14th September 09

The Sydney Morning Herald

Australia can still enjoy the ride as Chinese stimulus wears off

The Chinese leadership has unleashed the most dramatic economic stimulus experiment the world has seen, and it has worked. The next trick, as publicly recognised by a long line of policy makers beginning with the Premier, Wen Jiabao, is to engineer an exit strategy that enables growth to be more ''balanced'' self-sustaining.

The New York Times

China Weighs Tariffs on Some U.S. Exports as Tensions Rise

HONG KONG — China unexpectedly ratcheted up pressure on the United States in a widening trade dispute on Sunday evening, taking steps toward imposing tariffs on American exports of automotive products and chicken meat in retaliation for President Obama’s decision late Friday to levy tariffs on tires.

Chinese Police Detain Former Coke Employee on Bribery Accusations

SHANGHAI — Police here have detained a former Coca-Cola bottling plant employee they accuse of corruption and bribery while working at the company. The detention of the employee from the Shanghai Shen-Mei Beverage & Food Company, a bottling plant partly owned by Coca-Cola, was reported over the weekend by China’s state run news media, which said the employee took about $1.5 million in bribes.

Asia Times Online

China's military comes to terms with its past
By Alexander Casella

While the leaders of China's People's Liberation Army (PLA) have always put considerable stress on the need to ensure that its troops be properly motivated, communicating with the outside world has never been of particular concern to them. But this has changed. China's Ministry of Defense has now set up a website in English with the obvious purpose of presenting to the international community a more comprehensive and positive image of its past.

ASIA HAND
Chinese shadow over Vietnamese repression
By Shawn W Crispin

A crackdown on anti-China sentiment in Vietnam signals factional politicking inside the ruling Communist Party ahead of the next National Congress and has drawn critical attention to the China-aligned General Department II (GD II), a controversial and semi-autonomous intelligence unit tasked with monitoring threats to domestic security.

NGOs tread lightly on China's turf
By Stephanie Wang

CHANGSHA, China - As part of plans to promote "small government and big society", to accelerate towards a market economy, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has let certain non-governmental organizations (NGOs) become involved in some government functions, such as disaster relief, social work, welfare and legal aid.