We left because of the planes dropping TNT barrels and because of the shelling"
Families sheltering in "The Forgotten Cities" subsist without running water or electricity.
Basic food and medicine is also unavailable.
Some two million people have fled Syria since March 2011.
The ancient buildings, made up of churches and baths, date from the first to 7th centuries.
Kenya arrests another terror suspects after mall attack
Kenyan security services have made another arrest in connection with the Westgate shopping mall attack.
This brings the number of those arrested to 10 after the September 21st attack.
Joseph Ole Lenku is Kenya's Interior Minister
"There are nine suspects in custody who are being held under the counter-terrorism laws. As soon as investigations are complete, we will update you with the identities of the suspects."
The Interior Minister adds, the East African country's security forces are working round the clock to unearth details that might lead to the arrest of more terror suspects.
The four-day siege left 67 people dead.
Investigators have also identified a car used by the gunmen.
"Forensic investigators have identified one of the vehicles used by the terrorists.
Investigators have recovered items in the vehicle and these are providing good and credible leads. Some of the items found in the vehicle an assortment of illegal weapons."
The Red Cross still says 59 people remain missing.
However, the Kenyan government says there is no formal information on the missing persons.
HSBC China PMI shows operating conditions continue to improve in September
New data shows that China's operating conditions have improved fractionally for September.
The HSBC Purchasing Managers' Index for China in September stood at 50.2, it is broadly unchanged from 50.1 in August.
Readings above 50 indicate expansion.
The PMI is signaling a further improvement upon July's 11-month low.
Output across the Chinese manufacturing sector expanded for the second successive month in September, although the rate of growth slowed.
New business from overseas increased for the first time in six months, with panelists citing stronger demand from client bases in Europe and the United States.
Average production costs also increased for a second consecutive month in China's manufacturing sector.
Officials say China's economy stay stable
Anchor:
Meanwhile, a leading economic official here in China is throwing cold-water on hopes some may have been having about the government possibly bringing in stimulus measures to try to help the economy speed up.
CRI's Lucy Du explains.
Reporter:
China's economic growth has been slowing down in the past few quarters, with growth coming in at 7.5-percent through the 2nd quarter.
While down significantly from the heady-days of double digit growth experienced in China a decade ago, economic growth in the first half year is still above the government's target range of 7.5-percent for this year.
And recent indicators, such as September's manufacturing data, are pointing to a 2nd half-rebound here in China.
Yang Shubing is the director of the State Council's Research Office.
He notes the government has been trying to change China's economic model.
As such, Yang Shubing says if the GDP growth remains above 7.5-percent and inflation stays below 3.5-percent, there's not much the government needs to do.
"We adopted a new macro-management method to push reforms and restructuring. The results are obviously positive. Our economy is stabilized. It proves that the government has implemented the right strategy."
Yang also adds that ongoing industrial process and urbanization of this country is going to help maintain the economic growth.
"As long as we continue on reforms and the society remains stable, Chinese economy will keep rising for another 20 years. If you compare economic development as a tree, China's economy is still very young. With the right climate and soil, this tree will grow tall and strong."
Sheng Laiyun is the spokesperson for the National Bureau of Statistics.
He says while the Chinese economy faces issues such as a lack of resources and some labour policy restricitons, the econonmy here in China is headed in the right direction.
"Recent statistics show that China's economy is performing well. First is that we have positive reflections from the society. The second proof is a much balanced relationship between supply and demand. The third is the real economy becomes more active."
For CRI, this is Lucy Du.
Principals of Confucius institutes across the United States get together
Anchor:
Principals and teachers from over 90 Confucius institutes from across the United States have gathered to attend Joint Conference of US Confucius Institutes at Western Kentucky University.
They have been sharing their teaching experiences and discussing future development.
CRI's You Yu has the story.
YOU Yu:
What a beautiful melody! This young American singer's name is Dare Norman, but you can call her Meng Di in Chinese. She is a senior Musical Performance major at Western Kentucky University. Like many others, she is also a student of the university's Confucius Institute. Currently, the institute has more than 30 certified Chinese teachers and around 10,000 students, ranging from primary school to high school in over 20 counties across the state of Kentucky.
Recently, Western Kentucky University's Confucius Institute launched its newest educational tool—a mobile Confucius Institute, which is called the "red bus." Many in the area live in rural surroundings and would have difficulty coming to the Confucius Institute in person. The red bus will travel to local rural communities, bringing Chinese culture to their neighborhoods. Chao Xiaoyan, a teacher with the Confucius Institute, gives me a tour.
"In this section, you can see some traditional Chinese clothing. Here, you can also find Peking opera costumes. In this next section, Chinese calligraphy is displayed, including traditional writing brushes, ink sticks, paper and ink stones. Onward is the traditional Chinese medicine section. Next to it, we have on display traditional Chinese instruments. Farther ahead, we showcase Chinese tea ceremonies; you can see some tea wares and tea here."
At the opening ceremony of the 2013 Joint Conference of US Confucius Institutes, Xu Lin, Chief Executive of Confucius Institute Headquarters, speaks highly of the red bus. She believes this is a great way to promote Confucius institutes and Chinese culture.
In the past decade, the Confucius Institute has grown tremendously. Right now, over seven hundred thousand 700,000 students are learning Chinese in more than 430 Confucius institutes and 650 Confucius classrooms around the world. In the U.S. alone, there are 97 Confucius institutes and more than 400 Confucius classrooms. Xu Lin says that 2014 marks the tenth anniversary of Confucius Institute and they will try their best to sustain that growth moving forward.
"The first challenge is getting funding. According to our development plan, by 2015 we will have one million students. That means we will need 50 thousand teachers. We only have 20 thousand right now and we need another 30 thousand teachers. The second task is that we need to set up the online Confucius Institute to develop online Chinese learning services. The third is to establish the Confucius Institute Day and make it our own brand and we will celebrate this day every year."
For CRI, I'm YOU Yu in Bowling Green Kentucky.
Former vice governor ousted from CPC for suspected bribery
Former vice governor of east China's Anhui Province, Ni Fake, has been ousted from the Communist Party of China and removed from his government post for suspected bribery.
Investigations by the CPC Central Commission for Discipline Inspection found Ni gained benefits for others by abusing his power and he had accepted money and goods for himself and relatives.
The Commission made the announcement Monday describing Ni's acts as 'demoralizing.'
The Supreme People's Procuratorate says the investigation into Ni's crimes will continue.
High court rules scandal-hit legislator can retain membership
Taiwan High Court has ruled that a scandal-hit legislator, Wang Jin-pyng can retain his party membership.
Wang, head of Taiwan's legislative body, was ousted from the Kuomintang after a KMT disciplinary meeting on Sept. 11 for suspected involvement in an illegal lobbying scandal.
He appealed for an injunction of the punishment and won.
A Taipei local court ruled that he may retain his KMT membership, until the final ruling on condition that he pays 9.4 million New Taiwan Dollars, or 315,000 U.S. Dollars as a collateral deposit.
The KMT delivered the counter appeal three days later.
The high court's decision allows the blegislator to continue to hold his top legislative position.
China condemns college killings in Nigeria
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong Lei has condemned the deadly terrorist attack which killed 47-students in northeastern Nigeria.
Gunmen from the Islamic extremist group Boko Haram opened fire on students at The College of Agriculture in Gujba on Sunday.
Hong gave his condolences and sympathy to the families of the dead and those injured in the attack.
He reiterated China's firm opposition of terrorism and the country's willing to enhance anti-terrorism exchanges and cooperation with other countries.
Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan also condemned the attacks in a televised address in the nation's capital city, Abuja.
China sees positive signs in U.S.-Iran diplomacy effort
Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesman Hong Lei says China sees the recent development between US-Iran relations as positive for peace in the Middle East.
US President Barack Obama and Iranian President Hassan Rouhani had a phone conversation last Friday.
It was the first time leaders from the 2-countries spoke since the outbreak of the Tehran hostage crisis over 30-years ago.
Hong also said the development is conducive to settling the Iranian nuclear issue as well as other hot-spot issues.
He reiterated China has a firm stance on peaceful settlement to the Iranian nuclear problem through dialogue.
China is a part of the international dialogue with Iran, which also includes Britain, France, Russia, the US, and Germany. |