Report: China IPR pledges honored

China's pledges to protect and promote intellectual property rights, or IPR, have been honored and will continue to be fulfilled, People's Daily reported on Sunday.

Chinese courts received more than 68,000 cases concerning IPR in 2011, a 200-percent increase compared with 2007. During the same period, commerce authorities across China solved more than 79,000 violations of trademark rights cases, 57 percent more than in 2007, according to the report.

Since 2007, the General Administration of Customs have seized more than 125,000 batches of goods that infringed IPR and were worth 2.73 billion yuan ($434 million).

State to deepen reform of press

China will deepen reform of the press and publication sector to develop a number of well-known media corporations in the world, a senior official said on Sunday.

After 10 years of reform, publication units had basically been transformed into companies, but their full potential has not been reached, said Liu Binjie, head of the General Administration of Press and Publication.

Liu told the heads of publication and media companies to extend cooperation with private capital on projects and funding.

Authority warns of traffic congestion

Traffic jams could seriously clog Beijing's roads this week ahead of the eight-day national holiday, the city's authority warned on Monday.

This week will see heavy traffic, which could be affected by possible rainfall, according to a statement from the Beijing Municipal Commission of Transport. The traffic congestion is predicted before the holiday celebrating the Mid-Autumn Festival on Sunday and National Day on Monday.

Congestion is expected during the evening rush hours from Wednesday to Saturday, according to the statement. The commission also said it will pay special attention to the city's traffic on Wednesday and Friday nights, when heavy traffic jams are predicted.

Northern China to have rain and gales

China's meteorological authority on Monday forecast rain and low temperatures for the country's northern regions over the next three days.

Rain will fall in the Inner Mongolia autonomous region and other northern areas, as well as regions along the Yellow and Huai rivers, from Monday to Wednesday, the National Meteorological Center said. Shaanxi province and the Sichuan Basin will see heavy rains and storms during the period, the center said.

Most northern regions will see gales and temperatures dropping from 4 to 8 C from Monday to Wednesday, the center said.

UNESCO sets up institute in capital

The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization set up its first Category 2 center, focusing on strategic studies of technology and innovation, in Beijing on Monday.

UNESCO has designated 81 international and regional Category 2 institutes and centers, which are not legally part of the organization but associated with it through formal arrangements and contribute to the achievement of UNESCO programs.

The International Research and Training Center for Science and Technology Strategy, affiliated with the Chinese Academy of Science and Technology for Development in Beijing, will conduct studies on assessment methods of innovation strategy, scientific measures for poverty reduction and talent training.

Guangdong

Vandalism suspects turn themselves in

Five people in Shenzhen have turned themselves in to police after local authorities received tips via social media regarding property damage that occurred during anti-Japanese protests earlier in the month.

The Futian district public security bureau on Saturday posted photos of 20 people on Sina Weibo who allegedly destroyed public and private property during anti-Japanese protests on Sept 16.

The bureau said it had solid evidence that the 20 people had committed vandalism, urging them to surrender to police and also offering a reward for clues submitted to the public.

Inner Mongolia

Four killed as bus overturns on road

A passenger bus overturned on a highway in the Inner Mongolia autonomous region on Monday, killing four people onboard, the local government said.

The coach, carrying 20 people, overturned around 9 am near the Chaqi section of a highway linking Rongcheng in Shandong province and Wuhai in Inner Mongolia, according to a statement from the autonomous region's Otog Banner government.

Three passengers were killed at the scene and another died in hospital.

Shandong

Work progresses rapidly for expo

More than 80 percent of the construction of the 2014 International Horticultural Exposition in Shandong province is already completed, and all work will be done in October 2013, a senior official responsible for the exposition said on Monday.

The International Horticultural Exposition will be in Qingdao, a harbor city in the province, from April 25 to Oct 25, 2014, and all pavilions and gardening are currently under construction, Li Fengli, who is in charge of the exposition planning, said at a news conference on Monday.

The exposition, which will be on a hill, will show the harbor city's landform and seascapes, he said.

The organizers also unveiled the exposition's emblem and mascot at the news conference.

China Daily - Xinhua