Strings attached

Guanxi, or ‘connections’, is hugely important in China; you’re either in the loop or you’re not. Having guanxi is especially crucial in business life – there’s a thin line between guanxi and corruption – but it applies in almost all areas of society. Need a ticket for a sold-out train? Or want first dibs on an apartment in that hot new complex? Guanxi can be the answer. Getting guanxi is no easy task; for most people it comes via family and your college. But if you can offer access to something not easily attainable, then you’ll make friends quickly in China.

GOVERNMENT & POLITICS

The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has maintained its grip on power ever since 1949. Opposition is not tolerated and CCP officials, sometimes called cadres, run China at every level from the national government to the smallest village.

An opaque organisation with around 70 million members, the CCP is led by Hu Jintao (b 1942), China’s current president and also the head of the armed forces. Now in his second five-year term, Hu has continued to push forward China’s economic development, while cracking down on any sign of dissent. The Chinese Premier is Wen Jiabao (b 1942), perhaps the most popular politician in China.

Like other sizeable cities, Beijing is an independent municipality with its own government, although it answers to the central government. As the capital, Beijing is home to all the major national and political institutions.

ECONOMY

China is the third-largest economy in the world (after the United States and Japan) and is expected to overtake Japan in the next couple of years. With annual economic growth hovering around 8%, China is likely to be the world’s biggest economy in our lifetime.

Nevertheless, China faces enormous and unique problems. There is a rising and extreme gap between the rich and the poor, with the 700 million people who live in the countryside still mired in poverty. Corruption remains a thorn in the side of the economy, and is a source of huge anger among ordinary citizens. And the high cost of health care and education means people are reluctant to spend heavily on consumer items. As a consequence, the economy continues to be driven by cheap exports and massive public-spending projects.

As the capital and home of many of the country’s wealthiest people, Beijing is something of an exception to the rest of China. But despite all the shiny shops and flash cars, many Beijingers, especially those over 50 and the army of migrant workers in the city, have missed out on the economic boom. Unemployment is rising too, while spiralling property prices have made buying an apartment much harder for ordinary people.

ENVIRONMENT

Once infamous for its appalling air pollution, Beijing is a much cleaner city than it was. Polluting industries have been shut down, or shunted off elsewhere, and the air quality is much improved. Nevertheless, there are still days when the smog obscures buildings and the air-pollution index is far higher than the levels recommended by the World Health Organization.

The main cause of the pollution is the 3.5 million cars in the city. With 1000 to 1500 new vehicles taking to Beijing’s roads every day, the local government operates a scheme based on odd and even license-plate numbers that keeps cars off the roads for one day of the week. It is hoped that, as new subway lines continue to open, more people can be persuaded to use public transport instead of their cars.

Apart from air pollution, Beijing’s biggest environmental concern is its lack of water. So parched is Beijing that rain-inducing chemicals are regularly fired into the clouds. Long dependant on siphoning off water from nearby provinces, the capital is pinning its hopes on the massive South-North Water Transfer Project, which is designed to divert water from the far-off Yangtze River to Beijing. Though the project was meant to be completed by 2010, the water is now projected to start flowing in 2014. If it doesn’t work, Beijingers face the very real prospect of water rationing in the near future.

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Дата добавления: 2015-11-14