Broadcasting Time: 2006-08-26



Hello and welcome to this edition of CRI Roundup. I'm David Joseph in Beijing.

Today is Saturday, August 26th, 2006.

Let's take a look back on some of the major events in China and around the world over the past week.

China's top legislative body deliberates on a series of new laws.

A Russian plane crash over Ukraine kills all 170 on board.

Iran gives its official response to a package of incentives designed to curb its uranium enrichment.

France pledges 2,000 troops to south Lebanon as the world struggles to assemble an international peacekeeping force.

And a Nanjing massacre survivor wins a case against two Japanese authors who accused her of faking her account of the atrocity.

The Standing Committee National People's Congress - or NPC - China's top legislature is currently meeting to discuss a series of draft laws.

The fifth version of a draft law on property rights accords private and public property the same protection.

Vice-chairman of the NPC Law Committee, Hu Kangsheng, says the legislation is vital for a competitive market economy.

"To persistently pursue the country's basic economic system and to give equal protection to public and private properties is one unified organism."

The draft law also strengthens protection to state-owned assets.

The session is also reviewing the country's first anti- money laundering law, with tighter rules on financial institutions expected to go into effect later this year.

Chinese President Hu Jintao has offered condolences to Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin, over a Russian airliner crash in Ukraine that killed all 170 people on board.

The Tu-154 plane was en route from the Russian Black Sea resort of Anapa to St. Petersburg when it disappeared from radar screens over eastern Ukraine.

Speaking at the crash site, emergency official Leonid Kastorsky said all those on board were believed dead.

"…there were 154 adults, six children and 11 crew members. At this moment, it is known that nobody survived."

Ukrainian Transport Minister Nikolai Rudkovsky says two of the plane's flight recorders have now been found.
Early investigations suggest severe weather caused the crash.

Iran this week said it's ready to start "serious talks" over its nuclear program.

Nuclear negotiator Ali Larijani made the remarks when issuing an official reply to a nuclear package backed by the UN Security Council's five permanent members and Germany.

In response, both China and Russia's foreign ministries urged further diplomacy.

While France has linked any return to negotiations to the suspension of uranium enrichment.

However the US has said Iran's response falls short of UN Security Council conditions, threatening sanctions if it fails to comply.

Meanwhile, Iran is conducting large-scale military exercises throughout the country.
The exercises, which included the test-firing of missiles, began Saturday, with state-run television reporting the activity would last as long as five weeks.

French President Jacques Chirac announced Thursday his country will send a force of 2,000 to the United Nations peacekeeping force in southern Lebanon, increasing its deployment from a previously announced 400 troops.
Chirac said France hopes to retain command of the force.

"France is ready to carry on and assume the commandment of the force. We will evaluate this disposal within six months, examining the evolution of the situation."

UN Resolution 1701, co-sponsored by France and the US, authorized a 15,000-strong UN force to assist the same number of Lebanese troops to deploly in the south of Lebanon.

A Chinese court on Wednesday ordered two Japanese authors pay financial damages to a Nanjing massacre survivor for accusing her of faking her account of the atrocity.

77-year-old Xia Shuqin lived through the 1937 Japanese attack on China's eastern city of Nanjing, in which at least 300,000 Chinese civilians were killed.

The then-8-year-old Xia witnessed Japanese soldiers kill seven of her family members.

Though both defendants were absent from the hearing, the court in Nanjing declared Xia's victory, and ordered 200,000 US dollars in compensation.

It also demanded the writers issue apologies in major Chinese and Japanese media, and recall and destroy copies of their books.

Xia is happy knowing she won the case.

"The verdict is fair. I didn't sue for myself only, but also for all the Nanjing Massacre victims and survivors, including my little sister."

Barriers remain in enforcing the verdict, as China and Japan have not signed judicial assistance agreements.

And with that, we conclude this edition of CRI Roundup – but remember, if you have any comments or suggestions, or you want to have an online listen to our programs, you can log on to our website - www.crienglish.com.

I'm David Joseph in Beijing. Thanks for listening. Stay tuned for more on China Radio International.


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