AmCham-China Daily

AmCham member BizCult.com is also seeking help identifying companies that have contributed in unique ways to the earthquake relief effort. The online publication about doing better business in China intends to run a series of articles on such companies. The site views this effort as “a way to share CSR success stories to help the China community know what works – and maybe what doesn’t – when it comes to allaying this and future tragedies.” Contact editor Matt Young at +86 139 1075 2134 or editor@bizcult.com to assist this effort.

Following the recent earthquake in southwestern China, many AmCham-China member companies have made significant efforts to the relief effort. Read the list of companies, the amount of their contribution and the agency where they directed their funds.

The Ministry of Civil Affairs (MOCA — the government agency responsible for disaster relief) is offering to publicize the donations made by AmCham member companies, should that be of interest. Each day MOCA compiles a press release, including a list of contributions, and issues it to Xinhua and CCTV.

If you represent an AmCham member company and would like to add your name to the list, please e-mail Julie Leng  - Julie@amcham-china.org.cn

Please post information about your contribution on this site as well.

Posted by Laura

The American Chamber of Commerce in China expresses its deep concern and sympathy to the people of China affected by the devastating loss of life and property damage resulting from the earthquake in Sichuan Province.  In response, AmCham-China pledges the sum of  RMB 1 million to aid the relief efforts.  These funds will be made available after consulting with Chinese disaster-relief officials to determine where they can be used most effectively and immediately.

“Our members live and work in China, and our hearts go out to the families of the victims of this disaster,” said AmCham-China chairman James Zimmerman. “Many of our member companies have already stepped forward to offer support and aid.”

AmCham will continue to work with the Chinese Government to make information available to members about where and how they can offer further support as new information becomes available.

If you represent an AmCham-China member company and would like to share what your firm has done to provide earthquake relief, please post your story here, or send an e-mail to Julie Leng  Julie@amcham-china.org.cn .

Posted by Laura

In an effort to assist those companies and individuals helping people affected by the recent earthquakes, Xinhua PR Newswire is offering AmCham members the free use of its press release distribution service within the country.  Organizations offering aid to the victims of the earthquakes can distribute their messages through XPRN’s network in China that covers over 9,000 journalists from over 3,000 newspapers, magazines and online media from across China. These press releases can include both a text announcement about their aid efforts and an accompanying photo or image.

For more information please contact:

Tailei Zhang of Xinhua PR Newswire in

Beijing at 10-58645288; 10-58645299
 

Jack Ni of Xinhua PR Newswire in

Shanghai at 21-61135934.

About Xinhua PR Newswire
Xinhua PR Newswire (XPRN), an alliance created between Xinhua Finance and PR Newswire, assists companies and organizations in delivering their news releases to the media, individual and institutional investors, and the general public worldwide, with clipping, monitoring, measurement and media intelligence services. Utilizing PR Newswire’s global news distribution network, Xinhua PR Newswire can send clients’ press releases to 170 countries and regions in 40 languages.

Posted by Laura

The International Federation Red Cross (Federation) is planning to launch a multi-million dollar appeal to support the Chinese Red Cross Society’s Earthquake response for victims of the Chengdu disaster.
Those interested to support this effort can either make contributions directly to the Chinese Red Cross Society, or to the Federation’s Beijing office (contact Carl Naucler: +86-10-6532-7162).  For corporations wishing to make contributions from their home offices in the U.S. to a registered 501C charity, the American Red Cross will be facilitating collection of donations which will be provided towards this International Appeal, in support of the Chinese Red Cross efforts.  For more information on how to contribute directly via the American Red Cross HQ in Washington D.C., please contact their Regional Representative for Asia at +91-99-7180-0406, or e-mail rayyis@gmail.com. 

Thanks to Ramsey A. Rayyis, senior field representative at the American Red Cross for passing along this valuable information.
If your firm is contributing to the relief effort, please let us know by posting about here.

A Reuters report concerning this morning’s kick-off of Phase 3 Olympics tickets sales for residents of China (including foreign residents):

Snags, again, for China ticket sale

BEIJING, May 5 (Reuters) - Ticket sales for the Beijing Olympics again ran into problems on Monday, despite guarantees that the online system had been repaired after an earlier foul-up led to the dismissal of the ticket centre’s director last year. A total of 1.38 million tickets were to be released in the third round of ticket sales that began on Monday for 16 sports, including boxing, soccer, baseball, beach volleyball and wrestling. But online chat files and blog comments showed that ticket buyers were having problems completing purchases.

While people were able to log on to the Web site and select tickets fairly easily, they could not reach the final payment page.

A message reading, “The system is under maintenance. Please visit the page later” appeared on the screen. And the website kept directing users back to the login page, and finally showed a message apologising for not being able to process the purchase.

“It’s just frustrating and a waste of time,” said one person who tried numerous times to buy tickets before giving up.

Officials at the Beijing Organising Committee of the Olympic Games had no immediate comment.

State television showed footage of people queueing at a Bank of China branch, an alternative way of buying tickets, hours before the sale actually started.

“We got up at around 5 in the morning,” China Central Television quoted an elderly man as saying. Tickets for “hot” events such as basketball had already sold out, it said.

The former director of the Beijing Olympic Ticketing Centre was sacked in November after the online system collapsed due to overwhelming demand almost immediately after the second round of sales began.

In the first three hours of the October sale, the site received 20 million hits, BOCOG had said. As a result of the system crash, only 43,000 of the 1.85 million tickets reserved for the second round were allocated.

BOCOG had promised there would be no repeat of problems that had marred previous ticket sales.

Two-thirds of the seven million tickets available to the public have been sold.

Last month, organisers unveiled for the first time the design for the tickets, which have many high-tech features to prevent fraud and copying. (Reporting by Guo Shipeng and Ken Wills; Editing by Nick Macfie)

The embassy has issued a travel alert for all US residents and visitors in China. The e-mail, sent out to people on the amcitbeijing@state.gov e-mail list, cautions Americans about the threat of terrorist activity by unspecified groups. From the e-mail:

There is a heightened risk that extremist groups will conduct terrorist acts within China in the near future. In light of these security concerns, citizens traveling in China are advised to use caution and to be alert to their surroundings at all times, including at hotels, in restaurants, on public transportation and where there are demonstrations and other large-scale public gatherings. Consistent with our standard advice, American citizens are urged to avoid the areas of demonstrations.

For those who have been in other cities during the Olympics, is this kind of warning standard or is does there appear to be a different approach by the State Dept. to security this year?

There’s more information about travel safety and specifics about the 2008 summer Games on the State Dept. website.

This morning BOCOG announced the specifics of the third phase of their Olympics ticketing program. For those who won tickets during the first ticketing phase, you will be able to pick up your tickets in June or early July. Olympics tickets are being printed now!

BOCOG Press Conference Excerpts:

Starting from 9am, May 5 to June 9, 2008, BOCOG will launch the Phase Three Domestic Olympic Ticket Sales Program.

During this period, the public can buy tickets of the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games at designated Bank of China (BOC) ticket outlets or by logging on to the official ticketing website of the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games.

The number of the ticket outlets during this stage will be fewer than that offered during the previous two phases.

For further details, please log on to the official ticketing website of the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games or call the Olympic ticketing call centre at 952008.

Similar to the first two phases, only applications from individual buyers will be accepted during the third phase of the Program Group applications will therefore be considered ineligible. Applicants will use their valid ID cards for registration purposes (further details are available at the official ticketing website of the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games).

The purchase limit is two sessions per application and three tickets per session.

According to BOCOG, a total of 1.38 million Olympic tickets will be released during the 3rd phase.

In mid-June American Embassies around the world will be asked to nominate US-based companies operating in their host countries for the Secretary of State’s award for corporate excellence. 

Based on their work in China, UPS was a finalist in 2005, as were AmCham-China members APCO and Coca-Cola in 2006 and 2007 respectively. 

The Embassy would very much like to hear from any American companies whose good works would qualify for this award in 2008.  Interested candidate companies are requested to contact the Embassy by mid-May.

More information about the award is on the US Department of State website:  www.state.gov/e/eeb/ace.  Bruce Levine, Labor Officer, can provide more information to interested companies directly.  He can be reached by phone: [86](10) 6532-3831 ext 6046 or by e-mail: LevineBJ@state.gov

The Chinese government earlier this week outlined its remaining plans to clear the air for the summer Games.  The International Herald Tribune reports on the details.

The measures announced Monday include a two-month halt in construction, beginning July 20, and government directives that will force coal-burning power plants to reduce their emissions by 30 percent throughout most of the summer. Officials said that 19 heavy-polluting enterprises, including steel mills, coke plants and refineries, would be either temporarily mothballed or forced to reduce production. Gas stations that do not meet environmental standards will closed, as will all cement production, and the use toxic solvents outdoors will be forbidden.
Read the whole article.

The article goes on to quote Du Shaozhong, deputy director of Beijing’s Environmental Protection Bureau urging reporters to “just tell everybody they don’t have to worry.”