CiCM 24th August 2023

NEWS IN CHINA

China to halt aquatic exports from Japan: The General Administration of Customs (GAC) announced that from 24.08.2023 [AN1] (Thursday) it will ban the import of aquatic products from Japan. This is following concerns raised against the Japanese government's decision to start releasing more than a million metric tons of “treated and diluted” radioactive water into the Pacific Ocean as part of their plan to decommission the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant. The administration said this was enacted for purposes of food security and to protect and prevent Chinese consumers from radioactive contamination from imported food. Additionally, regions of Hong Kong and Macao special administrative regions also announced that they would subject local waters to radiation checks on a monthly basis and release data on levels of the “local catch” and imported Japanese food regularly. The import ban ranges on products all fresh, frozen, refrigerated, dried or otherwise preserved seafood and sea salt, as well as raw or processed seaweed, from 10 Japanese prefectures including Tokyo, Fukushima, Chiba and Gunma.
Nearly 40,000 volunteers ready for the Hangzhou Asian Games: The 19^th Asian Games in Hangzhou marked its 30-day countdown on Thursday revealing 37,600 volunteers at a ceremony in Zhejiang University, Zijingang Campus. Volunteers were recruited after multiple rounds of training and practicing and their services. Some of their responsibilities include, operation services, registration and certification services, medical care, concierge and language services. According to the organizing committee the students are mainly from 46 universities in the Zhejiang Province with 800 additional volunteers from outside the province and from other representative groups. Decked in turquoise uniforms, they are dubbed "Little Qinghe," which has a similar pronunciation to the word "genial" in Mandarin, representing their spirit of youth and geniality. International volunteers are also present at the games with the intention of spreading the spirit of "dedication, friendship, mutual assistance, and progress".
China and Bhutan hold meetings on boundary issues: The 13th expert group meeting (EGM) on the China-Bhutan Issues was held in Beijing from August 21st to 24th. The meeting was co-chaired by Hong Liang, director-general of the Department of Boundary and Ocean Affairs of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of China and Letho Tobdhen Tangbi, secretary of the International Boundaries of Bhutan. An important outcome of the talks is the establishment of a Joint Technical Team on the Delimitation of China-Bhutan Boundary which also held its first meeting on the sidelines. The two countries built on the consensus of the previous EGM conducting “candid, friendly and constructive discussions” related to the implementation of the MoU on the Three-Step Road Map for Expediting the China-Bhutan Boundary Negotiations. Both sides had a positive momentum going and agreed to hold the following 14th Expert Group Meeting as soon as possible and maintain open communication on holding the 25th Round of the China-Bhutan Boundary talk.
Ministry of Transport pushes for the development of multimodal transport: The Ministry of Transport have issued a statement to accelerate the development of “one order system” and “one container system” for promoting efficiency and quality of multimodal transport, transportation, and logistics. It has vowed to work with other departments to strengthen and improve standards for a comprehensive and modern transportation system. The "one order system" service model is one where all elements of transportation, shipping and logistics is centralized. The shipper entrusts one shipper, the cost is settled once, the goods are insured once, and the multimodal transport operator is responsible for the whole process, and the container transportation does not change once. The "one box system" service model of "no need to open the box, one box to the end" has been accelerated, and the efficiency of transportation services is to be comprehensively improved. Some key areas of improvement mentioned were deploying the promotion of the interconnection and sharing of domestic multimodal transport information, the promotion of innovation in the application of international multimodal transport documents, and the expansion of the "one order system" for multimodal transport.
The Barrier-Free Environment Construction Law to come into effect in China from September 1st: The Law serves as a legal guarantee to ensure that the disabled and elderly and other disadvantaged groups participate and integrate into social life on an equal and accessible basis. The Ministry of Industry and Information Technology upgraded 1,735 websites to make it more disabled and elder-friendly by introducing elder mode, voice search and full keyboard operation. Additionally, the barrier-free environment refers to a broad concept where in addition to other disability and elder-friendly initiatives like blind roads, barrier-free elevators, and ramps the law clearly mentions three aspects, barrier-free facility construction, accessible information exchange and accessible social services. Legal initiatives include the presence of a sign language anchor in programs to provide information for news decimation, providing convenience for disabled people to carry guide dogs and installation of elevators in existing residential buildings in old communities, availability of drug instructions in accessible formats like providing information instructions in audio, large print, braille, and electronic formats.

SOCIAL MEDIA CHATTER IN CHINA

Frustration mounts on Chinese Social Media over radioactive waste: Chinese netizens expressed frustration and anger over the Japanese government's decision to dump radioactive waste into the Pacific Ocean on Thursday despite concerns raised by the international community. Many Chinese netizens expressed feelings of indignation and vowed to no longer consume Japanese food or buy Japanese products. Many messages painted the Japanese as ignorant and selfish and raised collective environmental concerns. According to a survey conducted by China News Network on Tuesday afternoon on the Chinese social media platform Weibo, as of the time of the news release, 94 per cent of respondents stated that they will no longer consume Japanese cuisine. An artwork by Chinese cartoonist Wuheqilin that depicts the incident with Japan as a robot disposing waste into the ocean went viral on Weibo and garnered numerous likes from followers.

INDIA WATCH

The growing frequency and speed of expert group meeting (EGM) between China and Bhutan has made Bhutan an important player for India. If the talks were to succeed, India would remain the only country left to resolve border issues with China and it seems like Beijing is trying to close in. The plateau of Doklam, located in the tri-junction of the three countries is amongst the main region being negotiated. India has consistently provided economic and military aid to Thimphu as Doklam holds strategic and security importance for India as any intrusion in the region would pose a threat to the Siliguri corridor, that connects the Indian mainland to its northeastern states. India and Bhutan signed a special treaty in 1949 that takes Delhi's security concerns into account. However, a revised treaty in 2007, gave Thimphu more freedom in areas of foreign policy and military purchases. India’s main concern is that the talk must include all three parties and must not reach a land swap agreement. Additionally, Delhi has also been exerting pressure on Bhutan as it is concerned about the lack of official acknowledgement of Chinese incursion in Bhutanese land. Vinay Mohan Kwatra, permanent secretary to the Indian External Affairs Ministry, told journalists in early April echoing collective foreign ministry demands that India and Bhutan remained in close touch and in co-ordination relating shared national interests including security interests. He also reiterated an earlier statement which clearly brought out India's position on the determination of the tri-junction [Doklam] boundary points.

Prepared By

Priyanka Raman

Priyanka Raman is a final-year student at Shiv Nadar University Noida, with a major in international relations and a minor in communications. Through her degree, she has had the opportunity to pursue multiple courses relating to Chinese politics and is deeply interested in politics of the Party media and knowledge dessimination. Her research interests surround topics of propaganda media and politics, gender and international relations and refugee politics.