Enhance efforts to improve Party

Vice-President Xi Jinping called on officials and members of the Communist Party of China on Tuesday to enhance efforts to build socialism with Chinese characteristics and improve the development of the Party.

Xi made the remarks at the closing ceremony of a high-profile seminar attended by provincial and ministerial-level officials, ahead of the CPC's upcoming 18th National Congress.

Socialism with Chinese characteristics is "deeply rooted" in China, and it accords with the country's situation and has a strong vitality, Xi said, adding that this was well-demonstrated by the achievements made by the country over the past 30-some years.

Phishing scams target netizens

China had tracked and dealt with 13,923 phishing websites in the first half of the year, according to the Anti-Phishing Alliance of China.

The phishing websites lured users to fake sites in an attempt to obtain user information, the APAC said.

Online payment, financial securities and social networking service sites were the most commonly used platforms for the scams, the alliance said, urging netizens to take care when giving away personal information online.

China's online population had hit 538 million by the end of June.

Cash for tips in crime crackdown

Cash rewards totaling 4.2 million yuan ($657,800) have been handed out to members of the public who helped police during a 5-month crackdown on economic crime, China Youth Daily reported on Monday.

During the nationwide crackdown, which started on March 1, police recorded 264,000 cases of suspected economic crime and identified 189,000 possible criminal cases in which some 143,000 suspects have been sent to court for trial.

The crackdown was strongly supported by the public, which provided 36,000 tip-offs to police who investigated 12,000 cases based on the information. People who gave tips to the police were rewarded with cash.

According to the Ministry of Public Security, 51.5 percent of the cases involved the manufacture and sale of counterfeit goods, pyramid schemes, illegal fundraising, credit card fraud, embezzlement and contract fraud.

Guangdong

Nine illegal mines closed

Police in South China's Guangdong province said on Tuesday that they have closed nine illegal rare earths mines in Longchuan county of Heyuan city, a major rare earths reserve, over the past six months.

Police have arrested 45 people and seized more than 100 metric tons of rare earths from the mines, according to the police in Heyuan.

Rare earths reserves have continued to decline in major mining areas in China, while excessive mining has resulted in pollution-related disasters and even major natural disasters in some places.

To limit environmental damage and protect the non-renewable resources, China has implemented multiple policies, including production caps, export quotas, stricter emission standards and higher resource taxes.

Over the past few years, Longchuan has closed more than 110 illegal rare earths mines.

Fujian

Road accident claims 14 lives

Fourteen people have died after a motor tricycle plunged into a valley in East China's Fujian province on Tuesday, local authorities said.

Eight others were injured and are being treated at a local hospital. Two of them are in critical condition.

The accident happened around 7:50 am, when the tricycle illegally carrying 22 people veered off a bridge and plunged into the valley near Shankeng village in Ningde city, a city government spokesman said.

Thirteen people died at the scene.

Chinese law forbids farm vehicles to be used to transport passengers.

The cause of the accident is under investigation.

Yunnan

Young mothers smuggle drugs

Police have arrested two Chinese women suspected of smuggling a large amount of heroin into the country across the Myanmar border in the latest crackdown on drug trafficking in the region, local officials said on Tuesday.

The two women were caught in a rural area of Lincang, a border city in Southwest China's Yunnan province, on Monday. Twelve stacks of heroin weighing 11.82 kg and a small amount of methamphetamine, commonly known as "ice", were found in the truck they were driving, police said.

Police were tipped off that the pair would attempt to smuggle drugs from Laukkai in Myanmar five days in advance. One of the women was pregnant while the other was traveling with her 8-month-old infant, police said. Their identities were not revealed.

People convicted of trafficking more than 50 grams of heroin can face the death penalty, according to China's laws.

Tibet

Panchen Lama calls for stability

A spiritual leader of Tibetan Buddhism on Tuesday called on monks to promote social stability in Tibet.

"If a person does not protect social stability, he is not fit to be called a man of religion," said the 11th Panchen Lama, who met with leaders of the Tibet autonomous region in his Lhasa residence on the second day of his visit to the city.

The Panchen Lama said it is the responsibility of a religious person to help people do good deeds, and promote harmony and social development by religious preaching.

"And religious people should abide by the laws and religious code of conduct themselves," he added.

His words came after some of China's Tibetan areas reported self-immolations in recent months, most of them involving people from monasteries.

He urged monks to appreciate what they have now and do more to safeguard social stability.

Bus service launched in Ngari

Buses started operating on Monday in Ngari prefecture, the highest area in Southwest China's Tibet autonomous region.

Six buses started operating on three lines in Sengye Tsangpo township, which contains the prefecture's government seat. Local authorities have invested more than 2 million yuan ($313,200) in the service.

It was introduced in response to the fast urban and economic development seen in the township, which has become a business and transport hub in western Tibet, said Losang, vice-commissioner of Ngari prefecture.

Ngari sits 4,500 meters above sea level.

Xinhua China Daily