NATIONAL ICON ASSUMES GLOBAL ROLE

Zhang Haidi， Chairwoman of China Disabled Persons Federation， was appointed as the new chair of Rehabilitation International， a worldwide network of people with disabilities founded in 1922， on October 6 in Poland. With member organizations across the world， the network advocates working to improve the quality of life of people with disabilities.

Born in 1955 in east Chinas Shandong Province， Zhang is a national icon for achieving self-improvement in the face of adversity. She became a paraplegic at the age of 5 and thereafter was unable to attend school. In spite of this， she educated herself to university level. She has learned several languages including English， Japanese， German and Esperanto， and has been awarded a masters degree. She also is well known as a writer and translator.

Zhang has been making efforts to promote work opportunities for people with disabilities in China and improve their access to buildings. She has also mounted campaigns on the right of disabled people to drive.

Transporting Cars By Train

Yangcheng Evening News September 30

Beijing launched the countrys first cartransporting train for tourists to Hangzhou， capital of east Chinas Zhejiang Province， on September 28. Travelers who shipped their cars that day left for Hangzhou two days later from Beijing South Railway Station and picked up their cars on October 1 at their destination. They were charged between 3，000 and 4，000 yuan （$489-652）.

This service was intended to meet the needs of tourists who wanted to drive their own cars at their destination. The move saved customers the exhaustion from driving a long distance and prevented them from being caught in heavy traffic congestion on expressways during the week-long National Day holiday.

Some voiced concerns that the transported cars would add to congestion issues at the destination city and cause more pressure to passenger train transportation. However， tourists who chose this service would have driven to Hangzhou even if the service was not offered. Furthermore， the trains used for transporting the cars were freight trains that cannot be used for transporting passengers. In conclusion， such an initiative contributes to innovating railway services and satisfying the diversified needs of tourists.

The new service， however， is not free from inconveniences. Most notably， travelers were not able to use their cars during the two days before leaving Beijing. Despite this， the service proved viable， highlighting the inefficiency of the expressway system during national holidays when toll gates are free.

Growing Film Investment Fervor

Caixin Century Weekly September 29

Financial institutions and Internet companies investing in films have upset some traditional film makers， who worry that the film industry is going to be changed.

Chinas movie making is still a relatively small business. The Chinese film industry raked in 20 billion yuan （$3.26 billion） in box office in 2013， just under a third of the $10 billion that of the United States reaped the same year.

However， financial institutions and Internet companies represented by Baidu， Alibaba and Tencent have considered the film industry a new investment channel at a time when other markets such as real estate are heading downward.

With financial institutions and Internet companies caring more about financial rewards， they are shifting the traditional Chinese method of filmmaking and orienting the industry toward commercial films. Films that have little money to advertise themselves， however， face difficulties amid competition from commercial films.

When financial institutions treat films as investments and Internet companies approach them as products， they both have their eyes set on box office revenue. When the artistic and cultural characteristics of films are laid aside， will Chinese films develop into the mature industrialized model of the Hollywood or relapse into the crudely made films of Hong Kong in the 1990s？ Nobody knows the answer， and its possible few care.

Upholding the Constitution

Outlook Weekly September 22

The Fourth Plenary Session of the 18th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China （CPC） to be held in October will discuss issues regarding the rule of law. The importance of the Constitution will again be highlighted. New requirements and arrangements are also expected to be made.

Since China has declared the establishment of a legal system guided by the Constitution， the country has shifted its focus from making laws to addressing problems in the implementation of the Constitution and other laws.

The ruling CPC has always pushed for the effective implementation of the Constitution. The Constitution says the National Peoples Congress （NPC） is the supreme organ of state power. The NPC has become increasingly competent to play its role over the past decades. In recent years， for instance， the NPC Standing Committee has passed resolutions on authorizing the Central Government to temporarily change foreign investment approval regulations in the Shanghai Free Trade Zone， abandoning the reeducation through labor system and adjusting the family-planning policy.

The upcoming session will detail measures to resolve issues that may hinder the all-round implementation of the Constitution. It may prescribe the principles and methods for increasing the number of bigger cities possessing local legislative powers. It may also contemplate creating a set of standards gauging progress in advancing the rule of law.

MISSING VICE MAYOR DETAINED

Guo Yipin， formerly missing Vice Mayor of Luoyang， central Chinas Henan Province， was detained by police in a rented apartment in Changsha， central Chinas Hunan Province， on October 6.

Guo， 52， was elected vice mayor of Luoyang in February. He was in charge of the citys work safety， coal mining， environmental protection and transportation. Since late July， he had not been seen or heard of by other leading officials and the daily meeting he presided over had been halted.

The vice mayor went missing after asking for a leave of absence on the grounds that his mother had taken ill. A report in mid-September said police officers were searching locations where Guo might potentially be hiding. It was reported that Guo was suspected of taking a bribe of 5 million yuan （$800，000） from a local real estate developer in 2012.

The case will now be handed over to the procuratorate in Henans capital city of Zhengzhou for further investigation.

“Investor confidence will be affected if the illegal gatherings continue.”

Wang Jun， an economist with the China Center for International Economic Exchanges， criticizing the“Occupy Central” protests that have taken place in some of Hong Kongs busiest commercial areas since September 28， on October 3

“China is maintaining high growth， and its rebalancing is likely to imply slightly lower growth， but this must be seen as a healthy development.”

Olivier Blanchard， Chief Economist of the International Monetary Fund， at an October 7 press conference in Washington， D.C.

“The risks of a dramatic housing market correction and an economic hard landing have been significantly lowered.”

Liu Bo， an analyst with Chinas top investment bank， the China International Capital Corp.， discussing a recent resolution by the banking authorities that ensures a mortgage on a second home will be treated the same as that on the first if the buyer has no other outstanding mortgages， on October 7

“We are confident we can build the Qinghai-Tibet Expressway.”

Wang Shuangjie， an executive with China Communication Construction Co.s First Highway Consultants Co. Ltd.， speaking on October 7 in Xian， capital of northwest Chinas Shaanxi Province， while acknowledging that extreme conditions on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau pose challenges