Legend:
 Definition
 Field
Listing
 Rank
Order
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Background:
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For centuries China stood as a leading civilization,
outpacing the rest of the world in the arts and sciences,
but in the 19th and early 20th centuries, the country was
beset by civil unrest, major famines, military defeats, and
foreign occupation. After World War II, the Communists under
MAO Zedong established an autocratic socialist system that,
while ensuring China's sovereignty, imposed strict controls
over everyday life and cost the lives of tens of millions of
people. After 1978, his successor DENG Xiaoping and other
leaders focused on market-oriented economic development and
by 2000 output had quadrupled. For much of the population,
living standards have improved dramatically and the room for
personal choice has expanded, yet political controls remain
tight.
|
|
Location:
|
Eastern Asia, bordering the East China Sea, Korea Bay,
Yellow Sea, and South China Sea, between North Korea and
Vietnam |
|
Geographic coordinates:
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35 00 N, 105 00 E
|
|
Map references:
|
Asia |
|
Area:
|
total: 9,596,960 sq km
land: 9,326,410 sq km
water: 270,550 sq km |
|
Area - comparative:
|
slightly smaller than the US |
|
Land boundaries:
|
total: 22,117 km
border countries: Afghanistan 76 km, Bhutan 470 km,
Burma 2,185 km, India 3,380 km, Kazakhstan 1,533 km, North
Korea 1,416 km, Kyrgyzstan 858 km, Laos 423 km, Mongolia
4,677 km, Nepal 1,236 km, Pakistan 523 km, Russia
(northeast) 3,605 km, Russia (northwest) 40 km, Tajikistan
414 km, Vietnam 1,281 km
regional borders: Hong Kong 30 km, Macau 0.34 km
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|
Coastline:
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14,500 km |
|
Maritime claims:
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territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the
continental margin |
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Climate:
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extremely diverse; tropical in south to subarctic in north
|
|
Terrain:
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mostly mountains, high plateaus, deserts in west; plains,
deltas, and hills in east |
|
Elevation extremes:
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lowest point: Turpan Pendi -154 m
highest point: Mount Everest 8,850 m |
|
Natural resources:
|
coal, iron ore, petroleum, natural gas, mercury, tin,
tungsten, antimony, manganese, molybdenum, vanadium,
magnetite, aluminum, lead, zinc, uranium, hydropower
potential (world's largest) |
|
Land use:
|
arable land: 14.86%
permanent crops: 1.27%
other: 83.87% (2005)
|
|
Irrigated land:
|
545,960 sq km (2003)
|
|
Natural hazards:
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frequent typhoons (about five per year along southern and
eastern coasts); damaging floods; tsunamis; earthquakes;
droughts; land subsidence |
|
Environment - current issues:
|
air pollution (greenhouse gases, sulfur dioxide
particulates) from reliance on coal produces acid rain;
water shortages, particularly in the north; water pollution
from untreated wastes; deforestation; estimated loss of
one-fifth of agricultural land since 1949 to soil erosion
and economic development; desertification; trade in
endangered species |
|
Environment - international agreements:
|
party to: Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic
Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto
Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous
Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer
Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical
Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected
agreements |
|
Geography - note:
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world's fourth largest country (after Russia, Canada, and
US); Mount Everest on the border with Nepal is the world's
tallest peak |
|
Population:
|
1,321,851,888 (July 2007 est.)
|
|
Age structure:
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0-14 years: 20.4% (male 143,527,634/female
126,607,344)
15-64 years: 71.7% (male 487,079,770/female
460,596,384)
65 years and over: 7.9% (male 49,683,856/female
54,356,900) (2007 est.) |
|
Median age:
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total: 33.2 years
male: 32.7 years
female: 33.7 years (2007 est.)
|
|
Population growth rate:
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0.606% (2007 est.)
|
|
Birth rate:
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13.45 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
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Death rate:
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7 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)
|
|
Net migration rate:
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-0.39 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
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Sex ratio:
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at birth: 1.11 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.134 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.057 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.914 male(s)/female
total population: 1.06 male(s)/female (2007 est.)
|
|
Infant mortality rate:
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total: 22.12 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 20.01 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 24.47 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)
|
|
Life expectancy at birth:
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total population: 72.88 years
male: 71.13 years
female: 74.82 years (2007 est.)
|
|
Total fertility rate:
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1.75 children born/woman (2007 est.)
|
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HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
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0.1% (2003 est.) |
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HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
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840,000 (2003 est.) |
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HIV/AIDS - deaths:
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44,000 (2003 est.) |
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Nationality:
|
noun: Chinese (singular and plural)
adjective: Chinese |
|
Ethnic groups:
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Han Chinese 91.9%, Zhuang, Uygur, Hui, Yi, Tibetan, Miao,
Manchu, Mongol, Buyi, Korean, and other nationalities 8.1%
|
|
Religions:
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Daoist (Taoist), Buddhist, Christian 3%-4%, Muslim 1%-2%
note: officially atheist (2002 est.) |
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Languages:
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Standard Chinese or Mandarin (Putonghua, based on the
Beijing dialect), Yue (Cantonese), Wu (Shanghainese), Minbei
(Fuzhou), Minnan (Hokkien-Taiwanese), Xiang, Gan, Hakka
dialects, minority languages (see Ethnic groups entry) |
|
Literacy:
|
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 90.9%
male: 95.1%
female: 86.5% (2000 census)
|
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Country name:
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conventional long form: People's Republic of China
conventional short form: China
local long form: Zhonghua Renmin Gongheguo
local short form: Zhongguo
abbreviation: PRC |
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Government type:
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Communist state
|
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Capital:
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name: Beijing
geographic coordinates: 39 55 N, 116 23 E
time difference: UTC+8 (13 hours ahead of Washington,
DC during Standard Time)
note: despite its size, all of China falls within one
time zone |
|
Administrative divisions:
|
23 provinces (sheng, singular and plural), 5 autonomous
regions (zizhiqu, singular and plural), and 4 municipalities
(shi, singular and plural)
provinces: Anhui, Fujian, Gansu, Guangdong, Guizhou,
Hainan, Hebei, Heilongjiang, Henan, Hubei, Hunan, Jiangsu,
Jiangxi, Jilin, Liaoning, Qinghai, Shaanxi, Shandong,
Shanxi, Sichuan, Yunnan, Zhejiang; (see note on Taiwan)
autonomous regions: Guangxi, Nei Mongol, Ningxia,
Xinjiang Uygur, Xizang (Tibet)
municipalities: Beijing, Chongqing, Shanghai, Tianjin
note: China considers Taiwan its 23rd province; see
separate entries for the special administrative regions of
Hong Kong and Macau |
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Independence:
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221 BC (unification under the Qin or Ch'in Dynasty); 1
January 1912 (Manchu Dynasty replaced by a Republic); 1
October 1949 (People's Republic established) |
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National holiday:
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Anniversary of the Founding of the People's Republic of
China, 1 October (1949) |
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Constitution:
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most recent promulgation 4 December 1982 |
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Legal system:
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based on civil law system; derived from Soviet and
continental civil code legal principles; legislature retains
power to interpret statutes; constitution ambiguous on
judicial review of legislation; has not accepted compulsory
ICJ jurisdiction
|
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Suffrage:
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18 years of age; universal |
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Executive branch:
|
chief of state: President HU Jintao (since 15 March
2003); Vice President ZENG Qinghong (since 15 March 2003)
head of government: Premier WEN Jiabao (since 16
March 2003); Vice Premier WU Yi (17 March 2003), Vice
Premier ZENG Peiyan (since 17 March 2003), and Vice Premier
HUI Liangyu (since 17 March 2003)
cabinet: State Council appointed by the National
People's Congress (NPC)
elections: president and vice president elected by
the National People's Congress for a five-year term
(eligible for a second term); elections last held 15-17
March 2003 (next to be held in mid-March 2008); premier
nominated by the president, confirmed by the National
People's Congress
election results: HU Jintao elected president by the
10th National People's Congress with a total of 2,937 votes
(4 delegates voted against him, 4 abstained, and 38 did not
vote); ZENG Qinghong elected vice president by the 10th
National People's Congress with a total of 2,578 votes (177
delegates voted against him, 190 abstained, and 38 did not
vote); 2 seats were vacant |
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Legislative branch:
|
unicameral National People's Congress or Quanguo Renmin
Daibiao Dahui (2,985 seats; members elected by municipal,
regional, and provincial people's congresses to serve
five-year terms)
elections: last held December 2002-February 2003
(next to be held in late 2007-February 2008)
election results: percent of vote - NA; seats - NA
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Judicial branch:
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Supreme People's Court (judges appointed by the National
People's Congress); Local People's Courts (comprise higher,
intermediate, and local courts); Special People's Courts
(primarily military, maritime, and railway transport courts)
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Political parties and leaders:
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Chinese Communist Party or CCP [HU Jintao]; eight registered
small parties controlled by CCP
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Political pressure groups and leaders:
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no substantial political opposition groups exist, although
the government has identified the Falungong spiritual
movement and the China Democracy Party as subversive groups
|
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International organization participation:
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AfDB, APEC, APT, ARF, AsDB, ASEAN (dialogue partner), BCIE,
BIS, CDB, EAS, FAO, G-24 (observer), G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO,
ICC, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO,
Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, LAIA
(observer), MIGA, MINURSO, MONUC, NAM (observer), NSG, OAS
(observer), OPCW, PCA, PIF (partner), SAARC (observer), SCO,
UN, UN Security Council, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO,
UNIFIL, UNITAR, UNMEE, UNMIL, UNMIS, UNMOVIC, UNOCI, UNTSO,
UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, ZC |
|
Diplomatic representation in the US:
|
chief of mission: Ambassador ZHOU Wenzhong
chancery: 2300 Connecticut Avenue NW, Washington, DC
20008
telephone: [1] (202) 328-2500
FAX: [1] (202) 328-2582
consulate(s) general: Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles,
New York, San Francisco |
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Diplomatic representation from the US:
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chief of mission: Ambassador Clark T. RANDT, Jr.
embassy: Xiu Shui Bei Jie 3, 100600 Beijing
mailing address: PSC 461, Box 50, FPO AP 96521-0002
telephone: [86] (10) 6532-3831
FAX: [86] (10) 6532-3178
consulate(s) general: Chengdu, Guangzhou, Hong Kong
and Macau, Shanghai, Shenyang |
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Flag description:
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red with a large yellow five-pointed star and four smaller
yellow five-pointed stars (arranged in a vertical arc toward
the middle of the flag) in the upper hoist-side corner
|
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Economy - overview:
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China's economy during the last quarter century has changed
from a centrally planned system that was largely closed to
international trade to a more market-oriented economy that
has a rapidly growing private sector and is a major player
in the global economy. Reforms started in the late 1970s
with the phasing out of collectivized agriculture, and
expanded to include the gradual liberalization of prices,
fiscal decentralization, increased autonomy for state
enterprises, the foundation of a diversified banking system,
the development of stock markets, the rapid growth of the
non-state sector, and the opening to foreign trade and
investment. China has generally implemented reforms in a
gradualist or piecemeal fashion, including the sale of
equity in China's largest state banks to foreign investors
and refinements in foreign exchange and bond markets in
2005. The restructuring of the economy and resulting
efficiency gains have contributed to a more than tenfold
increase in GDP since 1978. Measured on a purchasing power
parity (PPP) basis, China in 2006 stood as the
second-largest economy in the world after the US, although
in per capita terms the country is still lower middle-income
and 130 million Chinese fall below international poverty
lines. Economic development has generally been more rapid in
coastal provinces than in the interior, and there are large
disparities in per capita income between regions. The
government has struggled to: (a) sustain adequate job growth
for tens of millions of workers laid off from state-owned
enterprises, migrants, and new entrants to the work force;
(b) reduce corruption and other economic crimes; and (c)
contain environmental damage and social strife related to
the economy's rapid transformation. From 100 million to 150
million surplus rural workers are adrift between the
villages and the cities, many subsisting through part-time,
low-paying jobs. One demographic consequence of the "one
child" policy is that China is now one of the most rapidly
aging countries in the world. Another long-term threat to
growth is the deterioration in the environment - notably air
pollution, soil erosion, and the steady fall of the water
table, especially in the north. China continues to lose
arable land because of erosion and economic development.
China has benefited from a huge expansion in computer
Internet use, with more than 100 million users at the end of
2005. Foreign investment remains a strong element in China's
remarkable expansion in world trade and has been an
important factor in the growth of urban jobs. In July 2005,
China revalued its currency by 2.1% against the US dollar
and moved to an exchange rate system that references a
basket of currencies. In 2006 China had the largest current
account surplus in the world - nearly $180 billion. More
power generating capacity came on line in 2006 as large
scale investments were completed. Thirteen years in
construction at a cost of $24 billion, the immense Three
Gorges Dam across the Yangtze River was essentially
completed in 2006 and will revolutionize electrification and
flood control in the area. The 11th Five-Year Program
(2006-10), approved by the National People's Congress in
March 2006, calls for a 20% reduction in energy consumption
per unit of GDP by 2010 and an estimated 45% increase in GDP
by 2010. The plan states that conserving resources and
protecting the environment are basic goals, but it lacks
details on the policies and reforms necessary to achieve
these goals. |
|
GDP (purchasing power parity):
|
$10.21 trillion (2006 est.) |
|
GDP (official exchange rate):
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$2.527 trillion (2006 est.) |
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GDP - real growth rate:
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11.1% (official data) (2006 est.)
|
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GDP - per capita (PPP):
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$7,800 (2006 est.) |
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GDP - composition by sector:
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agriculture: 11.7%
industry: 48.9%
services: 39.3%
note: industry includes construction (2006 est.)
|
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Labor force:
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795.3 million (2006 est.) |
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Labor force - by occupation:
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agriculture: 45%
industry: 24%
services: 31% (2005 est.) |
|
Unemployment rate:
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4.2% official registered unemployment in urban areas in
2005; substantial unemployment and underemployment in rural
areas (2005) |
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Population below poverty line:
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10% (2004 est.)
|
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Household income or consumption by percentage share:
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lowest 10%: 1.6%
highest 10%: 34.9% (2004) |
|
Distribution of family income - Gini index:
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46.9 (2004)
|
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Inflation rate (consumer prices):
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1.7% (2006 est.) |
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Investment (gross fixed):
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40.9% of GDP (2006 est.) |
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Budget:
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revenues: $482.2 billion
expenditures: $515.8 billion; including capital
expenditures of $NA (2006 est.) |
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Public debt:
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22.1% of GDP (2006 est.) |
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Agriculture - products:
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rice, wheat, potatoes, corn, peanuts, tea, millet, barley,
apples, cotton, oilseed; pork; fish |
|
Industries:
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mining and ore processing, iron, steel, aluminum, and other
metals, coal; machine building; armaments; textiles and
apparel; petroleum; cement; chemicals; fertilizers; consumer
products, including footwear, toys, and electronics; food
processing; transportation equipment, including automobiles,
rail cars and locomotives, ships, and aircraft;
telecommunications equipment, commercial space launch
vehicles, satellites |
|
Industrial production growth rate:
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22.9% (2006 est.) |
|
Electricity - production:
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2.372 trillion kWh (2005) |
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Electricity - consumption:
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2.197 trillion kWh (2005) |
|
Electricity - exports:
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11.19 billion kWh (2005) |
|
Electricity - imports:
|
5.011 billion kWh (2005) |
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Oil - production:
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3.631 million bbl/day (2005) |
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Oil - consumption:
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6.534 million bbl/day (2005) |
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Oil - exports:
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443,300 bbl/day (2005) |
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Oil - imports:
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3.181 million bbl/day (2005) |
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Oil - proved reserves:
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16.3 billion bbl (2006 est.) |
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Natural gas - production:
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47.88 billion cu m (2005 est.)
|
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Natural gas - consumption:
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44.93 billion cu m (2005 est.)
|
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Natural gas - exports:
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2.944 billion cu m (2005) |
|
Natural gas - imports:
|
0 cu m (2005) |
|
Natural gas - proved reserves:
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1.448 trillion cu m (1 January 2006 est.) |
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Current account balance:
|
$249.9 billion (2006 est.) |
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Exports:
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$969.7 billion f.o.b. (2006 est.)
|
|
Exports - commodities:
|
machinery and equipment, plastics, optical and medical
equipment, iron and steel |
|
Exports - partners:
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US 21%, Hong Kong 16%, Japan 9.5%, South Korea 4.6%, Germany
4.2% (2006) |
|
Imports:
|
$751.9 billion f.o.b. (2006 est.)
|
|
Imports - commodities:
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machinery and equipment, oil and mineral fuels, plastics,
optical and medical equipment, organic chemicals, iron and
steel |
|
Imports - partners:
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Japan 14.6%, South Korea 11.3%, Taiwan 10.9%, US 7.5%,
Germany 4.8% (2006) |
|
Economic aid - recipient:
|
$NA |
|
Reserves of foreign exchange and gold:
|
$1.073 trillion (2006 est.) |
|
Debt - external:
|
$315 billion (2006 est.) |
|
Stock of direct foreign investment - at home:
|
$699.5 billion (2006 est.) |
|
Stock of direct foreign investment - abroad:
|
$67.4 billion (2006 est.) |
|
Market value of publicly traded shares:
|
$2.426 trillion (2006) |
|
Currency (code):
|
yuan (CNY); note - also referred to as the Renminbi (RMB)
|
|
Exchange rates:
|
yuan per US dollar - 7.97 (2006), 8.1943 (2005), 8.2768
(2004), 8.277 (2003), 8.277 (2002) |
|
Fiscal year:
|
calendar year
|
|
Telephones - main lines in use:
|
368 million (2006) |
|
Telephones - mobile cellular:
|
461.1 million (2006) |
|
Telephone system:
|
general assessment: domestic and international
services are increasingly available for private use;
unevenly distributed domestic system serves principal
cities, industrial centers, and many towns; China continues
to develop its telecommunications infrastructure, and is
partnering with foreign providers to expand its global
reach; 3 of China's 6 major telecommunications operators are
part of an international consortium which, in December 2006,
signed an agreement with Verizon Business to build the first
next-generation optical cable system directly linking the US
mainland and China
domestic: interprovincial fiber-optic trunk lines and
cellular telephone systems have been installed;
mobile-cellular subscribership is increasing rapidly;
broadband Internet subscribership reached 50 million in
2006; a domestic satellite system with 55 earth stations is
in place
international: country code - 86; a number of
submarine cables provide connectivity to Asia, the Middle
East, Europe, and the US; satellite earth stations - 5
Intelsat (4 Pacific Ocean and 1 Indian Ocean), 1
Intersputnik (Indian Ocean region) and 1 Inmarsat (Pacific
and Indian Ocean regions) (2007) |
|
Radio broadcast stations:
|
AM 369, FM 259, shortwave 45 (1998) |
|
Television broadcast stations:
|
3,240 (of which 209 are operated by China Central
Television, 31 are provincial TV stations, and nearly 3,000
are local city stations) (1997) |
|
Internet country code:
|
.cn |
|
Internet hosts:
|
10.637 million (2007) |
|
Internet users:
|
137 million (2006)
|
|
Airports:
|
467 (2007) |
|
Airports - with paved runways:
|
total: 403
over 3,047 m: 58
2,438 to 3,047 m: 128
1,524 to 2,437 m: 130
914 to 1,523 m: 20
under 914 m: 67 (2007)
|
|
Airports - with unpaved runways:
|
total: 64
over 3,047 m: 4
2,438 to 3,047 m: 4
1,524 to 2,437 m: 13
914 to 1,523 m: 17
under 914 m: 26 (2007)
|
|
Heliports:
|
35 (2007) |
|
Pipelines:
|
gas 22,664 km; oil 15,256 km; refined products 6,106 km
(2006) |
|
Railways:
|
total: 75,438 km
standard gauge: 75,438 km 1.435-m gauge (20,151 km
electrified) (2005) |
|
Roadways:
|
total: 1,870,661 km
paved: 1,515,797 km (with at least 34,288 km of
expressways)
unpaved: 354,864 km (2004) |
|
Waterways:
|
124,000 km navigable (2006) |
|
Merchant marine:
|
total: 1,775 ships (1000 GRT or over) 22,219,786
GRT/33,819,636 DWT
by type: barge carrier 3, bulk carrier 415, cargo
689, carrier 3, chemical tanker 62, combination ore/oil 2,
container 157, liquefied gas 35, passenger 8,
passenger/cargo 84, petroleum tanker 250, refrigerated cargo
33, roll on/roll off 9, specialized tanker 8, vehicle
carrier 17
foreign-owned: 12 (Ecuador 1, Greece 1, Hong Kong 6,
Japan 2, South Korea 1, Norway 1)
registered in other countries: 1,366 (Bahamas 9,
Bangladesh 1, Belize 107, Bermuda 10, Bolivia 1, Cambodia
166, Cyprus 10, France 5, Georgia 4, Germany 2, Honduras 3,
Hong Kong 309, India 1, Indonesia 2, Liberia 32, Malaysia 1,
Malta 13, Marshall Islands 3, Mongolia 3, Norway 47, Panama
473, Philippines 2, Sierra Leone 8, Singapore 19, St Vincent
and The Grenadines 106, Thailand 1, Turkey 1, Tuvalu 25,
unknown 33) (2007)
|
|
Ports and terminals:
|
Dalian, Guangzhou, Nanjing, Ningbo, Qingdao, Qinhuangdao,
Shanghai |
|
Military branches:
|
People's Liberation Army (PLA): Ground Forces, Navy
(includes marines and naval aviation), Air Force (includes
airborne forces), and Second Artillery Corps (strategic
missile force); People's Armed Police (PAP); Reserve and
Militia Forces (2006)
|
|
Military service age and obligation:
|
18-22 years of age for selective compulsory military
service, with 24-month service obligation; no minimum age
for voluntary service (all officers are volunteers); 18-19
years of age for women high school graduates who meet
requirements for specific military jobs (2007) |
|
Manpower available for military service:
|
males age 18-49: 342,956,265
females age 18-49: 324,701,244 (2005 est.)
|
|
Manpower fit for military service:
|
males age 18-49: 281,240,272
females age 18-49: 269,025,517 (2005 est.)
|
|
Manpower reaching military service age annually:
|
males age 18-49: 13,186,433
females age 18-49: 12,298,149 (2005 est.)
|
|
Military expenditures - percent of GDP:
|
4.3% (2006) |
|
Disputes - international:
|
based on principles drafted in 2005, China and India
continue discussions to resolve all aspects of their
extensive boundary and territorial disputes together with a
security and foreign policy dialogue to consolidate
discussions related to the boundary, regional nuclear
proliferation, and other matters; recent talks and
confidence-building measures have begun to defuse tensions
over Kashmir, site of the world's largest and most
militarized territorial dispute with portions under the de
facto administration of China (Aksai Chin), India (Jammu and
Kashmir), and Pakistan (Azad Kashmir and Northern Areas);
India does not recognize Pakistan's ceding historic Kashmir
lands to China in 1964; lacking any treaty describing the
boundary, Bhutan and China continue negotiations to
establish a boundary alignment to resolve substantial
cartographic discrepancies, the largest of which lies in
Bhutan's northwest; China asserts sovereignty over the
Spratly Islands together with Malaysia, Philippines, Taiwan,
Vietnam, and possibly Brunei; the 2002 "Declaration on the
Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea" eased tensions in
the Spratly's but is not the legally binding "code of
conduct" sought by some parties; Vietnam and China continue
to expand construction of facilities in the Spratly's and in
March 2005, the national oil companies of China, the
Philippines, and Vietnam signed a joint accord on marine
seismic activities in the Spratly Islands; China occupies
some of the Paracel Islands also claimed by Vietnam and
Taiwan; China and Taiwan continue to reject both Japan's
claims to the uninhabited islands of Senkaku-shoto (Diaoyu
Tai) and Japan's unilaterally declared equidistance line in
the East China Sea, the site of intensive hydrocarbon
prospecting; certain islands in the Yalu and Tumen rivers
are in dispute with North Korea; China seeks to stem illegal
migration of North Koreans; China and Russia have demarcated
the once disputed islands at the Amur and Ussuri confluence
and in the Argun River in accordance with their 2004
Agreement; in 2006, China and Tajikistan pledged to commence
demarcation of the revised boundary agreed to in the
delimitation of 2002; demarcation of the China-Vietnam land
boundary proceeds slowly and although the maritime boundary
delimitation and fisheries agreements were ratified in June
2004, implementation remains stalled; in 2004, international
environmentalist and political pressure from Burma and
Thailand prompted China to halt construction of 13 dams on
the Salween River |
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Refugees and internally displaced persons:
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refugees (country of origin): 300,897 (Vietnam),
estimated 30,000-50,000 (North Korea)
IDPs: 90,000 (2006) |
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Trafficking in persons:
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current situation: China is a source, transit, and
destination country for women, men, and children trafficked
for purposes of sexual exploitation and forced labor; the
majority of trafficking in China is internal, but there is
also international trafficking of Chinese citizens; women
are lured through false promises of legitimate employment
into commercial sexual exploitation in Taiwan, Thailand,
Malaysia, and Japan; Chinese men and women are smuggled to
countries throughout the world at enormous personal expense
and then forced into commercial sexual exploitation or
exploitative labor to repay debts to traffickers; women and
children are trafficked into China from Mongolia, Burma,
North Korea, Russia, and Vietnam for forced labor, marriage,
and sexual slavery; most North Koreans enter northeastern
China voluntarily, but others reportedly are trafficked into
China from North Korea; domestic trafficking remains the
most significant problem in China, with an estimated minimum
of 10,000-20,000 victims trafficked each year; the actual
number of victims could be much greater; some experts
believe that the serious and prolonged imbalance in the
male-female birth ratio may now be contributing to Chinese
and foreign girls and women being trafficked as potential
brides
tier rating: Tier 2 Watch List - China failed to show
evidence of increasing efforts to address transnational
trafficking; while the government provides reasonable
protection to internal victims of trafficking, protection
for Chinese and foreign victims of transnational trafficking
remain inadequate |
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Illicit drugs:
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major transshipment point for heroin produced in the Golden
Triangle region of Southeast Asia; growing domestic drug
abuse problem; source country for chemical precursors,
despite new regulations on its large chemical industry |
This page was last updated on 15
November, 2007
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