Briefs
Subway Expands
The 13.5-kilometer subway between Fuxingmen and Bawangfen will begin trials on September 28, according to the Beijing Morning Post.
The new line --together with the original between Pingguoyuan and Fuxingmen --will directly connect the east and west sides of the city.
With an investment of 7.57 billion yuan, the ditie project began in June 1992.
The article also savors the official statistic that upon completion, Beijing's total length of subway will be 53 kilometers.
Market Awaits Fate
The Silk Market will not be moved or torn down --yet. No plan has been released for its future after a redevelopment construction project was postponed recently, according to the Quality Shopping Guide.
Opened in 1982, the market of Jiangguomenwai Dajie receives more than 10,000 daily visitors. Although there has never been a reported serious accident, the narrow alleyway is an obvious fire hazard.
"I can understand the necessity of improving the conditions of the market," said one stall owner. "But right now I really want to know what's going on?"
A market manager said the renovation project was very important. The plan could not be determined by one party alone.
Stall owners' opinions would be valued, he said.
Construction will wait until next year in part because October is the best shopping season, according to the newspaper.
Friendly Ties
Foreigners in Beijing permanent residence must obtainan an employment permit from the city government, according to the official China Daily.
More than 11,700 foreigners and about 2,700 people from Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan are working in the city's joint ventures and other overseas-funded enterprises. Most are from the Republic of Korea, Japan, Singapore and the United States.
However, foreigners may be exempted from the employment license and permit if they are professional, technical, or managerial personnel employed directly by the Chinese government or have special skills reorganized by international technical authorities.
Women Win Viewers
The second FIFA Women's World Cup Final drew a record television audience in China in spite of its screening at 4am Beijing time, according to ACNielsen Media International.
ACNielsen Peoplemeter TV rating data showed viewership in Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Chengdu and Wuhan soared steadily.
Total ratings shot up to as high as 21 percent in Shanghai, 18 percent in Beijing, 15 percent in Guangzhou, 19 percent in Chengdu and Wuhan respectively.
The more-than 120-minute final between China and the USA ended goal- less, but then proceeded to a penalty kick shoot-out.
USA, winners of the shootout, were deemed winners of the match and the championship.
World football body Fifa is still considering a number of innovations designed to resolve the devisive shootout issue.
Popular with TV audiences, shootouts are nonetheless reviled by soccer purists. Shootouts are said by them to have marred the men's 1994 World Cup Final and last year aided a low-scoring French side to reach the men's final.
Women Win Reward
China Women's Association has decided to establish a specific fund for Chinese women's football, according to Gu Xiulian, association vice-chairwoman reported in Beijing Youth Daily.
Despite attracting large TV audiences, the women in the national team do not enjoy anything approaching the financial packages of professional male soccer players.
China's long-suffering soccer fans note by comparison the male team has yet to qualify for the World Cup.
Despite successes on the field, off the field women's soccer faces teething problems. The women's association fund targets the financial shortfalls and aims to facilitate the development of the women's game.
Divorce Rates Soar in City
Beijing's divorce rate at 25 percent is almost double the national average, according to an article in Life Times.
The rising Chinese divorce rate remains much higher in cities than in rural areas, with Shanghai top, also at 25 percent in 1997. No analysis as to the causes was available.
Chinese divorce rates have kept growing since 1980, from 4.75 percent in 1980 to 13 percent in 1997.
In 1980, 7,167,000 couples married and 341,000 divorced: a rate of 4.75 percent. In 1995, 9,297,000 couples married and 1,055,000 divorced: 11.35 percent.
In 1997, the divorce rate topped 13 percent. The peak age group for divorce in China is between 40 and 50. No analysis was offered as to why middle-aged couples are number one in the divorce statistics. Tautological explanations were attributed to an un-named "marriage and family expert".
He concluded the increasing divorce rate resulted from changing moral conceptions of marriage and the impact of social and economic development. He did not exclude any causes, nor expand upon his own.
The main reason for the rise, he added, is that new generations place increasingly high hopes on their marriage. When expectations and reality contradict, divorce becomes a must, the same expert further explained.
However, the sociologist did not explain why more middle-aged people are divorcing, nor did he attempt to break down analysis into measurements or even anecdotes about critical changes in Chinese society and its attitudes. Left undiscussed, among other issues, were traditional arranged marriages, pre-marital sex and an increasingly materialistic younger generation.
Complex to Open
Beijing's dustiest construction site will stop work soon and open for business in time for National Day, according to the official China Daily.
The 800,000-square-meter Oriental Plaza on Changan Avenue includes an office and apartment complex, a five-star hotel, exhibition and convention center, shopping and entertaining malls.
The complex layout is modeled on the Temple of the Heaven, according to the official English language newspaper.
Beida Picks Scholarships
Beijing University became the first university in China to provide scholarships to 35 overseas students, mostly from Japan and South Korea, according to the official Xinhua News Agency.
Since 1949, Beijing University has granted diplomas to more than 20,000 overseas students. Among them, 70 percent were self-paid and the rest were supported by the Chinese government.
That's not enough, according to Hu Zhiping, Director of Chinese Reception Office of International Cooperation and Exchanges Department of State Education Ministry. He said the State Education Ministry is considering strengthening monetary support to overseas students.
The scholarships total 250,000 yuan --US$30,000 --with doctoral students gaining a first prize 15,000 yuan and second prize 10,000 yuan. The first and second prize for undergraduates were 3,000 and 2,000 yuan.
Happy Birthday Dear Kongzi
Qing-style sacrificial offerings will be held at the Beijing Confucius Temple to celebrate the 2,500th birthday of the great Chinese sage, according to the official Xinhua News Agency.
Confucius Culture Week features sacrifices for Teacher's Day on September 10 and Confucius' birthday on September 28.One hundred and twenty people in traditional Qing Dynasty garments will present offerings in six phases: welcoming gods, primary offerings, second offerings, final offering, offering withdrawal and seeing off the gods.
A "Confucius and Confucianism" exhibition in Chinese will be launched on September 6. A seminar in Chinese on Confucius research, Confucianist businesspeople and intellectual property also starts the same day.