China Chronicles December 22, 2012

China maintains blue alert for cold wave
CHINA'S National Meteorological Center (NMC) today kept its blue alert for the severe cold wave that is sweeping many northern China regions.
The observatory said temperature drop will continue to decline from the weekend to Monday after many parts of China had started to experience the lowest temperatures this winter.
Most parts of China, except the central and southwestern regions, will see temperature fall by 6 to 8 degrees Celsius in the next three days, with some parts of north and northeast China to witness a drop of 10 to 14 degrees Celsius, according to the NMC.
This morning, temperatures in parts of Xinjiang, Qinghai, Tibet, Gansu, Shanxi, Hebei, Inner Mongolia, Liaoning, Jilin, Heilongjiang, Fujian and Guangxi dropped by 6 to 10 degrees Celsius from a day ago, and by 12 to 16 degrees Celsius in parts of Liaoning and Jilin.
China's meteorological disaster alerts are categorized as blue, yellow, orange and red as the severity of disasters ascends.
The NMC also forecasted small to moderate snow for parts of Xinjiang, Gansu, Inner Mongolia and Hebei while heavy snow for Shandong Province on Saturday. Parts of south China and Guizhou Province will see sleet, while freezing rain will fall on west and central Guizhou.
China maintains blue alert for cold wave
CHINA'S National Meteorological Center (NMC) today kept its blue alert for the severe cold wave that is sweeping many northern China regions.
The observatory said temperature drop will continue to decline from the weekend to Monday after many parts of China had started to experience the lowest temperatures this winter.
Most parts of China, except the central and southwestern regions, will see temperature fall by 6 to 8 degrees Celsius in the next three days, with some parts of north and northeast China to witness a drop of 10 to 14 degrees Celsius, according to the NMC.
This morning, temperatures in parts of Xinjiang, Qinghai, Tibet, Gansu, Shanxi, Hebei, Inner Mongolia, Liaoning, Jilin, Heilongjiang, Fujian and Guangxi dropped by 6 to 10 degrees Celsius from a day ago, and by 12 to 16 degrees Celsius in parts of Liaoning and Jilin.
China's meteorological disaster alerts are categorized as blue, yellow, orange and red as the severity of disasters ascends.
The NMC also forecasted small to moderate snow for parts of Xinjiang, Gansu, Inner Mongolia and Hebei while heavy snow for Shandong Province on Saturday. Parts of south China and Guizhou Province will see sleet, while freezing rain will fall on west and central Guizhou.
China - Guangxi #28
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the first cafe
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The photo framed on the wall is the architectural blueprint of 798 Art Zone, back to 1950 with the Bauhaus way by architects directly from the East German.
Defying winter
A man takes a "sand bath" at a beach in Haikou City of southernmost China's Hainan Province yesterday, when the high reached 27 degrees Celsius. Yesterday is the Winter Solstice. In China, it usually marks the begining of the coldest days of a year. But in the southern city, people are still enjoying the warm and pleasant weather.
China - Guangxi #27
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Back to the Guangxi stufff. The groom was lighting up some cigarettes for his ancestors. I guess smoking is such an essential daily ritual in China. Behind him you can find all the wooden posts that represent each of the ancestors, known as 神主牌 in Chinese.
Taiwan Strait now no chasm for lovers
IT used to be considered sleeping with the enemy.
Marriages across the Taiwan Strait, exceedingly rare during the long estrangement between China's mainland and Taiwan after the Kuomintang was defeated in a civil war and fled to the island in 1949, have blossomed with the thaw in relations.
Take Chen Chien-ming and Xiong Tingting, two students who first met in 2005 while participating in a cross-Strait exchange program in north China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region.
Chen's major at National Sun Yat-sen University in Taiwan was called "studies of communist bandits" when the island was governed under martial law between 1948 and 1987. It is now called "mainland studies." He ended up marrying the mainland woman, who majored in Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macao studies at Peking University in Beijing.
When they finally tied the knot in Shanghai in 2007, their friends mocked them. No longer.
Both sides restarted communications across the Taiwan Strait in 1987, with Taiwan authority allowing military veterans to return to their hometowns on the mainland.
In 1988, about 100 cross-Strait couples registered for marriage. The number of such marriages increased dramatically in the following decade.
The year 2000 witnessed about 26,000 cross-Strait marriages and the total count has topped 330,000 so far, with nearly 20,000 cross-Strait marriages registered annually.
Cross-Strait marriages cause tension in some communities due to the fact that people from both sides are often unfamiliar with each other.
Ni Yanbao had problems getting her family in central China's city of Zhengzhou to accept her husband from Taiwan, as her parents did not trust him. In order to prove his innocence, Ni's husband took his elder sisters to visit Ni's family three times to explain their background.
Currently, Ni lives with her husband in Taipei, while Chen and Xiong have a home in Shanghai.
Chen works as a Shanghai-based public relations specialist for a Taiwan firm a! nd spends most of his time on the mainland. Chen and Xiong's son is three years old and will have to decide whether he wants to be a mainland or Taiwan resident. "He will make his own decision when he turns 18. Both choices are fine to me," said Chen.
Packaging of big-name instant noodles called hazard to health
SOME big-name instant noodle producers have come under fire after they were found to use packaging containing excessive levels of fluorescent agents, suspected of causing cancer, and some packaging is said to be made from waste paper.
Master Kong Beef Noodle, Uni-President Pickled Cabbage Beef Noodle, Nongshim Spicy Cabbage Instant Noodle and Jinmailang Beef Noodle were on the list.
All of the noodles are available at Shanghai supermarkets and stores. The Shanghai Industrial and Commercial Administrative Bureau didn't commented on the case yesterday.
Beijing-based, independent International Food Packaging Association said yesterday it tested the packaging of six instant noodles bought randomly from supermarkets in Beijing in November. The outer packaging paper of all the six samples showed excessive levels of fluorescent agents, Beijing News reported yesterday.
Paper not suitable to food packaging, or even waste paper, was probably used by these producers, said Dong Jinshi, deputy director of the Beijing association.
Some producers adopted double standards for the inner paper and outer paper of their food packaging because there is no national standard for the outer paper. Testing agencies usually only check the inner paper, Dong said. Producers send the inner paper to be tested, but wrap it with an outer layer of poor-quality paper packaging, Dong said.
The substances on the outer paper leak into the inner part, causing harm to people's health, and it is also a health hazard because consumers touch the printed package of the outer paper, the association said.
Dong called for improvement of national regulations.
In Shanghai, however, the mainland headquarters of Uni-President is denying the results.
Wu Guili, a public relations official with Uni-President Shanghai, said its products are safe and the governmental National Center for Food Safety Risk Assessment is challenging the test results.
The governmental center said on its web! site that pulp paper is required to be used as inner packaging of paper bowls of instant noodles, while there is no standard for the outer paper.
But the outer paper poses no food safety concerns, the center said. It said the accusation is not scientific as the report did not specify how the substance could leak into the inner paper and provided no detailed figures.
Tianjin-based Master Kong said it had no immediate response.
Other two companies were not available for comment yesterday.
It was not the first time that the Beijing association made such accusations. It said Lipton milk tea powder, Kraft's banana and milk taste biscuit and Nissin's shrimp meat instant noodle had the same problem in August.
Shanghai consumer Jin Jialin said he is avoiding instant noodles. "I have no idea about the inner or outer paper of packaging, but I know fluorescent agents cause harm to people's health and instant noodles are not healthy."
Woman wets pants while saving boy from big fall
A WOMAN who saved a seven-year-old boy from falling to the ground from five floors up last Sunday in Zhejiang Province said she never considered letting him go despite having to urinate urgently, a media report said.
The woman surnamed He, 57, held the boy's arms for 40 minutes after the boy had fallen from his sixth floor apartment and grabbed the burglar-proof window on her fifth floor home in Taizhou City, Qianjiang Evening News reported yesterday.
"It is so embarrassing. I was about to go to the bathroom when I heard his screaming," she told the newspaper.
"I went to help and grabbed his arms. I couldn't move because no one else was at home to help," she said.
"I endured this for 10 minutes and couldn't stand it any longer, so I decided to urinate in my pants," she added. "But the boy is fine, so it was worth it."
She told the newspaper that after firefighters arrived to help save the boy, her arm had become so numb and her legs had cramped.
The boy was left alone at his home in apartment 601 earlier that day. He climbed off the burglar-proof window in order to leave the locked house and play outside, the paper reported. He tried to step on the flower rack outside apartment 501. He was too short to reach and the wall became slippery in the drizzle and he fell on to the rack, the paper said.
To avoid falling, he grabbed the burglar-proof window for apartment 502 and started screaming. The woman heard his screams and grabbed his arms so he wouldn't fall.
Officials apologize for dumpster warnings
BIJIE City officials have apologized to the public for "insulting" warnings painted on dumpsters one month after five street kids died in trash receptacles.
Twelve dumpsters in the city's Heguantun Township, Qixingguan District in Guizhou Province had warnings that read: "People or livestock, keep out."
Once photos of the dumpsters spread on the Internet, many people online said the warnings were "insulting."
Gao Dan, head of Heguantun Township, issued an apology on his microblog on Thursday.
"I understand that the inappropriate warnings on the dumpsters hurt the public's feelings. I sincerely apologize for that," Gao wrote.
Hu Shulong, deputy chief of Qixingguan, admitted the warnings reflected the township government's lack of a sense of responsibility.
Yesterday, the warnings was painted over with characters that read "Garbage comes in, healthy and civilized."
A photo of the dumpster warnings had been forwarded 132,144 times as of yesterday morning after it was posted on the microblogging site Weibo.com on Wednesday afternoon.
Many netizens said the warnings essentially compared street kids to animals.
Last month, five street kids died in dumpsters in Bijie. The children were using the dumpsters as shelter from the cold and burned charcoal inside the trash receptacles to stay warm. They died of carbon monoxide poisoning from the fumes.
Many online comments said stray children would not have used the dumpsters if they had other shelters to go to and animals can't read the signs, thus the warnings were pointless.
The warning signs were painted on the dumpsters after the deaths.
The death of the five street kids has saddened many across the country as it has been interpreted as a sign the nation has failed to give sufficient care to its youngsters while the economy has continued to strengthen.
The children were identified as so-called left-behind children, or kids who are taken care of by relatives such as grandparents ! while their parents pursue work in other cities.
Reporters who found the children's homes after their deaths found the rundown houses were "no better than the dumpsters."
Qixingguan, home to hundreds of left-behind children, has since set up aid stations and launched 24-hour patrols on major roads to take stray kids to shelters.
Man goes on trial for elaborate pyramid scam
THE operator of a popular online shopping mall who was suspected of orchestrating a pyramid sales scam was accused of luring millions of members and billions of yuan during a court trial yesterday in Nanchang, capital of Jiangxi Province.
Tang Qingnan, founder of Jiangxi Better Life Co, had signed up more than 6 million members and 120,000 distributors to www.tpy100.com, an online shopping mall selling everything from clothes and handbags to skin-care and electronic products, media reports said.
He told members to shop themselves or pay a deposit to become distributors, and then invite others to become distributors. Members could move up in levels after more people joined and receive either cash rebates or redemption points for goods, prosecutors said.
An audit showed the website had huge debts and relied on deposits from distributors to stay in business, according to the Oriental Morning Post.
Prosecutors said Tang severely disturbed social economic order.
About 1.1 billion yuan (US$176.5 million) in the company's account was frozen by the Nanchang Public Security Bureau after Tang and seven others were arrested in April on suspicion of organizing a pyramid selling scam, media reports showed.
It was also reported that the company had received 3.79 billion yuan in deposits.
In September, Jiang Guobin, a 47-year-old Shanghai native who had signed up 259 members and earned more than 112,000 yuan, was sentenced to 18 months in prison by Xuhui District People's Court for his role in the scam.
798 Sign
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Fluorescent agents found in instant noodle packaging
Some big-name instant noodle producers were found to use packaging containing excessive levels of fluorescent agents which may cause cancer, and some packaging was suspected to be made from waste paper, today's Beijing News reported.
Beijing-based International Food Packaging Association said it tested the packaging of six instant noodles bought randomly from the city's supermarkets. All of the six samples showed excessive levels of fluorescent agents.
Master Kong Beef Noodle, Uni-President Pickled Cabbage Beef Noodle, Nongshim Spicy Cabbage Instant Noodle and Jinmailang Beef Noodle were on the list.
Paper not suitable to food packaging was probably used by these producers, said Dong Jinshi, deputy director of the association.
Some producers adopted double standards for the inner paper and outer paper of their food packaging because there is no national standard for the outer paper. Testing agencies usually only check the inner paper, Dong said.
All of the noodles checked were produced after August.
Wu Guili, a public relations official with Uni-President Shanghai, said the National Center for Food Safety Risk Assessment had challenged the testing results in August.
Tianjin-based Master Kong said all its PR officials were not in office and a reply will be given next Monday at the earliest.
Other two companies were not available for comment.
Officials apologize for offending dumpster warnings
LOCAL officials of Bijie city, southwest China's Guizhou Province, have apologized to the public for dumpster warnings that offended local people.
Warnings painted on dumpsters in Heguantun Township, Qixingguan District that read "People or livestock, Keep out" have aroused attention from around the country, with some holding that the warnings are "insulting."
Gao Dan, head of Heguantun Township, Qixingguan District, yesterday used his personal Tencent microblog to issue a public apology for the 12 dumpsters painted with the warnings.
"I understand that the inappropriate warnings on the dumpsters hurt the public's feelings. I sincerely apologize for that," Gao wrote.
Hu Shulong, deputy chief of the Qixingguan district, admitted that the warnings reflected the township government's lack of a sense of responsibility.
Today, the warning had been painted over with the characters for "Garbage comes in, healthy and civilized."
A photo of the dumpster warnings had been commented on and forwarded 132,144 times by this morning, after it was posted on Weibo.com, China's Twitter-like microblogging website on Wednesday afternoon.
Netizens consider the warning "insulting," as there is a connotation of apposing stray children with street animals.
The offending warnings put once again Bijie city at focus of the public a month after five street children died in dumpsters in the city.
Dumpsters in Bijie served as the kids' last refuge against bitter winter cold before they were killed by carbon monoxide from the charcoal they were burning for warmth.
"Stray children would not have entered dumpsters if they had other nice shelters to hide out, and animals can't read the warning signs. So what's the purpose of painting the warning?" was the message of many of the Internet comments.
The warning signs painted in red were one of the measures taken by the local authority in handling the aftermath of the incident.
The death of the five street kids i! n Bijie has profoundly saddened Chinese, as it has been interpreted as a sign that the nation has failed to give sufficient care to its youngsters while gaining in economic strength.
These minors wandering the street were identified as "left-behind children," or kids who are taken care of by relatives such as grandparents while their parents pursue work in cities.
Reporters who located the children's homes after their deaths found that the rundown houses were utterly destitute; "no better than the dumpsters," as some put it.
After the tragedy, Qixingguan District, which is home to hundreds of such "left-behind children," has set up aid stations and launched 24-hour patrols along major roads to look for stray kids and bring them to shelters.
Chen Changxu, mayor of Bijie, said the city government will budget 60 million yuan (US$9.62) annually to attend to the city's "left-behind children."
Bamboo Culture@Shanghai
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20121119
Minox AIII-41809
Copex Rapid 135/ ASA32
Spur Modular UR (20:6)
11min./ 3min.20℃
Distilled Water
Minox Developing Tank
Dots report : Minor black & white
Film wide : 9.30mm