OPINION: U.S. TIKTOK PANIC P.24 | FEATURES: DIPLOMATIC TIES WITH HONDURAS P.

30

VOL.66 NO.14 APRIL 6, 2023 WWW.BJREVIEW.COM

ZEROING IN
Boao outlines regional collaboration goals

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CONTENTS
EDITOR’S DESK 22 Riding the Tide 36 Lending a Rearing Hand
China’s approach to global security Home-based daycares soothe parental stress
02 Solidarity and Openness
 23 Resolutions From Research 38 From Smog Domes to Blue Skies
THIS WEEK Ensuring informed decision-making Beijing’s battle against air pollution
24 TikTok, Goes the Clock 41 Chinese Stake in Brazilian
COVER STORY A tense marathon hearing before E-Commerce
12 Sowing and Reaping the U.S. Congress Air, sea and land links bring convenience to
Asia, a beacon of certainty consumers
amid global uncertainties FEATURES 42 An Automotive Dilemma
16 Bearing Witness to Boao 26 Democracy Is Diverse Car brands in war for business
Inspiring and forward-looking Conference forms consensus on
dialogues since 2001 people’s common will CULTURE
28 Steady on 46 In Vogue
OPINION Reiterating China’s commitment to Fashion week rocks Beijing’s runways
20 Understanding China’s opening up
Democracy EXPAT’S EYE
30 China and Honduras:
A people-centered model -RXUQH\WR)XOÀOOPHQW
A Diplomatic Deal
A pivot to expand China-LAC International student immerses herself in
engagement Chinese culture
32 When Spring Comes
Cover Photo: A bird’s-eye view of the
Support for youth employment
zero-carbon demonstration zone in Boao,
Hainan Province, on February 24 (XINHUA) 34 Antique Crafts
The paste that binds past and present
©2023 Beijing Review, all rights reserved.

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A News Weekly Magazine
Published Since 1958 Solidarity and Openness
President: Li Yafang
Editor in Chief: Li Jianguo
The Boao Forum for Asia (BFA) Annual join the Comprehensive and Progressive
Associate Editor in Chief: Liu Yunyun Conference 2023, which took place in Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership
Associate President: Gao Dingbo
Executive Editor: Yan Wei
Boao, Hainan Province, on March 28-31, (CPTPP), a free trade agreement covering
Associate Executive Editor: Ding Ying centered around the theme An Uncertain $VLD3DFLÀFHFRQRPLHVWKDWWRRNHIIHFW
Production Director: Yao Bin
Editor: Wang Hairong World: Solidarity and Cooperation for in late 2018. The CPTPP is considered to
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2 BEIJING REVIEW APRIL 6, 2023 http://www.bjreview.com

 THIS WEEK

XINHUA
DIGGING DEEP
Bronzeware unearthed from the royal tomb area at the Yinxu Ruins, remnants of the capital of the late Shang Dynasty
(1600-1046 B.C.), in the northwest suburbs of Anyang, Henan Province in central China.
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circling the mausoleum were also unearthed and are expected to advance research on the Shang mausoleum system, as
well as the dynasty’s culture and history.
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APRIL 6, 2023 BEIJING REVIEW 7
THIS WEEK WORLD
XINHUA

XINHUA
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-$3$N 6:,7=(5/$1'
People protest against the government’s A watchmaker demonstrates
planned hike in defense expenditure in Tokyo his craftsmanship during
on March 28. Earlier that day, Japan’s upper house the Watches and Wonders
of parliament approved a record $874.8-billion Geneva 2023 event at the
EXGJHWIRUĶVFDODJDLQVWWKHEDFNGURSRIWKH Palexpo in Geneva on March
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in defense spending brands, the event ran from
March 27 to April 2
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there to honor the civilian victims killed during NATO’s
bombing campaign in 1999
XINHUA

8 BEIJING REVIEW APRIL 6, 2023 http://www.bjreview.com

 THIS WEEK

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European Council President Charles Michel (right) and UN Secretary General
António Guterres attend a European Council meeting at the EU headquarters
in Brussels on March 23. Participating leaders focused on Europe’s long-term strategy
IRUHFRQRPLFFRPSHWLWLYHQHVVWKH5XVVLD8NUDLQHFRQßLFWDQGHQHUJ\VHFXULW\
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A student weeps on a bus
leaving The Covenant School,
following a mass shooting
at the school in Nashville,
Tennessee, on March 27.
The attack marked the 90th
on-campus shooting—
GHĶQHGDVDQ\LQFLGHQWLQ
which a gun is discharged on
school property—in the U.S.
this year

GREECE
A military parade in Athens
in celebration of the Greek
Independence Day
on March 25
XINHUA

http://www.bjreview.com APRIL 6, 2023 BEIJING REVIEW 9

THIS WEEK PEOPLE & POINTS
¾ $&725ó0$.(6ó+,6725<
Hong Kong actor Tony Leung Chiu-wai made history on March 27, when it was an-
QRXQFHGKHZLOOEHWKHÀUVW&KLQHVHDFWRUWRUHFHLYHD*ROGHQ/LRQ$ZDUGIRU/LIHWLPH
Achievement bestowed by the Venice Film Festival. Leung and Italian director Liliana
Cavani will both receive the award.
The Golden Lion Awards will be presented at the 80th edition of the Venice Film
Festival, which will run from August 30 to September 9.
Leung, 61, started his career in the 1980s and is considered one of Asia’s most success-
ful and internationally recognized actors. He has starred in three movies
that have won Golden Lion Awards: A City of Sadness (1989), Cyclo
(1995) and Lust, Caution (2007).
He has won many other international acting awards, including the
Cannes Film Festival Award for Best Actor for his performance in
:RQJ.DUZDL·VÀOPIn the Mood for Love in 2000.

The Rise of the Sheconomy books appeared not in children’s literature,

Economic Daily
March 24
Since its first appearance in China in 2007,
the term sheconomy has been used to
describe a new economy driven by the
continuous rise in the purchasing power of
women, who have made remarkable strides
in both education and social position in the
past decades.
According to a report on Chinese
women’s consumption trends conducted
by JD.com, one of the country’s largest e-
commerce platforms, female consumers’
total expenditure on books in 2022 ex-
ceeded that of their male counterparts. The
largest increase in women’s spending on
as many may suppose, but in disciplines
such as art collection and appreciation,
KLVWRU\ÀQDQFHDQGPDQDJHPHQWDQGFODV-
sical Chinese literature.
Another sector that has seen an astound-
A Model for High-End
ing growth driven by female consumers is
sports. According to the aforementioned
Manufacturing
Outlook
report, the most popular sporting activities
among women are gym workouts, yoga, cy-
March 27
cling, swimming and roller skating. Women’s Liaoning, a coastal province, is a time-
spending on these activities accounted for honored industrial base in northeast China.
89 percent of their total expenditure on The province was the birthplace of
sports in 2022. Gyms and health clubs now China’s first domestically made steam lo-
also offer a wide array of women-oriented comotive, jet aircraft, 10,000-ton freighter,
fitness facilities and classes in addition to tractor and many other types of heavy
traditional weight-lifting and muscle-building machinery.
equipment.

“The pragmatic cooperation “We oppose the U.S. overstretching the

between China and Japan has concept of national security to hobble
huge volume, deep foundation and foreign companies, and abusing state
broad prospects.” power to disrupt normal market
Wu Jianghaoó&KLQD·VóQHZO\óDSSRLQWHGó$PEDVVDGRUó rules and order.”
WRó-DSDQóXSRQóKLVóDUULYDOóDWó1DULWDó$LUSRUWóLQó7RN\Ró Mao Ning, spokesperson for the Chinese Ministry of
on March 28 )RUHLJQó$IIDLUVóDWóDóGDLO\óSUHVVóEULHILQJóRQó0DUFKó

10 BEIJING REVIEW APRIL 6, 2023 http://www.bjreview.com


Entering into the new millennium,
Liaoning has continued to carry out a series
of strategically important megaprojects. And
Shenyang, the province’s capital, has been a
major powerhouse for the regional advance-
ment of high-end manufacturing.
In May 2020, Haidou-1, China’s first
domestically produced unmanned deep sea
submersible, designed by the Shenyang
Institute of Automation, made its first dive
LQWRWKH0DULDQD7UHQFKLQWKH:HVW3DFLÀF
the world’s deepest ocean point, at a depth
of 10,844 meters. From then on, it has
continued to reach new depths and set new
world records.
On February 21, four variable frequency
drives for nuclear reactor coolant pumps
were shipped from the Shenyang Yuanda
Enterprise Group, a hi-tech company that
specializes in manufacturing and construc-
tion.
While placing a great focus on self-
reliance, Liaoning has also turned itself into
an international hub for foreign investment
and collaborative research. As of now, 72
German-funded companies have settled in
Shenyang. The province’s second largest
city, Dalian, has also seen the creation of a
set of industrial parks that aim to promote
China-Japan cooperation in technological
innovations.
“Switching off lights is great
for creating awareness and
celebrating, but we also want
people to reflect and act on nature
because the challenges we are
facing are so big.”
Cristianne Close, deputy global conservation director
of the World Wide Fund for Nature, in a recent interview
ZLWKó;LQKXDó1HZVó$JHQF\
http://www.bjreview.com
THIS WEEK
Bedtime Battles sleep meditation apps, scented steam eye
masks and sleep tracking devices.
Gmw.cn
Recent years have also seen the emer-
March 24 gence of products like cellphone lock boxes
Sleep, which is so natural and so vital to and lock screen apps, which allow their users
a person’s health and wellbeing, has only to set themselves a lockout time and thereby
gained public awareness in recent years. stay away from their cellphones when bed-
According to the 2022 China Sleep Index time arrives.
Report published by the Chinese Sleep When it comes to sleep deprivation,
Research Society, over the past decade, one tends to focus entirely on self-control
Chinese people’s average bedtime has while neglecting the vital roles that social
been set back by two hours, and aver- forces have played in shaping an individual’s
age sleep time has fallen from 8.5 to 7.06 sleeping patterns. The excessive academic
hours. A more staggering fact is that over pressure in primary and high schools, and
300 million people in the country now suf- work schedules that sometimes blur work
fer from sleep disorders. and personal life have greatly compressed the
This large number has created a huge Chinese people’s sleep time. Therefore, sleep
market for sleep-related products, such as loss is not just an individual symptom, but a
melatonin supplements, soothing herbal teas, public health issue that has become a crisis.
¾ )250(5ó7$,:$1ó/($'(5ó9,6,76ó&+,1(6(ó0$,1/$1'ó
A delegation led by former Taiwan leader Ma Ying-jeou visited the Sun Yat-sen
Mausoleum in Nanjing, Jiangsu Province, on March 28.
Ma, former Chairman of the Chinese Kuomintang (KMT) party, said people on both
sides of the Taiwan Straits belong to the Chinese nation and share the same ancestors, and
the two sides should work together to achieve the revitalization of the nation.
In commemoration of Sun, founder of the KMT, Ma wrote an inscrip-
tion at the site advocating peace and efforts for the national revitalization.
Chinese revolutionaries led by Sun launched the Revolution of 1911 that
overthrew the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911), ending the absolute monarchy
that had ruled China for thousands of years.
Ma’s itinerary included Nanjing, Wuhan, Changsha, Chongqing and
Shanghai.
´$Q\RQHóDZDUHóRIóQDWLRQDOóDQGó
international current affairs, from the
political and commercial perspective,
logically would have some interest in the
Chinese language as a way of getting
closer to China as a world power.”
Yorbelis Rosell, Director of the Confucius Institute
in Havana, Cuba, in a recent interview with Xinhua
APRIL 6, 2023 BEIJING REVIEW 11
XINHUA

COVER STORY

SOWING AND
REAPING
Boao 2023, a catalyst for innovative ideas and collaborative initiatives
By Tao Zihui
12 BEIJING REVIEW APRIL 6, 2023 http://www.bjreview.com

(BFA) International Conference Center in
Boao, Hainan Province, on March 27
n a global context of geopolitical wran-
gling and lingering pandemic impacts such
as supply chain disruptions, state leaders,
government officials and heads of inter-
national organizations, as well as scholars
and entrepreneurs from the world over, gathered on
China’s tropical island province of Hainan for the
Boao Forum for Asia (BFA) annual conference—
a meeting of minds that took place entirely offline
once again from March 28 to 31. The previous two
HGLWLRQVRIWKHHYHQWRFFXUUHGERWKRQOLQHDQGRIÁLQH
due to the COVID-19 pandemic; the 2020 annual
conference was canceled altogether.
http://www.bjreview.com
A square in front of the Boao Forum for Asia
The BFA takes its name from
the town of Boao, once just a
small fishing village in Hainan,
which has been the permanent
venue for the annual conference
since 2001. Committed to promot-
ing regional economic integration,
this year’s edition, themed An
Uncertain World: Solidarity and
Cooperation for Development
Amid Challenges, again set out to
offer the world an Asian vision for
shared prosperity.
On March 30, Chinese Premier
Li Qiang attended the annual con-
ference’s opening ceremony and
delivered his first major public
speech after assuming office in
mid-March.
“Today, both Asia and the
world stand at the crossroads of
historical evolution,” Li said,
urging for more efforts to jointly
safeguard a peaceful and stable
environment for development and
inject more certainty into a volatile
global environment. He further
mentioned that China’s economy
had performed better in March,
UHÁHFWLQJKRZLW´SRVVHVVHVVWURQJ
resilience, potential and vitality.”
A world of uncertainty
Supply chain disruptions, post-pan-
demic economic recovery, clean
energy and geopolitical tensions
topped the agenda of this year’s
BFA annual conference.
“The past few years have
seen things getting worse. This
is not only unfair and unjust,
but economically unreliable and
unsustainable,” Ban Ki-moon,
Chairman of the BFA, said at the
opening ceremony. Echoing this
year’s BFA theme, the former UN
secretary general expressed his
KRSHVWKHJDWKHULQJZRXOGÀQGFHU-
tainty in uncertain times.
“After so many crises, shocks
and surprises, it’s time to go ahead
and plan for a shared future. It is
time for renewed action on long-
term challenges,” Ban said.
BFA Secretary General Li
Baodong stressed that a range of
major challenges presently high-
lights the world’s uncertain status
quo—from the pandemic, geopo-
litical conflicts and the world’s
economic downturn to global
warming. “No one challenge just
UHODWHVWRWKHSUHVHQWLWDOVRLQÁX-
ences the future,” he said. “You
reap what you sow and differ-
ent policies will lead to different
results.”
Though COVID-19 is a public
health crisis, it has also wreaked
havoc on global economic develop-
ment; and the geopolitical character
of the Russia-Ukraine conflict has
driven energy and food prices to
staggering levels. For many people
DURXQGWKHZRUOGLQÁDWLRQEHFDPH
a top concern in 2022. And it was
one of the biggest topics of discus-
sion during this year’s conference.
“The global economy is under-
going a cyclical transformation,
from an easing cycle to a tightening
cycle—the latter being one of high
inflation, high interest rates, high
debt and low growth,” Zhu Min, ʈʈ
APRIL 6, 2023 BEIJING REVIEW 13
 Chinese Premier Li Qiang

XINHUA
delivers a keynote speech
at the opening ceremony of
the BFA Annual Conference
2023 in Boao on March 30

former Deputy Managing Director

of the International Monetary Fund
(IMF) and Vice Chairman of the
China Center for International
Economic Exchanges, told Beijing
Review.
“Face the reality and remain
confident” was among the most
frequently heard lines coming from
participants on different occasions
throughout the conference.

Spotlight on Asia
In a January report, the IMF said
Asia’s economic growth rate is
expected to rise from 4.3 percent
in 2022 to 5.3 percent this year. By
comparison, it predicted a global
economic growth rate of 2.9 per-
cent for 2023, slightly higher than
its October 2022 forecast, but still
VLJQLÀFDQWO\ORZHUWKDQWKHKLVWRUL-
cal average of 3.8 percent in the
2000-19 period.
Asia’s weighted real GDP
growth rate, or the rate of real out-
put growth, in 2023 is estimated
at 4.5 percent, an increase of 0.3
percentage points from 2022, ac-
cording to a report released by the
BFA on March 28.
Asia, a bright spot in the bleak
global economic landscape, will
continue to advance regional pro-
duction, trade, investment and
ÀQDQFLDOLQWHJUDWLRQDQGFRKHVLRQ
and seize the “Asian moment” for
global economic governance, the
BFA report further read.
Most international BFA at-
tendees voiced their belief that the
importance of Asia in the world
economy continues to grow and the
dynamic cooperation among and
development of Asian countries,
14 BEIJING REVIEW APRIL 6, 2023
HVSHFLDOO\&KLQDKDVEURXJKWFRQÀGHQFHDQGVWDELO-
ity to the world at large.
One year after the Regional Comprehensive
Economic Partnership (RCEP) agreement came
into effect, the dividends of institutional opening
for trade and investment in the region are constantly
emerging.
In January 2022, the RCEP became the world’s
largest free trade deal involving 10 Association
of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) countries,
as well as China, Japan, the Republic of Korea,
Australia and New Zealand—altogether represent-
ing 30 percent of global GDP.
China’s official data showed that the country’s
trade with other RCEP signatories expanded 7.5 per-
cent year on year to 12.9 trillion yuan ($1.87 trillion)
in 2022, accounting for 30.8 percent of China’s total
foreign trade value.
Judging by major economic indicators in the
first months of 2023, the rebound of the Chinese
economy is well underway, with many international
institutions raising their forecasts about the coun-
try’s economic growth for this year. In February,
the IMF already lifted its projection for China’s eco-
nomic growth in 2023 to 5.2 percent from a previous
prediction of 4.4 percent.
However, Lin Guijun, Vice
President of the Beijing-based
University of International Business
and Economics, did emphasize that
China’s domestic consumption,
a major growth driver, will take
time to fully recover from the ef-
fects of COVID-19. “One sign is
that domestic demand is not quite
keeping up; specifically, revenge
spending (referring to the post-
pandemic urge to spend money) is
rarely heard of in China anymore,”
he told Beijing Review.
Call for cooperation
In recent years, several developed
economies such as the U.S., the EU
and Japan have tried to revive their
manufacturing industries. Through
legal regulations and economic
subsidies, these countries inspired
domestic enterprises to increase
investment in their own countries,
sparking a trend of localization in
the current global supply chain.
Several developing Southeast
http://www.bjreview.com

BFA
Asian countries, e.g., Viet Nam,
then, have continued to rely on their
domestic low-cost labor force and
preferential investment policies to at-
tract foreign investment and actively
undertake international industrial
transfers. As a result, some foreign-
funded enterprises in China decided
to shift their factories out of China.
In view of the phenomenon,
Yao Yang, Dean of the National
School of Development at
Peking University, pointed out
that it is reasonable for compa-
nies to give several countries a
try in search of the right bal-
ance between cost and quality.
Nevertheless, he said that to his
knowledge, businesses that have
moved out account for only a
relatively small part of China’s
economy and trade volume. At the
same time, Yao was of the opinion
that this might be a good thing for
China as it would mean the country
has upgraded its industry.
http://www.bjreview.com
A panel discussion themed The Belt
and Road: Sharing the Opportunities of
Development during the BFA Annual
Conference 2023 in Boao on March 28
´*HQHUDOO\VSHDNLQJLW·VKDUGWRÀQGDEHWWHULQ-
vestment market than China,” Lin said.
“Of course, there are more trade restric-
tions and obstacles ahead,” Hans-Paul Burkner,
Global Chair Emeritus of U.S.-based Boston
Consulting Group, said during the annual confer-
ence, further stressing the importance of global
cooperation.
´&RPSOHWHVHOIVXIÀFLHQF\LVXQUHDOLVWLFZKHWKHU
it’s in the automotive industry or in electronics,” he
added. He explained how all industries have a great
need for working together “because valuable input
is coming in from all over the world, not just from
one place.” “The world is seeing some realignment
of the global and regional supply chains, but overall,
the trend is still positive,” he said.
“It will take more than a decade for Southeast
Asia to become a manufacturing hub like China.
Europe and North America will take even more
time,” Ben Simpfendorfer, a partner at leading
international management consulting firm Oliver
Wyman, told a subforum on the global industrial
and supply chain landscape during the conference
on March 28.
“China will remain the world’s No.1 manufac-
turing hub. Eighty percent of smartphone exports
come from China and though this
ÀJXUHPD\GHFOLQHVOLJKWO\QRRWK-
er market has the same speed and
scale as China,” Simpfendorfer
told Beijing Review.
He also articulated his confi-
dence about the country’s consumer
and capital spending picking up
again sooner rather than later. “We
were excited to hear Premier Li’s
talk about not only expanding
domestic demand, but also ensur-
ing the country continues to open
up,” he added.
China has shared its story of
development with the rest of the
world, Renat Bekturov, Governor
of Astana International Financial
Center, a financial services hub
operating in Kazakhstan, said.
“Thanks to the Belt and Road
Initiative, we are generating so
many new projects and ideas, all
driving investment in the country.
We need that to grow our economy
and elevate the living standards of
our people,” he said. The initiative
KHUHIHUUHGWRZDVÀUVWSURSRVHGE\
China in 2013 to boost connectivity
along and beyond the ancient Silk
Road routes.
He also underlined how digi-
talization is an important area to
invest in because trade is not only
about physical, but also about soft
infrastructure. “If goods can move
freely when digitized, that will re-
duce the trading costs of exporting
and importing and in turn lower
trade barriers,” he explained. BR
Copyedited by Elsbeth van Paridon
Comments to taozihui@cicgamericas.com
APRIL 6, 2023 BEIJING REVIEW 15
 COVER STORY

BEARING WITNESS
TO BOAO
7KH%RDR)RUXPIRU$VLD %)$ FRQYHQHGLWVDQQXDOFRQIHUHQFHHQWLUHO\RIÀLQHLQ%RDRDFRDVWDOWRZQLQ
&KLQD¶VVRXWKHUQLVODQGSURYLQFHRI+DLQDQRQ0DUFKWang Sheng3UHVLGHQWRIWKH1DWLRQDO,QVWLWXWH
IRU6RXWK&KLQD6HD6WXGLHV 1,6&66 LQ+DLQDQSDUWLFLSDWHGLQFUHDWLQJWKH%)$LQDQGKDVVLQFH
EHHQSDUWRILWVPDQ\DFWLYLWLHV,QDQH[FOXVLYHLQWHUYLHZZLWK$Q;LQ]KXDUHSRUWHUZLWKWKH&KLQD,QWHUQDWLRQDO
&RPPXQLFDWLRQV*URXS&HQWHUIRUWKH$PHULFDV &,&*$PHULFDV :DQJVKDUHGKLVH[SHULHQFHVZLWKWKH
%)$DVZHOODVKLVYLHZVRQ+DLQDQ¶VGHYHORSPHQW(GLWHGH[FHUSWVIURPWKHLUFRQYHUVDWLRQIROORZ
CICG Americas: The BFA is VSHDNVYROXPHVDERXWLWVLQWHUQDWLRQDOLQÁXHQFH 'DYRV issues facing Asia as well as the eco-
Hainan’s international calling card. Switzerland, is where the World Economic Forum holds nomic recovery of the continent and
You have witnessed every stage of its its annual meeting.) the world at large.
growth. How would you comment But different from the Davos forum, the BFA boasts The past years have also seen
on its evolving role and achieve- strong regional characteristics, aiming to strengthen the forum take up an important role
ments since its establishment? exchange and cooperation among Asian countries and be- in promoting cooperation under the
Wang Sheng: The BFA is a good tween Asia and other parts of the world. With more than framework of the China-proposed Belt
China story and I am just one of the two decades of development, it has played an irreplace- and Road Initiative, which aims to
people in it. I have been participat- able role in facilitating dialogue and cooperation among boost connectivity along and beyond
the ancient Silk Road routes. It has also
ing in the forum’s development ever participating countries, building consensus and bringing
become a window for China to dem-
since its inception in 2001. I have prosperity to Asia.
onstrate its ideas of opening up and
seen it sprout from nothing and grow Many foreign media outlets and scholars consider the
building a community with a shared
bigger and bigger. The BFA is now BFA an important platform to advocate Asian ideas, given
future for humanity.
hailed as the Asian Davos, which it has provided the Boao approach to address economic
As the birthplace of the BFA,
XINHUA

Hainan has benefited from the fo-

rum. In your opinion, how does the
BFA contribute to Hainan’s opening
up?
Over the past 20-plus years, the
BFA has become a signature brand
for Hainan’s opening up, which has
contributed to the expansion of in-
ternational exchanges and enhanced
its international popularity. In turn,
the province has also contributed its
strengths to the BFA’s development;
both are interdependent and growing
together.

China considers Hainan a new

engine of its high-quality de-
Aerial photo captures the lush green landscape of a village in Boao, a coastal town in Hainan Province and velopment and the province’s
host of the Boao Forum for Asia Annual Conference since 2001, on March 24 transformation into a free trade
16 BEIJING REVIEW APRIL 6, 2023 http://www.bjreview.com

port (FTP) demonstrates the country’s determina-
tion to push ahead with its high-level opening up.
But what are the priorities of Hainan as an FTP?
The island will become the world’s largest FTP by 2035.
This is a strategic decision of the Chinese Government
based on all-inclusive considerations. This port is going
to signify the highest level of opening up. There is no
reference framework for building an FTP with Chinese
characteristics, meaning Hainan not only needs to learn
about advanced FTP construction from its global counter-
parts but also has to modernize its related systems on its
own.
With powerful policy support, the Hainan FTP has
great potential to further develop the province’s maritime
HFRQRP\DVZHOODVLWVKHDOWKFDUHELJGDWDDUWLÀFLDOLQWHO-
OLJHQFHDQGÀQDQFLDOVHFWRUV
Hainan’s sound business environment attracts both
domestic and overseas investors. Located in the South
China Sea, the province serves as the southern gate-
way for China’s trade with Southeast Asian nations. It
can combine the preferential policies of the Regional
Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) with those
RIDQ)73DQGPDNHIXOOXVHRIWKHEHQHÀWV 7KH5&(3
is a free trade agreement between the Association of
Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) plus Australia, China,
Japan, the Republic of Korea and New Zealand—making
it the largest free trade bloc in history.)
The province also needs to further refer to high-
standard international economic and trade rules while
formulating the industrial standards and regulations for the
FTP.
Opening up and international cooperation are the
essence driving Hainan’s development. What are the
province’s advantages and what are the drawbacks it
has to overcome?
Chinese President Xi Jinping called for accelerating the
transformation of Hainan into an FTP with Chinese char-
DFWHULVWLFVDQGJOREDOLQÁXHQFHGXULQJKLVLQVSHFWLRQWRXU
of Hainan last year. He added that Hainan will become “a
paradigm of reform and opening up in the new era.”
With international exchange platforms such as the
BFA and China International Consumer Products Expo,
+DLQDQRIIHUVXQLTXHDGYDQWDJHVLQWKHÀHOGRIJOREDOFR-
operation. But these platforms have also played a crucial
role in local development. With both platform and policy
advantages, Hainan has a brilliant future for institutional
innovation.
However, we still face an acute shortage of high-
caliber professionals able to meet the requirements of
FTP development. And so, governments at all levels are
http://www.bjreview.com
Jewelry for sale at the Haikou International Duty Free City Shopping Complex, the
world’s largest duty free shop, in Haikou, Hainan Province, on December 17, 2022
encouraging such professionals to par-
ticipate in the building of the port.
How should Hainan leverage its
policy and geographical strengths in
economic cooperation?
We have put forward the concept of a
´IRXUKRXUÁLJKW]RQHµPHDQLQJWUDY-
elers from Hainan can arrive in almost
all ASEAN countries, and some East
Asian countries, within four hours.
The province’s ties with partners
should feature “hard,” “soft” and
“heart” connectivity.” “Hard connec-
tivity” refers to the air and shipping
routes. We should further expand these
routes to connect with surrounding
regions. “Soft connectivity” refers to
exchanges and cooperation with FTPs
within the four-hour flight zone. The
island has a population of roughly 10
million residents, but there are 4 mil-
lion overseas Chinese who hail from
Hainan. So, as the hometown of many
overseas Chinese, the province needs
to enhance its business connections
with these people and streamline its
administrative procedures to further fa-
cilitate these interactions. This is what
we refer to as “heart connectivity.”
What role do you expect for the
XINHUA
NISCSS in the BFA and in Hainan’s
development? And what does the
future hold?
I have participated in and witnessed
the evolution of the BFA. And I have
overseen the organization of several
subforums including the ASEAN-
China Governors/Mayors’ Dialogue,
the 21st-Century Maritime Silk Road:
Islands Economic Cooperation, a
conference dedicated to the global de-
YHORSPHQWRI)73VDQGWKLV\HDU·VÀUVW
edition of the Global Tourism Forum.
As president of the NISCSS, I have
to mention that the BFA also covers
a sub-forum on the South China Sea,
which aims to promote the peaceful
and stable development of the region.
Experts and scholars from Viet Nam,
the Philippines, Malaysia, Brunei and
Indonesia, as well as from the United
States, Australia, the United Kingdom,
France and Germany, have participated
in this event.
Next, the NISCSS will make full
use of its exchange mechanisms to
introduce the Hainan FTP to the world
and contribute our ideas and approach-
es as a think tank to the province’s
reform and opening up. BR
Copyedited by Elsbeth van Paridon
Comments to anxinzhu@cicgamericas.com
APRIL 6, 2023 BEIJING REVIEW 17
OPINION *29(51$1&(
Understanding
China’s Democracy
W
ithout any research and with-
out learning much about the
democratic systems in socialist
republics, and above all, without realizing
how much development China has accom-
plished under its concept of democracy, the
West, particularly the United States, has
constantly tried to impose its own values on
China and feels that they are the sole criteria
for democracy on planet Earth.
It is a fact that people cannot thrive un-
der a system of which they do not approve,
or a system that feels unsuitable for them.
They can by no means feel happy or satis-
fied and it would become impossible for
them to deliver even 10 percent of what the
Chinese nation has achieved over the past
decades.
Respect for choice
China’s view on democracy has been the
subject of much debate in the international
community. Some have very ignorantly
criticized China’s approach to governance,
arguing that it stifles political freedom and
human rights. However, China’s perspec-
tive on democracy is more nuanced than this
simplistic view suggests, and there are many
positive aspects to their approach that could
EHQHÀWRWKHUGHYHORSLQJFRXQWULHV
China has a long history of being subject-
ed to external interference, ranging from the
opium wars in the middle of the 19th century
WRWKH-DSDQHVHLQYDVLRQLQWKHÀUVWKDOIRIWKH
20th century. The country has developed a
strong belief in the principle of non-interfer-
ence in the internal affairs of other countries.
For China, democracy is seen as a political
system that should be chosen by each country
based on its own unique cultural, social and
historical circumstances. It emphasizes the
importance of respecting sovereignty and
20 BEIJING REVIEW APRIL 6, 2023
By Mahnoor Makhdoom
independence of each country, al-
lowing them to develop their own
political systems and institutions at
their own pace.
China’s approach to democra-
cy and non-interference has been
especially appealing to many
other developing countries that
have also experienced colonial-
ism and external interference. For
these countries, the principle of
non-interference is seen as an im-
portant safeguard against external
attempts to impose political and
economic systems on them. By
promoting respect for sovereignty
and independence, China is able
to build strong partnerships with
these countries based on mutual
respect and trust.
A people-centered
model
“Whole-process people’s democ-
racy is the defining feature of
socialist democracy—it is democ-
racy in its broadest, most genuine
and most effective form,” Chinese
President Xi Jinping has said.
China’s socialist democracy
has been developed based on its
national context after numer-
ous trials, just like the country’s
political system. President Xi
told the West and particularly
Western leaders on numerous oc-
casions that China respects their
version of democracy and that in
return they should also learn to
respect socialist democracy.
The people’s participation
in politics is regarded as the “essence” of
China’s socialist democracy. According to
the country’s Constitution, “All power in
the People’s Republic of China belongs to
the people.” This aspect constitutes the core
value of China’s political system and is well
embodied in the people’s congress system, as
well as in the system of Communist Party of
China (CPC)-led multiparty cooperation and
political consultation.
The system of people’s congresses is a
political system fundamental to guaranteeing
the people’s status as masters of the country.
Those who criticize China’s socialist
democratic system perhaps do not know or
never tried to know that deputies to people’s
congresses come from all walks of life and
from all 56 ethnic groups, with a diversity
in age, educational background and reli-
gious belief. They are fully representative
of the people and are able to participate in
the discussion and decision-making process.
They do so by exercising power granted by
the Constitution to participate in legislation,
supervision, appointment and removal of
RIÀFLDOVDQGPDNLQJGHFLVLRQVRQPDMRULV-
sues. By virtue of this, the people-centered
political system gives full play to the wis-
dom and strength of the entire society, so as
to ensure every policy can be rational and
reach the broadest possible consensus.
It is highly imperative to understand that
China adopts a system of multiparty coop-
eration and political consultation under the
leadership of the CPC. The system stresses
the CPC leadership while allowing broad
participation of non-CPC parties and promi-
nent figures without party affiliation in the
deliberation of state affairs and exercise of
supervision.
It is also important to notice that unlike
http://www.bjreview.com

Liu Xiya (left), a deputy to the National People’s Congress, China’s top legislature, who is also principal of Xiejiawan Primary School
in Chongqing, collects opinions and suggestions from parents on the implementation of policies to reduce the after-school tutoring
and homework burden on students, on February 24
the two-party or multiparty systems boasted
by Western countries, China’s political
system avoids the common scenario where
parties prioritize their own interests rather
than the people’s and put emphasis on
winning against oppositions rather than
working jointly for the wellbeing of people.
Nonetheless, the CPC has been integrating
the principle of serving the people whole-
heartedly into the country’s governance.
It is in this way that the interests of the
people can be fundamentally guaranteed and
that China’s socialist democracy, with the
Party’s leadership, ensures the consistency
of policymaking as well as the sustainability
of development goals.
Western critics very conveniently ignore
that the CPC is not the only player in China’s
political system. Based on the system of mul-
tiparty cooperation and political consultation,
the eight non-CPC parties and prominent
figures without party affiliation also have
a voice in state affairs. Chinese people’s
http://www.bjreview.com
political consultative conference
committees, as advisory bodies,
serve as platforms for multiparty
cooperation and political consulta-
tion and ensure good governance
for the sake of the Chinese nation
rather than being arenas for parties
to gain interest for their own sake.
In his report to the 20th CPC
National Congress in 2022,
Xi stated that China’s social-
ist democracy is the broadest,
most genuine and most effective
democracy to safeguard the fun-
damental interests of the people.
“The very purpose of developing
socialist democracy is to give
full expression to the wills of the
people, protect their rights and in-
terests, spark their creativity, and
provide systemic and institutional
guarantees to ensure the people
run the country,” he said.
OPINION
XINHUA
Mutual learning needed
In light of the development of China’s so-
cialist democratic system and against the
backdrop of the discussion that took place
in the aforementioned international seminar
on democracy, one can easily conclude that,
primarily, the Western critics need to objec-
tively understand the system of a socialist
democracy. They also need to understand
all the systems of China, and they need to
learn a lot from the Chinese people-centered
concept of democracy and incorporate it into
their own versions of democracy.
Other developing countries also have
a lot to learn from China’s democratic
norms and its governance system. More
importantly, they must listen to President
Xi’s golden words that “we should not just
mechanically copy the political systems of
other countries.” BR
The author is an editor of China affairs at The Daily Mail, Pakistan
Copyedited by G.P. Wilson
Comments to yanwei@cicgamericas.com
APRIL 6, 2023 BEIJING REVIEW 21
OPINION 5(,17(535(7,1*ó&/$66,&6
Riding the Tide
U
nder the theme An Uncertain World:
Solidarity and Cooperation for
Development Amid Challenges,
the Boao Forum for Asia (BFA) Annual
Conference 2023 was held on March 28-31
in Boao, in the southern island province of
Hainan. With key issues including energy,
geopolitical tensions and climate change at the
top of the agenda, the forum again targeted
development and security concerns of the inter-
national community.
China has been exploring ways to play its
part in addressing current global challenges,
LQFOXGLQJUHJLRQDOFRQÁLFWVDQGWKHOLQJHULQJLP-
pacts of COVID-19. While delivering a keynote
speech at the opening ceremony of last year’s
BFA annual conference, President Xi Jinping
encapsulated China’s approach to global security
issues by using the quote: “One must not change
one’s commitment or give up one’s pursuit even
in the face of danger and risk.”
The quote comes from The Governing
Principles of Ancient China, a collection of
classic works compiled by politician and histo-
rian Wei Zheng in the Tang Dynasty (618-907),
with a focus on promoting good governance.
The quote emphasizes the need to retain one’s
aspirations and morality when facing head-
winds, urging people to stay faithful during
hard times and avoid wavering in the face of
challenges.
At last year’s BFA annual conference,
President Xi proposed the Global Security
Initiative (GSI), calling on countries to stay
committed to the vision of common, compre-
hensive, cooperative and sustainable security,
and team up to keep the world safe and secure.
China then issued the GSI Concept Paper
in late February this year, further illustrating
the principles and concepts of the initia-
tive. According to the paper, the GSI aims to
eliminate the root of international conflicts,
improve global security governance, encour-
age international efforts to bring more stability
22 BEIJING REVIEW APRIL 6, 2023
By Li Xiaoyang
and certainty, and promote durable
peace and development.
Stressing discarding the Cold
War mentality, opposing unilateral-
ism, and saying no to group politics
and bloc confrontation, the GSI
emphasizes the holistic approach
to strike a balance between security
and progress, and to enhance sus-
tainable security through sustainable
development.
In keeping with the vision of
common, comprehensive, coopera-
tive and sustainable security, China
has been fostering a new type of in-
ternational relations, and promoting
the building of a community with a
shared future for humanity in global
governance.
China has been an active par-
ticipant in international events, such
as the Group of 20 (G20) meetings,
and has contributed Chinese ideas
at them. It has also promoted coop-
eration with the BRICS countries,
namely Brazil, Russia, India, China
and South Africa, expanded China-
Africa cooperation, and improved
ties with Latin American and
Caribbean countries.
After proposing the Belt and
Road Initiative in 2013, China has
signed agreements with more than
150 countries and over 30 interna-
tional organizations. The initiative
aims to boost connectivity along
and beyond the ancient Silk Road
routes.
China has upheld the purposes
and principles of the UN Charter,
participated in UN peacekeeping
missions, and opposed the hege-
monic invasion of Afghanistan,
Libya and Syria. It has also been car-
rying out international cooperation
on climate change, as it moves toward its goals
to peak its carbon emissions before 2030 and
to become carbon neutral before 2060. Over
the past three years since the emergence of
COVID-19, China has provided billions of vac-
cines and hundreds of billions anti-pandemic
supplies to many countries.
China’s contribution to upholding global se-
curity has yielded notable results. On March 10,
China, Saudi Arabia and Iran announced in
Beijing that the latter two had reached a deal
that includes the resumption of diplomatic rela-
tions and reopening of embassies and missions
within two months. The 59th Munich Security
Conference (MSC) on February 17-19 focused
on addressing pressing global security chal-
lenges, including the Russia-Ukraine conflict,
and giving a voice to countries of the Global
South. At the MSC, Chinese delegates ex-
pressed China’s initiative of upholding global
peace.
China has gained global recognition for
its position that all countries, big or small, are
equal members of the international community.
&KLQDÀUPO\DGYRFDWHVPXOWLODWHUDOLVPDQG
opposes unilateral sanctions. Facing the U.S.-
imposed chip export ban and trade war, China
has maintained its commitment to widening its
doors while seeking dialogue and negotiations.
As the GSI suggests, countries should
pursue peace, development, cooperation and
win-win outcomes, build an effective global
security framework and turn to dialogue and
consultation to address differences and disputes
through peaceful
means. When coun-
tries join forces to
face the challenges
at hand, humanity’s
prospects will look
more promising. BR
Scan the QR code
to watch the video
Copyedited by G.P. Wilson
Comments to lixiaoyang@cicgamericas.com
http://www.bjreview.com

Resolutions From Research
S
RRQDIWHUWDNLQJWKHRDWKRIRIÀFHRQ
March 11, Premier Li Qiang paid a
visit to Hunan Province to learn about
local advanced manufacturing. Other top
officials also undertook study trips around
the country, including Li Xi, Secretary of
the Central Commission for Discipline
Inspection of the Communist Party of China
(CPC), who traveled to Hubei Province.
The General Office of the CPC Central
Committee recently issued a document
requiring the whole Party to promote the
practice of research. The officials’ proj-
ects focus on issues related to economic
and social development. After exploring
these problems, solutions will be identified
through further research.
At his press conference following the
conclusion of the First Session of the 14th
National People’s Congress, during which
he was sworn in, Premier Li said the govern-
ment will further transform its functions,
make its work more efficient and improve
its conduct. The government will focus on
several priorities, with the first being to
promote research. “I have worked in local
governments for a long time. My experience
LVWKDWZKHQ\RXVLWLQWKHRIÀFH\RXVHHORWV
of problems. But when you reach out to the
people, you see all kinds of solutions,” he
added. As the government faces arduous and
complex tasks and high expectations from
the people, it must improve its capacity for
JRYHUQDQFH&RQGXFWLQJÀHOGUHVHDUFKLVDQ
important approach to rational and demo-
cratic governance.
It is a long-held truism that, among
Chinese decision makers, there is no right
to speak and no right to make decisions
without conducting research. The Party
has a notable tradition of maintaining close
http://www.bjreview.com
)$&7ó&+(&. OPINION
By Lan Xinzhen
ties with the public. President
Xi Jinping once said, “We need to
look to the people as our teachers,
learn from them, stay engaged
with them, and know what they
are concerned about. We should
conduct in-depth research to
identify prominent problems and
difficulties faced by the people,
heed their views, and extend their
good practices.” When he was
When problems are
discovered, they should
be documented, along
with the parties
responsible, remedies
required and deadlines
for their solution
working in Zhengding in Hebei Province
in the early 1980s, Xi visited all of the 221
villages of the county. A lot of documents
and decisions made during that period were
attributed to his research on the ground. The
same is true of all his tenures as a local and
national leader.
The newly issued document demands
that officials at all levels conduct research
into the most striking issues in their work.
When problems are discovered, they
should be documented, along with the par-
ties responsible, remedies required and
deadlines for their solution. Problems that
can be solved quickly should be dealt with
immediately. Those that can’t be tackled
immediately must not be disregarded, but
should be monitored until they are solved.
7KHGRFXPHQWUHTXLUHVRIÀFLDOVWRJOHDQ
firsthand information and ask for solutions
from the public by visiting villages, urban
residential communities, businesses, hos-
pitals and schools, among other places. By
GRLQJVRWKH\PD\ÀQGZKDWKROHVLQWKHLU
work need to be plugged. They are required
to refer to case studies when solving prob-
OHPVDQGZRUNWRÀQGHYHQEHWWHUVROXWLRQV
There must also be supervision to ensure
they are really conducting tangible research
and tackling problems.
China is currently faced with new strate-
gic opportunities and missions for economic
growth, at a time when the international situ-
ation is volatile and its domestic reforms have
been impacted by a wide range of issues. In
the face of increasingly severe challenges,
China needs to find solutions through fact
ÀQGLQJDQGFRQVHQVXVEXLOGLQJBR
Copyedited by G.P. Wilson
Comments to lanxinzhen@cicgamericas.com
APRIL 6, 2023 BEIJING REVIEW 23
OPINION 3$&,),&ó',$/2*8(
TikTok, Goes the Clock
F
or Shou Zi Chew, who has served
as CEO of the massively popular short
video app TikTok since 2021, March
ZDVDWRXJKGD\'XULQJDÀYHKRXUKHDU-
ing of the U.S. House Committee on Energy
and Commerce, more than 50 lawmakers from
both the Republican and Democratic parties
grilled him on the app’s data privacy and child
protection.
Although Chew showed professionalism
and decorum, his sincerity did not seem to
quell the many concerns of American law-
makers about TikTok’s meteoric growth and
whether data from U.S. users could end up in
the hands of the Chinese Government through
its Beijing-based owner, ByteDance—which
also operates the app’s Chinese counterpart,
Douyin.
Concerns that the Chinese Government
could be using TikTok to influence
American users or control their devices are
nothing new. For example, in 2020, then
President Donald Trump already tried to im-
pose a total ban on the app, citing “national
security concerns,” and late last December,
Joe Biden’s administration approved an
unprecedented ban on the use of TikTok on
federal government devices.
Yet there is no evidence to prove the
Chinese authorities have any such abilities or
intentions. Chew also repeatedly emphasized
at the hearing that ByteDance is just a private
enterprise and not an agent of any country.
Perhaps it’s because the U.S. itself has
always excelled at using the power of media
WRLQÁXHQFHSROLWLFDOWUHQGVLQRWKHUFRXQWULHV
The real significance of TikTok is that it mainly serves as
a window for Americans to observe the real lives of people in
other parts of the world and also allows them to obtain
domestic news more swiftly
24 BEIJING REVIEW APRIL 6, 2023
By Liang Xiao
that the American politicians are
now very worried about this kind
of practice backfiring. Especially
at a time when they generally
consider China a “threat” to the
“economic wellbeing and demo-
cratic values” of their country.
Since its launch in May
2017, TikTok has become avail-
able in more than 150 countries,
registering over 1 billion users.
According to the company, in
the U.S. alone, the number of
monthly active users had reached
150 million as of February, ac-
counting for nearly half of the
country’s total population.
The average daily time U.S.
users find themselves on the app
is also gradually surpassing the
average daily time an American
adult spends on social media
platforms developed by local
companies, such as Facebook,
Twitter, Instagram and YouTube,
according to Statista.com.
American-made social media
platforms have long sought to
present themselves as venues for
unfettered free expression. But at
present, almost all major ones do
not guarantee this “freedom.” In
addition to the fact that the con-
tent policies of these platforms
strictly abide by the American
“politically correct” game rules,
for those posts that they deem do not con-
form to the U.S. ideology, the platforms
OLPLWWKHLUWUDIÀFRUGLUHFWO\EDQWKHDFFRXQWV
involved. For example, on June 11, 2020,
Twitter shut down more than 170,000 ac-
counts at once on the grounds that they were
“spreading geopolitical narratives favorable
to the Communist Party of China.”
7KHUHDOVLJQLÀFDQFHRI7LN7RNLVWKDWLW
mainly serves as a window for Americans to
observe the real lives of people in other parts
of the world and also allows them to obtain
domestic news more swiftly. In November
last year, Pew Research found 26 percent of
U.S. adults under the age of 30 regularly got
their news on TikTok—a number that had
already tripled from 3 percent in 2020 to 10
percent in 2022.
When, on February 3 this year, a train
carrying hazardous materials, including
cancer-causing vinyl chloride, derailed in
East Palestine, Ohio, many Americans first
learned about the accident through the app’s
short videos. The platform played a vital role
in spreading information and helped bring
the railway incident, and the numerous cor-
porate and government actors who helped
cause the crisis, to the center of national
scrutiny.
This was a prime example of something
American politicians would’ve rather not
had out there for the world to see. External
interference, violation of user privacy and
adverse effects on young users are simply
excuses to accuse TikTok of being a “na-
tional security threat.”
Chew’s testimony and the questions he
was asked show how the clock is TikToking
for American politicians to get their facts
straight as anxiety over the app blends across
cultural, geopolitical and cybersecurity
realms in uneasy and unresolved ways. BR
Copyedited by Elsbeth van Paridon
Comments to liangxiao@cicgamericas.com
http://www.bjreview.com
OPINION
)($785(6 POLITICS
Democracy Is Diverse
Democracy conference reaches consensus on respect for diversity By Zhang Shasha
‘T
here should not be just one door lead-
ing to the sanctuary of democracy, but
many.”
´'HPRFUDF\VKRXOGFRPHLQPDQ\ÁDYRUVOLNHLFH
cream.”
These are views expressed by participants in the
International Forum on Democracy: The Shared
Human Values, held in Beijing both onsite and online
on March 22-23. At the event, about 200 participants,
including politicians and diplomats, as well as schol-
ars and other experts on democracy, from more than
100 countries, regions and international organizations,
brainstormed and exchanged views on democracy-
related issues.
They reached the consensus that democ-
racy is diversified and no one form is superior to
another.
This year’s event is the second edition of the annu-
DOIRUXPZKLFKÀUVWODXQFKHGLQ7KHIRUXPZDV
hosted by the Publicity Department of the Communist
Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and the State
Council Information Office and co-organized by the
Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, China Media
Group and China International Communications
Group (CICG).
Li Shulei, a member of the Political Bureau of the
CPC Central Committee and head of the Publicity
Department of the CPC Central Committee, delivered
a keynote speech during the opening ceremony on
March 23.
“Democracy is a relentless commitment of the
CPC and the Chinese people and an unswerving pur-
suit of China in promoting modernization,” Li said.
He further stressed that democracy is the common
value of humanity and serves as the foundation for
building a community with a shared future for human-
ity. “Democracy is not only a method of domestic
governance, but a principle of global governance,” he
said.
Democracy comes in many forms
“Democracy is diverse and there is no single way to
achieve it. No two political systems in the world are
26 BEIJING REVIEW APRIL 6, 2023
LGHQWLFDODQGGHPRFUDF\GRHVQRWFRPHZLWKDRQHVL]HÀWVDOOIRUPXODµ/LVDLG
He emphasized that each country should choose its own democratic path, in line
with domestic conditions.
According to a report conducted by the Academy of Contemporary China and
World Studies, released during the forum’s closing ceremony, among the 9,660
respondents from 23 countries, 94.3 percent believe each country should choose de-
mocracy and modernization models that suit its national conditions.
The argument resonated widely among attendees. “Successful democracies
should be based on the civilizations, cultures and realities in which they develop,
because many failed democracies are imported,” Zheng Yongnian, President of the
Qianhai Institute for International Affairs and a professor of international affairs at the
Chinese University of Hong Kong (Shenzhen), said at the forum.
When it comes to capitalism, it is known that the capitalism of the United
Kingdom, the United States and Northern Europe, and that of East Asia differ from
one another; that should apply to democracy as well, he said.
“Democracy differs even among Western countries,” he said. “It varies from the
presidential system to parliamentary system. In the U.S., it features a two-party sys-
tem, while in Germany they have six to eight parties, and the system in Indonesia has
more than 100 parties.”
“What traps many people’s minds today is that they regard Western-style de-
mocracy, or the competitive election, as the only form of modern democracy, but if
we really look into the history of democracy, that is only one of its manifestations,”
Yan Yilong, Deputy Dean of Institute for Contemporary China Studies at Tsinghua
University, said. “It’s unnecessary to copy the so-called standard answer from
Western countries, as every nation has the right to explore its own democracy.”
“Past experiences tell us once Western democracy was applied in other coun-
tries, it was not necessarily successful, evidenced by the examples of Iraq, Libya and
Afghanistan,” Humphrey Moshi, Director of the Center for Chinese Studies at the
University of Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, said. “There are still 400 million people in
poverty in Africa. In this case, when a country has more than 10 political parties with
each featuring different objectives and plans, such a democratic system will harm the
cohesiveness of the country and therefore is not a good system.”
Nor has Western democracy generated good economic results for some Asian na-
tions, including Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia, which have all been drawn into the
middle class trap, Zheng said. The middle class trap is the idea that pursuing the dream
of being “middle class” acutally means one would be trapped in a struggle when one
should aim higher.
Kalyan Raj Sharma, Chairman of the Nepal China Friendship Forum, said Nepal
has been advancing its democracy by adopting an accountability system and allowing
people to participate in the policymaking process to enhance transparency, which is
proving effective in promoting sustainable development.
Kugiza Crispin Kaheru, Commissioner of the Uganda Human Rights
&RPPLVVLRQEHOLHYHV´GHPRFUDF\VKRXOGFRPHLQPDQ\ÁDYRUVOLNHLFHFUHDPµ%XW
http://www.bjreview.com
 )($785(6

CHEN JIAN
hundreds of millions of Chinese citizens. Their pursuit
of a better life will eventually lead to national modern-
ization, Fang explained.
“A Chinese-style democracy has taken form, and
it differs from Western democracy,” Yury Tavrovsky,
Director of the Russian Dream and Chinese Dream
Analytic Center, said.
He noted China has made impressive economic
achievements precisely because the country has found
a development model that lives up to its traditions,
present conditions and future goals.
Democracy does not work if it fails to address peo-
ple’s livelihood problems, José Luis Centella, President
of the Communist Party of Spain, said.
In the type of democracy China is building, the
most important thing is to guarantee the people’s right
to extensive participation in national affairs and ensure
the exercise of power is truly supervised and controlled
by the people, he said.
By building a two-way communication system
Li Shulei, a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC)
Central Committee and head of the Publicity Department of the CPC Central between the people and governmental organizations,
Committee, delivers a keynote speech on March 23, during the opening ceremony the former have a say in the management of their own
of the Second International Democracy Forum: The Shared Human Values affairs, which truly empowers them, he added.
Within China, democracy is embodied as people
WKHIXQGDPHQWDOSUHPLVHRIGHPRFUDF\VKRXOGEHVDIHJXDUGLQJWKHPD[LPXPEHQHÀW
being the masters of the country; between countries, it
of people, regardless of race, gender, sexual orientation, religion, political opinion or
becomes the democratization of international relations,
class, he said. Li said. He stressed the country remains true to its dem-
“African countries lie in one continent, but we have more than one nation,” he ocratic principles in international affairs, as Chinese
said. “So what we have to think about is how our democracy can be more inclusive, President Xi Jinping proposed the concept of building
respect the senses of belonging and identities of the majority of people and how de- a community with a shared future 10 years ago.
mocracy can better meet the requirements of social and economic development.” Former Japanese Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama
expressed his concern about an emerging trend among
Chinese democracy some Western countries, namely the U.S., the United
Like many other countries, China has been exploring its own path to democracy. Li Kingdom and Japan, which are creating conflicts of
said the country had tried to implement Western democratic systems to pursue mod- values around the world.
ernization after the Opium War in 1840, but it turned out to be a failure until the CPC He said if the values of democracy and human
illuminated the light of democracy by developing whole-process people’s democracy. rights are used wrongly within the diplomatic arena,
The people-oriented approach has mobilized the population’s initiative and injected countries with different values will be discriminated
inexhaustible impetus into China’s modernization. against and excluded, which will in turn divide the
“Whole-process people’s democracy is a great creation to explore and advance world, defy the laws of economics and damage global
Chinese modernization,” Li said. This form of democracy integrates process-oriented prosperity.
with results-oriented democracy, procedural with substantive democracy, direct with Du Zhanyuan, President of CICG, said he opposes
indirect democracy, and people’s democracy with the will of the state, which suits attempts to undermine the diversity of civilizations
China’s national conditions. and obstruct the rights of other countries to choose
Fang Ning, a researcher in political science with the Chinese Academy of Social their path of democracy, and criticized moves to take
Sciences, said the formation and development of democracy must be based on the democracy as an excuse for creating division and
natural endowments and social and economic conditions of each country, the stage of confrontation, noting that democracy should be the
its development and main tasks, as well as its historical and cultural traditions. common will of humanity. BR
Right now, China finds itself in a critical period of realizing industrialization,
modernization and national rejuvenation. Democracy in this new era should be able Copyedited by G.P. Wilson
Comments to zhangshsh@cicgamericas.com
to protect people’s rights to fully mobilize the productivity, initiative and creativity of
http://www.bjreview.com APRIL 6, 2023 BEIJING REVIEW 27
)($785(6 DEVELOPMENT
Steady on
China to boost domestic demand and keep opening up amid global uncertainty
By Ma Miaomiao

A
lthough it will face continued global uncer-
WDLQW\KLJKJOREDOLQÁDWLRQDQGDVORZGRZQ
in the world economy and trade, China’s
economy has signaled a rebound as pressure from
contraction of demand, supply shocks and weakening
expectations eases, a report released during the China
Development Forum 2023 read. Themed Economic
Recovery: Opportunities and Cooperation this year,
the annual event, which took place offline again for
the first time since the onset of COVID-19 in 2020,
gathered political bigwigs, business magnates, experts
and scholars from the world over in Beijing on March
25-27. The forum came as China seeks to revive its
economy after adjusting its pandemic control policy in
late 2022.
The International Monetary Fund has raised its
projection for China’s economic growth in 2023 to
5.2 percent. “For the world economy, however, spring
is yet to come,” Kristalina Georgieva, the fund’s
Managing Director, said at the forum, adding the
rebound of China’s economy will deliver a welcome
lift to the world, contributing about one third of global
growth this year.
“It will buoy steady and sustained development,
adding certainty to a global growth clouded by up-
world’s second largest economy, Wang Yiming, Vice Chairman of the China Center
for International Economic Exchanges, said.
China now has the world’s largest and most dynamic middle- and high-income
JURXSWKHPDLQFRQVXPHUVRIPHGLXPDQGKLJKHQGJRRGVDQGVHUYLFHVLQWKHÀHOGV
of education, medical care and tourism, Wang said. He called for loosening restric-
tions on housing purchases to unleash the demand for improved living conditions,
stressing that the measures imposed years ago to curb skyrocketing property prices
are already unnecessary given the real estate market has stabilized. Big cities should
XSJUDGHWKHLUXUEDQQHWZRUNVWRHDVHWUDIÀFMDPVDQGWKHQOLIWUHVWULFWLRQVRQDXWRSXU-
chases, he added.
“China should increase the supply of medium- and high-end education and medi-
cal services to meet consumer demand at multiple levels,” Wang suggested.
Lawrence Juen-Yee Lau, a professor of economics at the Chinese University of
Hong Kong, said in the future, China’s economic growth would no longer be driven
by import and export, but by the aggregate domestic demand, including household
consumption, consumption of public goods such as healthcare, education and environ-
PHQWDOSURWHFWLRQDVZHOODVJURVVÀ[HGFDSLWDOIRUPDWLRQ7KHODWWHUIRUPHUO\NQRZQ
as gross domestic fixed investment, includes land improvements (fences, ditches,
drains and so on); plant, machinery and equipment purchases; and the construction of
URDGVUDLOZD\VDQGWKHOLNHVLQFOXGLQJVFKRROVRIÀFHVSULYDWHUHVLGHQWLDOGZHOOLQJV
etc.
“Household income should be increased to stimulate consumption,” he added.
To ensure its economic development by expanding domestic demand, the country
needs to unleash total factor productivity (TFP), as well as pay greater attention to the

XINHUA
heavals,” Han Wenxiu, Executive Deputy Director of
WKH2IÀFHRIWKH&HQWUDO&RPPLWWHHIRU)LQDQFLDODQG
Economic Affairs of China, echoed.

Boosting demand
“Beyond the direct contribution to global growth, our
analysis shows that a 1-percentage-point increase in
GDP growth in China leads to a 0.3-percentage-point
increase in growth in other Asian economies on aver-
age—a welcome boost,” Georgieva added.
During the week-long Chinese New Year holi-
day from January 21 to 27, tourism revenue in China
surged 30 percent year on year and cinemas nation-
ZLGHUHSRUWHGWKHVHFRQGKLJKHVWER[RIÀFHÀJXUHRQ
record, indicating improving consumer sentiment.
Expanding domestic demand is not only key to
supporting economic recovery but also a fundamental Consumers shop for Chinese New Year goodies at a wholesale market in Yiwu, Zhejiang
method to stabilize the mid- to long-term growth of the Province, on January 17
28 BEIJING REVIEW APRIL 6, 2023 http://www.bjreview.com

downward trend of TFP and its labor force, Stephen Roach, a senior fellow at Yale
University, said at the forum. TFP is a term used in economics to measure the impact
of technological advancements, changes in worker knowledge and other factors on
total output growth that cannot be explained by traditional inputs such as labor and
capital.
Roach went on to say that even though China has done a good job at increasing
employment and real wages, the country’s social security, senior care and medical
care systems still require further reform.
When families worry about their old-age life, this will negatively affect their con-
sumer decisions and thus drag down consumption growth by large, he added.
Since 2011, the demographic dividend, or economic growth that can result from
a shift in population age structure, has gradually disappeared worldwide, and the
decline in both TFP and the labor force will continue for a long time to come. China
should pay great attention to these downward trends to avoid Japan’s experience from
the late 1980s to the early 2000s, Roach said. During this period known as Japan’s
“Lost Decade,” the country experienced low growth and deflation. Some econo-
mists blamed the economic stagnation on consumers’ and companies’ excessive
precautionary savings, whereas others put it on the country’s aging population or its
monetary policy—or both.
“Restoring and expanding consumption should be the policy focus for expand-
ing domestic demand,” Wang said, warning that as external demand shrinks, failing
WRHIIHFWLYHO\H[SDQGGRPHVWLFGHPDQGULVNVDGGLQJWRRYHUFDSDFLW\DQGGHÁDWLRQDU\
pressures.
Future opening up
6LQFHÀUVWHPEDUNLQJRQUHIRUPDQGRSHQLQJXSLQ&KLQDKDVRYHUWKHGHFDGHV
that followed become deeply embedded in the international value chain and trans-
formed itself into a global manufacturing hub, Yi Xiaozhun, former Deputy Director
General of the World Trade Organization, said at the forum.
China will further expand market access and steadily advance opening up in the
respect of rules, regulations, management and standards, Han said, adding the country
“welcomes companies from all over the world to invest and expand their businesses in
China as part of their long-term strategies.”
Paid-in foreign investment in the Chinese mainland rose from $144.4 billion in
2020 to $189.1 billion last year, according to the Chinese Ministry of Commerce.
“China is the BMW Group’s largest single market and one of its most strategic. Our
largest research and development operations outside of Germany are based in China,”
Oliver Zipse, Chairman of the BMW AG Management Board, said at the forum.
As China’s industrial and supply chains adjust to the new environment, the coun-
try’s economy and market demand can be strong and sustainable, Li Dongsheng,
founder and Chairman of TCL Technology Group Corp., a Chinese consumer elec-
tronics giant, said. “TCL looks forward to more cooperation with foreign enterprises
in technology and trade, jointly contribute to China’s high-quality development and
promote the expansion of domestic demand in the Chinese market.”
Just as BMW’s investment creates jobs in China, investment from China’s larg-
est battery supplier Contemporary Amperex Technology Co. Ltd. (CATL) brings
prosperity to Europe, Zipse added. CATL has launched two factories in Germany and
Hungary, respectively. The German plant, which kicked off production in December
2022, will have an annual production capacity of 30 million batteries. The plant in
Hungary, with a production capacity of 100 GWh, is the largest investment ever to
come into the country and is estimated to create 9,000 new jobs.
http://www.bjreview.com
)($785(6
Despite challenges, cooperation between U.S.
companies and their Chinese counterparts remains
resilient, Craig Allen, President of the U.S.-China
Business Council (USCBC), said.
U.S. exports to China reached record highs in 2022
and China remains a crucial destination for American
agriculture, food, chemical exporters and other com-
modities. Allen added USCBC data suggests about 1
million Americans are employed because of exports to
China.
According to Allen, more needs to be done so that
China’s investment environment will substantially
improve. For instance, he hopes there will be more
transparent regulations and enforcement practices on
data security and privacy regimes, better industrial
policies and a finer balance between state-owned
enterprises and the private sector. And areas such as
cloud computing, Internet services and agricultural bio-
technology would benefit from further liberalization,
according to him.
“More competitive environments and fairer mar-
kets in China will lead to new jobs, innovation and
growth,” Allen said.
&KLQDUHPDLQVDVLJQLÀFDQWPDUNHWIRUPRVWIRUHLJQ
companies and has gradually become an important
source of innovation to strengthen the global com-
petency of some foreign companies, Denis Depoux,
Global Managing Director of European business strat-
egy consultancy Roland Berger, said.
For now, multinational companies are largely unable
to leave the Chinese market or decouple from China to
develop new global value chain, according to Yi.
Han stressed China will continue to deepen eco-
nomic cooperation with other countries to maintain the
integrity, stability and security of global industrial and
supply chains.
The industrial and supply chains in China have
improved as domestic and foreign companies invested
heavily in modernizing their local production systems,
Depoux added.
“China has demonstrated its innovation capability
DQGLVOHDSIURJJLQJLQVHYHUDOÀHOGVJDLQLQJOHDGHUVKLS
globally in areas like the electric vehicle chain, from
batteries to charging infrastructure, photovoltaic panels,
wind turbines, nuclear and telecommunications equip-
ment,” he added. BR
(Zhang Shasha contributed to this article)
Copyedited by Elsbeth van Paridon
Comments to mamm@cicgamericas.com
APRIL 6, 2023 BEIJING REVIEW 29
)($785(6 &+,1$/$&
China and Honduras:
A Diplomatic Deal
By An Xinzhu & Michael Zárate
O
n March 14 this year, Honduran President
Xiomara Castro posted on her personal
Twitter account that she had instructed
the country’s Foreign Minister Eduardo Reina to
oversee the start of Honduras’ diplomatic relation-
ship with China.
On March 25, Honduras announced it was end-
ing its decades-long “diplomatic relations” with
China’s Taiwan region. The next day, Chinese
State Councilor and Foreign Minister Qin Gang
and Reina signed the Joint Communiqué on the
Establishment of Diplomatic Relations Between
the People’s Republic of China (PRC) and the
Republic of Honduras in Beijing.
The two sides decided to establish diplomatic
relations at the ambassadorial level, effective from
the date of signature, making Honduras the 182nd
country to forge diplomatic ties with China and rec-
ognize the one-China principle.
Following the signing ceremony, the Honduran
Foreign Ministry iterated that its government rec-
ognizes that there is but one China in the world, the
Government of the PRC is the sole legal govern-
ment representing the whole of China, and Taiwan
is an inalienable part of China’s territory.
A new chapter
During their meeting, Qin articulated China
strongly supports Honduras’ participation in the
China-proposed Belt and Road Initiative (BRI),
Global Development Initiative, Global Security
Initiative and Global Civilizations Initiative for
practical cooperation and exchanges.
As Qin stressed, the central and local govern-
ments, political parties, plus culture, education,
media and tourism sectors of both China and
Honduras should launch cooperation mechanisms
as soon as possible to improve consensus and bi-
lateral relations. “The establishment of diplomatic
ties will benefit the people on both sides, boost
30 BEIJING REVIEW APRIL 6, 2023
developing countries to strengthen solidarity and cooperation and improve
democracy in international relations,” he added.
According to Xu Shicheng, a research fellow with the Institute of Latin
American Studies at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (CASS),
the establishment of diplomatic ties between China and Honduras is a po-
litical decision without conditions attached. The choice of the Honduran
Government to recognize the one-China principle was in line with the funda-
mental and long-term interests of Honduras and its people, Xu said.
The establishment of diplomatic ties between the two countries marks
a new chapter in bilateral relations and injects new impetus into coopera-
tion between China and Latin American and Caribbean (LAC) countries.
Twenty-one LAC countries have so far signed memoranda of understanding
on cooperation on the BRI, an initiative that aims to boost connectivity along
and beyond the ancient Silk Road routes, with China. Cooperation between
the LAC countries and China under this initiative has yielded tangible,
positive results and promoted their economic development—especially in in-
frastructure, Xu added.
Significant progress
Han Han, an assistant researcher with the Institute of Latin American Studies
at the CASS, said Honduras and other Central American countries have
long been pursuing pluralistic diplomacy. In recent years, Honduras has im-
proved its ties with the European Union and Asian countries by opening its
doors amid the integration of Central American countries. As economic and
trade ties between China and Honduras have grown increasingly closer, the
Honduran aspiration for enhancing relations with China has been growing in
recent years.
When Castro ran for president in September 2021, she said if she were
to win the elections, she would almost immediately embark on diplomatic
relations with the PRC. She then won the general election on November 28
WKDW\HDUDQGZDVLQDXJXUDWHGDVWKHÀUVWIHPDOHSUHVLGHQWRI+RQGXUDVRQ
January 27, 2022.
According to Xu, one reason for Castro delaying the establishment of dip-
ORPDWLFUHODWLRQVZLWK&KLQDDIWHUWDNLQJRIÀFHZDVWKHSUHVVXUHFRPLQJIURP
the United States. The U.S. had dispatched a large delegation, headed by
Vice President Kamala Harris, to Castro’s swearing-in ceremony and hosted
WKHÀUVW86+RQGXUDVVWUDWHJLFGLDORJXHLQ:DVKLQJWRQ'&ODVW\HDUZLWK
the aim of consolidating relations between the two countries.
Given the U.S. is the top destination for Honduran immigrants, the
Honduran Government has been working on addressing public concerns
http://www.bjreview.com

XINHUA
Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Qin Gang shakes hands with
Honduran Foreign Minister Eduardo Reina after signing a joint communiqué
on the establishment of diplomatic relations in Beijing on March 26
about U.S.-Honduras relations going bad, Han said.
Moreover, the Honduran Government and parliament feature several pro-
Taiwan interest groups which had already voiced their strong opposition to
the establishment of diplomatic ties between Honduras and the PRC.
'HVSLWHWKHGLIÀFXOWLHV&DVWURVDLG&KLQD·VHFRQRPLFJURZWKKDVUHVXOWHG
in a sound relationship between the two countries. Bilateral trade in 2022
reached $1.59 billion, of which $1.56 billion accounted for Chinese exports
and $29.24 million accounted for Chinese imports, according to statistics
from the General Administration of Customs of China.
Following the signing ceremony on March 26, several economic ana-
lysts stated that as one of the least-developed countries in Latin America, the
establishment of diplomatic ties with China can enable Honduras to further
promote trade and investment, expand its export market and boost its econo-
my and people’s livelihoods.
Over the past two decades, China, the world’s second largest economy,
has become the second largest trading partner of the LAC region. Total trade
volume between China and LAC countries reached $485.7 billion in 2022, up
7 percent year on year. China is also among the top sources of foreign direct
LQYHVWPHQWDQGÀQDQFHIRUWKHUHJLRQ
“The Castro administration hopes to promote bilateral trade and, more
specifically, the expansion of Honduran exports to China. It also expects
&KLQDZLOOLQFUHDVHLQYHVWPHQWLQÀHOGVLQFOXGLQJLQIUDVWUXFWXUHZKLFKZLOOLQ
turn promote Honduras’ economic growth,” Xu said.
http://www.bjreview.com
)($785(6
Promising prospects
According to Han, China-Honduras cooperation
has already seen great progress in recent years.
The two countries have cooperated on archaeologi-
cal excavations on sites of the Maya Civilization
covering much of Central America for more than a
decade. Undertaken by PowerChina, a Chinese hy-
dropower, electricity and infrastructure construction
company, the Patuca III hydropower station project
was completed in 2021, improving infrastructure
and social public services in Honduras. But this is
just one model of cooperation on green energy and
technology engineering between the countries.
“During the COVID-19 pandemic, Honduras
received vaccines from China through other LAC
countries that have official ties with China. The
Honduran people then developed a better under-
standing of China and were deeply impressed by its
humanitarian aid,” Han said.
As the press secretariat of the Office of the
Honduran Presidency tweeted on March 26,
“China can provide more opportunities for
Honduras’ development through investment, job
creation and the development of tourism, infra-
structure and education.”
China established or resumed diplomatic
ties with Costa Rica, Panama, El Salvador and
Nicaragua in Central America, in 2007, 2017, 2018
and 2021, respectively. According to Xu, the mu-
tually beneficial cooperation between China and
these countries, especially in the economic and
trade sectors, has seen notable progress since the
HVWDEOLVKPHQWRIRIÀFLDOWLHVZKLFKJDYH+RQGXUDV
DQH[DPSOHRIWKHEHQHÀWVDQRIÀFLDOUHODWLRQVKLS
might entail.
Xu added China and Honduras see much room
for collaboration across a range of fields. Coffee
has historically been one of Honduras’ main com-
mercial crops—along with bananas. Following the
establishment of diplomatic relations, the country’s
export of agricultural products to China will only
increase.
Honduras is highly likely to participate in
the BRI, which will create even more promising
prospects for the China-Honduras relationship, Xu
concluded. BR
Copyedited by Elsbeth van Paridon
Comments to dingying@cicgamericas.com
APRIL 6, 2023 BEIJING REVIEW 31
)($785(6 EMPLOYMENT
When Spring Comes
As recruitment season arrives, youth employment is in the spotlight By Li Qing
O
n March 19, the Ministry of Human
Resources and Social Security launched
a recruitment campaign aiming to assist
QHZXQLYHUVLW\JUDGXDWHVWRÀQGHPSOR\PHQW6HW
to last over two months, the campaign includes
both on-site fairs and online events targeting dif-
ferent industries and regions. It also aims to help
JUDGXDWHVIURPSUHYLRXV\HDUVZKRKDYH\HWWRÀQG
employment.
The campaign encourages prospective employers
to interact directly with universities, both in person
and online, to offer career guidance and human
resources services. The first phase, from March 19
to 29, featured over 60 activities, including offline
IDLUVRQOLQHUHFUXLWPHQWLQWKHÀHOGVRIPHGLFLQHDQG
health, and live-streaming on career guidance and
recruitment-related policy.
A job fair for new graduates in Xi’an, Shaanxi Province, on March 25
32 BEIJING REVIEW APRIL 6, 2023
According to the Ministry of Education, China is expected to have 11.58
million fresh graduates this year, up 820,000 from last year and reaching a new
high. Additionally, nearly 1 million new graduates of overseas institutions will
return this year, making the path to ideal jobs even more competitive.
The 2023 government work report highlighted the need for a more targeted
promotion of youth employment, especially among college graduates. Chinese
Premier Li Qiang said at a press conference on March 13 that the government
will make efforts to support and assist young people to realize their potential at
work.
“This large number [of graduates] certainly adds pressure to employment,
but if we look at it from a development perspective, these young people can in-
ject energy and vitality into our society,” he said.
A barometer
Spring is the golden season for the Chinese to hunt for jobs, and as society and
business are returning to normal after three years of COVID-19 control mea-
sures, employment fairs are bringing hope to job seekers.
Shen Meng, Director of Beijing-based boutique investment bank Chanson
XINHUA
http://www.bjreview.com
 )($785(6

XINHUA
Graduating college students line up to submit their applications at a job fair in
Tianjin Municipality on March 25
& Co., said this recruitment season will reveal changes in the job market that
occurred in the course of the pandemic and after the government has adjusted
COVID-19 policies. The level of employment among university graduates is
indicative of the balance between supply and demand in the wider labor market.
´,IWKRVH\RXQJSHRSOHDUHDEOHWRRYHUFRPHWKHGLIÀFXOWLHVLQÀQGLQJMREV
that match their skills and abilities, their fresh knowledge and strong capabilities
will serve society for decades to come,” he told Beijing Review.
A low employment rate of college students means the number of job seekers
KDVH[FHHGHGWKDWRIYDFDQFLHVDQGDOVRWKDWJUDGXDWHVNLOOVDQGTXDOLÀFDWLRQV
need better alignment with the needs of employers, Shen explained, suggesting
universities upgrade their curricula to better meet the evolving needs of the mar-
ket.
Recently, there have been discussions about whether fresh graduates are too
SLFN\6RPHH[SHUWVKDYHVXJJHVWHGJUDGXDWHVODQGDMREÀUVWLQVWHDGRIFRQWLQX-
ing to look for better ones while unemployed, and they can still change jobs after
accumulating a few years of experience.
Wang Hong, a professor at China University of Mining and Technology,
told Beijing Youth DailyVWXGHQWVVKRXOGQRWÀ[DWHRQÀQGLQJMREVLQELJFLWLHVRU
KLJKSD\LQJMREVLQVSHFLÀFLQGXVWULHV'XHWRWKHH[SDQVLRQRIKLJKHUHGXFDWLRQ
in China, college graduates are no longer the rarity they were before, she said.
%XW6KHQVDLGKHEHOLHYHVJUDGXDWHVVKRXOGFKRRVHWKHLUÀUVWMREFDUHIXOO\
and a decision based on compromise is not a good start for the future. “Access
to promising individual development is one of the reasons for advanced educa-
tion,” he added.
Wang encouraged students not to set limits on
the direction of their growth as there are neither
good nor bad professions, only suitable or unsuit-
able ones.
Released by 51job.com, a leading human
resources service provider, in May 2022, the re-
port showed over 23 percent of students prefer
flexible employment or starting a business. Zhu
Jiandi, chief partner at accounting firm BDO
China Shu Lun Pan CPAs, told Zgswcn.com
that flexible options such as entrepreneurship
and part-time jobs have grown into significant
channels and innovative engines to expand
employment.
Today’s society also requires a more inclusive
professional environment, he said. Zhu also sug-
gested implementing measures to better protect
the rights and interests of the new graduate entre-
preneurs and freelancers, and help them to avoid
pitfalls such as business failure.
The report of 51job.com revealed 38.3 percent
of college students would like to pursue roles in
state-owned enterprises, government agencies
and other places offering stable jobs, followed by
private enterprises, at nearly 2 percentage points
lower. Private enterprises are “the significant
sponge” for absorbing the labor force because they
are capable of faster growth to take on more em-
ployees, Shen said.
Small and medium-sized enterprises are popular
with graduates, thanks to their increased flexibility
and opportunity for promotion. Another reason is that
recent news of large-scale layoffs by Internet giants has
UHGXFHGHQWKXVLDVPIRUZRUNLQJDWELJÀUPV
Shen said small and medium-sized enterprises are
in need of highly skilled and capable employees, such
as those laid off by the tech giants, in order to develop.
However, they are unable to offer these employees the
same working environment and benefits offered by
their former employers.
Shen said it has become necessary for many of
those laid off by the tech titans to adjust their expecta-
WLRQVDQGÀQGHPSOR\PHQWZKHUHWKH\FDQBR

Multiple options
The entry of Gen Z to the workforce has been accompanied by the emergence
Scan the QR
of new career options including becoming a personal healthcare manager, life code for more
organizer or pet groomer. Video editor, scriptwriter and murder mystery game information
designer were the top three most popular jobs, according to a report on career &RS\HGLWHGE\*3:LOVRQ
Comments to liqing@cicgamericas.com
selection by college graduates in 2022.
http://www.bjreview.com APRIL 6, 2023 BEIJING REVIEW 33
)($785(6 +(5,7$*(
Antique Crafts
Cultural artifact repair competition aims to promote the profession By Ji Jing

XINHUA
n March 25, at the ruins of Jinyang Ancient
City in Taiyuan, Shanxi Province, a piece
of land was divided into 32 squares, each
with a side length of 5 meters. Dotting the plot were
32 archaeological workers from all over China who
had come to the area to participate in an archaeological
exploration competition.
The first task at hand for contestants was to
drill three holes in the soil in three hours using a
Luoyang shovel, one of the most important tools
in Chinese archaeology. The robust shovel can be
used for vertical excavation and collection of soil
samples.
When the shovel is pulled out of the ground, a
cylinder of soil attaches itself to the inner surface of A carpenter crafts a component of traditional Chinese architecture at the 2022
the shovelhead and is lifted out as well. By analyz- National Vocational Skills Competition on Cultural Relics in Taiyuan, Shanxi
ing the structure, color, density and contents of the Province, on March 25. The event concluded on March 26

XINHUA
soil, archaeologists can assess soil conditions and
determine if there is an ancient tomb hiding beneath
the surface.
Jinyang Ancient City was built in the late
Spring and Autumn period (770-476 B.C.) in 497
B.C. and destroyed in the Song Dynasty (960-1279)
in 979. Its remnants can still reveal the original
layout of a city in the Tang Dynasty (618-907)
and the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period
(907-960). “After years of excavation and research,
archaeologists have managed to uncover the
ancient city’s abundance of cultural relics and arti-
facts—a discovery very similar to that of Pompeii,
the preserved ancient Roman city in Italy. I think
it’s absolutely right to host the competition here,”
Contestants use Luoyang shovels for archaeological exploration at the competition.
Pei Jingrong, head of the Taiyuan Archaeological The robust shovel can be used for vertical excavation and collection of soil samples
Research Institute, told Shanxi Evening News.
“As there might be bricks and tiles under- WKHVRLOFRQWDLQHGKLJKFDUERQOHYHOVZKLFKSURYHGWKHWKHRU\RIDÀUHKDYLQJ
JURXQGLW·VGLIÀFXOWDQGH[KDXVWLQJWRFUHDWHWKUHH raged through the ancient city.
holes in the soil in just three hours,” Qiao Liang, an The competition was part of the 2022 National Vocational Skills
archaeologist from the China Academy of Cultural Competition on Cultural Relics, a vocational contest focusing on antique resto-
Heritage as well as the competition’s chief judge, ration, which took place in Taiyuan on March 25-26.
told Guangming Daily. Organized by the National Cultural Heritage Administration, 219 restorers in six
Li Kui, who is in his 20s and works at the categories—from ceramics and murals to painted sculptures and metals, among oth-
Guizhou Archaeological Research Institute, has six ers—showcased their skills by working on authentic historical relics.
years of experience in archaeological exploration.
After the competition, he told Guangming Daily that Showcasing skillsets
judging from the sample’s color, he’d concluded In the carpentry and masonry categories, contestants were asked to create ancient
34 BEIJING REVIEW APRIL 6, 2023 http://www.bjreview.com

architecture components within a limited time period. The two categories put to the
test their use of traditional tools such as a saw, chisel and axe.
He Dalong, Chairman of the Shanxi Ancient Architecture Protection
Association, told Shanxi Evening News that, nowadays, “with the use of electric
tools, many traditional tools are disappearing and traditional craftsmanship has
been lost; the competition served to save these tools and craftsmanship.”
In the carpentry category, professionals had 14 hours to craft a crescent-
shaped beam, typical in ancient Chinese architecture, using traditional tools
instead of machine tools.
Ren Yimin, a judge for this category and an expert on ancient Chinese
architecture, said during the competition that the curve of the beam greatly deter-
mined the artistic effect of ancient architecture. “It’s not easy to create the beam
using hand tools and the competition tested the contestants’ craftsmanship,” he
added.
In the masonry category, contestants were required to use bricks to build a
pedestal according to the Qing Structural Regulations, a monograph on Qing
Dynasty (1644-1911) architecture by renowned Chinese architect Liang Sicheng
 ÀUVWSXEOLVKHGLQ
In the metal artifacts, ceramics and mural restoration categories, participants
were required to repair authentic cultural artifacts within the time span of 14
hours.
In the ceramics restoration section, for example, contestants had to draw a lot
to decide which artifact they were going to bring back to life.
The hidden selection featured cups, bowls and wash basins from different
historical periods, all with different degrees of damage.
Yang Yujie, who works at the Palace Museum in Beijing, was one of the
competitors. She was given a Qing bowl to repair. Yang has worked in cultural
artifact restoration for eight years and participated in the renovation of valuable
artifacts such as painted potteries from the Neolithic Period.
&XOWXUDODUWLIDFWUHVWRUDWLRQLVDFURVVGLVFLSOLQDU\ÀHOGWKDWUHTXLUHVLWVSUR-
fessionals to both continuously hone their skillsets and update their scientific
XINHUA
A contestant repairs a ceramic bowl at the competition
http://www.bjreview.com
)($785(6
know-how. “We need to identify the pollutants
on the artifacts using modern equipment and then
apply the proper methods and chemicals to clean
them,” she told Science and Technology Daily.
Bringing past to present
In the mural restoration category, contestants were
asked to repair the murals of an ancient temple in
Zhangzi County of Shanxi.
Some parts of the murals had become blurred
over the years and in other parts one could still
vaguely spot a man with a mustache and a few pine
trees. The participants used cotton swabs to remove
the dirt from the mural and introduced a consoli-
dant onto the surface, before adding the necessary
colors by injection.
Shanxi features a whopping 25,000 square
meters of well-preserved ancient murals. But the
province still has 30,000 square meters of murals in
urgent need of repair and protection.
Li Jiajin, a 24-year-old from Tongxiang,
Zhejiang Province, took part in the competition’s
metal relic restoration category. He has been en-
JDJHGLQFXOWXUDOUHOLFUHVWRUDWLRQIRUÀYH\HDUVDQG
his father is a craftsman specializing in bronzeware
restoration.
Seeing many young people like Li Jiajin taking
part in the competition made Fan Zaixuan, a judge
for the mural restoration category, very happy. He
told China News Service that in addition to putting
to the test participants’ skills, the competition also
intended to draw attention to cultural artifact resto-
ration in a bid to attract more young people to the
profession.
China has more than 760,000 immovable cul-
tural relics, such as ancient buildings, ancient sites,
ancient tombs and cave temples, and more than 100
million cultural artifacts stored across the country’s
museums.
“There are many cultural artifacts in urgent need
of restoration, but we simply lack the high-caliber pro-
IHVVLRQDOVLQWKHÀHOGµ/XR-LQJKHDGRIWKH6FLHQFH
Technology and Education Department of the National
Cultural Heritage Administration, told China Central
Television. He hoped the competition could help
spread the word on the cultural relic restoration profes-
sion among the wider public. BR
Copyedited by Elsbeth van Paridon
Comments to jijing@cicgamericas.com
APRIL 6, 2023 BEIJING REVIEW 35
)($785(6 &+,/'&$5(

Lending a Rearing Hand

China explores new service model to help busy parents better look after their children
By Lu Yan

I
n the coastal city of Qingdao, Shandong Province,
Liu Pei, mother to a 5-year-old and an infant, was
happy to see a draft government document on
piloting home-based nurseries, published on March 15
to solicit public feedback.
Released by the Department of Population
Surveillance and Family Development under the
1DWLRQDO+HDOWK&RPPLVVLRQ 1+& WKHGUDIWGHÀQHV
the home-based nursery as “a service where residen-
tial housing is used to provide full- or half-day care,
temporary care or other daycare services for children
under the age of 3.” It further stipulates procedures
for business license applications, as well as specific
requirements for caregivers and the spaces where they
will look after the children.
This type of home-based childcare service
responds to the ever-more-pressing problem of
China’s busy parents trying to secure daycare for
their offspring.
“Neither my husband nor I are stay-at-home
SDUHQWVVRZH·UHNLQGRIUHOLHYHGWRVHHVXFKRIÀFLDO
policies and services popping up. I’m also planning
to submit my suggestions and concerns regarding the
document—about the detailed qualifications of care-
givers, for example—to the authorities via e-mail,” Liu grandchildren. Another slightly more costly option when the parents are too busy
told Beijing Review. bringing home the bacon and there are no grandparents to turn to, is to hire a nanny.
“Given a person’s early childhood is vital to their Wuyun Gaowa believes the establishment of home-based daycare facilities is a
physical and psychological growth, this service offers SRVLWLYHDGGLWLRQWRWKHFRXQWU\·VFKLOGFDUHV\VWHPDQGUHÁHFWVWKHFRXQWU\·VHIIRUWVWR
a good alternative for those parents on the lookout for meet the ever-more diverse demands of families.
professional childcare and early childhood education,” “I see it as very good news for mothers, many of whom were too tied up with trivial
Wuyun Gaowa, an expert on child psychology and family stuff to pursue a career and personal dreams,” Wuyun Gaowa said, adding it also
preschool education from the Teacher’s College at echoes changing views on parenthood and parenting styles in a developing China.
Beijing Union University, told Beijing Review. As many parents increasingly believe that toddler rearing comes with a host of
complexities that at times stretch well beyond their own abilities, home-based child-
Burnout no more care facilities can offer professional assistance.
Generally speaking, children aged 3-6 in China go to “From birth to age 3, a child’s brain develops more than at any other time in life.
kindergarten. As of 2021, about 88.1 percent of chil- Children develop their senses of touch, taste and smell, as well as the ability to absorb
dren in this age group were enrolled in kindergartens, QHZNQRZOHGJHDQGIRUPKDELWV7KHIXQFWLRQVDQGLQÁXHQFHVRIGD\FDUHFHQWHUVDQG
according to the Ministry of Education. kindergartens are even greater at this stage than during any other educational phase,”
Those aged 0-3 are mostly taken care by their Wuyun Gaowa said.
families. Multiple generations living under one roof Echoing Wuyun Gaowa, Peng Hailei, a preschool education professor at the
has long been a cultural tradition in China. Today, Teacher’s College at Beijing Union University, said parents today have upgraded
many grandparents still help to take care of their their demands for early childhood education and are willing to spend more money on
36 BEIJING REVIEW APRIL 6, 2023 http://www.bjreview.com

XINHUA
A child waves goodbye to
her grandmother
at a nursery inside
a residential community
in Shanghai
on March 7, 2022
http://www.bjreview.com
TXDOLÀHGSURIHVVLRQDOVWDUJHWHGVHUYLFHVDQGDVRXQG
environment for the sake of their young children’s bet-
ter development.
According to the NHC’s Department of Population
Surveillance and Family Development, currently,
China has about 32.2 million children under the age
of 3, and more than 30 percent of families with babies
have a strong need for childcare services. Yet the actual
enrollment rate of children in these facilities is under 6
SHUFHQW3OXVGHPDQGLQÀUVWWLHUFLWLHVIDURXWZHLJKV
the national average.
Meeting social needs
China has adjusted its family planning policy several
times in recent years, allowing all couples to have two
children since 2016 and three children since May 2021,
and has rolled out a series of supportive measures to
encourage childbirth.
The country faces an era of low fertility. Its overall
population fell by 850,000 year on year to 1.41 billion
in 2022, the National Bureau of Statistics announced
LQ-DQXDU\7KLVZDVWKHÀUVWWLPH&KLQDKDGUHJLVWHUHG
negative population growth in 61 years.
About 9.56 million babies were born last year, a
decline of 1.06 million compared with the 2021 num-
ber. The birth rate stood at 6.77 births per 1,000 people
LQGRZQIURPLQ%RWKÀJXUHVZHUH
the lowest since the founding of the People’s Republic
of China in 1949.
The home-based childcare service is part of
China’s determination to improve its population de-
velopment strategy, establish a policy system to boost
birth rates and bring down the costs of pregnancy,
childbirth, child rearing and schooling. This goal was
stated in the report approved at the 20th National
Congress of the Communist Party of China in October
last year—which charted the way forward for the Party
and the country alike.
The regulation for home-based childcare has also
addressed concerns over the quality and safety of child-
care. It stipulates that home-based childcare agencies
FDQORRNDIWHUQRPRUHWKDQÀYHFKLOGUHQZLWKHYHU\
caregiver tending to a maximum of three children, at
once. Caregivers should be experienced or have an
educational background in nursery care or child health
and development, and receive additional training in
mental health, food safety, first aid and fire safety.
People with a history of mental illness or criminal re-
cord are barred from the occupation.
Daycare providers are also required to install video
)($785(6
surveillance cameras covering all living and play areas
and footage should be stored for at least 90 days, the
document states.
Areas for improvement
While some applaud home-based nurseries, some
SURIHVVLRQDOVLQWKHÀHOGKDYHWKHLUFRQFHUQVDERXWWKH
draft regulation. For example, Zhou Jiahao, manager
of the commerce department of toddler daycare com-
pany Jimizhijia in Beijing, believes that the cap on the
QXPEHURIHQUROOHGFKLOGUHQZLOOOLPLWSURÀWDELOLW\IRU
service providers and hence hinder their development.
Another obstacle is the lack of professionals that
parents can fully trust. Fortunately, higher educational
institutions have already accelerated related teaching
and training. In 2022, vocational colleges nationwide
registered more than 3,400 programs associated with
toddler rearing, an increase of 12.8 percent compared
to 2021. And more than 430 universities nationwide
now offer undergraduate programs in preschool educa-
tion.
Wuyun Gaowa also believes the laws and regula-
tions, as well as the training of childcare professionals
and the evaluation system of facilities, must catch
up with the development. “Based on standardized
management, each facility should be encouraged to
leverage its unique advantages and specialty to provide
diverse services. For example, some can specialize
in sports and others in art—offering more choices for
both toddlers and parents,” she said.
The current rules for home-based childcare facilities
are oriented toward urban areas; things may be rather
different in the country’s vast rural areas due to several
factors. For example, many rural residents may not be
able to afford daycare and then there are the many left-
behind children—referring to rural children who are left
at home when both or one of their parents migrate to the
urban areas for work. Coming up with toddler-rearing
solutions customized to the Chinese countryside will
require a lot more study and research.
Peng said with China’s urbanization drive, the
country’s rural population is decreasing. But this
should not be a reason to overlook the importance of
the development of village nurseries.
“More such services should become available
in places where rural workers migrate to, in a bid to
ensure a fair distribution of educational resources
across urban and rural areas,” Peng said. BR
Copyedited by Elsbeth van Paridon
Comments to luyan@cicgamericas.com
APRIL 6, 2023 BEIJING REVIEW 37
)($785(6 ENVIRONMENT

From Smog Domes

To Blue Skies
A decade of historic struggle against air pollution in Beijing By Wang Ruohan

‘C
lick-click.” Zou Yi, founder of so- growth, Beijing has suffered from various “urban diseases.” Air pollution
cial media account BeijingAirNow, has been a major environmental problem in Beijing and concern over its
stood on the flyover close to the adverse effects has resulted in the implementation of a long series of control
China World Trade Center in Beijing’s central measures.
business district, taking pictures of the sky with In the 1970s, Beijing began taking action to control air pollution. In
his cellphone. His dog, named Baiyou, which the following decades, its focus has shifted from coarse particulate mat-
means tar or pitch, sat quietly next to him. WHUHPLVVLRQVDQGHPLVVLRQVIURPFRDOÀUHGIDFLOLWLHVLQFOXGLQJERLOHUVIRU
“I have persisted in recording the changes in public heating, power plants and stoves to industrial and vehicle emissions.
Beijing’s air quality every day since 2013. And Although the concentration of major pollutants in the air has been decreas-
now, a decade has passed,” Zou said. Although ing each year since then, the pollution was still very serious.
he had a cold, he still wrapped himself up in In 2013, the Beijing Municipal Government initiated a comprehensive
a coat and took Baiyou to three locations, the air pollution control program, the Beijing Clean Air Action Plan 2013-17,
China World Trade Center, Beijing Radio and with the objective to reduce annual average PM2.5 concentration to approxi-
Television Station, and CITIC Tower, Beijing’s mately 60 micrograms per cubic meter by 2017. The plan included detailed
tallest building, to photograph the sky. As usual, requirements for energy structure optimization, industrial green transforma-
the sky over Beijing was azure. tion and urban management. It focused on the implementation of eight major
However, 10 years ago, any shade of blue pollution reduction projects, including the control of coal combustion and
sky was far less common. Zou showed Beijing vehicle emissions, pollution treatment, and the reduction of fugitive dust,
Review a composite picture made of photos of
Beijing’s sky taken throughout 2013. Hazy gray
stood out as the dominant color of the collec-
tion. The top of the picture is also prominently
marked with the annual average concentration of
PM2.5, particles in the air that are smaller than
2.5 micrometers in diameter, considered among
the most harmful to health. In that year, in
Beijing, the average concentration of PM2.5 was
89.5 micrograms per cubic meter, far exceeding
the annual average limit of 35 micrograms per
cubic meters set by China’s National Ambient
Air Quality Standard (NAAQS), which became
effective in 2016. The continuous hazy weather
made Zou determined to photograph the Beijing
sky every day to record the changes in the city’s
air quality.
It was in that year that Beijing began a de-
FDGHRIKLVWRULFHIIRUWVWRÀJKWDLUSROOXWLRQ

Small particles, big impacts

Throughout its rapid economic and urban Beijing’s sky throughout 2013
38 BEIJING REVIEW APRIL 6, 2023 http://www.bjreview.com

which is often either brought to Beijing by the wind or the result of construc-
tion. According to the Beijing Environmental Protection Bureau in 2013,
Beijing would invest nearly 1 trillion yuan ($161.5 billion) in combating air
SROOXWLRQRYHUWKHIROORZLQJÀYH\HDUVRIZKLFKWKHJRYHUQPHQWZRXOGLQ-
vest approximately 200 billion yuan ($32.3 billion) to 300 billion yuan ($48.4
billion).
$IWHUÀYH\HDUVRIHIIRUWWKHFLW\·VDLUTXDOLW\KDGLPSURYHGVLJQLÀFDQW-
ly, with its annual average concentration of PM2.5 falling to 58 micrograms
per cubic meter in 2017, a 35.2-percent decrease from 2013. The goal
KDGJHQHUDOO\EHHQFRQVLGHUHGGLIÀFXOWWRDFKLHYHDQGWKH8QLWHG1DWLRQV
Environment Program recognized Beijing’s efforts to combat air pollution in
a report titled A Review of 20 Years’ Air Pollution Control in Beijing.
6LQFHWKHQ%HLMLQJKDVQHYHUVWRSSHGÀQHWXQLQJLWVDLUSROOXWLRQFRQWURO
program in accordance with national policies. In 2018, the central leadership
issued a three-year action plan for cleaner air, and in 2021, it issued another
GRFXPHQWWRIXUWKHUWKHÀJKWERWKVHWWLQJELQGLQJWDUJHWV%HLMLQJDOVRLV-
sued its own plans and took action accordingly.
Although it is becoming increasingly difficult to further reduce the
PM2.5, the concentration of this type of particulate matter in Beijing has
continued to decline, down to 42 micrograms per cubic meter in 2019. In
2021, the annual average concentration of PM2.5 throughout Beijing fur-
WKHUGURSSHGWRPLFURJUDPVSHUFXELFPHWHU,WZDVDOVRWKHÀUVWWLPHLQ
history that the annual average concentration of all six pollutants in the Air
Quality Index, namely PM2.5, sulfur dioxide, nitrogen dioxide, inhalable
particulate matter, carbon monoxide and ozone, met the Grade II, or the
ZOU YI
ZOU YI
http://www.bjreview.com
)($785(6
less stringent limit, of the NAAQS. In that year,
Beijing had good air quality on 288 days, 112
days more than in 2013; while it had heavy pol-
lution on eight days, 50 fewer than in 2013. In
2022, the annual average concentration of PM2.5
throughout Beijing further decreased to 30 mi-
crograms per cubic meter.
When it comes to whether the improve-
ment in air quality has been related to decreased
social activity and emissions during the pan-
demic, Huang Runqiu, Minister of Ecology and
Environment, said “Even after deducting the im-
pact of the pandemic, we still have successfully
met the binding targets set in the 13th Five-Year
Plan (2016-20).” He said this during an interview
in August 2021, quoting scientific assessments
showing that the pandemic only had reduced
PM2.5 concentration by 2 micrograms per cubic
meter and the number of good air quality days by
2.2 percent.
Social benefits
“In the past, we didn’t dare to open the windows
in winter when we burned coal for heat-
ing, because a layer of ash would land on the ʈʈ
Beijing’s sky throughout 2019
APRIL 6, 2023 BEIJING REVIEW 39
)($785(6 ENVIRONMENT
windowsill. But that doesn’t happen anymore,”
Hu Songling, who lives in Sanhe Nanli commu-
nity in Beijing’s Daxing District, said.
The ash that Hu referred to comes from a
coal pile and a boiler room, which was built in
2003 to provide winter heating for buildings in
three neighborhoods in the district. At the time,
coal combustion was a major source of air pollu-
tion in Beijing.
The renovation of coal-fired boilers for
public heating has become a crucial element
in Beijing’s air pollution control efforts. Ning
Xiquan, Deputy Director of Daxing District
Ecological Environment Bureau, told Beijing
Business Today that from 2013 to 2017, Daxing
District transformed coal-fired boilers with a
combined capacity of nearly 3.6 million kW into
ones that use either electricity or natural gas. The district also began work
to lower emissions of nitrogen oxides in 2016, with boilers with a com-
bined capacity of 2.23 million kW transformed by the time the project was
complete in 2018. Coal to cleaner energy transformation has led to the con-
tinuous improvement of ecological and environmental quality in the district.
“Through coal to electricity and coal to gas transformation, the air qual-
ity in Beijing has been improved,” Wang Peng, an associate professor of
chemistry at Renmin University of China, said.
After the transformation was complete, some of the boilers and coal stor-
DJHDUHDVEHFDPHVXSHUÁXRXVZLWKUHVLGHQWVVRPHWLPHVÀQGLQJQHZXVHV
for them, such as drying and storing grain. In early 2020, Daxing District
transformed the boiler room and coal pile in Hu’s neighborhood into a com-
prehensive service center called Mei Lin Fang, which retains the style of the
original boiler room with its red brick facade. The building is a fresh food
supermarket on the first floor, a community activity center on the second
ÁRRUDQGDFDIpVW\OHERRNVWRUHRQWKHWKLUGÁRRU0HL/LQ)DQJSURYLGHV
services to nearly 100,000 residents in more than 20 communities.

Arduous tasks
Beijing’s Annual Average Although the achievements are remarkable, there is still a long way to go
in Beijing’s battle against air pollution. “Air pollution is a long-term, ardu-
PM2.5 Concentration RXVDQGFRPSOH[FKDOOHQJH7KH30OHYHOLQ%HLMLQJLVVWLOOVLJQLÀFDQWO\
higher than in many other developed cities around the world. Continuous
Annual average (microgram per cubic meter) efforts are needed for the continuous improvement of air quality in Beijing,”
100 89.5 Liu Baoxian, Director of the Beijing Ecological Environment Monitoring
80.6 Center, said.
80 73
85.9 The air quality report released by the Ministry of Ecology and
58 Environment on March 16 showed a year-on-year rise in PM2.5 concen-
60 51
42 38 tration in Beijing in the first two months of this year, and a 10.1-percent
40 33 decrease in the number of good air quality days in the city year on year, fur-
30 ther illustrating the need for continued efforts to control pollution, with life
20
returning to normal after the optimization of pandemic control measures.
0 The Beijing Municipal Government has allocated 17.64 billion yuan
2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 ($2.73 billion) for energy conservation and environmental protection in its
2023 budget, with the goal of further reducing PM2.5 concentration.
Change in annual average (% y.o.y.) Wang believes that the future development of Beijing must come with
2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 the improvement of air quality. To achieve digital and green transformation
0 and protect the environment, Beijing needs to leverage its strong research
-5
and development capacity to develop industries such as green advanced
-4.02 manufacturing and digital economy.
-10
-6.17 As Beijing enters the next phase of its war against pollution, it has an
-9.43 -9.52 opportunity to place more emphasis on market-based approaches in order
-12.07 -9.09
-15 -13.16 to more sustainably reduce pollution at a lower cost. “Beijing can also take
-20 -17.65 DGYDQWDJHRILWVÀQDQFLDOUHVRXUFHVDQGWRROVLQFOXGLQJLPSURYLQJWKHFDU-
-20.55 bon emissions trading regime, to back green industries and then improve
-25 Beijing’s air quality even further,” Wang added. BR
(Source: Beijing Municipal Ecology and
Environment Bureau; designed by Pamela Tobey)
Copyedited by G.P. Wilson
Comments to wangruohan@cicgamericas.com

40 BEIJING REVIEW APRIL 6, 2023 http://www.bjreview.com


Chinese Stake in Brazilian
E-Commerce
How an online shopping giant makes connections across continents By Wang Jinxu
COURTESY PHOTO
A Cainiao package-processing center
in São Paulo, Brazil
‘H
as anyone used Cainiao Standard
for Special Goods? Is it OK?”
Kécio F. Silva, a student in
Recife, the capital city of Pernambuco
state in the northeast of Brazil, asked about
the Chinese express delivery service on a
Facebook group. He soon received a response
from Igor Henrique, another user, “I have. It
was swift. I can’t remember the exact time,
but it all went smoothly.”
Slow delivery has long been a big obstacle
to cross-border trade. As a loyal customer of
Chinese cross-border online shopping plat-
form AliExpress, Bárbara, who did not give
KHUIXOOQDPHVWLOOUHPHPEHUVKHUÀUVWH[SHUL-
ence of using the platform seven years ago. “I
purchased a pair of pink cotton-padded boots,
warm and pretty,” she said. However, by the
time she received her order, it was already
summer. The boots had taken half a year to
travel from the seller in China to her home in
Brazil. “Customs clearance was very slow,”
she explained. “But in recent years, the logis-
tics has been speeding up.”
“We are working hard to increase our
logistics capacity,” Albert Yan, head of
Chinese logistics provider Cainiao’s business
http://www.bjreview.com
LOGISTICS)($785(6
in South America, told Beijing
Review. “We’ve arranged eight
FURVVERUGHUFKDUWHUÁLJKWVDZHHN
established local smart distribution
centers and increased the number
of smart lockers for receiving
packages.” Today, products from
Chinese sellers can often reach
Brazilian consumers in a little more
than one week.
Both Cainiao and AliExpress
are owned by e-commerce giant
Alibaba. Cainiao’s locker network
provides a contactless logistics ser-
YLFHZLWKÁH[LEOHSLFNXSWLPHVIRU
consumers.
Due to COVID-19-related re-
strictions and improvements to online
payment systems, online shopping
in Brazil is exploding. A joint survey
by Octadesk, a São Paulo-based soft-
ZDUHÀUPDQG%UD]LOLDQSROOLQJÀUP
Opinion Box, reveals that 61 percent
of consumers in Brazil now prefer
RQOLQHVKRSSLQJWRRIÁLQHVKRSSLQJ
The survey also showed that 70 per-
cent of consumers have increased the
frequency of their online shopping
over the past year, and this is placing
greater demand on logistics services.
“Several years ago, I was the
only one in this apartment building
who was fond of online shopping,
but now, when I go to the security
JXDUGV·RIÀFHWRFROOHFWP\SDUFHOV
the room is almost completely full
of parcels delivered by Mercado
Livre (Brazil’s largest customer-to-
customer trading platform), SHEIN
(a Chinese online fast fashion re-
tailer) and Amazon. There are so
many of them that it now takes a
long search to locate the ones that
are mine,” Bárbara said.
Currently, Brazil, Mexico and Chile are all
important markets for Cainiao. Across Latin
America, Brazil is where this logistics com-
pany relies most heavily on local resources
for operations. “Chinese businesses are much
more competitive than Brazilian ones, fuel-
ing worries among local businesses of losing
market share,” said Ivan Filipe Fernandes, a
public opinion researcher from the Federal
University of ABC in Santo André and São
Bernardo do Campo, Brazil. “Some people
will unavoidably lose money or feel dis-
gruntled, but in most cases, we do not reject
foreign investment... The more investment in
Brazil, the better,” he added.
However, Chinese cross-border logistics
companies operating in Brazil do more than
invest in the country and sell Chinese goods.
“Businesses in the local logistics sector are
important clients of Cainiao, including Piticas
and Facily,” Yan said. Also, Brazilian brands
tend to set up their own e-commerce plat-
forms. Expensive equipment and sprawling
VFDOHVRIEXVLQHVVPDNHUHFRXSLQJFRVWVGLIÀ-
cult. China-made package-sorting equipment,
which is compact and less expensive, helps cut
businesses’ logistics costs and improve effi-
ciency. “Technology is our advantage and we
can help local businesses transform from the
traditional operating model to e-commerce,”
Yan added.
Cross-border logistics is by no means a
one-way business. As Fernandes sees it, the
biggest issue facing the Brazilian economy is
a lack of markets for its products. Cainiao is
working to open air and sea routes to China
by improving its logistics network. More than
200 Brazilian small and medium-sized brands
hope to depend on leading import e-commerce
platform Tmall Global, another Alibaba brand,
for training and for their products to enter the
Chinese market. BR
Copyedited by G.P. Wilson
Comments to wangjinxu@cicgamericas.com
APRIL 6, 2023 BEIJING REVIEW 41
)($785(6 $87202%,/(

An Automotive Dilemma
Auto manufacturers turn to deep discounts for greater market share
By Qiu Hui

I
n the face of a deep market downturn since
the beginning of the year, China’s car brands
are engaged in a brutal price war to win over
consumers. However, although the price cuts have
lasted almost a month, they seem to be doing little
to ease pressure on the industry, partly caused by
the ending of stimulus policies and the introduc-
tion of new emissions standards.
The wave of decreasing car prices began in Hubei
Province at the beginning of March. The provincial
government, in collaboration with local automaker
Dongfeng Motor and dealers, offered subsidies of up to
90,000 yuan ($13,158) on each purchase of cars manu-
IDFWXUHGE\WKHÀUPKHDGTXDUWHUHGLQ:XKDQFDSLWDO
of Hubei. Following that, more than 30 other automo-
bile companies have launched promotional campaigns
across the country, covering both their homegrown and
joint venture brands such as BMW, Audi and Cadillac.
FAW, based in Jilin Province, cut prices by a total
of 150 million yuan ($21.93 million) for purchases of
the group’s passenger vehicles in the province, with
the maximum discount for each car reaching 37,000
yuan ($5,409). On March 16, SAIC Motor, China’s
largest carmaker, based in Shanghai, also announced
a total price cut of 3.7 billion yuan ($540.94 million),
registered positive growth in sales volumes on an annual basis.
Jiang Han, a senior researcher at the Pangoal Institution, a public policy think tank
in Beijing, said currently, the demand in the domestic market has not yet reached its
potential. In addition to no longer halving the purchase tax for eligible passenger vehi-
cles, Jiang said the government is also no longer offering subsidies on the purchase of
new-energy vehicles (NEVs) as it did in previous years. These two factors are causing
the sharp drop in auto sales.
Other factors are also at play in the recent price cuts. Cui explained that as China is
about to begin enforcement of phase B of its National VI vehicle emissions standards,
carmakers are keen to liquidate their inventories of non-compliant vehicles.
Phase B of the standards, which are believed to be among the world’s strictest on
automobile pollutants, will be enforced from July this year. According to the regula-
tions, issued in December 2016 by the then Ministry of Environmental Protection,
the National VI vehicle emission standards consist of two phases, with phases A and
B coming into effect as of July 1, 2020 and July 1, 2023, respectively. Once the stan-
dards are executed, automobiles that do not meet them are no longer allowed to be
sold, registered or licensed.
However, a report from CITIC Securities Co. Ltd. predicts that the impact of the
new standards will be much lower than that of the switch from National V to National
VI standards in 2019.
In response to the nationwide price battle, the China Automobile Dealers Association
(CADA) issued a statement on March 17 announcing that, despite the deep discounts,
car sales in China continued declining. According to figures from the CADA, 414,000
passenger vehicles were sold during the March 1-12 period, a drop of 17 percent

XINHUA
with a maximum discount of 50,000 yuan ($7,310) per
vehicle.

Sales pressure
Cui Dongshu, Secretary General of the China
Passenger Car Association (CPCA), said the promo-
tions launched by automakers across the country are
attempts to spur car consumption at a time when de-
mand is weak.
Before the price war began in March, China’s
auto market, the world’s largest, had been experienc-
ing headwinds since January, after the scrapping of
a policy that halved the purchase tax for many pas-
senger vehicles. CPCA data showed that retail sales of
passenger cars declined 19.8 percent year on year to
PLOOLRQXQLWVLQWKHÀUVWWZRPRQWKVRIWKH\HDU
An AITO M7 electric sports utility vehicle produced by Seres, an automaker backed by
Among the 20 automakers that published their busi- technology giant Huawei, on display at the Guangzhou International Automobile
ness data for the January-February period, only four Exhibition in December 2022
42 BEIJING REVIEW APRIL 6, 2023 http://www.bjreview.com

Car purchasers pack an auto dealership in Wuhan, Hubei Province, on March 8
from the same period the year before and down 11 percent from the previous month.
The CADA cautioned that, if left unchecked, an escalating price war may cause
harm to the long-term development of the auto industry. The association called on
governments at all levels to formulate more policies to stimulate car consumption, but
said subsidies should not be targeted or selective, but inclusive. In Wuhan, for one,
subsidies have been granted only to brands produced in the city, sparking controversy.
Fierce competition
A price war began to appear in the NEV market as early as the outset of 2023, start-
ing with Tesla’s price cuts and followed by homegrown startups such as AITO,
Xpeng and NIO. According to figures from the China Association of Automobile
Manufacturers, in February, 552,000 NEVs were produced in China and 525,000
were sold, up 48.8 percent and 55.9 percent, respectively, year on year.
NEVs now seem to be favored over gasoline-powered vehicles in the Chinese
PDUNHW+RZHYHU-LDQJVDLGDOWKRXJKUHFHQWSULFHFXWVKDYHVLJQLÀFDQWO\LPSDFWHG
WKHJDVROLQHSRZHUHGYHKLFOHPDUNHWLWZLOOQRWFDXVHDQLQGXVWU\ZLGHUHVKXIÁH
He added that the gasoline-powered vehicle market is facing competition on mul-
tiple fronts. In addition to the rising public acceptance of NEVs, the weak demand has
forced automakers to launch promotions to sustain their market shares.
In his opinion, after this wave of extensive price cuts, a “subsidy sequela” will be
http://www.bjreview.com
)($785(6
XINHUA
inevitable. “The key is whether it will change consumer
expectations,” he explained. If potential buyers expect
continued lower prices for gasoline-powered vehicles
after the promotions end, it will be difficult for makers of
gasoline-powered vehicles to reverse the pricing strategy
in the future.
Cui said 2023 is an important period for the au-
tomakers to undergo transition, and the industry will
begin to show more complex characteristics during the
year. In his opinion, this wave of price cuts is nearing
an end, and the entire auto market is expected to return
to its normal state.
Industry observers conclude although NEVs
appear poised to replace their gasoline-powered
counterparts in the long run, the latter will remain the
mainstay in the market in the foreseeable future. BR
The author is a reporter with the China Report magazine
Copyedited by G.P. Wilson
Comments to wangjun@cicgamericas.com
APRIL 6, 2023 BEIJING REVIEW 43
CULTURE
In Vogue
T
he opening ceremony of China
Fashion Week Autumn/Winter
2023, one of the country’s most
prominent fashion extravaganzas, got on
the runway in Beijing on March 24.
Featuring nearly 100 events such
as shows, forums and open lectures
46 BEIJING REVIEW APRIL 6, 2023
1
catering to the trendy tastes of aficio-
nados, the week helped reenergize the
industry in the wake of the COVID-19
pandemic. BR
(Text and photos by Wei Yao)
Copyedited by Elsbeth van Paridon
Comments to weiyao@cicgamericas.com
http://www.bjreview.com
 CULTURE
2 1. Models strut down the runway for designer
Zhuang Ganran on March 27

2. An exhibition of Peruvian attire is held during the

fashion week. Chinese consumers have shown a
penchant for alpaca wool sweaters in recent years

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trade shows take place in Beijingfun, a shopping
complex in downtown Beijing where young people
can take their pick of the products created by
young designers

'HVLJQHU+DQ4LGRHVDĶQDOFKHFNRIDQRXWĶW
before it hits the catwalk

4 3

http://www.bjreview.com APRIL 6, 2023 BEIJING REVIEW 47

(;3$7·6ó(<(
Journey to Fulfillment
By Yasmine Edderssi
I
f it hadn’t been for my inter-
est in Chinese culture, I wouldn’t
have enrolled at University of
Electronic Science and Technology of
China (UESTC) in Chengdu, Sichuan
Province. As a graduate student at the
university’s School of Public Affairs and
Administration, I participated in many
seminars and cultural activities, which
made me all the more passionate about
China.
I first became interested in Chinese
culture as a teenager. I have always been
curious about this ancient civilization and
its highly complex language and distinc-
tive cuisines. To a Moroccan like me,
China looked like another planet I wanted
to explore.
The first step I took was to learn the
language, even though I was expected
to learn Spanish as a third language like
everyone else and choose Europe as the
destination of my studies abroad. But I
stuck to my original choice and joined the
Confucius Institute. Confucius Institutes
<DVPLQH(GGHUVVL OHIW DQGKHUFODVVPDWHSRVHIRUDSKRWRGXULQJDĶOPVFUHHQLQJ
at University of Electronic Science and Technology of China in Chengdu, Sichuan Province,
on June 16, 2021
48 BEIJING REVIEW APRIL 6, 2023
DUHQRQSURÀWSXEOLFLQVWLWXWLRQVHVWDEOLVKHG
to help people in other countries better
understand China by promoting Chinese
language and culture and supporting local
teaching of standard Chinese. After one
month of learning, I decided to travel to
China for the first time. I spent a whole
month in Beijing and Tianjin. On my way
back to Morocco, I decided I would return
to China one day, because visiting a place
as a tourist isn’t enough to truly learn
about a culture.
One year later, in 2019, I found myself
in Nanjing, capital of Jiangsu Province,
alone with my suitcase and backpack,
looking for Nanjing University. I was de-
termined to learn the language there. And
my passion for learning and exploring took
me all the way from Nanjing to UESTC in
Chengdu. University life is definitely not
just about participating in activities; my
career goal was to become a good adminis-
trator by combining theoretical knowledge
and lessons from the Chinese experience.
Something you cannot accomplish without
COURTESY PHOTO
delving deep into the culture.
One of the most significant moments
in my life at UESTC was when I had the
opportunity as an international student to
make a short film about the Sanxingdui
Ruins, an archaeological site and a treasure
trove of Bronze Age culture in modern
Guanghan, Sichuan, which later inspired
me to go into media studies. As a par-
WLFLSDQWLQD\RXWKÀOPSURMHFW,GLUHFWHG
shot and edited the short film The Head
Turners. I was responsible for coming up
with an original storyline to convey that
history is not all about dead people and
China doesn’t only have the Great Wall.
This experience showed me another side of
the 5,000-year-strong Chinese civilization.
0DNLQJWKHVKRUWÀOPZDVKDUGZRUN
I was shooting from dawn to dusk. It was
exhausting but all worth it. I was deter-
mined to show the beauty of Sanxingdui
through my lens. When we wrapped,
Xinhua News Agency, China’s official
state news agency, immediately reached
out for an interview and published an ar-
ticle about my experiences in Sanxingdui.
A few months later, Shanghai’s
Dragon Television got in touch, asking
me if I wanted to be part of a documen-
tary on global culture. We sat down for
DQLQWHUYLHZDQGWKHQÀOPHGP\GDLO\OLIH
on campus as well as me working at the
Jinsha Site Museum, an archaeological
site museum in Chengdu. That’s when
I knew I had really achieved one of my
goals for coming to the country. It mo-
tivated me to continue my journey and
pursue Ph.D. studies in China, combining
my passion for Chinese culture, language,
administration and media.
And so, today, I am a Ph.D. student
at Shenzhen University studying political
communication. I hope I can combine
my experiences in China and my knowl-
edge to contribute to China-Morocco
relations. BR
The author is a Ph.D. candidate at Shenzhen University’s
School of Media and Communication
Copyedited by Elsbeth van Paridon
Comments to luyan@cicgamericas.com
http://www.bjreview.com
In addition to Beijing Review,
Review, CICG Americas
publishes China Hoy,
Hoy, a monthly publication
launched in 1960, aiming to bridge the gap
between China and the Spanish-speaking
world—particularly Latin-American countries.

Website: www.chinahoy.com.cn