上海贵族宝贝自荐419

Working during the day and acquiring new skills at night is becoming a new way of life for young people in China. From dancing to vocal training, from traditional handicrafts, beauty, and fitness classes, to wine tasting and vlog filming, the list of possibilities for new learning experiences is seemingly limitless.

These diverse options, cost-effectiveness, and highly qualified teachers have made "night school," a concept that used to carry a sense of nostalgia in China, popular once more, especially among China's younger generation.

This trend first started in Shanghai. During the enrollment of the Citizen Night School for Arts for the autumn semester in September, more than 650,000 people competed for 10,000 course spots, causing the enrollment platform to crash. Then, in a short period of time, the night school trend spread across China.

Night schools hold a special place in the memories of many Chinese people. From literacy classes after the establishment of the People's Republic of China to evening lectures at universities in the 1980s, generations of young people have, for decades, attended night school to supplement their cultural and technical knowledge.

However, the current wave of young people enrolling in night schools is driven more by their interests, with the aim of enriching their personal, spiritual, and cultural fulfillment.

Observers have pointed out that the night school boom is in line with the current economic situation and young people's living conditions.

Unlike the Western media's portrayal of Chinese young people's "lying flat" mindset under work pressure, attending night schools reflects the diversified growth needs of Chinese youth.

"In a stable economic and social situation, the popularity of night classes is a very common situation as many young people can afford them and have leisure time to attend classes they like, and more importantly, seek to improve their cultural knowledge and mental outlook," Zhang Yiwu, a Chinese language and literature professor at Peking University, told the Global Times.

A new nightlife

"Like light, full of anticipation, night school may be the first time our generation has actively developed interests that are non-utilitarian," said Xu Lili, a 27-year-old advertisement planner in Beijing.

Xu told the Global Times that she spent an entire weekend carefully selecting night school institutions and courses on Little Red Book (Xiaohongshu), a popular lifestyle sharing social media platform in China, before actually attending classes. Finally, she chose a street dance class that was close to her workplace, taught by a graduate from the Beijing Dance Academy. The course cost 700 yuan ($98) for 10 classes and was transferable to friends.

"After experiencing the course, I felt it was really good. The atmosphere was great, and I've made many new friends here," Xu said. "We are also discussing taking Chinese pastry baking and drama appreciation classes together next."

Far from the relatively arduous matriculation process during school days, Xu said that for her, learning about art allows her to temporarily escape from the stresses of her job.

Xu said she did not have any specific expectations for her learning outcomes, but rather wants to try a wide range of courses and find a hobby that can provide her with personal satisfaction.

"Night school allows me to find my passion with minimal cost and also helps me realize that there are more interesting friends and a life beyond work," Xu said.

Chinese people have always had a strong thirst for knowledge. But currently, attending night school now is very different from the nationwide night school craze in the early 1980s. Nowadays, attending night school reflects the diversified growth needs of the contemporary youth.

"It is completely driven by interests, with the aim of enriching our spiritual and cultural lives," Xu said.

In Professor Zhang Yiwu's views, the popularity of night class is one of the best examples, which can dispel the notion that young people in China are "lying flat" for a purposeless life, as portrayed by some Western media outlets.

He noted that in Chinese society, a large portion of young people have enough income to meet basic survival needs and have enough left over to focus on their interests. They don't necessarily have to work extremely hard to earn a stable income, which allows them to easily afford night school or other forms of self-improvement.

In China, there are diverse lifestyle choices that can support both personal growth and a fulfilling leisure life, Zhang pointed out.

"The desire for self-improvement and enrichment is strong among the younger generation, and it extends beyond work. There is a significant proportion of young people who are able to maintain a good living in society and still have time to pursue interests. This phenomenon of enhancing personal development is not surprising and is a natural result of social progress," he said.

A communication channel

"From the beginning, I was worried that the night school courses in a second-tier city would not attract enough people and might not be able to run. But the reality proved that I was overly concerned," Zheng Lifu, who transformed his art training center into a night school in Fuzhou, East China's Fujian Province, told the Global Times.

Just three days after Zheng posted enrollment information for courses at the night school on Xiaohongshu, he received over 300 private messages inquiring about the courses. Within a week, he had successfully opened classes for Guqin and jazz dance, attracting more than 100 participants.

"The demand for young people today to reconstruct their cultural lives and cultivate their interests after work is real," Zheng said.

Currently, Zheng is expanding his night school business further. "The courses are in high demand overall, and we are further assessing the intentions of the students and planning to recruit new qualified teachers to launch more popular courses," he said, noting that his institution aims to provide inclusive entry-level courses while also creating advanced courses to meet the needs of students who want to further enhance their skills.

The Global Times has found that there are roughly three types of night school operation modes currently available on the market. The first type is night schools with official backgrounds, which are established through the coordination of local governments, community organizations, village committees, and training institutions. The second is night schools initiated by training institutions, similar to Zheng's, which offer affordable introductory courses and target long-term course applicants. The third is night schools run by individuals or teams who act as intermediaries, connecting students with institutions and earning a portion of the enrollment fee. All of these operating models are striving to achieve precise alignment with the knowledge demands of young people.

"There are two types of content that easily attract attention on social platforms: 'Where to go after work' and 'Where to go at weekends'" Kevin Wang, a 32-year-old finance industry worker in Shanghai, has devoted all his free time to operating his self-developed community platform Weekend Charging. This young offline social platform, which has been in operation for over a year, started to focus on night school management a month ago.

Wang noted that the night school operation model of Weekend Charging involves cooperation with training institutions to offer interesting courses that young people may not easily come across, such as ukulele, horse riding, and woodwork and leather goods production, in order to lower the learning threshold and cultivate interests and friendships, thus recharging their energies.

Currently, there are over 1,000 active young people in the Weekend Charging community, participating in more than 20 different courses.
"Young people in big cities live in scattered locations and have diverse interests. We play a role in bridging the information gap between training institutions and colleges, and ensuring the cost-effectiveness of night school, a new learning and communication model for young people," Wang said.

A career opportunity

"The new form of night schools is currently thriving, but still in the early stages of development," said Wang. "Everyone is exploring uncharted territory, hoping to establish a comprehensive and smooth operational system that covers courses, pricing, faculty, and after-sales support, in order to foster positive growth and attract and retain the enthusiasm of young learners."

Wang pointed out that the operation of Weekend Charging night school is still in its infancy, and as all members are part-time, they have not yet achieved substantial profits.

"Our core team consists of only 5-6 people, who have come together out of interest and are truly proud to be involved in the night school industry as a career opportunity," he stressed. Wang added that many people find their work meaningful during the classes and continue to sign up. "Although there is uncertainty; we are full of hope for the future of night schools," he said.

The upgraded night schools are also striving to keep up with the times and maintain their appeal to young people.

As the number of students continues to grow, operational challenges also increase. Wang hopes that in the future, the government and private forces will join forces. "Only when this trend passes can high-quality night schools with unified standards be better sustained."

"For some people, attending night school may be a temporary phase, but overall, this social trend includes enhancing self-cultivation and self-improvement in the fields of aesthetics, art, and culture, among others, and also helps create a new industry that benefits social and economic development," Zhang said. "The trend will not change."

Trees cast shadows on the alamedas in a residential community in Shanghai's Minhang district. Close to Jindu Huahaoyueyuan community's main gate, are three fragrant camphor trees marked by somewhat special signs, which read: "receding trimming," "deep trimming," and "regular trimming," indicating the trimming degree of each tree.

Tree trimming, a seemingly trivial matter, used to be the community's long-unsolved problem due to different preferences and demands by local residents. Those who enjoy the shade beneath trees tend to trim the trees less, while those who prefer natural brightness employ heavy-handed trimming, two contradictory opinions often resulting in numerous quarrels in the community over the last decade.

Recently, an in-depth report published by Shanghai-based newspaper Jiefang Daily highlighted the story of "tree trimming," providing a detailed account of how the community found a solution to a seemingly mundane problem, thanks to the joint efforts of the community residents, managers, as well as related urban planning and greening departments.

The three trees, along with their signs, are hailed as a microcosm of whole-process people's democracy, as well as a vivid embodiment of the wisdom of grassroots management in Chinese cities. The "tree trimming" story laid out in the Jiefang Daily report has also played out in other residential communities across Shanghai, which experts said demonstrated the country's great progress in improving whole process people's democracy and strengthening governance at the grassroots level.

Whole-process people's democracy, the defining feature of a socialist democracy, is best reflected in people's participation in democratic elections, consultations, decision-making, management, and oversight in accordance with the law. As a major summary of the theory and practice of Chinese democracy, whole-process people's democracy is also China's answer to the chaos of the West and the confusion of Western democracy.

From attraction to 'obstacles'

One day after dinner, some Jindu Huahaoyueyuan community residents gathered in the community's park for a chat. An elderly man in the crowd seemed somewhat displeased, saying, "They stopped trimming the trees. I wonder what the issue is this time?"

Trimming trees, more than a decade ago, was a source of anger in the community, according to the article published by Jiefang Daily.

Back then, the lush trees in the neighborhood provided shade, a significant attraction for newcomers to settle in this area. However, after more than a decade since the community was established, the camphor trees grew so tall that they blocked the sunlight for residents in lower-level apartments. An overwhelmingly successful greening project therefore became an "obstacle" for some residents.

"We can hardly see sunlight all year round, and it's so dark inside," said one resident, a sentiment echoed by almost all those who suggested tree trimming.

In 2018, a "conflict" erupted in the community over tree trimming. At that time, the Shanghai government issued a three-year action plan for building beautiful homes in Shanghai residential communities. Jindu Huahaoyueyuan community then received project funding, and the community owners' committee took this opportunity to propose tree trimming.

But after trimming fewer than 10 trees, the project was halted and later abandoned due to residents' complaints. Some people said the primary reason was "haphazard trimming."

"For some trees, they directly cut off lower branches, which certainly deviated from the standards for trimming," assessed Wang Lanhua who participated in the tree trimming project.

Consequently, when the tree trimming project was paused during the summer due to high temperatures this year, residents became especially incensed. Wang explained that in early 2022, Shanghai issued a notice which stipulated that the trimming of residential area trees should take place before spring budding or after autumn tree growth stops to avoid extreme cold and hot weather.

"The workers sweat a lot up there and can get dehydrated. Besides, the trees can't endure it; they lose moisture too quickly," he explained to the residents.

Zhang Chao, a member of the community owners' committee, pointed out that "the issue of tree trimming in this community is particularly sensitive, and a small problem can trigger larger issues."

Previously, most residents' attitude has been an eagerness for tree trimming coupled with a distrust of the community owners' committee.

Liu Junli, who lived in the community for a long time, is now the director of the owners' committee. She said that the previous owners' committee had a poor reputation among residents. "So whenever they undertook a project, people would say they were just trying to make money."

Zhu Fang, a member of the committee, standing nearby, chuckled, indicating that she had grown used to hearing such comments.

Back on agenda

In 2020, the election of the new owners' committee began and it took over a year to successfully form the new committee.

Restoring trust between the residents and the committee was just the first step. Liu decided to start small, initially addressing issues like unruly parking at the entrance and problems with garbage disposal in the community, "To at least make residents feel that the community committee is taking action," she told Jiefang Daily.

After successfully handling those issues, the members of the committee felt that this was the time to reintroduce tree trimming into the agenda. With a large number of trees in the community and a substantial amount of money involved, a public bidding process was necessary. Drafting a proposal was the first step. At the time, the committee requested that the bidding companies provide detailed plans before the owners' meeting, enabling residents to vote on the refined proposals.

Communicating with the residents was done through real-time updates on the community's WeChat account, and the tree-trimming plan was a crucial topic during offline resident reception days.

During these reception days, there were occasions when residents voiced their opposition to tree trimming. Then the committee arranged for residents who supported and opposed the tree trimming to exchange views face-to-face in the meeting room, dispelling residents' preconceptions about the committee profiting from these decisions. Often, residents who were initially opposed to tree trimming would be convinced after hearing comprehensive reasons in favor of the trimming from others.

To prevent a repeat of what happened in 2018, Zhang sought help from friends working in related fields and invited experts to conduct an on-site inspection to determine "which trees need trimming and how they should be trimmed."

Based on the experts' advice, three demonstration trees appeared at the entrance of the committee. These three trees, pruned to varying degrees, were accompanied with printed explanations on receding trimming, deep trimming, and regular trimming.

Open-eared

During two resident reception days, the registration form of the owners' committee spanned 14 pages, filled with detailed notes.

After summarizing, it was discovered that residents' tree-trimming needs primarily fell into two categories. Trimming was requested due to lack of sunlight, branches extending to balconies, or potential window breakages. However, some residents wished for shade on the main road and requested there be no trimming.

"If a tree is situated both on the main road and extends to residents' balconies, we trim the balcony-facing branches and try to preserve the road-facing branches as much as possible," Zhang said.
On April 2, 2023, the vote result from the owners' meeting agenda was announced: 1,273 votes were in favor of the proposal, accounting for 67.68 percent, while 150 votes were opposed, at 7.97 percent, making it one of the most highly approved proposals during the owners' meeting.

Gradually, community cooperation around tree-trimming increased. Zhang sought the advice of experts and found a site-specific solution - deep pruning, which is essentially still a form of receding trimming, but it involves leaving more branches compared to receding trimming. This method strikes a balance between meeting regulatory requirements and addressing residents' demands.

Wang, with years of tree-trimming experience, noted that in recent years, newly constructed communities began to avoid the problems encountered in older communities during their landscaping planning. Meanwhile, government recommendations are becoming increasingly standardized, with clearer numerical regulations in landscaping ordinances.

Template practice

Similar tree trimming stories have also been seen in other residential communities across Shanghai, Global Times reporters found.

In the city's downtown Hongkou district, there is a residential community named Tianshui, where many residents are senior citizens. For the elderly, reasonable tree trimming is not only about sunlight and visibility, but also about personal safety.

It's not easy to satisfy every resident. Usually, those who live on higher floors don't want the trees trimmed nearly as much as those living on lower floors do, according to local community managers.

Cui Fenglin, the then community Party branch secretary, decided to address the main security concerns first. He invited landscapers to prune the tree branches near the community's anti-theft electric fence, so as to eliminate the security risks.

"Then, we went doors to doors, collecting various suggestions from people living on different floors," Cui told the Global Times. Thanks to Cui and his coworkers' effort, "the vast majority of the residents no longer had a problem with that [tree trimming]."

The tree trimming issue is a very typical example that reflects the whole-process people's democracy, which is the broadest, truest, and most effective form of democracy, commented public policy expert Peng Xizhe, the executive vice dean of the Shanghai-based Fudan Development Institute.

"Some people may think of significant national affairs when they think of democracy. Actually, democracy has been reflected in all aspects of people's daily lives," Peng told the Global Times. "Like the tree trimming, it is a community affair that eventually reaches a consensus, after going through a democratic process that allows everyone to express their views. During the process, people's democratic awareness is naturally built and increased."

Also, various forms of grass-roots governance, such as owners' and neighborhood committees, have blossomed in recent years along with China's development. They have provided a practical way for the general public to participate in social governance at the grassroots level, Peng noted.

Echoing Peng, Shanghai-based lawyer Wu Xinhui said that the neighborhood committee is a self-governing organization by the residents, and the owners' committee is the self-governing organization of the property owners. The tree trimming issue illustrates how these two grassroots self-governing organizations in China practice whole-process people's democracy.

Wu also serves as an expert and a "legislative coordinator" at a national grassroots-level legislation contact stations in Shanghai's Hongqiao subdistrict. The subdistrict is a township-level administrative division in China's urban areas.

As one of China's first set of four national grassroots-level legislation contact stations in use by the Legislative Affairs Commission of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress (NPC), the Hongqiao neighborhood, as of early September, had solicited opinions from residents on 84 draft laws over the last eight years.

Including Wu, the several hundred "legislative coordinators" who voluntarily collect and sort through these grassroots opinions, the station in Hongqiao has submitted more than 2,600 suggestions on the country's various draft laws to the NPC, 180 of which have been adopted.

"We serve as a bridge that directly links China's top legislature to the general public," Wu told the Global Times.

The export markets of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) are undergoing a diversification process, with more focus shifting toward emerging markets amid a decrease in exports to traditional markets such as the US and Europe, Hong Kong Financial Secretary Paul Chan Mo-po said in a post on his blog over the weekend. 

He highlighted expanding trade ties with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), whose share of exports by value reached 7.9 percent in 2023, compared with 6.1 percent in 2022, making it Hong Kong's second-largest export market after the Chinese mainland.

As the global trade landscape evolves, the city's exports to the US dropped from 18.6 percent of the total in 2003 to just 6.5 percent last year, while exports to the EU decreased from 10.5 percent to 6.6 percent in the same period, according to Chan. 

The changes in Hong Kong's trade structure reflect the changes of the global economic landscape and an adjustment in Hong Kong's role, Liang Haiming, an expert on the Hong Kong economy and chairman of the China Silk Road iValley Research Institute, told the Global Times on Sunday.

The prospects of Hong Kong's industrial and export development are promising, Liang said, while taking note of Hong Kong's unchanged status as an international financial and commercial hub, which will continue to attract multinational corporations.  

Hong Kong's active participation in regional cooperation also opens up more trade opportunities. By actively participating in the Belt and Road Initiative and trade cooperation with ASEAN member countries, Hong Kong explores broader markets and investment opportunities for local businesses, Liang stated.

Amid the rapid shifts in exports, Hong Kong's trade has seen a quick recovery, with exports in January seeing a year-on-year increase of 33.6 percent, the largest rise since February 2021, to HK$388.7 billion ($49.7 billion). Its imports grew by 21.7 percent, reaching HK$385.1 billion, according to the Census and Statistics Department of the HKSAR government.

"As global economies transform and the importance of services trade increases, Hong Kong is well-positioned to expand its share in the services sector, leveraging its strengths in finance, law, logistics and professional services." Liang said.

The city is ramping up efforts to create new economic growth opportunities. The 2024-2025 Hong Kong Budget proposed building the HKSAR into a multinational supply chain management center, offering one-stop services for supply chain management, trade finance, consulting and talent training.

The initiative also aims to attract Chinese mainland manufacturers to establish offshore trading regional headquarters in Hong Kong, taking advantage of the city's rich management experience and favorable market conditions, said Chan.

Hong Kong has been actively moving to attract foreign investment. On February 2, Invest Hong Kong, a department of the HKSAR government responsible for foreign direct investment, announced that in 2023, it assisted 382 companies from 45 economies to establish operations in Hong Kong, bringing in investment of HK$61.6 billion and creating more than 4,100 new jobs, news website 21jingji.com reported.

Alpha Lau, director-general of Invest Hong Kong, was quoted as saying in the report that efforts will continue in exploring emerging markets in Southeast Asia and the Middle East.

Chinese-made electric vehicles (EVs) were subject to a special customs registration process starting from Thursday by the European Commission (EC), as the EU is moving closer to adopting new protectionist measures such as punitive tariffs targeting Chinese EVs in the bloc.

The China Chamber of Commerce to the EU (CCCEU) on Wednesday evening voiced its disappointment with this move, according to a statement the chamber sent to the Global Times.

The mandate may have some impact on EV exports to Europe, as it may possibly be followed by punitive tariffs, according to experts and media reports. However, the impact will be short-term and limited, as the EU still needs Chinese EVs for its green transformation, a Chinese industry expert said Thursday.

The EU issued on Wednesday the Official Journal of the EU regarding its commission's implementation regulation that makes imports of battery EVs designed for passenger use originating in China subject to registration.

This regulation shall enter into force on the day following that of its publication in the Official Journal of the EU, according to the Official Journal of the EU.

The CCCEU said that the chamber has observed that a new implementation regulation was issued on Wednesday, concerning the registration of EV imports from China by the EU. The purpose of the registration requirement is to address Chinese imports and potential retrospective measures, the chamber said.

Both the chamber and its members expressed concern over potential retroactive measures in the future, the CCCEU said.

According to EC data, between October 2023 and January 2024, the EU imported 177,839 Chinese EVs. Compared with the coverage period of the "countervailing investigation" (from October 2022 to September 2023), the average monthly import volume increased by 11 percent.

The chamber highlighted that the recent surge in Chinese EV imports reflected increasing demand for EVs in Europe and underscored Chinese car companies' commitment to fostering the European market.

"We earnestly hope that the European side will effectively safeguard the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese enterprises and establish a fair, impartial and non-discriminatory business environment for them," the China chamber said.

"This, in turn, will facilitate our joint contribution to the global low-carbon and green transformation," the chamber further noted.

In February, China's Minister of Commerce Wang Wentao said that China is highly concerned about the trade remedy investigation targeting Chinese EVs and other products, and he also expressed strong dissatisfaction regarding the investigation, which he said lacked a factual basis.

The EU's latest move came in response to alleged subsidies for EVs by the Chinese government, even though China has largely ended early-stage NEV subsidies.

Subsidies for both public buses and private passenger cars stopped in 2022, Cui Dongshu, secretary-general of the China Passenger Car Association, told the Global Times. "When there were subsidies in China, they were on a much smaller scale than those in European countries."

The EU's action aimed at Chinese EVs was much as expected as part of its trade protectionism measures against China, Cui said.

The customs registration targeting Chinese EVs could be an initial step, and it's likely to be followed by further measures such as punitive tariffs, he warned.

Despite the foreseeable impact on Chinese EVs exported to Europe, Cui said that it will only be temporary and won't undermine the competitiveness of Chinese EVs in the global market.

China is the world's largest car exporter, having surpassed Germany and outpacing Japan. By destination, the EU held the majority share, accounting for 47 percent of China's EV exports in value last year, according to a report by Citi Research in January.

As the EU is in great need of more cost-effective and high-quality products for its green transformation, demand will only grow stronger in the long run, Cui said.

The Kanas scenic spot in Northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region has garnered widespread praise online for its commendable act of providing free food and accommodation to stranded tourists amidst heavy snowstorms.

A staff member from Hemu Shanzhuang, a hotel within the scenic spot, confirmed with the Global Times on Sunday that many tourists have dialed to verify the reports about complimentary meals and accommodation. It has been confirmed that stranded tourists can indeed avail of free meals and accommodation at the hotel.

Xinjiang witnessed its first and longest-lasting snowfall of 2024 starting from January 6. Snowfall has been mainly concentrated in the northern part of the region, including Altay and Tacheng, according to the Xinjiang Meteorological Bureau.

As of January 11, at least 13 avalanches have occurred on the roads from Burqin county to Kanas, Hemu, and other scenic areas due to heavy snowfall in the Altay mountainous area. The snow depth in some sections reached over three meters. 

During the continuous snowfall, local traffic police department implemented traffic controls on impacts sections of road starting from January 8, resulting in tourists being stranded in Kanas, Hemu, and other scenic areas.

On Saturday, the Burqin county issued a notice on its official video platform, stating that from January 11 until the roads are cleared, free food and accommodation will be provided to stranded tourists in three villages - Kanas village, Hemu village and Baihaba Village - within the Kanas Scenic Area.

A spokesperson for Burqin county also confirmed the news with thepaper.cn and he stated that the current snowfall situation has weakened, and the traffic police are making every effort to clear the roads and reopen them as soon as possible.

The act of offering free food and accommodation garnered widespread praise online. Numerous netizens expressed that such move is incredibly heartwarming. "A place as lovely as this is definitely worth visiting," one netizen commented.

Chinese diplomacy will adhere to the principle of confidence and self-reliance, openness and inclusiveness, fairness and justice and win-win cooperation to promote the common path to modernization for the people of all countries, top Chinese diplomat Wang Yi said at a seminar on Tuesday, as he reviewed the accomplishments China made in diplomacy in the previous year and reaffirmed the mission for 2024 that was set by the Central Conference on Work Relating to Foreign Affairs. 

Analysts believe that with the comprehensive plans outlined at the Central Conference on Work Relating to Foreign Affairs, which was held in Beijing from December 27 to 28, 2023, China will continue to collaborate with the international community in addressing the increasing uncertainties and fulfill its role as a stabilizing and global engine.

Wang Yi, a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and Chinese foreign minister, delivered a speech at the opening ceremony of the 2023 International Situation and China's Diplomacy Seminar held in Beijing on Tuesday. 

Wang noted that 2023 was a year of profound changes in international relations and a year of solid progress in China's modernization, as well as a year of exploration and harvest for China's diplomacy. Under the strong leadership of the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at the core, Chinese diplomacy has adhered to its principles, made new contributions and innovation to the construction of a strong country and the national rejuvenation, as well as to maintaining world peace and promoting common development in 2023. 

Wang emphasized that in the past year, facing major issues concerning the future and development of humanity and the world, Chinese diplomacy has always stood on the side of historical correctness and progress, making decisions that have withstood the test of practice and time. 

"In the face of cooperation and confrontation, we firmly choose cooperation; in the face of unity and division, we firmly choose unity; in the face of openness and closure, we firmly choose openness; in the face of peace and war, we firmly choose peace; in the face of multilateralism and unilateralism, we firmly choose multilateralism; in the face of justice and power, we firmly choose justice," said Wang. 

With the Central Conference on Work Relating to Foreign Affairs guiding the direction of China's external work in 2024, the country will make further contributions to global governance amid growing challenges, observers said. 

New challenges

At the Tuesday seminar, Wang reviewed the six highlights of China's diplomacy in 2023, including the head-of-state diplomacy, building a community with a shared future for mankind, the third Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation, the expansion of the BRICS mechanism, the China-Central Asia Summit, and the historic reconciliation between Saudi Arabia and Iran.

On head-of-state diplomacy, Wang noted that throughout 2023, President Xi personally led and participated in two major diplomatic events, attended three multilateral summits, conducted four important visits, and held over 100 meetings, as well as  conversations via video links and phone calls. These have showcased the diverse aspects of China in the new era, promoted China's two-way interactions with the world, and opened up a new chapter in China's foreign relations.

The interactions between President Xi and other top leaders have never been suspended in the past three years, and they only strengthened in 2023, providing strategic guidance to bilateral relations, Wang Huiyao, founder and president of the Center for China and Globalization (CCG), who also attended the Wednesday seminar, told the Global Times.

The expert noted that in 2023, China's diplomacy has been marked by both head-of-state diplomacy and home diplomacy. This includes having invited a large number of foreign leaders, ministers, officials and individuals from various sectors to visit China. Moreover, high-level exchanges have been accompanied by increased people-to-people exchanges between China and other countries, further solidifying the foundations of these bilateral relations.

Su Xiaohui, deputy director of the Department of International and Strategic Studies at the China Institute of International Studies, said that the year 2023 also held great significance for China as the country had implemented major-country diplomacy with Chinese characteristics in the new era, resulting in significant achievements.

For instance, following a meeting between their top leaders in San Francisco, China-US relations have gradually stabilized. Su noted that although there are still uncertainties in the bilateral relations, promoting stable China-US relations will benefit both countries and meet the expectations of the international community.

China's diplomatic achievements in 2023 did not happen by chance, Su told the Global Times, noting that China has actively worked to strengthen relations with neighboring countries and build consensus with developing countries in order to create a community of a shared future. 

The expansion of the BRICS bloc highlights the growing influence of emerging economies in global governance, with China playing an increasingly important role. Additionally, China's commitment to promoting peace talks, justice, and fairness has helped facilitate reconciliation in the Middle East, Su said.

Su warned of uncertainties, especially those brought about by the US due to the US presidential election in 2024, coupled with intense domestic conflicts and polarization. The uncertainties will not only impact US domestic politics but also influence its foreign policies, causing growing concerns worldwide.

Su noted that the year 2024 holds significance as it marks the 75th anniversary of the establishment of the People's Republic of China. Chinese diplomacy will primarily prioritize domestic development and strive to create a favorable environment for growth. Consequently, China will place great emphasis on safeguarding global peace and stability.

All these highlights of Chinese diplomacy in 2023 have showcased the achievements and effectiveness of China's external work guided by Xi Jinping Thought on Diplomacy. Moreover, with the implementation of China's pragmatic diplomatic work and close collaboration with the Global South, the influence of China, one of the responsible major powers, has also increased, Li Haidong, a professor at the China Foreign Affairs University, told the Global Times on Tuesday. 

Moreover, as the conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East persist into 2024, the international situation has become entangled with chaos and uncertainties. In light of this, the international community is also eagerly anticipating China's increased involvement, Li said.

In 2024, China is poised to assume the role of a stabilizer and an engine, fostering international collaboration and propelling the world toward prosperity, Li said.

During the Wednesday seminar, Wang emphasized that in 2024, Chinese diplomacy, under the leadership of the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi at the core, will continue to combine China's development with the world's development and combine the interests of the Chinese people with the interests of the people of the world. 

Together with other countries, we will shoulder the responsibilities of the times, work together to meet challenges, and promote the world toward a better and brighter future with a broader vision and more proactive actions, Wang said.

The stocks of China Evergrande New Energy Vehicle Group plunged by more than 15 percent on Monday, as one of the company's executive directors was detained recently for violating the law.

The electric vehicle arm of the property developer China Evergrande Group announced in a filing to the Hong Kong Stock Exchange on Monday that its executive director Liu Yongzhuo was detained on suspicion of violating the law.

Stock trading was resumed at 13:00 pm on Monday after it was temporarily suspended in the morning session, pending a statement from the company.

The stock plunged 18.6 percent in the first week of 2024 after it said on January 1 that plans for it to sell shares to the US-listed NWTN had been scrapped.

This comes after Hui Ka Yan, founder of Evergrande, was placed under mandatory measures, according to a filing of the company in September.

China Evergrande said that it received notification from relevant authorities that Hui Ka Yan, an executive director of the company and chairman of the board of directors of the company, has been subject to mandatory measures in accordance with the law due to suspicion of committing serious criminal acts.

China's top internet regulator published a notice on Tuesday, announcing a one-month special campaign to rectify negative content orientation in short videos, in an effort to comprehensively regulate the short video platforms and promote healthy competition within the industry. 

According to the Office of the Central Cyberspace Affairs Commission (CAC), the campaign is targeting three typical problems — the spread of false information, the display of inappropriate content and spread of wrong values. 

The notice listed the example of staged photography and dissemination of rumors related to people's livelihoods, such as fabricating plots of helping disadvantaged groups to exploit public sympathy, or staging fake scenes at the site of emergencies and spreading panic. 

The second example of false information were fake videos generated or edited by technologies such as artificial intelligence, using people's portraits or voices illegally in deepfake or voice cloning. The notice also specified to regulate videos that distorting or interpreting authoritative information released by official sources out of context. 

Display of inappropriate content includes deliberately showcasing actions with sexual implications, and marketing with such contents; and intentionally using special effects and props to deliberately create an ugly image to attract attention, or using cross-dressing to create vulgar personas against public aesthetics. 

The notice clarified that videos showing online celebrities' malicious marketing and highly dangerous behaviors, such as suicide, self-harm and animal abuse, as well as parkour and drag racing will be regulated. 

Short videos spreading wrong values include intentionally challenging ethnic and traditional customs, inciting ethnic hatred or regional discrimination, and spreading incorrect views on marriage and relationships, and deliberately creating gender opposition. 

Short videos spreading wrong values, such as boasting for an incorrect career view, unscrupulous means, negative nihilism, flaunting wealth, worshiping materialism, and indulging in extravagance, will be subject to supervision. 

According to the CAC, the recommendation mechanism should be optimized to focus on algorithm orientation and insufficient recommendation of high-quality short videos.  

It is also necessary to address problems such as the review mechanisms lack standards or the standards are not comprehensive. 

The campaign is launched to urge short video platforms to tackle the frequent occurrence of inappropriate contents and values, strengthen their content review mechanisms. It also aimed to create a healthy competition environment for orderly development of the industry, the office said. 

The CAC stated that during the campaign, it will close and penalize a batch of accounts and platforms that have serious violations of laws and regulations. It will also promptly release information to the society, ensure smooth reporting channels, and encourage the public to participate. 

Experts and officials called for enhanced international cooperation and discussed the direction for future policies to promote the implementation of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) at the 4th China and International Development Forum that kicked off Friday in Beijing. A report released at the forum unveiled that only 15 of the 169 SDGs are moving as planned.

The Sustainable Development Goals, also known as the Global Goals, were adopted by the United Nations in 2015 as a universal call to action to end poverty, protect the planet, and ensure that by 2030 all people enjoy peace and prosperity.

According to the report, titled "China and International Development Report: Insights and Outlooks: 2023-2024" released by the Chinese Academy of International Trade and Economic Cooperation (CAITEC), among the 169 goals, only 15 are currently progressing according to plan, with nearly half of the goals severely off track.

About 30 percent of the goals have stagnated or even fallen below the 2015 baseline. Over the past three years, approximately 160 million people in 46 of the world's least developed countries have fallen below the poverty line. 

By 2030, the global poverty rate is projected to be around 7 percent, with 575 million people still living in extreme poverty, according to the report the CAITEC shared with the Global Times. 

The report pointed out that, in recent years, global development has faced multiple crises and challenges. The scale of development cooperation funding has reached a historic high, while the development financing gap remains difficult to bridge. Due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, development financing for developing countries, excluding China, has decreased by 17 percent, while the funding gap has increased by 70 percent. 

The self-interest of Western aid has become more pronounced. In 2022, Western countries' aid to Ukraine increased nearly 20 times from $918 million to $16.1 billion. However, at the same time, official development assistance to over 40 least developed countries decreased to $32 billion, compared to 2021, the report said. 

Data within the report fully illustrates that the current international situation is complex and volatile, with numerous risks and challenges, difficult economic recovery and shifting development issues, Wu Junru, an official from the China International Development Cooperation Agency, said at the forum. 

The implementation of the UN 2030 Agenda has clearly slowed down, and global development is facing multiple and severe challenges. Facing the stagnation of global development, China continues to believe that development should be achieved together, and only sustainable development is good development. China is not only a developing country in its own right but also a natural member of the Global South. China has long attached importance to both our own modernization and global development cooperation, Wu noted.

Two years ago, China proposed the Global Development Initiative, aiming to link and accelerate the implementation of the 2030 agenda, reuniting development consensus and promoting common development. 

China is willing to work together with all development partners, including the institutions present here and high-end think tanks such as the CAITEC, to gather consensus, pool wisdom, and mobilize resources to jointly promote the implementation of the 2030 agenda and inject new momentum into global development, Wu noted.

Following three years of parallel shocks and crises including the pandemic, war and conflicts, most developing countries are faced with increasingly constrained fiscal space and spiraling debt. The combined impact of these challenges has set back global development progress by decades. Furthermore, the climate crisis continues to worsen - threatening humanity's very existence. The year 2023 is set to be the warmest year on record, Beate Trankmann, representative of the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) in China, said in her speech at the forum. 

No single country or actor can tackle these challenges alone. Strengthened international development cooperation is essential to driving forward global progress on the SDGs, and maximize effectiveness in light of scarce resources and ever-growing demands, she stressed. 

"The world has entered a new period of turbulence and change, and global sustainable development is facing multiple challenges. In this new situation, China is accelerating its transformation towards international development cooperation. In this process, it is necessary for the government, industry, academies and researchers to strengthen collaboration. It is even more important to open up exchanges and deepen cooperation with the international community and jointly build a global development partnership," Gu Xueming, Dean of CAITEC said at the forum. 

Against this background, this year's forum is themed "Jointly Forging Global Development Partnerships to Accelerate the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development," aiming to build a dialogue platform, jointly explore the concepts, mechanisms, and best practices of international development cooperation in the new situation, and consolidate consensus and contribute wisdom to promote global sustainable development, Gu noted.

A total of 160 guests and representatives from various agencies attended the forum. 

Chinese speed skaters made some breakthroughs at the speed skating World Cup in Beijing over the weekend, as they totaled two silver and four bronze medals in the three-day competition.

Ning Zhongyan has become the marquee name for the Chinese speed skating team this year as he bagged one silver and two bronze medals in all three races he participated in. Female skater Han Mei is also a big contributor as she claimed one silver and one bronze medals. 

The National Speed Skating Oval, replaced its ice for the first time after hosting the Winter Olympics last year, has been dubbed the "fastest ice" as it witnessed the breaking of 10 Olympic records last year. 

"I was a bit nervous when competing at the Olympics here last year, but now I am just enjoying the race," Ning told reporters. "I think I didn't fail to live up to the fans' expectations, but I do hope I can change the color of my medal at the next World Cup event."

In the women's race, Han's result in the 1,500 meters of 1:55.92 was just 0.4 seconds short of Japanese veteran Miho Takagi, who bagged three individual medals at the Beijing 2022 Olympics. Han's teammate Li Qishi finished third.

"Different from competing at the Olympics, now we have fans cheering for us, which is a booster for me," Han told reporters, noting she has set herself the goal of stepping onto the podium at the Milan 2026 Olympics.

The last time a Chinese female skater entered the top three in the 1,500 meters event was during the 1999-2000 season, when Song Li achieved third place in the Netherlands. 

Li Yan, head coach of the national speed skating team, said though the team is preparing for its ultimate goal of the Milan 2026 Winter Olympics, participating in the World Cup events has made the goal "clearer."

"Every four years we are preparing for one thing (the Winter Olympics), but this year our goals are clearer, which is to improve our results and rankings," she told reporters. 

"Every athlete, regardless of their current level, is finding their shortcomings and areas to improve. More importantly, we are consolidating the spirit of the entire team, using the team's strength to achieve breakthroughs and support each other."

Compared to speed skating's brother, the discipline short track, which has become a popular event thanks to China's medal haul in the discipline, the oval races are relatively less influential, as it totaled only two gold medals in China's seven entries into Winter Olympics. 

While in recent years China has seen success in shorter distance speed skating, particularly with Zhang Hong and Gao Tingyu winning gold in the 500 meters events at the Sochi 2014 and Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics, respectively, the country has struggled in mid-to-long-distance events, which makes breakthroughs like those of Ning and Han more significant.

Despite not participating in the previous season and lacking World Cup ranking points, Gao, who recently returned, finished just a place short for a podium finish in Beijing. But coach Li expressed satisfaction with his recovery. 

"Gao's smooth return is the first step. The fans have high expectations for him, but after all, he hasn't participated in formal competitions for over 20 months," Li told reporters. 

"Being able to move to the top group is a stable first step, and he just needs to do his best."