A MODEL COURT

A judge explains trial procedures to pupils participating in a model court at the Shengli Road Elementary School in Shijiazhuang， capital of north Chinas Hebei Province， on December 4.

The activity was part of the legal education organized by the school to mark Chinas fourth Constitution Day. Chinas top legislative body， the National Peoples Congress， approved the designation of December 4 as national Constitution Day on November 1， 2014.

VillagesTransparency

Central authorities have called for the setting up of supervisory commissions on village affairs， according to a guideline released on December 4.

The village affairs supervision commissions will help to “overcome unhealthy tendencies， curb corruption， promote harmony and stability and improve governance in villages，” according to the guideline issued by the general offi ces of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and the State Council.

The commissions will be made up of three to fi ve people to specialize in management or accounting. They will be voted in at the village meeting or villagers assembly.

The commissions will be responsible for supervising village affairs and fi nancial management， as well as consulting villagers suggestions.

The commissions will ensure decision-making processes are in accordance with standard procedures， and ensure full disclosure of village affairs.

Supervision must also be strengthened on village construction projects and agriculture and poverty alleviation funds， the guideline said.

Improving Livelihoods

China has allocated a total of 124.4 billion yuan （$18.8 billion） from the central budget and lottery proceeds as subsidies to improve peoples livelihoods in the coming year， authorities said on November 30.

Of the total， 92.86 billion yuan（$14 billion） will be used to support those facing fi nancial diffi culties， according to a document released by the Ministry of Finance， the Ministry of Civil Affairs and the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development.

Another 10.79 billion yuan（$1.63 billion） will cover the medical expenses of patients who are in a critical condition but cannot be immediately identifi ed or cannot afford treatment， while 18.59 billion yuan（$2.81 billion） will be committed to fi nancing the renovation of unsafe homes in rural areas. A further 2.1 billion yuan （$317.53 million） will be allocated to help people with disabilities.endprint

Local governments have been directed to expedite the distribution of the funds， and to improve the effi ciency of their use.

The Chinese Government has made poverty reduction one of its top priorities in recent years， having vowed to lift those living below the poverty line out of poverty by 2020， when the country aims to fulfi ll its goal of building a moderately prosperous society.

Child Protection

The Supreme Peoples Procuratorate（SPP） released a circular on November 30 directing all procurators to deal severely with crimes against kindergarten children， whilst protecting their rights and preventing the occurrence of such crimes.

When dealing with instances of rape， indecent assault or intentional homicide against children， procurators must approve arrests and initiate public prosecution as soon as possible， according to the circular.

Care and support for child victims should also be improved， it said. For instance， the personal information of the children and their guardians should not be released， and law enforcers should not go to victims homes to collect evidence in police cars or uniform， according to the SPP.

Procuratorates should also ask for support from the likes of civil administrations and medical organizations， as well as professional assistance from judicial social workers and psychological consultants， in order to aid the recovery of child victims.

Fundamentally， procuratorates must base their work on prevention and set up a system to prevent harm to kindergarten children， the circular said.

They should assess the causes and characteristics of cases according to their experience and advise kindergartens on shortcomings in their management， the SPP added.

Rules via Gifs

The top anti-graft body of the Communist Party of China （CPC） on December 3 released 16 animated gifs on the eight-point frugality code put forward by the CPC Central Committee in December 2012.

The CPC Central Commission for Discipline Inspection （CCDI） published the gifs on its website，which includes the content and the signifi cance of the scheme.

The gifs are intended to explain the principles of the code to the public in a way which appeals to popular tastes， and to narrow the distance between the people and the authorities， the CCDI said in a statement.

The gifs can also be downloaded on the instant messaging app WeChat.

The frugality code requires government offi cials to strictly adhere to the new code of conduct and to eliminate undesirable work styles described as formalism， bureaucratism， hedonism and extravagance.endprint

Previously commonplace practices such as the use of public funds to buy gifts， hold banquets and pay for holidays have since been strictly banned.

The CCDI maintains a system which reports monthly on the implementation of the rules within the provincial-level governments， central Party and government agencies， centrally administered state-owned enterprises and central fi nancial institutions.

Outdoor Show

Actors perform the Impression Wulong in the Peach Garden Canyon in Wulong District， southwest Chinas Chongqing Municipality， on November 28. The Impression Wulong is a 70-minute-long performance that exhibits the landscape and culture of southwest China.

Trash Out

Chinese cities will begin the fullscale promotion of garbage sorting by 2020， an offi cial announced on November 30.

By 2020， cities must put in place laws and regulations as well as industrial standards on garbage sorting， said Wang Menghui， Minister of Housing and UrbanRural Development， at a conference in Xiamen， a coastal city in Fujian Province.

All public institutions should implement garbage sorting by 2020， by which time the 46 selected pilot cities will have established a garbage sorting system， the minister said.

Legislation should be accelerated to provide support for the system， and innovation encouraged to explore techniques that could be replicated nationwide， Wang stressed.

The minister also called for more efforts to improve garbage disposal in rural areas.

The timetable comes as Chinas cities are facing a pile-up of household waste， with solutions such as landfi lls and incinerators having met opposition from local residents.

So far， 12 cities have adopted regulations on garbage sorting， while 24 are developing plans to act on the issue.

Intelligent Farming

The Sinochem Group， a Chinese conglomerate primarily engaged in the production and trading of chemicals and fertilizer， as well as the exploration and production of oil， has launched an intelligent agricultural platform in east Chinas Anhui Province which seeks to make farm work easier.

An online-offl ine combination， it can provide a wide range of services， from seed selection to soil detection， as well as machinery training.

Qin Hengde， President of Sinochems agricultural unit， described the platform as an agricultural trusteeship that enables both the direct supply of fertilizer， seeds and pesticides and standardized， unifi ed sales. “Costs become lower， and production and sales are matched，”Qin said.endprint

The platform， the fi rst of its kind by Sinochem， has begun operation in Anhuis Lujiang County. The province is one of the countrys major grain-producing regions.

Sinochem is seeking to restructure its agricultural unit， shifting its focus from the sale of agricultural materials to agricultural technology solutions.

Positive initial results have been seen in the mechanized production of agricultural products including rice， corn and wheat， according to the company. Demonstration farms with a combined area of 1 million mu （66，700 hectares） have been built in Anhui， Jilin and Jiangsu provinces， among other locations across the country.

Sinochem plans to promote the platform nationwide by building more than 50 technical service centers by the end of next year.

Ice Event

Local residents take part in a ceremony to mark the beginning of the ice collecting season in Harbin， northeast Chinas Heilongjiang Province， on December 3.

This month， workers will collect blocks of ice from the frozen Songhua River in preparation for the construction of buildings of ice illuminated by colorful lights for the world-famous annual Harbin International Ice and Snow Sculpture Festival which begins on January 5， 2018.

PMI

According to the National Bureau of Statistics， Chinas manufacturing purchasing managers index （PMI） was 51.8 percent in November， an increase of 0.2 percentage points from last month. The latest fi gure showed the steadily rising momentum of the manufacturing industry.

The PMI of large enterprises was 52.9 percent， decreasing 0.2 percentage points from last month while remaining fi rmly in the expansion range； that of medium-sized enterprises was 50.5 percent， increasing 0.7 percentage points from last month and moving back above the threshold； and that of small enterprises was 49.8 percent， up 0.8 percentage points from last month.

Among the fi ve sub-indices composing PMI， the production index and new orders index were higher than the threshold， while the main raw materials inventory index， employed persons index and sup- plier delivery time index were lower than the threshold.

The production index increased 0.9 percentage points monthon-month to reach 54.3 percent， indicating an acceleration in the expansion of manufacturing.

The new orders index， at 53.6 percent， up 0.7 percentage points month-on-month， showed that manufacturing market demand kept growing.endprint