“Three Proposals, concerning the Development of Agriculture and Rural Areas”

The following are translated excerpts from an article by China’s domestic radio network, CPBS. Links within blockquotes added during translation.
Main Link: “Suggestions for increased investment into the construction of rural infrastructure”

^{Han Fengxiang, CPBS coverage, March 10, 2023}

CPBS online, Beijing, March 10, Reporter Wang Chi. 2023’s No. 1 central document has made clear provisions concerning increased investment in rural infrastructure construction and the promotion of the rural industries’ high-quality development. Three proposals brought about by Han Fengxiang, delegate to the National People’s Congress and director of Fenghuangshan Agricultural Machinery Farmers Professional Cooperative in Lishu County, Siping City, Jilin Province, are closely related to the development of agriculture and rural areas. They are “Proposal concerning increased investment in large agricultural counties’ rural infrastructure”, “Proposal on increased support for integrated technology for black-soil conservation and practical solidification of food security foundations in Jilin”, and “Proposal for increased support for professional agricultural cooperatives”.
央广网北京3月10日消息（记者王迟）2023年中央一号文件对加强农业基础设施建设，推动乡村产业高质量发展等方面作出了明确规定。今年全国两会，全国人大代表、吉林省四平市梨树县凤凰山农机农民专业合作社理事长韩凤香带来的三份议案均与农业农村发展密切相关，分别为《关于加大对农业大县农村基础设施投入力度的建议》《关于加大黑土地保护集成技术支持力度 切实夯实吉林粮食安全根基的建议》《关于加大对农民专业合作社扶持力度的建议》。

[…]

Proposal to increase support for farmers’ professional cooperatives
There are currently agricultural 3,040 cooperatives in Lishu County. “Farmers have joined cooperatives to farm the land intensively. The level of mechanization and the production efficiency have seen great improvement. Apart from land dividends, they also increase incomes by working as agricultural machine operators, working outside the cooperative, etc.”, Han Fengxiang told this reporter.
建议加大对农民专业合作社的扶持力度
目前，梨树县有农民合作社3040个。“农民加入合作社，将土地进行集约经营，农业机械化水平和生产效率都有了很大提高，社员们除了土地分红，还通过在合作社当农机手、外出打工等增加收入。”韩凤香告诉记者。

Han Fengxiang said that taking Lishu County as an example, there are many cooperatives, but only 266 of them have reached above-county-level model cooperative standard^*), while most of them don’t meet the standards. They are rather small, without much strength, and low degrees of specialization. There are especially few large-scale specialized agricultural machinery cooperatives and cultivation cooperatives, and they could hardly meet the requirements of scales and standardization of all villages. To a certain degree, this had hampered the development of expanded farming.
韩凤香表示，以梨树县为例，合作社数量很多，但其中达到县级以上示范社标准的合作社仅有266家，多数合作社不够规范。规模较小、实力不强、专业化程度低，特别是大型农机农民专业合作社、养殖合作社较少，难以满足各村规模化、标准化作业需要，在一定程度上制约了规模化经营发展。

Therefore, Han Fengxiang suggests to continuously increase the extent of support for farmers’ and agricultural machinery specialization cooperatives, to improve complementary agricultural machinery subsidy standards, expand the scope of subsidies, and to strengthen the cooperatives’ motivation to update and to renew machines and equipment. Secondly, continuously bring into play the positive factors of cooperatives in socialization services, to explore business opportunities in line with local circumstances, thus safeguarding farmers’ incomes and protecting national food security at the same time.
为此，韩凤香建议进一步加大对农民农机专业合作社的扶持力度，提高配套农机具补贴标准，扩大补贴范围，增强合作社更新换代机械设备的积极性。其次，进一步发挥合作社在社会化服务中的积极作用，因地制宜探索适合本土的经营模式，既保证农民收益，又维护国家粮食安全。

[Contact data]

________________

Note

*)

Out of those 3,040 cooperatives in total, mentioned in the previous paragraph, that is. China’s central-goverment ministry of agriculture calls on agricultural departments of all provinces, “autonomous regions”, municipalities under the central government and of East Turkestan (Xinjiang) “to implement the central government’s requirements concerning the highlighting of developing new business units, and the deepened promotion of requirements for the stablishment of model farming cooperatives”.

________________

Related

黑土地保护法 , MOE, June 24, 2022
Qu Dongyu, FAO, Aug 1, 2019
________________

CCTV Editorial: “The Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference has special points of superiority”

The following is a translation of experpts from an editorial published by China Central Television (CCTV) on Sunday. Links within blockquotes added during translation.

The topic: the “Two Sessions”, i. e. the sessions of China’s rubberstamp “parliament”, the National People’s Congress (NPC) and the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC).

Main Link:

Attentive hearts, massed forces, going on an expedition full of glory and dreams together (凝心聚力，共赴充满光荣和梦想的远征)

^{From CCTV coverage (see “main link” above picture for source)}

[…]
[…] We have constantly deepened our knowledge of the patterns of the development of democratic politics, we have been successfull in shaping whole-process people’s democracy and in promoting whole-process people’s democracy, and, in the 20th National Congress‘s work report, made comprehensive arrangements concerning development of whole-process people’s democracy and concerning the guarantee that the people is the master in its own house. Whole-process people’s democracy has become a major iconic innovative achievement in the field of our country`s democratic policies in the new era. It has greatly strengthened the entire party’s and the entire people’s self-confidence and stamina concerning democratic politics under socialism with Chinese characteristics.
[…..] 我们不断深化对民主政治发展规律的认识，形成全过程人民民主的重大理念，推动全过程人民民主取得历史性成就，并在党的二十大报告中对发展全过程人民民主、保障人民当家作主作出全面部署。全过程人民民主成为新时代我国民主政治领域具有重大创新意义的标志性成果，极大地增强了全党全国人民对中国特色社会主义民主政治的自信和底气。
As an organization of the United Front, a mechanism for multi-party cooperation and political consultation, and an important form of realizing people’s democracy, the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference has special points of superiority under many aspects. Secretary general Xi Jinping gives a high level of attention to the CPPCC’s work, has thoroughly described the CPPCC’s mission and tasks in the new era, summarized the requirements to put efforts into key projects, to promote the two big issues of unity and democracy, to adhere to efforts both to advising and aggregating consensus, to effectively bringing into play the CPPCC’s superiorities and purpose, as well as to bring together the broad knowledge and strength of all parties, groups, nationalities, classes and personalities of all walks of life.
人民政协作为统一战线的组织、多党合作和政治协商的机构、人民民主的重要实现形式，具有多方面的独特优势。习近平总书记高度关注政协工作，深刻阐述新时代人民政协工作的使命任务、总体要求、着力重点，推动人民政协坚持团结和民主两大主题，坚持建言资政和凝聚共识双向发力，有效发挥人民政协在国家治理体系中的优势和作用，广泛凝聚起各党派、各团体、各民族、各阶层、各界人士的智慧和力量。
This year’s Two Sessions are following the victorious end of the 20th National Congress. To hold them well is of major significance and to promote the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation with the party’s magnificent blueprint, to transform it, by statutory procedures, into joint people’s action, to bring the superiority of Communist Party of China’s leadership and the system of socialism with Chinese characteristics well into play, and to boost the morale of sons and daughters of China at home and abroad to be of one mind and of the same direction.
今年全国两会是在党的二十大胜利闭幕后召开的换届大会。开好这次大会，把党的二十大擘画的以中国式现代化推进中华民族伟大复兴的宏伟蓝图通过法定程序转化为国家意志和人民共同行动，对于发挥好中国共产党领导的政治优势和中国特色社会主义的制度优势，鼓舞海内外中华儿女心往一处想、劲往一处使，具有重大意义。
A great cause must be promoted step by step, and achieving magnificent goals requires the struggle of one generation after another. The delegates who are starting a new journey with a new term must have two broad pictures on their minds, improve their political stance, conscientiously carry out their duties, and take their own initiative toward success. They must thoroughly study and comprehensively implement Xi Jinping’s ideology of socialism with Chinese characteristics in the new era, make the propaganda of learning the 20th National Congress spirit their most important task, keeping to it during the entire process of their duties. […]
[…]
伟大的事业要一程接一程向前推进，实现宏伟目标需要一代又一代人接续奋斗。步入新征程，新一届全国人大代表、全国政协委员要胸怀两个大局，提高政治站位、认真履职尽责、主动担当作为。要深入学习全面贯彻习近平新时代中国特色社会主义思想，把学习宣传贯彻党的二十大精神作为首要政治任务，贯穿于履职全过程。[…..]

________________

Related

Yang Liwei’s big family, March 21, 2019
________________

After the End of the Beginning: Civil-Society Replacement in Hong Kong

The following is rather old news, but historical processes are mostly slow, especially when promoted and manipulated by the Communist Party of China. Being “old” or “slow” doesn’t limit their relevance.

Sometimes, however, those operations may take a leap or two, as illustrated by Didi Kirsten Tatlow, in an article published by Sinopsis, a Czech website, in August 2020. Rather than “the beginning of the end of Hong Kong’s freedoms,” she argued,

it was the end of the beginning, the culmination of a deliberate, decades-long effort by the Communist Party of China (CPC) to build a parallel political order for Hong Kong despite the content of the Sino-British agreement over Hong Kong’s future, the Joint Declaration, and Hong Kong’s post-handover constitution, the Basic Law.

The episode you’ll read about underneath is just one of many unspectular, boring and hardly noticeable steps post-imposition (of the “national security law” in Hong Kong), but it seems to give me an idea of what these small post-2020 steps look like.

^{Message from a bunker}

Main Link/source: All Walks of Life from Hong Kong society

It is about a meeting of members of all walks of life of Hong Kong society to study the spirit of the Twentieth National Congress of the Communist Party of China, i. e. the CPC’s party congress in October last year. To help them appreciate the national congress’s feats, Tam Yiu-chung (谭耀宗, a pro-Beijing politician in Hong Kong and a member of the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress) as well as some committee members of the “Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference”, assisted the learners. Tam also “presided” over the meeting. Reportedly, it took place on November 17, 2022.

The Liaison Office of the Central People’s Government in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (in short, Hong Kong Liaison Office) published a short rendition of the “study meeting”. At least one of the participants used his invitation and speech there as an embroidery for his organization’s “Facebook” page, with some impressions of his own, but the Hong Kong press, as far as they cared, apparently only republished the Liaison Office’s text.

The meeting was described as a combination of online participants (probably in various locations) and one main venue where people met in person. No mention was made of the location of that main venue.

Luo Huining (骆惠宁), the Liason Office’s director at the time (and during the introduction and implementation of the “national security law”), had been “invited” to “share his views” (作交流分享). He expressed his hope that “everyone will support the [HK SAR] chief executive and local government to govern in accordance with the law so as to make a great contribution to the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation and Hong Kong’s long-term stability”.

When reading the participants’ statements (all of the “civil-society” members mentioned are, of course, people who have proven to be “patriots” fit to “govern Hong Kong” in one way or another), you get the feeling that even among them, there was some unease about the director of Beijing’s crackdown agency in Hong Kong.

Ng Chau-pei (Stanley Ng), leader of the pro-Beijing Hong Kong Federation of Trade Unions, not only advocated trade-union positions, but also the continuation of “Hong Kong’s good traditions of forbearance, mutual support, and a focus on finding common ground” (香港包容共济、求同存异的优良传统).

Luo was apparently happy to tune his statement to an apparently nervous audience, as long as it came without opportunity costs for Beijing – he referred to the “Spirit of the Lion Rock” (狮子山精神), and to something like a “new legend” to be written “Below the Lion Rock”. 獅子山下, a Cantonese television series that started in the 1970s at RTHK and has since been continued by TVB. The soothing message: Hong Kong’s story continues. The unshakable “but”: under the successful implementation of the “one-country-two-systems” principle, which he described as a “struggle”.

Other participants quoted by the Liasion Office – probably all at the main venue – were Dr Jonathan Choi Koon-shum (蔡冠深, Chairman of The Chinese General Chamber of Commerce, Hong Kong), who advertised the advantages his institution could provide, such as in form of “diversified and high-value financial services to the mainland” (为内地提供多元且高质量金融服务) and as in its capacity as “a ‘super contact’ (超级联系人) between the mainland and the world”, as well as a promoter of the Greater Bay Area.

Nancy Ip (叶玉如, head of the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology) and Chong Ka-bun (庄家彬, a fourty-plus years-old “Youth Activity Committee” chairman and businessman) also attended. The latter called on the youth of Hong Kong to learn from “the CPC’s exemplary difficult, revolutionary and militant development history” (以党的艰辛革命、奋斗发展历史为榜样).

________________

Related

Beijing law takes priority, BBC, June 28, 2022

________________

Xi Jinping’s Rabbit of the Year

The following are translated excerpts of China’s main evening TV news, Xinwen Lianbo, on January 20th, 2023.
Links within blockquotes added during translation.
–

CCTV News (Xinwen Lianbo): The Central Committee of the Communist Party of China and the State Council held a Spring Festival meeting in the Great Hall of the People in the morning of December 20th. Communist Party of China Secretary General, State Chairman and Central Military Commissions Chairman Xi Jinping gave a speech on behalf of the Central Committee and the State Council, wishing a happy new year to the entire nation’s and the entire people’s nationalities, to the compatriots in Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, to the compatriots in Macau Special Administrative Region, and to the Taiwanese and overseas Chinese compatriots.
央视网消息（新闻联播）：中共中央、国务院20日上午在人民大会堂举行2023年春节团拜会。中共中央总书记、国家主席、中央军委主席习近平发表讲话，代表党中央和国务院，向全国各族人民，向香港特别行政区同胞、澳门特别行政区同胞、台湾同胞和海外侨胞拜年。

^{Absolutely rabbit: Kang Hui announces the happy gathering}

Xi Jinping emphasized that the outgoing year of the tiger’s thirty-ninth year I3 of the 60 year cycle [i. e. 2022] had been a year of utmost importance in the history of the party and the country. Facing an unusually stormy international environment and formidable duties of reform, development and stability at home, the entire party, the entire army and the entire country with all its nationalities rose to the challenges, fought unitedly, and based on the enthusiasm of the soaring tiger and the leaping dragon, dared to enter the tiger’s cave, and wrote, with fortitude and tenacity, a new chapter of socialist modernization.
习近平强调，即将过去的壬寅虎年，是党和国家发展史上极为重要的一年。面对风高浪急的国际环境和艰巨繁重的国内改革发展稳定任务，全党全军全国各族人民迎难而上、团结奋斗，凭着龙腾虎跃的干劲、敢入虎穴的闯劲、坚忍不拔的韧劲，书写了社会主义现代化建设的新篇章。

Li Keqiang presided over the meeting, Li Zhanshu, Wang Yang, Li Qiang, Zhao Leji, Wang Huning, Han Zheng, Cai Qi, Ding Xuexiang, Li Xi and Wang Qishan attended the meeting.

李克强主持团拜会，栗战书、汪洋、李强、赵乐际、王沪宁、韩正、蔡奇、丁薛祥、李希、王岐山等出席。

[…]

Xi Jinping pointed out that in traditional Chinese culture, the Rabbit is referred to as the auspicious Jade Rabbit, standing for resourcefulness and nimbleness, honesty and kindness, serenity and beauty. The auspicious rabbit represents symbolizes the increasingly auspicious peace, abundant vitality and youthful energy of the Chinese lands. In the lunar year of the Rabbit, we hope that the entire people, and especially many young people, will leap ahead in the way of the Rabbit and exert themselves in all areas of life in a graceful manner.

习近平指出，在中华传统文化中，兔被称为瑞兔、玉兔，代表着机智敏捷、纯洁善良、平静美好。吉兔呈祥，象征中华大地愈发安宁祥和、生意盎然、朝气蓬勃。在农历兔年，希望全国人民特别是广大青年像动如脱兔般奋跃而上、飞速奔跑，在各行各业竞展风流、尽显风采。

Leading and old comrades from the Central Committee, the National People’s Congress’s Standing Committee, the State Council, theNational Supervision Commission,  the Supreme People’s Court, the People’s Republic of China Supreme People’s Procurate, and the National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference, attended the gathering.

中共中央、全国人大常委会、国务院、国家监委、最高人民法院、最高人民检察院、全国政协、中央军委领导同志和老同志出席团拜会。

________________

Related

“Open the Skies for the Young”, May 5, 2013

________________

Lai Ching-te’s Rabbit of the Year

–

^{It’s just around the Corner (click photo for source)}

Lai said that facing an international climate that wasn’t good, changes in local politics and the threats of authoritarianism, the country, the government, individuals and companies could all display the wisdom of the rabbit. That would surely help to overcome an unpromising outset and turn it into a lucky process, to get through difficult times and for the people  to lead better lives.
國家、政府、個人、公司都可以學習發揮兔子的智慧，必定可逢凶化吉、度過難關，也讓人民過更好的生活。
–
Vice President Lai said among the twelve zodiac animals, the rabbit ranked fourth. It belonged to the 4th eartly branch. So this is the beginning of the day, full of hope. This was the hopeful year of the rabbit, the festival was symbolized by the character for “Spring”, and one could look forward to saying Goodbye to things that hadn’t worked as one wished for, and to hope for a prosperous year for everyone.

賴副總統說，兔子的生肖排名第4，在地支屬卯，時辰是一天的開始，也是充滿希望。今年是充滿希望的兔年，節慶則對應「春」字，期盼揮別以往的不如意，希望今年大家都興旺。

________________

Related

Learn from the Rabbit’s Wisdom, RTI, January 23, 2023
Lai Ching-te, Wikipedia, accessed Jan 27, 2023

____________

Air Defense Competition, Particular Honors and Promotions

^{“Hold on to revolution, advance production, advance work, advance war preparation”}
The following is my translation from an article first published by the “China Defense Paper” (中国国防报), a paper run by a “People’s Liberation Army” publishing house which also publishes the “People’s Liberation Army Daily”. It was published online by China’s ministry of defense website on September 9, 2022.
Development of civil air defense reportedly started in 1950, when the CPC Central Committee issued a circular for an organizing committee that would then establish a “Central People’s Air Defense Committee” (中共中央发出通知，成立中央人民防空委员会筹委会). “Baike Baidu”, an online encyclopedia:

The masses are both the object and the force of Civil Air Defense. In addition to Civil Air Defense staff, the important goals of partners like government agencies, enterprises and public institutions as well as from all sides of society are also included, as are all aspects of societal life. Civil Air Defense are manifold, including evacuations, camouflage, dealing with the aftermath of air raids, etc..
人民群众既是人民防空对象，又是人民防空力量。人民防空对象除了人员以外，还包括政府机构、企业事业单位等重要目标，以及社会生活的各个方面。人民防空行动形式多样，包括疏散防护、隐蔽防护、消除空袭后果等。

There have been earlier days of mass mobilization, then against a suspicious power very near there – the USSR, in the 1960s.
The concept of mass mobilisation was confirmed in the 1990s, with an air defense law

adopted at the 202nd Meeting of the Standing Committee of the Eighth National People’s Congress on October 29, 1996, promulgated by Order No. 78 of the President of the People’s Republic of China on October 29, 1996, and effective as of January 1, 1997.

–
According to the 1996 air-defense law,

[a]s authorized by the State Council and the Central Military Commission, the major military commands shall exercise leadership in the work of civil air defense in the areas under their command.

The article you are going to read describes three particular fields of competition: satellite communication, mobile-devices communication and shortwave communication.
As far as these fields of science are concerned, the 1996 law stipulates that

The tasks to be performed by mass organizations for air defense in time of　war include dealing with emergencies, doing rush repairs, providing medical aid, preventing and extinguishing fire, engaging in epidemic prevention, disinfection and sterilization, eliminating contamination, ensuring signal communications, rescuing people, doing emergency transportation of goods and materials and maintaining public order, and in time of peace they shall assist the departments for fighting against floods and earthquakes in dealing with emergencies and doing disaster relief.

That said, the army wants specialized people within its ranks, not somewhere else. And as Chinese people can be drafted (without being asked), a guideline published (or publicised) by the “PLA” in August suggests that drafts during the later months of this year would be based on skills which are particularly relevant for war prepration.

The article.
Main Link: “I particularly care about this honor” (我特别看重这份荣誉)

From August 30 to August 31, the 2022 Henan Provincial Civil Air Defense System Skills Competiton was carried out in the city of Hebi. In contrast to the past, success during the competiton was linked to the contestants’ professional advancement. For example, workers and handymen, no matter if junior, intermediate or senior workers, can all be promoted to a higher position right away, with payment and status being adjusted accordingly.
8月30日至31日，2022年河南省人防系统职业技能竞赛在鹤壁市举行。与以往不同，这次竞赛成绩与参赛选手个人职业等级晋升挂钩。比如，对于工勤技能岗位人员而言，无论是初级工、中级工还是高级工，只要进入竞赛前3名，均可直接晋升为技师，工资待遇也会相应调整。
–
This change has been made because the Civil Air Defense System Skills Competiton has been integrated into the 2022 Henan Provincial vocational technical skills competiton plan. “The Civil Air Defense communication skills competition is technologically demanding, strict in its standard requirements, and should enjoy preferential regional industrial and technical competition policies.“ Someone in charge at the provincial Human Resources and Social Security Department’s professional capacity-building office explained that “according to the ‘Henan Province Professional Skills Competition (trial) Administrative Method’, three new items have been added this time, concerning: Civil Air Defense satellite communication, Civil Air Defense shortwave communication, and Civil Air Defense mobile device operators. With certain results, participants qualify for professional promotion.
变化，源于这次人防技能竞赛被纳入2022年河南省职业技能竞赛计划。“人防通信技能竞赛，技术含量高、标准要求严，理应享受地方职业技能竞赛优惠政策。”该省人社厅1职业能力建设处相关负责人介绍，依据《河南省职业技能竞赛管理办法（试行）》，此次新增了人防卫星、短波、移动通信机务员3个项目；参赛人员取得一定成绩，即获得职业等级晋升资格。
–
“Integrating war preparation competitions, practicing perfect mastery and ability.” In accordance with this line of thought, Henan Province Civil Air Defense Office first mobilized those to sign up who were up to the condition, and then instructed Municipal Civil Air Defense Offices to hold preliminary competitions to select the best from those already best so as to ensure a high starting point for the provincial finals.
“结合备战竞赛，练强过硬本领。”按照这一思路，河南省人防办首先动员符合条件的人员踊跃报名参加，然后指导各地市人防办举办预赛、优中选优，确保省决赛的高起点。
–
To ensure impartiality and fairness, the National University of Defense and Technology’s School of Communication and Information, counterpart units from Shandong, Guangxi, Sichuan and other provinces, Hebi City Fire and Rescue Brigade and other third parties were invited to send referees.
Extra efforts were made in the design of the test settings. For example, shortwave transmitter-receivers had to work with groundwaves instead of skywaves, because propagation of the latter is variably influenced [by the ionosphere]. This is how variations in assignment conditions for the participants were avoided.
为保证竞赛公平公正，他们不仅邀请国防科技大学信息通信学院，山东、广西、四川等兄弟单位，鹤壁市消防救援支队作为第三方，派出专家和技术人员担任裁判，而且还在赛题设置上下了一番功夫。比如，短波电台要借助地波而不是天波进行通联，天波受天气影响较大，这样可避免前后上场的选手作业条件出现较大差异。
–
Zhang Guoyin, a high-level worker from Zhengzhou City Civil Air Defense Office, achieved the second position at the Civil Air Defense mobile device operators which means that, according to the rewards policy, he can be promoted to the position of a technician^*) right away. “The things demanded in this competiton are pretty much what I’m practising and using regularly anyway, so I could do this quite safely.” Zhang Guoyin told this reporter that to get promoted had by no means been as easy in the past. In 2016, he passed his high-level worker exam, but the acceptance quota was limited, and he was only promoted in 2019.
郑州市人防办高级工张国印，在移动通信机务员赛项中获得第二名，按照奖励政策，他可以直接晋升为技师。“这次竞赛的内容，基本都是平时常训常练常用的，考起来得心应手。”张国印告诉记者，以前晋级可没这么顺利。他在2016年通过了高级工考试，但受名额数量所限，直到2019年才得以晋升。
–
Tan E, winner of the gold medal at the shortwave communication operators’ competition, is a technician at the Provincial Civil Air Defense command information support center. As far as technicians are concerned, the first three of them [in the competition], won’t be benefitted in terms of payment, but are exempted from two theoretical senior-technician exams. They also earn themselves a title as “Henan Province technology experts”. “I used to be with the signal corps, and I particularly care about this honor.” Holding his certificate in his hands, Tan E couldn’t hide his joy.
在短波通信机务员赛项中夺得金牌的谭峨，是省人防指挥信息保障中心的一名技师。对于技师而言，前3名的成绩虽然不与工资待遇挂钩，但可在高级技师考试中免考2门理论，并可获得“河南省技术能手”称号。“我曾是一名通信兵，特别看重这份荣誉。”谭峨手捧荣誉证书，难掩心中的喜悦。
–
There were also active engineers taking part. Gao Bing, associate engineer from the Nanyang Civil Air Defense Office, Liu Wei, intermediate engineer from Hebi Civil Air Defense Office, won gold medals in satellite and mobile device operations respectively. These are excellent successes, laying the foundations for their next professional evaluations. Zhu Anwei, second-class floorwalker at the Provincial Civil Air Defense Office, believes that competiton among staff from specialised technological posts doesn’t only help the participants’ maturity and progress, but also provides everyone with role models, goals to achieve, and is beneficial for the promotion of building skilled and talented echelons.
竞赛场上还活跃着工程师人员的身影。南阳市人防办助理工程师高冰、鹤壁市人防办中级工程师刘伟，分别获得卫星、移动通信机务员竞赛项目金牌。优异的成绩，给他们下一步的职称评定奠定了基础。省人防办二级巡视员朱安伟认为，安排专业技术岗位人员上阵比武，不仅对他们个人成长进步有帮助，而且能让大家学有榜样、赶有目标，有利于推动技能人才梯队建设。
–
Those who have earned themselves gold and silver medals have been awarded, and the others don’t consider their participation wasted time either. According to releveant regulations, those who finished 4th to 10th can be promoted. “A moment on stage takes several years of practice off-stage.” According to what leaders at the Civil Air Defense Office say, having gone through several months of ample war preparation not only brought the participants’ professional skills to new levels, but also built a good atmosphere within the provincial civil air defense system that leans on personal technical skills and on real accomplishment and improvement.
摘金夺银者有奖，其他参赛人员也不虚此行。每项赛事中获得第4至10名者，也可按相关规定晋升职业技能等级。“台上一分钟，台下数年功。”该省人防办相关领导介绍，经过几个月的充分备战，这次竞赛不仅让参赛选手业务技能上了一个大台阶，而且在全省人防系统中营造了凭技能立身、靠实绩进步的良好氛围。

____________

Note

^*) A reformed eight-level remuneration scale has reportedly been in place earlier this year. It includes the ranks of 学徒工 (apprentice), 初级工 (junior worker), 中级工 (intermediate worker), 高级工 (senior worker), 技师 (technician), 高级技师 (senior technician), 特级技师 (top senior technician), 首席技师 (chief technician) – see Industrial Bank of China and the CPC Central Committee’s “Qiushi” (bimonthly English-language edition) for sources
____________

Guesswork: 20th National Congress of the CPC (1)

^{Propaganda video, apparently with material from 2017}

–

Date:	Not specified yet, but most likely in October or November,2022
Location:	“Great Hall of the People”, Beijing
Participants:	2,300 delegates from 38 “electoral” bodies.
In charge of “elections”:	The CPC organization department.
Candidates are selected in five steps, according to Li Cheng, quoting a organization department press release.
Menu
Xi Jinping will officially be declared “The People’s Leader” (人民领袖). It’s not a new term and Xi has been referred to as “people’s leader”*) by party cadres and propaganda before, but it hasn’t joined the ideological principles yet. “Shared development” or “inclusive development” (共享发展), and “innovative”, “coordinated” etc. development in general, is likely to remain a key element of CPC ideology. For details of the CPC development party (from a dedicated technocrat’s perspective) see this preface by Hu Angang, 2018 According to Ming Pao in an article on July 12, annexing Taiwan is high on the agenda, too. The correspondents quote one source (unnamed, of course) “with a military background” as saying that “if cross-strait unification brought about, fame will follow merit” (該人士表示，實現兩岸統一，「人民領袖」這一稱號對習而言也將實至名歸), i. e. Xi Jinping would be a worthy bearer of the “peoples-leader” title.

____________

Notes

^*) “worthy to be called a wise (or brilliant) leader” (不愧为英明领袖) was another trial balloon, released by Cai Qi in 2017.

____________

You Sikun: Russian-Ukrainian War a “Great Revelation”

The following is a translation of a speech given by Taiwan’s Legislative Yuan’s Speaker You Si-kun (游錫堃) on Tuesday, opening the national-day preparatory committee. “National day” refers to Taiwan’s double-ten celebrations.
Main link: National Day preparatory committee established – You Si-kun: strengthen the concept of Taiwan consciousness (國慶籌備會成立 游錫堃：強化台灣主體意識概念發想)

UDN coverage, April 19

Legislative Yuan Speaker You Si-kun chaired the national-day celebrations peparatory committee’s opening session this morning. He said that the Russo-Ukrainian war is a great revelation for people worldwide and in Taiwan. This year, the general meeting office and the fireworks office¹⁾ are asked to actively plan and strengthen Taiwanese subject consciousness²⁾ and cohesion as well as the will of the people to protect the land.

立法院長游錫堃今上午主持「中華民國各界慶祝111年國慶籌備委員會」成立大會。他在致詞時表示，烏俄戰爭對全球和台灣人民都有很大的啟示。今年的國慶活動，將請大會處及焰火處積極規畫，朝強化台灣主體意識及凝聚國人守土為國意志的概念來發想。

[The following paragraph is about technicalities concerning SARS-COVID prevention – left out here]

You Si-kun said that under last year’s rising changes and challenges, the national-day celebrations, besides improving preventive measures against the pandemic, also carved out high-quality celabratory activities. In addition to inviting the heros of the Olympics and Paralympics, those fighting the pandemic, those who defended Taiwan and stabilized society, were part of a heros’ motorcade to be cheered and thanked by people all over the country for their efforts and hard work for Taiwan.

游錫堃表示，去年在疫情升溫的變化與挑戰下，慶籌會除了完善防疫措施外，還能同時規畫出優質的各項慶祝活動，除了邀請奧運、帕運、防疫、捍衛台灣、安定社會、護衛國土的台灣英雄，搭上英雄車隊、出席國慶大會、接受全國人民喝采，感謝他們對台灣的付出與辛勞。

This was combined with work for the overseas compatriots, with the Overseas Community Affairs Council taking overseas compatriots to the national day evening banquets and the national-day gathering in front of the presidential palace. They saw the atmosphere of the Kaohsiung fireworks and the exciting events they brought for the Taiwanese. All celebration activities brought the crowds to many places, improving tourism revenues and earning public praise.

同時，還結合僑胞服務工作，由僑務委員會帶著僑胞到新竹市參加國慶晚會，也到總統府前參加國慶大會，再去高雄觀賞國慶焰火，讓大家感受歡樂的國慶氣氛，為國人帶來那麼多精彩的活動內容，各項慶祝活動也確實為各地帶來非常多的人潮，提高了觀光收益，廣獲社會好評。

You Si-kun said that the Russo-Ukrainian war is a great revelation for people worldwide and in Taiwan. This year, the general meeting office and the fireworks office¹⁾ are asked to actively plan and strengthen Taiwanese subject consciousness²⁾ and cohesion as well as the will of the people to protect the land. This year’s national day holiday will be three days, from October 8 to October 10. He believed that the people would certainly the national-day events, hoped that everyone would have fun with combined education and entertainment, and that [the national day celebrations] would be activities with ample vitality, cohesion and consensus-building, and participation.

游錫堃說，烏俄戰爭對全球和台灣人民都有很大的啟示。今年的國慶活動，也請大會處及焰火處積極規劃，朝強化臺灣主體意識及凝聚國人守土為國意志的概念來發想。今年國慶日適逢3天的連續假期（10/8至10/10），相信國人一定會很期待國慶系列活動，希望大家能寓教於樂，讓國慶成為充滿活力、凝聚共識、全民參與的活動。

____________

Notes

1)	大會處及焰火處, the genereal meeting office and the fireworks office, both of them offices under the preparatory committee
2)	Subject conciousness may not be the perfect equivalent – sociologists would be in a better position than I to judge -, but I found this term in a paper about Korean self-awareness-building, too