China

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French Relations With China 'Set Right,' Sarkozy Says

President talks human rights with leaders hosting Beijing visit

(Newser) - Nicolas Sarkozy says the relationship between France and China had been “set right again” in talks today with the Chinese leadership, AFP reports. "I had a lunch and a meeting with the Chinese president and a meeting with the prime minister. I talked about human rights, I handed...

Fireworks Open Olympics
 Fireworks Open Olympics
Aug 8, 2008 7:47 AM CDT

Fireworks Open Olympics

Five-hour ceremony gets under way

(Newser) - The most impressive Olympic games on record began in explosive fashion today, as more than 80 heads of state and 91,000 spectators gathered in the Bird’s Nest stadium in Beijing. The five-hour opening ceremony began with a dazzling fireworks display, with hundreds of white-robed drummers playing in unison....

Bomb Threat Forces Back China-Bound Plane

Japanese authorities believe threat to Air China is Olympics-related

(Newser) - A bomb threat emailed to Air China's Tokyo offices today forced a Shanghai-bound passenger jet to make an emergency return to Japan, reports AP. Four other flights were delayed. The email threatened to "bomb the aircraft" if fllghts were not suspended, according to a transport offical. "We suspect...

China Proudly Takes the Stage
 China Proudly Takes the Stage
Aug 8, 2008 3:04 AM CDT

China Proudly Takes the Stage

29th Olympiad seen as world's recognition of China's success

(Newser) - Beijing is buzzing with excitement as the Olympic countdown nears its end, reports the Washington Post. The nation boldly steps into the international spotlight as the 29th Olympiad begins at the auspicious hour of 8:08 pm Chinese time. China's people are eager to impress the world, and the ruling...

5 Obscure Olympic Pursuits
 5 Obscure Olympic Pursuits 
Aug 7, 2008 3:58 PM CDT

5 Obscure Olympic Pursuits

For some countries, Beijing is about judo, handball and badminton

(Newser) - Basketball, Speedo-wearing athletes and gymnastics floor routines might be the toast of NBC on this side of the ocean, but lesser-known Olympic disciplines will drive other nations to the edge of their collective seat, reports Time. Here are five:
  1. Badminton: Responsible for Indonesia's lone gold, the sport with 125-mph backhand
...

IOC, BBC Spar Over Beijing Air
 IOC, BBC Spar Over Beijing Air
Aug 7, 2008 1:50 PM CDT

IOC, BBC Spar Over Beijing Air

But pollution readings by BBC tell a different story

(Newser) - The International Olympic Committee says there is nothing wrong with the air in Beijing and praised China's "extraordinary" efforts to clean up pollution ahead of the Games' kick-off tomorrow. But the BBC disagrees, reporting its own analysis that shows Beijing's air pollution at nearly four times World Health Organization...

Bush: 'Deep Concerns' on Rights in China

President lands in Beijing for opening ceremonies

(Newser) - President Bush landed in Beijing today for the Olympics’ opening ceremony, but not before outlining his “deep concerns” about human rights in the Chinese regime. “America stands in firm opposition to China's detention of political dissidents, human-rights advocates, and religious activists,” Bush said in a speech in...

It's Time for China, Tibet to Cut a Deal
It's Time for China, Tibet
to Cut a Deal
OPINION
Aug 7, 2008 7:01 AM CDT

It's Time for China, Tibet to Cut a Deal

Dalai Lama backs off demand for autonomy, opening window

(Newser) - The Dalai Lama is willing to accept Chinese rule in Tibet, providing Beijing with a major concession in an attempt to preserve the cultural character of the region, writes columnist Nicolas D. Kristof in the New York Times. The Chinese government must recognize the Dalai Lama's willingness to compromise and...

Bush Readies Salvo on China's Rights Record

President's speech tomorrow will express 'deep concern,' US' 'firm opposition'

(Newser) - President Bush will urge the Chinese government toward greater openness and civil freedom, according to excerpts from a speech he’s scheduled give tomorrow in Thailand, the New York Times reports. Bush will keep his criticism mild, not wishing to use his visit to the Olympics to blast Beijing on...

China's Authoritarian Gold Rush Misses Joy of Sports

Beijing may well pass US atop medals table, but citizens' share will be minimal

(Newser) - Beijing’s plan to win the most golds at the Olympics seems likely to pay off in a battle pitting “Chinese authoritarianism versus American liberty,” Matthew Forney writes in the New York Times. Unlike the US, though, China’s citizenry gets little chance to play organized sports, with...

China Revokes Visa of Olympian Darfur Activist

Speedskater Joey Cheek leads team for peace in Sudan

(Newser) - Hours before he was due to leave for Beijing today, US gold-medalist and Darfur activist Joey Cheek got a call from Chinese authorities revoking his visa, the Boston Globe reports. A retired speedskater, Cheek is the founder of Team Darfur, a global group of athletes devoted to bringing peace to...

Faster, Stronger ... and More Polite?

US athletes hit 'manners training' to avoid Bode fiascos

(Newser) - US Olympians are getting a new type of training: lessons in how to behave in Beijing, reports the Wall Street Journal. In a required course the USOC calls the "ambassador program," US athletes are receiving instruction on topics ranging from appropriate chopstick use to the correct way to...

Media at Full Boil Over China Restrictions
Media at Full Boil Over China Restrictions
OPINION
Aug 5, 2008 4:40 PM CDT

Media at Full Boil Over China Restrictions

Awarding Olympics to 'dictatorial regime' was 'drastic mistake'

(Newser) - As the Beijing Games draw near, journalists are worrying about the Chinese government's handling of a swarm of international reporters in an otherwise heavily censored society. Der Spiegel compiles commentaries from varying German sources, all of which agree that the decision to award China the 2008 Olympics was misguided at...

Why the Chinese Need Olympic Glory

(Newser) - Those shocked by China’s bristly response to Olympic protests and criticisms would do well to remember some history, Orville Schell writes for the New York Review of Books. After what the Chinese call a "century of humiliation" at the hands of the West and Japan, the nation has...

16 Killed in China Border Attack
 16 Killed in China Border Attack
Aug 4, 2008 3:18 AM CDT

16 Killed in China Border Attack

East Turkistan Islamic Movement suspected

(Newser) - A pair of supected Islamic terrorists attacked a border post in western China and killed 16 paramilitary police officers, hacking some of them with knives, reports CNN, quoting the Xinhua news agency. The two crashed a truck into a group of officers jogging near the station and then lobbed two...

Slowly but Steadily, Rights Gaining in China

Dynamic economy means people's freedoms are slowly growing

(Newser) - With the Olympics casting an unflattering spotlight on the state of human rights in China, the New York Times takes a longer view, reporting that freedoms have gradually expanded over decades of economic reform. Repression remains in public expression and assembly, but Chinese people can now often live where they...

China Lowers Internet Firewall
 China Lowers Internet Firewall
Aug 1, 2008 8:22 PM CDT

China Lowers Internet Firewall

Beijing allows access to certain sites to appease Olympics

(Newser) - Facing pressure from the Olympics, Beijing lowered its so-called Great Firewall today to allow access to some news and human rights websites, Time reports. But other sites—like those supporting Tibetan independence or the outlawed spiritual group Falun Gong—remain off-limits in China. And "everyone knows that the minute...

Chinese Cheered by Eclipse
 Chinese Cheered by Eclipse 
Aug 1, 2008 5:23 PM CDT

Chinese Cheered by Eclipse

Nation desperate for good sign a week before Olympics

(Newser) - Finally, China had an act of nature it could celebrate. After an Olympic year of freakish natural disasters, crowds of Chinese watched a total solar eclipse along the country's ancient Silk Road on Friday, one week before the start of the Summer Games in Beijing, the AP reports.

Eclipse Draws 15K to Siberia
 Eclipse Draws 15K to Siberia 
Jul 31, 2008 11:01 PM CDT

Eclipse Draws 15K to Siberia

Thousands flock to Russia for rare solar spectacle despite threat of rain

(Newser) - Prospects of rare total solar eclipse have drawn thousands of sky-watchers to the Siberian city of Novosibirsk, where the moon’s passage between the earth and sun will create 140 seconds of darkness at 5:45 pm local time today. Hotels in the city—Russia’s third-largest—are fully booked,...

Beijing Becomes Obsessed With Rain

Chinese people want some, but not too much, for Olympics

(Newser) - Talking about the weather isn’t just idle conversation in Beijing these days—it’s a national obsession, the Washington Post reports. The country is so anxious for a sunny Olympics—with just enough rain to clear the smog, of course—that changes in the forecast have become front-page news....

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