Law of the Sea

In the wake of a collision between a Korean vessel and a a container ship run by a Chinese company off east China's coast which led to the sinking of the Korean ship and 16 of its sailors missing, China's Foreign Ministry said in a statement that China would continue to "exert all its strength to find the missing sailors in the humanitarian spirit." A Foreign Ministry spokeswoman said that China will handle the case in accordance with international conventions and Chinese laws.

Taiwan
International Organisations

After the World Health Assembly rejected a proposal to admit Taiwan to the WHO as a full member, the Chinese Health Minister said that the Chinese government has always attached great importance to the health of Taiwan compatriots and has always supported the participation of Taiwan medical and public health experts in the technical exchanges of the WHO under the principle of the one-China policy. He also said the Chinese government has consulted with the WHO on applying the International Health Regulations to Taiwan under the principle of the one-China policy. Taiwan applied for full membership of WHO this year because it was concerned that an MOU between the WHO and China set forth procedures and conditions for Taiwan's participation in the WHO activities and may become a paradigm for Taiwan to participate in other international organisations.

See previous post.

Environment

A Foreign Ministry spokeswoman dismissed a report that the Merowe Dam projects in Sudan constructed by Chinese companies endangered the environment. She said China "attaches great importance to the local people's livelihood, takes the possible environmental effect seriously and applies strict environmental assessment and standards". China has always asked its enterprises to abide by the local laws and regulations while doing business in Africa, she added.

Genocide

Amnesty International said in a report that China and Russia are supplying arms to Sudan that are being used to fuel the violence in the Darfur region, in violation of a United Nations arms embargo. A Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman said Chinese sales to African nations were “very limited and small in scale,” but refused to say whether any were being made to Sudan.

See previous post.

Extradition

The Tokyo High Court approved China's request for the extradition of a Chinese national wanted on corruption charges. This would be Japan's first extradition to China in 17 years.

Finance - State Debt

At a ministerial meeting of the International Compact with Iraq (ICI), Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi announced that the Chinese government is ready to substantially reduce and forgive the debts owed by Iraq.

Genocide

At a multipartite meeting on Darfur , a Chinese Foreign Ministry official called for pushing forward the ongoing political process in resolving the Darfur issue. He called on the international community to provide more assistance to Darfur to improve the humanitarian situation there.

See previous post.

Arms Control - Chemical Weapons

A senior Chinese official said China has undergone more than 130 on-the-spot inspections by the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons. "The results show that China has strictly implemented the provisions of the Chemical Weapons Convention", he said.

Hong Kong
Jurisdiction

The Hong Kong legislature adopted the Shenzhen Bay Port Hong Kong Port Area Ordinance which provides for the application of Hong Kong law and the jurisdiction of Hong Kong courts in the Hong Kong area at the Shenzhen Bay Port.

See previous post.

Arms Control - Nuclear Non-Proliferation

At a session of the Preparatory Committee for the 2010 Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty (NPT) Review Conference, the Chinese delegate expounded the Chinese government's stance on issues surrounding the prevention of nuclear proliferation, international nuclear disarmament and the peaceful use of nuclear energy. He said each country is entitled to peaceful use of nuclear energy as long as it earnestly fulfills its obligations under the NPT, and China opposes using non-proliferation as a pretext for restricting and depriving non-nuclear-weapon states of the right to peaceful use of nuclear energy.

See previous post.

Diplomatic Relations
Taiwan

A Foreign Ministry spokesman expressed "indignation and opposition" to the resumption of diplomatic relations between St. Lucia and Taiwan, calling the move "a flagrant violation" of the declaration on the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and St. Lucia. Later, Chinese Ambassador to St. Lucia announced the suspension of diplomatic relations with St. Lucia and the cessation of fulfilling all agreements between the governments of the two countries. St. Lucia became the 25th country with diplomatic ties to Taipei.

Later, when asked what "suspension" of the diplomatic relations means. China's ambassador to St. Lucia said "suspension" means the immediate closure of the Chinese embassy, the cessation of the diplomatic relations and the termination of all cooperative agreements; but if St. Lucia should agree to abide by the "One China" principle and promises not to develop relationship with Taiwan, China may consider resuming the diplomatic ties with St. Lucia.

See previous post.

Reparation for War Crimes
Law of Treaties

The Japanese Supreme Court in a unanimous judgment rejected a claim for damages of 27.5 million yen from the Nishimatsu Construction Co. filed by two Chinese forced labourers, ruling that the 1972 Japan-China Joint Communique bars Chinese individuals from seeking war compensation through the courts. Reversing the judgment by the Hiroshima High Court, the Supreme Court said the San Francisco Peace Treaty signed in 1951 was the framework that set the standards of war reparations for Japan and other countries, and that the treaty was based on the premise that the right to claim compensation for any wartime action, including the right of individuals, would be abandoned. It said the Japan-China Joint Communique was signed under the same framework as the peace treaty, concluding that individuals' rights to claim war reparations have been abandoned. However, in the same judgment as well as another judgment in a sex slavery case delivered on the same day, the Japanese court acknowledged that former wartime sex slaves and forced laborers from China had been coerced by the Japanese military or industry.

Earlier, a Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman said, "As a solemn political and diplomatic document signed by the Chinese and Japanese Government, Sino-Japanese Joint Statement constitutes the political basis of the restoration and development of the post-war Sino-Japanese relations. Neither party should unilaterally interpret the major principle or issues in the document, including judicial interpretation." Following the Supreme Court judgment, the Foreign Ministry spokesman denounced the Japanese court's interpretation of the Chinese government's abandonment of its right to war reparations as "illegal and invalid", saying China strongly opposed the "arbitrary" interpretations of the Sino-Japanese Joint Statement. He said the Chinese government's declaration in the Joint Statement on waiving the right for war compensations from Japan was "a political decision made out of an aim to help the two peoples coexist in amity".

See previous post.

Diplomatic Protection

About 200 gunmen attacked a Chinese-run oilfield in Ethiopia, killing 74 people including nine Chinese nationals. The Ogaden National Liberation Front claimed responsibility for the attack and said it had launched "military operations against units of the Ethiopian armed forces guarding an oil exploration site". A Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman said China strongly condemned the attack and asked Ethiopia to take concrete and effective measures to ensure personnel and property safety of Chinese agencies in the country and help resolve problems arising from the attack.

Nationality

A court in Xinjiang sentenced Huseyin Celil, a China-born Uygur, to life in prison for "taking part in terrorist activities and plotting to split the country". Celil was born and raised in China and fled to Uzbekistan and Turkey in 2000 after escaping from the Chinese prison. He arrived in Canada in 2001 and received Canadian citizenship in 2005. He was arrested in Uzbekistan and extradited to China in June 2006. A Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman rejected Canada's complaint that Canada could not afford consular assistance to Celil during the trial and maintained that the Celil trial is China's "internal matter". China does not recognise Celil's Canadian citizenship and emphasises that Celil committed the alleged crimes before he left China. Later, a Foreign Ministry spokeswoman said Celil is a Chinese national under China's Nationality Law and China does not recognise dual nationality.

Taiwan
International Organisations

Taiwan applied for full membership of the World Health Organisation in the name of Taiwan. A Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman commented that secessionist moves by Taiwan authorities disguised as health initiatives "will not succeed". The WHO secretariat later notified Taiwan that its application was not accepted on the ground that it was not a sovereign state. Taiwanese President Chen Shui-bian said the WHO rejection, under political interference from China, violated the WHO's charter to promote universal health.

See previous post.

Air Law

China and the US are on the verge of making an "open skies" agreement that would scrap restrictions on the number of flights between the two countries. A single daily flight by a jumbo jet from the airport is estimated to generate an annual US$213 million in economic activity in China.

Diplomatic Protection

Italian police clashed with Chinese merchants over traffic control in Milan's Chinatown, causing at least 10 Chinese nationals to be injured. The Chinese Foreign Ministry made a statement, saying, "We hope the Italian side deals fairly with the issue and seriously considers the justified demands of local Chinese nationals and takes real measures to protect their legitimate rights and interests." Chinese Ambassador to Italy later asked the Italian authorities to strengthen communications with Chinese merchants and take their traditions and cultural background into consideration.

Trade
Intellectual Property
Dispute Settlement

The United States filed two trade complaints against China at the World Trade Organization over piracy of American books, music, video and movies and limited market access for American products in China. The Chinese Ministry of Commerce spokesman expressed "great regret and strong dissatisfaction" and said the US action would "seriously damage cooperative relations in this sector, and will have a negative impact on bilateral trade." Defending China's efforts to protect intellectual property rights, a senior Chinese IPR official said, "It's not a sensible move for the US government to file such complaint."

Later, deputy US trade representative Karan Bhatia called the legal action "a responsible and mature way to deal with issues that have not managed to be resolved through other dialogue." In contrast, Chinese Vice Premier Wu Yi complained that the US move had set a precedent in the WTO for a member country mounting two cases simultaneously against another. She warned that the lawsuit "will have an utterly negative impact and will inevitably badly damage bilateral intellectual property cooperation,"

See previous post.

Territory - Spratly Islands
Law of the Sea

In response to reports that the Vietnamese government designated the oil and gas areas for bidding in the South China Sea, would hold an election of the National Assembly deputies and would cooperate with BP in building a natural gas pipeline on the Nansha Islands, a Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman said, "Any unilateral action taken by other countries in the waters infringes on China's territorial sovereignty, sovereign rights and interests and jurisdiction, and thus is illegal and invalid." He added that the Vietnamese action contravene the principles in the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea.

See previous post.

Genocide

A Special Envoy of the Chinese Government visited the western Sudanese region of Darfur to "get acquainted with the situation there". The governor of the North Darfur state told the Chinese delegation that the current Darfur crisis was only "one link of a chain" because this kind of conflicts had repeatedly taken place in the past. Later, a Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman said that Sudan should resolve the conflict in Darfur through negotiations.

See previous post.

Environment - Climate Change

Premier Wen Jiabao will express Beijing's intention to take part in negotiations on a successor to the Kyoto Protocol when he visits Japan. Scientists have forecast that China's average temperature will rise by as much as 6.4 degrees Celsius between 2000 and 2100.

See previous post.

Human Rights

In response to the US Department of State report entitled "Supporting Human Rights and Democracy: The U.S. Record 2006", a Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman said, "We repudiate the human rights report of the US Department of State, which ignores basic facts, slanders and attacks China's human rights situation."

See previous post.

Law of the Sea -- Continental Shelf

During the discussions between China and Japan over the technical issues concerning the joint development of their disputed ares in the East China Sea, the Chinese side reportedly asked Japan to agree to China developing the Chunxiao oilfield on its own. Japan insisted that the Chunxiao oilfield be included in the areas of joint development.

See previous post.

Trade
Intellectual Property

The US is prepared to file a complaint with the World Trade Organisation against China for its alleged leniency towards piracy of movies and books, which will be the second this year and the fourth to be lodged by the US against China since Beijing joined the WTO in 2001. Two separate complaints will be filed, one addressing China's alleged reluctance to use criminal laws for people caught selling pirated DVDs and the other about expanding ''market access'' for American products in China.

The Chinese Supreme People's Court extended criminal penalties for music and movie piracy to people caught with smaller amounts of DVDs or CDs. Anyone caught with 500 pirated discs will face criminal prosecution, down from the previous 1,000 discs, and fines for piracy were raised to up to 15 times a pirate's illegal gains, up from double their revenues.

Law of the Sea

According to a report by the State Oceanic Administration, Chinese marine surveillance forces identified several U.S. military vessels that were caught carrying out geological and topographical surveys in waters under Chinese jurisdiction in 2006. The report said that routine patrols by the China Marine Surveillance forces detected 2,436 illegal activities in China's territorial waters, up nearly 20 percent from the previous year.

Diplomatic Protection

In relation to a reported case of police brutality against Chinese nationals, the Chinese Ambassador to Spain made representations to the Spanish Government and expressed hope that the case would be properly resolved.

Jurisdiction
Hong Kong

Hong Kong's Securities and Futures Commission entered into an agreement with the China Securities Regulatory Commission on cross-border investigations whereby the Hong Kong regulators may request assistance from the mainland in obtaining information in the Mainland for SFC investigations.

Human Rights

China was amongst the over 80 states that signed the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities which is designed to protect to protect the rights of the world's 650 million persons with disabilities. A Chinese official said China values the rights of its 82.96 million people with disabilities.

Trade - Subsidy

The US Commerce Department imposed preliminary duties of between 10.9% and 20.35% on imports of coated paper from China, reversing a decades-old policy of not applying tariffs on subsidised goods from non-market economies. "China's economy has developed to the point that we can add another trade remedy tool, such as the countervailing duty law. The China of today is not the China of years ago." said the American Commerce Secretary Carlos Gutierrez.

A Chinese Ministry of Commerce spokesman expressed "strong dissatisfaction" about the U.S. decision. arguing the American action "obviously does not conform with the current judicial precedent of U.S. courts and the consistent practice of the U.S. Commerce Department".

See previous post.

Outer Space

At a meeting of the Legal Subcommittee of the UN Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space, a Chinese representative called for the early conclusion of a treaty banning the weaponisation of outer space. He also said that China considers the protection of space environment the common responsibility of all countries involved in space activities.

See previous post.

Taiwan

A Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman expressed "firm opposition" and "strong dissatisfaction" over Saint Lucia's receiving of Taiwan's foreign minister, saying it violated the one-China principle which he said is an important principle universally accepted by the international community.

State Succession
Taiwan

The Japanese Supreme Court reversed a 1987 judgment by the Osaka High Court over the ownership of Guanghualiao, a student dormitory in Kyoto. The dormitory was originally purchased by the ROC government in 1950 and has been occupied by pro-Beijing students. In rejecting Taiwan's demand to evict the occupants, the Japanese Supreme Court ruled that the plaintiff in the case became the Chinese mainland instead of Taiwan after Japan normalized its diplomatic ties with China in 1972. The judgment did not rule on the ownership of the dormitory.

Reparation for War Crimes

The Nagasaki District Court rejected a lawsuit brought by 10 Chinese labourers and their families against the Japanese Government and a Japanese company for forced labour during World War II. The court acknowledged the illegality of the defendants' acts, but dismissed the claims because the period of limitation had expired.

See previous post.

Extradition

The Ministry of Public Security said that China has increased efforts to pursue corrupt officials who have fled abroad. In 2006, Chinese police repatriated 37 fugitives from 11 foreign countries, Hong Kong and Macau.

See previous post.

United Nations
Economic Sanctions

After voting for a Security Council Resolution that imposed sanction on Iran, China's UN Ambassador Wang Guangya said the UN sanctions were meant not to punish Iran, but to induce Iran to go back to the negotiation. He said that the sanctions should not harm the Iranian people, nor should they affect Iran's normal economic relations with other countries.

See previous post.

Human Rights

The State Council passed a draft regulation on Wednesday banning trade in human organs and tightening controls on transplants. China has the second-highest number of transplants in the world, but the programme has been plagued by concerns about illegal organ trading and doubts about whether donations from executed prisoners, who contribute most of the organs transplanted, are made voluntarily. "This is the first regulation of its kind introduced by the central government, and it is a milestone in the country's organ transplant history," a senior governmental official said. However, a human rights group said the regulation fails to address what it called the "crucial issue" of the procurement of organs from executed prisoners.

See previous post.

Jurisdiction
Hong Kong

Four Hong Kong companies challenged the legality of the seizure of their documents by Hong Kong police and Italian prosecutors. The search operation was carried out in connection with Italy's ongoing investigation into alleged wrongdoings by Italy's former prime minister Silvio Berlusconi. The companies argued that Hong Kong law does not permit search and seizure operations to be conducted by a foreign state or its representatives.