Torbjørn Færøvik's Blog, page 1350

Chinese demand for tiger wine and skins puts wild cats in peril

Encouraged by the tiger farming industry, China’s wealthy are rediscovering a taste for tiger bone wine – promoted as a treatment for rheumatism and impotence – as well as tiger skin rugs and stuffed animals, sought after as status symbols among an elite obsessed with conspicuous consumption. Read more

Who’s the true enemy of internet freedom - China, Russia, or the US?

Recent reports that China has imposed further restrictions on Gmail,Google’s flagship email service, should not really come as much of a surprise. While Chinese users have been unable to access Gmail’s site for several years now, they were still able to use much of its functionality, thanks to third-party services such as Outlook or Apple Mail. Read more

Fatal Shanghai stampede: 5,000 fewer police on duty than last new year

Lax safety measures and a shortage of police officers may have contributed to the fatal New Year’s Eve stampede in Shanghai which killed 36 people and left scores injured. Read more

Charlotte Chou: Six years lost in China’s judicial system

When half dozen plain-clothed police officers arrived at her home on a humid summer night in June 2008, Charlotte Chou had just finished feeding her 1-year-old son and lay him down to sleep.  Read more

2014 revealed the insecurity behind China’s economic might

“A single spark can light a prairie fire,” Mao Zedong wrote in 1930. Xi Jinping, China’s president, sees sparks everywhere: in the country’s ubiquitous corruption, its polluted water and air, its slowing economy. Whereas Mao kindled them, Xi has spent much of his early tenure trying to stamp them out. Read more

2015: Mørke skyer over Kina

Miljøkrisen, korrupsjonen og det høyst mangelfulle retssvesenet er et trehodet uhyre som kineserne vil måtte slite med i mange år fremover, skriver Torbjørn Færøvik i Dagsavisen. Les mer

Inside a Chinese Test-Prep Factory

Thousands of teenagers swarmed out of the towering front gate of Maotanchang High School. Many of them wore identical black-and-white Windbreakers emblazoned with the slogan, in English, “I believe it, I can do it.” It was lunchtime at one of China’s most secretive “cram schools”. Read more

In Moments, New Year’s Revelry Became Fatal Crush in Shanghai

Even for China, the world’s most populous country, with a history of fatal stampedes and constant worries about crowd control, it was one of the worst public tragedies. It was made more so because the stampede happened during a celebration in a historic showcase area of Shanghai, its version of Times Square. Read more

China looking at deal with U.S. to recover dirty assets

China is looking at signing an agreement with the United States to target assets illegally taken out of China by corrupt officials, a newspaper said on Monday, as the government tightens the screws in its anti-graft battle. Read more

China's Xi calls for tighter ideological control in universities

Chinese President Xi Jinping has called for greater "ideological guidance" in China's universities and urged the study of Marxism, state media reported on Monday, as the country tightens control on Western ideology. Read more