新闻纵贯线 The Beijing Hour updated 20:00 2016/02/10（在线收听）

The Beijing Hour

Evening Edition

Shane Bigham with you on this Wednesday, February 10th, 2016.

Welcome to the Beijing Hour, live from the Chinese capital...

Coming up on the program this evening...

South Korea has halted operations at an industrial park it shares with North Korea, citing Pyongyang's recent satellite launch and nuclear test...

The first case of Zika virus in China has been detected. The National Health and Family Planning Commission says the patient is a man from Jiangxi, and has downplayed the risk of transmission of the virus...

Democrat Bernie Sanders and Republican Donald Trump have won the New Hampshire primaries for their respective parties...

And In the second half of our program, we will bring you a special edition of People in the Know.

Top

South Korea halts work at joint industrial par with North

South Korea will halt work at a joint industrial park with North Korea, the first time in the park's decade of operation.

Hong Yong-pyo, the country's Unification Minister, says the decision was made because of North Korea's recent rocket launch.

"Our government decided to completely suspend the operation of Kaesong Industrial Complex to stop funds for the industrial complex from being used for development of North Korea's missile and nuclear weapons program."

This comes after South Korea's parliament passed a resolution on the launch on the same day.

The resolution urges North Korea to stop its provocations and become a responsible member of the international community.

It also calls on the South Korean government to work with the U.N. Security Council to develop strong sanctions against North Korea.

Pyongyang announced on Sunday that it had successfully launched a long-range rocket carrying an earth observation satellite.

The launch renewed international condemnation weeks after the North's fourth nuclear test.

The US, South Korea and many other countries have agreed to adopt tougher new sanctions against Pyongyang.

The United Nations has also vowed to "adopt expeditiously a new Security Council resolution" at an emergency meeting.

North Korea is already banned under U.N. resolutions from testing ballistic missile technology and from staging nuclear tests.

China detects 1st imported case of Zika virus

The first case of Zika virus in China has been detected.

The National Health and Family Planning Commission has confirmed a 34-year old man from Jiangxi, who had recently visited Venezuela, is infected with the virus.

Authorities say the patient returned to his home town on Friday after making stops in Hong Kong and Shenzhen.

He was admitted to hospital the following day with Zika symptoms, which include a rash and a low-grade fever.

Doctors say the patient is in good condition, with his symptoms are already fading.

Mainland health authorities say the risk of Zika being passed-on from the patient is extremely low, as it's believed the Zika virus can only spread from human-to-human contact through bodily fluids.

Zika has been spreading rapidly through South and Central America.

While not fatal to adults, the mosquito-borne virus is the cause of a sharp rise in microcephaly cases - children born with abnormally small heads.

Chinese health authorities say the potential spread of Zika into China remains low at this point, as the winter weather keeps the mosquito population in check.

Rescue work continues for Taiwan quake

Rescue workers removed five bodies from the debris of an apartment block in southern Taiwan on Wednesday.

Forty-six deaths have been confirmed following an earthquake on Saturday.

Around 100 others are still trapped under the rubble of the collapsed Wei Guan apartment building in Tainan.

Heavy equipment is being utilized to try to reach more victims, but hopes are dimming as the 72-hour "golden window" for finding survivors has expired.

At the same time, the injured are recovering in hospitals including a mother, Wu Hui-shan, and her two sons.

Wu says she had little time to react when the quake hit.

"The building was shaking so much, it was impossible to walk. I remember I saw the light was still on in the living room so I saw things were falling down. I wanted to get my younger son but the building collapsed before I can even see his room."

Wu suffered injuries to her legs, while her sons suffered minor injuries.

The oldest son is said to be showing signs of post-traumatic stress, unable to talk or engage with anyone.

The 17-story building collapsed on itself after the region was hit by a 6.7-magnitude earthquake two days before the Chinese New Year.

Developers of the building have been arrested, as poor construction quality has been blamed for the collapse.

Reports suggest the walls of the Wei Guan building, which was built 20-years ago, may have been packed with empty cooking oil containers during the construction process.

The illegal cost-saving technique by developers has been pointed to as one of the factors behind the deaths of over a thousand people after Taiwan was hit by a major earthquake in 1999.

New Hampshire primary results: Sanders and Trump win

The primary elections in New Hampshire are over, with Democratic hopeful Bernie Sanders and Republican nominee Donald Trump each winning their first primary.

Sanders, a US senator from Vermont, has described himself as a democratic socialist who wants to eradicate income inequality, break up big banks and provide free college tuition.

"We will need to come together in a few months and unite this party and this nation, because the right-wing Republicans we oppose must not be allowed to gain the presidency."

Sanders won the election with 59 percent of the vote, while his runner-up Hillary Clinton came in at 39 percent.

For Donald Trump, the business man turned politician won with 35 percent, beating second place contender John Kasich, who came in at 16 percent.

"You know when I came out I heard the end of Bernie's (Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders) speech and I heard some of the beginning, no, no. First of all, congratulations to Bernie, in all fairness we have to congratulate him. We may not like it but I heard parts of Bernie's speech - he wants to give away our country folks, he wants to give away. We're not going to let it happen, we're not going to let it happen."

The New Hampshire primary is the first in a series of nationwide party primaries. Up next, the Democrats have the Nevada Caucus later this month while Republican candidates will gather in South Carolina on Saturday for another televised debate.

U.S. Supreme Court puts Obama's clean power plan on hold

The U.S. Supreme Court has voted to halt enforcement of President Barack Obama's plan for cutting greenhouse gas emissions from coal-fired power plants to address climate change.

In a 5-4 decision, the court granted a request by 27 U.S. states for a temporary hold on the Environmental Protection Agency's clean power plan, until the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit decides whether the agency has the legal authority to impose it.

The states, led by coal producer West Virginia and oil producer Texas, and several major business groups launched the legal effort in October. The states said the emissions curbs would have a devastating impact on their economies.

The White House says it "disagrees with the Supreme Court's decision" but remains "confident" the plan will prevail.

10 school kids among 15 killed in Pakistan's gas tanker explosion

At least 15 people including 10 children are dead, and scores of others have been injured, after a petroleum tanker collided with a car and exploded in eastern Pakistan on Wednesday morning.

Police are investigating the cause of the accident, but eyewitnesses have said the tanker driver lost control of his vehicle and hit the car due to dense fog.

Former Isreali PM given 1 month's community service

An Israeli court has sentenced former Prime Minister Ehud Olmert to one month's community service for obstruction of justice.

Olmert is found to have pressured a confidant not to testify in multiple legal cases against him.

The court rejected a plea bargain he signed last month, that he pleaded guilty to obstruction of justice in an attempt to avoid an additional sentence.

Olmert will also pay a fine of 50 thousand shekels or about 13 thousand U.S. dollars.

Earlier, Olmert was sentenced to 18 months in prison for corruption, making him the first Israeli leader in jail.

He is set to report to prison next Monday.

Last year, the former Prime Minster was convicted of taking bribes to promote a controversial real-estate project.

Millions of Ethiopians to run out of food in April

Emergency food aid for 10 million Ethiopians will run out in April amid the worst drought in 50 years.

International charity Save the Children has asked donors for 245 million US dollars by the end of February to keep this from happening.

Without additional funds, the organization says there could potentially be a catastrophic elevation of the level of malnutrition among children in the country.

Salema is a mother of two and says her children have already started to fall ill.

"I went to the hospital and after the screening, they identified my baby as suffering from moderate-acute malnutrition. I was referred to the health facility here where the nurse started treating her. After treatment, her health condition improved."

El Nino-related weather conditions have caused sporadic droughts and flooding across Africa, leaving millions without food.

Currently the country with the greatest need is Ethiopia, Africa's second most populous nation.

More than 400,000 Ethiopian children are estimated to be suffering from severe malnutrition right now.

Efforts to send aid into the landlocked country can take upwards of four months via neighboring Djibouti's congested port.

In an effort to combat this slow response time, The World Food Program has begun importing food from Somaliland.

GM recalls 473,000 trucks, SUVs due to brake pedal failure

General Motors is recalling 473 thousand trucks and SUVs due to concerns about brake pedal failures.

GM says a nut on the brake pedal pivot has the potential to come loose, which could result in the brake pedal coming loose or becoming inoperable.

General Motors says it's unaware of any crashes or injuries related to the recall.

The vehicles to be recalled include the 2015 and 2016 versions of the Chevrolet Silverado, the GMC Sierra and Chevy Tahoe.

Chicago Stock Exchange CEO dismisses national security concerns over acquisition by Chinese group

Anchor:

The head of the Chicago Stock Exchange has rebuked concerns about the bourse's acquisition by a Chinese investor group.

CRI's Ryan Price has more.

Reporter:

Chongqing-based Casin is purchasing the Chicago Stock Exchange for a reported 100-million U.S. dollars.

The purchase, announced this past week, has set-off debate about opening up foreign ownership to a US stock market, with suggestions being made the acquisition could pose a threat to US financial security.

Chicago Stock Exchange CEO John Kerin says he believes any discussion about national security concerns is misguided, suggesting lawmakers need-not create another situation similar to the planned purchase of US ports in 2006 by a company from Dubai.

"I don't expect it to be a similar debate. There are 12 different venues to trade stocks here in the United States. Only one of them is not going to be problematic for anybody."

The Dubai Ports World controversy in 2006 saw the US Senate introduce legislation to block the deal.

Eventually, Dubai Ports World was forced to sell the leasing rights to the US port operations it had purchased to AIG's American investment division.

Like the 2006 purchase, Chongqing Casin Investment Group's purchase of the Chicago Stock Exchange will need approvals from US regulators.

John Kerin says he expects a different reaction this time from US lawmakers.

"Because we are a comparatively small exchange, I don't see this as being particularly problematic for anybody. The foreign entities have purchased U.S. exchanges in the past, specifically the Deutsche Boerse purchased the ISE. And they followed a process, and I anticipate that we will follow that same process. The message we have been delivered from the SEC is that they don't plan on treating this any differently."

The SEC, the Securities and Exchange Commission, is the body which oversees securities regulations in the US, administering federal securities laws.

Meanwhile, Kerin says he expects the purchase of the Chicago bourse is going to help the exchange establish a presence in China.

"We get an order that is interested in the Chicago Stock Exchange, interested in funding it, that has the ability to bring us business in the form of these listings. And, we get a potential presence in one of the fastest growing markets in the world."

At the same time, Kerin says the Casin purchase of the Exchange is only going to help bolster its bottom-line.

"So we have grown significantly in the past 12 months, and we anticipate that trend continuing. Our strategic initiatives will further that cause. And down the road, we see the business that the Chinese bring to us as assisting and adding to that significantly."

In making the purchase, Casin has said it will preserve the Chicago Stock Exchange's current business operations.

Its management team is also being left in-tact.

Casin officials say they hope to have the deal finalized sometime in the 2nd half of this year.

Casin Group, headquartered in Chongqing, is a holding company that invests mostly in financial services, real estate and environmental services.

The 134-year-old Chicago Stock Exchange handles about half-a-percent of all stock trades in the United States.

For CRI, I am Ryan Price.

New Zealand PM John Key sends Spring Festival wishes

New Zealand Prime Minister John Key has sent his Spring Festival wishes to the country's Chinese community while attending an annual event to celebrate the Lunar New Year.

The prime minister addressed the event, held at the parliament on Wednesday, saying that Chinese tourists contribute greatly to the economy during this holiday.

More than 100 guests, including China's ambassador to New Zealand, were entertained by traditional Chinese dance and music, and a qipao parade.

Chinese has become New Zealand's third largest ethnic group with a population of over 170 thousand.

Carnival Spirit Lights Up Through Generations During Spring Festival

Anchor:

One of the activities that people enjoy during the Lunar New Year is taking part in temple fairs, which have become a staple of Spring Festival celebrations here in China.

CRI's Huang Yue has more.

Reporter:

Miaohui is an event that dates back to ancient times, when farmers would offer New Year sacrifices to their village gods.

As time progressed, the event later saw marketplaces spring up, with villagers peddling their wares and performers putting on shows.

The temple fairs, they are known today, grew in prominence throughout the Ming and Qing dynasties from 1368 to 1911.

But after the founding of the People's Republic in 1949, temple fairs disappeared.

However, they began re-emerging in the 1980's.

Jin Mao, an expert on traditional Chinese culture and history, says the revival of temple fairs in China began in Beijing.

"The country's first official temple fair after 1949 was in 1985 at Beijing's Ditan, or Temple of the Earth. Now, they are once again an important part of the Spring Festival and they continue to evolve. The carnivals in parks such as Ditan and others with a long history largely remain true to tradition, and they evoke imperial times and folk memories."

Miaohui has become a festival filled with food and activities that are enjoyed by every generation.

Each generation remembers temple fairs differently.

However, every generation views them as a joyful place to go during the Spring Festival.

Children in China have been referred to as the "God of Happiness."

As such, during temple fairs, the "Gods of happiness" pass "lucky cards" to visitors at the temple fair.

Whomever receives the "lucky card" is considered blessed for the whole year.

This is one of a number of activities children enjoy during the temple fairs.

"I love temple fair because I can buy kites and candy haws."

"This year I want to blow sugar figurines when I go to temple fair."

"My younger sister and I can watch traditional plays, such as dragon dance show."

People, born in the 1940's or 50's have seen significant changes made in temple fairs through the decades.

Yan Yunxian is "laobeijing" -- a term for those who were born and raised in the capital city.

Yan says she remembers children with red cotton-padded jackets running out of their hutongs to join the temple fairs and see traditional folk art that now can rarely be seen, such as the creation of sugar figurines.

"When I was young, there was only the Changdian event, which was not an official temple fair. But we called it Miaohui anyway. One of the things I remember dearly is the sugar figurines that were popular in traditional stories. I really enjoyed watching and eating afterwards."

He Yunwei and Li Jing, two famous cross-talk actors, have used the creation of sugar figurines as part of their act.

The two tell a funny story of a grandchild and grandfather making blow sugar figurines during the Spring Festival.

Yan Yunxian says while temple fairs have changed through the decades, the spirit of them hasn't.

"In recent years, temple fair has not been like the ones when I was little because of the rapid change in society. However, I think Beijing has preserved a lot of the old traditions and blended it with the new trends. It offers a chance to immerse ourselves in life in ancient China. It's also an opportunity for Chinese parents to show their children facets of Chinese tradition. In the end, it's simply a great way to spend quality time with the family."

Younger generation who were born in the 80's or 90's have also come to know Miaohui as part of the Spring Festival tradition.

Wang Zhe recently finished her undergraduate and graduate studies in the United States.

She says she's really excited to go to this year's temple fair in Beijing, as its been a while since she's been back at this time of year.

"I remember the last time I went to a temple fair was six years ago since I always returned to China during the vacations. I like the traditional Beijing snacks so much. The best traditional Beijing snacks are the candied haw, the Sweetened Fried Flour balls and Beijing Sausage. Although sometimes you can find these snacks in other places, they always taste the best during a temple fair because of the atmosphere. "

This year's temple fairs have different themes, and have adopted today's modern entertainment trends.

For example, the Longtan Park is adding ice-related games to celebrate China's successful bid to host the Winter Olympics in 2022.

And Ditan Park will put on show the connection in traditional culture and customs of Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei to hail the central government's integrated development plan of the northern Chinese region.

Organizers say a total of 124 temple fairs have been arranged in Beijing for this year's week-long Spring Festival holiday with over 2.5 million visitors anticipated.

For CRI, this is Huang Yue.

Dubai's landmark lights up to celebrate Spring Festival in UAE

Anchor:

A series of events in shops, malls and tourist areas are held in the United Arab Emirates to mark this year's Spring Festival celebrations.

CRI's Fei Fei has more.

Reporter:

The Burj Al Arab, a famous hotel and a landmark in Dubai, has lit up the Chinese character for "monkey" on its facade to mark this year's Spring Festival, which marks the start of the "Year of Monkey."

Anthony McHale, general manager of the Burj Al Arab, says the Chinese New Year provides the hotel with a significant business opportunity.

"For us it's a very, very important thing, the key business relationship that we have with you (China). And I think this year is special because it's the year of the monkey, yes, but five years on, our business is grown and our association is grown 2, 3, 4 fold and you (China) are actually the most important market to us today. Well, I'll attempt to say it properly: Gong Xi Fa Cai."

Tourism authorities in Dubai estimate around 450-thousand Chinese tourists travelled to the city last year.

This is an almost 30-percent year on year increase from 2014, representing the strongest uptick in travelers among all nations flocking to Dubai.

To try to capitalize on this, the Spring Festival celebrations in Dubai include an array of dances, shows, craft workshops and an art exhibition, all showcased in a traditional Chinese style, drawing the attention of tourists from China and other parts of the world.

"I know that my eldest daughter was born in the year of the monkey 12 years ago, so the celebrations today here in the Burj Al Arab is fantastic, it's great to be part of that and it's a pleasure to watch the lion dancing on the stage. So, happy new year to everybody and everybody enjoy the year of the monkey."

The Burj Al Arab Hotel in Dubai has been marking the Spring Festival since 2012.

For CRI, this is Fei Fei.

Paris releases bid logo and sponsorship deals for 2024 Olympics

The French capital has released its bid logo for the 2024 Olympics, as well as its initial sponsorship list.

The list includes 4 major French companies, pledging a combined 8 million Euros.

However, Paris bid organizers say they need at least 30-million euros worth of private funding to maintain the bidding process.

The French government will foot the rest of the bill.

Paris is bidding for the 2024 Games against Rome, Los Angeles, and Budapest.

The IOC will announce the bid winner in September of 2017.

"Zoolander 2" premiers on Tuesday in New York City

Fans of Derek Zoolander, rejoice!

The stars of "Zoolander 2" walked the purple carpet in New York City on Tuesday for the films premiere.

It has been 15 years since the original comedy, Zoolander, first appeared in cinemas.

Jokingly referring to a cameo in which Justin Beiber appears in the movie, leading man Ben Stiller spoke about why this remake took so long to produce.

"We were waiting for Justin Bieber to be conceived and when we heard the news, that's when we started developing the script and as he reached puberty we went into pre-production. No, you know, over the years we thought about it. First, nobody really wanted a sequel when the movie first came out because it wasn't a big hit or anything and then it developed this audience and then 5 years down the line we started to think about it.

Ben Stiller will be reprising his role as Derek Zoolander alongside Owen Wilson, who is again playing Hansel.

The movie is a comedy spoof on the fashion industry, with Zoolander and Hansel being prominent models in the all powerful world of fashion.

"Zoolander 2" will hit US theaters February 12th and Hong Kong theaters on March 10th.

"Triple 9" premieres in London

New Crime film "Triple 9" premiered in London on Tuesday with stars from the movie, such as Kate Winslet, walking the red carpet.

In the new film, Winslet will be playing a Russian-Israeli mafiosi.

The cast includes Aaron Paul, Anthony Mackie, and Woody Harrelson.

Directed by John Hillcoat, the film is said to take the classic crime genre and add a fresh spin to it.

"Triple 9" will hit US theaters on February 26th.

That's it for this holiday edition of the Beijing Hour. Please stay tuned for People in the Know.

South Korea has halted operations at an industrial park it shares with North Korea, citing Pyongyang's recent satellite launch and nuclear test...

The first case of Zika virus in China has been detected. The National Health and Family Planning Commission says the patient is a man from Jiangxi, and has downplayed the risk of transmission of the virus...

Democrat Bernie Sanders and Republican Donald Trump have won the New Hampshire primaries for their respective parties...

On behalf of the Beijing Hour staffers, this is Shane Bigham in Beijing. Please join us again for the next edition of the Beijing Hour, and open a window to the world together.