YELLOW RIVER PLAYS ROLE IN 'REJUVENATION'

A key Party meeting on Monday stressed the need to promote the intensive and economical utilization of the water resources of the Yellow River to ensure its high-quality development.

The meeting of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, presided over by Xi Jinping, general secretary of the CPC Central Committee, reviewed a guideline on development planning for the Yellow River basin.

The ecological protection and high-quality development of the Yellow River, known as China's Mother River, "concern the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation", read a statement released after the meeting.

Efforts should be made to improve its environment, optimize the allocation of water resources, facilitate high-quality development of the whole basin, improve people's lives and promote the inheritance of Yellow River culture, it said.

"It is important to respect natural laws and taking targeted measures according to local circumstances to improve the environment in the Yellow River basin," the statement read.

It mandated efforts to reduce floods and droughts along the Yellow River for the long run and to improve the country's capabilities in dealing with various kinds of natural disasters by strengthening scientific research.

To boost the high-quality development of the Yellow River basin, meeting participants decided that effective measures should be adopted to accelerate the transformation of driving forces, to establish the modern industrial system with distinctive local features and advantages and to advance rural vitalization.

The meeting also stressed the need to protect and carry forward Yellow River culture and explore its value in modern times to strengthen Chinese people's confidence in Chinese culture.

The 5,464-kilometer-long river feeds about 12 percent of China's population, irrigates about 15 percent of arable land, supports 14 percent of national GDP and supplies water to more than 60 cities.

The Yellow River basin has a drainage area of over 752,000 sq km and covers seven provinces and two autonomous regions.

Since Xi became general secretary of the CPC Central Committee, he has made many visits to inspect the environmental conservation and high-quality development of the Yellow River basin, with the most recent in June, when he inspected the Ningxia Hui autonomous region.

Monday's meeting also reviewed a report on the latest round of disciplinary inspections by the 19th CPC Central Committee.

RULE TO HANDLE FOREIGN FIRMS' COMPLAINTS

China will implement a new rule for handling the complaints of foreign-invested enterprises on Oct 1, as part of its efforts to build a market-oriented and law-based international business environment, the Ministry of Commerce said on Monday.

The rule consists of five chapters and 33 articles, further refining the requirements of the Foreign Investment Law and its implementing regulations and updating and optimizing of its system for handling foreign companies' complaints.

The regulation is meant to implement article 26 of China's Foreign Investment Law, which provides that the State establishes working mechanisms for complaints by foreign-invested companies, promptly handles the issues raised by them or their investors and coordinates and improves policy measures in question, said Zong Changqing, director-general of the ministry's Department of Foreign Investment Administration.

He said the rule has broadened the scope of complaints that can be made by foreign companies. It has clarified that global companies can apply to agencies that handle complaints for coordination and settlement of their legal rights and interests that may be infringed by administrative actions. The companies also can report to the government units that they are having problems in running their business.

In addition to global companies' right to suggest the government improve relevant policies and measures, foreign chambers of commerce can also report issues concerning China's investment environment to authorities that handle complaints.

Actively promoting foreign investment and consolidating the protection of the legal rights and interests of foreign investment are the biggest highlights of the Foreign Investment Law and related rules, said Jiang Chenghua, deputy director-general of the ministry's Department of Treaty and Law.

The laws and regulations stipulate various substantive rights of foreign investors and strengthen the nation's legal system to ensure fair competition between domestic and foreign companies, he said.

Global firms also should apply policy measures introduced by the government to support their business growth in accordance with the law, and participate fairly in the setting of industrial standards and government procurement activities, said Li Yong, deputy director-general of the China Investment Promotion Agency.

In terms of protecting intellectual property, penalties for infringement have been reinforced, government branches are prohibited from using administrative means to forcibly transfer technology and protection of commercial confidential information has been enhanced, he said.

ESPER HIGHLIGHTS WASHINGTON DESTABILIZER OF REGION NOT BEIJING: CHINA DAILY EDITORIAL

Many wars have been started on the pretext of maintaining peace, and many others because the belligerent did not opt for the harder alternative. The defense ministers of the United States and Japan would have done well to reflect on these lessons from history in their meeting in Guam on Saturday, rather than trying to justify the two countries' increasing military presence in waters that belong to neither country.

That US Defense Secretary Mark Esper opened the meeting by highlighting its timing — "Seventy-five years ago this week, the United States and Japan laid down their arms against each other and entered into a durable friendship" — only served to show that the meeting was to affirm that Tokyo remains loyal to Washington's contain-China schemes.

The irrationality of Washington's strategic anxiety is palpable in its constant seeking of reassurance that its allies are on its side.

Reluctance to follow Washington's neurotic lead is understandable, for when Esper expressed concerns regarding Beijing's introduction of a national security law for the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region and "destabilizing actions" vis-à-vis Taiwan — two places even his boss admits "technically" belong to China — and urged Japan to strengthen cooperation with other like-minded partners in the region, an arrogantly catch-all phrase that excluded Russia and the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, he was in effect talking of breaking the "rules-based order" in the region, an order that Washington asserts it wants to defend.

The US defense secretary harped on the usual strings of China's maritime and border disputes with its neighbors, as if these are the stigma of China's original sin. Yet Washington would never mention that most of the historical disputes, like many others in Asia and Africa, were caused and left by colonialists or Western occupants, including the US, on purpose so as to play one country off against another.

Esper would never dream of mentioning that China and its neighbors have been making unswerving efforts to peacefully resolve their differences as they share a common understanding of the benefits bestowed by a stable and peaceful development environment.

Neighborhood diplomacy has always been a priority for China's foreign policy, as a peaceful and prosperous region is essential for its own development. So Esper's charge that China is bullying its neighbors does not stand up to scrutiny. It is the US that threatens to destabilize the region by turning the screws on China's neighbors to persuade them to turn against Beijing.

The reason the new Cold War the US is trying to engineer has met with cold shoulders around the world is that no country wants to offer its interests as a sacrifice on Washington's altar of hegemony.

CHINESE BRANDS GROW FASTER THAN GLOBAL AVERAGE

China recorded the biggest growth in brand value over last decade, nearly eight times faster than the overall growth of world's most valuable brands, according to a latest report from the Brand Finance, a global brand value consultancy in August.

"The country's impressive portfolio of high-performing brands has claimed nine spots among the top 10 brands with the largest increase in brand value over the last decade," said the consultancy in the China 500 2020, the annual report on the most valuable and strongest Chinese brands.

The combined brand value of Chinese brands in the Brand Finance Global 500 ranking of the world's most valuable brands has increased a whopping 1,100 percent from $111 billion in 2010 to $1,334 billion in 2020.

"This is by far faster than brand value growth recorded by brands from any other country, with – for instance – the United States seeing a 177 percent and Japan a 94 percent increase, and nearly eight times faster than the overall growth of brand value within the Brand Finance Global 500 ranking – 143 percent," the report said.

Alibaba ranks first as the world's fastest-growing brand, with a staggering 4,029 percent increase over last 10 years. Industrial and Commerce Bank of China retains top spot as the nation's most valuable brand. And WeChat is the nation's strongest brand.

"Valuable brands are the foundation of a successful modern economy, and China's conscious effort to develop and grow both domestic and international brands will undoubtedly help the country through the COVID-19 pandemic and the economic fallout that will follow. We are likely to see a drop in brand value of at least $1 trillion across the globe next year, but the headway made by Chinese businesses over the past decade will certainly cushion what could otherwise have been a heavy blow," said David Haigh, CEO of Brand Finance.

HK READY FOR UNIVERSAL COVID TESTING

Hong Kong is well prepared for the launch of its COVID-19 universal testing program on Tuesday, said a leading government official, as more than 553,000 people had registered online by 6 pm on Monday.

More than 6,000 medical workers have volunteered to participate in the program, and about 4,000 civil servants from 75 policy bureaus and departments have been assigned to facilitate administrative work, the government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region said on Monday.

Inspecting a testing center, Chief Secretary for Administration Matthew Cheung Kin-chung said on Monday the preparations for the weeklong program have been completed.

"The design of the centers has ensured that the testing will be safe, convenient and quick, with full protection of personal privacy," he added.

According to the program's website, appointments at 14 community testing centers are fully booked until Sept 7.

But despite the enthusiastic participation of residents, some medical group leaders and opposition activists have repeatedly smeared the program and called on the public to boycott it. On Saturday, a volunteer who was distributing leaflets about virus testing was attacked by a man with an umbrella.

Chow Pak-chin, vice-president of the Medical Association, told China Daily that he hoped these individuals would not "politicize "public health. "It is vital for professional medical workers to make evidence-based claims," he said.

On Monday, the city reported nine new COVID-19 infections, the lowest daily rise since Aug 24, taking the total to 4,810. In view of the waning trend, the government announced the phased reopening of Hong Kong's schools from Sept 23.

FIREFIGHTER TEAM HONORED FOR ITS ROLE IN RESCUES

A team of 1,075 firefighters has been honored as role models by the Publicity Department of the Communist Party of China Central Committee for rescuing more than 13,000 people from flooding in Jiujiang, Jiangxi province.

Qin Xuhua, a member of the Jiujiang Fire and Rescue Team that took part in flood relief along Poyang Lake in the province in July, said the disaster this year was more severe than the previous six flood rescues he participated in.

On July 7, Qin's team received phone calls from the city's three counties－Hukou, Duchang and Pengze－at nearly the same time, asking for rescue assistance.

Qin went to Gulou village, Pengze county, where flooding had submerged the first floors of residential buildings. He and another team member evacuated about 240 villagers from the buildings and brought them to shelters in the county with a motorboat that could hold eight people at a time.

Four other members were standing by in two motorboats in the Xiuhe River in case Qin's boat needed emergency assistance.

The river connects with Poyang, China's largest freshwater lake, which was dealing with rising water levels due to heavy rainfall.

On July 12, the water in Poyang reached a record 22.6 meters, more than 3.6 meters above the warning level.

For nearly the whole month, Qin and his teammates worked for about 15 hours a day, and they consumed only bread and bottled water.

"The river current was as fast as 1.5 meters per second, double the previous flood flow speed on average," he said. "Boats would be hit on the side and could not go straight across the river. I drove against the current and took a detour to arrive in the village."

Qin used a rope to fasten the boat to the houses and a ladder to rescue stranded villagers from roofs or second floors.

Some people asked Qin to evacuate their belongings as well. Qin needed to persuade them to leave as soon as possible without wasting time.

"In swift currents, the boat had the risk of overturning, and we also needed to reassure frightened villagers that we would send them to safety," he said.

"We won't risk anyone's life, and for every task, we prepare for the worst situation."

The confidence comes from their team's hard daily training, top rankings in competitions with counterparts in the province, accumulated experience in disaster relief and skill exchanges with teams from foreign countries.

"All in all, our team's goal is to achieve more efficiency under the premise of guaranteeing each rescuer's safety," he said.

AUTUMN SCHOOL SEMESTER BEGINS IN SHANGHAI

The 2020 autumn semester for elementary, middle and high schools in Shanghai reopened on Tuesday.

Having proven to be a useful tool during the epidemic, online courses will continue to be provided to students alongside on-campus education, according to the Shanghai Municipal Education Commission.

The commission said that the recording of online lessons for students in Grade 1 to 12 will continue so as to build a complete set of digital resources that can be used in place of on-site lessons at any time.

"The purpose of online courses is to let students who cannot return to campus, either due to the epidemic or other reasons, to continue with their education," said Li Hong, deputy director of Xuhui Institute of Education Shanghai.

"From another perspective, these courses are also a good resource for our teachers' professional development. This batch of online courses can be used as a case study in teacher training and classroom teaching research so as to benefit more teachers," she added.

According to the commission, more than 5,000 high-quality online education video courses covering all basic subjects in schools have been produced by the end of the spring semester in 2020.

DEADLY SHIP COLLISION NEAR FUJIAN UNDER PROBE

Maritime authorities are investigating a foreign merchant ship suspected of colliding with a Chinese fishing boat on Sunday, leading to the deaths of two people from the Chinese boat, Fujian Maritime Safety Administration said on Monday. Twelve are also missing from the Chinese boat.

The Chinese fishing boat, registered in Quanzhou, Fujian province, sank near Pingtan Island in the Taiwan Straits at about 4 am on Sunday after colliding with another boat. Two people onboard were saved.

The foreign ship suspected in the collision is registered in Liberia and has arrived in Shanghai under the supervision of the maritime authorities for investigation, the administration said.

Authorities will check the ship's certifications and documents as well as its sailing data during the time of the accident. They will also interview the crew and check whether the ship appears damaged by the collision, it said.

The ship won't be allowed to leave until the investigation is finished, it added.

Rescue efforts to find the 12 missing people are ongoing.

The Fujian maritime rescue authority dispatched rescue ships to the area and organized 17 fishing boats nearby to join the search. Ships and helicopters from the Taiwan rescue authority were also asked to assist in the search, according to the administration.

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

Small minds are concerned with the extraordinary, great minds with the ordinary. - Blaise Pascal