Women going astray

Even while cracking down on prostitution in places such as nightclubs, the Ministry of Public Security has said that prostitutes deserve respect.

Its respect for this special group of people includes calling them “women going astray” rather than prostitutes.

In some areas of the country these women are humiliated with beatings or parades through streets. However, the Ministry of Public Security has said that the files of women who go astray should be kept secret and they should not be treated in a disrespectful manner.

The ministry will work with other institutions, such as the Ministry of Health and the All-China Women’s Federation to re-educate and redeem women who have taken a wrong step in their life. They are committed to protecting these women’s rights to health, their reputation and privacy.

The new attitude toward the “women going astray” is groundbreaking, it shows less contempt and exclusion. We read empathy in it.

But this change won’t eliminate prostitution, which is illegal in China.

Prostitution has a close affinity with a host of other important social issues, in particular crime, drugs, sexual equality, poverty and health.

Although there are exceptions, most prostitutes are women selling their services to men.

Prostitution is sometimes referred to as “the oldest profession”. The new approach in China to women in the “oldest profession” may help give them a new chance at life if they decide to give up the “business”.

Prostitution amounts to the denial of a women’s humanity. Crimes such as prostitution devalue a community.

Rounds of raids have been conducted to rid the nation of prostitution. But signs of success are not conspicuous. One of the reasons is that justice is not meted out to men who buy sex from “women going astray”.

We urge law enforcement officials across the country to continue an active investigation of all undesirable activities, including those crimes involving prostitution. Prostitution cannot and must not be allowed to continue in the nightclubs or any other location.

Liu Shaowu, a senior official with the Ministry of Public Security, announced that the police would keep a close eye on places of amusement — at least one undercover inspection a week.

Prostitution will never be eliminated in a society that refuses to acknowledge, much less discuss, the problem. While the Ministry of Pubic Security does not want to throw “women going astray” out of society, programs are needed to educate them to live with dignity.

1. crack down on/upon STH

2. go astray

3. be humiliated with STH bad

4. disrespectful [adj]

5. take a wrong step

6. be committed to Ving

7. groundbreaking [adj]

8. show less comtempt and exclusion

9. empathy

10. has/have a close affinity with STH = have a closer relationship with STH

11. be sometimes referred to as XXX

12. XXX amounts to XXX

13. devalue a society/community

14. rid XXX of XXX

15. signs of success are not conspicuous

16. be meted out to XXX

17. keep a close eye on XXX

Rules on demolition

It is weird that nothing has been heard about the amendments to the 2001 regulations on real estate demolition and relocation a year after the State Council started to solicit public opinions about its new proposals.

The State Council arranged for some scholars to discuss the revisions to the eight-year-old regulations, which are accused by many of granting undefined —and consequently unrestrained — license to local governments and developers to demolish and relocate urban structures in whatever way they choose.

The five scholars from Peking University, who wrote a letter to the State Council requesting amendments to the old regulations, said that some of the current regulations contradict the country’s property rights law and urged that they be amended as soon as possible to make them legitimate.

Strong opposition from local governments and real estate developers had been anticipated. But the scholars never expected that the opposition would be so strong as to prevent new regulations from being implemented.

What is strange is the fact that nothing has been published about the draft version of the revised regulations, and nothing has been made public about the actions and arguments of the local governments and developers.

It is normal for the amending of such a sensitive set of regulations to meet resistance, yet, the public has the right to know how strong such resistance is and what the arguments are of the opposing parties .

The pressure must be enormous and the resistance inconceivably strong, as we have enough reason to believe that the State Council is more than willing to adjust the balance so that the social justice and fairness can be maintained.

It is more than two years since the State Council’s regulations on the disclosure of government information were adopted in 2008. The information about this set of regulations is of vital importance to the interest of millions of residents. They have every reason to be informed of the progress the State Council has made in revising the regulations.

In the past year, more tragedies have occurred in the forced demolitions by developers and local governments, for example, in October, a villager was beaten to death by demolition workers in North China’s Shanxi province. The amendements to the regulations are badly needed to stop such tragedies.

On this matter, which is of great concern to millions of residents, public discussions may be the best way to find a more reasonable balance, one which will protect the interests and rights of both developers and residents. Transparency is important.

Only when all parties, including ordinary residents, are well informed about what has been going on will they be able to make an informed judgment.

1. solicit public opinions about XXX

2. What is strange is the fact that XXX

3. how strong the resistance is

4. the pressure must be enormous

5. the resistance must be inconceivably strong

6. be of vital importance to XXX

7. be of great concern to XXX

8. Transparency is important

9. be well informed about XXX

10. make an informed judgment

A truly livable city

People outside China were generous to rank Beijing one of the 10 most livable cities in China. An Internet survey of 7,980 people throughout the world voted for 10 cities including Shanghai, Chengdu, Nanjing, Hangzhou and Xi’an. The criteria used to rank the cities are unknown.

Beijing may take encouragement from the result. But it still has a long way to go before becoming a truly livable city.

Most of the nearly 20 million permanent residents in Beijing are too busy living their lives to feel any great need to reflect on its meaning — for the city or them. In a city as diverse as this one, one person’s Beijing is likely to be quite different from another’s, as is their concept of what makes their part of it “livable” — or not. (good use of sentence structure)

The survey did not make clear the complexity of livability. What socio-economic indicators, such as housing affordability, job availability, and hubs of community activity, were included?

Working couples with children are likely to have quite different priorities from the elderly. Even people of similar ages have very different lifestyle preferences. Someone on the urban fringe may delight in the daily birdsong; a CBD resident probably won't mind its absence.

Good public planning must aim to distinguish between an endless list of wants, which reflect people’s status and values, and the key needs that should be met in every community. Despite the diversity of community choices, the high cost of property in Beijing means that affordability decides where most people live — only an affluent few have a free choice.

People might have more money and lead more exciting lives in big cities such as Beijing and Shanghai, but they face greater challenges in daily living.

Beijing’s museums and historical sites such as the Forbidden City and the Great Wall are enchanting and among the best in the world. But traveling is not easy in Beijing. People need to get used to crowded buses and subways. And the city’s air quality is poor for many days of a year.

Still, Beijing should grab this chance to aim big. The city needs to set extraordinary goals.

There are examples of this among the places we think of as “great cities”. Copenhagen has the goal of getting 50 percent of its residents to cycle to their place of work or education by 2015. Chicago has the goal of becoming the “most bicycle friendly city in the United States.” Portland’s goal is to become “the most sustainable city in the world.”

The challenge to Beijing’s officials is simple: set a challenging target, such as “Beijing will be the most livable city in the World by 2030”.

Even if we fall short, no one will have a problem with only being the ninth most livable city in the world.

1) take encouragement from XXX

2) a truly livable city

3) as is N

4) housing affordability

5) job availability

6) hubs of community activity

7) different lifestyle preferences

8) on the urban fringe = 城市的邊緣

9) delight in XXX = 樂於

10) CBD = central business district

11) only an affluent few can have a free choice

12) be enchanting = 迷人的

13) be among the best in the world

14) grab the chance to aim big/high

15) set extraordinary goals

Crucial time for China's high-speed rail network

The final bolts fastening the high-speed rail tracks linking Shanghai and Beijing were tightened last week, presenting the mouth-watering prospect of efficient, high-speed travel between the cities, accelerating what is already rapid growth.

By the time this particular route is fully operational at the end of next year, 80 million passengers are expected to travel on it annually, while the 24 stations along the route will effectively link half the country's population. If trains are able to run as quickly as advertised, travel times between the capital and the nation's largest city will be more than halved to under five hours.

Such attractive figures have caught the world's attention. Not only will the impressive new infrastructure bring about a new era of land travel within the mainland, but also showcase China as a leading innovator. If all these benefits genuinely bear fruit, the estimated 3.7 trillion yuan (HK$4.24 trillion) to build the world's largest high-speed rail network will look a wise investment. Furthermore, these ambitions are expanding beyond China's borders. China and Thailand are reportedly in talks over a high-speed railway that will pass from southern China, through Laos to Thailand.

But with such a colossal amount of money involved it is imperative that the expected results are returned through strategic planning and co-ordination. Already the National Audit Office has identified 520 million yuan worth of irregular receipts regarding the construction of the 220.9 billion yuan Beijing-Shanghai line and handed the details to prosecutors. Throwing money into researching the latest technologies and putting fast trains on the right tracks towards the right destinations will not automatically guarantee benefits for the public.

A case in point was the recent opening of the Shanghai to Nanjing high-speed railway. Despite the hype and the much vaunted top speeds of 350km/h, most of the trains running the route only shortened travel times by one minute despite ticket prices having increased 57 per cent. Only two trains a day, one in each direction, travelled at speeds greater than the original trains, due to scheduling conflicts and the complicated routes. Ordinary travellers found it difficult to see how all that money had improved their lifestyles.

Furthermore, investigations into the two most memorable rail incidents in recent years have identified human error as the cause. In April, 2008 a Beijing to Qingdao train which had exceeded the speed limit derailed, killing 72 people and injuring more than 400. The accident took place at 4.40am and the speeding train initially went unnoticed. When it was noticed and warnings were sent out, those warnings were not heeded. Earlier that year 2.5 million people were left stranded around Guangzhou train station, causing mayhem and a public safety crisis. The chaos had been sparked by power failures, which stopped services for 10 days just as workers in the country were preparing to return to their hometowns for the Lunar New Year. While the ageing infrastructure was undoubtedly an issue, poor co-ordination between the relevant transport departments was also a key factor in the failure to avert the chaos.

The Shanghai to Nanjing route is now increasing in popularity but only after it was suspended for rescheduling and a new ticket-pricing strategy. Question marks over the Shanghai-Beijing route will remain unless the authorities can show that the money spent on fast trains is matched by investment in rail planning and training of personnel to ensure the well-being of domestic travellers is improved.

Vocabulary:

1) mouth-watering
2) catch/attract sb's attention
3) Not only... But also...
4) STH genuinely bear fruit
5) a colossal amount of money
6) it is imperative that XXX
7) A case in point/ An example in point
8) the hype
9) the much vaunted
10) go unnoticed
11) those warnings are not heeded
12) cause mayhem
13) be now increasing in popularity
14) Question marks over/against STH will remain