Roundup - 31/12/2009

• A Chinese researcher has suggested that China acquire an overseas naval base to resupply its squadron in the Gulf of Aden. China has an avowed policy of not maintaining foreign military bases or forming military alliances however, the comments were made by Admiral Yin Zhuo, senior researcher at the navy's Equipment Research Centre. Yin Zhuo said that other countries were unlikely to object as the US, the EU and Japan all already have naval bases in the area. China's naval squadron in the area currently use a French base to resupply but concerns over how China's naval presence in the area would be viewed led to the squadron spending four continuous months at sea before resupplying for the first time.
  
  Concerns have been raised that the Chinese navy may be seeking to expand its presence abroad. The PLA has previously declared that China's energy security is a matter of national security and, as most of China's oil comes through the Gulf of Aden from Africa and the Middle East, many have wondered how long it will be before China seeks to maintain a naval presence in the area.
  
  Previous reports about China's desire to set up naval bases in Bangladesh, Myanmar, Cambodia and Thailand have lacked evidence. However, India has voiced concerns about China's funding of a deep water port in Gwadar, Pakistan. So far, no suggestion has been made as to where any naval base should be located.
  
  
  
• Four foreigner may face the death penalty over a drugs haul in Shenzhen according to a Hong Kong newspaper. Beijing backed Ta Kung Pao reported that four foreigners were among nine arrested over possession of 144.5kg of heroin in August. According to Chinese law possession of large quantities of illegal drugs can be punished by the death penalty. A Reuters report suggests that Chinese authorities may have approved the release of this information now to bolster China's position in relation to the execution of Akmal Shaikh which has caused a diplomatic row with the United Kingdom.
  
  
  
• Xinhua has announced ambitious plans to launch two new international channels. From January 1^st China Xinhua News Network Corp. will launch CNC and CNC Finance and Business. The channels will be available throughout Asia and in some European countries although it has not yet been announced which ones. CNC World News hopes to begin broadcasting in English by July. Earlier this year China Central Television launched an Arabic language channel which now broadcasts to a population of 300 million.
  
  
  
• The US International Trade Commission has voted unanimously to place tariffs on imports of Chinese steel tubing. The tubing, meant for use in the oil industry, will now face a tariff of 10.36-15.78%. Lawyers say this will be the largest countervailing duty imposed on Chinese imports by volume of trade. The US imported $2.74 billion of steel pipes from China last year. China's Ministry of Commerce has said it is strongly opposed to the new duty but has stopped short of taking any retaliatory action.
  
  
  
• The fouder and ex-editor of Caijing(财经) magazine has taken the position of executive editor at New Century News. Hu Shuli won acclaim at Caijing for pushing the boundaries of what could be reported. Caijing led the way in exposing government corruption, exposing the cover-up of the SARS epidemic and the role of poor construction in the Sichuan earthquake disaster. Hu Shuli left Caijing in a row with its owner, who wanted to limit the budget and soften the editorial line on sensitive stories. Many who worked under her at Caijing have also switched to the new publication and it is expected that New Century News will reprise the role that Caijing played in the Chinese media. Next months issue of Century Weekly will be the first with Hu Shuli in charge.
  
  
  
• People's Daily is reporting that world media is praising China's role in the Copenhagen talks on climate change. The report says that state media from different counties 'including India, Pakistan, Indonesia, Central African Republic and Malawi' have all praised China for its handling of the negotiations. Media from the UK, US and Europe has generally been critical of China's role.
  

Roundup - 29/12/2009

• China has executed a British man, Akmal Shaikh. Mr. Shaikh was executed by lethal injection at 10.30am local time according to Xinhua. Gordon Brown, the EU and a number of civil society groups have condemned the execution saying that his legal rights had not been granted. Mr. Shaikh was convicted of smuggling heroin into China in October 2008 after a trial that lasted just 30 minutes. Evidence of his mental illness was not considered.
  
  According to China's Criminal Law, if a mentally ill person is convicted of a crime, their condition should be taken into account when considering the sentence. However, according to the Chinese authorities there was not sufficient evidence presented to prove he suffered from Bipolar disorder. Some reports suggest that during his trial Mr. Shaikh claimed there was nothing wrong with him, it is unclear what legal representation or assistance with translation was provided to him.
  
  Last minutes attempts to save M. Shaikh's life were lead by the British Ambassador to Beijing and Mr. Shaikh's cousins. However, while international condemnations grows, China remains defiant saying that foreigners must obey its laws ad no country has the right to interfere in its legal process.
  
  
  
• An audit of China's government agencies and state-owned enterprises has uncovered 234.7 billion RMB(US$34.4 billion) disappeared from public funds in the first 11 months of the year. The report says that 16.3 billion RMB has been recovered so far. 231 people, including 67 officials, have had their cases passed on to disciplinary and judicial authorities.
  
  
  
• A Chinese ship and its 25 crew members are sailing home after being kidnapped by Somali pirates. The De XinHai was captured in October while transporting 76,000 tonnes of coal from South Africa to India. There is some confusion as to the nature of the operation. While Chinese media reports describe it as a rescue, a source claiming to be one of the pirates told Reuters that a $4 million ransom had been dropped on the deck of the ship by helicopter.
  
  The De Xin Hai was the first Chinese ship to be captured in the area since the arrival of three Chinese warships to bolster the international anti-piracy flotilla in the area.
  
  
  
• The Chinese author Mian Mian is to sue Google for scanning and publishing extracts from her work without permission. She is asking for 61,000RMB ($8,950) in compensations and a public apology from Google. According to the China Written Works Copyright Society more than 80,000 works by Chinese authors have been scanned into Google's digital library. Last year Google agreed to pay $125 million to settle similar disputes with US authors.
  
  
  
• Two separate gas explosions at Chinese coal mines have claimed at least 17 lives. According to Xinhua, 12 miners were killed in an explosion in Shanxi province. Another five were killed and six more trapped at in an explosion in Yunnan.