The Chongqing Commercial News ran a story in April that claimed Wen Qing, an ex-anchorwoman at China Central Television, put on airs by refusing to answer phone calls and compensate a victim in a road accident involving her car, a district court in Beijing heard. It defamed Wen. The paper was also ordered to make a public apology to Wen.

Bribery probe

WANG Wulong, former deputy director of the Standing Committee of the Jiangsu Province People's Congress, has been expelled from the Communist Party of China and from all his posts for his role in corruption. The CPC Central Commission for Discipline Inspection found Wang, who was also the Party secretary of Nanjing, the province's capital, took advantage of his posts to benefit others in exchange for bribes.

Stolen funds

A BANKING accountant in central China's Jiangxi Province has been sentenced to life for embezzling public funds totaling 1.6 million yuan (US$200,000). The Jiujiang Intermediate People's Court also ordered the confiscation of the personal assets of Li Honghong, an accountant of an Agricultural Bank of China branch in the province's Xiushui County.

Drought's cost

DROUGHT cost China 10 billion kilograms of crops each year, an official of the China Meteorological Administration told a press conference in Beijing yesterday. On average, more than 20 million hectares of farmland is affected by drought each year, said Wang Shourong of the agency.

Truck-van crash

FOUR people died in a collision between a truck and a van on Tuesday in Dongyang City, Zhejiang Province. Five others were injured. After a preliminary investigation, traffic police said the truck, illegally carrying nine passengers, turned left at an intersection, ignoring traffic lights.