Reinforcing Entrepreneurial Confidence

Caijing Magazine
April 14

Entrepreneurs always play an important role in driving the economic prosperity of a country. Outstanding entrepreneurs have emerged in large numbers in China since the country issued the policy of reform and opening up in the late 1970s.

Today, people have increasingly realized that the development pattern dominated by giant state-owned enterprises and huge governmental investments has been declining. What economic growth needs is the pioneering spirit of entrepreneurs. However, only when private property rights are completely protected by laws, can the spirit of entrepreneurs produce a strong driving force.

A robust economic system should protect the free development of private properties. But the private sector is still weak in China. In the last 10 years, private enterprises have been squeezed out of many businesses by state-owned enterprises (SOEs). The rapid strides of SOEs have caused many problems and led to a rigid development pattern.

China is preparing to launch a new round of reform. It is hoped that comprehensive reform measures may help establish an inclusive system in which all parties of the society, including numerous private entrepreneurs, have legal rights and clarified approaches to growing their businesses. It is the only way to make China a thriving and prosperous country.

Healthcare Reform

Oriental Outlook
April 17

China has been trying for years to reform the current healthcare system. Despite many measures issued by the medical authorities, the reform has not had much effect.

Both patients and doctors complain of current medical care conditions. For patients, it is difficult to obtain excellent medical care in prestigious hospitals that are mostly located in large cities and the treatment is often unaffordable. For doctors, they have to bear heavy work stress to give treatment to a long line of patients every day. Moreover, being a doctor has become a dangerous occupation because of intensified conflicts between doctors and disgruntled patients or family members of patients—some doctors have even been wounded or killed in such conflicts.

At present, a large portion of doctors' income relies on commission on drug sales. In fact, the salary system has underestimated the value of doctors. Furthermore, the registry system for certified doctors hinders the free flow of doctors between different hospitals.

Therefore, upcoming medical care reform must resolve these problems and free doctors from the state of heavy work stress and low salary.

Polluted Tap Water

The Beijing News
April 14

Veolia Water in Lanzhou, capital city of northwest China's Gansu Province, has been in the media spotlight due to an incident of tap water contamination. On April 10, the tap water supplier announced its water was contaminated by excessive levels of benzene. In fact, local residents had reported the strange smell of tap water a month earlier, but the company and the local government did not take any prompt measures to inform the public or troubleshoot. Excessive levels of benzene in the water affected more than 2.4 million local people. Benzene is known to damage the human hematopoietic system.

Although tap water supply fully resumed in the city on April 14, the public called for a thorough investigation to hold those responsible for the accident accountable.

Investigators later found crude oil in soil along a ditch between two water plants of Veolia. It is believed the pollutants have leaked from a pipeline of Lanzhou Petrochemical, a subsidiary of the China National Petroleum Corp., China's oil giant.

The polluted underground water ditch had been used for nearly 60 years. It was built in the 1950s. In 2007, Lanzhou Government sold the tap water utility to Veolia at a high price. But both parties did not revamp overused pipelines, sowing the hidden trouble underground. People hope the local government and water suppliers as well as Lanzhou Petrochemical can remedy their mistakes and safeguard the safety of tap water.