ZGBriefs | June 23, 2022

Featured Article

20 Things We Learned from China’s 7th Census (June 17, 2022, Sixth Tone)
There’s a lot to explore in this data, but here’s some of the first things we noticed, from an improving sex ratio to the tiny group of households who reported five generations sharing a single room.

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ChinaSource Quarterly: The Chinese Diaspora in New Zealand (Summer, 2022)
There are helpful lessons for all as we consider what God is doing in and through the Chinese in New Zealand and in the island nations of the Pacific.

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Government / Politics / Foreign Affairs

Hong Kong Is Unrecognizable After 2 Years Under the National Security Law (January 20, 2022, The Diplomat)
Five ways the law has deepened authoritarianism in the territory as conditions are set to worsen.

China claims successful anti-ballistic missile interceptor test (June 20, 2022, CNN)
China successfully conducted an anti-ballistic missile test on Sunday night, according to the country’s Defense Ministry, part of ongoing military efforts to enhance the country’s defensive capabilities. It was a land-based mid-course missile tested within China’s borders, the ministry said in a brief statement, adding the test was defensive in nature and not targeted against any country.

Beijing unveils the next officials to govern Hong Kong (June 21, 2022, Sup China)
John Lee released on Sunday his cabinet picks to help him lead Hong Kong, including four pro-Beijing lawmakers and four officials sanctioned by the United States.

China’s ‘Very Dangerous Trajectory’ (January 21, 2022, The Atlantic)
The Communist regime has always been brutal, but it was at least predictable and, in its own way, practical. No longer.

Four Takeaways From a Times Investigation Into China’s Expanding Surveillance State (June 21, 2022, The New York Times)
Times reporters spent over a year combing through government bidding documents that reveal the country’s technological road map to ensure the longevity of its authoritarian rule.

Taiwan scrambles jets to warn away Chinese planes in its air defence zone (June 21, 2022, Reuters)
Taiwan scrambled jets on Tuesday to warn away 29 Chinese aircraft in its air defence zone, including bombers that flew south of the island and into the Pacific, in the latest uptick in tensions and largest incursion since late May.

Two Chinese rights lawyers face trial for state subversion (June 22, 2022, Reuters)
Two prominent Chinese rights lawyers are set to go on trial behind closed doors this week on charges of state subversion, campaign groups said, part of a clampdown on dissent and rights activism under President Xi Jinping. Hearings for Xu Zhiyong and Ding Jiaxi were scheduled in Linshu county court in the northeastern province of Shandong on Wednesday and Friday, respectively, relatives and friends told Reuters.

Religion

Professor Gives Lecture on Watchman Nee’s Contribution to Localization of Christianity in China (June 10, 2022, China Christian Daily)
Professor Yu Qiang said that this year there are two special events to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the “Anti-Christian Movement” and the 50th anniversary of Chinese church leaderWacthman Nee’s death. The main content of his research was Nee’s thoughts and practices in the Local Church Movement (also known as the Little Flock Movement), as well as its influence and significance on the indigenization of Christianity in China at the present stage.

Religious Cyberspace Continues to Shrink in China (June 13, 2022, China Christian Daily)
With the escalating control of cyberspace, several products of the Alibaba Group, such as WeChat, and Alibaba Cloud Server, have seen severe censorship in the past years.

An Overview of the History of Chinese Christian Communities in New Zealand (June 13, 2022, ChinaSource Quarterly)
Although the number of Chinese who have become Christians in Aotearoa1 New Zealand has never been particularly large, the impact and influence of the Christian church on the Chinese communities in this country has been significant. 

Chinese Churches in New Zealand Today (June 13, 2022, ChinaSource Quarterly)
Today, according to incomplete statistics, there are more than 90 Chinese churches in New Zealand with about 10,000 congregants. 

Reaching the Second Generation (June 13, 2022, ChinaSource Quarterly)
What does it look like to reach second-generation Chinese immigrants for Christ? As pastors serving in English-speaking ministries of Chinese heritage churches, we have been asked to briefly outline the characteristics and needs of reaching the “second generation”1 in Aotearoa New Zealand and offer our insights. 

Neglected Kinsmen in the Pacific Islands (June 13, 2022, ChinaSource Quarterly)
Over the years, large numbers of Chinese immigrants have come to the islands. Their arrival has greatly impacted the life, culture, and values of the local indigenous people.

Can My Church and I Really Impact the People of China? (June 15, 2022, ChinaSource Blog)
Would your church like to learn more about reaching students and scholars from China? Or, are you somewhat engaged now, yet would like to do more? If so, there may be a resource nearby such as a specialized ministry or evangelical church already engaged. 

Loving China from Overseas: Promoting Revival and Transformation (June 20, 2022, ChinaSource Blog)
Given this situation, is there anything that those overseas can do to promote China’s revival and transformation? The answer is yes. As mentioned earlier, the Chinese church cannot do without the church overseas, and China’s revival and transformation also needs the church overseas. 

A Pastor’s Vision for Small Groups (June 21, 2022, Chinese Church Voices)
With the ongoing challenges of meeting together in person, one rural church pastor in Zhejiang Province was confronted with the need for small group ministry. In this interview available at China Christian Daily, he shared his vision and plan for introducing and sustaining small group pastoral care in the church he serves.

Society / Life

Interactive: Memory Project The Shanghai Lockdown (Sixth Tone)
The city’s 25 million residents, meanwhile, navigated unexpected challenges, as China’s COVID control measures upended their lives. For many, the experiences of these two months left an indelible mark. These are their stories, in their own words.

Citizens and State Media Outraged by Government Abuse of Henan Health Codes (January 15, 2022, China Digital Times)
The ubiquitous mobile-app-based health codes that indicate one’s risk status for COVID-19 may have been widely abused by local government officials seeking to limit the movement of specific individuals. This is the conclusion of hundreds of citizens whose health codes suddenly turned red when they attempted to return to Henan in order to access their accounts at banks embroiled in a financial scam. 

China’s Record Urban Youth Unemployment (June 16, 2022, China File)
Already struggling with high jobless rates before the pandemic, even the most educated of China’s youth face stiff competition for fewer jobs opportunities. How long is this likely to last, and what might its effects be?

Hong Kong’s iconic Jumbo Floating Restaurant capsizes at sea (June 21, 2022, NPR)
Hong Kong’s iconic Jumbo Floating Restaurant has capsized in the South China Sea less than a week after it was towed away from the city, its parent company said Monday. The restaurant encountered “adverse conditions” on Saturday as it was passing the Xisha Islands, also known as the Paracel Islands, in the South China Sea, and water entered the vessel and it began to tip, according to Aberdeen Restaurant Enterprises Ltd.

China’s mental-health crisis is getting worse (June 21, 2022, The Economist) (subscription required)
Much of China’s population has experienced some form of lockdown this year. If the virus is not causing enough anguish, there is also the struggling economy. China’s youth-unemployment rate has shot up to 18.4%, the highest on record. Don’t complain too much, though, lest the state take notice. Censorship, surveillance and oppression, on the rise ahead of a Communist Party congress later this year, add to the anxiety.

Hundreds of thousands affected by floods, landslides as heaviest rain in 60 years hits southern China (June 21, 2022, CNN)
Guangdong is one of at least seven provinces where the record rainfall has caused severe landslides and flooded roads, according to state media. In southwestern Guizhou province, swollen rivers spilled over roads, sweeping away cars and homes, videos on social media showed.

Two women still hospitalized after brutal attack in China (June 21, 2022, ABC News)
Chinese authorities say two victims remain hospitalized 11 days after a group assault in northern China that sparked nationwide outrage.

Economics / Trade / Business

Russia becomes China’s top oil supplier amid Ukraine war sanctions (June 20, 2022, The Guardian)
China’s crude oil imports from Russia soared by 55% from a year earlier to a record level in May, displacing Saudi Arabia as the top supplier, as refiners cashed in on discounted supplies amid sanctions on Moscow over its invasion of Ukraine. Imports of Russian oil, including supplies pumped via the east Siberia Pacific pipeline and seaborne shipments, totalled nearly 8.42m tonnes, according to data on Monday from the Chinese general administration of customs.

US ban on cotton from forced Uyghur labour comes into force (June 21, 2022, The Guardian)
The fashion industry has been told it must wean itself off cotton from China’s Xinjiang region, as a new law comes into force giving US border authorities greater powers to block or seize goods linked to forced labour in China.

Education

European students on the brink, locked out by China’s zero-Covid rules (January 20, 2022, South China Morning Post)
Despite paying full tuition to universities in China, those affected cannot enter the country and are limited to online classes in the early hours. A psychiatrist says the time differences and uncertainties have been causing great psychological suffering for some time.

Travel / Food

Subway Art: the Murals of Beijing’s Subway Line 2 (June 16, 2022, The Beijinger)
Completed and opened to the public in 1984, Beijing Subway Line 2 is the city’s first loop line, tracing a path underneath where the city wall once stood. Although dated by today’s standards, each station along Line 2 is rather beautiful, featuring their own special lighting arrangements, and, for three of these stations, their own murals.

New railway completes 2,700km loop of Taklamakan Desert in move to integrate Xinjiang with rest of China (June 17, 2022, South China Morning Post)
The 825km new section of railway runs from Hotan city in southwestern Xinjiang to Ruoqiang county in the southeast, a journey of about 11½ hours, with a design speed of 120km/h (75mph). It has 22 stations, including 11 offering a passenger service, six with a cargo service and stations for technical operations.

Cathay Pacific bringing back more planes to restore Hong Kong hub (June 20, 2022, Reuters)
Cathay Pacific Airways, battered by strict quarantine rules that have led to a 98% fall in passenger numbers, is preparing to bring back more planes to rebuild Hong Kong’s hub status as restrictions ease, the airline’s chief executive said.

Books

Our Books for the Summer of 2022 (June 17, 2022, ChinaSource Blog)
In case you’re looking for ideas, here’s a list of books that are in the summer book bags of the ChinaSource team members. If you personally know individuals on the team, you might be able to figure out who’s reading what! 

Pray for China

June 27 (Pray for China: A Walk Through History)
On June 27, 2002, Christian activist Wang Bingzhang (王炳章博士) was kidnapped by Chinese agents in Vietnam. Dr. Wang was given a life sentence, and his health has been damaged by times in solitary confinement in a Guangdong prison. Pray for Dr. Wang and others in Guangdong who are suffering for doing good. But even if you should suffer for righteousness’ sake, you will be blessed. Have no fear of them, nor be troubled, but in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect, having a good conscience, so that, when you are slandered, those who revile your good behavior in Christ may be put to shame. For it is better to suffer for doing good, if that should be God’s will, than for doing evil. 1 Peter 3:14-17.