China won’t commit to curbing its fossil fuel use; instead, it will squeeze the West for billions in climate subsidies. That’s the conclusion of a study released today by economist Patricia Adams of Toronto-based Probe International for U.K.-based Global Warming Policy Foundation.
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China initiates enormous Yangtze water diversion scheme
The Yangtze River has been slated to accommodate yet another project in the name of “development” and “drought prevention”: the Dian Zhong Water Diversion Project, a 661-kilometer endeavour with some high hopes pinned to it.
A year as a wife
A profile of Meng Qun, wife of prominent civil rights lawyer Pu Zhiqiang, detained in May 2014 for attending a Tiananmen protest discussion.
China releases two NGO activists ‘on bail’ ahead of president’s US trip
Guo Yushan and He Zhengjun, detained former members of the influential Beijing Transition Institute (now shuttered), have been released on bail by Chinese authorities. Some analysts see the move as a symbolic concession to US concerns over Beijing’s human rights record. What might their release mean going forward? Radio Free Asia reports.
Uncivil society
A new draft law spooks foreign not-for-profit groups working in China.
Dams ‘destroying Mekong fish stock’
Hydro development of the Mekong River is causing downstream flow to become uneven, driving fish away and throwing the region’s food security into jeopardy. The Nation reports.
Tianjin and China’s industrial calamities
This terrific opinion piece by Xiao Shu, a former columnist for China’s outspoken Southern Weekly newspaper, gets right to the point in saying the country’s “calamitous cycle of man-made disasters is the direct result of a dysfunctional government.” The answer: Give power back to the people.
OPIC should go next
Ex-Im is one of dozens of corporate welfare programs that should end. The Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC), like Ex-Im, hurts domestic competitors, privileges big lenders and is also known to fund questionable projects. Reason.com reports.
Beijing: Enough snow for 2022 Winter Olympics
Now that Beijing has won the right to host the 2022 Winter Olympics, talk has moved from the problem of snow in a city distinctive for its arid climate, sandstorms and perpetual lack of water, to the virtues of artificial snow (despite the amount of water fake snow takes to manufacture). Meanwhile, a long-long range weather forecast, conducted by the city’s meteorological bureau, predicts natural snowfall is likely to increase in the areas slated for competition action in seven years’ time.
The hidden costs of China’s shift to hydropower
Chinese authorities are hoping a large-scale rollout of hydropower can help to reduce toxic smog but, in addition to the high financial and environmental costs, many experts are skeptical that more hydropower means less coal.
China’s unspeakable consensus
“The Three Gorges Dam must be dismantled, and China’s political system must be changed,” writes veteran Chinese journalist Xiao Shu in this piece first published by the Taipei-based online news site, Storm Media. “To a great extent,” the author continues, “the Three Gorges Dam is the most apt metaphor for China’s political system.” A significant must-read.
China: CCP’s ‘profound dread’ behind crackdown on lawyers
The party’s attempts to project confidence do little to disguise its panic: It is beset by economic strife, antagonism between officials and the people, corruption, ecological disasters, unrest in Xinjiang and Tibet, and its own sense of ideological crisis.
In China’s crackdown on rights lawyers, big law says little
Chinese authorities are well aware how governments and bar organizations around the world feel about their fierce crackdown on human-rights lawyers. But the country’s commercial lawyers—including international firms active in China—have been relatively quiet. Why so? The American Lawyer reports.
China’s gloomy future
China’s increasing financial and economic assertiveness suggests its star is only set to rise on the world stage and that has prompted some major swagger on the part of its leaders. Swagger the nation’s long-term view doesn’t warrant. Commentary by John Robson.
The impending dam disaster in the Himalayas
Two of the most populous nations—China and India—are building hundreds of dams in a violently active geologic zone.
Patricia Adams
Dai Qing
Fan Xiao
Lawrence Solomon
Mu Lan
Probe International
Lisa Peryman
Probe Media
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Probe International 