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07 Jul 09
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Three years in China And so, that's it. My time in China is up. I've come to the end of my three years here - the standard life expectancy for a BBC foreign posting.
I'd like to take you through a few of the things I've seen during my time here. Not a representative... |
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12 Jun 09
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A comical take Taking a ride through Chinese cyberspace to have a look at what people in China make of our coverage is often a pretty enlightening experience. A frequent opinion of the BBC - and sometimes of me in particular - is that we are a reactionary blackhands or... |
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10 Jun 09
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Conflict of party and private lifestyles China has no direct equivalent of Hello magazine - the celebrity magazine in the UK in which readers are invited to gaze at public figures doing everyday things at home such as clinking champagne glasses whilst lying on thick rugs.
As a result, we know... |
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04 Jun 09
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Trying to get into Tiananmen Square 01:08 UTC, 4 JUNE: I'm writing this post late on the night of 3 June. My colleagues and I have just come back from a quick tour of the city - on the 20th anniversary of the moment that tanks were sent in to end student protests.
Our first stop was... |
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03 Jun 09
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Today's generation of young people Still spookily quiet in Beijing. Have just written a quick piece about today's generation of young people...
For a generation that's never gone to war, never been through famine, getting crushed in the front row of a rock concert counts as fun.
On a... |
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02 Jun 09
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As if 1989 never happened Two videos for you.
Each of them shows the same extract of a news bulletin which was broadcast on BBC World News at 0600BST on Tuesday morning.
If you were in China, this is what you'll have seen...
In order to see this content you need to have both... |
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29 May 09
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Facing swine flu scrutiny China is taking the H1N1 threat pretty seriously. Arriving at Beijing's airport right now is a bit like turning up at a laboratory.
I've just come back to Beijing following a few days in the UK. As our flight came in to land, the cabin crew handed out... |
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18 May 09
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When does old age begin? As I've written here before, China is a country that reveres age. But there's one question that I've always forgotten to ask: when does old age actually begin in this country?
There are a few clues in the way people address one another. In China, when... |
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12 May 09
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Still seaching for answers I've just been down to Sichuan to see what things are like a year after the earthquake which killed more than 85,000 people, and have written an article about the parents who lost their children in the disaster:
In order to see this content you need to... |
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07 May 09
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A case of stolen identity What do you do when one of your classmates is smarter than you? You can try to copy their homework. You can sit back and hope that they fail miserably in life. Or, you can steal their exam results, their name, and their entire identity as well.
The... |
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05 May 09
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The right qualifications In China, much is made of age and experience. The more you have of both, the better.
Chairman Mao ruled into his 80s. Deng Xiaoping only got started as China's leader when he was in his mid-70s. Before China's current leader Hu Jintao took over in 2002,... |
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14 Apr 09
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China's Olympic venues now One simple question has defeated most Olympic hosts: what do you do with your collection of expensive and entirely empty stadiums once the Games are over?
Beijing believes it's come up with an answer: let everyone come in and have a good nose around.... |
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09 Apr 09
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Petitions in China Don't call anyone insane in China. Professor Sun Dongdong has just made that mistake. In a recent article, the professor who runs Peking University's judicial expertise centre suggested that 99% of the people who repeatedly petition the government are... |
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02 Apr 09
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Defining relationships Being leader of the world's most populated country appears to guarantee you a good seat at dinner.
At the G20 summit dinner in London, China's President, Hu Jintao took the prime seat to the right of the host Gordon Brown. To Mr Hu's right was France's... |
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28 Mar 09
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China's version of Tibet's story Here in Beijing, unless you happen to be locked away in a safe, you'll know what day it is. The Chinese government recently designated 28 March as Serfs' Emancipation Day - the day on which the Dalai Lama's rule in Tibet was officially dissolved in 1959.... |
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26 Mar 09
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US and China's verbal duel Earlier this year, the US and China engaged in a duel of human rights reports. The US Department of State released a report on human rights in China, followed by China publishing its own report on human rights in the United States.
Now we have a... |
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20 Mar 09
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Communists turn to Confucius "Before you embark on a journey of revenge, dig two graves."
"It does not matter how slowly you go so long as you do not stop."
"Wheresoever you go, go with all your heart."
If you're Chinese, you probably knew the author of these sayings by the time... |
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18 Mar 09
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China welcomes Kim Yong Il Kim Yong Il of North Korea is in China.
News of his visit generated quite a bit of excitement when it was first announced. North Korea's leader rarely travels outside his own country. No-one knows much about his exact state of health. And he's about to... |
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16 Mar 09
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Choosing the next Dalai Lama On Sunday, an earnest-looking young man with short hair and rimless glasses was shown poking about an exhibition on Tibetan reform at a museum in Beijing.
The young man, who's just 19, is rarely ever seen in public. Even if I give you his name - Gyaltsen... |
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13 Mar 09
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A rare event... It's the last day of the annual session of China's parliament, the National People's Congress. No surprises during this year's session.
Following tradition, China's Premier Wen Jiabao ended business with his annual news conference.
I was there...
In... |
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12 Mar 09
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Whispers of the Dalai Lama This week marks the 50th anniversary of the Tibetan uprising which led to the exile of the Dalai Lama. Tibet's exiled leader has described the situation in his homeland as "hell on earth" - a characterisation rejected by China.
At the moment, China has... |
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09 Mar 09
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Competitive elections in China? One central question often dominates discussions of China's future: will this country ever become an electoral democracy - with rival parties fighting for power at the ballot box?
The answer from the number two man in the Communist Party is simple:... |
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05 Mar 09
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Pomp... and ceremony China's parliament meets only once a year - for just a few days. It's such a brief event that members of parliament line up to take souvenir photos of themselves outside the steps of the parliament building - the Great Hall of the People next to Tiananmen... |
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27 Feb 09
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Tough words on human rights This time of year sees a semi-ritualised exchange between China and the United States.
On Wednesday, the US State Department published its 2008 Human Rights report. The report includes a 47,000-word section on human rights problems in China:
"The... |
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26 Feb 09
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How news breaks in China A bit more information on Wednesday's report of three people setting themselves on fire in downtown Beijing. I want to take you through the early stages of this story - so as to give you an idea of how a breaking story unfolds in China ...
At 4.31pm,... |
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25 Feb 09
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Losing their heads A couple of heads - one of a rabbit - the other of a rat - are making quite a racket. The heads used to be part of a display at the Old Summer Palace here in Beijing. But in 1860, this palace was looted by French and British forces. The two bronze heads... |
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22 Feb 09
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Clinton hears delicate criticism I'm not sure whether or not Hillary Clinton likes being reminded that she lost last year's presidential race. But this morning in Beijing, on the last day of Mrs Clinton's tour of Asia, one Chinese activist didn't mind raising the subject.
At a women's... |
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21 Feb 09
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How-to-save-the-world club Hillary Clinton began her first full day in Beijing in the most beautiful part of this city - a 100 acre compound of parks, frozen lakes, and ancient villas. The compound houses the Diaoyutai State Guest House - you can only get inside with an official... |
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20 Feb 09
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Overcoat etiquette Hillary Clinton is here.
On Friday evening, in the ice of the Beijing winter, I went to the airport with a group of journalists to watch her plane arrive.
We were allowed into the VIP terminal - a kind of miniature palace lined with red flags and... |
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19 Feb 09
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Hillary Clinton's visit to Beijing On Friday, Hillary Clinton comes to Beijing for talks with China's leaders. Hers is the first visit to China from a senior member of the Obama Administration. Many are interested to see whether or not Mrs Clinton will publically address the subject of... |
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18 Feb 09
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Choosing the next leader The man who will one day lead more people than any other person in history isn't even the most famous person in his own household.
Xi Jinping is China's vice-president - he's expected to take over as China's leader in 2012/13. To many Chinese people,... |
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17 Feb 09
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The foundations of today's world In the history of the last century, some years immediately stand out: 1914, 1917, 1918, 1939, 1945, 1968, 1989.
In retrospect, it may be worth having another look at a five-month period from 1978 to 1979. During this short time, a number of events laid... |
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12 Feb 09
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Saying sorry to the Chinese Apologies matter to China. A few from recent history ...
In 2001, a US navy aircraft collided with a Chinese military fighter jet off the southern coast of China. The Chinese pilot was killed in the collision and the US aircraft was forced to land on... |
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09 Feb 09
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The last bangs Tonight in China the loudest two weeks of the year come to an end. Chinese new year celebrations finish with a last round of fireworks to commemorate the Yuan Xiao or Lantern Festival. China invented fireworks - so it seems appropriate that this country... |
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06 Feb 09
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Chinese charm Before I came to China, I tried to learn a bit about Chinese etiquette. The one thing I remember learning is this: when it comes to clinking wine glasses at a formal reception, it's polite to make sure that the rim of your glass is lower than that of the... |
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03 Feb 09
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The Semi-Attacked Politicians' Club So, Wen Jiabao survived his assault by flying shoe. (I wonder whether it was made in China?)
Perhaps he should have seen it coming. After all, Mr Wen was welcomed to the UK on Saturday by the patron saint of the Semi-Attacked Politicians' Club, John... |
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02 Feb 09
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Wen Jiabao's 'Confidence Trip' (2) China's Premier, Wen Jiabao, is in London. He is one of the world's most influential politicians. But we very rarely get the chance to interview him - or to find out much about his life beyond politics. Chinese politicians aren't in the habit of inviting... |
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31 Jan 09
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Wen Jiabao's 'Confidence Trip' to Europe China's Premier Wen Jiabao is currently on a tour of Europe. The Chinese state media calls it his "Trip of Confidence".
Mr Wen's last stop is the UK. Britain's Prime Minister Gordon Brown has given a written interview to China's state-run news agency,... |
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23 Jan 09
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China's new generation gap While we were in Hubei, my colleague and I went to a village to see what life is like for migrant workers who've come back for the holidays.
In the village of Xinli, the most exciting attraction is a half-broken snooker table set up by the side of the... |
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22 Jan 09
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Taking the new year train 2 Time to report on the train journey I went on the other day. To recap, around two hundred million Chinese people have been going home for the Chinese New Year. It's the world's biggest annual migration of people.
My colleague, Dandan Chen, and I began... |
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21 Jan 09
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The wrong side of history Bad news for President Obama. The one country which may decide America's future prosperity was largely asleep when he took the oath of office. The framers of the US Constitution didn't have a peak time Chinese TV audience in mind when they drew up the... |
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20 Jan 09
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Looking to Gaza... and America Earlier this month, during Israel's offensive in Gaza, I told you that China had yet to send its Middle East envoy back to the region.
An update for you: China's envoy, Sun Bigan, has now been back to the Middle East. This afternoon, in Beijing, he held... |
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19 Jan 09
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Serfs' Emancipation Day There's a simple, easy way for governments across the world to lock into place their own particular views of history: create a national holiday.
I was in the Green Zone in Baghdad in July 2003 to cover the first ever meeting of the Iraqi Governing... |
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15 Jan 09
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Taking the new year train The world's biggest annual migration is getting started. Every year in China around 200 million people go home for the Chinese new year.
Most of the new year travellers are migrant workers, people who've left poor villages in the countryside to find... |
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14 Jan 09
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Petitioners protest in Beijing One thing worries the government in China right now: public protest. The world economy's got worse. That means that people in this country are losing their jobs. Here's the equation the Communist Party fears: fewer jobs = more protests.
Even before the... |
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12 Jan 09
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How to spot a fake banknote? Check your Chinese money - if you happen to have any down the back of your sofa. Reports here say that there's an epidemic of fake Chinese banknotes in circulation.
In particular, forgers are said to have gone after the highest value note - the 100 RMB... |
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07 Jan 09
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Does this man remind you of anyone? This is Mao Xinyu, the 38-year-old grandson of Chairman Mao.
Grandson Mao is a senior colonel in the People's Liberation Army. He's now become well-known here as a blogger. The readers of the People's Daily online have just voted his blog the most... |
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06 Jan 09
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China and Gaza Shortly after Hamas won Palestinian parliamentary elections in January 2006, I went to Gaza to find out how victory had changed a movement mostly known for its armed activities (I was one of the BBC's Middle East Correspondents at the time).
My... |
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05 Jan 09
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Altered picture opens eyes If you watch the Chinese state TV news, you might get the impression that Chinese officials have more stamina than anyone else in the world. Almost every evening here, news bulletins show rows and rows of officials faithfully listening to long speeches... |
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02 Jan 09
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Apology by text message Almost every day here, I get a text message in Chinese from the number 10086. This is a general service number which sends out promotional messages from the phone company and also public service announcements from the government - eg "Traffic's bad on... |
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