China needs a development path that suits its reality — Xi Jinping |
- China needs a development path that suits its reality — Xi Jinping
- Canada Grand Prix: Team by team analysis
- Rosberg looks on the bright side
- Intimidation will not break us
- Adding teeth to killer litter laws ‘may have toothless effect’
- Nadal braced for new Wimbledon rollercoaster
| China needs a development path that suits its reality — Xi Jinping Posted: 08 Jun 2014 05:53 PM PDT
Let me use this opportunity to describe to you what a country China is. I hope it will be helpful to you as you try to observe, understand and study China. Of course, a thorough account of the country would be too big a topic for today, so I will focus just on the following few features. Source of Chinese pride First, China has a time-honoured civilisation. Of the world's ancient civilisations, the Chinese civilisation has continued uninterrupted to this day. In fact, it has spanned over 5,000 years. The Chinese characters invented by our ancestors several millennia ago are still used today. More than 2,000 years ago, there was an era of great intellectual accomplishments in China, referred to as "the period of 100 masters and schools of thought". Great thinkers such as Laozi, Confucius and Mozi, to name a few, explored a wide range of topics from the universe to the Earth and from man's relations with nature to relations among human beings and that between the individual and society. The extensive and profound schools of thought they established covered many important ideas, such as the moral injunction of fidelity to one's parents and brothers as well as to the monarch and friends, the sense of propriety, justice, integrity and honour, the emphasis on benevolence and kindness towards fellow human beings and the belief that man should be in harmony with nature, follow nature's course and unremittingly pursue self-renewal. These values and teachings still carry a profound impact on the Chinese people's way of life today, underpinning the unique value system in the Chinese outlook of the world, of society and of life. And this unique and time-honoured intellectual legacy has instilled a strong sense of national confidence in the Chinese people and nurtured a national spirit with patriotism at the very core. Charting own development path Second, China has gone through many vicissitudes. For several thousand years before the Industrial Revolution, the country had been leading the world in economic, technological and cultural development. However, feudal rulers of the 18th and 19th centuries closed the country's door in boastful ignorance and China was since left behind in the trend of development. The country became a semi-colonial and semi-feudal society. As a result of incessant foreign invasions thereafter, China experienced great social turmoil and its people had to lead a life of extreme destitution. Poverty prompted the call for change and people experiencing turmoil aspired for stability. After a hundred years of persistent and unyielding struggle, the Chinese people, sacrificing tens of millions of lives, ultimately took their destiny back into their hands. Nevertheless, the memory of foreign invasion and bullying has never been erased from the minds of the Chinese people and that explains why we cherish so dearly the life we lead today. The Chinese people want peace; we do not want war. This is the reason China follows an independent foreign policy of peace. The nation is committed to non-interference in other countries' internal affairs and will not allow others to interfere in its affairs. This is the position we have upheld in the past; it is what we will continue to uphold in the future. Third, China is a socialist country with Chinese characteristics. In 1911, the revolution led by Dr Sun Yat-sen overthrew the autocratic monarchy that had ruled China for several thousand years. However, once the old system was gone, where the country would go became the question. The Chinese people then started exploring long and hard for a path that would suit China's national conditions. They experimented with constitutional monarchy, imperial restoration, parliamentarism, a multi-party system and presidential government, yet nothing really worked. Finally, China took on the path of socialism. Admittedly, in the process of implementing socialism, we have had a successful experience and also made mistakes. We have even suffered serious setbacks. After the "reform and opening up" were launched under Mr Deng Xiaoping's leadership, we have, acting in line with China's national conditions and the trend of the times, explored and blazed a trail of development and established socialism with Chinese characteristics. Our aim is to build a socialist market economy, democracy, an advanced culture, a harmonious society and a sound eco-system, uphold social equity and justice, promote all-round development of the people, pursue peaceful development, complete the building of a moderately prosperous society in all respects and eventually achieve modernisation and ensure prosperity for all. The uniqueness of China's cultural tradition, history and circumstances determines that the nation needs to follow a development path that suits its reality. In fact, we have found such a path and achieved success along it. Putting China's size in perspective Fourth, China is the world's biggest developing country. It has made historic progress in development and is now the second-largest economy in the world. It has achieved in several decades what took developed countries several centuries to achieve. This is, without doubt, a proud achievement for a country whose population exceeds 1.3 billion. We are also clearly aware that the large size of the Chinese economy, when divided by 1.3 billion, sends China to around the 80th place in terms of per capita GDP. In China, more than 74 million people rely on basic living allowances. Each year, more than 10 million urbanites join the job market and several hundred million rural people need to be transferred to non-agricultural jobs and settle down in urban areas. More than 85 million people are with disabilities, while more than 200 million people are still living under the poverty line set by the World Bank — that is roughly the population of France, Germany and the United Kingdom combined. In the 40-day-long season of the last Chinese New Year, China's airlines, railroads and highways transported 3.6 billion passengers, which means 90 million people were on the move each day. Therefore, making the lives of the 1.3 billion Chinese people more comfortable requires arduous efforts for years to come. Economic development remains the top priority for China and we still need to work on that basis to achieve social progress in all areas. Courage to reform Fifth, China is a country undergoing profound changes. Our ancestors taught us that "as heaven maintains vigour through movement, a gentleman should constantly strive for self-perfection" and that "if one can make things better for a day, he should make them better every day". Being faced with fierce international competition is like sailing against the current. One forges ahead or falls behind. Reform, which was first forced upon us by problems, goes deeper in addressing the problems. We know keenly that reform and opening up are on-going processes that will never stop. China's reform has entered a deep-water zone, where problems crying to be resolved are all difficult. What we need is the courage to move the reform forward. To use a Chinese saying, we must "get ready to go into the mountain, being fully aware that there may be tigers to encounter". The principle we have laid down for reform is to act with courage while moving forward with steady steps. As we say in China, he who wants to accomplish a big and difficult undertaking should start with easier things first and make sure all details are attended to. With the deepening of reform, China will continue to undergo profound changes. I believe our efforts of deepening reform comprehensively will not only provide strong momentum for China's modernisation drive, but also bring new development opportunities to the world. To observe and understand China properly, one needs to bear in mind both its past and present, and draw reference from both its accomplishments and the Chinese way of thinking. The 5,000-year-long Chinese civilisation, the 170-year struggle by the Chinese people since modern times, the longer than 90-year journey of the Communist Party of China, the 60-plus-year development of the People's Republic and the 30-plus-year reform and opening up should all be taken into account. They each make up an integral part of China's history and none should be taken out of the historical context. One can hardly understand China well without a proper understanding of its history and culture, the Chinese people's way of thinking and the profound changes taking place in China today. The world's development is multidimensional and its history is never a linear movement. China cannot copy the political systems or development models of other countries as they would not fit us and may even lead to catastrophic consequences. The Chinese people, more than 2,000 years ago, had come to understand this from a simple fact that the tasty orange, grown in southern China, would turn sour once it is grown in the north. The leaves may look the same, but the fruits taste quite different, because the north means a different location and climate. — TODAY * This is the personal opinion of the writer or publication and does not necessarily represent the views of The Malay Mail Online.  |
| Canada Grand Prix: Team by team analysis Posted: 08 Jun 2014 05:50 PM PDT
MERCEDES (Nico Rosberg 2, Lewis Hamilton retired) Rosberg started from pole and extended his overall lead from four to 22 points with his fifth second place in seven races. Mercedes failed to win for the first time this season. Hamilton suffered his second retirement of 2014, this time with a rear brake problem after banging wheels with Rosberg. RED BULL (Daniel Ricciardo 1, Sebastian Vettel 3) Ricciardo's first Formula One victory and third successive podium after two third places. Red Bull's first victory of the season, ending their longest win drought (six races) since 2009, and second in a row in Canada after Vettel last year. Ricciardo, now third overall, is the first Australian winner since Mark Webber in 2012. Also Renault's first win with the new V6 turbo. FERRARI (Fernando Alonso 6, Kimi Raikkonen 10) Alonso picked up some lucky points thanks to retirements ahead of him and took heart in Red Bull's improvement since the start of the season. Raikkonen said he had a problem with the brakes and handling of his car. FORCE INDIA (Nico Hulkenberg 5, Sergio Perez 11/retired) Perez, on a one-stop strategy, ran as high as second place and challenged for the lead before having problems with an electrical issue and then colliding with Massa, for which he collected a five place grid penalty for the next race. Hulkenberg was also on a one-stop and continued his record of scoring in every race so far this year. MCLAREN (Jenson Button 4, Kevin Magnussen 9) Button went from eighth to fourth in the space of two laps at the end. Magnussen spent 22 laps behind Vergne. McLaren pulled clear of Williams. WILLIAMS (Valtteri Bottas 7, Felipe Massa 12/retired) Massa set the fastest lap of the race and was chasing Perez for fourth, and his best result of the season, when he rammed into the back of the Force India on the final lap, a crash the stewards blamed on the Mexican for changing his line. Bottas suffered from high brake and engine temperatures. TORO ROSSO (Jean-Eric Vergne 8, Daniil Kvyat retired) Vergne hailed his race as possible the best of his F1 career so far, and gained a position on Alonso at the start. He scored his first points since the opener in Australia. Kvyat suffered a drive train failure and stopped on track. LOTUS (Romain Grosjean and Pastor Maldonado retired) Double retirement for Lotus. Maldonado suffered a power unit failure on lap 21 while Grosjean damaged his car's rear wing and retired in lap 59. MARUSSIA (Jules Bianchi and Max Chilton retired) After scoring the team's first points in F1 at the previous race in Monaco, Bianchi did not even complete a lap after being rammed by team mate Chilton, who was handed a five place penalty for the next race for causing the turn four collision. SAUBER (Adrian Sutil 13, Esteban Gutierrez 14/retired) Still no points for the Swiss team. Sutil drove an uneventful race and was lapped while Gutierrez stopped near the end with an energy storage system problem. CATERHAM (Kamui Kobayashi and Marcus Ericsson retired) Kobayashi had a rear suspension problem, Ericsson retired to save the engine after a problem with a pipe connected to the turbo. — Reuters |
| Rosberg looks on the bright side Posted: 08 Jun 2014 05:46 PM PDT
The 28-year-old German said that he was pleased with his points-haul in a race that saw Mercedes team-mate and title rival Briton Lewis Hamilton retire with brake and power problems. "When you lose ERS (Energy Recovery System) it doesn't harvest anymore, then any braking is done by rear braking, so that is why the rear brakes overheated," said Rosberg. "That made it massively difficult. "I needed to cool the brakes and lost speed on the straights. I was able to hold off the pack behind me until two laps until the end so it's still a really good result. "I was trying to hold on, doing qualifying laps all the time, but it didn't work out against Daniel." Rosberg said the issues showed that Mercedes still had work to do to improve reliability. "We need to keep pushing," he said. "We need to make sure that we are bulletproof." Hamilton meanwhile blamed his early-race battle with Rosberg for the brake problems that finally ended his challenge. Hamilton and Rosberg were locked in a close and dramatic fight for the lead until they both began to suffer from Energy Recovery System problems that also led, in the end, to them losing speed. "I was following him and when you're following someone you're gaining more heat," said Hamilton. "He was in clean air all the time in front. "There was not much I could do. When I came out in front, everything was cooked already." Hamilton said he was informed soon after his first pit-stop that both he and Rosberg had mechanical problems. "We knew as a team that we had some issues in the second stint, but we thought we would be able to manage it," he said. "I got him in the (second) stop and was thinking 'finally, wow, what an amazing feeling'. Then straight away on that lap the brakes failed." Championship leader Rosberg nursed his wounded car home in second place behind Ricciardo, a result that has lifted him 22 points clear of Hamilton. "The team still got 18 points so we'll move on and hope we don't have any more DNFs," said Hamilton. "I've had a lot of work to do since race one (when he retired in Melbourne)." — AFP |
| Intimidation will not break us Posted: 08 Jun 2014 05:44 PM PDT
It can be in the number of hits, likes, shares and retweets an article gets online to a problem raised getting the attention of the authorities. As the oldest daily in the country, Malay Mail, which was first published in 1896, has been the voice of the people for over a century. Solving bread and butter issues affecting men on the street is our forte. From potholes being covered, street lights that finally shine brightly to stopping illegal sand-mining activities in residential areas, these are among the numerous woes the paper has helped resolved over the years. And nothing is more satisfying for its journalists than receiving a thank you note for helping someone in need. However, we have been penalised on many occasions. Our journalists have been harassed and even assaulted for speaking up for the people. Last Tuesday, a group of thugs rounded up Malay Mail's editor emeritus Frankie D'Cruz. Frankie, who was alone on his way for breakfast, was pulled into a backlane at a business centre in Taman Danau Desa where he was assaulted by five men. They warned him to "stop ruining businesses by writing further reports", believed to be related to several issues which we have been highlighting in the area and Old Klang Road in recent weeks. The act showed the ugly side of Malaysians who would resort to scare tactics and violence when at fault. Community leaders condemned the episode, saying it was not only an attack against the profession but also an attack against people — who have been raising their grouses through the paper. Even authorities echoed similar sentiments as Kuala Lumpur mayor Datuk Seri Ahmad Phesal Talib assured action will be taken against those who broke the law. Two wrongs do not make a right. Thugs who attack those who speak for the community are just like keyboard warriors who make (read: type) antagonistic remarks while hiding behind the four walls of their homes. They find an alter ego in the virtual world, hoping to make a statement. Their aim is the same — to intimidate and blow hot air to their overly inflated ego while preying on those who they think are weak. These gutless "thugs" will continue to invade our society and will go on doing what they do best — undermine and intimidate everyone that goes against their stand. But we will not be cowed by their sheer ugliness. This is beyond Frankie and Malay Mail. This is dedicated to journalists and media establishments who speak for the community. Rest assured, we will continue going to the ground and be your voice as we are here to do our jobs. We are here to stay. As our Friday frontpage headline read: "Thuggery won't silence us!" * This is the personal opinion of the columnist. |
| Adding teeth to killer litter laws ‘may have toothless effect’ Posted: 08 Jun 2014 05:41 PM PDT
Despite government efforts to raise awareness of this public-safety issue — including taking a hard line, such as the option of repossessing an offender's flat — high-rise littering remains a persistent concern and is, in fact, a growing problem in some estates, said Members of Parliament (MPs). This year alone, there had been several media reports on injuries sustained from killer litter, as well as near misses, before MahaniAbdullah's death on Friday in the Eunos case. In January, two men were arrested for throwing out a sofa that narrowly missed a passer-by and, in the following month, three youths were arrested for hurling plastic bottles that injured a four-year-old boy. While recent letters to newspapers have called for penalties to again be enhanced to include mandatory caning, for instance, MPs said adding teeth to laws might have limited effect, given that identifying culprits, let alone catching them red-handed, is a challenge. Even installing surveillance cameras in areas where there have been complaints — the most common course of action taken — has not proven to be a guaranteed solution. "Some perpetrators are very elusive and play cat-and-mouse games with enforcers. (They) can even restrain themselves during the period when the CCTV cameras are installed," said Penny Low, MP for Pasir Ris-Punggol. The use of surveillance cameras to curb high-rise littering started in August 2012. Despite being deployed at close to 700 locations since then, only 95 litterbugs have been caught on camera. Even Environment and Water Resources Minister Vivian Balakrishnan conceded that high-rise litterbugs are difficult to nab — only 19 offenders from more than 1,300 complaints were prosecuted last year — when Parliament debated enhancing penalties for littering-related offences in February. MPs TODAY spoke to suggested alternative measures that might work better. Christopher de Souza, MP for Holland-Bukit Timah, for instance, said litter thrown from height could be left strewn at void decks for a while, so the visual impact of, say, smashed bottles would shock residents into thinking about the consequences of someone being hit. De Souza said that, only last week, there was a case of killer litter in his constituency, where a condominium resident threw a large object through his window, sending it and broken glass smashing into a car. "I think if we have to rely on penalties, half the battle is lost. I think what we should really be doing is expressing concern on the ground, in the community, about the ill effects of killer litter," he added. Agreeing, Low said: "You can have all this deterrence, but you deter people from doing something only when they're being watched. It's not part of their culture; not part of their habits." The most effective type of deterrence would be "to cultivate civic consciousness (and) education and build good habits from young", she added. For recalcitrant offenders, Lee Bee Wah, MP for Nee Soon, suggested public shaming as a form of deterrence. "We are living in a high-rise environment. I think everyone has a responsibility to make sure our living environment is safe," she said. Noting that offenders did not fit a fixed profile — some are mentally unsound, for instance — De Souza said: "While we want to see a strong deterrent effect against people who do this voluntarily and maliciously, I also hope there's some degree of compassion in the law to appreciate somebody who is unable to control his or her actions." — TODAY |
| Nadal braced for new Wimbledon rollercoaster Posted: 08 Jun 2014 05:40 PM PDT
The 28-year-old Spaniard stormed to a ninth French Open triumph yesterday with a 3-6, 7-5, 6-2, 6-4 win over Novak Djokovic which also secured his 14th Grand Slam crown. But he is not optimistic about collecting a 15th major when Wimbledon gets under way on June 23 despite having been champion on two occasions. His first title in 2008 was followed by a knee injury-enforced absence 12 months later. In 2010, he was Wimbledon champion for a second time before finishing runner-up to Djokovic the following year. Things then got steadily worse with a second round exit against Lukas Rosol in 2012 sparking a seven-month absence from the tour as his knee problems flared up again while, in 2013, he was dumped out in the first round by Belgian journeyman Steve Darcis. That was the only time Nadal has ever exited a Grand Slam in the first round. "I am going to Halle on Monday (for the grasscourt warm-up event in Germany). I want to try to play well at Wimbledon again," said Nadal. "I am healthy, that's the most important thing. I hope my knee will have a positive feeling on grass because I felt my knee was better last year on the other surfaces. "Grass is always a little bit harder for me after injury. I played Wimbledon in 2012 with my knee injury and I never played another match after. Last year I tried but I was not ready enough to compete. "Let's see how are my feelings this year because it's a very important tournament." After his loss to world number 135 Darcis last year, Nadal came under pressure to skip future grasscourt seasons if he wanted to prolong his career. One of those urging him to rethink was three-time Wimbledon champion Boris Becker who has since gone on to join Djokovic's coaching set-up. Grasscourt rethink "He definitely has to consider whether grass has a future for him," said Becker at the time. "Grass is very different compared to the other surfaces. Your movement is different and you have to have healthy legs because you're changing direction, you're slipping and sliding. "If you have a knee problem, grass is the worst surface. Hard courts are not as bad because you have a firm position, you can put your foot down and stand up to hit the ball—the bounce is higher so you don't have to bend as low." Even Nadal admits he is unsure over how he will fare in Halle, where he is top seed after skipping the tournament last year. "I know probably the result will not be the perfect one because the days of preparation are not the right ones. And after how tough the match was today physically, I will be more tired." Nadal, who has pulled level with Pete Sampras on 14 majors and now stands just three off the all-time record held by Roger Federer, also believes his fifth successive French Open win was the sport's payback for his loss to Stan Wawrinka in the the Australian Open final. Again, his challenge was hobbled by injury—this time by back trouble. He said that his rollercoaster form in the pre-Roland Garros claycourt season, when he lost three matches for the first time in a decade, was a direct result of that shattering loss in Melbourne. "Stan played amazing, I don't know if I would have been able to beat him. But I didn't compete in that match and that was hard to accept. "I had a few months where I went down mentally. I was fighting but didn't feel strong enough. "But for the last month, I had my motivation and positive feelings on court again." — AFP |
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