Street People Need Gov't Help

In Ningshan County, west China's Shaanxi Province, when preparing to receive senior officials on a sanitary inspection, a local official had an ailing beggar wandering in his town removed to the forest, where the latter subsequently died. This official has been imprisoned, and is awaiting sentence.

Besides the insensitive and irresponsible behavior of the official, the tragedy should, to a large degree, be blamed on the currently underdeveloped relief system, which always demands that beggars should be sent back to their hometowns. In most cases, vagrants and beggars come from impoverished areas, so it's almost impossible to expect their home governments to offer enough aid.

Some beggars slip into hard times after being robbed or abducted, so for them emergency aid is enough. The others, such as the disabled, people with fatal diseases or psychological disorders and those who are unable to work, however, need long-term welfare and social security, which does not exist in the current government relief system.

According to the Constitution, citizens have the right to ask for material aid from the government when they are so old, disabled and ailing that they can't support themselves. To avoid the tragedy of incidents like the fate of this beggar, there must be explicit regulations on how to help this disadvantaged group.

Dazhong Daily

What's in a Name?

Recently, dozens of established brands in Beijing joined in a rush to translate their names into English, with a view to build up their images in the international market and to better spread Chinese culture.

This initiative can be read as a way for these brands to give themselves a new lease of life, but it's quite doubtful that the foreign names will boost their business performance.

If the lack of foreign names of these brands has prevented overseas consumers from developing an understanding of these brands, meaning they have little share of the overseas market, then why do Chinese shoppers, who know these brands well, not buy them? Building up a good image among the Chinese and winning more share of the local market are more crucial than finding foreign names.

Instead of checking whether their products and services suit consumers' demands, these brands have begun to stress the importance of culture. While the Chinese names all sound auspicious, smooth and rich in culture, the English versions sometimes seem awkward, losing the cultural implication. Culture is important, but without excellent products and services, the brands remain uncompetitive.

Market News

To Everything There Is a Season

In the market, any commodity will eventually encounter price fluctuations, with housing prices being no exception. This phenomenon has repeatedly occurred in economically developed countries and regions such as the United States, Japan and Hong Kong.

In China, however, property developers and buyers seem to have forgotten this significant law of economics. Since China began to reform its housing supply system in 1998, the past 10 years have seen the economic takeoff giving rise to rapidly improving living standards, which greatly boosts the real estate industry.

Despite the fact that in the foreseeable future, there seems to be no sign of an overall slump in housing prices, it does not mean that the rule of price rise and fall will not apply in China. The country's housing prices are unlikely to rocket out of control.

Sooner or later, the turning point of China's property market will come. Therefore, the investment in housing projects can't ensure that the developers or the buyers will make money. Only by keeping in mind the law of price fluctuations can investors avoid possible heavy losses and can the market avoid possible depression.

People's Daily

Loopholes Require Plugging

According to a report in Southern Weekly on August 16, the State Food and Drug Administration (SFDA) has replaced almost 70 officials with people from other government agencies in a recent anti-corruption campaign, after its former chief Zheng Xiaoyu was executed on charges of bribe-taking and dereliction of duty.

When it comes to corruption, loopholes in the system have created an ideal environment for greed to flourish. How to ensure officials keep their hands clean when there is so much temptation about is an urgent issue. The SFDA should take the reform and improvement of the official supervision system into account, which has proven to be more effective based on experience in other countries.

An effective supervision system must be independent and transparent; it must always hold corrupt officials accountable and sufficient legal support is necessary. In addition to internal discipline of the government, supervision from society at large should also be included.

Because of the lack of institutionalized supervision, China's drug watchdog was severely hit by corruption. Therefore, a well-developed power check-and-balance system seems more important than any other efforts to improve China's drug safety record.

Nanfang Daily