CiCM 6th September 2023

NEWS IN CHINA

China bans Apple iPhones in Ministries citing national security concerns: Amidst increasing friction with the United States, China has instructed employees in a few Ministries to stop using Apple iPhones while working. These measures come at a time when China is aiming to safeguard its national security from telecommunication devices produced by US companies. The ban particularly mentions iPhone designed in California. Minister Chen Yixin who leads the State Security Department emphasized the measure as a need to ‘actively safeguard’ against espionage threats against national security and the Communist Party leadership. The ban can also be interpreted as a retaliatory response to Washington’s restrictions on Chinese telecom entities like Huawei and ZTE. With Apple's iPhone commanding a big proportion in the Chinese market, the move aims to encourage Chinese phone companies like Oppo and Vivo to increase their share and boost production.

Illegal gathering in Xiangxi leads to the dismissal of 11 officials during the training of the 20^th Party Congress: Incidents involving unlawful dining and drinking came to light during the eighth seminar on intensive rotation training for the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, organized by the Xiangxi Prefecture Party Committee. The report from the Hunan Provincial Commission for Discipline Inspection revealed that 11 high-ranking officials, including Deng Wanxue, Director of the Labour and Social Security Supervision Bureau of Xiangxi Prefecture, and Qu Min, Deputy Director of the Prefectural Finance Bureau faced severe consequences, along with four officials being dismissed from their positions. The investigation highlighted that these officials had shown disregard for the required discipline in cadre education and training and thus found to have violated the principles outlined in the eight central regulations of good party conduct. The decision of bureaucratic punishment and dismissal of the officials is said to serve as a reminder of the utmost importance of adhering to party rules and principles.

Xi’s remarks in the 10th Meeting of the SCO Ministers of Justice: President Xi Jinping in a congratulatory letter sent to the 10th Meeting of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Ministers of Justice, expressed the importance of peace, development and cooperation in several key areas on which China is willing to collaborate with other SCO member states. He highlighted the SCO as a shining example of collective growth which plays an important role in upholding the international system with the United Nations and international law at its core. The meeting, hosted by China's Ministry of Justice, was themed "deepening legal service cooperation to boost regional economic and trade development, and involved 300 representatives including government officials and legal professionals, from all SCO countries. Gao Zicheng, the chairman of the All-China Lawyers Association, expressed the hope that the meeting would promote common development and deeper cooperation between foreign countries and the China regarding law and justice.

China launches 1^st sea rocket made by a private company: Galactic Energy has become the first privately-owned Chinese company to launch a sea-based mission of the CERES 1 carrier rocket successfully. The launch took place in the Yellow Sea off the eastern coast of the Shandong province, where the rocket deployed four satellites into the orbit above Earth. The primary purpose of the satellite is for the collection of data for the Internet of Things. The CERES 1 rocket has achieved a remarkable milestone, becoming the third rocket model in China, and notably the first one from the private sector, with the capability to perform launches from both land and sea. Xia Dongkun, vice-president at Galactic Energy remarked that the decision to opt for sea-based launches was a necessary alternative to China's land-based launch facilities which are predominantly used for government-sponsored programs. The launch will motivate other companies and increase China’s presence in space as private players focus on safety and efficiency benefits to meet national standards.

China’s biggest real estate developer faces mountainous debts: China’s property giant, Country Garden, faces almost $200 billion in overall liabilities, mounting pressure on the company to meet its financial obligations through the end of 2024. Even though it has narrowly avoided defaulting on its debt twice in recent days, the impending payments continue to grow and approximately 27 billion yuan ($3.7 billion) in bonds are due to early payment demands by bondholders. Country Garden is a prominent player in China's real estate landscape, primarily specializing in residential properties and retail establishments. With a workforce of approximately 300,000 employees, Country Garden stands as a major employer in China and holds a prestigious position among the world's largest corporations. Country Garden's financial woes draws attention to China's real estate crisis as a challenge of broader economic slowdown that has impacted Chinese sectors. This can present a formidable challenge for Chinese leadership as the declining demand for housing in the country puts strain on it companies, a healthy cash flow and profitability for the market to survive.

SOCIAL MEDIA CHATTER IN CHINA

Famous actor urges people to ‘Not Call Anymore!’ after information leak: Yang Di, a renowned actor and comedian took to the Chinese social media networking platform Weibo, to urge his 9.4 million followers not to call on his personal number which was leaked by hackers on a telegram group. Along with his number, his identity card information and address was also leaked. Yang Di was bombarded by numerous calls from almost 100 countries, more than 90 missed calls from Hong Kong alone, after which he wrote, “Don’t call me anymore, I’ve changed my number!” on the social media app. With this instance, many netizens have come forward sharing their own experiences of cold calling due to their personal information being leaked. Many have expressed concern regarding information leakage which is rampant nowadays. In a report by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, it is indicated that there has been an increasing trend of ‘harassing calls’ to individuals from commercial organisations and hackers who have illegally accessed their personal information. The issue has long been a societal concern, and users have raised questions regarding the preventive legal system to deal with fraudulent calls.

INDIA WATCH

The 10th meeting of the Ministers of Law and Justice of SCO countries saw the participation of member countries China and India at the video conference on Tuesday. With the theme of the meet titled ‘deepening legal service cooperation to boost regional economic and trade development’, the importance of promoting rule of law for economic development was implied. The constructive role of China's dedication in maintaining a peaceful and stable environment within the SCO region was highlighted in President Xi’s opening speech, however, with China’s actions regarding border disputes and economic sanctions, one cannot be so certain of the peaceful bounding of the multilateral group. Within the SCO several countries suffer from bilateral conflicts such as China’s ongoing territorial disputes with India, Pakistan and India’s historical conflict and condemnation over Pakistan’s state sponsored terrorism, as well as the border issues between Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan which has been escalating lately. This makes the grouping highly sensitive and volatile to changes in bilateral relations. It is in this interest that the grouping should enhance their legal framework which promotes a non-confrontational approach to resolving disputes. For this reason, India can take up a much a larger role in commanding attention to more legal and judicial methods between member states. During the meeting, Minister of State for Law and Justice Arjun Ram Meghwal reiterated India's dedication to the SCO charter, and India’s vision of emerging as Vishwa Mitra (universal friend). Keeping this in mind, India can provide collaborative initiatives strengthening law enforcement, contributing to better legal institutions, and promoting a stable and prosperous Central Asian region. Through this, India can appear at a strong footing as a democracy which aims at enhancing international law and justice beyond its region.

Prepared By

Taru Ahluwalia

Taru Ahluwalia completed her Post-Graduation in East Asian Studies from the University of Delhi and her Under-Graduation in English from Lady Shri Ram College for Women. She aims to decode the enigma that is East Asia and examine its geopolitical re-positioning in today’s world. She holds a diploma in Korean Language and aspires to learn Chinese one day.