From: xu@hydra.maths.unsw.oz.au ()
Subject: CND-Global, January 2, 1993
Organization: school of Mathematics UNSW
Distribution: aus
Date: Sun, 3 Jan 1993 01:00:34 GMT


               * * *  C h i n a   N e w s   D i g e s t  * * *

                                (News Global)

                           Saturday, January 2, 1993


Table of Contents                                                 # of Lines
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1. News Brief (3 Items) ................................................. 51
2. Hong Kong: 20 Dead in Crush of New Year Revellers .................... 77
3. Chinese Leaders Call for More Reforms in 1993 ........................ 59
4. China's Economy Jumps 12 Percent in 1992 Beijing ..................... 69
5. Taiwan Election Official Arrested for Alleged Vote-Rigging ........... 28
6. Chinese President Urges Hong Kong Leaders to Cooperate ............... 56
============================================================================

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1. News Brief (3 Items) ................................................. 51
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[The San Francisco Chronicle, 1/1/1993] -- Polls in Hong Kong show that
public support for the colony's governor, Chris Patten, is waning.  That's
probably because of China's relentless attacks on him for his plan to
increase public participation in the election of more members of the
British colony's Legislative Council. China's continued vituperation
against him has led to speculation that in February, when his plans are due
to be put to a vote in the council. Patten will seek a face-saving way to
put aside his proposal.  (Forwarded by: Charles Mok)
                                ___ ___ ___

[AP-DJ, 1/1/1993] -- Chinese companies won contracts to build a coal mine
and set up a T-shirt production operation in Bangladesh, an official
newspaper reported Saturday. The China Daily said the China National
Machinery Import and Export Corp. was awarded the contract to build a
200-million-dlr mine that will produce 1 million tons of coal a year. It
said China will provide loans to cover most of the cost. The mine will ease
an energy shortage in northwestern Bangladesh and enable Bangladesh to
reduce coal imports, the report said. Construction is expected to take
three years. The T-shirt project involves the Guangdong International Corp.
of China and the Trade Promotion Corp. of Bangladesh, the paper said.
T-shirts will be made for export using Chinese cotton, it said. The paper
did not give the value of the contract. (Forwarded by: Liu Jian)

                                ___ ___ ___

[UPI, 12/31/1992] NEW YORK -- An unidentified man was shot dead on a
Chinatown street corner Thursday afternoon, police said. The 28-year-old
victim was shot once in the head by an unknown gunman shortly after 2:15
p.m. in front of 107 Eldridge St., said a police spokesman. The man was
declared dead at the scene. (Forwarded by: A CND Reader)

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2. Hong Kong: 20 Dead in Crush of New Year Revellers .................... 77
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Forwarded by: A CND Reader
Source: South China Morning Post, 1/1/1993

Up to 20 people were reported to have been killed and more than 100 injured
in a stampede involving some of the 20,000 in Lan Kwai Fong in Centeral for
New Year celebrations last night. The dead were two teenaged expartriate
men, 11 Chinese men and seven local women.

The crush occurred when people surged out into the streets from the
district's restaruants and bars as the countdown to midnight was being
broadcast live on TVB.

At the stroke of midnight, the crowd cheered and threw beer and champagn eat
one another, apparently causing some of them to start pushing and shoving.

The worst casualties occurred at the junction of Wellington Street and Wing
Wah Lane where a slope and some steps caused people to trip under the
pressure. Many others were injured in D'Aguilar Street.

Early this morning, the Governor Mr Chris Patten went to Queen Mary Hospital.
"Its a grim beginning of the year. It is more important to offer condolences
and prayers to the families and friends."

Police, who are taking inquiries on 860 2310, said there would be a fully
inquiry but believed the disaster was a "happy incident that went wrong".

Witnesses at Tang Shiu Kin Hospital in Wan Chai where 35 were taken said
ambulances deposited the injured in the corridors of the casualty section.
Most were unconscious. The majority were young Chinese men and women but one
expatriate man with a large cut to the head said he had been hit by a brick.

Twenty ambulances took 39 of the injured to Queen Mary Hospital, where 20 were
certified dead, 10 were admitted in serious condition and nine were treated
and discharged. Others with minor injuries took taxis to the hopsitals. One
woman sought help at Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Yau Ma Tei.

A large number of people who remained in the area after the incident were
shocked and dazed and a lot of them were crying. The streets were littered
with articles of colthing, jewellery, boots, can sand bottles.

This morning's incident was one of the worst civil disasters in Hongkong's
history. In October 1990, six people died and seven others were injured when a
concreate canopy collapsed on to a pavement in To Kwa Wan.

A senior police officer said that many of the people in Lan Kwai Fong had been
drinking, so they had fallen more easily. More than 150 police officers had
been posted in the area anticipating problems but they could not control the
sudden rush just before midnight. There are no reports that the incident was
provoked by violence.

Early this morning there had been no arrest at any celebration and other
events had gone off normally. The Jardine's gun was fired at the stroke of
midnight in keeping with a 46 years tradition.

And in Nethersole Hospital in the Mid-Levels, the first baby of the year was a
3.06 kg boy who from here on can claim that he was first child of Mr Chong
Choping, 25 and his wife Choi Mei-win, 23 both computer typists, born at
00:00, 1993.

Elsewhere, party-goers took advantage of a pleasant 17-degree  Celsius
temperature to flock to the streets and ring in the year. Restaurants and
night-clubs overflowed with revellers, and tuxedo shops reported business had
been brisk throughout the day.

At the Hilton Hotel, 550 revellers boogied the night away in the hotel's
ballroom to tunes belted out by celebrity lookalikes imitating Michael
Jackson, Tina Turner, Madonna and Elton John.

About 200 people turned out in Causeway Bay to watch Lady Rebecca Purves fire
the gun overlooking Victoria Harbour in celebration of 1993 and the knighthood
awarded to her husband Sir William Purves in yesterday's New Year Honours
List.

A spokesman for Jardines said Lady Purves was chosen for the honour in
recognition of Sir William's contribution to the territory. Sir William is
chairman of the Hongkong Bank and the Royal Hongkong Jockey Club, which holds
its New Year race meeting this afternoon.

Jardine Matheson Holdings taipan Mr Nigel Rich, and his executive assistant,
Mr William Landal, accompanied Lady Purves on the gun platform before eight
bells were rung for the old year.

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3. Chinese Leaders Call for More Reforms in 1993 ........................ 59
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Forwarded by: Zhao Hua
Source: UPI, 12/31/1992

BEIJING -- China's  communist  leadership  marked the new year Friday with
calls for accelerating  free-market  economic reforms but also with a
warning it will tolerate no political instability.

While  the  leadership's  new  year  messages retained many of the tired
slogans  of  past  political  drives,  their  overall tone stressed the new
emphasis  on  the  nation's  impressive  economic  performance since senior
leader Deng Xiaoping revived his reforms last winter.

"Industrial  production  grew  fast,  economic  returns recovered step-
by-step,  agricultural  production  developed steadily, the domestic market
was  brisk,  foreign  trade  increased  at a big margin and people's living
standard  improved  continuously,"  gushed  a  new  year  editorial  in the
Communist Party newspaper People's Daily.

Noting  economists'  warnings  that growth may now be too fast, it said
that  in  the  new  year,  China will "accelerate reform and opening to the
outside  world,  strictly  control  the  economic  volume, and push forward
economic development."

But Chinese President Yang Shangkun, in a new year's message carried by
the  official media, coupled praise for economic reforms with a warning the
communist  leadership  will  maintain  an  iron  grip on political dissent,
saying progress required stability.

"A  stable  and  unified  political  situation  is  necessary  for  any
country's  economic development," Yang said. "No country in the world could
be  completely  modernized  and  industrialized in the midst of a turbulent
political environment."

In  a  business  pitch, he added the country needed to "consolidate and
further  develop  political  stability  and unity so that China's favorable
conditions will bring in more overseas partners and investors."

The People's Daily editorial also called for holding to the party line.

"In  1993,  China  should  give stress to both economic development and
building  of  socialist  culture and ethics, educate the people, especially
the   youth,   in  line  with  the  party's  basic  line  (of)  patriotism,
collectivism and socialism," the editorial said.

"Comrade  Deng Xiaoping's important speech in early 1992...gave a clear
and resolute answer from the strategic and theoretical level on how China's
socialism should develop," it said.

The  editorial  also  mentioned  an  ongoing  government  restructuring
expected to eliminate tens of thousands of civil servant jobs and dozens of
ministries starting next year.

"Some  government  departments  suffering  an overlapping staff and low
work  efficiency  are  facing  an  extreme  urgency  for simplification and
reform," the editorial said.

Premier  Li  Peng,  in  a  year-end interview with a state-run magazine
reported  by  the official Xinhua news agency, sought to allay the fears of
the many workers who could find themselves out of work next year.

"He  also  tried  to  eliminate  the  worries of some officials who are
losing  their jobs by saying they can play their role better in enterprises
and other companies," it said.

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4. China's Economy Jumps 12 Percent in 1992 Beijing ..................... 69
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Forwarded by: Wenfeng
Source: DPA, 12/30/1992

BEIJING - China's economy grew by 12 percent this year, compared with 1991,
to a gross domestic product (gdp) of 2,340 billion yuan as the nation
drastically boosted the reform, opening and economic development, according
to a government official in Beijing on Wednesday.

Zhang Zhongji, spokesman for the State Statistics Bureau, said at a year-end
press conference that, "1992 was a year when the national economy shifted
from overall pick-up to high growth, and the general situation is quite
good," Xinhua news agency reported.

According to the report, analysts said this year's economic performance was
the best in the past three years. Economic growth recorded 4 percent in 1989,
and 4 to 7 percent in 1990 and 1991.

The national price index of retail sales this year was estimated to climb 5.3
percent over last year, slightly lower than the planned target of 6 percent.

Zhang said that China's industrial production was expected to grow sharply by
20 percent this year over the previous year, while the deteriorating trend of
economic efficiency in previous years had been curbed through acceleration of
production growth and the deepening of entreprise reform.

According to the bureau, investment in fixed assets will top 730 billion yuan
this year, up about 33 percent over 1991 - up about 20 percent if price hikes
are deducted.

In terms of supply, Zhang said, steady growth had been registered in primary
industry (including agriculture). According to estimates the value-added for
the whole year would be over 560 billion yuan, up 3 percent over the previous
year.

The total amount of grain would be 442.5 million tons, an increase of 7.3
million tons, he added.

Affected by drought and insect pests, he said, the output of cotton would
drop by over 10 percent compared with 1991. Except for a slight decrease in
the output of oil-bearing crops, the yields of sugar, tobacco, hemp, fruits
and vegetables had all increased by varying degrees.

According to the bureau, the output of pork, beef and mutton was 28.6 million
tons, up about 5 percent, that of aquatic products was 14.6 million tons, up
about 8 percent.

Zhang spokesman estimated that the total volume of exports would be worth 85
billion U.S. dollars for the whole year, up 18 percent over the previous
year. Imports would total 78 billion dollars, up over 20 percent.

New breakthroughs had been seen in utilizing foreign capital. Newly signed
projects with foreign investment numbered over 40,000, and the contracted
volume of foreign capital had reached 58 billion U.S. dollars - both double
the figures for 1991.

The spokesman said that the foreign capital actually used came to over 16
billion dollars in 1982, up over 50 percent. "All these facts reflect the
closer connection of the Chinese economy with the international economy."

Despite the strong momentum of economic development, Zhang warned, existing
problems should not be neglected. Owing to the excessive supply of money, the
pressure of potential inflation was building up.

He continued that although the general price index jumped 5.3 percent, the
living expense index of urban residents rose higher. From January to
November, it stood at 9.3 percent in Beijing, 11.3 percent in Shanghai and
12.6 percent in Guangzhou.

He also called for attention to the problem of low economic efficiency.
Economic losses of state-owned enreprises amounted to over 27 billion yuan
this year, a drop of 2.4 percent compared to the 1991 figure. About 29.9
percent of these entreprises were still suffering economic losses, especially
the defense, coal and tobacco industries.

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5. Taiwan Election Official Arrested for Alleged Vote-Rigging ........... 28
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Forwarded by: Liu Jian
Source: AP-DJ, 1/1/1993

TAIPEI -- An election official was arrested in eastern Taiwan Friday for
allegedly stuffing a batch of extra ballots in a ballot box during last
month's legislative elections, a prosecutor said.

Prosecutor Hung Cheng-ho said he ordered the detention of Peng Te-fu who had
monitored a polling station where 101 extra ballots were found during a vote
recount following the Dec. 19 elections.

Prosecutors have found that the number of ballots exceeded the number of
voters by 738 in 12 of the 54 polling stations in Hualien, 180 kilometers
southeast of Taipei, where election results were questioned.

Hung said an unidentified witness accused Peng of inserting the extra ballots,
but he denied the accusation.

The vote recount was demanded by Huang Hsin-chieh, former chairman of the
opposition Democratic Progressive Party, who lost by 62 votes to Nationalist
candidate Wei Mu-tsun, Hualien's mayor.

Huang's aides have accused Wei of collaborating with city and village
officials monitoring the vote to help him win. But Wei denied the charges.

Interior Minister Wu Poh-hsiung and Hualien Magistrate Wu Kuo-tung have
offered to resign to take responsibility for the voting irregularities, but
their resignations were later rejected by Premier Hau Pei-tsun.

Election officials said a re-election will be held in the districts where
vote-rigging was found to determine if Wei or Huang wins.

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6. Chinese President Urges Hong Kong Leaders To Cooperate ............... 56
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Forwarded by: Liu Jian
Source: AP-DJ, 1/1/1993

BEIJING -- In a New Year's message to Chinese around the world,  Chinese
President Yang Shangkun called for more cooperation from Hong Kong and
Taiwan in 1993.

China was incensed last year by Hong Kong Gov. Chris Patten's proposal to
slightly increase popular participation in legislative elections in the colony
before Britain returns it to China in 1997.

In his annual speech, broadcast by China Radio International and published
by national newspapers, Yang referred to Patten's proposal as a 'barrier to
Hong Kong's smooth transition.'

"This is not to the liking of the Chinese people, including the Hong Kong
compatriots," he said. "I hope the Hong Kong government will change its
attitude and return to the path of cooperation."

Yang's comments were echoed by Communist Party secretary general Jiang Zemin
at a New Year's Day gathering Friday morning.

"Recently, the British authorities in Hong Kong have deliberately created a
situation of confrontation, which is what we and all patriotic compatriots
would not want to see," the official Xinhua News Agency quoted Jiang as
saying.

Neither leader indicated that China was willing to discuss any compromise.
China has insisted that Patten's proposal violates Chinese-British agreements
and has threatened to scrap Hong Kong's entire government and all its
contracts in 1997 if he implements the plan.

"The reunification of China is an irresistable historical trend," Yang said,
as he also called on the Nationalist Chinese on Taiwan to allow closer ties
with the mainland.

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