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NEWS IN CHINA

• Ministry of Justice Launches Campaign for National Security Education: The Ministry of Justice and National Office for Popularizing Legal Knowledge issued a notice launching a nationwide public awareness campaign for National Security Education Day. The National Security Education Day is marked annually on 15 April. The theme for this year's National Security Education Day is "Co-ordinating Development and Security to Safeguard the New Journey of the 15th Five Year Plan". The campaign requires all regions and departments to study and publicize the Xi Jinping Thought on the Rule of Law and its latest developments, overall concept of national security, historic achievements of national security in the new era and relevant laws, regulations such as the National Security Law and the Regulations on Management of Network Data Security. The notice specifies that all localities and departments are mandated to carry out distinctly thematic activities to strengthen publicity and education for key target groups such as young persons and leading cadres. The use of websites, new media platforms and other mediums such as comics, short videos, micro films and micro animations is encouraged to interpret concepts and regulations related to the National Security Law. The Ministry of Justice and the National Office for Popularizing Legal Knowledge along with other departments will also launch the "Exhibition and Broadcasting of Outstanding Works on Rule of Law in China" to further publicize exemplary works related to national security.
   

• China Witnesses 845 million Passenger Trips During the Qingming Festival: China recorded an estimated 845.38 million passenger Trips during the three-day Qingming Festival period. As per authorities, this marks a record rise of up to 6% more passenger Trips from last year. According to the Ministry of Transport the average daily number of Trips reached 281.97 million. Road trips also increased 5.8% from last year accounting for 778.45 million trips. Additionally, railway trips rose up to 8.2% from last year with 57.68 million trips. Many people returned home for tomb-sweeping and in-depth rural tours, boosting activity in rural areas and increasing consumption from major urban centres to towns and villages. The Ministry of Transport adopted tailored measures to ease congestion on busy sections and improve charging services for new energy vehicles at expressway service areas. Transport Departments across the country also increased transport capacity and extended operating hours around key locations such as tourist sites and cemeteries.
  
  

• Shenzhen-Jiangmen High-Speed Railway Construction Continues with Technological Advancements: A major milestone was recorded in the construction of China's deepest undersea high-speed railway tunnel between Shenzhen and Jiangmen as the excavation reached a record depth of 113 metres beneath the sea-bed. The Shenzhen-Jiangmen Railway is a vital component of the coastal high-speed rail corridor. The undersea shield tunnel called The Pearl River Estuary Tunnel stretching 13.69 kms, is a critical section of the railway line. The Pearl River Estuary Tunnel crosses multiple waterways at the mouth of the Pearl River. The Shenzhen-Jiangmen Railway is also expected to enhance the rail network in the Guangdong-Hong Kong- Macau Greater Bay Area. Travel time between Shenzhen and Jiangmen is estimated to be reduced to under one hour once the railway project is completed. 
  
  

• Chairperson of The Kuomintang Party Begins Visit to China: Chairperson of the Chinese Kuomintang (KMT) Party Cheng Li-wun began her visit to China on 7 April. The visit is scheduled from 7 April until 12 April. Cheng Li-wun is undertaking the visit along with a delegation upon the invitation of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China and President Xi Jinping. Cheng has described the visit as "rain after a long drought" and emphasised that the trip could mark a new era in cross-Straits relations. Cheng has stated that her visit would seek to express shared aspiration for peace, address concerns of Taiwan based industries, enterprises and explore new avenues for cross-Straits co-operation. Cheng is scheduled to arrive in Shanghai at noon on 7 April and head to Nanjing. Followed by a tribute to the mausoleum of Sun Yat-Sen on 8 April in Nanjing, the delegation will return to Shanghai for other visits and meetings. Cheng is scheduled to travel to Beijing on the afternoon of 9 April. Zheng Jian, a former professor of Taiwan studies at Xiamen University  has said that Cheng's visit to the mainland China is in line with mainstream public opinion in Taiwan and the visit reflects the aspiration to promote peaceful development of cross-Straits relations. 
  
  

• Chinese Embassy in Saudi Arabia Issues Notice on Risk of Further Escalation in Middle East Crisis: The Chinese Embassy in Saudi Arabia issued a notice on its official WeChat account on the current tensions in the Middle East. The notice warned of the risk of escalation of the ongoing conflict as oil, electricity and key infrastructure facilities may likely be targeted. The Embassy warned Chinese citizens in Saudi Arabia to closely monitor the security situation and related announcements, and alerts issued by the Saudi authorities. The notice issued local emergency numbers and numbers of the embassy in case of emergencies. The Chinese Embassy advised Chinese citizens in Saudi Arabia to stay away from sensitive areas, to avoid taking photos and disseminating related information on social media and to be prepared to take immediate measures such as sheltering, calling the police for assistance. 
  
  

SOCIAL MEDIA  CHATTER

Post Regarding Bank Employee Sparks Debate on Privacy on Weibo: The hashtag #ManComplainsAboutBankEmployeesAndThenGetsKnockedonDoor has been trending on the social media platform Weibo.The post states that Mr. Ma, a resident of Chifeng city, Inner Mongolia, complained about the uncivilised behaviour of a bank security guard who was subsequently dismissed from his job. However, afterwards, personnel from China Construction Bank dressed in plain clothes visited his home, supposedly to express apology on behalf of the bank. This has led to a debate among netizens on Weibo regarding bank employees and privacy. Comments by netizens have ranged from complaints disregarding the feelings of employees, to lower-level employees being mistreated as becoming increasingly common. The act of bank employees visiting the house of the man who raised the complaint wearing regular clothes has also been seen as improper by many netizens. Some netizens have questioned the validity of the experience of the person who raised the complaint, while some have said the problem lies with the bank; customers should not be blamed. Many have condemned the person for complaining against the security guard and getting him fired. Netizens have remarked that a complaint against lower-level bank employees should result in an apology, not expulsion from the job, as most of these lower-ranking personnel are contractually employed. The incident has also raised questions among netizens about surveillance measures adopted by banks. 

INDIA WATCH 

Guancha discusses India’s role amid US-China geopolitical competition: An editorial in Guancha, authored by Cheng Yawen, Professor at Shanghai International Studies University, discusses India's role amid the US-China geopolitical competition. Referring to the book "Breaking the Mold: India's Untraveled Path to Prosperity" Raghuram Rajan and Rohit Lamba, a professor at Cornell University, the article states that India and China are compared quite often, given that both countries started from similar points, having comparable per capita levels and similar population sizes in the 1960s. As per the article, two factors are attributed to India's economic performance lagging behind China over the past few decades. First, internal factors such as a lack of a social revolution and political reconstruction in India. The editorial highlights that, as a result, India's internal unity in economics, politics and culture remains weak, leading to corresponding governance systems and mechanisms for promoting economic development not yet being formed. Secondly, access to external resources, such as foreign capital, was limited for India as compared to China. The article also references remarks of the USA Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau at the Raisina Dialogue 2026, where he had remarked that the USA is willing to co-operate with India to realise India's "unlimited potential", but it would not replicate its China policy with India. The article concludes that effective cooperation between India and China, particularly in leading the Global South, will depend largely on India’s actions and choices.

Prepared By

Rituja Ghosh

Rituja Ghosh is a Research and Administrative Intern at Organisation for Research on China and Asia (ORCA). She holds a master's in International Relations from South Asian University, New Delhi. She has presented her work in several prestigious conferences, such as the paper titled "Sinicization in the People's Republic of China: An Analysis of Language Policies" at the 16th All India Conference on China Studies. She has previously worked as a Security Analyst with a corporate firm and as an Academic Associate at the Kautilya School of Public Policy, Hyderabad. Her interests lie in studying the politics of South Asia, India-China relations and China’s social and cultural policies.