Society

Cabinet Reshuffle

China’s top legislature approved cabinet nominations of four ministries on April 27. All four of the ministers being replaced have reached 65, the usual retirement age for China’s cabinet ministers.

Yang Jiechi, 57, is appointed as Foreign Minister, replacing 66-year-old Li Zhaoxing, who served as China’s top diplomat since 2003. A veteran diplomat, Yang served in the Chinese Embassy in the United States for nearly 13 years over separate periods in the 1980s, 1990s and the beginning of this century.

Wan Gang, the country’s new Minister of Science and Technology, has become the only current non-Communist Party minister in China’s State Council.

Xu Shaoshi, 55, and Chen Lei, 53, were appointed Minister of Land and Resources and Minister of Water Resources, respectively.

Boosting Government Transparency

On April 24, the State Council, China’s cabinet, issued what some commentators called a milestone regulation to boost official transparency by ordering government departments to be more open in reporting information.

The decree, signed by Premier Wen Jiabao, is likely to become the country’s most specific and progressive set of rules encouraging the release of government information, when it takes effect on May 1, 2008.

Governments at various levels are required to release information which “affects the immediate interests of individuals and groups,” or which “should be known by the masses,” within 20 working days, the regulation says.

Priorities listed by the State Council are details of how government departments plan to deal with emergencies, government spending, specific fees for public services and results of investigations into environmental protection, public health and food and drugs safety.

Local governments are required to publicize data on land acquisitions, residence relocations and related compensation.

Comprehensive Civil Service Code

Government officials in China risk being fired if they use their influence to benefit a lover or become involved in other forms of corrupt behavior, according to a regulation released by the Central Government on April 30.

At a press conference on the new code, it was announced that the 55-article regulation, scheduled to take effect on June 1, is “China’s first to systematically stipulate what administrative punishments civil servants abusing their power will receive.” The new regulation details a variety of wrongdoings and misconduct and is designed “to make sure government officials perform their duties according to law.”

The regulation stipulates that government officials who engage in corruption, organize suspicious gatherings, use drugs, engage in the sex trade or fail to fulfill their duties can be demoted or fired.

The regulation also allows for the termination of government officials who abuse or abandon family members or refuse to support their elderly relatives.

Kidnapped Workers Return Home

Seven Chinese workers kidnapped by Ethiopian rebels after an attack on a Chinese oil company in Ethiopia arrived at the Beijing Capital International Airport on May 2.

The workers, from an exploration bureau of China Petroleum & Chemical Corporation, arrived at about 3 p.m. aboard an aircraft from Addis Ababa, capital of Ethiopia. All seven were in stable health despite obvious fatigue from the terrifying experience.

Wang Shengwen, head of a special Chinese team sent to recover the kidnapped workers, said that the successful release was due to the help of friendly African countries who helped contact the rebel group and urged it to release the workers as soon as possible. He also expressed gratitude to the International Committee of the Red Cross.

In the attack on the Chinese oil company’s facilities on April 24, seven Chinese workers were kidnapped by a group of gunmen of the Ogaden National Liberation Front. Nine Chinese workers and 65 Ethiopian employees of the Chinese company were killed during the raid.