Zhejiang

Oldest Chinese writing found

Experts believe carved symbols found on stone implements and crockery in Zhejiang province date back more than 5,000 years and are the oldest written form of Chinese language, Guangming Daily reported. The carvings were found in ruins in Pinghu, Zhejiang province, from 2003 to 2006. The archaeologists found more than 240 stone pieces with carved symbols. Before the finding, the oldest writings in China were believed to be the Jiaguwen, or "oracle bone script", which date back 3,600 years.

Beijing

Most crimes are property-related

More than 75 percent of criminal cases that Beijing police tackled from January to June involved property, the capital's public security bureau said on Tuesday. Police dealt with 60,500 criminal cases, of which property-related offenses numbered 46,000. There were 10,100 fraud cases, and police dealt with 112 homicide cases in the past six months, a 15 percent drop year-on-year. More than 98 percent of them have been solved, the police said.

Fishermen warned off DPRK coast

Chinese fishermen have been told to stop fishing in the waters off the Democratic People's Republic of Korea's east coast because of a bilateral dispute over fuel supplies. Fishing in those waters is risky due to the situation in the Korean Peninsula and the waters' proximity to Russia, Japan and the Republic of Korea, China's Ministry of Agriculture said in a statement. A large number of Chinese trawlers work in the waters every year. Trawlers can fish in the waters if they get approval from authorities in China and the DPRK.

Yunnan

Woman killed by wild elephants

A herd of wild elephants killed a woman in the Xishuangbanna Dai autonomous prefecture, forestry police said. The elephants were looking for food on Saturday in a suburb on the edge of Jinghong, the prefecture capital of Yunnan province. Jin Baofeng, 45, was on her way to a rice paddy with her husband when they encountered the elephants, who charged them. The couple tried to flee, but only her husband, Ren Mingyou, made it to safety. He found his wife's body when he returned to look for her. The police found the herd near the field, and forensic specialists confirmed the cause of death.

Hubei

Worker watches over open sewer

A drainage worker in Wuhan, the capital city of Hubei province, stood in water for almost 10 hours to keep people away from an open drain, the lid of which had been washed away by strong flooding. Yang Hongliang, the worker, told Wuhan Evening News that he "had to stay until the water drained away". According to local authorities, 168 million cubic meters of rain fell on Wuhan from Friday to Sunday - a quarter of the city's usual annual rainfall - causing serious flooding.

Hainan

Suspects held for fake cigarettes

Police detained five suspects for allegedly trafficking in fake cigarettes and seized more than 5,600 "brand-name" cigarettes in Sanya, Hainan province. The gang had been selling fake cigarettes at more than 30 specialty food shops since 2010, police said on Tuesday. The cigarettes were valued at 10 million yuan ($1.63 million). Police searched five locations and seven warehouses. The brand names used for the fake cigarettes included Zhonghua, Furongwang, Huanghelou and Yunyan.

Guangdong

Guard shot dead in front of club

A security guard was shot dead outside of a nightclub in Dongguan, Guangdong province, on Monday morning. The killing occurred around 6:35 am in Humen township. An eyewitness said he saw five men with knives and a shotgun chasing two men down the street and shooting the victim, the Nanfang Daily reported on Tuesday. The dead man, named Jin, was a 31-year-old security guard at the nightclub. Three other injured men were also security guards, the report said.

Party expels former official

Chen Hongping, former Party secretary of Jieyang in Guangdong province, has been expelled from the Party and discharged from his post, the Guangdong Provincial Disciplinary Inspection Department said on Tuesday. Chen helped others gain illegal profits and accepted huge bribes when he served as Party secretary of Jieyang from 2008 to 2012, the department said. The department launched an investigation into the case in January.

Xinhua-China Daily

(China Daily USA 07/10/2013 page3)