OUTGOING WHO HEAD

Margaret Chan will end her term as director general of the World Health Organization（WHO） on June 30. She will be succeeded by Tedros Adhanom， former Health Minister and Foreign Minister of Ethiopia， who was elected as the new WHO head on May 23.

During Chans tenure， WHO has made remarkable progress in prevention and treatment of HIV/AIDS， tuberculosis， malaria and various tropical diseases. The organization has also helped curb the spread of the Ebola virus in West Africa.

Born in Hong Kong in 1947， Chan obtained her Ph.D. from the University of Western Ontario in Canada in 1977. She began her career in public health at the Hong Kong Department of Health in 1978. In 2003， she joined WHO as director of the Department for Protection of the Human Environment. She was elected to the post of director general in 2006 and appointed for a second five-year term in 2012.

Alarm Bell for Cybersecurity

Workers Daily May 17

The computer virus WannaCry has recently affected over 150 countries. China is no exception. As of May 13， more than 20，000 computers in China had been infected. As the virus continuously upgrades itself， the number is expected to grow exponentially. Some specifi c cases may better illustrate the harm that the virus has done. Owing to the virus， some cannot get their cards recharged at gas stations and certain college students are unable to open their graduation theses.

Cybersecurity is no longer an abstract concept but has a direct impact on peoples lives. It needs to be urgently addressed on the national level. Last year， a town government in Zhejiang Province collaborated with e-commerce giant Alibaba to crack down on cybercrimes， creating a new model of cooperation between the government and enterprises in safeguarding cybersecurity. Such practices should be promoted across the country. Also， the Cybersecurity Law， which will take effect on June 1， is expected to provide a legal basis for fighting online crimes.

Cybersecurity concerns both individualsand the nations rights and interests. The WannaCry virus sends a warning that its far from enough to realize cybersecurity only by small precautions. More comprehensive and specialized measures should be introduced to address problems in cyberspace.

Tackling the Korean Nuclear Issue

China Newsweek May 15

In an article titled The Korean Nuclear Issue： Past， Present and Future， Fu Ying， Chairperson of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the National Peoples Congress， offers a Chinese perspective.

The article says China started to host talks on the issue in 2003 at the United States request. Upon taking up its role as a mediator， China firmly requested North Korea to stop its nuclear weapons development while requesting other concerned parties， especially the U.S.， to address Pyongyangs legitimate security concerns. But the deep mistrust between the U.S. and North Korea made it hard for any consensus made during the years of negotiations to be effectively implemented.

Fu observes that as the two sides reached an impasse， North Korea took the opportunity to move forward with its nuclear program. In the meantime， the UN Security Council stepped up sanctions， and the U.S. and South Korea have been carrying out heightened military exercises to exert greater military pressure on North Korea. Consequently， tensions are now running high and the channel for talks is closed.

China believes that peaceful negotia-tions are the Pareto optimal path. Fu notes that although it may not meet the optimal demands of any party， it would bring maximal benefits to all parties with a minimal cost. This would entail all parties， the U.S. included， to take their due responsibilities and make the necessary compromises. No breakthroughs have been achieved to date precisely because of the failure to implement negotiated agreements and the suspension of negotiations.

Preserving Local Characteristics

Guangming Daily May 18 Recently， Fujian Province exposed a series of inappropriate practices in the implementation of the Beautiful Countryside Project， an ongoing program to boost the development of rural areas. For instance， some villages have built vanity projects such as large parks and squares regardless of local peoples needs， some have blindly imitated cities by surfacing roads with concrete， and in other cases， original landscapes and ecosystems of rural areas have been damaged.

Cities and villages are two forms of society with different natural environments and ways of life. Characteristics of villages should be respected in the unfolding of the rural development project. Copying cities models in rural areas will result in a patchwork that is neither suitable for living nor beautiful.

For instance， in south China， people of the same clan often live close to each other and houses are built at the foot of hills or on their slopes， facing rivers. The elevated position ensures cooler temperatures and ample sunshine， while the closeness to rivers ensures adequate water for drinking and other daily needs. If houses are built on fl at ground， not only will precious land resources be wasted， but the cultural and social characteristics of villages will also be changed.

In carrying out the Beautiful Countryside Project， rural areas should focus on improving ecosystems， the living environment and peoples livelihoods. Cultural and social traditions should be well protected in order to make rural areas dwelling places with unique characteristics rather than replicas of cities.

NEW U.S. AMBASSADOR TO CHINA

Terry Branstad， former Governor of Iowa， was confi rmed as U.S. ambassador to China on May 22. Immediately after the U.S. Senate vote， Branstad said， “I look forward to working with both my friend President Donald Trump and my old friend President Xi Jinping for the mutual benefi t of both of our countries and the rest of the world.”

Branstad has said the China-U.S. relationship is multifaceted and not solely focused on trade. At his May 2 confi rmation hearing， he said the two nations must work together on critical issues including the Korean Peninsula and cybersecurity.

Branstad， 70， helmed the state of Iowa from 1983 to 1999 and from 2011 to 2017. During his fi rst term as governor in 1985， he met Xi， who was visiting the state as a county leader from north China. Their friendship has since developed， and Branstad has visited China multiple times.

“Chinas marine interests are growing fast， and it needs a strong navy to safeguard those interests.”

Major General Ma Gang， a professor at the National Defense University of the Peoples Liberation Army， in response to President Xi Jinping urging the navy to accelerate reforms during his visit to the naval headquarters in Beijing on May 24

“Chinese university students have learned a lot from books but lack practice. Most of the graduates choosing to delay employment are hoping to increase their social experience.”

Guo Sheng， CEO of online recruiter Zhaopin， in response to survey results released by his company on May 23 according to which 9.8 percent of the 93，420 respondents said they would not begin work immediately after graduation

“[Chinas] young， tech-savvy population and the fast expanding tech firms like e-commerce giant Alibaba Group are only two factors why we are bullish for China.”

Singapore-based fund manager Mark Mobius， speaking at the Middle East Investment Summit 2017 in Dubai on May 22， expecting the combined GDP of 70 emerging markets to rise by 4.6 percent in 2017， with China taking the lead

“Although its rating was downgraded， theres not much of a problem in Chinas economy… [which] has become much more resilient.”

Lu Feng， an economics professor at the National School of Development， Peking University， in response to rating agency Moodys downgrading Chinas credit rating on May 24