The Chinese Communist Party is celebrating its 100th anniversary.
The first of July marked the 100th anniversary of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), which was founded in Shanghai back in 1921. Despite initial years of war, first against the Japanese then against the KMT, the CCP managed to secure its rule over the country in 1949, creating the PRC. It has become the biggest Party in the world, with 92 million members.
For the Party, this has been a key date to demonstrate the sociopolitical predominance of the CCP and the economic prosperity generated over the past few decades in China. Supporters of the CCP argue that it is only under their leadership that China has arrived at where it is today. The Party pushes a narrative that only the CCP will help realise the rejuvenation of the Chinese nation, which President Xi called the “China dream”.
The anniversary has been welcomed with huge celebrations all across the country, but the main event happened in Tiananmen Square, where after parades, choreographies, helicopters, airplanes and fireworks, President Xi delivered a speech demanding foreign powers to stay out of Chinese internal affairs.
Concerning domestic relations, Xi also stated that “no one should underestimate the resolve, the will and ability of the Chinese people to defend their national sovereignty and territorial integrity,” and that China will pursue the reunification of Taiwan with “unshakeable commitment”.
Sources: BBC, Nikkei, The Guardian
COP15 will paint a new picture of “the harmonious coexistence of man and nature”
COP15将描绘“人与自然和谐共生”
The 15th Conference of the Parties (COP15) of the United Nations “Convention on Biological Diversity” will be held in Kunming, Yunnan in Autumn 2021. Representatives from all over the world will participate in the grand meeting to draw a new picture of the “harmonious coexistence of man and nature” on the earth. Elizabeth Murema, Executive Secretary of the Secretariat of the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity, said that choosing to host the conference in Kunming will allow friends from all over the world to witness the achievements of China’s ecological civilization construction, and at the same time provide new ideas for global biodiversity conservation.
Source: 新华网 (Original in Chinese)
China will no longer be a developing country after 2023. Its climate actions should reflect that.
China will transition from a middle-income to a high-income country in a few years. Its GDP per capita has grown explosively from $150 in 1978 to $10,000 today, and it is on course to surpass the World Bank’s high-income country threshold of $12,536 in 2023. Last year China announced it had eradicated poverty, and a few years from now, it will officially be a high-income country. Consequently, any reason for China to be treated as a developing country on climate ambitions is gone. This is because global climate change efforts are rooted in countries contributing based on their income level, however, Beijing’s past and present rhetoric on climate change stresses that China is a developing country and should contribute accordingly.
Source: The Diplomat
Gradually realize the equalization of compulsory education
逐步实现义务教育资源均等化
Unbalanced and insufficient compulsory education still grapples with China today, and the pace of equalization of educational resources needs to be accelerated. The Ministry of Education, the National Development and Reform Commission, and the Ministry of Finance recently issued the “Opinions on Further Promoting the Improvement of Weak Links in Compulsory Education and Capability Improvement”, requesting continuous improvement of the basic conditions of school running, improving the teaching level and quality of compulsory education, and highlighting the strengthening of rural compulsory education.
Source: 新华网 (original in Chinese)
Digging for the Roots of China’s Archaeology Craze
In recent years, as the concept of “public archaeology” has made its way from the West, China’s archaeologists have increasingly attached importance to sharing their findings with the public. Something of a “cultural relics craze” has taken hold in the country, exemplified earlier this year by the mass enthusiasm for the hundreds of items unearthed at the Sanxingdui site in Sichuan province, southwestern China. Chinese e-commerce users have recently flocked to a hot product: little boxes of dirt. They come with a miniature “Luoyang shovel,” a tool to extract columns of soil, and allow buyers to commence their own archaeological digs.
Source: Sixth Tone
