Tens of millions of people across China prepared to usher in the Lunar New Year yesterday with fireworks and big family reunions, but the global economic crisis put a dampener on celebrations.
Railways and planes worked full tilt over the weekend as people made last minute dashes home to welcome the Year of the Ox, which begins today.
A record 188 million people were expected to travel by train and another 24 million to fly over the 40 days before and after the New Year, in what is regarded as the biggest annual movement of people in the world.
The Ministry of Transport estimated 63.4 million trips were made on Saturday, the China Daily said.
And while bad weather failed to disrupt the transport network like it did last year in China, the global economic crisis put a dampener on celebrations.
In a New Year speech, Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao (溫家寶) warned of challenges in the year ahead, the People’s Daily reported yesterday, as the global economic crisis continued to impact the country.
“Taking a broad view of the situation abroad and domestically, challenges and opportunities exist,” the newspaper quoted Wen as saying, and he reiterated the importance of economic policies such as increasing domestic consumption.
Wen traveled to Sichuan Province on Saturday and was to spend last night in Wenchuan with survivors of the May 12 quake last year that killed nearly 70,000 people, the China Daily said.
Yesterday he visited a hospital in the city of Deyang and expressed condolences and solidarity for those still hospitalized with injuries, the paper said.
Meanwhile, fears were sparked of a bird flu outbreak after the Ministry of Health reported yesterday that a 29-year-old man had been infected with the H5N1 strain of the virus, the country’s sixth case in just three weeks.
The man, surnamed Zhou, fell ill on Jan. 15 in Guizhou Province, the ministry said in an online statement and was in a critical condition.
Four of the infected patients have died.
Authorities in Guizhou have launched an emergency response, and those who have come into close contact with Zhou are under medical observation, though none has displayed unusual symptoms, the ministry said.
In Beijing’s Ditan Park, which like many across the nation opened up yesterday for a fair where people came to buy festive treats, there were signs the economic crisis had taken its toll.
Thousands of visitors enjoyed the first day of the fair, but for pinwheel seller Zhu Sibai, business was slow. Zhu, who lives in Anhui Province, had traveled up to Beijing to sell his wares during the week-long fair — a trip he has taken annually for five years.
“Last year, on the first morning like this one, I sold 1,000-yuan [US$145] worth of pinwheels but this morning, I’ve only sold 10 yuan worth,” Zhu said.
The retail and hospitality sectors were also expected to suffer during the holiday, as consumers tried to save money.
SECURITY: As China is ‘reshaping’ Hong Kong’s population, Taiwan must raise the eligibility threshold for applications from Hong Kongers, Chiu Chui-cheng said When Hong Kong and Macau citizens apply for residency in Taiwan, it would be under a new category that includes a “national security observation period,” Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) Minister Chiu Chui-cheng (邱垂正) said yesterday. President William Lai (賴清德) on March 13 announced 17 strategies to counter China’s aggression toward Taiwan, including incorporating national security considerations into the review process for residency applications from Hong Kong and Macau citizens. The situation in Hong Kong is constantly changing, Chiu said to media yesterday on the sidelines of the Taipei Technology Run hosted by the Taipei Neihu Technology Park Development Association. With
CARROT AND STICK: While unrelenting in its military threats, China attracted nearly 40,000 Taiwanese to over 400 business events last year Nearly 40,000 Taiwanese last year joined industry events in China, such as conferences and trade fairs, supported by the Chinese government, a study showed yesterday, as Beijing ramps up a charm offensive toward Taipei alongside military pressure. China has long taken a carrot-and-stick approach to Taiwan, threatening it with the prospect of military action while reaching out to those it believes are amenable to Beijing’s point of view. Taiwanese security officials are wary of what they see as Beijing’s influence campaigns to sway public opinion after Taipei and Beijing gradually resumed travel links halted by the COVID-19 pandemic, but the scale of
A US Marine Corps regiment equipped with Naval Strike Missiles (NSM) is set to participate in the upcoming Balikatan 25 exercise in the Luzon Strait, marking the system’s first-ever deployment in the Philippines. US and Philippine officials have separately confirmed that the Navy Marine Expeditionary Ship Interdiction System (NMESIS) — the mobile launch platform for the Naval Strike Missile — would take part in the joint exercise. The missiles are being deployed to “a strategic first island chain chokepoint” in the waters between Taiwan proper and the Philippines, US-based Naval News reported. “The Luzon Strait and Bashi Channel represent a critical access
Pope Francis is be laid to rest on Saturday after lying in state for three days in St Peter’s Basilica, where the faithful are expected to flock to pay their respects to history’s first Latin American pontiff. The cardinals met yesterday in the Vatican’s synod hall to chart the next steps before a conclave begins to choose Francis’ successor, as condolences poured in from around the world. According to current norms, the conclave must begin between May 5 and 10. The cardinals set the funeral for Saturday at 10am in St Peter’s Square, to be celebrated by the dean of the College
RSS