News & Reports 2012-04-01

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In This EditionVisiting Chinese President Hu Jintao meets with Cambodian King Norodom Sihamoni to discuss all-around bilateral 1 cooperation.
Mali's President of the Islamic Council appeals for a peaceful resolution to the crisis in the capital of Bamako, as rebels seek to gain more territory in the north of the country.
European Union finance ministers meet for a second day to discuss pan-European financial tax that is opposed by countries like the United Kingdom and Germany.
And more than 120 cities in China observe the Earth Hour, a symbolic 2 campaign aimed to raise public awareness 3 about the need to take action on climate change.
Hot Issue ReportsChinese President, Cambodian King Discuss All-around CooperationVisiting Chinese President Hu Jintao has met with Cambodian King Norodom Sihamoni to discuss all-around bilateral cooperation.
Hu said the Cambodian royal family had made special contributions to the development of Sino-Cambodian ties and the half-century friendship between King-Father Norodom Sihanouk and generations of Chinese leaders remained strong and was becoming even firmer.
Hu also said China cherished its traditional friendship with Cambodia and would make every effort to advance the China-Cambodian comprehensive strategic partnership 4 to benefit people of both nations.
King Sihamoni said Cambodia had always viewed China as its closest great friend, and the royal family would continue to play a positive role in promoting cooperation between the two countries.
Later, President Hu Jintao met with Cambodia's Prime Minister Hun Sen to witness the signing of 10 agreements related to agriculture and infrastructure 5 projects.
Earlier on Friday, Hu discussed the friendly relationship during a phone conversation with Cambodia's Queen Mother Norodom Monineath Sihanouk who is accompanying her husband, King Father Norodom Sihanouk, in Beijing.
"In recent years, our bilateral relations have enjoyed good momentum 6 of development with new achievements in various fields. Such a good relationship is due to efforts of the royal family and generations of Chinese leaders. It's also the result of the work of our two peoples. I hope my visit will take our relations to a new high."The Chinese president is on a four-day state visit to Cambodia. He will also meet with Cambodia's Senate President Chea Sim and National Assembly President Heng Samrin.
China and Cambodia established diplomatic ties in 1958 and a comprehensive strategic partnership of cooperation in 2010.
In recent years, the two countries have further strengthened their mutual 7 political trust and substantial cooperation in all areas.
Their two-way trade increased to 2.5 billion U.S. dollars last year from 1.4 billion U.S. dollars in 2010.
The two countries now aim to see their bilateral trade volume reach 5 billion U.S. dollars by 2017.
Hu Jintao flew to Cambodia after attending a nuclear security summit in South Korea and a summit of BRICS nations in India.
China, Italy Pledge Closer CooperationChinese Premier 8 Wen Jiabao has met with visiting Italian Prime Minister Mario Monti in Beijing to stress the importance of bilateral ties.
Wen called for more financial cooperation between the two nations and enhanced communication regarding the reform of the international financial system.
Earlier, Monti said bilateral relations has been in good shape since China and Italy established a comprehensive strategic partnership in 2004.　Monti is set to attend the Boao Forum 9 for Asia Annual Conference, which will be held in southern China's Hainan Province next week.
"I hope to discuss with my counterparts in Asia the European integration 10 progress at the forum and the similarities and differences of regional cooperation of various forms in Asia and Europe."Despite the European debt crisis last year, trade between China and Italy still grew, reaching nearly 40 billion euros.
Mali's President of the Islamic Council Held a Peace RallyMali's President of the Islamic Council has appealed for a peaceful resolution to the crisis in the capital of Bamako, as rebels seek to gain more territory in the north of the country.
Up to 20,000 people from various religious groups gathered on Saturday to listen to Mohamed Dicko call for peace and understanding between all parties involved in the crisis.
"We have asked the military junta 11, the political class, the civil society and the rebels in the north to think further than their own interests, to see the suffering of our people, so that we can find a solution to this crisis."The rebel forces on Saturday attacked Gao, a strategic city in Northern Mali, after seizing the town of Kidal.
The regional group, the Economic Community of West African States, has given junta leaders until Monday to return power to civilians 13 or face a crippling closure of trade borders and other sanctions.
Dicko said the sanctions could not solve Mali's problem.
Coup 14 leader Captain Amadou Sanogo, who grabbed power on March 21 after a mutiny, has pleaded for outside help to preserve the territorial 15 unity 12.
He has also promised to come up with new proposals to restore constitutional order and hand over power to civilians.
Turkey Adds Pressure to DamascusTurkey is putting pressure on the Syrian government, urging Damascus to immediately implement 16 a peace plan put forward by Kofi Annan.
Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu says the proposal made by UN-Arab League joint 17 special envoy 18 Kofi Annan is the "last chance" for Damascus.
"That's the minimum that the Syrian regime must do and must do urgently without any delay. But if that delay continues and if people are being killed every day, more and more casualties being in news, of course, the hope for the Annan plan will be lost. And, I fully 19 share what President Medvedev said - this is the last chance. And the regime must understand that if they miss this last chance, they will be facing certain strong measures by the international community."Davutoglu's remarks came ahead of a 60-nation gathering 20 of the "Friends of the Syrian People" in Istanbul this weekend, aimed at finding ways to help solve Syria's problem.
The Syrian government has accepted Annan's six-point plan, which includes a cease-fire.
But the opposition 21 claims that President Bashar al-Assad is playing for time, with no intention of stopping his tanks and snipers.
The United Nations estimates that more than 9,000 people have been killed in Syria's violence since last March.
EU ECOFIN Meeting Continues for the 2nd DayEuropean Union finance ministers are meeting for a second day on Saturday to discuss financial institutions and the regulation of credit rating agencies.
They are set to discuss a pan-European financial tax that is opposed by countries like the United Kingdom and Germany.
London, the region's biggest trading center, fears it will be the hardest hit by the plan. Swedish finance minister Anders Borg has called for a pragmatic solution that will include Britain.
"There are stamp duties, for example in France and the UK, that are less costly 22 for the economy and would not have a detrimental 23 effect on the financial markets. And if we want to find a solution for all the EU 27, we all have to be pragmatic and also try to find a solution that could be accepted in London."France supports the idea and will introduce a 0.1 percent tax on the purchase of listed stock in large French corporations starting in August.
France is also pushing for a reform of credit ratings agencies. France says downgrading fragile countries may lead to an even greater spread of the financial crisis in a vicious circle.
French Finance Minister Francois Baroin.
"The agency is one element amongst others for an evaluation 24, but it cannot be the one and only method that countries use for their economic policies."Earlier, ministers from the eurozone agreed to raise the ceiling of the bloc 25 bailout funds for indebted countries from 500 billion to 700 billion euros.
Protests against Capitalism 26 Erupt in EuropeAbout 3,000 demonstrators have taken to the streets in Frankfurt in a Europe-wide day of protest against capitalism.
Angry protesters marched through the southern German city towards the European Central bank and further on to the construction site of the new ECB building.
Various groups have called for the occupation of the new ECB building site. But the police stated ahead of the protest that they were intended to prevent that.
Leo Schneider is spokesman for the protests' organizers - the M31 network of left-wing groups from different European countries.
"We are here to demonstrate against the neo-liberal crisis management of Germany and the European Union. And ECB is a major player in restoring capitalism so we are also aiming our protest against the ECB. We do not want to bent 27 ourselves out of shape for Germany as an economic player or Europe, as an economic player, but we want a society outside the constraints 28 of capitalism."The M31 network says similar demonstrations 29 have been held in 15 other European countries.
Scuffles between the police and the demonstrators are seen in downtown Frankfurt. Stones were thrown and as well as flares 30 and bags with paint. One person was injured and a shop window smashed according to the police.
But the situation calmed down soon afterwards, when the police surrounded the demonstrators and checked their identities.
Boao Forum for Asia 2012 Ready to OpenPreparations have been completed for the opening of the Boao Forum for Asia.
The annual session of the BFA, a non-governmental and non-profit international organization established in 2001, will be held in the next three days in south China's Hainan Province.
As one of Asia's biggest annual economic meetings, the conference this year is expected to draw together more than 2,000 representatives from across the world.
State leaders from Italy, Kazakhstan, Pakistan, Iran, Thailand, and Vietnam are to attend the forum, under the theme of "healthy and sustainable development".
Yao Wang is the executive director of BFA.
"The delegations 31 have an increasingly deeper involvement in the forum. The state leaders used to attend the opening ceremony and some bilateral activities, while this year many leaders will participate in the group discussions."The gathering is expected to give Asian economies some inspiration in terms of ensuring stability and seeking development, as there will be focus on three key issues: exploring the root source of the global economy's uncertainty 32, seeking reform and transformation 33 and Asia's sustainable development.
Representatives will meet to discuss 20 topics, including the debt crises, employment and growth, the reform of the international monetary 34 system and the strategic breakthrough of Asian manufacturing.
Roundtables for leaders, CEOs and entrepreneurs will also be held during the forum.
Cities across Asia Turn off Lights during Earth HourThe landmarks 36 in cities across Asia switched off their dazzling lights during the Earth Hour Saturday night, to promote public awareness of climate change and the protection of the environment.
In China's capital Beijing, lights at the Bird's Nest and the Water Cube, main venues 37 for the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games, went out at 8:30pm local time.
In Shanghai, people gathered at the popular tourist destination - the Bund, to watch the skyscrapers 38 featuring the Pearl Tower go dark.
Zhan Zhongde, a 28-year-old tourist, says everyone should help protect the environment in their daily life.
"Treasuring and taking care of the earth should not only be done in this one hour. This one hour has its symbolic meaning. So from now on, everyone should start to change and change from everything around us, change our views on the earth."Meanwhile, in Hong Kong, neon lights that highlighted skyscrapers along the iconic Victoria Harbour went off, plunging 39 the skyline into darkness.
Elsewhere in Malaysia's capital Kuala Lumpur, the iconic landmark 35, the 88-storey Petronas twin towers, lost its shine temporarily to join the other world landmarks' gesture.
Some local residents expect the governments and companies to implement stronger energy saving policies.
"This event only held once in a year and people are joining it only for fun, which I actually doubt they would save energy on normal days. I think, events as such need to be held more frequently."In South Korea's capital Seoul, the lights were also dimmed at major buildings and bridges to join the move.
Earth Hour was begun in 2007 by the World Wildlife Fund to prevent climate change with a "turning off the lights for one hour" campaign. The symbolic one-hour switch-off has become an annual global event.
The organization says the event is being celebrated 40 in some 6,500 cities across a record 150 countries and regions this year.
Beijing Marks Earth Hour on March 31More than 120 Chinese cities joined urban centers around the world in observing the Earth Hour Saturday night -- a significant increase from less than 90 cities last year. CRI's Xu Fei reports, in the Capital Beijing, enthusiasts 41 of the global environmental initiative include not just the adults, but also school kids.
Earth Hour, a worldwide event organized by the World Wide Fund for Nature, first took place in 2007 in Sydney, Australia, and China began to mark it with series of activities two years later.
Thanks to growing public awareness of environmental protection in China nowadays, the country has witnessed increasing participation 42 in Earth Hour 2012 with a total of 121 Chinese cities reportedly pledging their involvement, a rise from 86 cities last year.
This year, an English language teaching school, the English First School for Kids and Teenagers in Beijing, has even made it big by extending Earth Hour to "Earth Month" in an attempt to take advantage of the opportunity to influence of the kids and spread awareness.
Catherine Yang, senior marketing 43 supervisor 44 of the school explains.
"It's not just an hour. We want to make it "Earth Month" for the entire year. So for the past month, every weekend when our students came to our center, we help them learn those five green rules. We even recommend our students bring their friends to EF classrooms to take part in it too."According to Catherine Yang, the five green rules include: recycle as much as you can, power off when you leave a classroom, ride with friends rather than taking automobiles 45, and don't use one-off chopsticks and plates.
Catherine Yang added proudly that her school even designed special publicity 46 activities by sending their children on street performances in downtown Beijing from April 2nd to 4th.
"We design a special dance and we even compiled songs. So our students can show on the stage during those three days and teach those pedestrians 47 and kids their own age how to distinguish between recyclable and non-recyclable rubbish."The Hilton Beijing Capital Airport Hotel is an experienced participant in Earth Hour activities. In a bid to take more positive action, the hotel has set up a Blue Energy Commission. According to Fan Hua, a leader of this Blue Energy Commission, they designed a special sticker on the switches in their offices to mark this year's event.
"We promote the use of a sticker that bears a "polar bear" design to raise our employees' awareness regarding energy conservation and environmental protection. The stickers should be pasted on the switches of the light and if the light turns on, a red line would become noticeable, cutting through the neck of the polar bear. The design aims to remind our staff that polar bears will go to extinction 48 if we continue to forget to switch off the lights because it would lead to global warming."The environmental protection-oriented Earth Hour, which is usually held on the last Saturday of March each year, encourages households and businesses to turn off their non-essential lights for one hour.
For CRI, I'm Xu Fei.
Xinhua: Hu's Visit to Open New Chapter in Sino-Cambodian TiesChinese President Hu Jintao is now in Cambodia on a state visit aimed at enhancing bilateral relations.
The visit to the southeast Asian country is the first by a Chinese head of state in 12 years. During Hu's visit, the two sides will issue a joint statement and sign a series of economic and trade cooperation documents.
A commentary by Xinhua News Agency applauds the historic trip, saying it will open a new chapter in Sino-Cambodian ties. It says China and Cambodia have enjoyed good relations over the past five decades and provided each other with economic and strategic assistance especially during difficult periods in their respective histories.
More recently, the two countries' bilateral relations have gained further momentum resulting in stronger economic ties. Statistics show that two-way trade increased to nearly US$2.5 billion last year from more than US$200 million in 2000. China has been the largest source of foreign investment in Cambodia for the past years.
The commentary cites Pan Guangxue, China's ambassador to Cambodia, as saying that the cooperation has brought tangible 49 benefits to both peoples. It goes on to say China and Cambodia have maintained close cooperation on the international stage.
The commentary says as a trusted friend of China, Cambodia firmly adheres to the one-China policy and supports China on Tibet-related issues. The country also has played a positive role in promoting ASEAN-China cooperation in recent years.
Considering the strong, traditional friendship between the two nations, the Xinhua commentary said Hu's visit would take the bilateral relationship to a new high and promote stability and prosperity in the region at large.
***************************Nations Should Boost Cooperation on Nuclear SecurityThe two-day Seoul Nuclear Security Summit ended earlier this week, with leaders of more than 50 nations calling for strengthening measures and closer cooperation in maintaining nuclear security.
An editorial in China Daily states that no country should use the summit as a diplomatic tool for its own benefit or disrupt global collaboration 50 by trying to prevent the nuclear development capabilities 51 of other nations.
With more than 100 countries currently building or preparing to build nuclear facilities, the rapid development of nuclear technology adds to the risks of nuclear materials falling into the wrong hands. The editorial says this is why countries should devote themselves to concerted cooperative efforts to meet the challenges of safe nuclear power generation and the security of nuclear and radioactive materials.
The editorial notes that there were more than 2,000 cases of illegal trafficking, theft or loss of nuclear and radiological material during the past 20 years. About 60 percent of the material has never been recovered. It goes on to say that the transborder movement of personnel and material means that all members of the international community must cooperate to ensure nuclear security.
In the end, the editorial appeals for more measures to deal with problems such as poverty and unbalanced development worldwide as they are the reasons behind terrorism.