In a seminal speech to mark Human Rights Day which commemorates the 1948 signing of the U.N. Declaration of Human Rights, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton challenged leaders of the world to “be on the right side of history” and to recognise that "gay rights are human rights and human rights are gay rights". It's a moving, impassioned speech which totally earned her the standing ovation at the end, and it's worth 30 minutes of your time. Read the full transcript of the speech here.
1
more ›
Beijing 2008: Come for the Olympics, but
For more del.icio.us links, visit the Shanghaiist Contribute page, which is updated throughout the day.
Photo by Slow Boat To China found via the Shanghaiist Contribute page.more ›
For more del.icio.us links, visit the Shanghaiist Contribute page, which is updated throughout the day.
Photo by Shanghai Sky found via the Shanghaiist Contribute page.more ›
Results tagged “unitednations”
Hillary Clinton to world leaders: Gay rights are human rights
Maggie Cheung visits disabled children in Sichuan for UNICEF
Hong Kong cinema legend Maggie Cheung (张曼玉) played celebrity fairy godmother recently, visiting disabled children at a child welfare facility in the Sichuanese city of Yibin (宜宾). The Macau-born actress (who has ancestral roots in Shanghai) played with the kids and helped them through their regular daily routine, as part of her role as the UNICEF Ambassador to China.
China abstains in historic vote on UN resolution on sexual orientation and gender identity
The United Nations Human Rights Council has passed a historic resolution on human rights violations based on sexual orientation and gender identity by a vote of 23 to 19 with three abstentions, in Geneva yesterday.
China votes to retain the right to summarily execute gays and lesbians
On Tuesday, the United Nations General Assembly voted 93 for, 55 against with 27 abstaining to reinsert 'sexual orientation' into a resolution condemning extrajudicial, summary and arbitrary executions. It was removed in November in a move led by African and Islamic countries, but brought back for another vote following the United States' insistence.
Quote of the Day: Sha Zukang, China's rep at the U.N., gets drunk
"I know you never liked me Mr. Secretary-General -- well, I never liked you, either... I didn't want to come to New York. It was the last thing I wanted to do. But I've come to love the U.N. and I'm coming to admire some things about you..."
China votes against granting LGBT group consultative status at the U.N.
This week, the 54-country Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) of the United Nations (UN) voted to grant "consultative status" to the International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission (IGLHRC). The resolution was approved with 23 in favor, 13 against, 13 abstentions and 5 absences -- China voted "no" along with countries like Bangladesh, Comoros, Namibia, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Zambia. While China's "nay" vote may not come as a surprise, it does seem to fly against the CCP's official party line of the three no's -- no support, no prohibition, and no promotion ("不支持，不反对，不提倡") when it comes to gay issues. If they really wanted to be consistent with this policy, why didn't they choose to abstain, we wonder?
China in Copenhagen: News roundup
It's been a full week since the UN's climate conference in Copenhagen started, and nothing ground shaking has come out of the meetings so far (beyond protesting, and an interesting scandal). Of course, gathering leaders from around the world to discuss tangible restrictions on carbon emissions seems to have only brought tension over the past decade, despite increasing evidence of global warming. Yet in the buildup to this year's talks in Copenhagen, there was a general agreement that the major players in climate change discussions would undoubtedly be America and China: the biggest polluting powers have the most at stake, yet finding a suitable agreement on reduction would undoubtedly be difficult. Tensions have already risen between the two powers, and with only two days before Premier Wen Jiabao and President Obama go to Copenhagen (and only four more days of conference), time is running out.
Blowing greenhouse gases while Beijing chokes on smog
You go first... no you go first! One might imagine this kind of bickering taking place near the swings during recess, but at a gathering of world leaders? According to PBS's Thirteen/WNET, that is exactly what is happening at this year's G8 discussions.
China and India say it is up to the developed world — the biggest polluters — to take the lead in the fight against climate change. But President Bush has said that developing nations must also sign on to make any global deal work.Last year, China was already on track to pass US as the biggest source of greenhouse gases on the planet, so the question of which country is more at fault in the race to melt the icecaps seems like a bit of a moot point.
Around Asia: Heart transplants, the Pakistani election and .asia domain names
As ice is melting between North Korea and the United States, more and more Chinese businessmen have been rushing to the border with the secretive communist country, looking to cash in on its trade and investment potential.
Today's Links: Housing market bubbles, sinking water tables and yet more toy recalls
Cathay Pacific and Air China's parent company abandoned an attempt to block Singapore Airlines from buying a stake in China Eastern, as the battle for the lucrative Chinese market heats up.
Today's Links: Richard Gere, Liu Xiang and Wu Yi
Photo of Liu Xiang in a Coca Cola ad from spicedfish.
Beijing 2008: Come for the Olympics, but don't stay for the smog
Gold, silver, bronze? Nah. According to Bloomberg.com athletes the world over have smog on their minds when it comes to the quadrennial Olympics competition next year in Beijing. Gunn-Rita Dhale, Norway’s reigning world champion for women’s mountain biking had this to say about her future host city,
Today's Links: Toothpaste, melting glaciers, and expensive art
Photo by 2dogs taken from the Shanghaiist Contribute page.
Today's Links: McMuffins, banned horns and bad medicine
"Shanghai is about to become a quieter city - from June 1, drivers of cars, mopeds and bikes will be banned from blaring horns within the Outer Ring Road." We don't see this being enforced.
"Shanghai's Oriental Pearl TV Tower and Wild Animal Park were crowned as two of China's top-grade scenic spot, according to a list today published on the official Website of the country's tourism watchdog." Watching ducklings die = top-grade.
"China's Ding Junhui will be able to play two ranking events on home soil next season after Tuesday's announcement that the inaugural Shanghai Masters will take place in August." The sport is snooker.
"The Starbucks decision actually came down earlier this year, but Brad wrote the post now to extol the fact that Xingbake (after losing to Starbucks) just changed its name and taken down all offending signage."
"And by 'intimate, personal' they mean 'smaller, pricier.' And by 'design-conscious travelers' they mean 'fucking retards.' The article is insipidly subtitled 'to the delight of savvy travelers, boutique hotels are finally sprouting up in Asia.'"
"The Pudong New Area People's Court ruled the store had defrauded consumers because it had turned the best-before date on the imported cookies into the production date on the Chinese-language label."
"Tim Fenton, head of McDonald's Asia-Pacific unit, said in a telephone interview that breakfast is a 'long-term strategy' in China, where the first meal of the day is more likely to include rice porridge with pork or mushrooms than eggs or hashbrowns."
"As the environment ministry said pollution across the country was getting worse, China signed five joint agreements yesterday with the European Union, as the United Nations marked International Biodiversity Day."
"Sculptor Mark Armstrong cuts an ice block in a basement on Huaihai Road Middle this morning. About 40 tons of ice has been transported from northern Sweden to build city's first ice bar, which is scheduled to open next month." At least our third ice bar.
"Shanghai Bites essays to uncover the best of the 'xiao chi' experience in Shanghai, as well as other comfort foods and occasional glimpses at “the other half” of food in Shanghai. "
"About 200,000 people die in China each year from improper use of drugs, Chinese doctors and pharmacists say, and they are calling for greater efforts to educate consumers."
"Buildings in Rizhao, a coastal city of nearly three million on the Shandong Peninsula in northern China, have a common yet unique appearance: most rooftops and walls are covered with small panels. They are solar heat collectors."
"For the second time in weeks, a Chinese drug or food product has been singled out as a threat overseas. ... In both cases, Chinese producers said they believed the use of the chemicals to be safe and knew of no rules regulating their use."
“'Ghost shares' are highly risky, but 'black horses' have beaten expectations. Buying cheap to sell high later is known as 'fighting for the hat', while selling at a loss to avoid further losses is 'meat slicing'."
"The government looks set to back down from its long-held intention of imposing real-name registration for the country's 20 million bloggers following protests from the industry."
For more del.icio.us links, visit the Shanghaiist Contribute page, which is updated throughout the day.
Photo by Slow Boat To China found via the Shanghaiist Contribute page.
Today's Links: Corruption, toothpaste and riots
"The Shanghai government agency responsible for clearing drains and repairing lifts in apartment buildings has emerged as a leading shareholder in at least three listed companies, in spite of being barred from such risky investments."
"'Be a foreigner's landlord!' crowed one advertisement -- in Chinese only -- for buyers to invest in a new apartment block in a Beijing development."
"Twenty Chinese women were killed and four injured when a three-wheeled tractor overturned on a mountain road in the north of the country, state media said on Monday. The accident on Sunday in northern China’s Liaoning province ..."
"Yu Zhifei, a former city government official and general manager of the Shanghai International Circuit, was also expelled from the Communist Party and handed over for prosecution, the Shanghai Daily and other newspapers said."
"Police believe the two students were electrocuted after one fell into the fountain and the other wadded in to help her out." We assume they mean "waded."
"The demonstrations occurred after local governments this month dispatched 'family planning work teams' to levy fines on families that were violating government population control policies." In Guangxi.
"Four officials from Shanghai, including a former chairman of a football club, have been expelled from the Communist Party of China (CPC) and will now face criminal charges in the latest corruption scandal to be exposed in the city."
"Now you can check out the latest entries at the homepage of Metroer's 3rd Annual Cellflix Festival. They define cellflix as short pieces of a few minutes that are either captured via cell phones or can be directly downloaded and viewed on cell phones."
"China's national football coach has been ordered to lead the squad to the final four of next month's Asian Cup and avoid the errors that led to a recent defeat to Thailand, state media said Monday."
"However, Chen said the chemical, a thickening agent often used as a low-cost substitute for glycerin, was permitted under Chinese rules and was safe in small amounts."
V"eteran Chinese director Chen Kaige will be the jury president as the 10th Shanghai International Film Festival kicks off on June 16. ... Chinese movies "Wu Qingyuan", "Eye in the Sky ", "The Knot" and "Shanghai Red" are among the candidates."
"China is likely to replace the United States as the world's third most popular tourism destination next year, a United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) official said. At present, China ranks fourth, after France, Spain and the United States."
"Over the past four months, the FDA has rejected 298 shipments from China that included 'filthy' fruits, cancer-causing shrimp, and 'poisonous' swordfish."
"A Chinese man was arrested for posting sexually explicit stories on his online Web journal in a nationwide crackdown on objectionable material circulating the Internet."
"[Paulson] added that the accomplishments were likely to be in the areas of approving more routes for United States air passengers and cargo, granting financial services companies access to Chinese consumers and clearing the way for the sale of energy technologies, particularly clean-burning coal."
Photo by Shanghai Sky found via the Shanghaiist Contribute page.
Making it easier to crack down on China's "terrorists"
British PM Tony Blair came out of his visit to China a big winner after receiving China's backing for a United Nations Security Council resolution against terrorist incitement. In the aftermath of the terrorist attacks on London, Blair pushed for new laws that would make public or private statements that indirectly incited terrorism an offense punishable by law. The new UN resolution, which is still in the works, is of the same drift -- it gives countries a greater mandate to stop terrorist incitement within their own borders.
Tea and Ancient Strings: Shanghai's guqin shop
Nestled under plane trees and a thatched roof on Fenyang Lu near the Shanghai Conservatory of Music is a shop unlike any other in the city. Most passersby mistake it for a teahouse, but free tea is only the beginning of what one can savor in its timeless confines. For this place is Shanghai's first and only shop devoted specifically to the appreciation and study of the world's oldest written musical tradition, an instrument known to moderns as the guqin（古琴）, or "ancient stringed instrument."
Saving water: We'll drink to that
Shanghaiist is all for water conservation, recycling and reuse. Which is why we're going to start pulling our weight to aid the water crisis which is afflicting the nation and Shanghai itself:
« Previous
1
Next »
personals
Enter our FREE personals site!send a tip
tips@shanghaiist.comabout
advertising / arts/entertainment / calendar / contact / contribute / facebook / food/drink / jobs / mobile / news / other / personals / photos / popular / RSS / staff / twitter / videos write for us / weibosubscribe
Use an RSS reader to stay up to date with the latest news and posts from Chicagoist.