It's hard enough as it is for China's menfolk to get a bride these days as they face a growing gender imbalance brought about by the one-child policy. But now it seems that Russian ultra-nationalist Vladimir Zhirinovsky and action star Jackie Chan (成龍) are out to make it even worse.
A few days ago, Zhirinovsky announced his backing for a bill which aims to stop Russian women marrying foreigners -- many of whom are Chinese men who have been forced to seek romance further afield.
Then came the blow from their countryman Jackie Chan, who yesterday suggested that more foreigners should marry women from Shanghai, who are widely considered to be the most sophisticated and cosmopolitan women in China.
"We can encourage more foreigners to marry Shanghai ladies so their children will be able to speak Chinese," the South China Morning Post quoted Chan as saying during festivities at the Shanghai International Film Festival on the weekend.
"It will help spread Chinese culture far and wide," he said.
His comments are unlikely to meet with approval from China's growing army of bachelors, who are estimated to reach 40 million within 20 years and who face fierce competition in finding a mate from their own countrymen.
In some areas of China, the gender imbalance -- caused by the large number of abortions and the one-child policy -- is as high as 133 boys to every 100 girls.
As a result, some men are forced to seek brides in countries such as Russia.
Zhirinovsky, who sees Chinese men as the biggest perpetrators of the crime of robbing Russia of its most beautiful women, argues for imposing severe penalties on Russian women who "unpatriotically" choose to marry foreigners.
ROLLER-COASTER RIDE: More than five earthquakes ranging from magnitude 4.4 to 5.5 on the Richter scale shook eastern Taiwan in rapid succession yesterday afternoon Back-to-back weather fronts are forecast to hit Taiwan this week, resulting in rain across the nation in the coming days, the Central Weather Administration said yesterday, as it also warned residents in mountainous regions to be wary of landslides and rockfalls. As the first front approached, sporadic rainfall began in central and northern parts of Taiwan yesterday, the agency said, adding that rain is forecast to intensify in those regions today, while brief showers would also affect other parts of the nation. A second weather system is forecast to arrive on Thursday, bringing additional rain to the whole nation until Sunday, it
CONDITIONAL: The PRC imposes secret requirements that the funding it provides cannot be spent in states with diplomatic relations with Taiwan, Emma Reilly said China has been bribing UN officials to obtain “special benefits” and to block funding from countries that have diplomatic ties with Taiwan, a former UN employee told the British House of Commons on Tuesday. At a House of Commons Foreign Affairs Committee hearing into “international relations within the multilateral system,” former Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) employee Emma Reilly said in a written statement that “Beijing paid bribes to the two successive Presidents of the [UN] General Assembly” during the two-year negotiation of the Sustainable Development Goals. Another way China exercises influence within the UN Secretariat is
CHINA REACTS: The patrol and reconnaissance plane ‘transited the Taiwan Strait in international airspace,’ the 7th Fleet said, while Taipei said it saw nothing unusual The US 7th Fleet yesterday said that a US Navy P-8A Poseidon flew through the Taiwan Strait, a day after US and Chinese defense heads held their first talks since November 2022 in an effort to reduce regional tensions. The patrol and reconnaissance plane “transited the Taiwan Strait in international airspace,” the 7th Fleet said in a news release. “By operating within the Taiwan Strait in accordance with international law, the United States upholds the navigational rights and freedoms of all nations.” In a separate statement, the Ministry of National Defense said that it monitored nearby waters and airspace as the aircraft
Taiwan’s first drag queen to compete on the internationally acclaimed RuPaul’s Drag Race, Nymphia Wind (妮妃雅), was on Friday crowned the “Next Drag Superstar.” Dressed in a sparkling banana dress, Nymphia Wind swept onto the stage for the final, and stole the show. “Taiwan this is for you,” she said right after show host RuPaul announced her as the winner. “To those who feel like they don’t belong, just remember to live fearlessly and to live their truth,” she said on stage. One of the frontrunners for the past 15 episodes, the 28-year-old breezed through to the final after weeks of showcasing her unique