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China,
Mongolia agree over border demarcation
BEIJING—Mongolian President Nambaryn Enkhbayar said Wednesday that China
and Mongolia have reached a final agreement on the exact demarcation of
their 4,677-kilometer border, the longest for both countries. After four
years of talks, Enkhbayar signed a series of border-related agreements
with Chinese leaders in Beijing, giving Mongolia for the first time in
recent history a fully defined national boundary.
The two countries also agreed to install 1,513 border demarcation posts,
Enkhbayar said at a press conference in Beijing. Neither country’s size
changes as a result of the border agreement, Mongolian Foreign Minister
Tsend Munh-Orgil said. Mongolia signed a border agreement with Russia,
its only other neighbor, in 2003. Mongolia’s territory has shifted
numerous times over centuries of conquest and conflict with its
neighbors.
“So now we have our borderline clearly defined and checked and signed
officially,” Enkhbayar said, adding that the agreement would be
recognized by the United Nations and other international agencies. The
two nations also agreed to respect each other’s full independence. “Both
sides reaffirmed an agreement of mutual respect for independence,
sovereignty, territorial integrity and all kinds of self-chosen paths to
development, never to impose military or political alliances on the
other and not to sign anything that hurts the rights or interests of the
other,” the countries said in a joint statement.
The border was one of many meaty issues that Enkhbayar and 10 other
Mongolian officials took up with senior Chinese officials, including
President Hu Jintao and Premier Wen Jiabao. Enkhbayar is spending five
days in China on his first official visit since being elected May 22. He
arrived in China on Monday. Economic development was another leading
issue. China and Mongolia agreed in principle to work together on
producing large coal energy in Mongolia and exporting it to China,
Munh-Orgil said.
Mongolia has untapped coal reserves, and China is seeking outside energy
sources to maintain rapid economic development. The two agreed to
cooperate in expanding roads and railways, both of which are lacking in
Mongolia, Enkhbayar added. In February, the World Bank approved a $100
million loan to China to build transport infrastructure for trade with
Mongolia. Enkhbayar met this week with local officials in the port
cities of Tianjin and Xingan to discuss faster and more efficient
processing of shipments through Mongolia’s chief Pacific Ocean port to
the land-locked country.
Chinese officials asked about joining Mongolia in developing copper
deposits in the southern Gobi Desert regions of Tavantolgoi and Oyu
Tolgoi, and Enkhbayar said Mongolia agreed to pursue China’s request.
Mining in Mongolia has become globally competitive over the past decade,
as Canadian, Japanese and Russian firms vie with local companies for
mineral reserves in a country still formulating its foreign investment
policies. According to a World Bank study, the mining sector’s gross
domestic product share will nearly double from $96.7 million to $189.7
million between 2002 and 2008 mostly because of copper, gold and
fluorite deposits. Today, mining accounts for about 9 percent of
Mongolia’s $1 billion GDP. Since 2003, a Sino-Mongolian joint venture
has mined coal on the Mongolian side of the border for the Chinese
market.
Also this week, the two governments acted on a two-year-old proposal
from the Chinese president by signing a framework for China’s EX-IM Bank
to give the Mongolian Finance Ministry $300 million in preferential
loans. Of that, $240 million will be for Chinese exporters and $60
million for Mongolian importers. Because of its climate and location,
Mongolia must import daily necessities. The two countries talked about
learning from each other’s ethnic Mongolian populations, Enkhbayar said.
The Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, home to as many as 4 million
ethnic Mongolians, may be able to teach its nomadic neighbor to the
north something about animal husbandry, land use and agricultural
diversification, he said.
(The Daily Mail-China Daily news exchange item)
China to build schools in Pak quake-hit
areas
From Javed of Akhtar (APP)
BEIJING—China will provide additional support to Pakistan in
reconstruction of schools and colleges in the earthquake affected areas.
An announcement to this effect was made by the Chinese Premier Wen Jibao
while addressing the 5th High-level UNESCO’s group meeting on “Education
for All.” He assured that China will increase its financial support for
education to the country that was hit by earthquake.
Later, the Education Minister Lt. Gen. (Retd) Javed Ashraf Qazi who was
here to attend the meeting held discussion with his counterpart Zhou Ji,
to decide ways and means for translating the commitment made by the
Chinese Premier. In this connection, he also had a separate meeting with
Chinese Vice Education Minister Zhang Xinshen Wednesday. Ashraf Qazi
told APP in an interview that the meetings were very productive and he
was expecting Chinese help in two phases in the educational sector. One
during the temporary phase of rehabilitation and other during the
reconstruction of about 10,000 schools and colleges which were totally
destroyed or reduced to non-functional in Azad Kashmir and NWFP.
He said a specific area, tehsil or a district could be earmarked for
construction of all schools and colleges by the Chinese side. A complete
data of the educational requirements, along with estimated expenditure
has been provided to the Chinese officials during the meetings. As a
follow-up of the premier’s commitment, he hoped that the Chinese
Education Ministry in consultation with the Pakistani authority will
soon suggest a plan of providing additional aid in the education sector.
During the rehabilitation phase, the Chinese government could consider
to provide tents, furniture and schools’ kits.
The Minister said he has also suggested to the Chinese officials to
consider another option of providing educational grant or undertake the
exclusive task of rebuilding the Muzaffarabad University. Regarding
details of loses caused by disaster, Javed Ashraf Qazi said about 9,300
schools and colleges were totally destroyed in Azad Kashmir and NWFP
that now need to be rebuilt, besides a university in Azad Kashmir.
To a question, he said approximately $25 million will be required to
restart education in the affected places in a temporary phase. For
reconstruction of schools and colleges on permanent basis, they will
need another $375 million. Total amount required in education sector is
around $470 million that they have also been worked out with the World
Bank and other donor agencies for reconstruction of the educational
institutions.
Besides the reconstruction of the old institutions, President Pervez
Musharraf has ordered to provide schools and colleges in those affected
places where they did exist earlier. Accordingly, his Ministry, he added
has proposed to build one primary school per village, one middle school
for every 12 villages and one high school at every sixteen villages or
so, besides new colleges at the tehsil and district-levels.
The total expenditure might reach around $620 million in order to ensure
provision of education to every village and every child in the affected
areas. Answering another question, he said about 18,000 students and
3,700 teachers lost their lives during the disaster. He hoped that the
reconstruction task will start by March next. The final decision to this
effect would be taken by the Reconstruction Authority keeping in view
weather condition.
China develops AIDS
vaccine
From Max Lee
The Daily Mail’s
Special Correspondent in Beijing
BEIJING—China has developed its first AIDS drug with independent
intellectual property right, the producers announced here Wednesday. The
new drug, Dicaffeoyqunic Acid Tablets, marks a major breakthrough in
China’s AIDS drug development and has outperformed cocktail therapy in
experiments on monkeys, said He Fuchu, vice president of Academy of
Military Medical Science, developer of the medicine, at a news briefing
in Nanchang, east China’s Jiangxi Province.
The drug has been approved by the State Food and Drug Administration to
go into clinical tests on human being after passing tests on animals,
said He, who is also an academician of Chinese Academy of Science. “The
safety of the new drug is reliable,” he said.
The medicine features remarkable performance in curbing the duplication
of the HIV virus and its effectiveness lasts longer than the
commonly-used cocktail therapy, said He. The latter, which has been
widely used in the world for the treatment of HIV/AIDS, is functional in
suppressing the virus and keeping it from damaging the immune system.
However, it is not a cure. If the drugs are stopped, the virus bounces
back immediately, said He.
“Tests on monkeys show that the virus has not come back during a certain
period even after stopping to use the new drug,” said He. The Jiangzhong
Pharmaceutical Group, the co-producer of the drug, has applied for
patent protection for the drug and the production technique in more than
20 countries, said Zhong Hongguang, board chairman of the group, a major
domestic medicine producer.
Unveils 5-year AIDS control plan: Chinese health minister warned on
Wednesday that the spread of AIDS could affect the nation’s economic
development and its “rise or decline”, and stressed the need for strong
prevention measures. Minister Gao Qiang said China aimed to keep the
number of people infected by the HIV virus to below 1.5 million by 2010.
“AIDS prevention work is an issue relating to the quality of the
population, economic development, social stability and the rise or
decline of the country,” Gao told a news conference hosted by the State
Council Information Office. The ministry had drafted a five-year AIDS
prevention action plan which was now awaiting cabinet approval, he said.
China’s prevention measures included increased public education,
“striking hard” against illegal blood sales, and increasing official
accountability, as well as cooperating with the World Health
Organization and other United Nations agencies. A national survey,
conducted in collaboration with the World Health Organization and USAIDS
this year found that about 70,000 people have developed AIDS through
blood transfusion or blood sales.
Wild orgies leave the Great Wall in mess
 BEIJING—The “Wild Dancing Party” recently landed on China’s flag
construction — the Great Wall. However, while party animals from both
home and abroad celebrated with glee, the senior wall was wailing.
Following an overnight spree gala at the Beijing-Hebei border section of
the Jinlingshan Great Wall on Wednesday, the oriental epitome of ancient
Chinese civilization was left in a chaotic mess.
Empty alcohol bottles and various rubbishes were scattered about,
silently protesting against the past hilarity. Permeating in the air,
the strong smell of excreta left by partygoers would likely make one
feel sick.
One witness of the Great Wall orgy later said the July 30 party was the
8th of the annually held party, which soon caught on among domestic and
overseas party animals. The party, which usually leads a whole night
through on the Great Wall, has welcomed thousands of people every year
in Beijing’s cool summer night.
Regarded as China’s great national symbol, the Great Wall, under careful
protection by the government, is cherished in the hearts of Chinese
people. The improper carnival that seriously harmed the Wall has stirred
strong critics among the general public.
“How dare they tramp brazenly on the national pride and spirit by
injuring our Great Wall?” asked an angry netizen in a note left after
the news.
On the other hand, those party lovers, as well, have their say, “We just
want a happy hour and never intend to harm the Wall.” said a young girl
who took part in the party.
A heated community response has caught the attention of the Chinese
Great Wall Association (CGWA), in charge of the Wall protection. The
CGWA general Secretary Dong Yaohui showed deep concern over the matter,
saying, “It is really provoking. The visits of the Wall out of respect
and appreciation are welcomed, but this kind of damaging carnival,
never”.
“The Jinlingshan section of the Wall bordering Hebei Province has long
been the heart of trouble. We are urging a relative law on the Wall
protection to be issued to tackle this kind of problem under a legal
frame.” added Dong
Echoed by Dong’s remark, a recent report similarly made people again
frown upon the news that open-air barbeque business is prosperous on the
Great Wall, to be specific, the Jinlingshan section of the Wall.
When asked about the matter, Dong said, “All ‘evil’ arises from money
grabbing”.
The management right of Jinling section of Great Wall has been leased to
a Hebei commercial corporation since 1997 by the local government at a
sum of six million Yuan (US$740,000) on a 50 year term. Since then
various activities have been planned on the Wall, including even the
orgy and barbeque.
According to Dong, the Jinling Wall located in Hebei Province, is
managed by the Hebei Government. So far only the Beijing municipal
authority has barred any profit-oriented commercial use of the Wall in
the form of a law. The Jinling Wall is not protected within the cover of
the law released in 2003.
Counting 50 years from 1997 the lease contract will expire in the
distant year of 2047. Can the Wall stand up to “naughty deeds” by people
that long?
(The Daily Mail-China Daily news exchange item)
Death toll in coal mine blast touches 161
QITAIHE (China)—The death toll in a Chinese coal mine blast rose to 161
late Wednesday, with 10 miners still missing days after the disaster,
the Xinhua News Agency said. The explosion occurred Sunday at the
Dongfeng Coal Mine in the northeastern town of Qitaihe, and there were
differing accounts as to how many miners were working underground at the
time. The death toll jumped from the previously reported 150 after
emergency workers pulled more bodies from the mine on Wednesday, Xinhua
said. The government has unveiled one safety campaign after another as
it vows to stem the carnage reducing the soaring number of coal mine
accidents”. China’s central government Wednesday angrily blamed managers
of a northeastern mine for a huge explosion that killed at least 150
people, saying obvious signs of danger emerged days before the blast.
The number of people confirmed killed in the Sunday night explosion at
the state-run Dongfeng coal mine in Heilongjiang province rose by two on
Wednesday, with one miner still listed as missing. As rescue efforts
wound down, the government’s work safety watchdog turned its focus to
the cause of the blast and quickly backed up assertions from victims’s
relatives that the mine’s management disregarded warning signs. The
ministry-level State Administration of Work Safety said on its website
Wednesday that the mine chiefs held a meeting five days before the blast
to discuss a dangerous build-up of coal dust in the pit. The head of the
administration, Li Yizhong, has personally interrogated and lambasted
the mine’s bosses, demanding to know why they did not take quick action
after the danger signs were detected, the website said.
“Your (operations) are no better than a small privately operated mine
pit,” the website quoted Li as telling mine chiefs Ma Jinsheng and Jiang
Xingzong. Failure to end production after discovering safety problems
“fully shows that the mine was not up to standards in inspecting for
hidden dangers,” Li said. Grieving relatives in Qitaihe also continued
to express their anger on Tuesday over the management’s blatant
disregard for safety procedures. “The other day, one of the older
workers came and told us that when they noticed the danger, they went to
look for mine officials, but they couldn’t find them because they had
all gone to dinner,” Yuan Shurong, the mother of a dead miner, told AFP.
“Of course, we are angry”.—APP
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