Torbjørn Færøvik's Blog, page 144

Torbjørn Færøvik: Et bedre nytt år? Ja, hvis disse to vil.

Hvordan få folk til å bruke penger i et land hvor halvparten av befolkningen går på luselønn? Hvor streik er et fy-ord og hvor frie fagforeninger er forbudt?Igjen samles kineserne foran TV-apparatene for å lytte til partisjef Xi Jinpings nyttårstale. Men forventningene er ikke store. I en tid hvor Kina trues av amerikanske sanksjoner, vil Xi stimulere det hjemlige forbruket. Men flere hundre

China ramps up combat readiness at Scarborough Shoal

The Chinese military’s Southern Theater Command has staged a large-scale combat readiness exercise around the disputed Scarborough Shoal in the South China Sea, the ministry of defense in Beijing said. Personnel from China’s navy and air force, as well as the coast guard, took part in Sunday’s drills at the group of reefs that China refers to as Huangyan Dao, with a U.S. Navy ocean surveillance

Police called to Chinese Consulate in Manchester after graffiti protest

British police in Manchester were called to the Chinese Consulate over the weekend after staff started an altercation with a Radio Free Asia journalist who filmed them cleaning up Hong Kong protest graffiti on the street outside. Four members of staff surrounded RFA Cantonese Service reporter Matthew Leung on Saturday afternoon after he started taking photos of them scrubbing away slogans in

Former state media journalist flees China amid police harassment

In February 2024, a former journalist with a regional Chinese state-run newspaper left the country with his family of five to join the “run” movement — a mass exodus of people from China following the lifting of pandemic restrictions in late 2022, many of them seeking a life free from ruling Chinese Communist Party surveillance and control.The journalist, who hails from the eastern province of

Chinese media launch campaign to foster US ‘friendship and trust’

 Chinese state media has launched a campaign to highlight friendly cooperation with the United States in an attempt to improve turbulent ties as a new administration under Donald Trump prepares to take office, an analyst said. The state-run People’s Daily and Global Times, which often carry searing criticism of the U.S., called on Dec. 25 for written work, photos and videos from people and

Jimmy Carter played a major role in opening US-China ties

Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter, who has died aged 100, will be remembered in Asia for establishing diplomatic relations with China, a Cold War strategic move that reflected his lifelong concern for the Chinese people. Carter died on Sunday, nearly two years after he entered home hospice care in Plains, Georgia, his family announced.China expressed “deep condolences,” with foreign ministry

Anti-corruption campaign in China: An empirical investigation

With China’s economic reform in the late 1970s, and then again with a pro-market turn in 1992-93, corruption became increasingly visible. Since growth has been the top priority for China’s leadership, tackling corruption took a back seat in the past four decades. Meanwhile inequality, some of it probably fueled by corruption, increased significantly. By 2012 corruption became the most compelling

China is building new detention centers all over the country as Xi Jinping widens corruption purge

China has built or expanded more than 200 specialized detention facilities nationwide to interrogate suspects ensnared in Xi Jinping’s widening anti-corruption drive, a CNN investigation has found, as the Chinese leader extends his crackdown beyond the ruling Communist Party to a vast swath of public sectors.Since taking power in 2012, Xi has launched a sweeping campaign against graft and

What’s going on inside Xi Jinping’s military purge?

On 26 November, the Financial Times named China’s Defence Minister, Dong Jun , as the latest high-ranking military official under investigation for corruption, adding to a growing list of targeted military leaders and officials. If true, this would make him the third consecutive defence minister to face such a fate. The following day, however, China’s Defence Ministry an nounced at its

Video series: ‘China Beyond Borders’ looks at Beijing’s influence and intimidation

In a three-part series, Radio Free Asia examines the reach of the Chinese Communist Party far beyond its borders, on U.S. college campuses and through technology. RFA speaks with victims of intimidation, policy experts, and lawmakers on what’s at stake. Episode 1 delves into incidents like a Harvard University protester being forcibly removed by a Chinese Communist Party-linked student,