Liu Qibao (L), member of the Political Bureau of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC) and head of the Publicity Department of the CPC Central Committee, and Matrai Marta, executive vice chairman of the Hungarian National Assembl… read more
China’s bike-sharing fever has spread to Tibet, with 500 shared two-wheelers appearing on the plateau Thursday.
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People try to ride the yellow Ofo bikes placed in the street in Xigaze, Tibet Autonomous Region. [Photo/www.cnr.cn] |
The fleets of bright yellow Ofo bikes have been placed in 22 spots in Xigaze, the region’s second largest city, said Lyu Shuang, the company’s regional manager.
“We hope shared bikes become low-carbon, cheap transport for locals and tourists alike in Tibet,” Lyu said, adding that the company’s next stop would be Lhasa, capital of Tibet Autonomous Region.
The bike-sharing business, which took off in big Chinese cities last year, allows riders to hire bikes for as little as one yuan (about 15 U.S. cents) per hour via a mobile app and drop them off anywhere for the next user.
The bikes on the busy streets of Xigaze have attracted curious users. “It’s quite cheap, and really suitable for a short ride,” said citizen Cering, who with his friends rented a bike just for fun.
Backed by two-digit economic growth for over 20 years, car sales in Tibet have been booming. The underpopulated region now has 300,000 vehicles, with half of them in Lhasa.
However, the four-wheelers have led to traffic congestion and parking problems in downtown Lhasa.
read moreAlmost 60 percent of people in Taiwan are unhappy with the performance of the current administration led by the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), a poll released by the Taiwanese Public Opinion Foundation showed Monday. The poll, which was conducted… read more
Suspected serial killer Gao Chengyong, detained in Baiyin, Gansu province last year, was prosecuted on four crimes, including intentional killing, raping, robbery and insulting the corpse, on Monday, April 24, 2017.
![Police detain Gao Chengyong in Baiyin, Gansu Province, on Aug. 26, 2016. [File photo]](http://images.china.cn/attachement/jpg/site1007/20170425/001fd04cf03a1a69262a01.jpg "Police detain Gao Chengyong in Baiyin, Gansu Province, on Aug. 26, 2016. [File photo]") |
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Police detain Gao Chengyong in Baiyin, Gansu Province, on Aug. 26, 2016. [File photo] |
Gao Chengyong, 53 years old, was accused of the rape and murders of 11 victims, including an 8-year-old girl, in northern China.
Gao Chengyong was caught in a grocery store by police in Baiyin on August 26, 2016. Nine murders linked to the suspect occurred in the city in Gansu province.
The Ministry of Public Security has said the suspect confessed to 11 murders in Gansu and Inner Mongolia autonomous region between 1988 and 2002.
Gao targeted young women dressed in red and would follow them home, where he would rape and kill them, often by cutting their throats.
The killer also mutilated the victims’ bodies, which resulted in the Chinese media dubbing him China’s Jack the Ripper.
read moreWe all mourn the death of a policeman in Paris. I send my condolences to his family.
The untimely death shortened the political campaigning, but could not derail the election.
Last week-end French electors faced plenty of choice. The opinion polls held close to election day correctly predicted that voting intentions were very split, and many were still undecided. One of the most fascinating features of the polls was the collapse of support for the socialist party, the Labour party equivalent, and the difficulty for the Republican candidate, the Conservative equivalent, to catch up three others.
Whoever becomes President of France will not belong to either of the two traditional main parties. He or she did not gain more than one quarter of the votes on the first ballot. This means that the uncertainties created by such a wide open election will continue after we know who the President is. The Presidential election will be followed by an election to the Parliament. If the Parliament votes are more strongly for the more traditional parties the new President will have limited powers and have to get on with a Prime Minister who does not agree on some big matters.
Mr Macron is the front runner to win in round two. A former socialist party Minister, he is now a reborn self styled centrist with a movement, not a political party. He might face a Parliament to his right. There could be clashes on economic reform and security. Were Mrs Le Pen to prove the pollsters wrong and emerge as the overall winner, she would probably face a Parliament to her left, with an inbuilt majority to keep France in the Euro and the EU when she wishes to leave.
It is a fascinating commentary on modern France that two of the top four candidates were outsiders, and one was an insider dressed up as an outsider. The only pure political establishment candidate was damaged by his past use of public money to run his office. It implies that many French voters are unhappy with the terrorist attacks, the high unemployment, the lack of growth in living standards and the lack of control over their borders. Some voted for a more left wing alternative who wants to take back control and go for more socialism in one country. Some voted for the National front to leave the Euro and assert national borders. Some voted for the independent who promises to do politics differently without being too precise how.
If the French people fail to give a decisive mandate to a new President, and then fail to give their President a decent level of support in Parliament, the anger and anguish will continue.
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