Sino-ROK Relations China and the Republic of Korea (ROK) on May 27 agreed to upgrade their “comprehensive and cooperative partnership” to realize a more enhanced “strategic cooperative partnership.”
The agreement was made final during the two-hour summit talks at the Great Hall of the People, as Beijing rolled out the red carpet for ROK President Lee Myung-bak. Lee arrived in Beijing on May 27 for a four-day state visit, his first state visit to China since taking office on February 25.
May 27, 2008 - Chinese President Hu Jintao (left) and visiting South Korean President Lee Myung-bak inspect the honor guard during a welcome ceremony held in Beijing. by Fan Rujun/Xinhua
Ban Ki-moon Pledge United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon arrived in Chengdu, capital city of quake-stricken Sichuan Province, on the morning of May 24 and later visited the Yingxiu Town of Wenchuan County, one of the areas hit hardest by the massive earthquake.
Ban Ki-moon promised to mobilize UN efforts to support China’s quake relief and post-quake reconstruction.).
May 24, 2008 - Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao (left) and UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon meet with journalists from China and beyond in Yingxiu Town, Wenchuan. by Ren Yong/Xinhua.
Wu Poh-hsiung Visit On the afternoon of May 26, Kuomintang (KMT) Chairman Wu Poh-hsiung arrived in Nanjing, capital of Jiangsu Province, from Taiwan, thus kicking off the first leg of a six-day visit to the mainland.
Invited by the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and General Secretary Hu Jintao, Wu visited the three mainland cities of Nanjing, Beijing and Shanghai.
May 27, 2008 - KMT Chairman Wu Poh-hsiung visits Dr. Sun Yat-sen’s Mausoleum in Nanjing. by Pang Xinglei/Xinhua
Ticketless Subway On June 9, the Beijing subway system bid farewell to the paper tickets that had been in use for 38 years. A new automatic fare collection (AFC) system was put into operation in all subway stations in China’s capital, which makes use of magnetic strip passes or mass transit smart cards.
The magnetic strip passes that have replaced the paper tickets may be used repeatedly, up to about 2,500 to 3,000 times, and thus contribute to environmental protectio
June 9, 2008 - A passenger displays the magnetic strip pass he bought at Beijing’s Xizhimen Subway Station. by Luo Xiaoguang/Xinhua
Zongzi Festival Foreign teachers at Jiangsu University were invited to learn how to make zongzi, pyramid-shaped dumplings made of glutinous rice, in Zhenjiang City, Jiangsu Province. People in China make zongzi to greet the traditional Dragon Boat Festival, which this year fell on June 8.
The Dragon Boat Festival is a lunar holiday, occurring on the fifth day of the fifth lunar month. The festival is celebrated with dragon-shaped boats racing to commemorate the patriotic poet Qu Yuan (340-278 BC).
May 28, 2008 - A foreign teacher of Jiangsu University learns to make zongzi. by Shi Yucheng/Xinhua
Quake Photos Sponsored by China International Publishing Group and produced by China Pictorial Publications, on May 31 the large-scale photography exhibition All for the Lives – Earthquake Relief with Unity opened at the China Millennium Monument in Beijing.
Comprising five themed galleries, the images are visually striking and powerful in content, recording rescue and disaster relief efforts in the aftermath of the Wenchuan earthquake, and the compassion and unity of the Chinese people.
A child at the photo exhibition, All for the Lives. by Li Meng
Cross-Strait Flights The Chinese mainland and Taiwan signed agreements on cross-Strait weekend charted flights and mainland tourists traveling to Taiwan around 9 a.m. on June 13.
The Chinese mainland’s Asso-ciation for Relations Across the Taiwan Strait and the Taiwan-based Straits Exchange Foundation on June 12 convened their first talks in nine years to discuss the weekend charted flights and mainland tourists traveling to Taiwan.
June 13, 2008 - Chen Yunlin (right), chairman of the Chinese mainland’s Association for Relations Across the Taiwan Strait (ARATS), and Chiang Pin-kun, chairman of the Taiwan-based Straits Exchange Foundation (SEF), shake hands after signing the agreements. by Li Xiaoguo/Xinhua
Film Festival Driven by Chinese co-productions and a fair number of homegrown films, the Shanghai International Film Festival (SIFF) is rapidly becoming a cinema showcase for China.
One of only 12 competitive international film festivals accredited by the International Federation of Film Producer Associations (FIAPF), SIFF, which runs from June 14 to 22 this year, is the event’s 11th edition.
June 14, 2008 - Actress Zhang Ziyi at the opening ceremony of the 11th SIFF. by Ren Long/Xinhua
Anti-Terror Drill China launched a series of anti-terrorist drills at the national level on June 11 to ensure security for the upcoming Beijing Olympics.
The drills include missions to deal with a chemical attack, the hijacking of athletes’ buses, and other possible contingencies. The drills that began on June 11 are the final round of practice before the Games begin in August.
June 11, 2008 - Rescuers contend with a “chemical explosion” during a drill outside a beach volleyball venue. by Liu Yongsheng/Xinhua
Xinjiang Dance The first China Xinjiang International Folk Dance Festival opened in Urumqi, capital of the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, on June 8.
The pageant attracted more than 2,000 terpsichoreans, including 220 from abroad. The festival lasted 10 days, featuring 45 performances in 10 theaters.
June 14, 2008 - The Greek troupe Dora Strotou perform the folk dance during the festival. Xinhua
Environment Day World Environment Day, commemorated each year on June 5, is one of the principal vehicles through which the United Nations stimulates worldwide awareness of the environment and enhances political attention and action.
The World Environment Day slogan for 2008 is “Kick the Habit! Towards a Low Carbon Economy.” This year, many enterprises, schools and communities in China carried out activities to greet the World Environment Day.
June 3, 2008 - A woman takes along her daughter to obtain environmentally-friendly shopping bags in Huaibei City, Anhui Province. by Wang Wen/Xinhua
“Better Tomorrow” The “A Better Tomorrow” Project for Children of Migrant Workers, co-sponsored by PepsiCo China and the Red Cross Society of China, was officially launched at the Dandelion Middle School of Beijing, the first middle school for children of migrant workers in Beijing.
In support of the project, PepsiCo donated one million yuan to the Red Cross Society of China.
Ken Newell, President of PepsiCo International China Beverages, accepts the humanitarian medal from Red Cross Society of China. by Zhao Yue
798 Fashion On June 15, a fashion show presenting the creations of the students of Beijing ESMOD Fashion and Art College, member of the ESMOD International Fashion University Group based in France, was held at the central hall at Beijing’s 798 Art District.
The fashion show, mainly displaying the creations of the first batch of graduates, demonstrated the benefits of cooperation in fashion education between China and France in recent years.
June 15, 2008 - A model wearing the creation of a student at Beijing ESMOD Fashion and Art College. by Gong Bing/Xinhua
Ecological Construction To enhance ecological and environmental protection awareness, a series of books entitled Children of the Globe, edited by All-China Environment Federation, was published. Through the stories, major ecological problems of today, like air pollution, water pollution, greenhouse effect and protection of biological diversity, are vividly depicted in a way appealing to children.
The book was also published to welcome the 2008 Beijing Olympics..
Volumes of the series, Children of the Globe. by Tan Xingyu
