Jinan city mayor being probed for graft
BEIJING • The Chinese authorities have begun a graft probe into the mayor of the major northern Chinese city of Jinan, the ruling Communist Party announced yesterday, the latest senior official caught up in a sweeping corruption crackdown.
Mr Yang Luyu is being investigated for "suspected serious disciplinary violations", a euphemism commonly used for corruption, the party's Central Commission for Discipline Inspection said in a statement.
Mr Yang, 59, was appointed Jinan mayor in 2012.
The city is the capital of Shandong province.
REUTERS
Suu Kyi gets new role as state adviser
YANGON • Myanmar's President yesterday signed a Bill giving Ms Aung San Suu Kyi the new role of state adviser, shoring up her influence across all branches of the government.
Ms Suu Kyi is determined to rule the former junta-run nation regardless of an army-scripted Constitution that bars her from becoming president, as she strives to meet the aspirations of millions of voters who gave her pro-democracy party a landslide election victory last November.
AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE
HSBC 'refuses accounts for HK activist's party'
HONG KONG • Hong Kong student leader Joshua Wong said yesterday that the city's HSBC branches have refused to open an account for his new party, accusing them of "political censorship". Mr Wong, 19, announced the formation of the party, called Demosisto, last month to contest parliamentary elections later this year. He said his application for two accounts with HSBC had been refused, with no detailed reason given.
AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE
Freight train from China to France starts service
WUHAN • A direct freight train linking Wuhan in central China and Lyons in France began operations yesterday.
The train will exit China through Alataw Pass in Xinjiang, the western-most Chinese region, and pass through Kazakhstan, Russia, Belarus, Poland and Germany before reaching its destination.
It will take 16 days to complete the 11,300km journey, slashing the usual 50 to 60 days taken for transportation from Wuhan to France by sea.
XINHUA
