Welcome to the Beijing Hour, coming to you live from the Chinese capital.

Coming up on our program this evening...

Formal charges filed against former Thai Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra.

The DPRK rolling out an anti-graft campaign within the ruling Worker's Party of Korea....

Libya asking the UN Security Council to lift an arms embargo to enable it to fight IS Militants....

In Sports...South Korean Il-hee Lee holds one shot lead at LPGA Aussie Open....

In Entertainment...Rapper Vanilla Ice released from custody following an arrest for burglary.

And in the second half of our program, we'll be bringing you a holiday-edition of "Life Upclose."

First, let's check in with what's happening with the weather...

 

 

Weather

 

 

Beijing will be snowy tonight, with a low of minus 1. It will see sleet tomorrow, with a high of 4.　

Meanwhile Shanghai will be cloudy tonight, with a low of 5, it will see slight rain tomorrow, with a high of 12.

Chongqing will be overcast tonight, 18 degrees the lowest, tomorrow will also be overcast with a high of 17.

Elsewhere in the world, staying in Asia

Islamabad will be sunny tomorrow with a high of 31.

Kabul, scattered showers, 10.

Over in Australia

Sydney, partly cloudy, highs of 28.

Canberra, scattered thundershowers, 29.

Brisbane, thunderstorm, 28.

Finally, Perth will see a sunny day with a high of 28.

 

 

Thank you very much, just a reminder there are several ways to reach out to us here on the Beijing Hour.

You can follow us on our weibo account at weibo.com/beijinghour, or wechat account: the Beijing Hour, or email us directly at [email protected].

 

 

Top News

 

 

Thai State Prosecutors File Criminal Charges against Yingluck

 

Thailand's state prosecutors have filed criminal charges against former Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra for her government's rice subsidy scheme.

The country's attorney general submitted the case documents to the Supreme Court, accusing Yingluck of dereliction in overseeing a rice subsidy scheme that lost billions of U.S. dollars.

Today's charges follow Yingluck's impeachment by the legislature one month ago, which forced her out of politics for five years.

Surasak Threerattrakul, director general of Investigation Department, said Yingluck may have to wait one month before she knows whether she will be trialed.

"The Supreme Court's Division of Political Office Holders has accepted the files and has scheduled to announce their decision on March 19, 2015 at 10.00AM."

Yingluck stepped down from office following a court decision that came shortly before the military staged a coup in May, 2014 and seized power from her government.

The rice subsidy scheme, which benefited the country's poor rice growers, has angered Thailand's political elite in the capital.

If the charges stand, Yingluck is likely to face a 10-year prison term.

 

 

DPRK says to launch anti-graft campaign within ruling party

 

North Korea has said it will roll out an anti-graft campaign within the ruling Workers' Party of Korea.

The resolution was adopted at an enlarged meeting of the political bureau of the central committee of the WPK on Wednesday.

It stressed the need to wage an all-party intensive campaign against abuse of power, bureaucratism, irregularities and corruption.

It also called for efforts for to "thoroughly establish the monolithic leadership system of Kim Jong Un."

The North Korean top leader made a concluding speech at the meeting, urging officials to work and live "simple-mindedly, uprightly and honestly with conscience."

 

 

Libya asks the UN Security Council to lift arms embargo

 

Libya's foreign minister is demanding the United Nations Security Council lift an arms embargo against the country to enable it to tackle the growing threat posed by the Islamic State group.

Foreign Minister Mohammed al-Dairi spoke to an emergency session of the council following the graphic showing the beheadings of 21 Egyptian Coptic Christians in Libya by the Islamic State Group.

"Libya needs a decisive stance from the international community to help us build our national arms capacity, and this would come through the lifting of the arms embargo on weapons so that our army can receive material and weapons so they can deal with this rampant terrorism."

He stressed that Libya is not asking for international intervention, although his country has asked neighboring Egypt to support the Libyan army.

Libya's request for the lifting of arms embargo was backed up by Egypt, whose foreign minister said the international community must help the Libyan government extend its authority throughout a country divided by rival militias.

The UN imposed arms embargo for Libya has been in place since 2011.

After Islamic and tribal militias took over the capital, Tripoli, the elected parliament has been forced to function in the eastern city of Tobruk.

 

 

Military Court Quashes Former Guantanamo Detainee's Terrorism Conviction

 

A US Court of Military Commission has struck down the conviction of a former Guantanamo Bay detainee who said he had been "subjected to five and a half years of physical and psychological torture".

This move voids David Hicks' March 2007 guilty plea, the first such conviction of a prisoner at the base in Cuba and still one of only a handful.

Hicks said his health was seriously affected during his time in prison.

"I am in a lot of trouble at the moment physically. It is even affecting my ability to do my day job which is my only income. So, I am in need of an operation on my left knee, my right elbow, my back, my teeth keep getting pulled because I couldn't brush them for five and a half years. So it is becoming an expensive exercise to fix myself from the years of torture."

Hicks, now 39, had pleaded guilty to providing material support to terrorism.

Hicks served all but nine months of his seven-year sentence at the Guantanamo Bay starting late 2001.

Last year, an appeal's court ruling in the case of another detainee found that material support was not a legally viable war crime for conduct that occurred before 2006, and thus that Hick's case should not have been handled in a military court at all.

 

 

EU and NATO Condemns Rebels' Takeover of Debaltseve a Violation of the Ceasefire

 

European and NATO officials are condemning anti-government forces in eastern Ukraine, saying they're violating last week's ceasefire agreement inked in Minsk.

The condemnation follows an informal meeting of EU defense ministers in Latvia.

The meeting was called in connection with the "fall of Debaltseve" to separatist forces after days of relentless fighting.

The town of Debaltseve is a key rail hub in eastern Ukraine connecting the cities of Donetsk and Luhansk.

Debaltseve had been under the control of Ukrainian forces before the ceasefire officially went into effect this past Sunday.

However, rebel forces have stepped up their attacks this week, forcing the Ukrainian government to withdraw.

Federica Mogherini is the European Union's foreign policy chief.

"Developments this night in the Debaltseve, in Ukraine, were clearly a violation of the ceasefire, of the agreements that were signed. Let me stress that not only the European Union but the whole international community, with the resolution that was adopted yesterday in the UN Security Council, stand for a full implementation of all points of the Minsk agreement reached last week."

Ukrainian president Petro Poroshenko has confirmed the takeover of Debaltseve by the rebels, saying an organized withdrawal of government forces has been made.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov insists the rebels' actions in Debaltseve are not in violation of the ceasefire, claiming it was a rebel-held city when the peace agreement was signed last week.

At the same time, NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg is calling on Russia to withdraw its forces from Ukriane, claiming Russian troops, artillery and air defense units are still active in Ukraine.

Moscow has consistently denied its involvement in eastern Ukraine.

 

 

Greece to Submit Request for Loan Extension, Not Bailout Program

 

A leading member of the Greek opposition has confirmed the Greek government is going to put in a request for a loan extension from its euro zone creditors later on this Thursday.

Stavros Theodorakis is the leader of the Potami Party.

"The prime minister gave me a detailed update of the government's intention to submit tomorrow a request for an extension to the loan agreement. At the same time he informed me of the reforms he intends to propose, some of these have been budgeted."

European authorities have been giving Greece until Friday to ask for an extension.

Otherwise, the IMF had been threatening to cut off its financing to Greece.

Greece's four-year bailout is due to expire at the end of this month.

However, the new Greek government is demanding a roll-back of the austerity provisions which have been forced on Greece in the original program.

European officials have been insisting that Greece live-up to the austerity which previous Greek governments have adhered to.

A failure to reach a new loan extension would see Greece default and be forced to withdraw from the Eurozone.

Dutch Finance Minister Jeroen Dijsselbloem, who heads the meetings of Eurozone finance ministers, now confirms that Greece has sent a request for a six-month extension to its EU loan program.

 

 

Experimental drug shown to block all HIV strains: study

 

U.S. researchers say they've discovered "a remarkable new advance" in the development of a potent drug to protect against HIV infection.

A new report in the British journal 'Nature' suggests an experimental protein-based drug US researchers have developed blocks every strain of HIV-1, HIV-2 and the simian version of the virus, including the hardest-to-stop variants.

The drug is said to protect against the virus for at least 8-months after an injection.

Conventional vaccines for HIV trigger the release of antibodies to neutralize the virus.

However, even the best broadly-neutralizing antibodies struggle to protect against all strains of HIV.

 

 

Beijing welcomes the year of the goat

 

People in Beijing have marked the start of the New Year by visiting temples and setting off fireworks.

Crowds flocked to the White Cloud Temple in the city to welcome the year of the goat. Many of those who visited the temple hung up their prayers that were written on red pieces of paper.

Wang Weixing, a Master’s student from Henan province was at the temple.

"I hope that for my family, my father will be successful in his career, that my mother's business will be prosperous, and that my little sister will make progress in her studies and I hope for peace and happiness for everyone. And now that I'm in Beijing, I hope that the weather will keep getting better and better,"

Many view the passing Year of the Horse as a year of bad luck and hopes are high for the coming year of the Goat.

Ji Yonghong, a 31 year-old contractor, hopes for a smoother year ahead.

"In the Year of the Horse that just passed, a lot of things really did happen, for instance, the Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370 incident, and other plane crashes. The Year of the Horse really was, well, extremely...well, there were many disasters, and plenty of accidents that happened. I hope that this Year of the Goat will be a peaceful year, and I hope there will be a step forward in progress for world peace,"

This year's fireworks in the capital were notably less prevalent than in recent years. Citing environmental reasons, Beijing has stepped up the limit the sale of fireworks reducing the number of fireworks retailers in the city and limiting their sales.

Fireworks are believed to scare off evil spirits and entice the God of wealth to people's doorsteps once New Year's Day arrives.

Chinese New Year, the longest and most important holiday in the Chinese calendar will end on February 24.

 

 

Fireworks push up pollution levels in Beijing on first day of the new year

 

It was a heavy smog day in Beijing today, a result of the overnight eruption of firework's displays.

After a clean day on Tuesday, the smog thickened by the minute last night, peaking at "heavily polluted levels" around midnight.

The pollutants' levels, which are measured by the so called PM2.5, averaged 400 in the downtown area during the peak hour of fireworks.

That is higher than last year's average of 300.

Li Yunting is with the Beijing Municipal Environment Monitoring Office.

"First, the fireworks display erupted around the same hour, which has contributed to the steep upswing in PM2.5 readings. The situation was not helped by the low wind speed during the hour. The pollutants accumulated at the same place, hardly moving anywhere else."

Despite heavier smog, the number of fireworks accidents fell from last year.

In the hour from midnight to 1.am, there were 25 accidents and 22 injuries caused by fireworks, down by 14 percent and 24 percent respectively from last year.

Official figures show some eighty-three thousand boxes of fireworks were sold in Beijing on the Lunar New Year's Eve, a decrease of 34 percent.

At the meantime, police have confiscated more than ten-thousand boxes of illegal fireworks.

 

 

Prince William extends bilingual greetings for Chinese New Year

 

Britain's Prince William has put out a Lunar New Year's message ahead of his first visit to China.

William, who is scheduled to arrive in China in a couple of weeks, even took a crack at Mandarin.

"Zhu ni men chun jie kuai le, yang nian da ji"

In making the address, Prince William also talked about his upcoming visit, which is meant to help launch a year of cultural exchanges between China and the UK.

"During my visit I will launch the great festival of creativity which marks the start of the year of cultural exchange between our two countries. Together, the United Kingdom and China have much to celebrate about our cultural relationship what we have in common and what we can learn from one another".

The Great Festival of Creativity in Shanghai is meant to display the UK's prowess in areas such as fashion, luxury, health and technology.

Prince William is due to arrive in China on March 1st.

He's scheduled to make stops in Beijing, Shanghai and Yunnan.

The 2nd-in-line to the British crown will be travelling alone, as his wife Kate is expecting their 2nd child within weeks.

 

 

Over 400 railway workers stick to work site during Lunar New Year holiday in Gansu

 

More than 400 railway workers in the Dangjin Mountains are working through the Chinese Lunar New Year in order to complete the construction of a railway tunnel.

Located in border areas of northwest China's Gansu, Qinghai and Xinjiang, the 20 kilometer long railway tunnel is the longest in construction in China.

Workers face harsh weather conditions with temperatures dropping to minus ten degrees Celsius.

The tunneling can only be pushed forward for two meters a day as the workers have to build up holders and concrete in the sections that they dig out.

Li Bin is chief engineer of the railway construction project.

"The rock looks very solid, but crumbles easily. It looks like rock, but is actually something between rocks and soil. So a collapse could occur easily."

According to Li, it will take up to five years to dig the tunnel as it crosses eleven geological faults.

This creates various challenges including ventilation, drainage and rock bursts.

The workers have to work throughout the day and night to ensure the tunnel can be completed on schedule.

 

 

Pudong -- Easiest Place to Set Up Business

 

At the arrival of the Chinese lunar new year, CRI brings you a special series of reports featuring some of the significant changes recorded in 2014. 2014 kicked off a new round of reforms in China. Our reporters journeyed across the country to learn more about the changes and their impacts on people's daily lives and work.

Shanghai's Pudong New Area has become one of the hottest places to set up new businesses on the Chinese mainland. But these rapid changes bring with them many challenges, as CRI's Cao Yuwei reports.

Reporter: There used to be a long list of pre-requisites that companies had to fulfill, before they could set up a business or expand an existing one. And now, 520 procedural items have been knocked-off, since reform began in 2003.

In other words, thanks to the bold steps to simplify business approval and cut government red tape, the average time needed for a go-ahead has been shortened from 22 to 8 days.

This has turned Pudong into the quickest launch pad for both domestic and multinational companies who want to tap into the lucrative Chinese market.

But it was a tough battle at the beginning as Jiang Hongjun explains. He directs the local Administrative Approval System Reform Center.

"Actually pushing forward reform was very hard at the beginning. If many administration approval items are to be cut-off, it means that some government institutions will become redundant and have to be cut as well. So it was really hard."

But it pays. Pudong New Area has been providing one-stop services to investors since 2010. Companies can now submit materials to only one designated department instead of going from door to door. This has greatly reduced administrative costs and improved efficiency.

Jiang Hongjun says innovation is vital for the reform process to succeed.

"For example, if the materials can be shared among different government departments, why asking companies to submit them over and over again? It's time consuming. We should make it more convenient."

Construction projects take up the largest proportion among all business applications. Zou Yaobin is the deputy general manager of the Shanghai Gezhouba Real Estate Group. He says quality inspection usually takes about three months.

"From our perspective, we hope the approval process won't affect our pace of construction. And the standards of inspection should be unified."

Zou Yaobin is happy that the reform measures introduced in Pudong are quite practical and effective.

"The number of procedures our companies have to follow and the number of departments we have to interact with have been greatly reduced. Before, we had to deal with many departments like the fire hazards department, lightning protection department to get our plans approved. Now we only have to communicate with professional companies since everything has been entrusted to them. This is definitely beneficial to enterprises."

The government now employs professional architectural and engineering firms to check project designs. Head of reform center Jiang Hongjun says this enables professional organizations to play a bigger role.

"We started a pilot program in 2002, to separate technical supervision from administration. Professional work should be done by professional organizations. "

Foreign firms are also positive about the improvements of business atmosphere.

Wu Chuangao is an Operation Assistant of Toscotec, an Italian company specializing in paper-making machinery, located in Pudong.

"When the business needs to expand, we must get new government approvals, on safety concerns or more import and export licenses. It usually takes about three months to get customs approval. Sometimes we turn to an agency to deal with administrative approvals, which takes less than a month. It is pretty fast."

But the lack of transparency in government procedures and information asymmetry remains a problem. And Wu Chuangao calls for unified guidelines on new applications.

Experts say that the government should focus on scientific management during the reform process. Tan Lin is the head of the economics department at the All-China Federation of Industry and Commerce.

"Transforming the way the government functions is at the heart of the reform process. The government has to make fundamental adjustments from administrative approval to market regulation and supervision. It should adapt to this change. New mechanism should be established. "

Founded in 1992, Shanghai Pudong New Area has been a pioneer in China's government reforms to create a more conducive environment for businesses and vitalize market forces. Such efforts were accelerated since the establishment of the Shanghai Pilot Free Trade Zone in September, 2013, covering Pudong and three other nearby districts.

The ongoing reform in Pudong is part of a nationwide reform process to streamline administrative powers, facilitate fair competition and fuel entrepreneurship. It also aims at easing the burden on private businesses and ensuring fair market access for foreign investors.

As the central government approved three more free trade zones in mid-December, some of the successful experiments in Shanghai are expected to be introduced in Tianjin, Guangdong and Fujian.

For investors, the message is clear: the government is determined to streamline its powers, to refrain from unnecessary meddling in market affairs and to do better in market regulation, service and supervision. For that end, Pudong, as a pioneer, has done a lot, and there's a lot more to be done.

For CRI, this is Cao Yuwei.

 

 

Cricket: Zimbabwe beats UAE by Four Wickets

 

In World Cup Cricket action:

Zimbabwe beat the United Arab Emirates by four wickets at ICC Cricket World Cup in Nelson, New Zealand earlier today.

Shaiman Anwar made 67 and 43-year-old veteran Khurram Khan 45 as the UAE scored 285-7 after being sent in to bat.

After slipping to 167-5, Zimbabwe relied on Sean Williams' unbeaten 76 to win with 12 balls to spare.

Off-spinner Mohammad Tauqir, who became the World Cup's oldest captain at 43 and who works fulltime as an airline purser, took 2-51 as the UAE staunchly defended its total before Williams hit three consecutive fours for the winning runs.

 

 

South Korean Il-hee Lee holds one shot lead at LPGA Aus Open

 

The LPGA is 'Down Under' this week with the Women's Australian Open at Royal Melbourne.

World number one Lydia Ko opened play with a round of 70 on the par-73 course that left her two shots from the lead.

The 17-year-old Kiwi set up a birdie on the front with an iron shot on number six.

Ko holed along eagle putt on 14 to end the day in a three-way tie for third at three-under.

Scotland's Catriona Matthew is at one-over after an opening round 74, but she one of the shots of the day with a birdie putt from the fringe on six.

Cheyenne Woods is in Australia, and after a rocky start to her round, Tiger's niece settled to set up a birdie with a great approach on the 17th.

Woods finished with another birdie on 18 for a first round 74 that left her at one-over par.

Nearer the top, Korean Min-seo Kwak is two shots back at three-under after a 70 that included almost acing the par-three 16th to end the day level with Lydia Ko and Canada's Alena Sharp.

Fellow South Korean Ha-na Jang is a further shot back at two-under after a 71.

But the surprise leader is another Korean Il-hee Lee, who shot a five-under 68 that included five birdies to take the Women's Australian Open first round lead by a shot over Thailand's Ariya Jutanugarn, who fired a 69.

 

 

Vanilla Ice Released from Custody after arrest

 

Vanilla Ice, an American rapper who rose to fame with the hit "Ice Ice Baby", has been released on bond from a Florida prison after being arrested and charged with breaking into and stealing from an abandoned home.

Speaking after he was freed, the artist said it was "a misunderstanding".

Police in Lantana say the recording artist and home-improvement-show host had been renovating a home next to the one that was burgled.

They also said some items taken from the abandoned house were found at his property.

Vanilla Ice, whose real name is Robert Van Winkle, also hosts DIY Network's "The Vanilla Ice Project."

The 47-year-old was charged earlier on Wednesday with burglary of a residence and grand theft and taken into custody.

He was released from the Palm Beach County jail on a 6,000 US dollar bond.