BBC眼中的中國 介紹了中國的政治經濟人權的相關情況 比較客觀 http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/country_profiles/1287798.stm China is the world's most populous country, with a continuous culture stretchin g back nearly 4,000 years. Many of the elements that make up the foundation of the modern world originated in China, including paper, gunpowder, credit banking, the compass and paper mo ney. After stagnating for more than two decades under the rigid authoritarianism of early communist rule under its late leader, Chairman Mao, China now has the wor ld's fastest-growing economy and is undergoing what has been described as a sec ond industrial revolution. OVERVIEW Overview Facts Leaders Media The People's Republic of China (PRC) was founded in 1949 after the Communist Pa rty defeated the previously dominant nationalist Kuomintang in a civil war. The Kuomintang retreated to Taiwan, creating two rival Chinese states - the PRC on the mainland and the Republic of China based on Taiwan. Beijing says the island of Taiwan is a part of Chinese territory that must be r eunited with the mainland. The claim has in the past led to tension and threats of invasion, but since 2008 the two governments have moved towards a more coop erative atmosphere. The leadership of Mao Tse-Tung oversaw the often brutal implementation of a Com munist vision of society. Millions died in the Great Leap Forward - a programme of state control over agriculture and rapid industrialisation - and the Cultur al Revolution, a chaotic attempt to root out elements seen as hostile to Commun ist rule. However, Mao's death in 1976 ushered in a new leadership and economic reform. I n the early 1980s the government dismantled collective farming and again allowe d private enterprise. The rate of economic change hasn't been matched by political reform, with the C ommunist Party - the world's biggest political party - retaining its monopoly o n power and maintaining strict control over the people. The authorities still c rack down on any signs of opposition and send outspoken dissidents to labour ca mps. Economy China's economic transformation has not been joined by political change Nowadays China is one of the world's top exporters and is attracting record amo unts of foreign investment. In turn, it is investing billions of dollars abroad . The collapse in international export markets that accompanied the global financ ial crisis of 2009 initially hit China hard, but its economy was among the firs t in the world to rebound, quickly returning to growth. In February 2011 it for mally overtook Japan to become the world's second-largest economy. As a member of the World Trade Organization, China benefits from access to fore ign markets. But relations with trading partners have been strained over China' s huge trade surplus and the piracy of goods. The former has led to demands for Beijing to raise the value of its currency, which would make Chinese goods mor e expensive for foreign buyers and possibly hold back exports. Some Chinese fear that the rise of private enterprise and the demise of state-r un industries carries heavy social costs such as unemployment and instability. Moreover, the fast-growing economy has fuelled the demand for energy. China is the largest oil consumer after the US, and the world's biggest producer and con sumer of coal. It spends billions of dollars in pursuit of foreign energy suppl ies. There has been a massive investment in hydro-power, including the $25bn Th ree Gorges Dam project. Social discontent The economic disparity between urban China and the rural hinterlands is among t he largest in the world. In recent decades many impoverished rural dwellers hav e flocked to the country's eastern cities, which have enjoyed a construction bo om. Potent symbol: Mao's portrait surveys Beijing's Tiananmen Square Social discontent manifests itself in protests by farmers and workers. Tens of thousands of people travel to Beijing each year to lodge petitions with the aut horities in the hope of finding redress for alleged corruption, land seizures a nd evictions. Other pressing problems include corruption, which affects every level of societ y, and the growing rate of HIV infection. A downside of the economic boom has b een environmental degradation; China is home to many of the world's most-pollut ed cities. Human rights Human rights campaigners continue to criticise China for executing hundreds of people every year and for failing to stop torture. The country is keen to stamp down on what it sees as dissent among its ethnic minorities, including Muslim Uighurs in the north-west. The authorities have targeted the Falun Gong spiritu al movement, which they designate an "evil cult". Chinese rule over Tibet is controversial. Human rights groups accuse the author ities of the systematic destruction of Tibetan Buddhist culture and the persecu tion of monks loyal to the Dalai Lama, the exiled spiritual leader who is campa igning for autonomy within China. --

※ 發信站: 批踢踢實業坊(ptt.cc) ◆ From: 218.106.181.118