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China
Relevant information about China.The People’s Republic of China is located in Eastern Asia, bordered by Mongolia, Russia, and Kazakhstan to the north; North Korea, the Yellow Sea and the East China Sea to the east; the South China Sea to the southeast; Vietnam, Laos and Myanmar to the south; India , and Nepal to the southwest; Pakistan and Kyrgyzstan to the west. Its total area is 9.6 million km, making it the world’s third largest country by total area and the second largest by land area. Its capital is the city of Beijing. The country is under the government of the Communist Party of China, under a single-party system. The Chinese Civil War ended in 1949 with the Kuomintang retreating to Taiwan, and on October the 1st, the People’s Republic of China was proclaimed by Mao Zedong, who ensured China’s sovereignty. However, strict controls over everyday life were imposed. Mao Zedong was succeeded by Deng Xiaoping in 1978. Xiaoping concentrated on the development of the economy’s productivity, which by the year 2000 quadrupled. Since the 90s, China has raised its participation in international organizations
China has a population of 1.3 billion citizens (making it the most populous country in the planet), which deeply concerns its government about its population growth. Therefore, they have established a strict family planning policy: one child per family (excepting rural areas and minor ethnic groups). This policy will be sustained until at least 2020, and is resisted, mainly in rural areas, due to the need for agricultural labor and a preference for boys (male heirs). Despite the Constitution states the citizen’s fundamental rights (freedom of speech, freedom of the press, the right to a fair trial, freedom of religion, universal suffrage, and property rights), the political freedom is China is restricted and controlled. The Chinese country is divided into 22 provinces and it sees Taiwan as one more. There are 5 regions, which have autonomy, and 4 municipalities. All together they are called “mainland China”, excluding Hong Kong and Macau. Currently, China has numerous cities with over 1 million inhabitants. Shanghai leads the ranking with 9,495,701 residents, followed by Beijing (7,296,962 citizens), Hong Kong (7,000,000), Tianjin (5,066,129) and Wuhan (6,660,000). These major cities have a very important role in national and regional identity, in culture and economy. The official language is Standard Chinese or Mandarin. However, there are others such as Yue (Cantonese), Wu (Shanghainese), Minbei (Fuzhou), Minnan (Hokkien- Taiwanese) Xiang Gan, Hakka dialects and other minority languages. Fifty-six different ethnic groups are recognized in China: the largest are the Han Chinese, who represents approximately 91.5% of the population. Other ethnic groups are: Zhuang, Manchi, Hui, Miao, Uyghur, Tujia, Yi, Mongol, Tibetan, Buyi, Dong, Yao and Korean. Regarding religion, it is allowed a certain degree of religious freedom, which is only allowed for members of state-approved religious organizations. Buddhism (between 50 and 80% of the population), Taoism (approximately 30%) and Chinese folk religions are the major faiths. The amount of followers of each religion is uncertain due to the fact that Chinese can subscribe to two or more religions simultaneously. The Christian religion represents between 3 and 4% of the Chinese citizens, whereas 2% are Muslims. The life expectancy at birth in China is, in male 71,61 years, and in female, 75,52 years, estimated in 2009. The total fertility rate is of 1.79 children born per woman, and the infant mortality rate is of 20.25 deaths per 1000 live births. China’s culture is one of the oldest and most complex in the world: its traditions are widely diverse and they vary between towns, cities and provinces. Chinese social values are derived from Confucianism and Taoism. The concept of reincarnation has to do with the connection between life and after-life; guanxi is a concept related to business culture, which indicates relations over rules. Paper and papermaking, woodblock printing, movable type printing, pound locks, toilet paper, gunpowder, blast furnace and cast iron, the cannon, the suspension bridge, the crossbow, the mechanical chain drive and the mechanical belt drive are among the technological accomplishments that China invented. Regarding art, the diversity is present throughout its ancient history, and its divided into periods considering the ruling dynasties and the technology. Fine arts, folk arts and performance arts can be appreciated, as well as porcelain pottery (first forms in the Paleolithic period), and painting which has a wide variety of Shan Shui. Martial arts, table tennis, golf, badminton and basketball are the most popular sports in China, and some of them such as basketball and tennis can be played in urban centers. Traditional sports include dragon boat racing, which is practiced in the Duan Wu festival, wrestling, and horse racing; and, in Tibet, archery and equestrian sports are the most enjoyed and practiced in the festivals. The elderly practice Tai Chi Chuan and Gigong, and it is common to see people playing board games: chess, go, and Xianggi. Beijing was the host to the 2008 Olympic Games. The oldest Chinese musical instruments are the bamboo pipes and gin. The instruments are categorized depending on the material which they are made of: animals skins, bamboo, silk, wood, metal, stone, clay or gourd. Among the instruments that are played in the People’s Republic of China, you can find, the dizi, sheng, cymbals (percussion); gaohu, yehu, leigin (bowed strings); konghou, pipa, zhu and gugin (plucked and stuck strings).
China is the fastest growing major economy, the largest exporter and second largest importer of goods in the world, mainly due to the reforms made in 1978, with the introduction of market-based economy. The poverty rate has amazingly decreased from 52% in 1981, to 8% in 2001. China is a member of the United Nations Security Council, WTO, APEC, G-20 and the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, and it is a nuclear weapons state as well as the owner of the largest standing army. Taking into account all this enormous recognitions, China has been categorized as a potential superpower. In spite of its economic growth, among the vast number of challenges, it can be found: reduction of corruption; contain environmental degradation (air pollution, soil erosion, fall of the water table) and social strife; maintain the job growth for the immigrants and new entrants; magnify rural-urban income gap; and solving the problem involving rapidly aging population. The Chinese government is trying hard to add energy production capacity from sources that aren’t coal or oil, in addition to increasing the domestic consumption and to continue the reforms in the economic aspect. The Chinese industrial sector is represented by mining and processing, machine building, iron, aluminum, steel, petroleum, cement, textiles, armaments, fertilizers, chemicals, transportation equipment, telecommunications equipment, ships, rail cars, electronics, toys, food processing, space launch vehicles and satellites. Rice, potatoes, cotton, wheat, tea, barley, corn, apples, peanuts, oilseed, fish and pork are among its agricultural products. The labor force by occupation is, in agriculture, 39.5%; in industry, 27.2%; and in services 33.2%. The unemployment rate is of 4.3%, estimated in 2009, whereas the population below poverty line is of 2.8%, calculated in 2007.
China attracts over 50 million tourists annually. Tourism has suffer a great expansion over the last decades, and, according to the WTO, it will be the largest tourist country in 2020. Among the many tourist attraction, the most popular is the Great Wall. It dates back more than 2,000 years ago, since it was built as a defense-structure in ancient civilization. Over 10 sections of the Great Wall are open to the visitors: passes, blockhouses and beacon towers. The Forbidden City in Beijing is another popular site. It was the center of Chinese Imperial power, and the Terracota Army of the Qin Dynasty (statues of Chinese imperial soldiers). Other cities that attract tourists are the ancient ones: Xi’an, Nanjing, Hangzhou, Zhengzhou, Luoyang, Kaifeng and Anyang, as well as the renowned cities and old towns: Lizhuang, Nanxun, Qufu, Huanglongxi, Jinan, Luzhi, Pingyao and Lijiang. Natural sites in China are also popular: the Five Sacred Mountains (Mount Tai, Mount Hengshan in the north, Mount Hua, Mount Hengshan in the south, and Mount Song); valleys such as Jiuzhaigou; Huangguoshu waterfall; lakes such as the Tianichi in the Tian Shan Mountains. Mount Everest is the highest mountain on Earth: it measures 8,848 metres, and it is a part of the Himalaya. In the spring, The Water-Sprinkling Festival of the Dai ethnic group is celebrated: people pour water between them (which is considered a symbol of good luck and happiness) among other activities (peacock dance and dragon boat racing).
The Chinese country is rapidly becoming a medical tourism destination. However, it is not considered a destination for cancer or heart diseases treatments, but it is for those who need stem cell treatments (experimental) or want plastic surgery. China is a worthy medical destination for procedures that are low risk but high cost, and it is worthy due to the fact that doctors are educated and trained in the West, in addition to the advanced technology.
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