Chp13 Taiwan

China and Taiwan issue is a sensitive topic. The People's Republic of China asserts that there is only "One China" and Taiwan is an inalienable part of China. According to a historical perspective, Taiwanese indeed fled to the island from the mainland of China. China and Taiwan, while in practice maintaining a fragile "status quo" relationship, periodically grow impatient with the diplomatic patchwork that has kept the island separate from the Communist mainland since 1949.  After losing the civil war to Communist Chinese and fleeing to Taiwan in 1949, the nationalist Kuomintang (KMT) leaders of the Republic of China regarded the Communist Chinese government as illegitimate, claiming the mainland as rightfully their own. Beijing, in turn, regards Taiwan as a renegade province, and has tried repeatedly to persuade the island to negotiate a return to the fold. Look at it this way they originally belonged to China. Since they proposed to be another country and independent by themselves, China cannot allow and acceptable that. They are Chinese why they need to established another country, even though they lose civil war. This issue makes me more confuse. China is step back for China and Taiwan solidarity and peace, so put forward the policy of "one country, two systems", but the Taiwan government still cannot take a step back to accept any conditions. Lead to the relationship between China and Taiwan are tension. In the other way that I think Taiwan has courage to still decide independent because the U.S supports their military weapon. Taiwan's strategic security rests heavily on the implied guarantees offered by the United States over the years--guarantees made more concrete than ever during the administration of George W. Bush, who pledged in 2002 to "do what it takes to help Taiwan defend herself, and the Chinese must understand that." China has consistently protested U.S. arms sales to Taiwan. Anyway, Taiwan is a very beautiful island. It is a worthwhile tourist place.

Chp12 Hong Kong and Macau

Chinese people always want to be able to complete and unified China. Since the return of Hong Kong and Macau, to restore the territorial integrity of China goes a step further. The relationship between Hong Kong and mainland China is complex. Beijing for the most part has kept its promise to uphold the ‘one country, two systems’ mandate. Officially, Hong Kong is considered a ‘Special Administrative Region’ (SAR), which means that it is treated as a separate country from an immigration standpoint and continues to circulate its own currency, the Hong Kong dollar. Hong Kong also retains an independent legal and judicial system inherited from the previous British rulers. The Chinese government is responsible for the management of Hong Kong's foreign affairs and defense. On the basis of the basic law of the Hong Kong special administrative region shall enjoy the executive power, legislative and independent judicial power, including that of final adjudication. Keep the original Hong Kong society, economic system, lifestyle unchanged and also law basically remain unchanged. Hong Kong residents shall enjoy various rights and freedoms. The gradual development of the Hong Kong special administrative region will be suitable for democracy in Hong Kong's actual situation. Hong Kong after the handover will continue to maintain the status of free port, continue to play to the role of the international financial, trade and shipping center, to continue with other countries regions and relevant international organizations to develop economic and cultural relations. Already, Hong Kong property developers are active in the mainland real estate market with Chinese companies eager to learn from their expertise. The cozy relationship between Hong Kong developers and mainland SOEs is a cause for concern by Hong Kong citizens, as they see their local developers as more interested in appeasing Beijing authorities than providing affordable housing for its own citizens.

Hong Kong

The benefits of Macau SAR.First of all, let us recall that Macau, as one of two SARs of China, enjoys broad autonomy in various sectors (it maintains its own legal system, security forces, monetary system, customs and immigration policy). This high degree of autonomy has allowed Macau to establish itself as one of the most open economies in the world in terms of trade and investment, according to the World Trade Organisation, not only because of its enviable geographical location at the Delta Pearl River and its close ties with Guangdong Province and the Hong Kong SAR, but also because it is a free port and an independent customs area. Macau has a favourable environment for business, with a simple tax system and a reduced tax burden (the Complementary tax rate does not exceed 12%), which allows it to be an offshore financial centre and a platform for import / export between these regions and other economic partners. These competitive advantages are reinforced by the various agreements signed with the mainland (among which the Closer Economic Partnership Agreement between the mainland and Macau, the Pan-Pearl River Delta Regional Co-operation Framework Agreement, the Outline of the Plan for the Reform and Development of the Pearl River Delta, and the Framework Agreement on Co-operation Between Guangdong and Macau), as well as the network of contacts established by the Macau SAR in the international market.On the other hand, the Portuguese heritage in Macau is an undeniable advantage in establishing trade relations with PSC, to the extent that the language and legal systems differ little between these countries. If the language is presented as the most immediate point of contact between Macau and its PSC economic partners, its legal system, heir of the Portuguese legislation that remained in force in the peninsula as a result of the Sino-Portuguese Joint Declaration and the Macau Basic Law, is essentially identical to the Portuguese legal system and, by extension, to those of other Portuguese Speaking countries

Macau

Chp 10 Urban China

                  SiHeYuanUrbanization in China

A siheyuan is a historical type of residence that was commonly found throughout China, most famously in Beijing. In English, siheyuan are sometimes referred to as Chinese quadrangles. The name literally means a courtyard surrounded by four buildings. Throughout Chinese history, the siheyuan composition was the basic pattern used for residences, palaces, temples, monasteries, family businesses and government offices. In ancient times, a spacious siheyuan would be occupied by a single, usually large and extended family, signifying wealth and prosperity. Today, many remaining siheyuan are still used as housing complexes, but many lack modern amenities. Siheyuan dates back as early as the Western Zhou period, and has a history of over 2,000 years. They exhibit outstanding and fundamental characteristics of Chinese architecture. They exist all across China and are the template for most Chinese architectural styles. Siheyuan also serves as a cultural symbol of Beijing and a window into its old ways of life. Modern Beijing's population boom has made housing one of city's biggest challenges. Siheyuan today are typically used as housing complexes, hosting multiple families, with courtyards being developed to provide extra living space. The living conditions in many siheyuan are quite poor, with very few having private toilets. In the 1990s, systematic demolition of old urban buildings took place in Beijing under rapid economic development. Many siheyuan are being torn down to address the problem of overcrowding, and have been replaced by modern apartment blocks. However, after reforms were launched at the end of 1978, urban population growth began to accelerate.

Chp 8 China's Foreign trade

China’s foreign trade has been growth a lot than before. This article was talking about china’s foreign trade flourishes. In 1978 China entered the new period of reform and opening up. Devoting major efforts to the development of foreign trade became an important approach to accelerate modernization, shake off backwardness, promote the growth of the economy, and improve comprehensive national strength. Over the past 30 years or so, seizing the opportunity of the world economy's long-term prosperity and the deepening economic globalization, China has opened wider to the outside world, attracted and utilized foreign investment, introduced advanced technology, transformed and upgraded domestic industries, and achieved rapid development in foreign trade through all-round participation in the international division of labor and competition. Country has conformed to the trend of globalization by opening wider to the outside world and promoting international economic cooperation. With its WTO entry, China's trade in services entered a new stage of development. With its scale rapidly enlarged and its pattern gradually optimized, China's trade in services now ranks among the top in the world. The development of China's foreign trade has accelerated the modernization of the national economy, enhanced the country's comprehensive strength, and improved the standard of living of more than 1.3 billion Chinese people. It has also helped integrate the Chinese economy into the world economy, and make economic globalization conducive to the common prosperity of all countries and regions. China's reform and opening up and its active participation in economic globalization have made the country one of the world's fastest-growing economies.

At present, the underlying impact of the international financial crisis, the protracted, arduous and complicated nature of the world economic recovery is manifesting itself, and the global economic structure and trade layout face in-depth readjustment. China will make new adjustments to its foreign trade, in an effort to turn foreign trade from scale expansion to quality and profit improvement, and from mainly relying on its low-cost advantage to enhancing its comprehensive competitive edge, thereby turning China from a big trading country to a strong trading power.

China's foreign trade is still hampered by many uncertainties and is bound to meet new difficulties and challenges. During the 12th Five-Year Plan period China will open itself wider to the outside world as a driver for further reform, development and innovation, make full use of its advantages, strengthen international cooperation in all respects, and integrate itself into the world economy on a wider scale and at a higher level. China is willing to work with its trading partners to cope with the various challenges facing the world economy and trade, and promote its foreign trade to realize a more balanced, coordinated and sustainable development, and share prosperity and mutually-beneficial results with its trading partners.

Chp7 China Economic reforms

Economic reforms introducing capitalist market principles began in 1978 and were carried out in two stages. The first stage, in the late 1970s and early 1980s, involved the DE collectivization of agriculture, the opening up of the country to foreign investment, and permission for entrepreneurs to start-up businesses. However, most industry remained state-owned. The second stage of reform, in the late 1980s and 1990s, involved the privatization and contracting out of much state-owned industry and the lifting of price controls, protectionist policies, and regulations, although state monopolies in sectors such as banking and petroleum remained. The private sector grew remarkably, accounting for as much as 70 percent of China GDP by 2005. The success of China's economic policies and the manner of their implementation has resulted in immense changes in Chinese society. Together with large-scale government planning programs alongside market characteristics has reduced poverty, while incomes and income inequality increased, leading to a backlash led by the New Left. In the academic scene, scholars have debated the reason for the success of the Chinese 'dual track' economy, and have compared them to attempts to reform socialism in the Eastern Bloc and the Soviet Union, and the growth of other developing economies. During the 1930s, China developed a modern industrial sector, which stimulated modest but significant economic growth. Before the collapse of international trade that followed the onset of the Great Depression, China’s share of world trade and its ratio of foreign trade to GDP achieved levels that were not regained for over sixty years. The economy was heavily disrupted by the war against Japan and the Chinese Civil War from 1937 to 1949, after which the victorious Communists installed a planned economy.Afterwards, the economy largely stagnated and was disrupted by the Great Leap Forward famine which killed between 30 and 40 million people, and the purges of the Cultural Revolution further disrupted the economy. Urban Chinese citizens experienced virtually no increase in living standards from 1957 onwards, and rural Chinese had no better living standards in the 1970s than the 1930s.One study noted that average pay levels in the catering sector exceeded wages in higher education.

chp6 Chinese Population

Chinese population problem is really big issue. China has long been famous both for having the world's largest population and for having taken draconian measures to restrain its growth. Though many people, Chinese and outsiders alike, have looked aghast at the brutal and coercive excesses of the one-child policy, there has also often been a grudging acknowledgment that China needed to do something to keep its vast numbers in check. China's population has reached 1.35 billion. This is China's basic reality and what we need to bear in mind when making every decision. In Europe, a country of 14 million people is a big country. China has a population 100 times as large. Let me share with you an interesting statistic. Last fall, about 150,000 tourists flocked to the Fragrant Hill in Beijing every day to see the red maple leaves, but altogether there are only 70,000 trees, so it's one tree for two people. I'm afraid only in China can you find such things and it can be very difficult for foreigners to imagine this. Every year, China needs to create 25 million jobs, roughly five times the population of Denmark. As many as 6.8 million university graduates will enter the job market this year alone, and that's about the population of Switzerland. There are 83 million disabled people in China, the same as the population of Germany. The most important task for China is to make sure that the 1.3 billion people can lead a good life, and you can imagine how challenging this task is and what enormous pressure this puts on the government. I believe nothing is more important than this. Everything else must serve this central task.

 

Chp5 China relationship in the world

As developing country, China is developing rapidly and becoming more and more by the world attention. In the world, countries are woven together with growing and interdependence. China is the world's second largest economy but not the second strongest country. For example there are 1.3billion people in the country lead to the worthless labor force. In the other way to think about it that it is there are many rich people in China and also there are more poor people in the country. It doesn’t have a balance in the country so most of factors lead to China cannot be the second strongest country. Nothing is more important for china than the wellbeing of the 1.3billion people. If someday 1.3 billion people all get the better life in the future, the Chinese government did a good job for the country. When this problem solve, China will progress a lot. At that time China also has their ability to do “full stakeholder". China want to be a stronger country in the world but it still has many weak links. "It is not unwilling-but unable-to take on more international responsibilities and fully play the role of a major." (China's relations with the world at a new starting point) Since 2012, China's diplomacy accomplished a lot and became more active, vigorous and productive on all fronts. Many presidents of China began to visit other neighbor countries. These greatly boosted our traditional friendship, political trust and mutually beneficial cooperation with relevant countries. Some people say that China has not lived up to the responsibilities and obligations of a big country. I do not agree with that, I think that my country already did as much as better job with the foreign policy.

 

We believe that in an era when countries are increasingly interdependent, new ideas and approaches are required in handling international relations. In particular, big countries should not repeat the history of maximizing one's own interests, vying for sphere of influence, conducting arms race or competing viciously in a zero-sum game. Otherwise, we would be going against history and not being responsible to mankind. I appreciate the point recently made by US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton that we need to "find a new answer to the ancient question of what happens when an established power and a rising power meet". I think we already have the answer: win-win cooperation, which should be the hallmark of the new pattern of interaction between major countries. The bottom line is that we need to respect each other's core interests and major concerns, view each other's strategic intentions in an objective and rational way, properly manage differences, and avoid strategic misjudgement, mutual irritation and vicious competition. Rising powers do not challenge established powers, and established powers should accommodate rising powers. The China-US relationship is a good example. It is one of the most important, dynamic and promising bilateral relationships in the world. In the 21st century, the only choice for China and the United States is to accommodate each other and carry out win-win cooperation. Like it or not, China and the United States are destined to form a community of shared interests, responsibilities and destinies. I believe our two countries have the responsibility, ability and wisdom to forge a new type of relationship marked by sound interaction and win-win cooperation. In doing so, we will set an example for other major countries and for international relations in general.