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South Asia Moves to Bring Anti-terror Laws in Line with UN
South Asian officials have agreed to amend a regional convention to bring it in line with the tough anti-terror resolution of the United Nations, the foreign ministry here said Saturday. Senior officials from the seven-nation South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) met for three days here and by Friday agreed on a draft to be considered by their leaders, the ministry said. "Substantial progress was made at the meeting and agreement reached on a majority of the provisions on the draft text proposed by Sri Lanka," the ministry said in a statement. The additional protocol to SAARC's 1987 convention on suppression of terrorism will incorporate obligations for member states in line with UN resolution 1373 adopted after the September 11, 2001, attacks in the United States. SAARC groups Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka.
From http://www.haveeru.com.mv/ 09/01/2003
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China Urges Int'l Consensus on Nuclear Test Ban Treaty
It is imperative to further expand the international consensus on banning nuclear test explosions and speed up the ratification process so as to promote the early entry into force of the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty (CTBT), a top Chinese diplomat said Thursday in Vienna. It is imperative to further expand the international consensus on banning nuclear test explosions and speed up the ratification process so as to promote the early entry into force of the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty (CTBT), a top Chinese diplomat said Thursday in Vienna. Zhang Yan, China's ambassador to the Office of the United Nations and other international organizations in Vienna and head of the Chinese delegation to the ongoing 2003 CTBT conference, told the conference that multilateralism is now confronted with challenge, and that international non-proliferation is in an increasingly grave situation. "The conclusion of the CTBT represents a major step of milestone significance toward comprehensive and complete nuclear disarmament and a world free of nuclear weapons," Zhang said. Although the CTBT has not yet come into force, its purposes and objectives have increasingly become basic international norms and played an indispensable role in preventing nuclear weapons proliferation, he added. Zhang called on the international community to create a sound international security environment, to firmly uphold the purposes and principles of the CTBT, and to actively support and fully participate in the work of the CTBT preparation committee. As for China's stance on the test ban issue, Zhang said China has all along stood for the complete prohibition and thorough destruction of nuclear weapons, and worked hard to prevent proliferation of weapons of mass destruction. "The Chinese government supports and attaches importance to the treaty and has been working unswervingly for its early entry into force," he said. Zhang stressed that China, as a nuclear weapon state and one of the 44 states whose ratification is required for the treaty to come into force, firmly supports the CTBT and fully realize its special responsibility for the treaty's entry into force. At present, China's National People's Congress is performing its due ratification formalities in accordance with relevant constitutional procedures, said Zhang. The Chinese ambassador pledged that the Chinese government "will continue to do its utmost to have the ratification procedure completed by the NPC at an early date." The 2003 Conference on Facilitating the Entry into Force of the CTBT kicked off on Wednesday in the Austria Center in Vienna, with the participation of delegates from 71 countries and 19 non-governmental organizations. The three-day conference is expected to examine ways and means to facilitate the CTBT's entry into force, to renew global awareness of the treaty and to encourage countries which have not yet ratified it to do so. Drafted at the Conference on Disarmament in Geneva, and opened for signature on Sept. 24, 1996, the treaty bans all nuclear tests in any environment. To date, 168 states have signed the treaty and104 have ratified it. The treaty will come into force 180 days after all the 44 nuclear states deposit the documents of ratification to the United Nations. The conference is the third of its kind, with the two previous ones held in 1999 in Vienna, and in 2001 in New York.
From http://english.peopledaily.com.cn/ 09/04/2003
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ASEAN Army Chiefs Agree on Joint Cooperation Against Terror Threats
ASEAN army chiefs have said the terror threat must be dealt with jointly, and bilateral hiccups will not prevent them from working together to achieve common goals. At their annual forum held in Kuala Lumpur, they explored how best to enhance cooperation and foster better understanding among the region's defence forces. Advertisement Malaysia's army chief said occasional bilateral problems would not hinder efforts by ASEAN defence forces to forge closer cooperation. Agreeing, his Singapore counterpart said the web of bilateral relations is very strong, and added that the multilateral meeting enables discussions on issues of mutual concerns. The Indonesian chief of army believed by sharing intelligence information, terror operatives can be tracked down before they commit terrorist acts. He said through cooperation, terrorists will be prevented from fleeing to other countries. The ASEAN army chiefs will hold their next meeting in Indonesia. (by Zainudin Afandi)
From http://www.channelnewsasia.com/ 09/09/2003
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Cambodia and Nepal Win WTO Entry
The World Trade Organisation has agreed to admit Cambodia and Nepal as members. When the remaining legal procedures are completed they will be the first countries classified as least developed to join the organisation since it was founded in 1995. The decision was taken by WTO member countries' ministers at a meeting in Cancun in Mexico. The terms of Cambodia's accession have proved particularly controversial. A report by the Development Agency, Oxfam, says that Cambodia has made concessions that go far beyond what was made by least developed countries that were founder members of the organisation. It was the result, Oxfam says, of pressure from existing WTO members. In a speech to the meeting here, the Cambodian Commerce Minister, Cham Prasidh, said the Oxfam report does reflect the results of the negotiations, although he said he does not share all its views. He said Cambodia paid a heavy price for national reconciliation and peace and now is paying another heavy price to join the WTO. "We believe that the package of concessions and commitments that we have to accept certainly goes far beyond what is commensurate with the level of development of a least developed country like Cambodia," Mr Cham said. The Oxfam report says that Cambodia has had to agree to reduce tariffs on farm products to levels well below the highest applied by the European Union or the United States. It is also having to introduce patent protection on medicines many years earlier than other least developed countries. None the less, Mr Prasidh said the commitments are not beyond Cambodia's reach. He said he accepts the challenge because Cambodia sees the benefits of joining the world trading system. Cambodia and Nepal now have to ratify their accession agreements. Their membership is likely to take effect next year.
From BBC News 09/12/2003
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Asia Hub Plan Shanghaied by Island
China is currently developing a small island in the waters off Shanghai, called Yangshan, into what is says will be the world's largest port, leading some to fear that Busan Port, currently Korea's largest port, will lose up to 30 percent of its cargo business. The Korean consulate general in Shanghai reported the grandiose Chinese plan to Cheong Wa Dae and to concerned government offices in Korea, judging the plan to be a threat to the Korean government's much-touted plan to develop the country into the business hub for Northeast Asia. Facing the risk of being undercut by the Shanghai plan, the Korean government is expected to dispatch top officials to the city in order to get a better look at the plan to develop the island. Currently, the annual container treatment capacity of Shanghai stands at 7.8 million TEUs, surpassing Busan Port's 6.68 million TEUs. In addition, the Chinese city has 22 berths, one notch above Busan's 21 berths. Shanghai has also outrun Busan in the handling of containers, emerging as the world's third-largest port. The Shanghai port has an Achilles' Heel. The draft of the port is a shallow eight or nine meters, meaning container vessels in Shanghai cannot be fully loaded without hitting the seabed. Ships must leave with about half of their containers and get the rest in Busan or in Kobe, Japan, before heading out to ports in the United States, Canada or Europe. Other major Chinese ports, including Tianjin, Dalian and Tsingdao, also have drafts that are too shallow for large container ships. Ships there must also be serviced in Busan or Kobe, accounting for 20 percent of Busan's total cargo handling. The consulate's report said that once the new Chinese port is completed, Busan would lose that important block of business, bypassed by fully-loaded container vessels. According to the blueprint for the Yangshan development, the port is expected to handle 22 million containers a year, the largest treatment capacity in the world and about three times that of Busan Port. Korean logistics experts said Busan Port's attempt to compete in terms of container capacity with Shanghai is no longer feasible. They called for Busan to develop into a comprehensive logistics center for Korea, as well as for neighboring nations. (by Yoon Yeong-shin)
From Digital Chosun 09/14/2003
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Cancun Declaration Pushes Open Markets
CANCUN, MEXICO- The fifth ministerial conference of the World Trade Organization, where openings of agricultural markets under the Doha Development Agenda are being discussed, released a draft on Saturday (local time) that will sharply reduce tariffs on agricultural imports. Singapore's Trade Minister George Yeo Yong-Bon, the current facilitator of the Doha Agenda's agriculture sector, said that the draft's method of reducing agricultural tariffs is one that both the developed and the developing countries will follow. The draft was chosen as the ministerial declaration - or the final draft. Korea imposes 100 percent tariffs on agricultural imports, including rice; but with the issuance of this draft, Korea will be more likely to further open up its agricultural markets. Previously, Korea had issued a statement proposing the elimination from the final draft of the tariff ceiling system and low tariff rate quota. The tariff ceiling system sets upper limits for tariffs and the quota expands the amount of agricultural imports that are subject to low tariffs. Trade Minister Hwang Doo-yun said in a press conference that though the proposal was not reflected in the draft he will try his best to get it recognized. The draft will also enforce steep reductions of local farm subsidies, which may endanger Korean rice farmers. Meanwhile, 15 Korean anti-globalization protestors tried to march into the WTO conference hall but staged a demonstration for an hour after they were halted by Mexican police. (by Choi Woo)
From http://english.chosun.com/ 09/14/2003
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WTO Ministerial Conference Concludes
Ministers from the 146 members of the World Trade Organization have wrapped up their the five-day conference in Cancun, Mexico after failing to reach common ground on a free- trade declaration. Reports say the meeting broke down because of a huge gap in the positions between developed members and developing ones. Almost all sides found something to complain about in the draft declaration that was supposed to pave the way for negotiations towards a binding treaty on liberalizing international trade by the end of the next year. A statement issued by the Group of 21 developing nations says the draft plan has failed to set a timetable or put enough pressure on the United States and the European Union to slash the massive subsidies they give their farmers. The alliance includes China, India and Brazil. Developing countries were also upset that the draft proposes beginning talks in two new areas: trade facilitation and transparency in government procurement. The EU was also unhappy, saying it was being asked to do too much and was not getting much in return. The failure of the Cancun talks now threatens to postpone the implementation of the Doha Development Agenda, a roadmap for multilateral trade liberalization adopted by the WTO in the Qatari capital of Doha in 2001. The program calls for an end to the negotiating process by January 1, 2005, after which a new global trade regime was to be established under which goods and services could flow smoothly across national boundaries, raising incomes and living standards along the way. A ministerial statement, released by the WTO secretariat said officials will continue working on outstanding issues with a "renewed sense of urgency and purpose." A meeting of the General Council at the senior official level will be convened no later than mid-December this year. Mexican Foreign Secretary Luis Ernesto Derbez announced the next WTO ministerial conference will be held in China's Hong Kong.
From http://www.crienglish.com/ 09/15/2003
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Asia-Pac Virus Early Warning System Planned
SINGAPORE: South-East Asian information and communications ministers announced plans to establish a computer virus early-warning system and to form specialist emergency response teams to deal with cyber-attacks.Members of the Association of South-East Asian Nations (ASEAN) hope by next year to have a framework for sharing real-time information on computer threats and vulnerability assessments, the ministers said after a two-day meeting here. By 2005, all of ASEAN's 10 members are expected to have set up Computer Emergency Response Teams (CERTs) to deal with hacker or virus attacks. Each CERT will be linked to the regional framework to form an ASEAN-wide network, the ministers said. "The national CERTs of each ASEAN country will create a specialist group trained and equipped to deal with cyber-security threats," Singapore Information, Communications and Arts Minister Lee Boon Yang said. "The intention is that, having been alerted or having experienced such computer virus attacks, the CERTs will immediately be able to use this common framework to share experiences and alert ASEAN partners to the nature of the threats. "Everybody gets an early warning and begins to take action to prevent the spread of the virus." Philippines Transportation and Communications Under-Secretary Virgilio Pena said six of ASEAN's 10 members had already set up computer specialist teams. ASEAN members were at "various stages" of co-ordination with the private sector to develop CERTs, he said. The ultimate plan was to link an ASEAN-wide CERT network with similar frameworks in the Asia-Pacific region and globally, Mr Pena said. In his keynote address to the meeting on Thursday, Singapore Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong said South-East Asia must develop a "common and sustained" approach to protection of telecommunications and computer networks from virus and hacker attacks. Mr Goh said attacks by three computer viruses last month had cost an estimated $US800 million ($1.17 billion) in damages globally, underscoring the challenges facing modern technological societies. National CERTs swung into action during these virus attacks, but there had been no co-operation among ASEAN members, Mr Pena said. "We are trying to connect the CERTs of ASEAN countries so there will be international early-warning signals," he said. Mr Lee said lack of regional co-operation would make ASEAN "much weaker" in dealing with the problem". "The resilience of ASEAN depends very much on our ability to share information on a timely basis," he said. The ministers also agreed to expedite bilateral arrangements for regional recognition of tests on telecommunications products in the various countries, to save costs and spur trade flows. Mr Lee said Singapore would launch talks for mutual recognition arrangements with Brunei and Indonesia by next year, hoping to encourage other ASEAN members to begin their own initiatives leading to a regional network of MRAs Australia has been pushing for CERTs in Asia-Pacific countries, along the lines of AUSCERT, in an effort to combat hacking and virus attacks, and has provided AusAID funds for CERT training in Papua-New Guinea, the Philippines, Indonesia, Vietnam and Thailand. That funding followed a call by Communications Minister Richard Alston at an APEC meeting in Shanghai last year for co-operation on IT security issues. The APEC meeting identified security as a top priority for members. (by Martin Abbugao)
From http://australianit.news.com.au/ 09/23/2003
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CHINA: Adopts Law to Curb Government Power
A new law enacted by China's top legislature aims to remove much of the red tape associated with running businesses, and remove loopholes for corrupt officials to make money from issuing licenses and franchise rights. The Standing Committee of the National People's Congress adopted the law on administrative licenses Wednesday, which embodies the principle of rigorously restricting the power of government bodies, and will facilitate the country's uphill battle against corruption. The law of 83 articles in eight chapters, with a decree by President Hu Jintao, will take effect as of July 1, 2004. The new law covering the government's right to grant franchises, permits or certificates to businesses and individuals "will have an unprecedented impact on the relations between government bodies and common citizens," Professor Ying Songnian said. Ying, a member of the NPC Civil Affairs Committee and dean of the department of law of the State Administrative College, helped write the draft's first version. The State Council, or the Chinese cabinet, has found that its commissions and ministries used to empower themselves with as many as 3,000 kinds of special rights in granting franchises or permits. "On the one hand, the government bodies were managing many things that they couldn't manage or should manage," Ying said. He noted that government officials had found the right to granting franchises and permits very profitable for their departments, and themselves. "Government bodies are enthusiastic about expanding their power because they can collect fees from those who want the franchises or permits, and this is a major source of government corruption," Ying said. It was not strange to see a prospective entrepreneur become discouraged by too many visits to government departments just for permission to open a small restaurant. Ying went on to say that the State Council launched its massive reform measures in 2001 after it discovered a large number of problems in a survey for the legislation. So far, commissions and ministries of the State Council have given up rights to administer 1,195 franchise rights, and handed 82 items to industrial associations and other intermediate agencies. However, the legislation adopted Wednesday will ensure that such administrative reform continues in the right direction, lawmakers and legal experts said. Under the new law, commissions and ministries of the State Council will no longer have the right to empower themselves with franchising rights, and fee collection practices will be abandoned. A vital feature of the new law highlights "higher efficiency and convenience for ordinary common people," said Wang Yongqing, deputy director of the Legislative Affairs Office of the State Council. The law simplifies the procedures for administrative licenses and abolishes unnecessary restrictions against applicants, and makes the government administration the last option only after all other means have failed. A government license should only be required by a citizen if his business is related to national or economic security, public interest, personal rights and property of other citizens, exploitation of rare natural resources and the distribution of limited public resources, according to the law. To avoid the misuse of power by government bodies, franchises for the distribution of limited resources should be granted through bidding, auction or competition, it notes. The law says that the people who want to start a business or other enterprise will be required to go to far fewer government agencies for approval. Even if approval from different government bodies is required to get one thing done, for instance opening a restaurant, these bodies may also set up a special office dealing with restaurant certification so applicants do not have to go to different places. "We shouldn't cost people too much effort, time and money, even if it means more work for the government," said Wang Yongqing, the official with the Legislative Affairs Office of the State Council. Such stipulations are also in compliance with the rules of the World Trade Organization and are needed by China in accommodating itself to an ever more globalized economic structure, he acknowledged. The Chinese leadership has declared that "power should be used for the people, passion should be tied to the people and interests should be sought for the people." The new legislation can be seen as a new landmark for the Chinese leadership in enforcing its political manifesto, legal experts said.
From Xinhua net 08/28/2003
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Laws on Non-public Education, Environment Assessment Take Effect
A batch of newly-passed laws and regulations, including laws on the promotion of non-public educational institutions and on environmental impact assessment took effect Monday and are expected to have a long-lasting impact on people's lives. The law on the promotion of non-public educational institutions stipulates that such institutions serve the public welfare and thus enjoy the same legal status as public institutions. A law on environmental impact assessment is intended to eliminate the side effects of construction projects and promote the coordinated development among the economy, society and environment as a whole. A regulation on Sino-foreign co-operation in running schools encourages overseas high-quality educational sources to invest in vocational education and higher education in China. The regulation on bank settlement accounts in RMB, which brings the practices of Chinese banks closer to international standards, is aimed at better preparing them for competition with their Western rivals. Other laws and regulations that took effect Monday also include regulations on property management, on coastal beacons, on administration of printed publications and on the administrative punishment of copyright violators, as well as 30 measures on residence registration, driving and passport applications.
From Xinhuanet 09/01/2003
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Shanghai to Hire 10,000 Returned Students
China's largest metropolis of Shanghai is to offer ten thousand positions in technology and management for students returning from overseas in the next three years. A spokesman for the Shanghai municipal government says the move is aimed at further improving the city's human resources base. The spokesman adds that returned professionals could work for six months to three years, after which they could decide whether or not to stay. A series of preferential policies have been designed to attract overseas applicants.
From CRI 09/01/2003
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Disarmament to Cut 200,000
CHANGSHA: Another 200,000 troops will be cut from China's army by 2005, reducing the overall number to 2.3 million, it was announced yesterday. It follows the disarmament of 500,000 personnel from 1996 to 2000. The decision was jointly made by the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party and the Central Military Commission (CMC). It was announced yesterday by CMC Chairman Jiang Zemin during a celebration to mark the 50th anniversary of the founding of the National University of Defence Technology of the Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) in Changsha, capital of Central China's Hunan Province. Jiang said the reduction is not only in accordance with world military trends for reform, but also out of necessity for China's economic construction. With the development of modern science and technology, especially information technology, global competition in military affairs has been intensified, he said. During the current transformation from mechanized warfare to information warfare, the information capability of the army plays an increasingly decisive role. "Further reducing the scale of the army will help us concentrate our limited resources on speeding up the army's information technology construction," said Jiang. The chairman said it is a very significant decision which will promote the construction of the nation's army, accelerate the modernization drive of the army, stimulate national economic development and contribute to the peace and development of the whole world. The total force of the PLA, including both active and reserve components, has been maintained below the 2.5 million-strong mark. According to a white paper on China's national defence issued in December 2002, the Chinese Government has always been strict in its control, management and supervision of defence spending, and has formed a complete system of relevant laws and regulations for that purpose. Based on continuous economic growth, China's defence expenditure has increased at a fairly low level, and the increase is basically of a compensatory nature. According to a budget approved by China's legislature in March, the Chinese Government earmarked 185.3 billion yuan (US$22.3 billion) for national defence in 2003, a 9.6 per cent increase over the figure for the previous year. However, defence expenditure, which accounts only for 1.69 per cent of the country's budgetary expenditure, remains much lower than developed countries, neighbouring countries and also the world average, which stands at 3 per cent.
From China Daily 09/02/2003
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China Unveils Five-Year Target for Compulsory Education
The Chinese government has made a decision to guarantee the vast majority of school-age children to complete a nine-year compulsive education by 2007. Premier Wen Jiabao made the remark on the eve of China's 19th Teachers' Day, which falls on September 10. The premier said the State Council has made the decision to set a five-year goal of letting at least 85 percent of school-aged children in China's impoverished western region have access to the nine-year compulsive education, which includes six years of primary and three years of junior school education. Wen Jiabao promised efforts to raise the social status of teachers and improve their working and living conditions, while urging them to set good examples for their students and the society as a whole. He also called on governments at all levels to do their utmost to increase investment in education and create better conditions for education. According to the Ministry of Education, China had 11.5 million teachers across the country by 2002.
From CRI 09/10/2003
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Rules Set for Product Controls
Representative offices of foreign authentication organizations in China are now forbidden to engage in any authentication business, according to a State Council ordinance promulgated on Sep.9. The new regulation was released to establish clear rules for the product certification and accreditation activities of the watchdog and those organizations qualified to conduct certification, training and national accreditation for laboratories. The China Certification and Accreditation Administration (CNCA) said the unveiling of the regulation is an important step for China's certification reform. The regulation takes effect on November 1. The representative offices of foreign authentication organizations, after legal registration with the Chinese administration for industry and commerce, can only conduct business promotion, but cannot engage in actual authentication business. However, the ordinance allows the establishment of foreign-financed authentication organizations, with specific restrictions. China encourages the mutual recognition of authentication and certification standards among countries, based on the principles of equality and mutual benefit, according to the regulation, and such recognition should in no way damage national security and public interests. All authentication activities should be conducted under the principle of "objectivity, independence, openness, fairness, honesty and trustworthiness," states the ordinance. According to the regulation, the CNCA, established in 2001, is the only watchdog authorized by the central government to supervise certification in the market. The anonymous official with CNCA said the accreditation procedures included in the regulation are in line with international practices and World Trade Organization (WTO) rules, and create a fair environment for both domestic and overseas products. He also said China spent a long time forming its unified and standardized certification and accreditation system, which was set up before China's entry into WTO in 2001. There were previously two sets of quality authentication systems in China - one was established by the former State Administration for Quality and Technology Supervision, while the former State Administration for Exit-Entry Inspection and Quarantine set up the other.
From China Daily 09/10/2003
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New Healthcare Fund Planned
More than 11 billion yuan (US$1.3 billion) will be invested both this year and in 2004 to improve China's healthcare system and its emergency response capacity. Zhao Zilin, vice-director of the Planning and Finance Department under the Ministry of Health (MOH) made this remark at the two-day China Health Forum, which opened on Sep.10 in Beijing. The forum focuses on the construction of a public health and emergency healthcare system in the post-SARS (severe acute respiratory syndrome) period. The central government has already allocated 3 billion yuan (US$362 million) in treasury bonds to kick start the improvements, according to Zhao. The US$1.3 billion fund will be used to set up aid centres and hospitals for infectious disease treatment in cities and counties. Zhao said within three years the country will establish a public healthcare system covering both urban and rural areas which is multi-functional and responds swiftly to emergencies.
From China Daily 09/11/2003
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Procurement Policy Set Out
Foreign investors will soon be allowed to set up wholly owned sourcing centres in selected Chinese cities to help meet the growing procurement demand for Chinese-made products, a senior official at the Ministry of Commerce said on Sep.10. Foreign firms in the sourcing centres will be entitled to engage in the export-orientated sourcing business, entrusted product processing, as well as warehouse and information counselling services. Hu Jingyan, director of the Foreign Investment Administration Department under the ministry, revealed the move on Sep.10 at a seminar in the China International Fair for Investment and Trade being held in Xiamen, East China's Fujian Province. The State Council has given the go-ahead to the policy and the ministry is working on the practical regulations, which will be announced in the next few months, he said. The policy comes at a time when more and more multinationals are including China in their global procurement networks and gradually increasing their purchases of Chinese products. The value of products sourced by foreign companies in China reached US$30 billion last year. The global retail giants Wal-Mart, Carrefour and Metro alone purchased US$15 billion in the country last year, government figures showed. Hu said: "The lenient policy on the foreign-funded sourcing business aims to make China a more attractive global sourcing centre and actively promote quality and price-competitive Chinese-made products on the international market." Currently, foreign firms can establish Sino-foreign trade joint ventures and solely funded logistics companies in China to run import and export businesses. According to Hu, the minimum registered capital for a wholly foreign-owned sourcing centre will be about 30 million yuan (US$3.62 million). As for whether foreign firms can have tax refunds on the exported China-sourced products, a major concern of many investors, Hu said the new policy would refer to existing tax regulations for export-orientated foreign investment companies. "Generally speaking, foreign firms in the sourcing centres can have tax refunds on their exported products," he added.
From China Daily 09/11/2003
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Shanghai to Open up Its Legal Sector
Shanghai will further open its legal service sector to foreign companies as a lack of qualified lawyers is impeding the city's development, Vice Mayor Zhou Yupeng said on Sep.11. "A developed legal service is essential for Shanghai to attract foreign investment and help domestic companies expand abroad," Zhou told more than 30 representatives from overseas law firms with offices in the city at a round-table discussion on Sep.11. "The city will relax some of the restrictions ahead of other cities in the country," Zhou said. "We will gradually relax the restrictions," said Miao Xiaobao, director of Shanghai Justice Bureau. He added that the approval processes for foreign law firms looking to open offices in Shanghai will be simplified and cooperation between overseas and domestic law firms will be allowed in the future. "Domestic law firms will be allowed to act as a liaison or member office of an international law firm when conditions mature," he said. Miao also said overseas firms will eventually be allowed to hire local lawyers, and the city will make it easier for domestic companies to hire foreign law professionals. Foreign firms are pleased by the announcement, saying current regulations put too many restrictions on their activities. "If foreign law firms can cooperate with domestic counterparts in conducting business in the future as the city government promised, that could help us expand a large part of our business," said Danian Zhang, a partner with the Shanghai Office of Baker & McKenzie, a US-based law firm.
From China Daily 09/11/2003
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FM Spokesman: China's Military Policy Defensive
China's national defense policies and military deployments are aimed at safeguarding national security and territorial integrity, Foreign Ministry spokesman Kong Quan said Thursday. China's national defense policies and military deployments are aimed at safeguarding national security and territorial integrity, Foreign Ministry spokesman Kong Quan said Thursday. Kong Quan made the remark in response to a question relating to an annual report of the Pentagon on the military power of China, which was issued on July 30. He said China, as a sovereign state, had an independent foreign policy of peace and its national defense policy was defense-oriented. "We will keep on marching on the road of peace and development," he said. Some interest groups in the United States were attempting to create an excuse to sell weapons to Taiwan by overstating China's military force and expenditure and scare-mongering over the mainland's threat to Taiwan, he said. Taiwan was an inalienable part of China's territory and the Chinese government had always adhered to the basic principles of "peaceful reunification" and "one country, two systems", and would try its best to realize a peaceful reunification. "As we can see, the growth of the 'Taiwan independence' forces is precisely the greatest threat to stability across the Taiwan Strait," Kong said. Kong said the United States had repeatedly agreed to abide by the three Sino-US joint communiques, adhere to the one-China policy and to oppose Taiwan's independence. "We hope the United States would effectively honor its commitments," he said. "The facts speak for themselves: the international community regards China as an active force in maintaining world peace and promoting common development." China strongly opposes the United States allowing the Dalai Lama to visit the country and arranging visits for him with US leaders , the Foreign Ministry spokesman said. "The Dalai Lama is not simply a religious figure; he is a political figure living in exile who has long been committed to separatist activities and to undermining national unity,'' Kong told a regular press briefing. "We have lodged serious representations with the United States and urged the US side to abide by its promise that it recognizes Tibet as part of China and does not support Tibet independence,'' Kong said. He made these remarks in response to the Dalai Lama's three-week visit to the United States, which began on September 4, and his meeting with US President George W. Bush on Wednesday and US Secretary of State Colin Powell on Tuesday in Washington. The Chinese side has also urged the United States to stop interfering with the Tibet issue, which is China's internal affair, so as not to harm China-US relations, the spokesman said. He said the channel for contact between the central government and the Dalai Lama is unblocked as long as the Dalai Lama abandons his separatist activities, both verbally and with actions, and definitely acknowledges that Tibet and Taiwan are inalienable parts of China. Talking about the European Commission's new strategy document to guide European Union (EU) policy and action towards China, Kong said China appreciates and welcomes the EU's efforts to enhance China-EU relations. "The constantly expansion and deepening of comprehensive co-operation between China and the EU and the enhancement of co-ordination and consultation on international and regional affairs meet the interests of both sides and benefit world peace, stability and development under the current international situation,'' Kong said. Turning to the consultation among foreign ministers of the five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council on Iraq, Kong said the new UN resolution should be conducive to maintaining peace and order in Iraq, to promoting the Iraq's resumption of its sovereignty and to speeding up its reconstruction. "The full involvement of the UN role in the effort to reach this goal is indispensable,'' Kong said. He said China is seriously studying the proposal by the United States and supports some ideas proposed by France, Germany and Russia during the UN discussion. "We are willing to have in-depth exchanges of views with all parties and will take a constructive attitude in the consultations,'' he said, adding that China hopes consensus can be reached as soon as possible. At the invitation of United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan, Foreign Minister Li Zhaoxing will attend the consultations of the proposal in Geneva this weekend.
From http://english.peopledaily.com.cn/ 09/12/2003
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Beijing Urged to Act More Firmly Against Intellectual Property Theft
The US urged China yester-day to crack down more harshly on counterfeiters and other intellectual property thieves who may be costing foreign companies as much as $25bn (?22bn, ˇę15.6bn) a year in stolen copyright, fake products and brand violations. William Lash, US assistant secretary of commerce, told senior Chinese officials Washington wanted to co-operate with Beijing in its efforts to curb rampant violations of intellectual property rights (IPR) rather than seek to sanction China at the World Trade Organisation. "We don't doubt the desire [of China] to enforce or make the arrests," Mr Lash said. "We did not threaten any type of WTO action." Nevertheless, China needed to expend greater efforts in tracking down criminals and punishing them more harshly if it was to make inroads into the problem, Mr Lash said. The US government has offered help in training of enforcement and court officials in China. One particular problem was that although much of the pirating - such as booming trade in fake digital versatile discs (DVDs) - incurs an economic cost, the sale of fake vehicle parts, aircraft components, pharmaceuticals and alcohol has led to a heavy loss of human life. "IPR crime is as problem atic as street crime," Mr Lash said. China's problem was not Beijing's awareness of the scale of the IPR problem but the willingness of local governments to crack down on an entrenched trade run by powerful organisations that Mr Lash described as having distribution systems that "would rival mini-Wal-Marts". The total cost to foreign companies in China of various forms of IPR violation was $20bn-$25bn, Mr Lash said. The issue has become one of several irritants in a bilateral trade relationship that many US manufacturers say is skewed in China's favour. China's trade surplus with the US rose to $103bn in 2002, surpassing that of Japan for the first time. Many American manufacturers say the imbalance stems from a renminbi that is up to 40 per cent undervalued.( by James Kynge)
From Financial Times 09/13/2003
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Finance Ministry Launches Budget Drafting for 2004
The budget layout for central government departments in 2004 has been launched. According to the Ministry of Finance, central government departments are drafting budgets for subordinate second-grade departments and also its departmental annual budget. The ministry expects only a minor increase of central financial revenue in 2004 and the imbalance of revenue and expenditure remains an acute problem. Thus, the budget authority has been committed to a "strict and prudent" principle in drafting budgets for central government departments. The Ministry of Finance hopes that not any new project will be funded in principle except the projects already set by the State Council, China's cabinet. The ministry will also select some prominent funding projects to "follow up and assess cost-efficiency" in a bid to establish a budget project cost-efficiency assessment index system. The year 2004 will hopefully be a watershed to China's central budgeting. The ministry will work to change the pattern of "highlighting distribution but ignoring management", improve basic expenditure budget for fixed number of personnel and fixed amounts and gradually cover government property management in budget management. More stand-by funds likely In the budget plan for central government departments in 2004, what deserves attention is the high probability of a 2 percent increase of stand-by funds for the departments so as to offset possible temporary adjustment in the budget implementation process. According to the established rules on departmental stand-by funds, the pilot units with a fixed number of personnel and a fixed amount of budgets can set their stand-by funds at a ceiling of 3 percent of public funds. Starting in 2004, such funds can be arranged. Meanwhile, stand-by funds set according to classes, grades and rules should be singled out and explained in the replying document. According to financing officials, the reason to raise stand-by funds is to "offer more flexibility in departmental budgets" so as to cover sporadic, temporary expenditure. Thus, the ratio of readjusting departmental budgets could be effectively lowered and the department could function better. "During the peak SARS period, we received a large sum of applications to purchase respiratory machines. And each case was so urgent that we had no time to review it before granting. I was wondering then that why we had no idea of the use and effectiveness of the substantial funds earmarked for medical devices procurement," said one official of the Ministry of Finance. "We must address the problem of 'highlighting allocation but ignoring management." Follow up budget projects and assess cost-effectiveness Sources form the Ministry of Finance said that the ministry would scan its "project database" in 2004 and redefine projects of common departments and institutes. Some basic expenditure projects unqualified as project budget expenditure will be excluded in the database. The ministry will review with a unified standard all key state projects, and special operation projects listed in departmental budgets. Some projects that are bound to be carried on to the next year will also be reviewed after consulting with the department. Traditionally, the number of projects and the sum of capital listed in budget draft applications to the Ministry of Finance are "too much to be fed up with current financial resources", according to financing officials. As a result, the ministry requires that all departments should select, research, preview and list in a rational sequence their application projects in terms of urgency and priority. The ministry will first fund those urgent, feasible projects in line with the year's financial situation. Special operation projects and those over-year projects will then be arranged while other common projects of central government departments follow suit according to the "project sequences". Additionally, departments are also required to attach a cost-efficiency report from 2003-2004 over-year long budget projects as an important reference to apply for the 2004 budget. The ministry will also select some prominent funding projects to "follow up and assess cost-efficiency" in a bid to establish a budget project cost-efficiency assessment index system.
From China.org.cn 09/17/2003
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Premier Proposes to Set Up a Free Trade Zone Within SCO
Premier Wen Jiabao Tuesday proposed to set up a free trade zone within the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO). The proposal is one of three proposals to boost regional economic cooperation Wen made when he spoke to the talks attended by the prime ministers of the six SCO members Tuesday morning. The proposals are: -- To promote the facilitation of trade and investment in a bid to realize the smooth circulation of goods within the framework of the SCO as well as to reduce and eliminate non-tariff barriers like those in customs service, quarantine, standards and transportation. -- To set certain large projects on economic and technological cooperation and give priority to those in transportation, energy, telecommunication, agriculture, home appliances, light industry and textile. -- To set a long-term objective for regional economic cooperation and gradually set up a free trade zone within the SCO.
From http://www1.chinadaily.com.cn 09/23/2003
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JAPAN: Gov't to Launch Food Crisis Management Team
TOKYO - The Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries said Friday it will launch a new crisis management team next Monday to deal with food safety problems, such as large-scale food poisoning. The new team will consist of eight experts from bureaus and divisions within the ministry, including the bureau of food consumption and safety that was set up in July, ministry officials said.
From http://www.japantoday.com/ 08/29/2003
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Law to Be Revised to Promote Prefectural Mergers
TOKYO - The government has decided to submit a bill to the next regular Diet session starting in January 2004 to revise the Local Autonomy Law, with the aim of promoting prefectural mergers as part of its administrative reform plan, government sources said Friday.If the bill passes the Diet, it will be the first revision to the article on such mergers since the law was implemented in 1947.
From http://www.japantoday.com/ 08/30/2003
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Gov't Vows to Make Old Boy Agency Salaries More Transparent
The government is determined to make the murky finances of independent administrative agencies more transparent amid accusations that fat cats running former governmental bodies are getting fatter under a veil of secrecy, the Mainichi has learnt. A plan to disclose the amount these agencies pay to their employees, including severance pay for retiring executives, will be presented sometime Monday to a government reform panel. The information to be publicized is expected to include the salaries other organizations doing similar work pay their employees to prevent the former public bodies excessively rewarding their workers, especially retired mandarins occupying top jobs. Transforming money-draining governmental research institutes and public corporations into more budget-conscious independent administrative agencies was one of the top priorities of Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi's reform agenda. Sixty-two such agencies have been created since April 2001 and they will be joined by 30 new entities next month following the abolition and merger of public corporations, many of which provide cushy post-retirement jobs for high-ranking national government bureaucrats, a practice known in Japanese as "Amakudari." The government hoped that the reforms would force the new agencies to restructure themselves and shed dead wood. However, several surveys conducted last year showed that the opposite was the truth. A Mainichi study conducted in November last year revealed that the number of senior officials at 59 administrative agencies has skyrocketed from 93 to a whopping 286. Another survey conducted at around the same time by the largest opposition party, the Democratic Party of Japan, showed that the heads of 11 independent administrative agencies receive an annual salary of over 20 million yen. Faced with these facts, the government was under pressure to introduce measures to make their cost-cutting efforts more effective before public corporations are transformed into independent administrative agencies in October this year. Under the government plan, the names of retiring executives won't be publicized alongside the amount of their severance payments. Instead, the periods of their employment will be disclosed to make it easy for observers to identify who collected how much. Moreover, salaries for employees will be published alongside corresponding figures for national government bureaucrats, fellow administrative agencies as well as private companies. The government intends to disclose the data through independent administrative agency publications and Internet homepages early next year.
From Mainichi Shimbun 09/01/2003
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Japan Plans Biometric Passports
Japan will introduce biometric passports in about a year to work with the United States to combat terrorism, officials in Tokyo said this weekend. This is a response to Washington's decision not to grant visa waivers after October 2004 to people with non-biometric passports. It is not without political cost, because recent moves toward national IDs in Japan have drawn criticism and concern about Big Brotherism. The passports will be smart cards, the chips inside them holding fingerprints, retina scan data or other biometrics to confirm identity. Japan is one of 27 countries that do not require visas for its residents to enter the United States for short stays.
From http://pacific.bizjournals.com/ 09/01/2003
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Koizumi's Failings Linked to Inflexible Fiscal Policy
Some economists compare it to trying to lose weight by fasting when the real solution is exercise, while others talk about repairing an airplane's altimeter when it's the engine that needs attention. However you look at it, Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi's economic policy has failed to turn around Japan's stagnant economy. When Koizumi became prime minister in April 2001, backed by record approval ratings, he promised to restrain the rapidly ballooning fiscal debt and pledged a clear departure from his predecessors' heavy dependence on huge public works spending. "The economy will not recover without structural reforms," he said, and promised to help spur new industries and introduce competition to areas that have long been strictly regulated -- such as education, medical services and social welfare. His efforts were largely unsuccessful, however, meeting with strong opposition from the old guard within his party and bureaucrats with influence over such sectors. Economists meanwhile say Koizumi has been shackled by the numerical goals he set to limit budget deficits. The lack of flexibility in his fiscal policy resulted in a failure to beef up the business sectors needed to act as the nation's main economic engine. "Koizumi has relied too heavily on the ideal of a balanced budget," said Kenji Yumoto, chief senior economist of Japan Research Institute Ltd. Japan's current fiscal debt has hit the dizzying height of 450 trillion yen -- equal to 11 years of tax revenue. If stacked in bundles of 10,000 yen bills, according to the Finance Ministry, the amount would tower 500 times higher than Mount Everest. To stop the red ink from flowing, Koizumi declared a cap on new government bond issues at 30 trillion yen for fiscal 2001. But he was forced to back down when the government compiled a supplementary budget in late 2002, announcing it would issue nearly 5 trillion yen in new government bonds, partly to finance economic stimulus measures. Due to dwindling tax revenues amid the ongoing recession and the increasing social welfare burden created by the nation's aging population, new bond issues are expected to reach 36.4 trillion yen in the current fiscal year -- almost half the size of the national budget. Koizumi's other numerical target also appears unreachable. The prime minister hopes to realize a primary budget balance -- a condition in which expenditures excluding debt-servicing costs are fully covered by tax revenues -- in the early 2010s. But Japan is expected to post a primary budget deficit of 19.6 trillion yen in fiscal 2003, up from a deficit of 18.9 trillion yen the previous year. In fiscal 2001, the deficit was 13.7 trillion yen. "Costs for social services grow about 1 trillion yen every year," Yumoto said. "So in reality, the government needs to cut public works and other spending by as much as 3 trillion yen each year to secure the primary balance in the early 2010s." The initial national budget slipped 1.5 trillion yen to 81.2 trillion yen in fiscal 2002, only to grow to 81.8 trillion yen this fiscal year. If the government continues to put off making drastic cuts to expenditures, economists have warned, it will eventually have to raise the consumption tax, a major source of tax revenue for the national budget. Hiroshi Okuda, chairman of the Japan Business Federation (Nippon Keidanren), expressed serious concerns about the nation's health in January. He proposed raising the consumption tax by 1 percentage point every year beginning in fiscal 2004 until it hits 16 percent in fiscal 2014. But Koizumi, apparently hoping to maintain his popular support, shrugged off the proposal. He has repeatedly said that a tax increase will not happen while he is in office. Naoyuki Yoshino, a professor of economics at Keio University, said the country's bond issues have almost reached the saturation point in terms of the future burden of interest payments. This could lead to a sharp tax increase in the future, he said. Japan Research's Yumoto said the government should not be so closely focused on limiting budget deficits with numerical targets while the country remains mired in the economic doldrums. "Basically speaking, the government should freeze a cap on budget deficits when the economy starts to shrink," he said. "But Koizumi has stuck to his fiscal goals, even while the economy is in a state of deflation. So the government failed to allocate enough budgetary funds for economic stimulus measures." Various economic data have turned south during the past 2 1/2 years. In response, Koizumi released three economic-stimulus packages, featuring steps to create jobs, support small and midsize businesses and promote information technology. These steps have had little effect on the economic data, however. Japan's real gross domestic product -- which stood at 3.2 percent in fiscal 2000, the year before the launch of Koizumi's first Cabinet -- sank to minus 1.2 percent in fiscal 2001. In fiscal 2002 it was 1.6 percent. Meanwhile, the unemployment rate on a monthly basis leaped to a record 5.5 percent twice last year and in January this year. And in April, stock prices on the Nikkei average tumbled to 7,607.88, the lowest level in more than 20 years. In August, the Nikkei had recovered to above 10,000 but remained below the level seen when Koizumi came into office. Economists have welcomed the fact that Koizumi has not resorted to economic-stimulus measures, blindly injecting money into public works projects such as highways, airports and bridges like his predecessors. Public works spending for fiscal 2003 stands at about 8 trillion yen, down more than 1 trillion yen from fiscal 2000. The current level is close to that of fiscal 1992. But Naohiko Jinno, a professor at Tokyo University, believes Koizumi's reduction in public works spending has received more credit than it deserves. "His stance (on public works) merely returned to what old leaders did in the 1980s," he said. Koizumi's moderate reduction in such spending was no different to what past leaders of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party had done for several years in the past, he said. In 1984, the government said it would balance the budget without tax increases and cut annual spending for public works by about 2 percent each year. This austere policy continued until 1990, when the asset-inflated bubble economy burst, Jinno said. He said the priority of any economic policy is to find the real cause of the ongoing recession and bring about economic recovery. This would result in an increase in tax revenue, he said. Jinno said that privatization, as Koizumi has advocated, will not lift the economy. The government must find new industries that can drive the economy, he said. As an example, Jinno said the government must boost investment to create value-added products, such as information technology and intellectual property rights, while allocating a greater proportion of the budget to promoting science and education. (by Hiroko Nakata)
From The Japan Times 09/02/2003
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Lawmaker Wants Transplant Law Revised
Six years after the implementation of the Organ Transplant Law, moves are afoot to alter one of its core conditions for using organs from brain-dead donors -- the donor's prior consent. Lawmakers (from left) Shunichi Yamaguchi, Taro Nakayama and Taro Kono announce the results of a survey of Diet members regarding the Organ Transplant Law on July 28. Heading the movement is Taro Kono, a member of the House of Representatives who made headlines by donating part of his liver to his father, former Foreign Minister Yohei Kono, in a transplant operation last year. Since the law took effect in 1997, there have only been 23 organ transplants from brain-dead donors. Some medical experts who say the legislation is meaningless unless the strict conditions are eased see Kono's actions as a chance for the law to be revised. "The fact is, in the world of Japanese medicine, there is no way to save a patient other than to slit open the belly of a perfectly healthy person and remove an organ," Kono told a nonpartisan gathering of Diet members studying bioethics issues in late July. The issue of transplants from brain-dead donors was so controversial that political parties allowed lawmakers to vote on the legislation based on their own conscience, rather than along party lines. Several stiff conditions were put in place to ensure that the process would be ethical and transparent. As a result, according to critics, the chances of receiving an organ from a brain-dead donor in Japan are very slim. But the alternative -- live donor transplants -- can hurt a healthy person, Kono said. Kono has submitted to the Liberal Democratic Party's committee on brain death, bioethics and organ transplants a draft of amendments to the Organ Transplant Law that would enable organs to be transplanted with the consent of the family of the deceased. The transplant operation would proceed only if there was no clear indication that the person did not want his or her organs to be donated. Also under the amendments, children could become organ donors. At present, the law bans organ donations from people under 15, effectively closing the door to children who require transplants and forcing them to seek medical help overseas. A government survey conducted last year showed that only 9 percent of people surveyed had cards indicating their consent to donating organs in the event of brain death. Under such circumstances, according to critics, it is unlikely that the number of organ transplants from brain-dead people will increase anytime soon. Easing the criteria so that familial consent would suffice would help make up for the small number of people who have expressed their willingness to make an organ donation, Kono said. But the idea has met with stiff opposition from lawmakers across the political spectrum. Many see the "personal consent" requirement as one of the major pillars of the law and are hesitant to review it. The LDP panel has not accepted Kono's proposal, and it has been put on the back burner. "Securing the consent of the individual is the foundation of the transplant law," said Takashi Yamamoto of the opposition Democratic Party of Japan. "If it is to be scrapped from the list of conditions, it should not be done through amendments to the law but should instead require the drafting of new legislation." Yamamoto, an opponent of transplants from brain-dead donors, said Japan's present medical environment does not allow patients to gain sufficient information regarding their condition. They are at a disadvantage compared to doctors, he said. "If the individual's intentions are not respected, they may be forced into donating organs even if it is not what they wish," he said. The health ministry has meanwhile made no active effort to study the issue, especially as the political schedule is unclear with a general election rumored for the fall. "Prior consent was one of the most pivotal issues when the law was enacted, and it would be difficult to change it," a Health, Labor and Welfare Ministry official said.
From The Japan Times 09/02/2003
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Nagano Bans Smoking in Public Facilities
NAGANO - Nagano Gov Yasuo Tanaka on Tuesday put into effect a plan to ban smoking at nearly all prefectural public facilities in the first such blanket prohibition in Japan. Tanaka told a press conference the ban would enter into effect at 2 p.m. Tuesday. He said he has asked the prefectural assembly to cooperate and expressed hope that boards of education will also ban smoking at public elementary and junior high schools.
From http://www.japantoday.com/ 09/10/2003
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Koizumi Makes Abe No. 2
Longtime ally Taku Yamasaki gets pushed aside in the political wheeling and dealing. Flush from his re-election victory as head of the Liberal Democratic Party, Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi went into combat mode Sunday with a stunning political appointment. He picked Shinzo Abe, deputy chief Cabinet secretary, as LDP secretary-general. It makes Abe, 49, the second most powerful figure in the party even though he is only in his third term as a Lower House member. The appointment was seen as a strategic move ahead of the Lower House election expected in the fall. Abe will be at the center of decisions on who receives an official LDP endorsement and campaign funds for that election. The appointment amounted to a bombshell. Koizumi won re-election on Saturday. One thing Abe has in common with Koizumi is popularity among the public. Abe, point man for the government's dealings with North Korea, has advocated a tough stance against Pyongyang. With public opinion decidedly against North Korea over the abduction issue, Abe's hawkish stance should appeal to voters. Abe is a political thoroughbred. His father, Shintaro, was a former foreign minister often mentioned as a possible prime minister before his death in May 1991. His grandfather, Nobusuke Kishi, was prime minister from 1957 until 1960. To make way for Abe, Koizumi pushed his political ally Taku Yamasaki into the largely ceremonial post of party vice president. Koizumi had wanted to retain Yamasaki as secretary-general, but he could not ignore growing calls to remove him before the Lower House election, due to a scandal involving an alleged mistress, and because he failed to press the party's stand on policy to the government. Mikio Aoki, LDP Upper House caucus secretary-general, and former Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori met with Koizumi on Friday night and gave him an ultimatum-either Yamasaki goes or they would resign their posts and stop cooperating. Mori threatened to step down as faction leader if Koizumi did not listen. Koizumi did not want to appear as if he was bending to those in the party who may not be totally behind his structural reform policies. Aoki, for one, has openly criticized Koizumi's plan to privatize the postal system. As a compromise, Yamasaki was kept on as a party vice president and the selection of the much younger Abe likely threw many political heavyweights off balance. Koizumi also rounded out his top party picks on Sunday. He retained Mitsuo Horiuchi as chairman of the General Council and named Fukushiro Nukaga as chairman of the Policy Research Council. Horiuchi came out in support of Koizumi before the LDP campaign started even though some elements of his faction were opposed to Koizumi. While Nukaga is an up-and-coming member of the faction headed by former Prime Minister Ryutaro Hashimoto, he also has close ties with Aoki and supported Koizumi in his re-election bid. Nukaga's appointment strengthens the Koizumi-Aoki alliance.
From http://www.asahi.com/ 09/22/2003
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Koizumi to Extend Antiterror Law
TOKYO - Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi will resolve in his policy speech to the Diet to have a law on Japan's cooperation in the U.S.-led fight against terrorism extended for two years before its Nov 1 expiration, government sources said Tuesday. In the speech to be given Friday on the opening day of the extraordinary parliamentary session, Koizumi will also pledge to provide his utmost support for the reconstruction of Iraq, including financial contributions, the sources said. (Kyodo News)
From http://news.japantoday.com/ 09/24/2003
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Ishiba Willing to Revise Defense Outline
TOKYO - Japan's defense chief Shigeru Ishiba expressed his willingness Wednesday to revise the defense plan outline, saying Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi has instructed him to seek ways to deal with terrorists and ballistic missiles. "If the government as a whole is for reviewing the defense plan outline, we would like to provide materials for discussions and to review it," Defense Agency Director General Ishiba said. (Kyodo News)
From http://news.japantoday.com/ 09/25/2003
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Labor-Management Roadmap Issued
It will be easier next year for companies to respond to labor strikes with lockouts and for public businesses to employ substitute workers when their unions strike, the Ministry of Labor said Thursday. The ministry released its roadmap for improving labor-management relations Thursday and sent it to the Korea Tripartite Commission. The ministry said that if the commission failed to reach an agreement on the proposal by the end of this year, the related laws would be amended during the first half of next year. The roadmap will also make it easier for unions working in essential industries such as waterworks, power, communications and oil-refining to strike. The clause calling for arbitration by authorities before a strike will be removed, enabling the unions to start start legal strikes more easily, as long as they respect the minimum requirement prior to striking. Also, the workers who work full-time for the union will still be allowed to receive limited payment assistance. The ministry's roadmap will grant companies more flexibility in laying off workers. It deleted the regulation calling for companies to be subject to prosecution for wrongful discharges, and guaranteed expedited negotiations when companies discharge workers for management reasons. At the same time, the roadmap also guaranteed basic labor rights to union members. The ministry also announced three steps for reforming the labor-management relationship: minimizing the costs caused by labor disputes, constructing a stable labor market and alleviating the gap between the working classes. The ministry also said police forces will be mobilized once strikers occupy companies' major facilities or block their entrances. The Labor Ministry's announcement, however, is expected to stir up controversy until the roadmap is legislated, as both labor and management expressed strong opposition to it. The ministry officials who designed the roadmap said additional reformation plans will be reported to the government in the near future. (by Moon Gap-sik)
From http://english.chosun.com/ 09/04/2003
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Aging Population and Policy Shift
United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan says in his report to the UN Millennium Summit, ``Governments must review their policies to make sure they are not denying their people the opportunities offered by the digital revolution.'' Nitin Desai, UN under-secretary-general for economic and social affairs, states, ``It is in the interests of those who have the technology to transfer it... 80 percent of the world's population on the wrong side of the divide represents a huge untapped market for those on the right side.'' It is significant that the UN is seriously taking the issue of the global gap between the IT haves and have-nots. Despite the collapse of many dotcoms in 2000 that fuelled the techno-euphoria of the late 90s, the low period for the dotcoms industry is the correction process of the initial bubble in the high-tech industry and an adjustment to the financial market's infrastructure. The continuing productivity gains of dotcoms will generate economic growth. However, the consequential digital divide will increasingly widen between nations and within nations. Today's digital divide is certainly the risk that we face and must overcome. Of many socio-economic issues following the digital divide, an issue of implication from the ageing baby boom generation is serious indeed, as they began moving past the age group of 55 since 2001. In most industrialized nations, the number of people over the age of 60 will triple by 2030, creating a ``retirement crunch.'' Susan Jacoby writes in a column for the AARP Bulletin, ``Only a generation ago, many experts were predicting that the United States, with its rapidly aging population, might someday come to resemble a vast nursing home. Conventional wisdom held that increased longevity would inevitably produce a sicker and frailer population. But then the unexpected happened: disability rates among older Americans started declining dramatically _ and at an accelerating pace.`` A study by AARP's Public Policy Institute concludes that US nursing homes have roughly 500,000 fewer residents than would have been expected had rates of use held steady over the past 20 years _ a 26 percent decline roughly in line with the decline in disability rates.'' Dr T. Franklin Williams, the director of the American Federation for Aging Research, says in the same AARP Bulletin, ``Today's healthy 70-year-olds are doing what 50-year-olds did a generation or two ago. It's not about how long people live but about how well they're able to live.'' Another report from the Center for Retirement Research at Boston College claims about a 2 percent increase in the participation rate of the labor force among older workers this year, mainly due to the shrinking retirement savings of millions of older people. Average life expectancies have risen from 46 to 66 years over the past 50 years and there has been a steady drop in the retirement age in most Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development countries. Consider the rapidly aging Korean society in general. The traditional pension plans in Korea are in their infant stage and individual savings and family support are the main means of income for the elderly. It is also increasingly difficult to find and keep a job for older workers in Korea. This places a tremendous burden on the nation's infant retirement pension and safety net welfare programs. The early retirement of an aging population and long life expectancies are causing a large-scale potential social cost and loss of economic productivity of the labor force. Korea is no exception to this and it must be prepared for the onslaught of change, ``a revolutionary shakeup within the economic structure.'' Policymakers of the Roh administration must be aware of this and need to implement a paradigm shift in its policies. All decision makers during the new phase of Korean democracy must be more pragmatic, more inquisitive in thinking and skeptical about the ``doctrinaire economic rationalism.'' A new range of social infrastructure must be established to accommodate revolutionary change in demographic composition. Both the government and community must attend to the negative impact from the digital divide that we have. The Korean government must take a serious approach in reshaping the quality of the labor force. The training and portable education to meet the change in the world would only make them adjust to new paradigms. A positive attempt to block the wasting of enriched human resources of the aging generation must be in place. The social infrastructure and economic environment must encourage them to stay on in the workforce as great users of technology. The impact of the digital divide must be absorbed by a national strategy of human resources. This demands a significant shift in policy. The new Korean government must firmly address the issue of the digital divide and reach out beyond the nation's boundaries. (by Sohn Hong-keun)
From The Korea Times 09/09/2003
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Security Law Violations Decrease
The number of South Koreans charged with violating laws prohibiting pro-North Korean activities dropped to 48 in the first half of the year from 506 in 1999, the Ministry of Justice said yesterday. In a report to the legislation and judiciary committee of the National Assembly, the ministry said the number of citizens who violated the National Security Law fell to 231 last year from 247 in 2001.The ministry expected the number to reach the lowest level this year since 1999.Under the law, South Koreans are strictly prohibited from taking part in pro-North Korean activities or making unauthorized trips to the North. The percentage of those accused of violations but not indicted dipped to 19 percent this year after staying at the 30-percent level from 1999 to last year. However, the percentage of violators taken into custody soared to 72.9 percent in the first half of the year from 56.7 percent last year, 51.1 percent in 2001, 45.5 percent in 2000 and 61.7 percent in 1999.
From The Korea Times 09/09/2003
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Bill on Merged Exchange to Be Submitted in Nov
The government plans to submit a bill on the establishment of a merged exchange to the National Assembly in November, as part of its move to consolidate the nation's three equity and futures exchanges. The Ministry of Finance and Economy said on Tuesday (Sept. 23) that it will make public the proposed bill on Wednesday and hold a public hearing on Oct. 10 at the Korea Stock Exchange. The Securities Trading Act and the Futures Trading Act are also expected to be revised under the new bill. The new unified exchange is to be based in the southern port city of Busan and will manage the operation of underlying securities, the Kosdaq market and the futures market. It will take up the current responsibilities of the Korea Stock Exchange, Korea Futures Exchange, Kosdaq Stock Market, Korea Stock Dealers Association and the Kosdaq Committee.
From http://www.kois.go.kr/ 09/23/2003
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