BEIJING, July 30 – As China's urban population reached 46 percent of the total population last year, Chinese urban dwellers became the largest such population in the world, according to a 'blue paper' released on Thursday.

By the end of 2009, China's urban population reached 620 million as both the annual birth rate and the total urban population became the world' s largest, according to "City' s Blue Book: China's Urban Development Report No. 3," which has been released by the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences and the Social Sciences Academic Press.

It said China's urban population is twice that of the population of the United States and one quarter more than the total population of 27 countries of the European Union.

By 2015, urban residents in China will make up about 52 percent, and by 2030, 65 percent of the total population in the country, it said.

"A milestone change for urban development will take place when urban people make up more than 50 percent of the population and thus surpass the number of rural people," the paper said.

"The 50-percent point phenomenon will occur in the mid-12th Development Program period (2011-2015) when both the number of urban and rural Chinese will reach 680 million," it said.

The role of the urban economy will be further strengthened by that time, it said, adding that the urban economy would continue to drive the domestic demand. (PNA/Xinhua)

ALM/ebp

WASHINGTON, July 29 — A planned transfer of U.S. Marines from Japan's Okinawa Prefecture to Guam could be delayed until 2017 from the current target of 2014 as the Pentagon's final environmental assessment report on the U.S. territory released on Wednesday suggested as one of the options.

The Final Environmental Impact Statement for the planned relocation of the Marine troops on Guam, however, did not state a specific timing of the completion of the transfer as an alternative to the current target year.

If the redeployment of some 8,000 Marine troops to Guam is delayed, it is also likely to delay the relocation of the Marines' Futenma Air Station in the prefecture beyond 2014 as they are all part of a package deal.

The final environmental assessment report estimated that the influx of people such as construction workers for building necessary facilities and infrastructure for the realignment could reach about 79,000 in 2014.

The report pointed to the need to slow the pace of transition of Marine troops to Guam as well as the need for changes of construction schedules or modification of facilities, noting that supplies of power and water will fall short of the demand amid a sudden population growth.

Then, the report said that if the arrival of Marine troops to Guam is delayed to 2017, it will curb the estimated influx of population in 2014 to about 57,000.

Changes of construction schedules and modification of facilities may further reduce the influx of population in 2014 to some 41,000, it added. (PNA/Kyodo)

LOR/ebp

SINGAPORE, July 29 — The Singapore International Jewelry Show 2010 opened here on Thursday, bringing together leading local and international jewelry producers, manufacturers and suppliers to seek out the latest in exquisite jewelry designs.

Showing off are internationally renowned jewelers from more than 21 countries and regions who form the majority of the 180 exhibitors.

The 4-day event showcases more than US$ 100 million in jewelry including several solitaire diamonds that exceed one million Singapore dollars (about US$ 0.73 million) in price per piece.

Speaking at the opening of the show, Singapore's Minister of State for Trade and Industry and Manpower Lee Yi Shyan called on the Singapore jewelry sector to take full advantage of the surging wave as the economic outlook is more positive this year.

He urged the local industry to ensure that areas such as internal processes, design and branding as well as staff training are in place to provide par-excellent service to their well-heeled clients.

The vibrancy and glittery of the show pieces are complemented by an exciting line-up of event highlights including the largest number of jewelry fashion shows, networking sessions and jewellery appreciation talks over four days. The show is expected to attract some 15,000 visitors. (PNA/Xinhua) vcs/utb

MANILA, July 29 — The Bureau of Fire Protection is celebrating its 19th founding anniversary year with the theme “BFP: Kumakalinga sa Kapwa at Kalikasan” on Friday, July 30.

Pre-anniversary activities happened last Sunday through a Clean-up Drive along the seaside of the Manila Bay in Roxas Boulevard.

It was initiated by the officers and personnel from the National Headquarters and NCR headed by BFP Director Rolando M Bandilla Jr. and participated by the different volunteer fire brigades and the Local Government Unit of Manila.

This has been a breakthrough because this is the first time to see firefighters armed with dustpans, brooms and cleaning materials, and not with fire hose and nozzle. Upholding its theme, this activity is one way of showing firefighters’ care for the environment.

The BFP is also having a Blood Letting Activity on July 30, 2010 at the BFP-NHQ Conference Room on 15th Avenue, Cubao, Quezon City at 8:00 a.m.

Expected blood donors are BFP personnel from the National Headquarters and NCR. It signifies the concern of the firefighters as modern Katipuneros, to their fellowmen.

Beneficiaries of the blood drive are patients of the Philippine Children’s Medical Center (PCMC) along Quezon Avenue, Diliman, Quezon City.

On the founding day celebration on August 2, 2010, a short program happens at the Quezon City Sports Club in E. Rodriguez Sr. Avenue, Quezon City.

A holy mass will kick off the daylong event which will have Interior and Local Government Undersecretary for Public Safety Rico Puno as the Guest of Honor and Speaker.

On its 19th year of giving quality service through fire suppression and prevention, BFP strives more in reaching out to the public and helping them in simple ways.

Through this, it is anticipated that the public will offer their initiative and participation in the implementation of the BFP’s programs and campaign, thus, informing them and continuously involving them in the bureau’s battle against destructive fires. (PNA) V3/JCA

SEOUL, July 29 — Prime Minister Chung Un-chan resigned Thursday in a move largely seen as taking responsibility for the ruling Grand National Party's crushing defeat in June's local elections and the failure to get parliamentary approval for the revised Sejong City plan.

Chung offered his resignation in a nationally televised address.

Chung said he will carry out his minimal responsibilities until his successor is appointed. (ONA/Xinhua) LOR/utb

SEOUL, July 29 — A growing number of young people in South Korea are beginning their careers with short-term contracts, an indication of the struggle to find stable jobs, a report showed Thursday.

According to the report by Statistics Korea, the ratio of those who started their working career on a one-year contract or shorter accounted for 16.3 percent of the total employed people aged 15-29. The ratio is much higher than the 8.7 percent and 11.2 percent surveyed in 2006 and 2008, respectively.

The report also showed that the ratio of people starting their careers on longer-term contracts exceeding one year made up 5.3 percent of the total, compared with 6.7 percent and 6.4 percent of the cited years.

Young people who were recruited with a contract that does not specify the working period declined to 59.4 percent from 65.6 percent and 63.2 percent, according to the report.

The report did not mention reasons for the increase of short-term employment among the age group, but the figures come as young people here are faced with a tougher reality in finding jobs than other age groups.

The latest job data showed that South Korea's youth employment rate stood at 8.3 percent last month compared with its headline jobless rate of 3.5 percent.

Reflecting the concerns, the government recently said that it will unveil a package of measures next month to cope with rising unemployment among its young people.

Meanwhile, the report showed that the total population of younger people stood at 9.72 million in May, down from the previous year's 9.79 million.

Of the total, the employment rate was 41.4 percent, slightly higher than the previous year's 41.3 percent, but the total number of employed people fell 0.4 percent or 15,000 over the same period to around 4 million, according to the report. (PNA/Xinhua)

LOR/ebp

TAIPEI, July 29 — Visitors to the Palace Museum in Taipei next June are in for a treat: they will be able to view the two parts of a legendary Chinese painting together.

"Dwelling in the Fuchun Mountains" is one of the most important classical Chinese paintings.

It was torn into two in a fire in 1650. The right part, 51.4-cm. long, is kept in the mainland's Zhejiang Museum, while the left part, 636.9-cm. long, is held in Taipei's Palace Museum.

The Taipei Palace Museum formally announced Thursday the two parts of the scroll painting will be displayed together in a four-month exhibition beginning in June.

The scroll painting of unusual length was created by famed painter Huang Gongwang (1269-1354) in 1350. It vividly depicts an early autumn scene on the banks of the Fuchun River in Hangzhou. It is regarded as one of the greatest achievements of traditional Chinese landscape painting technique.

"The long scroll was finished by Huang when he was 82-years old, and it can be considered an abstract representation of his whole life. He used new techniques to create it," said Chiang Hsun, a renowned art history expert in Taiwan.

The scroll is regarded as a "painting symphony," with the right part as an inalienable overture, Chiang said, adding that he "had dreamed of seeing the two pieces together for many years."

Huang's work marked the start of a new Chinese painting school, Literati Painting, which dominated the Chinese art scene in the following centuries.

Painters of the school were also poets, intellectuals and calligraphers, not just professional painters. They turned painting into a comprehensive means of self-expression by writing poems and short essays on the sides of their works.

"In addition to displaying the painting, the exhibition will celebrate Huang's life, the works of his friends and his influence in Chinese art history," said Kung-shin Chou, curator of the Palace Museum in Taipei.

Moreover, visitors will also be able to appreciate replicas of Huang's works created by other famous painters, she said.

The painting has been a favorite of painters and collectors for centuries. One collector, Wu Hongyu, decided to burn the painting so he could have it forever. It was in this fire the scroll was torn apart.

For the exhibition, the museum will collaborate with the Palace Museum in Beijing, the National Museum of China and museums in Shanghai, Nanjing and Yunnan.

"We have never worked with so many mainland counterparts in one exhibition," she said.

In March, Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao called for the scroll's two pieces to reunite. (PNA/Xinhua) vcs/utb

July 30, 2005

MANILA, July 30 — On July 30, 2005, the Chapel of San Lorenzo Ruiz, the first in the United States and the second in the World, was officially designated as the "Church of the Filipinos."

Formerly known as the Most Holy Crucifix Church, it is located at 378 Broome Street (between Mulberry and Mott Streets), New York, within the vicinity of Chinatown and Little Italy in downtown Manhattan.

It has a capacity of 250 persons and is attached to the Philippine Pastoral Center of the Filipino Apostolate.

The Chapel of San Lorenzo Ruiz is the second church dedicated to Filipinos outside the Philippines. The first one — the Basilica of Sta. Pudenciana (1991) – is in Via Urbana 160, Rome.

It was originally donated by Manila Archbishop Jaime Cardinal Sin to the Filipinos in America in 1982, the year when the Filipino Apostolate started a movement to promote the blessed San Lorenzo Ruiz in the United States.

The bronze image of the Philippine saint was brought to the United States by Celso Al Carunungan, author of "To Die A Thousand Deaths," a book on the life and martyrdom of San Lorenzo Ruiz.

Since 1982, the statue of San Lorenzo Ruiz has been displayed every September at Saint Patrick's Cathedral during the mass for the Filipino saint's feast day.

It was originally displayed at the Holy Family Church at the United Nations until it was transferred to the Philippine Pastoral Center in Lower Manhattan in 1998.

The statue is considered miraculous by devotees.

President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo was the Filipino Apostolate's guest of honor during the statue's unveiling on September 15, 2005. (PNA)

scs/SDT/mec

MANILA, July 29 — Actor Robin Padilla, a Muslim, has accepted the role as “ambassador of goodwill” for housing programs in Muslim Mindanao, according to the Office of Vice President Jejomar C. Binay.

The Vice President has the additional job of overseeing the government’s housing development concerns as chairman of the umbrella group, Housing and Urban Development Coordinating Council (HUDCC).

Binay’s spokesperson said Padilla, who is a much-admired convert to the Muslim faith, will also be asked to help promote membership in the HUDCC’s Pag-Ibig Fund for housing, especially among overseas Filipino.

In accepting the job, Padilla said he desired no other government post but that he has faith in Binay as he witnessed how the Vice President, then mayor of Makati, delivered quality services and help to his constituents.

The actor, fondly known as 'Binoe' (rhymes with P-Noy), was an election campaign volunteer in Binay's camp. (PNA)

vcs/GJB

MAASTRICHT, The Netherlands, July 29 — A leading Chinese technologist received here Wednesday an award from the Internet Society (ISOC) for his pioneering role in advancing Internet technology over the last 20 years.

Jianping Wu's best-known contribution is the development of the China Education and Research Network (CERNET), China's first Internet backbone network, said the ISOC.

Created to establish a nationwide advanced network infrastructure to support education and research among universities, CERNET has since become the world's largest national academic network.

Since 1998, Wu has been focusing on the design and development of a large-scale native IPv6 backbone in China that serves to connect over 200 universities and millions of users.

"Twenty years ago, Dr. Wu recognized the importance and future impact of the Internet and the pivotal role it would play in terms of its impact on social reform, technology advancement and economic growth for China," said Lynn St. Amour, president and CEO of the ISOC.

"He has worked tirelessly to bring his vision to life. As a result, the networks that resulted from his determination and hard work have played an important role in driving Internet development in China and have had a significant impact on the Internet worldwide."

Wu said: "It's not only my personal honor, but also the recognition from the international society to all Chinese researchers and the achievements they have made."

The ISOC is a non-profit organization founded in 1992 to provide leadership in Internet-related standards, education, policy and ensure the open development, evolution, the use of the Internet for the benefit of people throughout the world.

The Postel Award was established by the ISOC to honor individuals or organizations that have made outstanding contributions to the data communications community. (PNA/Xinhua) V3/utb