Teaching Comparative

Big news in China

The Chinese news agency Xinhua picked its top 10 news stories for 2006. It's an interesting selection. At least 8 of the 10 are political.

You could ask your students to search for news stories from China for the past year and see if they can find things they think are more important than some of these.

Xinhua selects top 10 domestic news items of 2006

1. Chinese President Hu Jintao, also the general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, raised the "socialist concept of honor and disgrace" on March 4, while meeting with members of the 10th National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), China's top political advisory body.
   The concept, which underscores the values of patriotism, hard work and plain living, belief in science, consciousness of serving the people, solidarity, honesty and credibility, and observation of the law, aims to refresh China's values by amalgamating traditional Chinese values with modern virtues.
   
   
2. The Fourth Session of the 10th National People's Congress passed the draft outline of the 11th Five-Year Plan for National Economic and Social Development (2006-2010)...
   
   
   
3. A forum on economic and trade affairs across the Taiwan Strait was held on April 14 and 15, focusing on cross-Strait economic and trade exchanges and opening direct transport links...
   
   
4. China on May 20 completed construction of the world's largest dam at the Three Gorges area...
   
   
   
5. A grand rally to celebrate the 85th anniversary of the founding of the Communist Party of China (CPC) was held on June 30. The CPC also summarized its educational campaign to maintain the vanguard character of CPC members, launched in January 2005, at the rally.
   
   
6. On July 1, the world's most elevated railway, Qinghai-Tibet Railway, went into operation from Xining, capital of Qinghai Province, to Lhasa, capital to Tibet Autonomous Region...
   
   
7. The eighth Typhoon of the year, Saomai, landed on east China's Zhejiang Province on Aug. 10 and caused great loss to Zhejiang and Fujian provinces. It was the strongest typhoon to hit China in more than half century
   
   
8. Chen Liangyu, secretary of the Shanghai Municipal Committee of the CPC, was sacked for his alleged involvement in a social security fund scandal by the CPC Central Committee...
   
   
9. The 16th Central Committee of the CPC held its sixth plenary session from Oct. 8 to 11 and issued a communiqué highlighting the issue of social harmony...
   
   
10. President Hu Jintao and other senior leaders attended a grand ceremony in Beijing on Oct. 22 to commemorate the 70th anniversary of the victory of the Long March...

posted by Ken Wedding @ 8:42 AM