In this month’s edition: Chinese health expert explains China zero-covid policy, Xi’ great power diplomacy, China’s demographic trap and the Chinese immigrant experience in Germany.
Chinese immigrants in Germany: 我们为什么要留在德国?赚大钱?享受生活?学姐和黑黑心得分享
How do Chinese people end up in Germany and decide to stay there? Most Chinese people I know in Germany come as students. After they finish their studies, they typically go on job hunt as long as their visa allows them. Some return to China, some settle down and start families. As a rule they’re highly qualified immigrants. These two Chinese YouTubers living in Germany explain why they decided to stay.
安稳的生活
Ānwěn de shēnghuó
safe and stable life
走一步看一步
zǒu yībù kàn yībù
step by step
30天假期
30 tiān jiàqī
30 days vacation
父母养老的问题
fùmǔ yǎnglǎo de wèntí
parental care issues
对于这个方面你是怎么考虑的?
duìyú zhège fāngmiàn nǐ shì zěnme kǎolǜ de?
How do you think about this?
BBC interview with Chinese health expert Liang Wannian:
Will China’s zero-covid policy last forever? BBC interviews Liang Wannian who advises the Chinese government on dealing with the pandemic. The reporter asks the right questions, for example what 动态清理 means and how it works, if this approach may have negative side effects. If I understand Liang Wannian correctly, he says so much as that the pandemic has positive effects on the economy, people’s health and mental state. An Orwellian statement? He goes on to explain that any problems that arise on the ground are not due to bad policy making, but rather “management” issues.
动态清理
dòngtài qīnglǐ
“dynamic cleanup”
不是零感染
bùshì líng gǎnrǎn
not zero infection
零容忍
líng róngrěn
zero tolerance
防控疫情
fáng kòng yìqíng
epidemic prevention and control
是一个管理问题
shì yīgè guǎnlǐ wèntí
is a management issue
不是政策问题
bùshì zhèngcè wèntí
not a policy issue
加强针
jiāqiáng zhēn
booster shot
疫苗对防死亡还是有效的
yìmiáo duì fáng sǐwáng háishì yǒuxiào de
vaccines are still effective in preventing death
防感染
fáng gǎnrǎn
to prevent infection
抵抗力
dǐkàng lì
resistance, immunity
脆弱人群
cuìruò rénqún
vulnerable population
再坚持一下
zài jiānchí yīxià
hold on, keep holding on
BBC report on Xi’s “great power diplomacy”
And up comes the next BBC news item in Chinese that looks into China’s “great power diplomacy” and its increasingly assertive behavior on the world stage. Rather difficult stuff and the traditional characters don’t make it easier, at least for me.
大国外交
Dàguó wàijiāo
Great Power Diplomacy
在国际舞台上
zài guójì wǔtái shàng
on the international stage
丝绸之路
sīchóu zhī lù
Silk Road
债务陷阱
zhàiwù xiànjǐng
debt trap
新殖民手段
xīn zhímín shǒuduàn
neocolonial tactics
中美关系
zhōng měi guānxì
Sino-US relations
China’s low birth rate
Why do we keep talking about China’s low birth rate? Well, if China’s wants to be the number one nation in the world, they need more children. Li Can provides some background on the problem and delves deeper into the reasons why young people in present-day China “fail to produce” more children. He mentions that there’s kind of urgency and even crisis awareness surrounding this topic and the Chinese government is implementing new policies to raise the birth rate. Will it be enough to reverse the current trend?
低出生率
dī chūshēnglǜ
low birth rate
灭国
miè guó
to destroy the country
危机意识
wéijī yìshí
crisis awareness
自身的角度
zìshēn de jiǎodù
personal perspective
计划生育政策
jìhuà shēngyù zhèngcè
birth planning policy
跑题了
pǎotíle
to digress
嫖娼
piáochāng
to go whoring
被封杀了
bèi fēngshāle
to be shut out
China’s demographic situation be in twenty years
王志安 is a popular Chinese journalist and former TV-host who was banned from all major platforms in China in 2019. In one of the most popular videos from his channel 王志安 gives his take on China’s demographic development and its impact on Chinese society. He states that all industries that currently exist due to cheap labor like the express delivery and takeaway industry will disappear in the future. Housing prices will fall in most areas due to a declining population. He predicts a development similar to Japan. Sounds like it’s time to invest in retirement homes.
生育率
shēngyù lǜ
fertility rate
人口结构
rénkǒu jiégòu
population structure
劳动力的急剧减少
láodònglì de jíjù jiǎnshǎo
Sharp decline in the workforce
社会资源
shèhuì zīyuán
social resources
世界工厂
shìjiè gōngchǎng
world factory
制造业
zhìzào yè
manufacturing
资产价格
zīchǎn jiàgé
asset price
社会保障制度
shèhuì bǎozhàng zhìdù
Social security system
社会稳定
shèhuì wěndìng
social stability
银发族
yínfà zú
silver hair workers
大幅下跌
dàfú xiàdié
to fall sharply
社会矛盾
shèhuì máodùn
social conflicts
The Chinese React To New 3-Child Policy | Street Interview
That reminded me of this Asian Boss video from about a year ago. Young people in Shanghai share their thoughts about the new 3-child policy that aims at raising the birth rate. Their reactions are very telling, many of them bluntly speak out that they thought the new policy was a joke, that they have no clue how to actually raise two children, let alone three. I’m not sure if more details about this new policy have been shared in the meantime, information about financial support for women (and men) during parental leave and child benefits for example. Because that might truly change something for the better. I’m also not sure how representative the Shanghai situation (maybe the most expensive city in China) is for the rest of China, especially the second- and third-tier cities and the rural areas.
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Pronunciation : lōng Meaning : rumble. (onomatopoeia) Radical : 阝 Strokes : 11 Traditional : 隆 Usage : 6.2% Notes : also as lóng Common Words / Phrases: 1. 轰隆