China Reform Monitor: No. 1030

April 15:

In return for debt forgiveness Tajikistan has ceded 20 square kilometers of border territory to China in Murghob, Badakhshon Autonomous Region, Russia’s Nezavisimaya Gazeta reports. The deal, which came at Beijing’s request, was signed in June 2012 and ratified by Tajikistan’s parliament on January 17. It has sparked an anti-Chinese backlash among Badakhshon locals. The Tajik government’s response has been to dispatch military forces to quell the protests “under pretext of holding a military exercise.” In comments carried by the Asia-Plus news agency Rahmatullo Zoirov, the chairman of the opposition Social Democratic Party of Tajikistan, said: “I went to Murghob and saw Chinese border guards entering in some areas up to 20 km inside Tajik territory beyond the (1,100 sq. km of territory) ceded to China (in 2011.)”

April 17:

Republic of China (ROC-Taiwan) President Ma Ying-jeou has urged the military to “guard against Chinese cyber attacks” and “make every effort to prevent espionage.” His comments come amid this week’s Han Kuang exercises, which are being held for five days and conclude on April 19. The second part of the annual Han Kuang war games will be held in July and consist of “computer-aided war games.” Taiwan’s official Central News Agency reports that the Ma’s administration has not engaged in an arms race with Beijing, and instead has sought to use “innovation and asymmetric strategies to defend itself.” Ma said: “The real key is not the severity of an external threat, or whether a foreign country will come to our rescue at an appropriate moment. The key is whether our defense capabilities can serve as an effective deterrent.”

April 18:

With help from China’s Great Wall Industry Corp., Sri Lanka’s Supreme SAT Ltd. plans to launch the country’s first communication satellite in 2015. The $320 million agreement, which the Board of Investment of Sri Lanka approved in May 2012, includes the establishment of a space academy and satellite ground station at Kandy, Sri Lanka and grants China access to Colombo’s unused satellite “orbital slots.” “What bothers Delhi,” The Indian Express reports, “is that China’s stated purpose for these satellites needs to be verified against its actual activities.” New Delhi, for its part, has begun discussions with Maldives and Sri Lanka to lease their empty orbital slots for Indian satellites and possibly build and launch satellites for them.

Three weeks after Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh suggested to China’s President Xi Jinping the two sides set up a more robust bilateral mechanism on trans-border rivers, Beijing has yet to respond. Before the Indian request China had stated that it believes the existing Expert-Level Mechanism for India-China rivers are “adequate.” Under the current mechanism China and India share hydrological data on water flow (i.e. water level, discharge and rainfall) on the Brahmaputra and Sutlej rivers during the flood season. “Despite the negative response, India will press for a broader mechanism to assess construction of dams on Brahmaputra (Yaluzangbu) river in Tibet during premier Li Keqiang visit to India in May,” the Indian Express reports.

April 19:

More than 110 million Chinese-made condoms have been seized in Ghana after tests revealed they have “holes in them” and “burst easily,” the BBC reports. The official Ghana Health Service imported 200 million of the faulty condoms to distribute for free as part of a HIV/Aids prevention campaign. The condoms, which have white packaging with a red Aids ribbon and the words “Be Safe,” were imported from a Chinese manufacturer via Kenya. Using them will not protect against sexually transmitted diseases or unwanted pregnancies, said Thomas Amedzro, head of Ghana’s Food and Drugs Authority. “You may not be able to see the holes with your naked eye but when you look at it under the microscope you can.”