China's three-child policy is designed to bring on a baby boom, but its young adults are 'lying flat'
China wants its young people to have more babies, but for some of the country's millennials, procreation couldn't be further from their minds.
Key points:
"Lying flat" is a challenge to China's oppressive work culture and social expectations
After 35 years of the strict one-child policy, China in 2015 allowed couples to have a second child
Social media groups discussing lying flat have been censored or deleted
This week's announcement of the three-child policy, aimed at encouraging couples in China's urban areas to have three children, has been met with ridicule.
Many social media users noted they couldn't begin to afford a second child, let alone a third, in a country where a strict one-child policy has dramatically shaped the society.
On Weibo, user Sivan said: "I dare not have even one child, what's the point of talking about three?"
In fact, even before the family planning news broke, young people were opting in to a new social trend that is all about checking out from society and its pressures — "tang ping", or "lying flat".
State media censors and criticises 'lying flat'
Lying flat refers to a defeatist lifestyle, where people stop working, desiring material acquisition, and tap out of any social life – sometimes for good. https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-06-05/china-three-child-policy-younger-generation-lie-flat/100190514
"China, my friend, how politely can I put it? Let me see … O … GET THE
F*** OUT. What are you doing to our friendship? You. Not us. We're
trying. You. You're like an ugly oaf, forcing your attentions on a
handsome guy."
Protests against the construction of a Chinese university in Budapest have energised the Hungarian opposition ahead of elections next year, and forced the government into a rare U-turn.Outrage at plans to build a campus of Shanghai’s Fudan University became a rallying cry for the opposition, drawing thousands to protest in defiance of government regulations
Protests of more than 500 people are illegal, on Covid prevention grounds, although huge crowds can gather at football matches. So organisers planned multiple small protests across Budapest, which came together outside parliament, in Kossuth Square.
The project has allowed opponents of prime minister Viktor Orbán to turn the nationalist rhetoric he has deployed so successfully in recent decades against his own government.
“The Fudan University issue is about whether we will be a free nation,” city mayor Gergely Karácsony told the crowd, which was thousands strong. Protesters carried signs saying “Hungarian money for Hungarian universities” and “We will not be a colony”It was a show of strength that apparently alarmed the government. Overnight they pivoted position, to offer a referendum on the Chinese university, but said it would be held only after the general elections.
“This is a novel situation. It’s the first time that any Chinese investment has become a high-level political issue in Hungary,” said Péter Krekó, analyst at thinktank Political Capital. “The government seemed to be pretty committed to go along with this project, until it saw it could be an electoral issue.”
He said the government has a track record of pausing controversial ideas until they feel less politically vulnerable, in this case after the election. “It’s pretty sure that if they are re-elected they will re-implement it,” he said..District mayor Krisztina Baranyi, who last year enraged conservatives by installing a Black Lives Matter sculpture, had grabbed global attention for the fight against the Fudan campus by renaming streets around the planned site to commemorate struggles for democracy and human rights inside China, including Dalai Lama Road and Free Hong Kong RoadShe dismissed the referendum promise as a “cheap trick” that aimed to divert attention from intensive planning and asset transfers expected before the poll, and vowed the campaign would continue.
“The people are determined to stop the Fudan [campus]. They came out to protest not because political parties called them, but because this is a project that doesn’t serve the public interest at all. There is nothing useful in it for them, but they have to pay its costs.”
Opinion polls show most residents of Budapest oppose the plan, including many who support Orbán’s Fidesz party, on the grounds that it will cost Hungarian taxpayers a great deal while offering little in return.
The site would be a first European outpost for Fudan, with the complex due for completion by 2024, under the deal signed with Hungarian authorities.
The estimated €1.5bn cost of the project would largely be paid for by Hungary, via a huge loan from China, leaked internal documents obtained by local outlet Direkt36 revealed. It will be built on a site earmarked to house low-income students.
Hungary will also be expected to cover maintenance costs and extremely generous academic salaries, the report said, but the state will not have a majority stake in the trust operating and overseeing the campus.
General elections due for next spring are expected to be the first time Orbán’s ruling rightwing Fidesz party will face a real threat at the polls after three successive landslide victories, because all the main opposition parties formed a broad alliance to oppose him.
The coalition of unlikely allies, from far-right Jobbik to Karácsony’s Green “Dialogue for Hungary”, are bound together by their desire to unseat Orbán, who has ruled and reshaped Hungary since 2010.
It was a tactic that brought Budapest and other main cities under opposition control in 2019, and they hope to repeat that next year. Opinion polls now give the coalition a narrow lead over Fidesz, although the elections are still a long way off.
The protests against the Fudan campus may help unify the opposition and mobilise and inspire their supporters, particularly now they have won a small victory.
In a written answer to questions, the Hungarian government said that the Fudan campus would not displace the planned “student city” and described the opposition tactics as “infantile”.ut in an apparent sign of concern, Orbán himself made an “extraordinary appearance at the otherwise regular government info press conference”, the statement said.
Orbán “underlined that Fudan University is collaborating with five German universities, with 24 Scandinavian universities and in the US they have academic partnership with Yale University. If they manage to protect their national security interests, we are capable of that, too.”
Critics point out that Orbán’s government recently forced a prestigious international university out of Budapest. The Central European University had to move its campus to Vienna, after its ability to issue degrees was revoked.
Orbán’s fierce anti-communist stance domestically has not hindered an enthusiastic embrace of China under an “Eastern Opening” policy. It has seen him bolster ties with massive joint business and infrastructure projects, while blocking recent EU statements denouncing China’s record on human rights.
But it has fuelled increasing unease inside the country, in part because of concerns about debt traps. Montenegro recently sought help from the EU staving off default on a $1bn highway loan from China, but was rejected.
Reports of the planned loan to build the Fudan campus come after years of concerns about a controversial $3bn Chinese-backed upgrade to the Budapest to Belgrade railway, an investment that under current projections could take hundreds of years to repay.
The Chinese embassy launched a fierce, though anonymous, attack on mayor Karácsony and protesters against Fudan, asking if speeches and signs carried by some in the crowd showed some “vicious intention”.
There were more than 1,000 comments, but none seen by the Observer suggested the statement had won over Hungarians. “Please note that this is Hungary (our country) and NOT China,” wrote Gabor Monos. “Please keep your railways and your universities. Do not interfere in our lives.”
The BRICS countries, with Russia and China in particular, are taking over various key functions within the EU in order to gradually take over the world globally.
This post only touches the tip of an iceberg
Russiafocuses on energy - oil, gas, coal and nuclear power
Chinafocuses on transportation, industrial production and also energy.
Other member states such as India, Brazil, South Africa will soon demonstrate their functions in this superpower apparatus.
THE PORTS ARE THE KEY! Countries with poor economies within the EU - usually ruled by left-wing politicians are open targets for China!
Greece and Italy are now countries that China is gradually conquering beyond the other continents that they are cultivating
Greece Over the past two decades, China has rapidly monopolized all aspects of world trade.
From buying out the world ports in almost every country on the planet to being the world's supplier of almost 30% of the world's goods, China has made itself king over all aspects of world trade ...
In 2016, China’s state-owned shipping company, COSCO, bought a majority stake in the public company managing Piraeus (PPA), a port located just southwest of Athens. Under COSCO-PPA, the Piraeus port became the largest in the Mediterranean.
China has nicknamed it the "Dragon's Head," as a key entry point for Chinese goods into Europe. According to Greece’s statistical agency, the worth of imports from China went from 2.89 billion euros (US $ 3.2 billion) in 2016 to 3.74 billion euros (US $ 4.27 billion) in 2020.
Italy Is Italy's economic crisis an opportunity for China?
Italy represents one of the most important countries for China's geoeconomic interests in Europe. It is a source of strategic assets in both advanced and traditional industries and internationally recognized brands and technologies, as well as having a crucial geographical position within the framework of China's 2000s Maritime Silk Road, an integral part of the Belt and Road Initiative. Access to Italy's port infrastructure is a priority for China as it seeks to expand its trade routes from the Mediterranean to northern Europe.
Despite the EU's climate goal of having no greenhouse gas emissions by 2050, Member States are investing a total of € 87 billion in increasing fossil natural gas imports. This is stated in a new report from the organization Global Energy Monitor.
MOSCOW, April 27. / TASS /. On April 27, the Akademic Chersky pipe-laying vessel began laying the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline in the territorial waters of Denmark, according to the statement by the operator of the Nord Stream 2 AG project, released on Tuesday
SOUTH AMERICA China is conquering continent after continent - especially poor countries with hidden natural resources.
Lithium is Bolivia's white gold - China is their partner
A salt desert in southern Bolivia contains half of the world's lithium reserves. At the same time as the mineral has become increasingly important for the car industry, the Bolivian government has received an important trump card in the negotiations with foreign companies and governments.
Australians' trust in China has fallen to record low, latest Lowy Institute annual poll reveals
Trust in China has plunged to new lows in Australia, with more than 60 per cent of people recently surveyed saying they view the country as a security threat rather than an economic partner, and only 16 per cent saying they trust Beijing to act responsibly in the world.
Key points:
Only 10pc of those surveyed believed Chinese President Xi Jinping would "do the right thing" in international affairs
Most people surveyed blamed China for its deteriorating relationship with Australia
Trust in the US has climbed 10pc since last year but is still 20pc lower than it was during Barack Obama's presidency
There has also been a revival of faith in the United States, with seven in 10 respondents expressing confidence in US President Joe Biden — almost 40 points higher than former president Donald Trump.
But there is little appetite for Australia joining a regional military conflict, with more than half of those surveyed saying Australia should "remain neutral" if there is a war between China and the US.
The results are contained in the Lowy Institute's 2021 poll of Australian attitudes to the world, with more than 2,200 Australians surveyed in March.
The Lowy Institute's Natasha Kassam said there had been a "dramatic" collapse in goodwill towards China since 2018, when only 12 per cent of those surveyed viewed Beijing as more of a security threat than an economic partner.
"The endless list of bilateral irritants and concerning stories — from the crackdown in Hong Kong to the detention of the Uyghurs, sanctions on Australian industries and the plight of Australian citizens in China — has driven the relationship, and driven public perception, to rock bottom," she told the ABC.
The survey showed only 10 per cent of respondents had any confidence China's President, Xi Jinping, would "do the right thing regarding world affairs" — a figure that has fallen 33 points since 2018."We could definitely call this a sea change," Ms Kassam said.
"We are seeing numbers for Xi Jinping which are comparable to the way that Australians view [North Korean leader] Kim Jong Un.
"Last year when I was asked about these results [on China] I didn't think they could fall even further, and yet here we are."
Respondents were also quick to blame China for the deterioration in bilateral ties between the two countries, with 56 per cent of those surveyed saying China wore more responsibility.
Another 38 per cent said Australia and China were equally to blame, while only 4 per cent said Australia was more to blame.
Trust in US bounces back, but still below Obama years
In contrast, there was a modest surge of confidence in the United States. Just over 60 per cent of respondents told Lowy they trusted the US — an increase of 10 points from last year.
Ms Kassam said faith in the United States had not rebounded as powerfully as it did in 2009, when Barack Obama took the presidency and 83 per cent of those surveyed told Lowy they trusted the US.
"There is still some delay in how Australians are warming to the United States, both because of the legacy of President Trump but also because of the tragedy of COVID-19 last year," she said"Almost all Australians agree the US has not handled the pandemic well and I think that continues to inform their views."
Still, confidence in the US–Australia alliance remains high.
Of those surveyed, 78 per cent said the alliance was important to the country's security, while 76 per cent said the two countries shared common values.
And 75 per cent said they believed the US would come to Australia's defence if Australia was attacked.
Only 36 per cent of those surveyed said the alliance was decreasing in importance because the US was in relative decline when compared to China. That was a 10 point drop from 2019.
"Those increasing concerns about China has really made Australia move closer to the United States when it comes to the security, defence and safety of the country," Ms Kassam said.
Ms Kassam said there had been a clear shift since 2016, when the Lowy Institute poll found respondents were uncertain whether the country's future lay with the US or China."In 2016 if you asked Australians whether our relationship with the US or China was more important, it was a dead heat. The country was split 50–50," she said.
"That's certainly not the case today, with sentiment souring to China and [at] the moment warming to the United States. It does feel like Australia is perhaps having to pick a side, and the public recognises that."
But the support for the alliance does not translate into enthusiasm for a war between the two great powers.
Fifty-seven per cent of those surveyed said Australia should remain neutral if there was a conflict between the US and China, although a substantial minority — 41 per cent — said Australia should support the US.
Only 1 per cent said Australia should support China.
Just over half of those surveyed said a military conflict between the US and China posed a critical threat to Australia — an increase of 17 per cent from last year.
Threat of COVID-19 drops, economic confidence surges
Ms Kassam said the findings were unsurprising, and multiple surveys had shown most respondents did not want to be dragged into a war with China."We've always seen low levels of support for deploying the military in a hypothetical scenario involving China," she said.
"And I think most Australians recognise that despite the icy relationship, China is still Australia's largest trading partner."
The poll also shows broader confidence about Australia's security has rebounded from the record lows recorded in last year's poll.
Of those surveyed, 70 per cent said they felt "very safe" or "safe" – up by 20 per cent from 2020. This year, 59 per cent said they saw COVID-19 as a critical threat, down from 76 per cent in 2020.
There was also a huge lift in economic confidence, with 79 per cent of those surveyed saying they were "optimistic" or "very optimistic" about Australia's economic performance in the world — a 27 point jump from 2020.
China grappling with insecurity and power, DFAT boss Frances Adamson says
Australia's top diplomat says the Chinese government is "dogged by insecurity" and holds a "deeply defensive mindset".
Key points:
This is Frances Adamson's final week as secretary of the Department of Foreign and Trade
She says China still grapples with a "deeply defensive mindset"
Recent polling shows more than 60pc of Australians see Beijing as an increasing security threat
In her final week as secretary of the Department of Foreign and Trade (DFAT), Frances Adamson has addressed the poor relationship between Australia and its largest trading partner.
Speaking at the National Press Club on Wednesday, Ms Adamson said Beijing often perceived external threats even as it pushed its own interests over other nations.
"Few really grasp that this great power is still dogged by insecurity as much as driven by ambition, that it has a deeply defensive mindset perceiving external threats even as it pushes its interests over those of others."
China kicks 'massive own goal'
The Adelaide born and educated career diplomat will take up the role of South Australian governor in October, after five years heading DFAT.The normally cautious DFAT boss also said China had kicked a "massive own goal" when it last year issued a list of 14 demands to the Australian government to improve relations.
The DFAT secretary said she believed the move backfired terribly, something highlighted by the way world leaders reacted at this month's G7 meeting in Cornwall.
"I couldn't understand why they did it and I don't know that they really understood themselves exactly what they were doing," she said.
What a joke. The Morrison govt is sabotaging our vaccine rollout through incompetence, so deliberately screwing with PNG/China ''relationship'' is beyond them.
China accuses Australia of COVID-19 vaccine sabotage in the Pacific
The Australian government has denied accusations it has been "sabotaging" China's aid programs with Pacific nations and using "political manipulation" to interfere in COVID-19 vaccine rollouts in the region.
Key points:
Articles in Chinese state-run media accuse Australia of undermining vaccine cooperation between China and Pacific island countries
Australia flatly denies the accusation, saying it is "absolutely not the case"
Both Australia and China have been increasing COVID-19 support across the Pacific amid talks of a regional vaccine diplomacy battle
Articles in Chinese state-owned media this week claim Australia has been "planting" consultants in Papua New Guinea (PNG) to obstruct the authorisation of Chinese-supplied vaccines.
The Global Times said it had "learned exclusively from sources" that Australia had been "racking its brain to undermine China's vaccine cooperation with Pacific Island countries," even accusing Australian authorities of threatening PNG officials.
Australia's Minister for International Development and the Pacific, Zed Seselja, who arrived in PNG this week for the first time since the pandemic began, told the ABC this was "absolutely not the case".
"Obviously, when we see that, it's rejected by the Australian government," he said.
Martial arts star Jackie Chan wants to join the Chinese Communist Party, but China doesn’t want him
The actor told a film symposium how much he loved the Communist Party, but in China, many said he was not worthy of membership due to alleged moral failings
Chan’s comments were further proof to people outside China he is anti-democracy and is a cheerleader for Beijing’s crackdown on Hong Kong
Martial arts legend Jackie Chan has expressed his admiration for and desire to join the
, both of which would disqualify him from membership.
Chan expressed his interest in membership at a symposium organised by the China Film Association last Thursday in Beijing. In a video published by M Video News, an outlet under state broadcaster Central China Television, Chan told a crowd of attendees at the symposium that when he’s abroad, he often says that he’s “proud of being Chinese”.
“I also envy that you are Communist Party members, I think the Communist Party is just great, what the Communist Party says, what they promised, will always be delivered within a few decades,” he said.
“I want to be a Communist Party member, thank you,” he added, smiling, to thunderous clapping.https://www.scmp.com/news/people-culture/china-personalities/article/3140926/martial-arts-star-jackie-chan-wants-join
Oh rubbish PT . They would welcome us with open arms, the way they expect us to do them, and then when we dont, have the affront to whinge about how badly we treat them !!!
Maybe Morrison could give them another seaport or let them have another major agricultural property or maybe just the water rights by themselves to promise to be nice.
As Peter Dutton correctly puts it " Australia respects the right of all states to exercise freedom of navigation and overflight in international waters and airspace, just as we expect others to respect our right to do the same".
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