Bitter Winter

Education development is rocketing in China, with increasing number of top-tier national universities, especially Tsinghua University and Peking University, rank among the best in Asia. Yes, we cannot deny that educational investment in China comes to a significant success over the past decades. China has, yet, left rural education behind. A so-called academic success is far and away dominated by urban elites. Rural youths, with career hope or not, are denied from entering the door – the door to academic excellence and career diversity. At the end of the day, the rich continue to be rich, but the poor continue to be poor. ...

The Chinese authorities are expanding their long-term control over private outbound travel for citizens. Last year, the restrictions were applied not only for low-level civil servants and employees of state-run enterprises but also to teachers and health-care workers. To prevent people from traveling abroad, everyone is required to hand over their passports. ...

Religious belief is common among China’s rural population, representing the most significant base of believers. In an effort to attack religion at its core, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has been mobilizing the masses to monitor and report each other using a variety of means. The latest tool is the revival of Cultural Revolution-era tip-off measures. ...