Xi as 'People's Leader' - Building a National Unified Market - Liang Wannian on Zero Covid Policy - Zhong Sheng: The West is United but Isolated - Central & State Organs' Inspections Begin

Here are the stories and pieces that I found noteworthy from the Monday, April 11, 2022, edition of the People’s Daily.

Page 1: The lead article on the page is headlined Xi Jinping’s feelings for the people. 习近平的人民情怀. The piece basically makes the point about Xi Jinping being a leader of the people, for the people and by the people — ergo, Xi Jinping is 人民领袖, the people’s leader. There are three uses of the phrase 人民领袖 in the piece, essentially to describe the kind of qualities that a people’s leader must possess and to argue that Xi fits the bill. 

The article includes a bunch of anecdotes from Xi’s life to basically make the point that he is connected to the people, works in the interests of the people and has tremendous support from the people. I am not summarising the entire thing, but just sharing a few snippets that I found noteworthy. The piece talks about Xi’s folksy visits where he has engaged with local people. It talks about him leading the Politburo to visit the Red Building at PKU in 2021. There, Xi stood before the original copy of Li Dazhao’s speech The Victory of the Common People 庶民的胜利, which was published in New Youth, reminiscing about the rise of the Party.

Later the piece mentions the 三个不能 - the ‘three must nots/cannots/ should nots’: “We must put the people’s interests first. We must never change our position of sharing a common destiny with the people at any time and under any circumstances. We must never forget our purpose of serving the people wholeheartedly.”

The piece then goes back to 40 years ago, the day Xi Jinping was leaving Liangjiahe. Basically, it talks about everyone being very upset that he was leaving. He was hungry but left food back for those doing the hard labour there. “Knowing the hardships of the common people, he carried a heavy burden. ‘At that time, I said that if I have the conditions and opportunities in the future, I will work to do good things for the people’.” 深知老百姓的苦，因而挑起沉甸甸的担。“那个时候，我就说，今后如果有条件、有机会，我要做一些为老百姓办好事的工作.”

The next bit I found particularly interesting. In the time that I’ve been doing this tracker, I’ve not noticed any references to Xi Jinping’s family or his father. Maybe there have been references, but I cannot recall them immediately. But this piece specifically narrates the following.

It says that when Xi Jinping visited Yulin, Shaanxi in September 2021, he visited Suide county. This is an old revolutionary site, and as I had covered back then, this is also where Xi Jinping’s parents had met during the civil war. There at the exhibition hall, a plaque reads: 把屁股端端地坐在老百姓的这一面. This basically means sitting beside the common people or on the side of the common people. The phrase “端端地,” is Guanzhong dialect for being steady and upright, Xi recalled his father’s words, the piece adds. “Xi Zhongxun, the ‘son of Guanzhong peasants’, was known as ‘a mass leader who came out of the masses’. Growing up in a revolutionary family, Xi has a strong sense of affection for the people. As time went by, the family’s influence engraved the word ‘people’ into his soul and affixed it as the original intention. This feeling is rooted in traditional culture. This sentiment is rooted in traditional culture.” 2021年9月，正在陕西榆林考察的习近平总书记来到中共绥德地委旧址。展厅里，一行字格外醒目：“把屁股端端地坐在老百姓的这一面”。“端端地，这是关中话，稳稳正正地。”回忆起父亲习仲勋说过的家乡话，习近平总书记饱含深情。习仲勋，这位“关中农民的儿子”，被称为“从群众中走出来的群众领袖”。生长于革命家庭，浓厚的人民情怀，耳濡目染。日久天长、潜移默化，家庭的熏陶将人民二字刻入灵魂、定格为初心。这份情怀，植根于传统文化.

Then, we go back to February 1966. Xinhua News Agency just put the story of Jiao Yulu as a role model. “In the politics class, the teacher read the article and choked up while reading it. Xi Jinping and his classmates also burst into tears while listening to it. ‘Whether I went to the countryside, went to college, joined the army, or did leadership work, the image of Comrade Jiao Yulu has always been in my heart,’ the general secretary said…Jiao Yulu’s devotion has turned into Xi Jinping’s passion for the people.” 1966年2月，新华社播发长篇通讯《县委书记的榜样——焦裕禄》。政治课上，老师读到这篇文章，读着读着便哽咽了，习近平和同学们听着听着也泪流满面。“我后来无论是上山下乡、上大学、参军入伍，还是做领导工作，焦裕禄同志的形象一直在我心中。”总书记说...对焦裕禄的一往情深，化为习近平一心为民的满腔热血。

The piece then offers examples of what this passion has meant in practice. This touches upon big things like poverty alleviation work, building a moderately prosperous society, his response to the recent China Eastern Airlines plane crash, the containment of COVID-19, and little things like the toilet revolution, garbage sorting, food safety, etc. 

“The ‘little troubles’ that plague the people are placed on the general secretary's desk and recorded in his mind. They are also included in the agenda of important central meetings one by one. They have repeatedly become the focus of reform, leading to gradual changes in the lives of people. ‘Zhongnanhai should always have direct access to the people, and we should always keep the people in our minds, said Xi Jinping.” 困扰百姓的“小麻烦”，摆在总书记的案头、记在总书记的心中，也一项项列入中央重要会议日程，一次次成为改革的关注点、发力点，一点点改变着人民群众的生活。“中南海要始终直通人民群众，我们要始终把人民群众放在心中脑中。”习近平总书记说.

Next, there’s a report about Li Keqiang attending the opening ceremony of a special ministerial conference of the Forum for Economic and Trade Cooperation between China and Portuguese-speaking Countries (PSCs), also known as Forum Macao. Xinhua reports that government delegates from China and eight PSCs, including Angola, Brazil, Cape Verde, Guinea-Bissau, Mozambique, Portugal, Sao Tome and Principe, and Timor-Leste, attended the meeting.

“Trade between China and the PSCs has exceeded 100 billion U.S. dollars for five consecutive years and reached 200 billion U.S. dollars last year, which fully demonstrated the resilience and potential of cooperation, Li noted. Li said that China would make more contributions to safeguarding world peace and promoting mutual development and prosperity of all countries together with the PSCs and the international society. China is willing to increase cooperation with the PSCs in vaccines, medication, and health and set up a communication center on epidemic prevention in China’s Macao Special Administrative Region, said the premier. Calling for further enhancing trade and investment liberalisation and facilitation, Li said China is willing to improve collaboration in advancing infrastructure connectivity, industrial capacity, energy conservation, and environmental protection with the PSCs.”

Third, a report telling us that 15 inspection teams have been deployed across central and state organs that are being covered in the 9th round of inspections. These teams will be working over a period of two months and will be open to tips, petitions and calls till May 30th 2022. The report says that the leaders from the Central Leading Group for Inspection Work have informed the principal responsible persons of the organisations that are being inspected about the relevant work arrangements. 

They informed that the “CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping as the core attaches great importance to the work of the central and state organs. They added that the inspections are important for the inspected organisations to grasp decisive significance of the ‘Two Establishments’, strengthen the ‘four consciousnesses’, strengthen the ‘four self-confidences’ and achieve the ‘two safeguards’; the inspections are an important measure to strengthen party building in central and state organs, especially the political organs, and to promote the comprehensive and strict governance of the party across central and state organs.” 各中央巡视组组长指出，对中央和国家机关开展巡视，充分体现了以习近平同志为核心的党中央对中央和国家机关工作的高度重视，是对中央和国家机关把握“两个确立”决定性意义，增强“四个意识”、坚定“四个自信”、做到“两个维护”情况的全面检验，是加强中央和国家机关党的建设特别是政治机关建设，推动中央和国家机关全面从严治党向纵深发展的重要举措.

The report adds that the Central Leading Group for Inspection Work will thoroughly study and comprehend Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, identify political deviations in light of the new arrangements and new requirements of the CPC Central Committee, adhere to the center, serve the overall situation, adhere to the general tone of seeking progress while maintaining stability, and adhere to seeking truth from facts and abide by laws and regulations…and greet the 20th Party Congress with practical actions of inspection and supervision. 中央巡视组将深入学习领会习近平新时代中国特色社会主义思想，对照党中央有关新部署新要求查找政治偏差，坚持围绕中心、服务大局，坚持稳中求进工作总基调，坚持实事求是、依规依纪依法，坚持同题共答、依靠被巡视党组织开展工作，以巡视监督的实际行动迎接党的二十大胜利召开.

Further the report adds that “the main person in charge of the inspected party organisations stated that it is necessary to improve the political position, strengthen the political consciousness of accepting supervision, and actively support and cooperate with the inspection work with the courage of self-revolution…It is necessary to take this inspection and supervision as an opportunity to further improve political judgement, political understanding, and political execution, strengthen mission responsibility, faithfully perform duties and responsibilities, and effectively embody the ‘two safeguards’ in the implementation of the Party’s line, principles and policies, in the practical actions promoting high-quality development, and in the practical actions of being worried about the Party, doing one’s duty for the country, and contributing to the people.” 被巡视党组织主要负责人表示，要提高政治站位，增强接受监督的政治自觉，以自我革命的勇气和同题共答的行动，积极支持配合巡视工作。要以这次接受巡视监督为契机，进一步提高政治判断力、政治领悟力、政治执行力，强化使命担当，忠诚履职尽责，切实把“两个维护”体现到贯彻落实党的路线方针政策的实际行动上，体现到推动高质量发展的实际行动上，体现到为党分忧、为国尽责、为民奉献的实际行动上.

Next, there’s the full guideline on accelerating the construction of a unified domestic market. The document says that building a unified domestic market is the “basic support” and “an inherent requirement” for building the new development pattern. I am going to cover parts of this that I found interesting, but there’s a lot in there and a full translation would be immensely useful.

The main objectives as per the guideline are to “promote the efficient circulation and expansion of the domestic market, foster a stable, fair, transparent, and predictable business environment, and reduce market transaction costs, promote technological innovation and industrial upgrading, and create new advantages in order to participate in international competition and cooperation.”

Section 2 of the document talks about the need for unified market-based systems and rules. It first discusses the need to improve a unified property rights protection system. In this, it talks about promoting innovation with regard to the intellectual property litigation system, improving the cross-regional jurisdiction system of intellectual property courts, and enhancing the connection mechanism between intellectual property litigation, arbitration and mediation. It also talks about implementing a unified market access system, which covers ensuring that there is a unified negative list system, improving market access efficiency evaluation systems, unifying national registration data, etc. 

In addition, this section covers ensuring a unified and fair competition system and calls for optimising a unified social credit system. The former includes improving the “system of anti-monopoly laws and rules.” The latter talks about the need to:

“Compile and issue a national basic catalogue of public credit information, improve credit information standards, establish a mechanism for sharing and integrating public credit information and financial information, and form a credit information network covering all credit subjects, all types of credit information, and all regions of the country. Establish and improve a new credit-based regulatory mechanism, comprehensively promote the credit commitment system, establish a comprehensive evaluation system for enterprise credit status, optimise the allocation of regulatory resources based on credit risk, and compile and publish a national basic list of disciplinary measures for dishonesty in accordance with laws and regulations. Improve the incentives for trustworthiness and punishment for dishonesty, and combine punishment for dishonesty with punishment of corruption. Improve the credit repair mechanism. Accelerate the promotion of social credit legislation.” 健全统一的社会信用制度。编制出台全国公共信用信息基础目录，完善信用信息标准，建立公共信用信息同金融信息共享整合机制，形成覆盖全部信用主体、所有信用信息类别、全国所有区域的信用信息网络。建立健全以信用为基础的新型监管机制，全面推广信用承诺制度，建立企业信用状况综合评价体系，以信用风险为导向优化配置监管资源，依法依规编制出台全国失信惩戒措施基础清单。健全守信激励和失信惩戒机制，将失信惩戒和惩治腐败相结合。完善信用修复机制。加快推进社会信用立法.

The third section of the document basically calls for “promoting the interconnectivity of market facilities, including building a modernized circulation network, improving the exchanging channels of market information, and upgrading the transaction platforms.” 

As part of this, it talks about the need to “actively break down regional barriers in the field of public resource trading. Accelerate digital transformation and intelligent upgrading of commodity markets, and encourage the development of comprehensive commodity trading platforms. Accelerate the development of spot markets for bulk commodities and constantly improve trading rules. Encourage trading platforms to cooperate with financial institutions and intermediaries to develop a comprehensive service system that covers property rights definition, price assessment, guarantee and insurance in accordance with the law.” 积极破除公共资源交易领域的区域壁垒。加快推动商品市场数字化改造和智能化升级，鼓励打造综合性商品交易平台。加快推进大宗商品期现货市场建设，不断完善交易规则。鼓励交易平台与金融机构、中介机构合作，依法发展涵盖产权界定、价格评估、担保、保险等业务的综合服务体系。

Section four discusses the importance of creating unified factor and resource markets. This covers land, labour, capital, technology, data, energy, and the environment. I am highlighting a few points from these that I found noteworthy. For instance:

• “Strengthen the supervision over the capital market, improve the supervision system with clear powers and responsibilities, clear division of labour and smooth operation, and establish a bottom line for preventing systemic financial risks. Ensure that the financial sector serves the real economy and prevent any diversion from the real economy. Set up ‘traffic lights’ for capital, prevent disorderly expansion of capital.” 加大对资本市场的监督力度，健全权责清晰、分工明确、运行顺畅的监管体系，筑牢防范系统性金融风险安全底线。坚持金融服务实体经济，防止脱实向虚。为资本设置“红绿灯”，防止资本无序扩张.

• Establish and improve the national technology trading market, improve the intellectual property evaluation and trading mechanism, and promote the interconnection of technology trading markets in various regions…Accelerate the cultivation of data factor market, establish and improve basic systems and standards with regard to data security, rights protection, cross-border transmission management, transaction circulation, open sharing, security certification, etc., conduct in-depth investigations on data resources, and promote the development and utilisation of data resources. 建立健全全国性技术交易市场，完善知识产权评估与交易机制，推动各地技术交易市场互联互通...加快培育数据要素市场，建立健全数据安全、权利保护、跨境传输管理、交易流通、开放共享、安全认证等基础制度和标准规范，深入开展数据资源调查，推动数据资源开发利用。

• On the basis of overall planning and optimisation of distribution, the oil and gas futures product system will be improved, the construction of oil and gas trading centres will be standardised, and the layout of key infrastructure, such as trading venues and delivery warehouses, will be optimised. Promote the interconnection of oil and gas pipeline network facilities and open them to various market players fairly. Steadily promote market-oriented reform of natural gas and accelerate the establishment of a unified system for measuring and pricing natural gas energy. Improve the multi-level and unified power market system and study and promote the establishment of a national power trading centre in a timely manner.” 在统筹规划、优化布局基础上，健全油气期货产品体系，规范油气交易中心建设，优化交易场所、交割库等重点基础设施布局。推动油气管网设施互联互通并向各类市场主体公平开放。稳妥推进天然气市场化改革，加快建立统一的天然气能量计量计价体系。健全多层次统一电力市场体系，研究推动适时组建全国电力交易中心.

• Build a national unified carbon emission rights and water rights trading market, and implement a unified and standardized industry standard and trading supervision mechanism. Promote the market-oriented trading of emission rights and energy use rights, and explore the establishment of initial distribution, paid use, market transactions, dispute resolution, support services and other systems. 依托公共资源交易平台，建设全国统一的碳排放权、用水权交易市场，实行统一规范的行业标准、交易监管机制。推进排污权、用能权市场化交易，探索建立初始分配、有偿使用、市场交易、纠纷解决、配套服务等制度.

Section 5 talks about integration of the goods and services markets. Section 6 covers fair and unified market supervision. This includes the call for “integrated online and offline regulation of new forms of business, such as online medical care, online education and training, and online entertainment.” It also includes a call for improving the “comprehensive law enforcement capacity for safeguarding the unified market, and strengthening law enforcement capacity with regard to IPR protection, anti-monopoly, and anti-unfair competition,” and encouraging “cross-administrative regions to jointly release unified regulatory policies, regulations, standards and norms in accordance with relevant regulations, actively carry out coordinated law enforcement, develop new models of joint oversight, and strengthen cooperation in investigation, evidence collection, and case handling.” 

Section 7 covers the need for strengthened anti-monopoly efforts and crackdown on practices of unfair competition. This covers:

• Eliminate problems such as data monopoly of platform enterprises, and prevent the use of data, algorithms, technical means, etc. to exclude and restrict competition.

• Strengthen centralized inspections of business operators in finance, media, science and technology, people's livelihood and other sectors, as well as those involving start-up enterprises, new forms of business, and labour-intensive industries, improve the quality and efficiency of inspections, and strengthen the identification, early warning, and prevention of monopoly risks.

• Steadily promote the reform of natural monopoly industries, and strengthen oversight over network-based natural monopoly links such as power grids and oil and gas pipeline networks. Strengthen the protection of original innovation and intellectual property rights of innovative small and medium-sized enterprises.

完善垄断行为认定法律规则，健全经营者集中分类分级反垄断审查制度。破除平台企业数据垄断等问题，防止利用数据、算法、技术手段等方式排除、限制竞争。加强对金融、传媒、科技、民生等领域和涉及初创企业、新业态、劳动密集型行业的经营者集中审查，提高审查质量和效率，强化垄断风险识别、预警、防范。稳步推进自然垄断行业改革，加强对电网、油气管网等网络型自然垄断环节的监管。加强对创新型中小企业原始创新和知识产权的保护。

• It talks about strengthening the regulation of unfair competition in new domains such as the platform economy and the sharing economy and improved inter-departmental and cross-administrative coordination, information sharing and law enforcement with regard to unfair competition and anti-monopoly efforts.

• The next point in the section is about breaking down local and regional barriers. This takes aim at actions that “impede a unified market and fair competition,” including with regard to foreign enterprises. 

• The next point emphasises that “no obstacles shall be set up for enterprises to operate or relocate across regions.” This essentially talks about licensing and other documentary requirements being used to hinder enterprises.

Finally, there’s also a commentary on the page drawing from Xi’s speech at the Olympics commendation conference from last week. The commentary talks about taking the hosting of the Olympics as a learning and adhering to the Party’s leadership and being firm in struggle amid the changes that are taking place in the world, etc. It ends with references to the two establishments and the 4-4-2 formulation. 

Page 2: If you read this page of the People’s Daily, you’ll probably gather that the COVID-19 containment effort in Shanghai is going well. There are no reports of shortcomings in the response at all. Instead, there’s an interview with Liang Wannian from the NHC. Liang talks about the importance of putting life first and adhering to the dynamic zero-COVID policy. He basically calls for fast and accurate implementation of the dynamic zero-Covid policy. He talks about how the Omicron variant is not like the flu. It is much more pathogenic than the flu and the fatality rate from Omicron, particularly among the elderly, is much greater than the flu. Essentially, this implies that living with the virus is not an option.

At one point, Liang says that faced with the Omicron variant, some countries opted for the policy of 躺平- lying flat - allowing the virus to infect people, causing great harm to the lives, health and social production. China, on the other hand, adheres to dynamic zero-COVID and its socialist system “has a strong ability to organise and mobilise,” which along with the support of the people, scientific tools and the experience of fighting the epidemic will help it ensure the success of the zero Covid strategy. 梁万年说，应对奥密克戎变异株，一些国家采取“躺平”策略，放任病毒感染，对居民的生命、健康和社会生产造成了巨大危害。我国坚持“动态清零”，一方面是“人民至上、生命至上”防疫理念的指导；另一方面，我国有能力、有基础。我国本土总体上“干净”，社会主义制度具有强大的组织动员能力，群众积极主动配合，加上丰富的抗疫经验和各种科学工具，有能力实现“动态清零”.

There are two other reports on the page around the Shanghai outbreak. One of them talks about over 11000 people being discharged and the other about students adjusting to online classes. 

Page 3: The 10th and final commentary in the Zhong Sheng series on US hegemony and the Ukraine war. 

“Since the outbreak of the Ukrainian crisis, the United States has used the opportunity to play up a binary narrative of ‘friend or enemy’ instead of promoting peace talks. Some American politicians, while deliberately emphasising the ‘Western world’, flaunting that ‘the west is stronger and more united than ever before’ and claiming to be the ‘defenders of the rules-based international order’, have resorted to all means to force other countries to take sides in an attempt to hold hostage other countries to their own ideology. Behind all this lies America’s Cold-War mentality of bloc confrontation, which runs counter to the trend of the times when mankind shares a common destiny. Facts have once again proved that the wrong words and deeds of the United States have trampled on and are destroying the international order.” 乌克兰危机发生以来，美国不是劝和促谈，而是借机渲染一种非友即敌的二元叙事。美国一些政客一边刻意强调“西方世界”，炫耀“西方比以往任何时候都更加强大和团结”，自诩为“基于规则的国际秩序的维护者”，一边不择手段逼迫其他国家选边站队，企图以自己的意识形态绑架他国。美国这种将世界进行简单划分、造成国际社会分裂对抗做法的背后，是充斥着冷战色彩的集团对抗思维，与人类命运与共的时代大势背道而驰。事实再一次证明，美国自身的错误言行，是对国际秩序的践踏和破坏.

In order to build a global ‘grand coalition against Russia’, the United States has put pressure on other countries through propaganda, issuing statements and other means, threatening them to make a choice keeping in mind how history would judge them. When these measures failed, the US made naked threats of sanctions and even spread false information to discredit and intimidate other countries. In American diplomatic lexicon, only ‘America First’ and ‘hegemony’ and ‘bullying’ are used, but ‘equality’ and ‘respect’ are not used at all. 为构建全球“反俄大联盟”，美国通过远程喊话、发表声明等多种方式施压，威胁其他国家做出“如何出现在有关乌克兰危机的书中”的选择。这些手段失败后，美国赤裸裸地以制裁相威胁，甚至散布虚假信息对他国进行抹黑、恫吓。在美国的外交辞典中，只有“美国优先”和“唯我独尊”，只有“霸权”和“霸凌”，根本没有“平等”和“尊重”。

The next paragraph says that “the fundamental way to solve the crisis in Ukraine lies in dialogue and negotiation. Forcing other countries to choose sides will only interfere with the resolution of the crisis. Many countries have clearly expressed their refusal to follow the United States in taking hostile positions or actions against Russia, and believe that unilateral sanctions will not only fail to solve any problems, but will also trigger a larger humanitarian crisis and deepen the suffering of ordinary people. The American Diplomat magazine pointed out that most developing countries have obvious differences with the United States and the West in dealing with the Ukrainian crisis. ‘The attitudes of these countries reflect their vigilance amid intensifying geopolitical confrontation’.” 解决乌克兰危机的根本出路在于对话谈判，逼迫他国选边站队只会干扰危机的解决。许多国家明确表示拒绝跟从美国对俄采取敌对立场或行为，认为单边制裁不仅不能解决任何问题，反而会引发更大规模的人道主义危机，加深普通民众的苦难。美国《外交官》杂志指出，大部分发展中国家在应对乌克兰危机上与美西方有着明显分歧，“这些国家的态度反映了对加剧地缘政治对抗做法的警惕”.

The next paragraph stresses that much of the world has not participated in Western sanctions. There’s a specific reference to comments by the Algerian Foreign Minister. Also, it says that “American media has also acknowledged that the West, though more closely allied than ever, is experiencing ‘unprecedented isolation’ as the fallout from the Russia-Ukraine conflict spills over into global politics.” 美国自己的媒体也承认，随着俄乌冲突的影响波及全球政治，西方的紧密结盟虽然看起来甚于以往，但也经历着“前所未有的孤立”. The next bit then attacks the US for its approach of bloc confrontation and the promotion of “so-called ‘rules-based international order’ advocated by the US” which the author says “is actually replacing universally accepted international rules with rules formulated by a few countries.” And of course, the author attacks the US for playing up confrontation to boost its own hegemonic status.

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On the theory page, the lead piece is by Ni Bangwen, who is the director of the Executive Committee of the Research Center for the Theoretical System of Socialism with Chinese Characteristics of the Central Committee of the Communist Youth League. He basically makes the case for China to move ahead with confidence on the path to national rejuvenation. That’s the broad argument, but essentially this is a piece about expressing support for Xi Jinping’s leadership. For instance, Ni stresses on the Two Establishments, quoting from the history resolution and calls the “most important political achievements” since the 18th Party Congress. He also talks about Xi’s personal leadership and qualities.

In the great practice of leading socialism with Chinese characteristics in the new era, General Secretary Xi Jinping with the grandeur, foresight, and sagacity of a Marxist statesman, thinker, and strategist has emerged as the core of the Party Central Committee and the whole party by strategizing amid the stormy waves, calmly controlling various complicated situations and effectively responding to various risk challenges at home and abroad. In the new era, the Chinese Communists, with Comrade Xi Jinping as the chief representative, have insisted on combining the basic principles of Marxism with China’s concrete reality and excellent Chinese traditional culture, adhere to Mao Zedong Thought, Deng Xiaoping Theory, the important thought of ‘Three Represents’ and the scientific outlook on development, profoundly summed up and applied the historical experience since the founding of the Party, and proceeded from the new reality in order to create Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era. This scientific thought targets at the ‘truth’ of China in the new era with the ‘arrow’ of Marxism; it has profoundly answered a series of important theoretical and practical problems related to the development of the cause of the party and the country in the new era; it has demonstrated great practical power and is an action guide for the whole party and the whole nation to strive for the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation. Our party has established the guiding position of Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, realised the advancement of the Party’s guiding ideology with the times, and provided scientific ideological guidance for forging ahead towards the grand goal of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation.” 在引领新时代中国特色社会主义的伟大实践中，习近平总书记以马克思主义政治家、思想家、战略家的恢弘气魄、远见卓识、雄韬伟略，惊涛骇浪中坚如磐石，风险挑战中运筹帷幄，从容驾驭各种复杂局面，有效应对国内外各种风险挑战，成为党中央的核心、全党的核心。新时代，以习近平同志为主要代表的中国共产党人，坚持把马克思主义基本原理同中国具体实际相结合、同中华优秀传统文化相结合，坚持毛泽东思想、邓小平理论、“三个代表”重要思想、科学发展观，深刻总结并运用党成立以来的历史经验，从新的实际出发，创立了习近平新时代中国特色社会主义思想。这一科学思想以马克思主义之“矢”去射新时代中国之“的”，深刻回答了关系新时代党和国家事业发展的一系列重大理论和实践问题，展现出巨大实践伟力，是全党全国人民为实现中华民族伟大复兴而奋斗的行动指南。我们党确立习近平新时代中国特色社会主义思想的指导地位，实现了党的指导思想的与时俱进，为向中华民族伟大复兴宏伟目标奋进提供了科学思想指引。

On Page 11, there’s a report (English report) informing that China’s fixed-asset railway investment in Q1 was 106.5 billion yuan (about 16.7 billion U.S. dollars). The figure is an increase of 3.1 percent from one year earlier. During the period, a total of 447 kilometres of new rail lines were put into production, including 233 kilometres of high-speed tracks. China plans to launch new rail lines totaling 3,300 kilometres this year, according to the Ministry of Transport. By the end of last year, the operating length of China's high-speed railway network exceeded 40,000 kilometres.

On the international page, the lead report is about the “alarming” increase in the murder rate in the US. There’s also a report about inflation in the UK and about Iran sanctioning 24 US officials over charges of terrorism and violations of human rights of the Iranian people.