ZGBriefs | August 8, 2024

Featured Article

China Unveils Ambitious 5-Year Plan to Overhaul the Hukou System (August 2, 2024, The Diplomat)
Economists generally believe that to revitalize its economy, China must pivot from investment-led growth to one that emphasizes domestic consumption and service sector development. Reforming the hukou system is seen as a key lever in this transition, potentially unleashing labor mobility and boosting consumer spending by fully integrating rural migrants into urban economies.

Government / Politics / Foreign Affairs

The Red Glare of Xi’s Second PLA Purge (August 3, 2024, East Asia Forum)
On 27 June 2024, China’s Politburo expelled former minister of national defence General Li Shangfu and his predecessor General Wei Fenghe from the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). Both were charged with violating political discipline, disloyalty and accepting bribes.

Silk Road Excavations Help Advance China’s Geopolitical Goals (July 31, 2024, China Digital Times)
Under Xi Jinping, archaeology has become yet another domain through which the Chinese government has increasingly sought to expand its geopolitical influence. Evidence—whether objective or subjective—of ancient Chinese civilizations in peripheral regions along the Silk Road has been used to legitimize PRC territorial claims and promote contemporary economic and political projects, notably via the Belt and Road Initiative.

Religion

Post-Pandemic College Ministry: Part 1 (August 5, 2024, China Partnership)
Many of today’s middle-aged Chinese Christians were introduced to Jesus on their college campus. For several decades, Chinese universities were fertile ground for the gospel. Many Chinese house churches actually grew out of campus fellowships as students graduated and moved into the workplace.

Today, it is much more difficult to share Christ on campus than in the past. But although there are obstacles, God is still moving, and there are still many students whose hearts are tender to the good news.

Chongqing: City of Worldly Pleasure (August 1, 2024, China Partnership)
This August, we will be praying for the southwest China mega-city of Chongqing. Chongqing is a municipality the size of Austria, by some accounts the largest city in the world. It is a hot and humid mountain city and is known for spicy “ma la” food and its famous hot pot. To introduce us to Chongqing, we begin the month by re-publishing an old interview with a Chongqing pastor. He talks about his community, his church, and some of the ways he has experienced God’s work in his life and his city.

Reflections on Dr. Daryl Ireland’s Lecture and Its Implications for Chinese Christians Today (August 6, 2024, ChinaSource)
Last year, ChinaSource, along with ERRChina, the USCCA, and Christianity Today, hosted an enlightening event at Wheaton College, featuring Dr. Daryl Ireland’s groundbreaking research and celebrating the release of his book, Visions of Salvation. Dr. Ireland’s recent lecture has further enriched our understanding, shedding light on the interplay between media, religion, and society—a timely and thought-provoking topic.

Navigating Faith and Governance (August 2, 2024, ChinaSource)
As a non-profit organization, serving a government who imposes restriction to our religious freedom to worship God can arouse a lot of emotional struggles. But there can also be opportunities to let the officials distinguish the purity of Christ’s love in our hearts.

Learning to Care for the Elderly (July 31, Chinese Church Voices)
As the church in China experiences increasing tightening, social service is increasingly becoming a pathway for believers to share their faith and be light to their communities. While community outreach is wonderful, Christians need to have good training so that they can serve effectively. In this reprint from China Christian Daily, readers will learn about a training event to improve outreach to local elderly.

Society / Life

Number of Chinese Couples Getting Married Falls to 12-Year Low, Data Shows (August 5, 2024, Reuters)
The number of Chinese couples who got married in the first half of this year fell to its lowest level since 2013, official data showed, as more young people deferred nuptials amid a slowing economy and a rise in living costs. The number of marriages in China is closely tied to the number of births, and the decline is likely to upset policymakers trying hard to boost the population which has been shrinking for years.

Shanghai’s Chaotic New Summer Trend: Night Kayaking (August 5, 2024, Sixth Tone)
Kayaking has exploded in popularity in China over recent years, and the Olympics have also given the sport a boost. But industry insiders say that the outdoor sports industry is poorly regulated, with many companies lacking trained staff and neglecting safety measures.

“Our Gold Medals Are Squeaky Clean”—China Slams Doping Doubts (August 6, 2024, BBC News)
“Any doubt is just a joke. Stress only makes us stronger,” Qin Haiyang—a part of China’s history-making men’s 4x100m medley quartet posted after their unprecedented victory over the US on Monday.

Qin’s seeming defiance came at the tail end of what has been a challenging time for China in the pool.

Shanghai Wants to Integrate AI Into Everything—Even Wet Markets (August 2, 2024, Sixth Tone)
Today, there are hundreds of wet markets all over Shanghai, and they have proved remarkably resilient. Though they’re hardly relaxing places to shop, they offer customers access to fresh, cheap produce within a few minutes’ walk of their homes. But the city is now giving the markets a much-needed upgrade, aiming not only to improve hygiene and food safety standards but also to help them attract younger customers who have increasingly been switching to online grocery platforms.

Economics / Trade / Business

Starbucks Sees Plunging China Sales as Middle Classes Trim Spending (August 2, 2024, Radio Free Asia)
Coffee giant Starbucks has reported a sharp fall in China sales, as consumer spending among the country’s middle classes remains sluggish despite government attempts to kick-start the post-lockdown economy. Starbucks’ performance in China has been a hot topic among Chinese financial bloggers since the figures were announced, with some linking it to dwindling purchasing power among the country’s middle classes.

China’s Third Plenum Wants to Raise Household Income. That’s Good News for the US. (July 31, 2024, The Diplomat)
China’s ambitious long-term economic blueprint, laid out by the Third Plenum of the 20th Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party, raised concerns over its platitudes and a lack of details. But one of the goals of the lengthy report—to raise the share of household disposable income in GDP—could inadvertently lead to benign economic and political reforms in China.

Why Hundreds of Online Merchants Are Protesting What They Call Temu’s Arbitrary Fines (August 2, 2024, NPR News)
Online store owners in China are protesting against what they say are heavy and arbitrary fines imposed by Temu, one of the world’s biggest e-commerce platforms.

Health / Environment

Record Temperatures Scorch Eastern China, Spiking Power Demand (August 5, 2024, Reuters)
Eastern China baked under unseasonably high temperatures, with the excessive heat expected to linger in mega coastal cities in the highly industrialised provinces of Jiangsu and Zhejiang for up to 10 more days.

In the east and northwest of China, temperatures as high as 43.9 degrees Celsius (111.02 degrees Fahrenheit) have scorched Zhejiang, Jiangsu, Shanghai, Anhui, Xinjiang in recent days, state broadcaster CCTV said.

Science / Technology

In China, AI-generated Avatars Are Making Work Easier for Some Online Influencers (August 4, 2024, NPR)
Do you sometimes wish you could clone yourself to complete all your work? Companies in China are creating digital avatars using generative artificial intelligence to do just that.

China Wants to Start a National Internet ID System (July 31, 2024, New York Times)
A national internet ID would reduce “the excessive collection and retention of citizens’ personal information by internet platforms on the grounds of implementing real-name registration,” the regulators said. Use of the ID system by websites and apps would be voluntary, according to the proposal, which is open for public comment until the end of August.

History / Culture

The Involution of Freedom in Yabi Subculture (August 6, 2024, Made in China Journal)
Aesthetically, yabi is a post-internet hotchpotch, influenced by (but not limited to) punk, otaku, e-girl, cybergoth, K-pop and J-pop, Asian babygirl, hip-hop, rave, and techno styles from across the globe. This essay seeks to elucidate the yabi phenomenon through the sociopolitical conditions that gave rise to it, as well as to provide a historical analysis that traces a feminist genealogy of this subculture in its various incarnations throughout a heavily patriarchal imperial and modern China.

Travel / Food

International Airlines Leave China, Despite Beijing’s Urging  (August 3, 2024, The Diplomat)
The pandemic shut down global travel for much of the world, and especially for China, which imposed some of the tightest and longest-lasting restrictions on international arrivals. The result was a cratering number of flights to and from China. When Beijing lifted its restrictions in 2023, the hope was that the menu of international flights would rapidly increase. That hasn’t happened—and in fact, some of the airlines that did resume flights dot China are now pulling back out.

City of Cafes: Shanghai’s Love Affair with Coffee (July 30, 2024, BBC News)
Walk through the streets of Shanghai and its café culture is unmissable. There are some areas where you won’t be able to turn without passing yet another new little café. China’s financial capital now has so many coffee shops that the government claims it has the most of any city in the world.

Books

Summer 2024 Reading Recommendations (August 5, 2024, ChinaSource)
Now that August has rolled around, it’s the perfect time to squeeze in another couple of summer books before vacation mode comes to an end. We’ve published reviews of several excellent books over the past year, and today we’re rounding them all up to give you a convenient list.

Arts / Entertainment / Media

China’s First Suona PhD Is Ready for Her Solo (August 5, 2024, Sixth Tone)
Long associated with grassroots celebrations—weddings, funerals, and village gatherings—the suona has become a topic of academic interest in China in recent decades, as the country’s musicians look to integrate traditional instruments into orchestras and symphonies.

Bringing the Struggles of China’s Migrant Women to Life (August 1, 2024, Sixth Tone)
“The Life of Mulan” is essentially a large-scale role-playing game. Participants play through the story, leveling up through decisions across four areas: education, work, marriage, and childbearing. The idea was to put audiences in the shoes of migrant women as they navigate the daily choices that define their existence.

Pray for China

August 7 (Pray for China: A Walk Through History)
On Aug. 7, 1582, pioneer Roman Catholic missionary Matteo Ricci (利玛窦) landed in Macau. Ricci lived in China for 27 years until his death in 1610; he lived the last 9 years in Beijing. Ricci adopted the dress of a Confucian scholar and went to great lengths to indigenize his faith, serving in many ways as a model for Hudson Taylor (戴德生) in the 19th century. Pray for the sound teaching of God’s Word to produce spiritually mature disciples among Catholics in Macau and Beijing.And so, from the day we heard, we have not ceased to pray for you, asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding… Colossians 1:9