UN COMMANDER COMPLETES MISSION

Liu Chao， a Chinese Major General and Commander of the UN Peacekeeping Force in Cyprus （UNFICyP）， was relieved of duty on August 11.

Liu had been in the most senior peacekeeping position yet held by China since being appointed leader of UNFICyP on January 13， 2011. Since then， he headed 860 UNFICyP troops from 12 countries. Born in northeast Chinas Liaoning Province in 1959， Liu has over 30 years of military experience at national and international levels. He previously served as the military attaché at the Embassy of China in India and was a military observer in the UN Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara. UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon recognized Lius service with UNFICyP， where his dedication， professionalism and leadership greatly contributed to UN efforts.

Skyscraper Oversupply

China Newsweek August 11

When the last steel beam was installed on the 632-meter-tall Shanghai Tower on August 3， a tower that has taken six years to build， it became the tallest skyscraper in China and the second highest in the world.

At present， Chinas passion for building skyscrapers is comparable to that of the United States 100 years ago. Among the top 20 highest buildings in the world， half are in China and among the top 100， 43 are in China.

Unlike other office buildings， skyscrapers are choosy about their tenants， mainly targeting businesses in high-end sectors such as banking， financial and professional services and technology. However， according to the global real estate service provider CBRE， only a few skyscrapers in Asia can meet the tenant requirements of those in Manhattan， New york City. In second-tier Chinese cities like Shenyang， Chongqing and Tianjin， skyscrapers are facing the risk of oversupply because such cities are only national rather than global financial centers and are therefore unable to attract adequate financial institutions to move in.

The CBRE report also points out that Chinas skyscraper construction may foster corruption. As the government owns urban land， real estate developers might bribe local officials in order to obtain the approval for purchasing plots.

Another problem with skyscrapers is that they have produced cities with similar looks. Many high-rise buildings lack connections with their surroundings and look isolated and out of place. If developers stay on this track， the original styles of cities are in danger of disappearance.

Under-the-Counter Cash Influx Into Macaoendprint

Caixin Century Weekly July 28

In recent years， mainland gamblers have poured into Macao， the only city in China where gambling is legal. As the Chinese Government restricts the amount of cash outbound travelers take out of the mainland and the countrys UnionPay card is not allowed to withdraw cash in casinos， gamblers normally purchase items from jewelry and watch stores using UnionPay and sell them to pawnshops to get cash back.

In 2013， Macaos gambling industry raked in $45 billion and in the first half of 2014， 83 percent of the regions fiscal revenue came from gambling taxes. Nevertheless， behind the fast-paced development of the regions gambling industry is a massive money influx from the mainland.

This cash flow， made possible by illegal bogus transactions， has caught the regional governments attention. In response， the Macao Government recently rolled out a series of measures to regulate the gambling industry. For instance， it shortened the maximum period of stopover for mainland travelers from seven to five days， beginning July 1. It also banned jewelry stores on the casino floors from adding new point-of-sale （POS） machines. Since May， UnionPay has started to crack down on cross-border POS machines used on Macao casino floors， which have been helping gamblers access cash from UnionPay credit cards.

In February， revenue for the Macao gambling industry increased 40.3 percent over the same period last year. However， the growth rate slowed month by month later and fell to single digit in May and even negative in June. Alarm bells are ringing for the local gambling industry.

Though Macao has sought to diversify its economy for many years， no substantial progress has yet been made. Breaking Macaos over-reliance on gambling revenue is now an urgent need amid the Central Governments crackdown on corruption and money laundering.

Targeting Medical Service Agents

Legal Daily August 12

Intermediary agents who trick patients in line for registration at big state-owned hospitals in Beijing into going to smaller healthcare facilities， subsequently charging them higher fees， have long been condemned by the public. The citys police recently arrested 113 people suspected of such offences and detained 109 of them. The Beijing police have urged patients to raise alerts regarding such actions and to call the police if they have been scammed.

These intermediary agents are often employed by small and medium-sized privateendprint

hospitals and receive high payment for attracting patients there. They pretend to show sympathy for the patients seeking treatment at public hospitals， lying that they or their relatives have contracted similar diseases and have been cured at the hospital they want to recommend. Some patients eager to seek treatment， which is not always readily available at big hospitals due to strained medical resources， easily fall into their traps.

It is time that health， public security and industry and commerce authorities made a concerted effort to crack down on the problem in accordance with laws and regulations. Furthermore， the hospitals funding agents should be held responsible， receiving punishment for fostering such illegal activities.

DIRECTOR HONORS DENG XIAOPING

Wu Ziniu， a famous Chinese movie and television director， has made a popular tribute to celebrate the 110th anniversary of late Chinese leader Deng Xiaopings birth with a Tv series titled Deng Xiaoping at a Historical Turning Point. The show has gained wide attention since premiering on China Central Television Channel 1 on August 8.

This 48-episode drama traces Chinas historic transformation under Dengs leadership from 1978 to 1984 when the countrys reform and opening-up drive was in full swing through a creative lens. It not only puts Dengs working life into the spotlight， but also tells stories of several ordinary families in Beijing during that period.

Wu， who was born in the early 1950s in southwest Chinas Sichuan Province， has won several top movie and Tv play awards in China. He is famed as one of the representatives of Chinas fifth-generation directors. Wu has expressed his hope that the audience will feel Dengs love for his family as well as his country from this Tv series.

“Chinas property market has outgrown its surefire get-rich-quick expansion period. Now， it is heading into a new era where Chinese buyers demand more from property developers under stepped-up competition from both within and outside the housing sector.”

Zhu Zhongyi， Honorary Vice Chairman of the Chinese Real Estate Association， at the Boao Real Estate Forum in Hainan Province on August 8

“Residents will feel the pain if inflation goes too high， but the economy and companies will suffer if it is too low. Having the consumer price index （CPI） at about 2 percent is an ideal level.”

Yang Hongxu， deputy head of the Shanghai-based E-House China R&D Institute， commenting on Chinas CPI growth of 2.3 percent year on year in July， on August 9

“As the economy slows down and demand for business-class service wanes， Air China has to tighten its belt.”

Lin Zhijie， a civil aviation expert， explaining the motives behind Air Chinas new seat selection fee， on August 12

“Military-to-military engagements， like RIMPAC [Rim of the Pacific drill] and this port visit， are very important to the relationship between our navies. They help us build trust and enhance transparency.”

Rear Admiral Patrick Lorge， Commander of the U.S. Navy Region Southwest， speaking at a welcoming ceremony for a visiting Chinese flotilla in San Diego on August 10endprint