Society

Deng Xize asserts that the oligopolistic system in Chinese academia facilitates a covert form of corruption. Specifically, academics double hat as government officials, thereby gaining advantages such as greater access to academic resources. For him, a clear separation between academics and politics is the most urgent reform needed in Chinese academia.

Tian Fangmeng believes that affirmative action for poorer students and the widespread provision of scholarships for overseas students will bring down the standards of top universities in China. Alternative methods can be found to aid students from poorer Chinese regions or raise the international rankings of top universities without compromising the integrity of university admissions.

Lianhe Zaobao correspondent Yang Danxu talked to a Shanghai Didi driver whose family made nearly 20 million RMB (close to S$4 million) from the government's relocating exercises. His old properties measured just 35 square metres in total. What a way to get rich! But what are the problems that lie beneath the surface?

How can Chinese newspaper media companies outside of China survive the internet age? Is the perceived decline of quality journalism just a problem for news media companies to solve? Is there an elixir for immortality that can re-energise and sustain the life of good journalism? Head of Singapore Press Holdings’ Chinese Media Group Lee Huay Leng touched on these topics and more in her acceptance speech upon receiving the award for outstanding contributions to the media industry (星云真善美传播奖杰出贡献奖). The event was held in Singapore on 24 November 2019.

In the unfolding academic fraud furore in China, Rao Yi, former dean of Peking University’s School of Life Sciences and president of Capital Medical University, fires a salvo of new accusations against three contemporaries.

Chinese telecom giant Huawei is facing a tide of public anger from within China, following its handling of an incident involving a former employee who was wrongly jailed for 251 days. Lim Zhan Ting explores how Huawei landed itself in this position and what it can do to recover its image.

China's Amity Printing Co. (APC) produces an average of 70 Bibles per minute. This month, Jiangsu-based APC celebrates the printing of its 200 millionth Bible. Yang Danxu observes that its monopoly over the Bible economy helps to ensure that Christianity in China adapts to the context in China, as desired by the Chinese government.

The practice of commoditising marriage through a “bride price” to be paid by the Chinese groom has grown to incredible proportions in recent years, especially in the rural areas of China. Untenable financial burdens aside, this practice is not doing women’s push for gender equality any favours.

The gutsy, confident 90s generation are carving out a niche for themselves in a new economy where the ability to engage an online audience and grow a fan base is highly prized.