Lithuania Advises Throwing Away Chinese Phones

 

Lithuania found Xiaomi phones have censorship capabilities

Lithuania has an adverse reaction to Chinese phones, so much so it could erupt into a diplomatic row after its defence ministry has advised residents to avoid buying Chinese phones or even throwing away the ones they have now after a government report found the devices have built-in censorship capabilities.

Xiaomi phones have a built-in ability to detect and censor terms such as "Free Tibet", "Long live Taiwan independence" or "democracy movement", according to Lithuania's state-run cybersecurity body on Tuesday.

Abukevicius advised throwing out Chinese phones

While the capability of Xiaomi's Mi 10T 5G phone software has been turned off for the "European Union region", it can be turned on remotely at anytime, the defence ministry's National Cyber Security Centre said in the report.

"Our recommendation is not to buy new Chinese phones, and to get rid of those already purchased as fast as reasonably possible," said Defence Deputy Minister Margiris Abukevicius when introducing the report.

Xiaomi did not respond to Lithuania's allegations.

The report said the list of terms which could be censored by the Xiaomi phone's system apps, including the default internet browser, currently includes 449 terms in Chinese and is continuously updated. 

"This is important not only to Lithuania, but to all countries which use Xiaomi equipment," the centre said in the report.

The report warns against using any Xiaomi gadgets

Relations soured between Lithuania and China recently after Taiwan announced its mission in Lithuania would be called the Taiwanese Representative Office, causing China to demand Lithuania withdraw its ambassador in Beijing, and said it would recall its envoy to Vilnius.

Usually Taiwanese missions in Europe and the United States use the name of the city Taipei to avoid referencing the island itself, which China regards is its own.

Following Lithuania's report, how many other countries will take heed to its warnings regarding Xiaomi phones?

It will be interesting to find out...

Education Bureau's Witch Hunt

The teacher taught at Alliance Primary School in Kowloon Tong

 

The Hong Kong government continues its repression of anyone who actively participated in last year's protests, and in particular targeting teachers.

Today it was announced a Primary 5 teacher was struck off the register of teachers for his teaching materials that "seriously harmed" students at Alliance Primary School in Kowloon Tong.

He was the first teacher to be deregistered for professional misconduct, as teachers are typically struck off the register for criminal convictions.

Michelle Li says teacher advocated independence

In a press conference this afternoon, education officials claimed the teacher was spreading separatist messages and asked pupils if they agreed with Hong Kong independence.

Apparently the lesson plan involved 50 minutes discussing the Hong Kong National Party and the Societies Ordinance, under which the separatist group was banned in 2018 on national security grounds.

Then the students were told to spend 35 minutes discussing independence for Taiwan, Tibet and Xinjiang. 

However students only spent two out of 23 hours on the above lesson plan, which focused more in freedom of speech than advocating independence.

But officials pounced on this particular lesson for severe punishment.

"It is a very serious case with a premeditated plan to spread a pro-independence message," said Permanent Secretary for Education Michelle Li Mei-sheung, calling the scheme "biased and twisted".

Ip says bureau too quick to accuse teacher

However, education sector lawmaker Ip Kin-yuen says unlike other professionals, such as doctors and engineers, teachers were not given the right to an oral hearing before having their registration removed. The teacher was only able to give his side of the story in writing.

 What's more, Ip added, officials relied on written materials, including worksheets and a lesson plan, rather than receiving a full picture of what happened in the classroom.

"We have to observe the lessons," Ip said. "I think I am quite experienced in observing lessons, because I am a former College of Education lecturer, and I have been observing many, many lessons and we have to look at both the lesson plan and also the actual delivering of the lessons.

"So we cannot ignore the actual delivering and just look at the lesson plan. This is a major mistake they [the Education Bureau] have made this time."

Later the media found the school had conducted its own investigation and found the teacher was not advocating independence. What's more is that he only drafted the lesson plan and did not teach it. Not only was the teacher from the school stripped from registry, but also the principal and vice-principal were reprimanded, and three other teachers were given warning letters.

Yeung's children were educated in Australia

If the teaching material was as Li purports it to be, the Education Bureau has used this teacher as an example to scare the rest of his colleagues into submission. Was it an instruction from Beijing or proactively done to please its masters we may never know, but the witch hunt is here and will continue to "weed out" bad apples.

Meanwhile, it should be reminded that Secretary for Education Kevin Yeung Yun-hung's children were educated in an international school and later studied overseas in Australia...

 

 

Xi Wants People to Waste Less Food

People tucking into their meals, but make sure you can finish everything

Chinese President Xi Jinping wants people to cut down on food waste, describing it as "shocking and distressing".

"Waste is shameful and thriftiness is honourable," he said on Tuesday. The president quoted a poem: "Who knows that of our meal in the dish, every grain comes after hard toil?"

Xi wants people to be more thrifty when it comes to food

The country could be set to introduce legislation to formulate regulations to prevent food waste through various means.

"[We would] advocate a reasonable and healthy dining culture and establish a long-term mechanism to stop food waste," explained Zhang Guilong, an official with the Legislative Affairs Commission, under the National People's Congress Standing Committee.

Zheng Fengtian, a professor of agricultural economics at Remin University in Beijing, said China's food wastage was startling and could only be changed through legislation.

"It would be very hard to curb food wastage through people's consciousness or NGO campaigns," he said. "Awareness and behaviour can be changed by law, just like waste sorting in many cities."

A 2018 investigation by the Institute of Geographic and National Resources Research, and the World Wide Fund for Nature estimated Chinese consumers in four large cities (Beijing, Shanghai, Chengdu and Lhasa) had wasted 17 to 18 million tonnes of food served in 2015 -- enough to feed 30 to 50 million people for a year.

A law could be in place to end food wastage like this

Interesting that Lhasa was lumped in as a major city... is it a hint that Tibetans are wasteful?

"We should always have a sense of crisis over food security, especially amid the fallout of the Covid-19 epidemic, despite China having consecutive bumper harvests in recent years," Xi was quoted as saying by Xinhua news agency.

Earlier this year he called on China's local officials to tighten their belts and live thrifty lives.

But will people be willing to change their habits and order one less dish while dining out? It's the Chinese custom for the host to order more food to show they aren't stingy, so trying to get them to order one less dish may be hard to adopt.

Responses from some internet users were hardly enthusiastic.

Doggy-bagging a lot of food here

"Can you first limit the dining of officials? Don't always take away from the people," one said, referring to formal banquets and lavish meals officials ate at.

"This seems aimed at us bottom class, but we are already thrifty. This means nothing to the rich," moaned another. "I especially hate this kind of political action that means on ordinary people to act."

This commenter took the proverbial cake: "This level of control. Even the number of dishes people order has to be regulated?"

The Battle Continues in Kowloon

Protesters were back putting out tear gas on the streets in Kwun Tong today

The peaceful protests last weekend ended today with police firing numerous rounds of tear gas in Kowloon Bay, Wong Tai Sin and Sham Shui Po so far. About 18 people have been arrested and there have been a few serious injuries involving their faces. It's not good.

What has made the situation worse is the MTR has made it harder for everyone to get around. After criticism from Beijing for allegedly aiding and abetting the protesters, the MTR got a court injunction to arrest anyone who vandalizes the stations and trains, or blocks carriages, which is fine, but now it has prevented people from using it whenever there is a demonstration.

Residents angry they can't access the MTR this afternoon

This afternoon the MTR warned it would shut down Kwun Tong station because of the police sanctioned march there. That left residents in the area unable to use the public transport system to get to work or do their shopping or even to come home. They were furious with the MTR staff, and no one senior enough was around to take the verbal abuse.

Perhaps the MTR or Beijing was hoping this harder stance would make it harder for protesters to show up at the march, but the plan backfired. And since the MTR is majority owned by the Hong Kong government, by extension the residents were angry at their government. And again there is no recourse, as everyone needs to use the MTR and taxpayer dollars go there too. So... again this is why Hongkongers need universal suffrage!

Beijing has strong armed Cathay Pacific and now the MTR. Who is next?

One piece of good news is that British consulate employee Simon Cheng Man-kit has been released and is now back in Hong Kong with his family. There was also a group of 10 university students who were detained in Tibet, but they have also been released now.

One protester puts his tennis racquet to good use

Why would anyone want to go to Chinese these days?

Now that Hong Kong is in the international spotlight, China is trying desperately to put up a curtain and say, "Nothing going on here, move along".

A letter sent by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the People's Republic of China, says "the so-called 'anti-amendment' is nothing more than a hyped-up pretext," writes Hua Chunying, director general of the Information Department.

"When you look at the current situation, you'll find that those radical, violent and criminal behaviors have gone far beyond freedom of speech and peaceful assembly. They have seriously threatened the safety of Hong Kong residents and their property, severely undermined Hong Kong's rule of law and social order, gravely challenged the bottom line of 'one country, two systems', and pushed Hong Kong to a dangerous brink."

Hua's letter dated August 20 was sent to over 30 foreign media outlets. 

Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokeswoman Hua Chunying

First of all, what is this "anti-amendment" she is talking about? If she means the anti-extradition protests, they have been dragging out so long because the Hong Kong government has done nothing to address this issue.

Is Hong Kong at a "dangerous brink"? Not yet no. But she is repeating what Beijing has said before. If repeated enough, perhaps people will believe it.

She then advises journalists to take up their "social responsibility and make reports that are neutral, objective, impartial and comprehensive so that your coverage may help those protesters ignorant of the truth to get back on the right path, and help those who have been seriously misled to come to a rational and fair judgment".

That sounds eerily like Uighurs who have been led astray by Islam and need to be sent to concentration camps to be "reeducated".

Again the language shows a hardline paternalistic attitude towards Hong Kong and young people...  

Beyond Your Imagination

What does this advertisement mean?

With Huawei executive Sabrina Meng Wanzhou being released on bail pending an extradition hearing next year, tensions between China and Canada are tense to say the least.

This was coupled with basically the kidnappings of two Canadians and a third one who will be retried for drug smuggling because the judge deemed his sentence of 15 years as too lenient.

Do these images entice you to go?

But no worries! We will let the rule of law take its course in China...

In the meantime, why don't you Canadians consider visiting China?

Yesterday's Vancouver Sun had two full page ads, the front cover saying: "Amazing China: Beyond Your Imagination". Then underneath, "Consulate General of the People's Republic of China in Vancouver".

Turn the page over and there's another full page ad that repeats the same slogan, with the requisite images of pandas, Temple of Heaven, Shanghai, Tibet and a Peking Opera performer. It seems like a hastily arranged advertisement with lots of money thrown in.

There is no other message, or explanation of how China is "Beyond Your Imagination" except for the fact that its government's actions when it comes to rule of law really are beyond your imagination.

Would any Canadian want to go to China on their free will these days? 

Tibetan Let Down by Rule of Law

Tashi Wangchuk is concerned about losing the Tibetan culture

A few days ago, a Tibetan who was hoping to petition the Chinese government to have better teaching of the Tibetan language, was thrown in jail for five years, convicted for "inciting separatism".

The thing is, Tashi Wangchuk doesn't want to have anything to do with independence. He just wants to preserve the Tibetan language and culture.

To that end he tried to file a lawsuit against local officials for going against China's constitution that says all ethnicities in China "have the freedom to use and develop their own spoken and written languages".

However he couldn't do that, so he traveled to Beijing in the hopes of getting China Central Television (CCTV) to shine a spotlight on the issue of how the quality of teaching Tibetan has fallen and how he wants to protect the language from being sidelined by Mandarin.

Beijing seems intent on more Chinese spoken than Tibetan

But when he tries to approach the CCTV building in Beijing, he sees security guards asking visitors for their ID cards and he worries he will be taken in by the police. In a touch of naivety, he thought state media was open and was always searching the truth.

Then he tries to find lawyers to take on his case, but many of them say the Chinese government has done good things for Tibet, particularly economic development. Either they are pro-Beijing or they just don't want to get involved.

His attempt to petition the government and expose his story led to him being detained in 2016 after appearing in a New York Times video chronicling his journey. Most recently that video was used as evidence against him in a four-hour trial in January, saying he was deliberately inciting separatism and trying to discredit the government's international image and treatment of ethnic minorities.

Tashi was previously a shopkeeper and learned Tibetan from his brother, who had studied with a monk. In 2015 Tashi tried to find a Tibetan teacher for his niece, traveling through several provinces but couldn't find any.

In the video by the New York Times, Tashi says: "The local government is controlling the actual Tibetan culture, such as the spoken and written language. It looks like development or help on the surface, but actually the goal is to eliminate our culture."

Did he not make his argument clear, using the Chinese law to push China to preserve Tibetan language and culture?

Apparently Beijing was not pleased by this tactic and turned the tables on Tashi. He is a young man who has thought long and hard about how to bring change to his people. Tashi tried, but in the end sacrificed himself for the cause.

In the video he talks about how over 100 Tibetans have committed self-immolation. He observes they didn't do it because of a family dispute, but because they feel so strongly about the Tibet they know disappearing that they have lost hope that things will get better.

He doesn't think he would do that, but he can now see how desperate some people are, that they practically have no choice left but to accept the inevitable -- that Beijing controls Tibet, despite it being called an "autonomous region".

For now Tashi will appeal, but trying to silence him with jail is only going to create more resentment against the Han Chinese...

Fans Shocked as Jet Li Ages Rapidly

A picture of him from a video message for Chinese New Year this year

Fans are shocked to see martial arts star Jet Li, 55, not looking well these days.

Recent photos of him revealed how hyperthyroidism and spinal problem have taken a toll on his heath. The star of such films as Lethal Weapon 4, Romeo Must Die and Expendables 2, revealed five years ago he has been suffering from hyperthyroidism.

Recent photos of Li taken in Chengdu

A recent photo of him taken in Chengdu shows his frail appearance and he apparently needed assistance to walk.

Hyperthyroidism causes changes in a person's metabolism and heart rate, and is usually treated through medication, which Li is taking. He said last year in Beijing that his strong belief in Buddhism as well as meditation and scripture reading helped him stabilize his condition.

He also said doctors warned him in 2013 that he would wind up in a wheelchair if he didn't stop making physically demanding action films.

He is well known for portraying Wong Fei-hung

"I'm just a regular guy. I'm not Wong Fei-hung. I'm not Huo Yuanjia [kung fu heroes he has portrayed on film]. I'm just like you," he also said last year.

Li said he was also suffering from leg and spinal problems and that he was unable to stand straight for too long, his poor health the result of decades of demanding film roles, stunts and injuries. He first started making films in his teens after he was crowned a wushu champion in the late 1970s.

It is sad to see such a favourite star deteriorate so quickly in the last few years. We can only hope he is not in too much pain.

Tibetan's Escape to the US

A recent picture of Dhondup Wangchen who landed in San Francisco

We are fascinated by the news that a Tibetan filmmaker managed to elude police surveillance in China and escape to the United States.

Dhondup Wangchen, 43, arrived in San Francisco on Christmas Day where he was reunited with his wife and children who were granted political asylum in 2012.

"After many years, this is the first time I'm enjoying the feeling of safety and freedom," Wangchen said in a statement issued by Filming for Tibet, a group set up by his cousin that campaigned for his release.

A scene from Wangchen's documentary, Leaving Fear Behind

"I would like to thank everyone who made it possible for me to hold my wife and children in my arms again. However, I also feel the pain of having left behind my country, Tibet."

He's a self-taught filmmaker from Qinghai province where he spent five months in 2007 interviewing Tibetans about their hopes and frustrations living under Chinese rule. His documentary, Leaving Fear Behind, has many Tibetans talking about their love for exiled Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama, and how they thought the 2008 Beijing Olympics would do little to improve their situation.

Wangchen was detained in 2008, after his footage was smuggled out of China and shown at film festivals around the world, and shown to a group of foreign reporters ahead of the Olympics. He was later convicted for "inciting subversion" and sentenced to six years in prison.

Wangchen's wife, Lhamo Tso campaigned for his release

While he was in prison, many rights groups campaigned for his release, saying he was denied medical care after he contracted hepatitis B in jail, that he was forced to do manual labour and kept in solitary confinement for six months.

His case was apparently raised by the United States with Beijing "at the highest level", according to a Tibetan rights group called International Campaign for Tibet.

However, Wangchen's supporters did not explain how exactly he managed to escape, as he was under heavy police surveillance, with his communications monitored.

"The six years Dhondup Wangchen had to spend in jail are a stark reminder of the human costs that China's policies continue to have on the Tibetan people," said Matteo Mecacci, president of International Campaign for Tibet. "Dhondup Wangchen should never had to pay such a high personal price for exercising his freedom of expression."

Tibetans cannot openly worship the Dalai Lama

In the coming days, weeks and months it will be interesting to see what he has to say about how life is like in Tibet these days. Since the Chinese government began ruling over Tibet in 1950, there have been repressive measures in place, in particular since 2008 when riots erupted in the area.

Devotees of the Dalai Lama are forbidden from speaking about him, having his picture posted on the walls and Tibetans say their culture and language are being threatened by Han Chinese.

A shocking statistic to keep in mind is that more than 150 people have set themselves on fire since 2009 in protest against the Chinese government, the latest case on Wednesday. In turn Beijing calls these self-immolators "terrorists" and blames the Dalai Lama and exiled Tibetan rights groups for inciting them.

While we are pleased Wangchen is now safe, he may feel powerless to help fellow Tibetans from the outside. It's a difficult existence, but one that he and many dissidents before him have had to navigate. We hope he finds his footing and renewed purpose in his new home.

Another Dark Day to Remember

Last night's tense standoff between the police and protesters in Sai Ying Pun

Beijing has put another nail in the coffin of Hong Kong's core values as a city with rule of law, freedom of speech, freedom of expression.

Today it announced its decision on how oaths should be taken -- basically saying if lawmakers will not pledge loyalty to Beijing then they cannot take office, and they must also say the oath properly.

This decision effectively bars two young localist legislators from taking office, and as a result making the process of them democratically voted in null and void.

The NPC Standing Committee's announcement this morning

It also sets the precedent that if Beijing doesn't like a law that Hong Kong has, it will change it on its own whim and we have no choice in the matter even though we have the Basic Law that was promised to be enacted in the Sino-British Joint Declaration of 1984.

China cannot allow what it calls "separatist" lawmakers to take office, as it could incite similar ideas in places like Tibet and Xinjiang.

But on the other hand, Hong Kong is different from these two regions -- the city has its own rule of law and other core values from its days under the British. Paramount leader Deng Xiaoping promised "one country, two systems" -- what happened to that pledge?

In the protest march yesterday afternoon, not everyone supported Youngspiration's Sixtus Baggio Leung Chung-hang and Yau Wai-ching when they mocked the oath, and said things like the People's Republic of "Chee-na", what some consider a derogatory term the Japanese used in World War II.

Yau Wai-ching and Sixtus Leung are barred from taking office

But the protesters do support the fact the pair were democratically elected and that they should be allowed to be sworn in. With Beijing's interference, Hong Kong people don't know where they stand anymore -- their institutions are crumbling around them and they feel their confidence in the city they grew up in and love is not the one they knew before.

It's another sad milestone in Hong Kong, like August 31, 2014, when Beijing effectively ruled out open nominations for chief executive, that their applications had to be approved by a pro-Beijing body before being able to run.

Is it any wonder Hong Kong people are frustrated and some resort to violent tactics like last night?

 

Beijing's 1st Tibetan Search Engine

New search engine Yongzin looks very similar to Google, no?

China recently launched its first search engine -- in Tibetan called Yongzin, which means "teacher" or "master". State media outlet Xinhua says Yongzin is a "unified portal for all major Tibetan-language websites in China".

The search engine has been in the making since 2013 and cost 57 million yuan (US$8.7 million) to produce. Eighty percent of the 150 developers are ethnic Tibetan, and the site is expected to benefit 2 million users.

You will be hard pressed to find images of him on Yongzin

With an entire population of over 1.2 billion, why would the Chinese government bother to set up a search engine for such a small percentage of people?

"[It will] meet the growing needs of the Tibetan-speaking population and facilitate the building of Tibetan digital archives and the expansion of databases in the Tibetan language," an official said.

Or how about trying to control the information flow Tibetans can access in their own language?

Tibet watchers outside of China seem skeptical about this latest development. "After decades of effectively suppressing the Tibetan language, China now puts emphasis on being seen to support it," observed Alistair Currie of the Free Tibet Movement.

"As with everything in Tibet, language is tainted with political connotations, and Beijing wants to control any development rather than permit it."

And there are problems trying to find images of Tibetan tea

Some media asked Tibetan-speaking users to try out the portal and found searches for the Dalai Lama didn't even show his official website. "None of the top results [on Yongzin] are particularly relevant," a researcher said.

When the search switched to images, the results showed images from a defunct website compared to Google, which had lots of pictures of the Dalai Lama.

Another search was made for "Tibetan tea", and those results showed Chinese officials drinking tea, whereas Google had images of the actual beverage.

Currie noted there were many more blogs, websites and social media from Tibet that were not accessible through the search engine.

So what's the whole point of this 57 million yuan exercise when hardly anything is accessible?

China's Propaganda Smear Campaign

Joshua Wong is not advocating independence nor is he affiliated with the US

Beijing is really on a mission to destroy young activist Joshua Wong Chi-fung, with the latest smear campaign an example of when one goes overboard with the insults so it looks outrageous.

The Supreme People's Procuratorate -- China's highest prosecution agency -- has released a video claiming Wong is a pro-independence advocate who is backed by the United States and wants to turn China into another Syria.

Huh?

If anything his party Demosisto isn't even advocating independence -- perhaps the Supreme People's Procuratorate has mixed him up with the Hong Kong National Party or Hong Kong Indigenous.

In any event, the video, posted on the Supreme People's Procuratorate's official weibo account, starts off with images of refugees from the Middle East, Eastern Europe and Central Asia starving, dying or being treated cruelly. Then this contrasts with images of a "harmonious" China, mostly militaristic ones.

"The shadow of internal and external troubles has not dispersed from the Chinese sky," the text says. "Tibet, Xinjiang, Hong Kong and Taiwan independence, as well as dissident leaders, lawyers who could fight until death and other agents of the Western forces are damaging China's internal stability and harmony by hook or by crook. Behind all these incidents, we can often catch a glimpse of the dark shadow of the Stars and Stripes."

Activist Zhai Yanmin was convicted of subverting state power

Wong's picture is shown twice in the video, one when he was on a hunger strike before the 2014 Occupy movement, and in a newspaper clipping from pro-Beijing Wen Wei Po, highlighting his "American background".

In this case, perhaps the Supreme People's Procuratorate has confused him up with his colleague Nathan Law Kwun-ching, who is the one with the American passport, not Wong, who has never studied in the US. And why bring up this two-year-old conspiracy again that has been proven false?

Not surprisingly Wong is frustrated by the video.

"... I've been smeared for a long time in the past," he said. "But it's very rare to see information released by communist officials on the mainland."

Wong posted his response on Facebook as well as news of pro-rights activist Zhai Yanmin convicted of subverting state power in Tianjin and given a suspended jail sentence.

Young people in the Sunflower Movement in Taipei

"[The sentence] is enough to prove the mainland's discredited legal system, and [the video]... is another example that there is no separation between the party and the country," Wong wrote.

He said he did not advocate for Hong Kong independence during the 2014 hunger strike, and that he viewed the "false statements" from the "state apparatus" as jokes.

The video also lumped in members of Taiwan's Sunflower Movement, who occupied the island's legislature in 2014 to protest a trade agreement with mainland China, saying they backed independence for Taiwan, and that they were also backed by the US.

In response, Lin Fei-fan, one of the leaders of the movement, said any revolution in Taiwan would not be Beijing's business because Taiwan was not a part of China.

Touche!

What the Premier Didn't Mention

Chinese Premier Li Keqiang addressing the media today in a press conference

Ah, the National People's Congress is over for another year.

Premier Li Keqiang held a press conference, where he was supposedly open to answering all questions from the media -- provided they were screened first.

Foreign media had to submit questions in advance, and only the ones that were approved were allowed to be asked -- if they were chosen in the huge crowd.

Hundreds of journalists were in the room listening to Li

And domestic media are typically given pieces of paper with questions on them, usually softball ones to give the premier a chance to talk about things he wanted to discuss.

But what would stop someone from asking a hard-hitting question -- other than probably being banned from the NPC forever -- at least it would get the premier to actually address an issue that everyone wants to know.

And so from reading news reports of today's press conference, it sounds like a lot of issues were not addressed, making people wonder if the government cares about their welfare, or is actually tackling the country's socio-economic challenges.

Li did not bring how China is tackling air pollution

For example in the past three years, Li answered questions about the environment and what the government was doing to curb pollution, but this year the topic was not raised, even though air quality has been so bad this past year.

This year was also the first time issues about the property market were not addressed either, as prices rise far beyond the reach of ordinary people. Perhaps Li could not think of another way to spin the story...

While he answered questions about economic form and the need to streamline bureaucracy, the massive problem of how to further streamline state-owned enterprises was not mentioned. It's probably too explosive a powder keg to even begin to delve into...

No talk of China's growing presence in the South China Sea

When it came to foreign relations, he did not talk about China's relationship with Africa or Europe, and also its growing presence in the South China Sea. What is going on with that island that China seems to be making bigger and bigger...? And didn't Beijing have good relations with African countries? What happened there?

Human rights is not a topic that is often mentioned at these press conferences, but sometimes previous premiers have talked about it on occasion. Not this time, despite blatant human rights abuses against Uighurs and Tibetans...

It sounds like an extremely tightly controlled press conference, and perhaps even Li could not say much either, which is why he ended it at exactly the two-hour mark, including translations into English. So in the end it was probably one hour's worth of questions.

Thus wraps up another year, with China watchers having to further examine their tea leaves to try to figure out where the country is going.

Beijing's Delayed Reaction

"Rioters" in Mongkok have been branded "separatists" by Beijing

Four days after the Mongkok "riots", Beijing has finally spoken out, and the language it used isn't pretty.

"On the early morning of February 9, a riot plotted mainly by local radical separatist organization rocked Mongkok, Hong Kong," said Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong Lei in an official statement, that did not specify whether one or more such organizations were involved.

For China to call the Mongkok protesters "separatists" puts them in the same league as the supposed separatists from Tibet and Xinjiang, that are seen as a serious threat to national security.

China-watcher Johnny Lau Yui-siu said it was unprecedented for the Chinese government to use the word separatists for Hong Kong. He called it a "wrong" categorization that would lead to unnecessary escalation of anti-mainland sentiment, as Beijing previously described Taiwan-independence advocates as "separatists".

The police felt they we unprepared for Monday night

The Chinese government defines separatist as "one level less serious" than "secessionist", and so if the situation gets worse, says Lau, Beijing could "conclude secessionist elements exist in the city".

China's Communist Party sees secession, terrorism and extreme religious forces as three core threats that must be eradicated.

Hong reiterated how some of the rioters had set up roadblocks, set objects on fire, damaged police vehicles, hurled bricks at police officers and assaulted injured officers lying on the ground.

The foreign ministry spokesman expressed "strong condemnation" of the violence, while giving firm support to Hong Kong police in acting "professionally and with self-restraint", adding the "riot" was "swiftly" ended.

Meanwhile some front line police officers who endured the glass bottles, garbage cans and bricks hurled at them were disappointed with senior management as over 90 officers were injured.

They felt they were completely unprepared for what happened on Monday night.

"Traffic officers had the least gear and they were at the very front to handle the armed rioters," one unnamed officer said. "What a joke!"

"That night was 10 times worse than any of the scenes during the Occupy movement. Why couldn't we use tear gas?"

He wondered if there was a political decision for not using tear gas -- possibly because they got so much flak for unleashing some 79 canisters when the Occupy movement erupted in September 2014.

The officer even suggested the police should have used rubber bullets in Mongkok. "The top management just can't feel the pain we suffered and the danger we faced. After all, they were sitting in their offices."

Ouch.

Seems like all is not well with the force...

With Beijing using dangerous language, this is definitely going to make localists puff up their chests with pride to get such attention.

But this is only going to create more tensions in the city and that's the last thing we need...

Seemingly in Denial

Chinese stocks fell another day, sparking more fears of China's economy

Chinese stocks slid for another day, 7.6 percent lower and adding to the 8.5 percent lost yesterday, it was the benchmark's lowest level since December 15.

Some experts like Kenneth Rogoff, a professor of economics at Harvard University predicted China's financial crisis -- if this is it -- and says it's because of the Middle Kingdom's massive debt.

The Chinese government may like to believe -- or make others believe -- it has control of the markets, but Rogoff says, "It is very vulnerable. There is a lot of debt."

No one knows exactly how much debt China has, but according to a report published earlier this year by McKinsey & Company, China, the country's debt rose from $7 trillion in 2007 to $28 trillion by mid-2014.

Professor Kenneth Rogoff predicted China's impending crisis

"Several factors are worrisome: Half of loans are linked directly or indirectly to China's real estate market, unregulated shadow banking accounts for nearly half of new lending, and the debt of many local governments is likely unsustainable," the report says.

Yikes.

Rogoff isn't the only person who has been pessimistic about China's economy -- former Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson Jr predicted doom and gloom, while hedge fund manager James Chanos has been ringing alarm bells for years. "Whatever you might think, it's worse."

It's a serious issue the Chinese government needs to sort out, Rogoff says. "Financial meltdown leads to a social meltdown, which leads to a political meltdown. That's the real fear."

And then on top of it, is how the explosion in Tianjin almost two weeks ago that has now left 135 dead, is being handled by the government. The lack of transparency and getting more information out has undermined the Chinese government's credibility.

No mention of stock market losses today

Speaking of which, People's Daily, the official newspaper of the Chinese Communist Party, made no mention of Black Monday in any of its 24 pages today. It instead focused on economic development in Tibet and the upcoming 70th anniversary of Japan's defeat in World War II.

However what's interesting is that those media who don't tow the official line have openly discussed what should be done about the economy and stock market, some calling for the government to intervene, others not. It's a good healthy debate, though at some point Beijing may enforce a total lock down on the matter.

Regardless it's a serious issue that needs to be sorted, which the officials in Zhongnanhai must been trying to figure out as we speak.

In the meantime why not learn more about how the economy in Tibet is developing!

Triumphant Return

This prized thangka sold for $45 million

Do you know who Liu Yiqian is?

He stunned the auction world this week when he came out victorious in successfully bidding for a Ming dynasty silk wall hanging for HK$348.4 million ($45 million) after a 22-minute intense competition at Christie's auction in Hong Kong.

Usually bidding ends in mere minutes, but he was on the end of the phone line represented by Christie's China president Cai Jingjing, and the other bidder was represented by Francois Curiel, chairman of Christie's Asia Pacific.

Billionaire Liu was ecstatic about his latest possession, saying he was looking forward to bringing it back to China.

Liu Yiqian and his wife Wang Wei

"Before our country wasn't very strong or prosperous, so many things were lost to overseas buyers," Liu said. "Now that we have accumulated wealth, we need to deepen our own cultural sophistication. So we are buying Western art, to say nothing of our own art."

The rare 600-year-old embroidered silk Buddhist thangka depicts Raktayamari, the red Conqueror of Death embracing his consort Vajravetali, trampling Yama, the Lord of Death.

According to antiques dealer Hon Lau, owner of Hollywood Galleries in Central, said the thangka was a series of three, with the other two in Jokang Monastery in Tibet.

The price of the thangka has been steadily rising, having been sold for $1 million in New York 20 years ago, then HK$30 million to a US collector in 2002.

Lau says the 10-fold increase in the price is because Buddhist art has been undervalued in the past.

"This thangka is a magnificent piece of historical artwork made of top-notch craftsmanship," said Lau. He said the imperial mark of "Yongle" [commissioned by Emperor Yongle in the 15th century] added great value to the piece.

"I have had collectors telling me that they wouldn't want to trade this even if they were given 10 chicken cups," he said.

Liu sips tea from his newly acquired "chicken cup"

Lau is referring to the HK$281.24 million ($36.3 million) Liu spent in April to acquire the Meiyintang Chenghua "chicken cup" at the Sotheby's Hong Kong auction.

Liu raised eyebrows when he paid for the cup by maxing out several credit cards and then had tea poured into the cup which he drank for reporters and photographers.

Liu's story is that he used to be a taxi driver and then hit the jackpot playing the stock market, while his wife is Wang Wei claims to be an art expert. They have a collection of traditional and contemporary Chinese art that is displayed in their privately-owned Long Museum, in two locations in Shanghai.

It's interesting that Tibet Buddhist art is highly appreciated and yet the current situation in the region is far from calm...

He seems to take pride in this kind of cultural colonialism, which may be quietly endorsed by Beijing.

So where did he get over HK$500 million to snap up these two pieces this year? Or did he hit the super jackpot?

Without China's Consent

The Dalai Lama and US President Barack Obama chatting in the Map Room

We are still hearing the ringing in our ears from the shrillness of China's voice condemning US President Barack Obama for meeting with the Dalai Lama yesterday.

The White House made a last-minute announcement of the meeting and added it would take place in the Map Room, on the ground floor of the president's residence as opposed to the Oval Office to tone down the formality of the event.

Nevertheless, the pictures of the Tibetan spiritual leader meeting with Obama must have riled up senior Chinese officials despite their attempts to encourage the president to call off the meeting.

"The US seriously interfered in China's internal affairs by allowing the Dalai's visit to the United States and arranging the meetings with US leaders," China's foreign ministry spokesman Qin Gang said in a statement.

"We urge the US to take China's concerns seriously, stop tolerance and support of anti-China separatist forces, cease interfering in China's internal affairs and immediately take measures to eliminate its baneful influence to avoid further impairment to China-US relations."

Yawn. The Foreign Ministry makes the same refrain each time someone plans to meet the Dalai Lama. And such petulant behaviour makes China look like a child that wants its cake and eat it too.

Meanwhile the US National Security Council stressed on Twitter that Obama was meeting the Dalai Lama in his capacity as "an internationally respected religious and cultural leader".

As for "interfering in China's internal affairs", the White House said Obama "reiterated his strong support for the preservation of Tibet's unique religious, cultural and linguistic traditions and the protection of human rights for Tibetans in the People's Republic of China. The President commended the Dalai Lama's commitment to peace and nonviolence and expressed support for the Dalai Lama's 'Middle Way' approach."

The statement adds Obama encouraged China and Tibetan representatives to have more direct talks to resolve their differences. "In this context, the President reiterated the US position that Tibet is part of the People's Republic of China and that the United States does not support Tibet independence. The Dalai Lama stated that he is not seeking independence for Tibet and hopes that dialogue between his representatives and the Chinese government will resume."

You heard it here folks -- the US doesn't support Tibetan independence and neither does the Dalai Lama.

So China, what's the problem? If the mainland continues to call the Dalai Lama "a wolf in monk's robes" and "a devil", then who can take China seriously?