Sunday, December 18, 2005

My recent op-ed & comments in the press

Wednesday, November 30, 2005

China: Officials still tend to hide bad news

On November 30, 2005, Dr. Wenran Jiang was interviewed by the Straits Times on a recent blast at a PetroChina plant in north-eastern Jilin province on Nov 13, spiltting 100 tonnes of benzene into the Songhua River.

But if change does not come soon, there will be more accidents and deaths -- resulting in high economic cost, warned Professor Jiang.

A systemic overhaul is needed for things to improve, said Prof Jiang. He said: "Detailed instructions on every level of government's role and responsibility must be spelt out. This will ensure officials are accountable as they cannot push the blame to someone else."

Click here to read the article.

Monday, November 28, 2005

Coal Mine Explosion Kills 134 Workers in China

On November 28, 2005, Dr. Wenran Jiang was interviewed by the Voice of America on the recent mine explosion in northeastern China that killed 134 workers. The blast at Qitaihe in China's Heilongjiang Province happened at a time when China is stocking up on coal supplies ahead of the approaching winter.

"China uses a lot of energy, so therefore [there are] a lot of energy-related accidents. Almost every other week, we have such accidents," Dr. Jiang said. "These are actually partly [caused by] the industrialization process, and partly due to the market-driven, all-for-money drive by local governments."

Read the article here.

Friday, November 25, 2005

With free trade all talk, APEC risks becoming irrelevant

by Wenran Jiang
(Nov 25, 2005)
The Global and Mail

Prime Minister Paul Martin must have heaved a sigh of relief to leave domestic headaches behind for a few days when he flew to South Korea for the annual APEC summit last week.

The Asia Pacific Economic Co-operation forum seems an ideal international stage for Mr. Martin and many of his 20 counterparts to boost their image. Representing more than 40 per cent of the world's population, the APEC group is the largest regional trading bloc, commanding nearly 50 per cent of global trade volume and 60 per cent of GDP. It has generated nearly 70 per cent of global economic growth in the past decade. In a joint declaration, members expressed support for the World Trade Organization talks in Hong Kong next month, combatting the spread of avian flu, and fighting terrorism.

But image-polishing is not quite the same as tangible achievement. Contrary to the carefully chosen theme of this year's forum -- "Toward One Community: Meet the Challenge, Make the Change" -- beneath the surface, APEC is disintegrating into regional and bilateral blocs and lacks the leadership to meet many of its challenges.

Free-trade rhetoric has never been as strongly propagated by governments as the dominant ideology and unmistakable path to prosperity, yet every major global free-trade mechanism has trouble reaching a consensus. The implementation of the WTO's 2001 Doha commitment to global open trade is stalled; the coming talks are at risk because rich countries won't end domestic agricultural subsidies. Similar issues caused the dismal failure of the recently held Summit of the Americas, where the Free Trade Area of the Americas, being negotiated for more than a decade, faced fierce resistance from Southern Latin American states.

The APEC club, hailed as a major free-trade advocate, has done little beyond issue statements. Nor is there any clear road map on how to realize the goals of an Asia Pacific open market by all advanced economies in 2010, followed by all others in 2020.

The APEC community is gradually becoming an empty shell, shrinking into isolated resort gatherings of government elites, while mass protests gain momentum, intensifying global discontent.

While most countries belong to some form of global, regional and bilateral trade regimes, they tend to employ protectionist measures whenever self-perceived interests are at stake. The U.S. refusal to abide by NAFTA rulings over the softwood lumber dispute with Canada is a frustrating example. China complains bitterly that its textile exports, which comply with the WTO-mandated schedule that all barriers be lifted this year, are being blocked by the United States and European Union.

APEC countries are committed to mutual tariff reduction but a mechanism is missing to move beyond paperwork.

Threatened by the growing and perceived protectionist movements, many countries are seeking bilateral and intraregional trade deals, making WTO and larger regional organizations such as APEC more and more a theatre for talk rather than serious action. China has moved to establish a free-trade zone with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN); its free-market status has been recognized by New Zealand and South Korea; Australia and the EU are negotiating with Beijing for the same arrangement; Japan is chasing China, in fear of lagging behind.

Next month, there will be several summits centred on ASEAN and China: The ASEAN plus Three

(China, Japan, South Korea) conference, the ASEAN-India conference, and the ASEAN plus Russia conference.

However, the most visible challenge and alternative to the U.S.-centred Asia Pacific order will come when the first East Asian Summit is held in Malaysia next month. While ASEAN, China, Japan, South Korea, Australia, New Zealand and India will all be at the table, neither the U.S. nor Canada is invited. This is a serious development, if not a setback for Ottawa's Asian diplomacy. Mr. Martin has threatened Washington with closer ties to Asia as a counterbalance to U.S. protectionism. But everyone knows he has no action plan to back up his rhetoric. The only way to get back in the game is to take aggressive measures that reconnect Canada with other Asia Pacific countries. The newly established free-trade negotiation with Japan is a step in the right direction but it is not bold enough. For Canada not to be left out of the world's emerging and most dynamic trading bloc, similar actions must be taken with China and ASEAN.

Unfortunately, rather than asserting much-needed leadership and projecting a distinct Canadian mark on the other side of the Pacific, Mr. Martin is busy marking his calendar for a federal election.

Friday, November 11, 2005

China's post-Unocal energy strategy

I was invited to give the opening keynote speech on this subject at the Regional Economic Leadership Forum, Whistler, BC on Nov. 17, 2005, organized by Pacific NorthWest Economic Region.

Is China's media fairer toward Japan?

This Japan Times article, with my interview in it, is also carried by China's offical China Daily.

Thursday, November 10, 2005

China rethinks peasant 'apartheid'

My interview with BBC in this analysis. READ HERE

China celebrates 50 years of nuclear achievements

My latest article in the Jamestown Foundation's China Brief. READ HEAR.

Monday, October 31, 2005

Koizumi's Kingdom of Illusion

Thanks to Josh, here is an article by Gavan McCormack.

Sunday, October 23, 2005

Honouring aggression at Yasukuni

South China Morning Post

KOIZUMI'S PILGRIMAGE
Honouring aggression at Yasukuni
WENRAN JIANG

In open defiance against growing domestic and international criticism, Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi went to the Yasukuni Shrine on Monday, his fifth such visit since coming to power in 2001. The following day, a large number of other politicians paid tribute at the shrine.

Two weeks ago, a Japanese high court ruled that Mr Koizumi's pilgrimage to Yasukuni, where convicted war criminals are honoured among the war dead, violated the constitutional separation of church and state. A number of Asian countries - former victims of Japanese militarism - have always opposed such visits. They have repeatedly asked Mr Koizumi not to go to the shrine this year, the 60th anniversary of the end of the second world war.

Mr Koizumi's latest action immediately pushed Japan's relations with its neighbours to a new low. China, South Korea, Singapore and Taiwan all lodged strong protests. Scheduled diplomatic meetings between Tokyo and other Asian capitals were cancelled or postponed.

But the long-term damage to the region by the latest shrine visit will become even more severe. Unlike in Europe, where Germany's thorough reflection on history has led to continental reconciliation, East Asia has suffered from Japan's lack of remorse for its aggressive war. The annual visit to Yasukuni by Mr Koizumi and a large number of Japanese parliamentarians simply makes a mockery of any "sincere apologies" offered in the past.

First, Mr Koizumi and company justify the shrine visit as following Japanese culture and tradition. But Yasukuni was created by the Japanese government, in the late 19th century, to honour overseas expansion and imperialist war efforts. It was the designated institution for state Shinto indoctrination and the propaganda and mobilisation centre of Japanese militarism.

Yasukuni represents a culture of blind obedience to a totalitarian state, and a tradition of colonialism and imperialism through war and aggression.

Second, Mr Koizumi rebutted criticism by insisting that he goes to Yasukuni only to show respect to those who sacrificed themselves for the country's current prosperity, and to pray for peace. Yet, if one takes a tour of the war museum attached to the shrine, as I did a few months ago, it is clear that the shrine demands all who pray there should live the way those enshrined there lived.

At the shrine you find a history that says Japan did no wrong, and waged no aggressive wars, in the past. It claims all the sacrifices made by Japanese were not for a militaristic state, but for Japan's own defence and for liberating Asians from white imperialism.

Third, the prime minister has accused Beijing and Seoul of interfering in Japan's domestic affairs. Knowing full well the potential for backlash from neighbouring countries, Mr Koizumi promised right-wing groups that he would make annual visits to the shrine in exchange for their support in his leadership bid four years ago.

He then manipulated the Japanese public's resentment of foreign criticism by presenting himself as standing tall. As a result, he managed to remain popular and even won a majority in the recent lower-house election.

Unfortunately, Mr Koizumi has faced only a very limited domestic challenge to his shrine pilgrimages. That is another reflection of his country's failure as a democracy to collectively face its war responsibilities.

The Japanese voters who put Mr Koizumi in office should pursue a much brighter option, constructing a path to reconciliation in East Asia while firmly blocking the way to Yasukuni.

Wenran Jiang is an associate professor of political science at the University of Alberta, Canada.

Many players emerging in CIA leak drama

Simply a good story. Read here.

Wednesday, October 19, 2005

Stakes rise in Japan, China gas dispute

From Aisa Times

My comment on Koizumi's Yasukuni homage

Comment

At what price Koizumi's homage to Japan's war dead . . .

WENRAN JIANG

18 October 2005
The Globe and Mail
A25

The setting is the Yasukuni Shrine in central Tokyo. The sole cast member is Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi. And his ritual is to honour Japan's war dead, including thousands of convicted war criminals from the Second World War.

Mr. Koizumi's pilgrimage to the controversial Shinto site yesterday, his fifth such annual practice since taking office in 2001, is a staged act of defiance against growing domestic and international criticism. Only two weeks ago, a Japanese high court ruled that Mr. Koizumi's acts violated the constitutional separation of religion and state. Asian countries, former victims of Japanese militarism, have always opposed such a visit.

Mr. Koizumi's latest action pushed Japan's relations with its neighbours to a new low. The Chinese were particularly irritated by the timing — they were celebrating the return of their astronauts from a five-day, Earth-orbiting journey. While Seoul cancelled President Roh Moo-hyun's meeting with Mr. Koizumi at next month's APEC meeting, Beijing sent home Japanese diplomats attending high-level bilateral consultations and scrapped this weekend's visit by Japan's foreign minister.

The long-term damage to the region is much more severe. Unlike in Europe, where Germany's thorough reflection of history has led to continental reconciliation, East Asia has suffered from Japan's lack of remorse for its past wars. Yes, Japanese leaders have issued a number of apologies, including a statement that Mr. Koizumi read on Aug. 15, the date of Japan's defeat 60 years ago. But many remarks made by senior members of the Liberal Democratic Party, which has ruled Japan in the postwar era, have either rejected these apologies or undermined them.

To those who were victimized by Japanese militarism and to those who have a clear sense of history and justice, the annual visits to Yasukuni by Mr. Koizumi and a large number of Japanese parliamentarians simply make a mockery of their “deep remorse” rhetoric.

Mr. Koizumi and company justify the shrine visit as following Japanese culture and tradition. But Yasukuni is the creation of the Japanese state in the late 19th century for overseas expansion and imperialist war efforts. It was the designated institution for state Shinto indoctrination and the propaganda and mobilization centre of Japanese militarism; the sole purpose of its existence was to convince Japanese that, if they killed and died for the Emperor, their souls would be enshrined there. The Yasukuni culture is one of blind obedience to a totalitarian state, and the Yasukuni tradition is one of colonialism and imperialism through war and aggression.

Mr. Koizumi insists that he goes to Yasukuni only to show respect to those who sacrificed themselves for the country's prosperity today and to pray for peace. Yet, if one takes a tour of the state-of-the-art war museum attached to the shrine, it is clear that the shrine demands all those who pray there to live the way those enshrined there lived. And you find there a history in which Japan has done no wrong: All sacrifices were for Japan's defence, and for liberating Asians from white imperialism. The Yasukuni narrative of history is not the elimination of twisted nationalism but the revival of it. The Yasukuni notion of peace is to glorify war criminals as peace lovers. And the Yasukuni interpretation of sacrifice is the total rejection of the international war tribunal's verdict on Japan's war criminals.

Four years ago, in exchange for right-wing support for his bid as prime minister, Mr. Koizumi pledged to make annual visits to Yasukuni. He then manipulated the public's resentment of foreign criticism by presenting himself as standing tall. He managed to remain popular, and even received a majority in the latest lower-house election. Unfortunately, the very limited challenge Mr. Koizumi has faced domestically for his Yasukuni venture is also a reflection of Japan's failure as a nation to collectively face its past war responsibilities.

Internationally, Mr. Koizumi has lost credibility in Asia. On the other hand, while it is hard to imagine a German chancellor visiting a Nazi memorial and telling the world it's just for peace, Mr. Koizumi has escaped from much wider international condemnation.

“To go is hell; and not to go is hell, too,” Mr. Koizumi told his aides when trying to assess the fallout before his first official trip to Yasukuni in 2001. His gamble has certainly kept him at the edge of hell. But for the Japanese nation not to go over the edge with him, a path to the future must be constructed while the way to Yasukuni is firmly blocked.

Wenran Jiang, twice a Japan Foundation fellow, is associate professor of political science at the University of Alberta.

Sunday, October 16, 2005

South China Morning Post

October 17, 2005

CHINA’S DEVELOPMENT
Beyond the politics of power

WENRAN JIANG

In its reporting on the 16th Central Committee's fifth plenum, which has just concluded, the overseas media has focused on elite politics - with much speculation about a power struggle and personnel changes. Yet, this overemphasis on the top leadership comes at the expense of a comprehensive analysis of mainland politics, economy and social changes at this very important stage of China's development.

Many fail to realise that China's leaders know very well the challenges they face as a collective entity. It is clear that if they mishandle many of the burning issues of the day, ranging from income inequality to environmental degradation, the survival of the regime as a whole will be at risk. Thus, there are fundamental unifying forces at work, pushing party elites to set aside their differences and work towards common goals.

That said, every new leadership takes certain steps to consolidate power, and the team headed by President Hu Jintao and Premier Wen Jiabao is no exception. But specific circumstances and factors differentiate this leadership from previous ones.

First, Mr Hu does not have Deng Xiaoping's personal clout, and has to rely more on the collective decision-making process. Other leaders are likely to put the emphasis on policy rather than group around an individual or a particular region. In that sense, the obsession with the factional affiliations of certain top party members may be heading in the wrong direction.

Second, there was no promotion of Mr Hu's future successors at the plenum, as had been widely anticipated. After only a few years in power, he may not have the kind of power base to reshuffle the leadership. Nor does he necessarily want to be seen to be pursuing such an agenda while trying to project a closer-to-the-people image.

Mr Hu and Mr Wen have other priorities: they have realised that unless they emphasise balanced development, more equality, harmony in society and measures to protect the environment, China's modernisation drive will not be sustained. If the Communist Party cannot continue to deliver economic growth and benefits, social stability will be threatened. Thus, the fifth plenum's priorities are not about personnel or the consolidation of power - although those are important to Mr Hu. Rather, what dominated the agenda were a new five-year economic development plan and other pressing economic, social and political issues.

Two major pillars of the new approach to solving China's development problems are gradually emerging. One is the construction of a "harmonious society", which aims to improve equality, take care of those left behind, rebuild the failing social security network and calm social unrest. The other is the "scientific concept of development", which stresses conservation and efficiency, reduces waste, promotes green indicators of gross domestic product and prevents further damage to the environment.

Both goals are, in fact, what the mainland really needs today. The irony is that Mr Hu and Mr Wen seem to have decided that they can implement these by maintaining tight control, at the expense of more political openness and civil liberty.

That is a fatal mistake. For without political reforms, broader participation, an open press and strengthened rule of law, a harmonious society and the scientific concept of development will remain largely political slogans. And the outside world will continue to be obsessed with the elite power struggle within Zhongnanhai.

Wenran Jiang is an associate professor of political science at the University of Alberta, Canada.

Saturday, October 15, 2005

China Rising: Will it Join the World or Change It?

I will speak at the one day conference on the rise of China
Sponsored by Canadian Institute of International Affairs &
Foreign Affairs Canada, Ottawa, Oct. 28, 2005
Get more details and the program

Friday, October 14, 2005

Ottawa touts China's energy needs as chance to move from U.S. market

Tara Perkins, Canadian Press October 14, 2005

China's growing appetite for oil, which will see it battle the United States and other trading partners for investment opportunities in the Canadian oilsands, will boost profits in numerous ways.

Read it here

Sunday, October 09, 2005

Local beating of Chinese farmer & foreign journalists

Benjamin Joffe-Walt of The Guardian is honest in his report. He should have known better but he does not. Every foreign reporter intended to go to the countryside for such an investigation should have read the book, A Survey of Chinese Peasants, by Chen Guidi and Chuntao.

New Five-Year Plan called 'revolutionary'

From "getting rich first" to "common prosperity"From "growth rate" to "sustainable development"

Read it here

Hu brought down to earth

Hu brought down to earth
By a Special Correspondent

Even as China celebrated sending two men into space, Chinese President Hu Jintao was in no mood to join in the back-slapping. His political agenda received a thumbs-down at the Communist Party's central committee plenum. This is certainly a setback for Hu, but the game is far from over.

Read it here

Sino-U.S. Energy Competition in Africa

With oil prices hitting record levels of US$70 per barrel in recent weeks, major energy-consuming countries are engaging in an increasingly heated competition for energy resources on the world stage. Nowhere is this more evident than between the United States and China, the world's first and second-largest energy consuming countries respectively.

Read it here

U.S. Energy Future Rests with Development of Canadian Oil Sands

U.S. Energy Future Rests with Development of Canadian Oil Sands
Along a giant patch of Canada's Far North, where moose outnumber people, a vital part of America's energy future seeps out of riverbanks and is hidden below soft prairie grass. These Canadian oil sands will help keep American SUVs running in the years to come.

Read it here

Will Japan balance China?

Read this editorial in The Economist.

Paul Martin's speech on Canada-US relations

Read the speech from the PM's site.

Saturday, October 08, 2005

Revving up the China threat

From The Nation by Michael T. Klare. Read here.

Friday, October 07, 2005

India discreet, China bold in oil hunt

By Indrajit Basu in Asia Times

China's wealth gap reaching critical level

Reuters report with inputs from my interview.

Thursday, October 06, 2005

Changing places: China & the United States

Thanks to Josh for recommending this article. Read here.

China wants a slice of the uranium cake

Reported by Alan Boyd in Asia Times

Wednesday, October 05, 2005

PBS NewsHour: China on the Rise

Beginning to air on Oct. 4, 2005. Check it out here.

Tuesday, October 04, 2005

Asahi Editorial: It's time for Koizumi to stop the shrine visit

Read here

Sunday, October 02, 2005

China Is Simply Too Busy Getting Rich to Worry about Democracy

China Is Simply Too Busy Getting Rich to Worry about Democracy
Telegraph, Oct. 2, 2005, written by Niall Ferguson, in Taiwan Security
Read article

Undue Fears of China Inc?

Undue Fears of China Inc?
Facing international suspicion and fueled by economic necessity, Chinese companies struggle to expand overseas, writes Paul Mooney in YaleGlobal, 29 September 2005
Read article

China: Imports crude, exports oil

Oil exports leaves China grappling for fuel at home

By Peter S. Goodman

Washington Post Foreign Service
September 28, 2005

How China Is Building An Empire

How China Is Building An Empire
By Michael Vatikiotis and Murray Hiebert, Far Eastern Economic Review, Nov. 20, 2003

A very good article on China's foreign policy towards Southeast Asian nations. is China using a liberal economic and multilateral framework to quietly challenge the realist security-led policy of the United States? Is China is pursuing a genuine multilateral foreign policy here? If so, why China tries to exclude Japan and the US? Is China trying to "cooperate today, compete tomorrow"? If this is the case, how the US could respond to it?

Read here

Saturday, October 01, 2005

Assessment of Hu Jintao's North American Visit

The Straits Times
Sept 23, 2005
Hu shows hard-soft diplomacy in North America
He stresses China's peaceful intent in his trip but draws the line on Taiwan and Tibet
By Chua Chin Hon
China Bureau Chief

BEIJING - A TRIP to the White House, postponed by Hurricane Katrina, scuttled the public relations centrepiece for Chinese President Hu Jintao's first official trip to North America earlier this month.

The Chinese plan was for Mr Hu to use his meeting with President George W. Bush to take his message about China's pursuit of 'peaceful development' directly to the American public and leaders.

The message was to act as a counterweight to the growing talk in America about the so-called 'China threat'.

But the chaotic aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, which preoccupied the Bush administration and knocked Mr Hu's White House visit off the agenda, denied Beijing that much-needed public relations exercise.

Mr Hu pressed on with the remaining legs of his North American trip, and there was no mistaking Beijing's increasingly distinct brand of hard-soft diplomacy - one backed by the country's growing economic prowess and driven by the country's ravenous need for resources.

Combined with a desire to soften the rough edges of China's public image, it's a foreign policy doctrine that has been brought to bear on many of his earlier trips, such as the ones to Australia in late 2003 and Latin America last year.

In his 10-day swing through Canada, Mexico and the United Nations in New York, the Chinese leader stressed time and again China's peaceful
intent.

But on China's 'core interests' like Taiwan or Tibet, Mr Hu had no problems talking the tough talk and backing it up with real action.

'China will unswervingly keep to the path of peaceful development and continue to hold high the banner of peace, development and cooperation,' he told world leaders last week at the UN summit marking the 60th anniversary of the world body.

He offered the world's poorest countries tariff-free trade, debt relief, job training and US$10 billion (S$17 billion) in cheap loans.

This grand gesture to mark Beijing's move from a recipient of aid to a donor country, however, came with a diplomatic catch.

The offers were excluded from a dozen states which recognise Taiwan instead of China, among them some of the poorest countries in Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean.

In Canada, Mr Hu elevated bilateral ties to the level of 'strategic partnership' - clearly with an eye on Canadian oil reserves, the second largest in the world after Saudi Arabia - and vowed to double trade between the two countries by 2010.

But he also warned in no uncertain terms that China would not compromise on the Taiwan issue despite its massive energy needs.

'There have been some noises, discordant noises, on the question of Taiwan coming from within Canada,' the Chinese leader told a press conference, referring to attempts by a Canadian parliamentarian to pass a Bill that would make it easier for Taiwanese leaders to visit.

He added: 'We hope that this question can be appropriately addressed so as not to undermine the political foundation of China-Canada relations.'

China's worry is that Canada, a major Western country, would set off a 'domino effect' should it pass Bills more sympathetic to Taiwan, said Associate Professor Jiang Wenran of the University of Alberta in Canada.

He told The Straits Times: 'Hu Jintao responded diplomatically on questions about human rights.

'But he wasn't diplomatic at all about Taiwan or Tibet...Taiwan is the bottomline issue and it's always on their radar.'

Talk of a second visit to the United States later this year has not been confirmed.

In the meantime, Chinese analysts contend that Beijing should try not to score more 'own goals' and provide ammunition to China-bashers.

Japanese High Court: Koizumi's Yasukuni visit illegal

NYT, October 1, 2005

Japanese Court Rules Premier's Visits to War Shrine Illegal
By MARTIN FACKLER

TOKYO, Sept. 30 - A Japanese court on Friday handed a rare victory to opponents of Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi's visits to a war shrine, ruling that the visits violated Japan's constitutional separation of religion and the state.

Experts said the ruling by the Osaka High Court probably would not force the Japanese prime minister to stop visiting the Yasukuni Shrine, which honors Japan's war dead, including those hanged for criminal conduct during World War II. But they called it a symbolic victory for critics here and elsewhere, who regard the visits as a measure of Japan's lack of contrition for wartime atrocities.

"This will strengthen Koizumi's opponents," said Hiroshi Nakanishi, a professor of international politics at Kyoto University. "More people will be encouraged to speak out against the visits."

Mr. Koizumi questioned the ruling but left his intentions about future visits unclear.

There was no immediate reaction from either China or South Korea, the most vociferous objectors to Mr. Koizumi's visits to the shrine, as well as to Japanese history textbooks that critics say underplay atrocities Japan committed during the war.

This is the second time a Japanese court has ruled against the visits while courts have rejected eight other cases, including a ruling Thursday by the Tokyo High Court dismissing a civil suit. Plaintiffs in that suit said they would appeal to Japan's Supreme Court.

The rest of the article

Thursday, September 29, 2005

EAC-JSAC Alberta 2005 Conference

See program details here

Tuesday, September 27, 2005

Univ. of Alberta's new president

Watch or read the insperational installation speech by Dr. Indira Samarasekera.

Sunday, September 25, 2005

Pantagon revises nuclear strike plan

The Pentagon has drafted a revised doctrine for the use of nuclear weapons that envisions commanders requesting presidential approval to use them to preempt an attack by a nation or a terrorist group using weapons of mass destruction. The draft also includes the option of using nuclear arms to destroy known enemy stockpiles of nuclear, biological or chemical weapons.
Read Washington Post report
Read the Pentagon Report [PDF]
The North Korean reaction

China's Leader, Ex-Rival at Side, Solidifies Power

By Joseph Khan of The New York Times, September 25, 2005, Read article

Japan blind to a dark past or provoked by China?

Russell Skelton of The Age returns to Tokyo's Yasukuni Shrine to find a nation still denying its wartime brutality. Read article
Yoichi Funabashi of Asahi Shimbun analyzes Koizumi's election victory. Read article

Martin Wolf on China's rise

From The Financial Times, Sept. 19, 2005

Saturday, September 24, 2005

Iran nuclear dispute could split world community

Non-aligned nations' support for Tehran's right pits them against the West, writes Dilio Hiro in YaleGlobal ONLINE.

World Bank rediscovers inequality

Analysis by BBC
When the World Bank's new president, Paul Wolfowitz, presides over his first annual meeting, he will be confronted with a radical new report from his own organisation that sees ending inequality as a key to reducing poverty.
Read report

China's Canadian gateway

Commentary by Paul Evans in The Globe & Mail, Sept. 23, 2005.

Friday, September 23, 2005

The Brookings Institution: China's Emergence

One day conference to launch its China Initiative
Sept. 20, 2005
Watch the conference online (require Windows Media Player)

Thursday, September 22, 2005

China gets advice from the US

Pacific Perspectives with TOM PLATE

Debate on Iraq: Galloway vs. Hitchens

British MP George Galloway vs. author Christopher Hitchens
A debate on the Iraq war
Watch the debate here

Wednesday, September 21, 2005

Quagmire in Iraq and oil supply

Asia Times
The failed mission to capture Iraqi oil
By Michael T Klare Sep 22, 2005
It has long been an article of faith among America's senior policymakers - Democrats and Republicans alike - that military force is an effective tool for ensuring control over foreign sources of oil. Read article
Blood for no oil by Tom Engelhardt Read article

Sunday, September 18, 2005

China will invest more abroad

China’s Outward Direct Investment Set to Rise

Outward direct investment (ODI) from the People’s Republic of China is set to rise in the years ahead as Chinese companies respond to the government’s policy of encouraging firms to “Go Global”, according to a report released today in Vancouver and Beijing entitled China Goes Global.
New release
Download report

Thursday, September 15, 2005

EAC-JSAC Alberta 2005 Conference Program

Japan Studies Association of Canada

East Asian Council of Canadian Asian Studies Association

EAC-JSAC 2005 ALBERTA CONFERENCE PROGRAM

Connections & Identities in East Asia and Beyond

All conference activities & lunches are in Telus Centre at Univ. of Alberta, 111 St. & 87 Ave.

Thursday, Sept. 29, 2005

4:00-6:00 pm Registration, Telus Centre

7:30-9:30 pm Reception, Telus Centre

Friday, Sept. 30, 2005

7:30-8:30 am Registration / Morning coffee

8:30-9:00 am OPENING CEREMONY (Rm. 217-219)

Dr. Satoshi Ikeda, EAC-JSAC 05 Conference Co-Chair, MC

Dr. Rolf Mirus, Acting Vice-Provost & Associate Vice-President (International), Univ. of Alberta

Dr. O. P. Dwivedi, President, CASA

Dr. Fumiko Ikawa-Smith, President, JSAC

9:00-10:15 am PLENARY SESSION I: (Rm. 217-219)

Sixty Years Anniversary of World War II:

History, Identity, Nationalism & Reconciliation

Chair: Dr. Charles Burton, Brock Univ.

Stephen Doust, Canadian Embassy in Tokyo—The Changing Japanese Dynamic and its Implications

Kimie Hara, Univ. of Waterloo—Japan and the “Unresolved Problems” in East Asia

Satoshi Ikeda, Univ. of Alberta— Between Malign Oblivion and Learned Ignorance: Japanese “Management” of War Crime Memories

10:15-10:30 am Coffee break

10:30-12:00 am BREAKOUT SESSIONS I

Panel A Roundtable - Promoting East Asian Studies: Perspectives from Chairpersons (Rm. 217)

Chair: Peter Nosco, Chair, Dept. of Asian Studies, UBC

Janice Brown, Chair, Dept. of East Asian Studies, Univ. of Alberta

X. Jie Yang, Chair, Dept. of Germanic, Slavic, and East Asian Studies, Univ. of Calgary

Jan Walls, Director, David Lam Centre, Simon Fraser Univ.

Cody Poulton, Chair, Dept. of Pacific & Asian Studies

Univ. of Victoria

Panel B Chinese/Canadian Adoptive Kinship:

Cultural, Legal, and Historical (Rm. 219)

Chair: Sara Dorow, Univ. of Alberta

Ouellette Françoise-Romaine, Université du Québec—Chinese/Canadian Adoption and the Increasing Openness of Adoption Files

Xiaobei Chen, Univ. of Victoria—Chinese Orphans, Canadian Missionaries and Adoptive Parents: Cross-Border Love (Kua Guojie De Ai) in Historical Perspective

Sara Dorow, Univ. of Alberta—“Being Chinese”: Adoptive Families as Immigrant Families?

Panel C Food Culture and the Food Industry in Japan (Rm. 131)

Chair: Carin Holroyd, Asia Pacific Foundation

Matsubara, Toyohiko, Ritsumeikan—Environment-friendly agriculture and producer-consumer network in Japan

Joe Kess and Yuko Igarashi, Univ. of Victoria— Food Fight! Change and challenge in Japan's culinary culture

Yuko Igarashi and Joe Kess—Univ. of Victoria—A Not so-Dry Economy

12:00-1: 30pm Lunch sponsored by Faculty of Arts (Rm. 140)

WELCOME:

Dr. Sheree Kwong See, Associate Dean, Faculty of Arts, Univ. of Alberta

KEYNOTE:

Mark Seldon, Binghamton University,

The Future of East Asian Studies: Regional
and Global Perspectives

BOOK LAUNCH:

Why Japan Matters edited by Joe Kess and Helen Lansdowne

Magnolia: Stories of Taiwanese Women by Tzeng Ching-wen, and translated by Lois Stanford and Jenn-Shann Lin

1:30-3:00 pm BREAKOUT SESSIONS II

Panel D Roundtable - Teaching about Contemporary China:

Issues, Dilemmas, and Perspectives (Rm. 217)

Chair: Ken Foster, UBC

Timothy Cheek, UBC

Ellen Judd, Univ. of Manitoba

Feng Xu, Univ. of Victoria

Panel E Popular Culture, Identity & Nationalism (Rm. 219)

Chair: Joe Kess, Univ. of Victoria

Cathy Kmita, York Univ.—The Mongolian Dance Andai: Trading Dance for Identity

Xu Wu, Univ. of Alberta—Crying Wedding and Dancing Funeral: Folk Rituals as Ethnic Identities in Contemporary West Hubei

Mark Driscoll, Univ. of North Carolina—The Two Freeters of Contemporary Japan: The Fateful Marriage of Neoliberalism and Neonationalism

Panel F Health Care in East Asia (Rm. 131)

Chair: Jim Tiessen, McMaster Univ.

Wei-Ching Chang and Marie-Laure Baudet,, Univ. of Alberta—The Tao of Feminism and Health Care in Taiwan

Taikun Ji, Univ. of Alberta—HealthCcare and Deepening Rural Crisis in China.

Jim Tiessen, McMaster Univ. —Hospital Competition and Quality in Japan

3:00-3:30 pm Networking break

3:30-5:00 pm BREAKOUT SESSIONS III

Panel G Roundtable – East Asian Energy Security

Chair: Tom Waldichuk, Thompson Rivers Univ.

Simon Nantais, Univ. of Ottawa—Foreign policy, National Identity:Canadian Newspapers During the Sino-Japanese War, 1937-1941

Iain Grant, Dalhousie Univ.— The Puzzling Case of the Sino-Canadian Oil Relationship

Simin Yu, Univ. of Alberta—Sino-Japanese Competition for Energy

Panel H Transformations in Chinese Identities: Intellectuals, Students, and Minorities in the Modern Period (Rm. 219)

Chair: Timothy Cheek, UBC

Timothy Cheek, UBC—Intellectual Identities: What Makes a 'Chinese Intellectual' Chinese?

David Luesink, UBC—Transformation in regional identities: Cheeloo Univ. and St. John's Univ. medical students/graduates as agents of regional and national identity.

Jack Hayes, UBC—Market and Ethnic Identities: Roads, the Environment, and Minority Identities in Northern Sichuan

Ryan Dunch, Univ. of Alberta— An Overview of Missionary Books in Late Qing China (1811-1911)

Panel I The borderless world: changing perspectives on language and culture (Rm. 131)

Chair: Tsuneko Iwai, McMaster Univ.

Tsuneko Iwai, McMaster Univ.—Globalization and the changing patterns of self-construals: an exploratory study of the Japanese students abroad

Noriko Yabuki-Soh, York Univ.—Re-examining Japaneseness: Nihonjinron and cross-cultural manuals

Kaori Yoshida UBC—Animation and Otherness: Asia-ness and Orientalism in the Japanese Anime World

Naofumi Tatsumi, Purdue University—Cross-cultural understanding: Proposing an intercultural communication course with emphasis on East Asia

6:00-8:30 pm Conference Dinner, Faculty Club

KEYNOTES:

Professor Takeshi Hamashita, Kyoto Univesity,

Changing Pattern of Sino-centric Regional Order in East Asia 1805-2005

Saturday, October 1, 2005

8:00-8:30 am Registration / Morning coffee

8:30-10:00 am BREAKOUT SESSIONS IV

Panel J Trade and Investment, and sustainable growth in Asia (Rm. 217)

Chair: Teri Ursacki-Bryant, Univ. of Calgary

Carin Holroyd, Asia Pacific Foundation—Rediscovering Japan: An Examination of British Columbia's Trade and Investment Initiative for Asia

Monir Hossain Moni, Waseda Univ.— Japanese FDI in South Asia: Limits and Possibilities

Tom Waldichuk, Thompson Rivers Univ.— Actor Networks and the Sustainability of Horticulture on Kujukuri Plain,
Chiba Prefecture, Japan

Panel K Constructing Identities in War and Peace--Japan and East Asia in the Long Twentieth Century (Rm. 219)

Chair: Bill Sewell, Saint Mary’s Univ.

Shinji Takagaki, Univ. of Toronto at Mississauga—War and the Meiji Nation-Building Enterprise
Yu Chang, Univ. of Toronto— Peacetime Reflections Upon War and East Asian Identities
Owen Griffiths, Mount Allison Univ.— Public Imagery of War, the Nation, and Historian's Responsibilities
Bill Sewell, Saint Mary’s Univ.—Manchuria in Post-Postwar Northeast Asia

Panel L Tea and Chopsticks: Cultural Awareness as an Aid to Second Language Learning (Rm. 214)

Chair: Lloyd Sciban, Univ. of Calgary

Cai Wei and Shu-ning Sciban Univ. of Calgary—What Has Been Taught about Chinese Language and Culture in Chinese Language Textbooks?

X. Jie Yang, Univ. of Calgary—Designing an On-line Database for Language Textbooks

Mayumi Hoshi, Univ. of Alberta—Is There Such a Thing as a “Best” Textbook?

Lloyd Sciban, Univ. of Calgary—Defining Culture within Language Learning

Panel M Languages Initiative –

East Asian Languages in Alberta schools (Rm. 216)

Chair: Kimie Hara, Univ. of Waterloo

John Sokolowski, Alberta Education—Overview of Languages Initiative

Jincheng Huang, Alberta Education—Chinese Language and Culture Education in Alberta

Yoko Udagawa, Alberta Education—Japanese Language and Culture Education in Alberta

10:00-10:30 Networking break

10:30-12:00 BREAKOUT SESSIONS V

Panel N Workshop - Introduction to Japan Studies Databases and a Chinese Courseware (Rm. 217)

This workshop is partially sponsored by the NCC

Tadanobu Suzuki, Librarian, Univ. of Victoria

Tomoko Goto, Japanese Librarian, UBC Asian Library

Laifong Leung & Jingjun Ha, Univ. of Alberta— Interative Chinese Tutor: A New Multimedia Courseware

Panel O Cultural Expression and Representation (Rm. 219)

Chair: Jennifer Jay, Univ. of Alberta

Brian Pendleton, Langara College—Space: The Final Frontier: Ma and the Mathematics of Japanese Garden Design

Naohiro Nakamura, Queen’s Univ.—The Change of Cultural Representation of the Ainu in Museum Exhibition.

Anne Wu, Univ. of Toronto—Cooking as Transnational Practices

Panel P Identity Formation & Historical Memory (Rm. 214)

Chair: Mark Driscoll, Univ. of North Carolina

Yuko Shibata, UBC—Under the Asian Face: In/Visible Canadians

Hiroko Noro, Univ. of Victoria—Hapa Japanese Canadian Identity: An Exploratory Study of Identity Formation of Interracial Japanese Canadian Children

Scott Simon, Univ. of Ottawa—From Savages to Soldiers: Truku Memories of Japanese Formosa

John Harding, Univ. of Lethbridge – Contested Identities and Buddhism in Modern Japan: A Shikoku Case Study of Pilgrimage and Persecution

Panel Q Emerging China and its neighbors (Rm.216)

Chair: Ryan Dunch, Univ. of Alberta

Guoguang Wu, Univ. of Victoria— Testing China's Peaceful Rise: Taiwan, Energy, and Human Rights Issues

Saarah Shvji, Univ. of Alberta—China-Kazakasthan Relations

Zachary Devereaux, Ryerson Univ.— Chinese News Coverage of North Korea in the New Media Context

12:00-1:30 pm Lunch Sponsored by School of Business (Rm. 140)

WELCOME:

Dr. Michael Percy, Dean, School of Business, Univ. of Alberta

KEYNOTE:

Mr. Jeff Kucharski, former Consul for Canada to Nagoya, Japan

The New Japan in an Asian Context

EAC Business Meeting (Rm. 217)

1:30-3:00 pm BREAKOUT SESSIONS VI

Panel R Development of Japanese Corporations (Rm. 217)

Chair: Dick Beason, Univ. of Alberta

Paul Parker, Univ. of Waterloo—Connections within and Beyond Japan’s Photovoltaic Industry:Industrial Development, National Solar Energy Strategies and Global Exports

David Edgington, UBC and Roger Hayter, Simon Fraser Univ.—Japanese Electronics Firms in Southeast Asia and China: Patterns of Bargaining, Cultural Learning and Embeddedness

Teri Ursacki-Bryant, Univ. of Calgary—Anti-Takeover Defenses and the Vitality of Japanese Corporations

Panel S Identities for Women in Pre-modern Japan (Rm. 219)

Chair: Sonja Arntzen, Univ. of Toronto

Caitilin Griffiths, Univ. of Toronto—Itinerant Jishu Nuns: Members of a Mixed Gender Religious Community

Gergana Ivanova, Univ. of Toronto—Sei Shōnagon’s Makura no Sōshi: In Search for the Original Text

Lianne Zwarenstein, Univ. of Toronto—Working Women: the Professional Identities of Kamakura Female Authors

Discussant: Christina Laffin, UBC

Panel T Education and Activism in Japanese North America (Rm. 214)

Chair: Greg Robinson, UQAM

Greg Robinson, Université du Québec À Montréal—“Forrest E. LaViolette: Asian North American Studies Pioneer”

John Baick, Western New England College—Franz Boas and the Origins of East Asian Studies in America

Susan Smith, Univ. of Alberta—Toku Shimomura: An Issei Woman during World War II

3:00-3:30 pm Networking break

3:30-5:00 pm PLENARY SESSION II (Rm. 217-219)

New Challenges & Policy Research in Canada-Asia Relations

Chair: Wenran Jiang, Univ. of Alberta

Dr. Yuen Pau Woo, President, Asia Pacific Foundation of Canada

Dr. Charles Burton, Brock University, former academic councilor in the Canadian embassy in Beijing

Mr. Alan Bowman, International Trade Canada

5:00-5:30 pm JSAC Business Meeting

Saturday Evening: Free

Sunday, October 2, 2005

8:30-10:00 am BREAKOUT SESSIONS VII

Panel U Translation: Modern & Pre-modern (Rm. 217)

Chair: Sonja Arntzen, Univ. of Toronto

Shaobo Xie, Univ.of Calgary—Translating Modernity towards Translating China

Kozue Uzawa, Univ. of Lethbridge—Problems of Selecting Appropriate Words in Translating Tanka into English

Panel V Literature & Education in Japan (Rm. 219)

Chair: Fumiko Ikawa-Smith, McGill Univ.

Yoko Riley, Univ. of Calgary—The Poetic Manifestations of Japanese History

Febe Pamonag, Univ. of Alberta—‘Where are the teachers who are to train and help the eager students?’ Tsuda Umeko and Her American and Japanese Supporters for Women’s Education in Meiji Japan

Kumiko Aoki, National Institute of Multimedia Education—Japan, Internationalization of Higher Education (or the Lack of it) in Japan

Panel W Chinese Identities: Culture & Literature (Rm. 214)

Chair: X. Jie Yong, Univ. of Calgary

Tzuhsiu (Beryl) Chiu, Univ. of Alberta— Transcultural Chinese identities

Rui Feng, Univ. of Alberta and Iris Xu, McNally Composite High School—Chinese Identities: Lessons from the Chinese Canadian Experience

Hua Li, UBC—Changing Patterns of the Bildungsroman in Modern Chinese Literature

Jennifer Jay, Univ. of Alberta— Confused Identities in the Chinese Canadian Experience: Last Names First and Paper Sons

10:00-10:15 am Coffee break

10:15-11:45 am BREAKOUT SESSIONS VIII

Panel X Japanese linguistics in Japanese Studies (Rm. 217)

Chair: Kaori Kabata, Univ. of Alberta

Yuki Johnson, Univ. of Toronto—Functions of the Particle Ga in Japanese: Ga as an Object Marker

Kaori Kabata, Univ. of Alberta—Usage Patterns and Mental Representation of Japanese Particles

Kiyoko Toratani, York Univ.—Mimetics (lost) inTtranslation

Panel Y Encounters with the Other: Re-Locating the Intertextual/Transnational in Modern Japanese Literary Texts (Rm. 219)

Chair: Janice Brown, Univ. of Alberta

Brad Ambury, Univ. of Alberta—Transnational Encounters in Modern Fiction

Ania Dymarz, Univ. of Alberta—Kurahashi and Kafka: A Comparative Reading of Textual Worlds

Janice Brown, Univ. of Alberta—Disentangling Lyric and Nation in Modern Japanese Poetry

Panel Z Education in Japan (Rm. 214)

Chair: Yoko Riley, Univ. of Calgary

Lloyd Scaiban and Scott Harrison, Univ. of Calgray—The Japanese Concept of Self in Teaching Japanese as a Second Language

Yoko Udagawa, Gakuin Univ.—Kanji for High School Programs

Mito Takeuchi, Ohio Univ.—Supplemental Education for Foreign Residents in Japan: Challenges of “Multicultural Coexistence

11:45am-12:00 pm Closing Remarks (Rm. 217-219)

Dr. Satoshi Ikeda & Dr. Wenran Jiang

EAC-JSAC 05 Conference Co-Chairs

12:00-1:00 pm Lunch (Rm. 217-219)

NOTES:

1. Please make payments in either check or cash at the registration;

2. Please limit your presentation to 15 minutes;

3. Roundtable should be open and interactive;

4. Every room has a computer with projector for PPP, etc.;

5. Every room has Internet access;

6. There are two computers with Internet access in the main lobby for email;

7. We will distribute your paper or outline if you have copies with you;

8. We will consider the publication of the proceedings after the conference;

9. Please let us know if you have any special requests.

END