Month: January 2022

Advertisement Although analysts tend to focus on the geopolitical effects of China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), these are incidental rather than its driving force. This is because the BRI is primarily about state-building, a process that involves the creation and maintenance of political and economic institutions. These institutions facilitate the reach of the state and the provision of public goods. When Xi Jinping emerged as the general secretary of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) in 2012, he announced the Chinese Dream of national rejuvenation, the most recent iteration of…

Advertisement 2022 is bound to be a turbulent year for Chinese leader Xi Jinping, as he deals with diplomatic boycotts of the Beijing Winter Olympics, tries to keep the pandemic under control with his draconian zero-COVID policy, looks to revive the economy, and, most importantly, prepares for a precedent-breaking third term as China’s leader. In response to these challenges, the party-state’s enormous propaganda apparatus is ramping up its global disinformation efforts. Although the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has long engaged in information warfare to manipulate public opinion, hoping to win…

In Cantonese, the main language of southern China and Hong Kong, the New Year greeting is “Gong Hei Fat Choy” (恭喜發財), which means “wishing you prosperity.” In Mandarin, people say “Xin Nian Kuai Le” (新年快乐), which simply means “Happy New Year”. BBC

But some analysts say the greatest impact of a boycott would fall on Chinese Australians, for whom WeChat is a big part of daily life. It’s used most commonly to communicate with family in China, but is also a marketplace, a social space, and even a payment platform. BBC

Advertisement For the thousands of athletes, journalists, and others descending on Beijing for the Winter Olympics, China’s strict pandemic measures are creating a surreal and at times anxious experience. China is isolating everyone coming from abroad from any contact with the general public for the duration of the Games, which open next week. That means being taken from the Beijing airport in special vehicles to a hotel surrounded by temporary barricades that keep participants in and the public out. “I know the only experience of Beijing I’m going to experience…