China firmly opposes US sanction against ZTE

China is strongly dissatisfied with and firmly opposed to US sanction against China's telecommunication equipment maker ZTE Corp, the Ministry of Commerce (MOC) said Tuesday in a statement. "The US move will severely impair normal commercial activities of the Chinese firms. China will continue to engage with the US side on the issue," according to the statement. Earlier on Monday, China's Foreign Ministry urged United States to revoke its decision to avoid damage to trade cooperation and bilateral relations.

Dalai Lama not religious leader: official

The Dalai Lama was not a religious leader after he betrayed his country, a senior official from the Tibet Autonomous Region said in Beijing on Monday, which experts believe is a reconsideration by the central government of the status. "He was no longer a religious leader after he defected his country and betrayed its people," Baima Chilin, deputy Party chief of the autonomous region, told the press at the fourth Session of the 12th National People's Congress (NPC). "If the Dalai Lama wants to return to China, he must give up 'Tibet independence,' and must publicly acknowledge Tibet and Taiwan are inseparable parts of China and that the People's Republic of China is the only legitimate government" said Baima Chilin. Xiong Kunxin, an ethnic studies professor at the Minzu University of China, told the Global Times that Baima Chilin's remarks show the central government's attitude towards the Dalai Lama's identity, who had long been considered a religious leader. "The reconsideration came about after the central government realized the Dalai Lama's commitment to oppose the Chinese government, and his support of separatism was unlikely to change," Zhang Yun, a researcher at the Research Center on Tibetology, told the Global Times. The legitimacy of the Dalai Lama's status as a religious leader was no longer acknowledged by the central government as he has failed to fulfill his obligation to inherit and spread Buddhism and continued his separatist activities, said Xiong. Also at the meeting, Wu Yingjie, deputy Party chief of Tibet, said contact between entertainment celebrities and the Dalai Lama and his clique is unacceptable, adding that they need to take responsibility for their behavior. A report on tibet.cn in February said mainland actor Hu Jun attended religious activities in northeastern India, where two major members of the Tibetan government-in-exile were seen in the same picture with them. At the meeting, delegates from Tibet wore badges of portraits of China's leaders, including Chairman Mao Zedong and President Xi Jinping. Another Tibet official explained that it has been their habit after the 50th anniversary of the founding of the autonomous region in 2015.

Open Internet must be controllable

After the Chinese cyberspace watchdog shut down the social media accounts of Ren Zhiqiang, an active and outspoken "opinion leader" on the Internet who was the former head of a large State-owned real estate company, Western media has criticized China for cracking down on free speech. Some new rules released by the authorities in early February which clarified the management of online publications made the headlines again with interpretations that "self-media" is about to collapse. Worries are permeating across the public discourse. It is obvious that the Chinese government has been determined to straighten out online discourse. The dishonest ways highlighted by hyping and distorting information to reap profits will be discouraged. This trend should be wisely embraced instead of being countered. China and the Western hemisphere can hardly find common ground while arguing about freedom of speech. It is not from the context of the argument that we can find the answer, or which side gets more support across the globe right now. Freedom of speech is actually an essential part of the competition between two different systems. Only practice - which side can achieve better development under different systems - can tell which is right. Now, China doesn't have much reference to support its argument, either from inside or outside. No one can guarantee if China completely unleashes the Internet, whether the country can sustain its positive development. Without an alternative, China has to explore its own way and steer its course by referring to what other countries are doing. There is not an absolute philosophy that can dominate the enormous and complicated Internet affairs. We should always stick to the truth. China must be open and active toward the era of Internet. We need to embrace innovations and take on the risks caused by uncertainties. Meanwhile, the process of an all-around opening of the Internet should be in control, because it cannot contradict or jeopardize China's strategic security. Gradual and controllable opening has become a guiding principle for China to govern its Internet affairs. China is heading to opening-up, but it won't do so without rules and reasons. China has achieved a lot with the power of the Internet, boasting certain Internet giants that are rarely seen except in the US. The Internet has also become a forum of public opinion, where opinions are communicated across a wide spectrum. It is inevitable that controversies about freedom of speech have emerged, and a lot of "opinion leaders" have sprung up. The Chinese Internet is still in a beta phase to test how the diversity of public discourse can shape society. The profile and pace of China's Internet development should be well understood by active and influential Internet users. They should dare to make breakthroughs, but also insist on some bottom lines.

Job seekers face greater pressure from slowdown in 2016: official

People seeking employment in China may face greater pressure to find a job this year as the country's economy continues to face downward pressure, a senior official said on Monday. Yin Weimin, minister of human resources and social security, said Monday at a press conference that China will experience a complicated job market in 2016 as some workers will be laid off as the government moves to reduce overcapacity. In the coal and steel industries, some 1.3 million and 500,000 people will be affected. Yin said pressure to find a job will also increase as the number of younger job-seekers - mainly college graduates - will rise to 7.65 million this year, 160,000 more than in 2015. China's working-age population - those aged between 16 and 59 - has dropped by 4.87 million to 910 million, or 66.3 percent of the total population, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) said Monday. In 2014, the NBS said China had 915 million workers, down 3.7 million from 2013. Huang Wenzheng, a former Harvard University assistant professor and expert on demographics, told the Global Times that the decline in the working-age population will lead to a decline in consumption, which will further hit China's economy. Huang also predicts that China's population may begin shrinking by 2023, and recommends that the family planning policy be abolished, which was relaxed beginning January 1 to allow all couples to have two children. As China gradually loses its population advantage, the country should further increase labor productivity to offset this, Zhai Zhenwu, an expert at the China Population Association, told the Global Times. "The most urgent task is to adjust the industry structure and enhance innovation," agreed Li Jianmin, a professor on population at Nankai University. NBS data shows that China's labor productivity stood at 76,978 yuan ($11,746) per person in 2015, a 6.6 percent increase from the previous year and the fifth consecutive annual gain, indicating a more productive economy, the Xinhua News Agency reported.

Tokyo to provide Manila defense aid

Japan will provide defense equipment and technology to the Philippines, which will disturb the peace in the South China Sea, experts said. The Philippine Defense Secretary Voltaire Gazmin said the agreement he signed with Japanese Ambassador Kazuhide Ishikawa in Manila on Monday consolidates the Asian countries' "mutual desire to enhance our respective defense capabilities" and "to contribute to regional peace and stability," the Associated Press (AP) reported on Monday. Gazmin was quoted by AP as saying that the agreement serves as a framework for the transfer of defense equipment and technology, with details to be settled in future talks. An official from the International Press Division of Japan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirmed with the Global Times on Monday that the two countries signed the agreement, aiming to enhance defense equipment and technology jointly produced and developed by Japan and the Philippines. The agreement would not only "reinforce ties between the two countries but would also enhance the defense capabilities of the Armed Forces of the Philippines needed to address Philippine security concerns and to contribute to regional peace and stability," reported the Philippine news site update.ph on Monday. Since Japan is very concerned with the sea lanes in the South China Sea, its support to the Philippines and containing China are beneficial to Japan after taking advantage of the conflict between China and the Philippines, Lian Degui, deputy director of the Center for Asia-Pacific Studies at the Shanghai Institutes for International Studies, told the Global Times. Lian said Japan also intends to ease the pressure in the East China Sea and its move has met the expectations of the US, which has repeatedly asked its allies like Japan to increase their presence in the South China Sea. Lü Yaodong, director of the Institute of Japanese Studies at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, told the Global Times that since Japan's security bills to be enacted in March will allow the country's Self-Defense Force to exercise collective self-defense, Japan is finding opportunities to cooperate with countries in the South China Sea to contain China. However, Japan's move to alienate China from its neighboring countries violates the four-point agreement signed by the two countries before Chinese President Xi Jinping met Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in November 2014, and shows the hypocrisy of the Abe administration, Lü said. The Philippines is the first country from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations with which Japan has concluded such an agreement, update.ph reported on Monday. A senior Philippine security official said the new agreement "opens the doors to a lot of opportunities beyond the confines of mere equipment transfer or sale," AP reported on Saturday.

Syria's fragile truce continues, amid fresh progress

Syria's fragile cessation of hostilities was largely holding on Monday, with progress made on the military and humanitarian aspect amid new political prospects, according to media reports. Three days into the US-Russia-backed truce, the capital Damascus was largely peaceful on Monday, with no shelling sound or known military operations. The truce, which started on Saturday, has reflected an international will to build a momentum to resolve Syria's nearly five years of conflict. Still, as the truce excludes the Islamic State (IS) and the Nusra Front, clashes continued against those groups on several fronts, mainly in the northern province of Aleppo. Last week, the IS cut off the only road connecting the government-controlled parts of Aleppo with other Syrian provinces in the central and the southern region. The attack severed Aleppo completely from other cities, pushing the government forces to unleash a counter-offensive to recapture the road. A Syrian military source declared on Monday that the Syrian Armed Forces have completely restored the road to Aleppo "after eliminating the last gathering of the IS." On the humanitarian level, Muhannad al-Assadi, a media spokesman of the Syrian Arab Red Crescent, told Xinhua that as many as 51 aid trucks entered the town of Muadamiyeh near Damascus on Monday, the first shipment to enter the town since the ceasefire began on Saturday, and the third this month. Entering relief aid to besieged areas across the country was a main international demand along with the cessation of hostilities plan. Meanwhile, the exiled opposition renewed accusations that Syrian government forces were breaching the truce in some areas. Riad Hijab, the opposition's general coordinator, wrote a letter to the UN secretary-general detailing the alleged breaches of the truce, saying his group recorded breaches of the agreement in 26 different areas of Syria. The Russian Defense Ministry announced on Monday it monitored seven breaches of the truce by the militant groups over the past 24 hours, "including an attack by terrorists of l-Nusra Front through using artillery against units of popular protection in the surroundings of al-Ashrafiyah town in Aleppo countryside." Russia said the IS was targeting the road connecting the central province of Hama and Aleppo, which "obstructs the delivering of humanitarian aid to the residents of Aleppo and neighboring cities." UN Special Envoy to Syria Staffan de Mistura said "every time there has been an incident, that has been -- so far -- contained." However, he did not specify how many incidents have been reported. "We could have had much worse news, frankly," de Mistura said, adding if the truce continued, it "would be a major booster in confidence-building and trust." "The first gesture of believing in each other, or at least believing that there is a nonmilitary solution, is the reduction of violence," he said. The UN envoy further said the International Task Force, co-chaired by Moscow and Washington, was set to meet Monday afternoon in Geneva to evaluate allegations of a range of breaches. UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon also said Monday that there have been some incidents but the ceasefire was generally holding. "As of now I can tell you that by and large the cessation of hostilities is holding even though we have experienced some incidents," he told reporters in Geneva on Monday. Also, Jens Stoltenberg, the secretary-general of NATO, said the cease-fire in Syria is "largely holding," expressing some concerns about the Russian military buildup in Syria. Making the comments on a visit to Kuwait on Monday, Stoltenberg said "We are concerned about the significant Russian military buildup we have seen in Syria, with the ground troops, with the naval forces in the eastern Mediterranean and with air forces conducting airstrikes and so far they have mainly targeted not IS but other opposition groups." Aside from monitoring the breaches, a Russian official made new remarks on Monday, with a clue of what Russia may think about the future of Syria. Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov told a news briefing on Monday that Syria could become a federal state if that model works in the country. Syria has yet to comment on the fresh Russian remarks, but the government always maintains that any change in Syria must be subject to the choice of the Syrian people only.

china's manufacturing activity falls to four-year low

China's manufacturing activity has fallen to its lowest level in four years, pointing to the need for more policy support to bolster economic growth and push structural reforms. The purchasing managers' index (PMI) came in at 49, down from January's 49.4, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) and the China Federation of Logistics and Purchasing said on Tuesday. A reading above 50 indicates expansion, while a reading below 50 reflects contraction. The figure contracted for a seventh straight month in February and it was the lowest reading since November, 2011, as China is seeking new economic growth engines amid a campaign to cut industrial overcapacity. NBS statistician Zhao Qinghe attributed the retreat to slowing factory activity during the Chinese Lunar New Year holiday in early February, as well as the trimming of industrial capacity. In breakdown, the sub-index measuring production stood at 50.2, down 1.2 points from a month earlier, and that for new orders settled at 48.6, down 0.9 points. A separate survey by financial information service provider Markit sponsored by financial media company Caixin also showed deterioration in Chinese manufacturers' operating conditions. The Caixin General China Manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI), edged down to 48 in February from January's 48.4. "The index reading for all key categories, including output, new orders and employment, signaled that conditions worsened, in line with signs that the economy's road to stability remains bumpy," said He Fan, chief economist at the Caixin Insight Group. The disappointing data came after China's economy grew by 6.9 percent year on year in 2015, its lowest annual expansion in a quarter of a century. "The economy is still in the phase of bottoming out," said Zhang Liqun, researcher with the State Council's Development Research Center, adding that the weak data in February is not necessarily indicative of a trend as there are seasonal effects at work, with the holiday disrupting production activities. Chen Zhongtao, analyst with the China Logistics Information Center, pointed out some bright spots behind the weak data that may show restructuring efforts are bringing about positive changes. These included the fact that the PMI raw materials purchase price index jumped 5.1 points to 50.2, returning to expansion for the first time since August 2014, consistent with the recent rebound in upstream industrial prices. Meanwhile, the business activity expectations index jumped 13.5 points to 57.9, more than the seasonal rise in the past few years, suggesting manufacturer expectations improved. Zhang forecast that the economy would stabilize as the effects of various pro-growth policies filter through. Authorities' growth-supportive policy stance was reinforced on Monday as the central bank announced it would lower the reserve requirement ratio (RRR) for commercial banks by 0.5 percentage points, the first such cut this year. Speaking during two days of meetings in Shanghai between financial ministers and central bankers of G20 economies, Finance Minister Lou Jiwei said he saw more room to expand fiscal policy and predicted an increased budgetary deficit this year. "Looking ahead, fiscal policy will likely become more expansionary in 2016, with the actual fiscal deficit ratio expected to expand further from 2015's 3.5 percent. Monetary policy will likely remain loose," said China Int. Capital Corp in a report.