Li Na's hometown gift sparks debate about government spending, Chinese can now travel to 81 countries without a visa, and CCTV Spring Festival Gala is recognized as a 'national project' -- it's about time.
Li Na's gift controversial
Aussie Open champion Li Na was rewarded 800,000 yuan ($132,240) by the provincial government of her hometown Hubei on Tuesday, which sparked discussions in the media over whether local governments have the right to reward athletes at their own will.
A commentary in peopledaily.com.cn said on Tuesday that Hubei provincial government has no right to reward a professional tennis champion and use it as a fiscal expenditure. At least, the government should have asked about the people's will.
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Visa-free in 81 countries
Chinahas signed mutual visa-free agreements with 81 countries around the world, including San Marino, Seychelles, Mauritius and Bahamas, said Huang Ping, director of the Consular Affairs Department at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, at a news conference on Tuesday.
Huang said his department will work to better serve Chinese citizens, and will try to sign a mutual visa-free agreement with Thailand this year.
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Chongqing to offer 72-hour visa-free stays
Fireworks lose spark
A survey in Shanghai showed 85.6 percent saying they will not buy any fireworks or firecrackers this Spring Festival, according to a report released Tuesday by the Shanghai Municipal Bureau of Statistics.
The report also said 81.1 percent of respondents support banning fireworks all year.
In Beijing, setting off fireworks or firecrackers will be banned during an orange or red air pollution alert, Beijing municipal government said in a notice released on Tuesday.
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Web crackles with anti-fireworks frenzy
Study funded by bottles
A couple in Hengyang, Hunan province, collected and recycled 9 million plastic bottles over 10 years, in order to send their sons to study abroad.
Now their older son has graduated with a PhD from the University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Sichuan province, after studying in Germany for one year.
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Gala becomes national program
CCTV's Spring Festival Gala, which has been held for more than 30 years, was recognized as a "national program" for the first time, according to Lyu Yitao, an executive director of the gala for 2014.
Lyu said CCTV attached great importance to the gala this year, and wanted to make it a better experience for the national audience.
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Migrant children at Spring Festival gala
Overtime pay during festival
People who work through the Spring Festival holidays will receive a minimum overtime pay of 1,094 yuan ($181), the equivalent of 17 days' pay, peopledaily.com.cn reported on Wednesday.
The Spring Festival holiday is from Jan 31 to Feb 6 this year, and people who work can get triple pay for the first three days, and double pay for the rest of the week, according to China's laws and regulations.
Special Coverage:
WiFi on high-speed train
China's first WiFi system on high-speed trains will be tested on a train from Chengdu, Sichuan province, to Chongqing, Science and Technology Daily reported on Tuesday.
The WiFi system on the high-speed train is different from those used in homes and offices, and will provide an application platform that enables passengers' entertainment and train attendants' management at the same time.
Xi learns sign language
President Xi Jinping learned sign language from a college student who can neither speak nor hear while visiting children with disabilities at an orphanage in Hohhot, Inner Mongolia autonomous region, on Tuesday.
At the orphanage, the student bent her thumb to express gratitude after Xi said he wished her more academic success in college. Xi followed and said, thumb up means "good", and thumb bent means "thank you".
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President Xi visits soldiers on the frontier
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