China holds Jiang Zemin funeral

Here’s what else you need to know about China today:

The funeral of Jiāng Zémín 江泽民 was held today (in Chinese) at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing. The former Chinese leader was laid to rest on a stage beneath a large portrait showcasing his iconic spectacles in front of an amphitheater of senior officials, while citizens wearing black lined the streets of the capital to pay their respects (though some have alleged that this was orchestrated by the Party).

• In an hour-long address, Xí Jìnpíng 习近平 praised Jiang for leading the country through difficult times and economic reform, and for making the “‘correct decision’ to resolve what he described only as a ‘severe political disturbance,’” Bloomberg reports, following the bloody 1989 Tiananmen Square crackdown on pro-democracy demonstrators.
• Hú Jǐntāo 胡锦涛, who succeeded Jiang as China’s leader, was noticeably absent at the ceremony amid reports of his poor health, though he had attended a tribute yesterday at Chinese PLA General Hospital — his first public appearance since he was awkwardly removed by officials from the 20th Party Congress in October.
• Zhū Róngjī 朱镕基, who served alongside Jiang as premier, has also been in poor health and did not attend either ceremony.

Amnesty Canada said it was targeted by Chinese hackers in a statement yesterday, after detecting a digital security breach on October 5 in which “the searches in their systems were specifically and solely related to China and Hong Kong, as well as a few prominent Chinese activists.”

Google is under fire from Hong Kong authorities for displaying the pro-democracy song “Glory to Hong Kong” in top search results for the city’s national anthem, raising tensions with American tech giants as Beijing tries to spread patriotism in the city.

Semiconductor firm TSMC tripled its investment in its Arizona plant to $40 billion, making it one of the largest foreign investments in U.S. history, as the Taiwanese chip giant seeks to diversify its production facilities amid geopolitical tensions.

Earlier on The China Project:

• What does the CHIPS Act mean for U.S.-China semiconductor competition?
• Your phones and cars aren’t going to work the same after new U.S. rules on selling chips to China.

The National Administration of Traditional Chinese Medicine has released a new 14th Five-Year Plan for the “informatization” of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), including the launch of “smart” TCM treatment centers at 20 tertiary hospitals and TCM internet hospitals with online diagnosis and treatment. See today’s Business briefs from the Chinese media, with more links and info on:

• High-end tea brand Naixue invests in Lelecha.
• 732,000 electric passenger cars were sold in China in November.
• Business is good at Foxconn, despite COVID curbs.
• BYD goes big in Japan.

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