February 19:
Hong Kong’s Ming Pao reports that Jin Xide, deputy director of the Institute of Japanese Studies, a branch of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, was put under house arrest after being accused of disclosing classified information to South Korean intelligence agents. Jin, an ethnic Korean, is suspected of taking bribes, including money and sex from South Korean agents, in return for disclosing classified information about the DPRK. China’s investigation began in January and quickly moved into formal espionage procedures, which are underway in Beijing. Here you can find a link to an English version of the story carried in the Korea Times.
February 20:
Beijing has condemned the Philippine congress’ passage of a bill to annex Huangyan Island and the islands of the Nansha Archipelagos in the South China Sea. Ta Kung Pao has published a report attacking the “Philippines for its brazen, provocative conduct,” arguing that “China must express a forceful position to safeguard its maritime rights and interests.” The Beijing-leaning Hong Kong daily urged Beijing to adopt three initiatives “crucial for waging diplomatic struggles.” They include: (1) “speeding up demarcating China’s territorial waters;” (2) “tightening up administrative control by staffing offices on the islands;” and (3) increased readiness for naval operations. “China needs to tighten up its naval modernization, upgrade military training, and modernize its weaponry,” the article said. It also discussed the capacity of China’s rivals in the South China Sea noting that ASEAN members have purchased U.S.-built Hornets and Russian-built MIG-29 and Su-27 aircraft, also noting that “Vietnam has purchased Russian-built Black Widow-class missile destroyers.”
[Editor’s Note: Despite settling all of it’s land boarder disputes with ASEAN nations Beijing counties to claim extensive territorial waters in the South China Sea and has active territorial disputes with Japan over the Diaoyu Islands and with South Korea over the Suyan Reefs. The Philippines passed the bill to meet the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Seas’ May 2009 deadline to claim the extended continental shelf around the country.]
February 23:
During her two-day trip in Beijing, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton twice publicly urged China to continue to invest in U.S. Treasury bonds, saying it was recognition of the two countries' dependence on each other. As Washington tries to raise more debt to pay for its $787 billion stimulus package it is requesting China continue to invest in Treasuries to finance the recovery of the ailing American economy. With forex reserves estimated at $1.95 trillion, the mainland is also the biggest holder of U.S. government bonds and last year raised its holdings to a record $696 billion. Beijing has little choice but to continue to invest in U.S. government bonds, largely because there are no other viable and liquid assets available for its growing dollar reserves. China's leadership is under growing pressure to diversify from its holdings away from U.S. treasuries because of the falling value of the U.S. dollar, the South China Morning Post (SCMP) reports.
[Editor’s Note: The SCMP is reporting “rumors in the corridors of power in Beijing” that a list detailing the offshore bank deposits of mainland officials and their relatives is being compiled in the U.S. for release if Beijing rethinks its purchases of US Treasury notes.]
February 27:
Beijing Police have taken away more than 1,000 petitioners looking to air their grievances ahead of the annual meeting of China's legislature next week. The International Herald Tribune reports that police escorted petitioners from their hotel rooms and drove them away in public buses. Many Chinese have come from around the country to Beijing seeking redress for problems with local officials, and have begun flocking to the capital as the annual National People's Congress session is set to begin. Local police often follow petitioners to the capital and take them back home before they can report abuses by local cadres to the central authorities. The practice of Chinese going to Beijing to ask the central government to redress local grievances is centuries-old, dating to the days when people could petition the emperor. Many cannot air their stories in local media or courts, which are controlled by the Communist Party.
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