Xi Jinping presides over the closing session of the 19th CPC National Congress on Tuesday in the Great Hall of the People in Beijing. LAN HONGGUANG / XINHUA 19th Central Committee elected, will vote on Political Bureau and general secretary The Communist Party of China unveiled its new leadership on Tuesday at a key congress that issued a blueprint for the nation's development for the coming decades. The new CPC Central Committee, elected by 2,336 delegates and specially invited delegates at the closing session of the 19th CPC National Congress, has 204 members and 172 alternate members. The congress elected a new Central Committee of the Party, realizing organizational succession, Xi Jinping said while addressing the closing session. Xi, also president of China, was elected into the new Central Committee. Also elected were Wang Huning, Liu Qibao, Xu Qiliang, Sun Chunlan, Li Keqiang, Wang Yang, Zhang Chunxian, Zhao Leji, Hu Chunhua, Li Zhanshu and Han Zheng. Li Keqiang, 62, was a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the 18th CPC Central Committee. The others were all members of the Political Bureau of the 18th CPC Central Committee. The 19th CPC Central Committee will elect the Political Bureau, the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau and the general secretary at its first plenary session, scheduled on Wednesday. The congress approved a report of the 18th CPC Central Committee and a work report of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection. A new Central Commission for Discipline Inspection was also elected at the congress. The congress formed the major political judgment that socialism with Chinese characteristics has entered a new era, according to a resolution adopted by the congress. We must devote great energy to addressing development's imbalances and inadequacies, and push hard to improve the quality and effect of development, said the report, which pointed out that the principal contradiction facing Chinese society has evolved into one between unbalanced and inadequate development and the people's ever-growing need for a better life. China's socialist system demonstrates great strength and vitality, and the Chinese people and the Chinese nation embrace brilliant prospects, Xi said at the closing session of the congress. Our Party shows strong, firm and vibrant leadership, Xi said. It has been 96 years since the CPC was founded, 68 years since the People's Republic of China was established, and 39 years since reform and opening-up began. Living in such a great era, we are all the more confident and proud, and also feel the heavy weight of responsibility upon us, Xi said. The CPC has united and led the Chinese people in ending once and for all the miserable plight of old China, which had been bullied by foreign aggressors following the Opium War of 1840, and in walking completely out of poverty and weakness, Xi said. He described the congress as one remaining true to our original aspiration and our mission, holding high our banner, and forging ahead in solidarity. Xi called on delegates to the congress to study, observe, apply and uphold the Party Constitution, and closely follow the CPC Central Committee in thinking, political orientation and actions. In our Party, each and every one of us must always breathe the same breath as the people, share the same future and stay truly connected to them, he said. The aspirations of the people to live a better life must always be the focus of our efforts. We must keep on striving with endless energy toward the great goal of national rejuvenation, he said. Analysts pointed out that the congress has not only opened a new chapter for China's development for the new era, but also has contributed Chinese wisdom and solutions for the world at a time when global economic growth still faces uncertainties. Dan Donovan, publisher and managing editor of Ottawa Life Magazine, said China's entering the new era is the most significant and exciting news of the congress. One thing I admire about the Chinese is how they take a very long view of things when they are planning, which is a strength, he said. Chinese leaders look at how things will be in three and four and five decades from now rather than just four and five and 10 years from now. If China continues to develop its global trade, follows its Belt and Road program and continues to partner with, and invest in, countries and businesses around the world, everyone will benefit, he added. B.R. Deepak, a professor at the Center of Chinese and Southeast Asian Studies at Jawaharlal Nehru University in New Delhi, said that China has been steadily contributing to the global governance in the face of increasing disequilibrium among the global economies and the global challenges posed by the traditional and nontraditional security. The concept of building a community of shared future for the mankind, raised by Xi, envisages common markets, common prosperity even common security in the highly inter-dependent world, he said. rubber wristbandstrio spinners1 inch wide rubber bandssilicone rubber bands24 hour wristbands coupon code
A flag-raising ceremony on Sunday at Golden Bauhinia Square in Hong Kong marks the 21st anniversary of the city's return to the motherland. ZHANG WEI/CHINA NEWS SERVICE SAR has experienced steady economic growth with lower unemployment rate One year ago, President Xi Jinping called upon the people of Hong Kong to redouble their efforts, leverage their strengths and build their economy under one country, two systems. His remarks have energized and reinvigorated the special administrative region, as the city has boasted a banner year ever since. Since the president's inspection tour on June 29 through July 1 last year, Hong Kong has experienced steady economic growth. The polarization that divided the city is now less fractious, and the SAR has achieved even greater integration with the Chinese mainland. There are also new initiatives to help the people of the city, especially the young, to achieve their hopes for a better future. Xi promised the central government's firm support as he set out his vision for Hong Kong's development, marking the 20th anniversary of the SAR's return to the motherland. Today, government officials, the business community, emerging entrepreneurs and university students concur that the president's encouragement has brought about important advances in Hong Kong's progress. The city's GDP increased by 3.8 percent in 2017, and registered 4.7 percent growth in the first quarter of 2018. The 2.8 percent unemployment rate from February to April this year was the lowest in two decades. Belt and Road Initiative Hong Kong's participation in the Belt and Road Initiative and the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area development, with strong support from the central government, presents the city with exceptional opportunities toward greater prosperity. The city's strategic position in both the Belt and Road Initiative and the Greater Bay Area assures its continued status as an international center for free trade. During the past year, Hong Kong has signed free trade agreements with Georgia and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, advancing the city's significant role in the Belt and Road Initiative. Aron Harilela, chairman of Hong Kong General Chamber of Commerce, said businesses in the city are ideally placed to capitalize on these developments, particularly within the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area. The chamber's regular business missions to the Greater Bay Area have shown that the initiative is already having an impact. Cities within the cluster, some of them hubs for technology and advanced manufacturing, are eager to work closely with their neighbors for mutual progress, Harilela said. Innovation-tech hub Xi issued an instruction in May to accelerate Hong Kong's development as an international center for innovation and technology. He issued the instruction responding to a letter from 24 Hong Kong-based academicians from the Chinese Academy of Sciences and the Chinese Academy of Engineering. The Ministry of Science and Technology and the Ministry of Finance, as a result, announced that Hong Kong's universities and other scientific institutions may apply directly for funds from the central government. The funds, previously available only on the mainland, may now be used in Hong Kong. The president's directive offers insight into the great importance the central government attaches to Hong Kong talents and potentialities in science and technology. It also gave a shot in the arm to the city's development, said the special administration region's Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor. In its 2018-19 budget, the HKSAR government set aside HK$50 billion ($6.37 billion) for innovation and technology development. An interdepartmental Steering Committee on Innovation and Technology, led by the chief executive, also was established. In addition, the Technology Talent Admission Scheme, a three-year pilot program that kicked off on June 25, offers a fast-track on visa applications from global talents. Additional resources have been invested in the city's innovation-technology industry, as outlined in Lam's first Policy Address, delivered in October. Hong Kong already is recognized for its sound technological foundations and outstanding capability in scientific research. Lam acknowledged at a recent summit that this success may be credited to the cooperation among top universities, research institutes and high-quality talents from around the world. Combining the unique advantage of one country, two systems, the vast mainland market, and support from the central government, Hong Kong is predicted to evolve into a world-class innovation-technology hub and smart city, Lam added. Exchanges Another area that Xi particularly emphasized during his inspection tour last year, was to provide greater convenience for Hong Kong people to study, work and live on the Chinese mainland. In August and December, the Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office of the State Council announced two sets of measures easing the path for Hong Kong people on the mainland in education, employment, business and travel. Probably the most timely and important measure is the phasing out of the employment permit requirement for Hong Kong people working on the mainland, said Kuo Waikeung. Kuo is a Hong Kongborn entrepreneur, operating a startup in Qianhai, a free trade zone in Shenzhen. Qianhai is the first area to implement the new policy. A two-year employment permit had been required of residents from the Hong Kong and Macao special administrative regions and Taiwan since 2005. Kuo said the change meant his company's Hong Kong employees no longer need to extend their work permits when their contracts expire. The time it takes to recruit new employees from Hong Kong has been reduced by at least two months. Another central government policy, giving Hong Kong and Macao people equal access to the mainland's housing fund, has also been implemented in Qianhai, Shenzhen, according to Witman Hung Wai-man, a Hong Kong deputy to the 13th National People's Congress. Exchanges with the mainland and greater exposure have become more frequent and intensive for Hong Kong's youth. Through internships and guided tours, young people gain greater knowledge of the country's development. Andy Tsang Hin-lam, a freshman history major at the Chinese University of Hong Kong, joined a youth delegation in late June, and visited Shenzhen, Wuhan, Hubei province, and Beijing. Tsang said he was surprised and inspired by the rapid development of technology on the mainland. Hong Kong's development has always pulled at my heartstrings, Xi said when he arrived in Hong Kong on June 29 last year. In a series of speeches Xi delivered during his inspection tour, he emphasized the importance of setting aside differences to find common ground and unite for the greater good of the city's future.
