CiCM 21st July 2023

NEWS IN CHINA

Wang Huning, Chinese political theorist, met with the President of the Vietnam Fatherland Front (VFF) Central Committee Do Van Chien on July 20 in Beijing. Wang highlighted that this year China Vietnam Comprehensive Strategic Partnership completes 15 years and, on this occasion, the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference National Committee wishes to develop a deeper and more stable relationship with the VFF Central Committee in order to promote bilateral ties. Do Van Chien stated that maintaining friendly relations with China is a strategic choice and priority for Vietnam and the VFF is committed to deepen cooperation between both the countries.
The Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security on July 21 held a press conference to release statistics of human resources and social security work in the first half of 2023. According to the data, from January to June, 6.78 million new jobs were created, comprising 57 percent of the annual target. The employment rate remained at 5.2 percent in the month of June. Moreover, 32.59 million migrant workers have been lifted out of poverty. On the social security front, the national endowment insurance has received a significant boost and 163 billion yuan of funds were added in the first half of the year. At the end of June, the number of people receiving basic pension, unemployment and work-related injury insurance were respectively 1.057 billion, 240 million and 294 million. The number of social security card holders had reached a new high of 1.347 billion. Chen Feng, spokesman of the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security added that all concerned departments have conscientiously implemented the spirit of General Secretary Xi Jinping’s important instructions.
According to the China Manned Space Agency on July 21, the Shenzhou XVI crew workers completed their first spacewalk and installed camera devices outside the Tiangong space station. It is China’s fifth manned mission. The crew is scheduled to return to Earth in November. This was the 13th spacewalk carried out by the Chinese astronauts. Mission commander Major General Jung Haipeng and the spaceflight engineer also successfully completed their eight-hour spacewalk and arrived back to the Wentian Science module. Meanwhile, the third member of the crew, Professor Gui Haichao, the payload specialist, stayed inside to provide support. China launched this space mission on May 30 to replace the Shenzhou XV crew members, who stayed there for six months.
On July 20, the Meteorological Department of China unveiled its meteorological routing center in Beijing. It would ensure the safe voyages while simultaneously progressing in the direction of building indigenous oceanic weather navigation systems. China started building its oceanic meteorological navigation system in 2017 for its Belt and Road Initiative and overall maritime strategy. An indigenous navigation system will ensure greater efficiency and sustainability for its shipping operations. The center has availed a full chain oceanic weather navigation system, platforms, vessels and a website. This facility would serve autonomous vessel operators as well as fleets and cargo enterprises. With the advancement in technology China is designated to serve domestic and international traffic in the ocean. So far the system has assisted nearly 8,000 voyages by more than 60 companies.
An executive meeting chaired by Premier Li Qiang on July 21 stressed efforts in flood prevention and drought relief. The meeting highlighted that there was a need to put human lives above everything else and enhance preparedness by taking effective actions. He also proposed developing urban villages within megacities as a sustainable and effective strategy that would require greater policy support by encouraging private capital and the development of new business formats. There was an emphasis on social insurance management to standardise services, optimising service management and securing the social rights of the citizens as well.

SOCIAL MEDIA CHATTER IN CHINA

Delivery man slams women for wasting his time: In a viral video, a delivery man is seen getting angry at two women, sitting aside a riverbank, for not giving proper directions or picking up his calls. The incident happened in Guangxi province on July 16 where two women ordered food online and gave vague directions. The delivery man had to toil to find them while they didn’t bother to pick up his phone. The delivery man bemoaned that he only made 2 or 3 yuan for all these efforts. Both the women did not apologise or reply while the delivery man vented his frustration. A lot of people have criticised the women for their behaviour. A social media user even wrote that they should be blacklisted for their deplorable behaviour. Another user wrote that these women are dressed very nicely but they have no idea how to respect others. Stories like these where delivery agents are subjective to immense pressure and stress have become quite common in China.

INDIA WATCH

Competition in space exploration can be traced back to the ‘Cold War’ when the US and Soviet Union were constantly engaging in efforts to undermine each other’s progress. Space exploration is a precursor to the militarisation of space, therefore, even scientific exploration of space remains a contrsted arena among the great powers of the world. Since 1964 China took its first step in space, it has come a long way, boasting achievements like manned space missions, moon landing, mars exploration, indigenous GPS etc. Comparably India’s achievements have been significant but are still lacking because it is a smaller economy with limited funding for its space program. India’s recent voyage to the moon named ‘Chandrayaan 3’ if successful, would put India in the club of elite space powers like US, Russia and China.

Moreover, India also has the advantage of good relationships with other space powers except China, leaving room for greater collaboration and cooperation. In China’s case, it has come to loggerheads with most space powers barring Russia, leaving it more vulnerable to the frictions with the US. However, China has laid down a long term vision while India is still playing the game on an ad hoc basis. In a 2021 White Paper on Space, China put forward the objective of achieving the status of a first rate space power. Therefore, it is imperative that India utilises the geopolitical camaraderie it is enjoying with the US and simultaneously pushes more funds into research and development of organisations like ISRO, making it lucrative enough for the brightest students to stay in India. Additionally, the recent introduction of the private sector into space exploration also needs to be harnessed properly.

Prepared By

Rahul Kheswa

Rahul Kheswa has recently completed his MA in East Asian Studies with a specialisation in China from the University of Delhi. For his BA, he majored in History and Political Science. During his MA, he learnt elementary Mandarin Chinese through elective course. Rahul’s research interest lies in Chinese society and continental philosophy.