China’s phallic skyscrapers are for real, and five more things you need to know today

EDITION SEP 27 Hey there Inkstoners!   It’s Juliana here.   Journalism is a tough, but fun and interesting profession. For one, you get to go out there and meet lots of people, some of whom really make you go hmmm.     Two years ago, a PR agency pitched me a story. Hong Kong property billionaire Lui Che Woo was starting an Asian version of the Nobel Prize. Winners get a cash prize of $2.5 million each, and that’s a lot more than the Nobel Prize cash awards.   The categories: 1) sustainability prize 2) welfare betterment prize 3) positive energy prize. Yes, Mr Lui was giving $2.5 million to someone who was promoting “positive energy.”   That being the inaugural year, there was no track record of winners. Who were the contenders? Yoga teachers? Reiki instructors? No way, I thought.    The winner in the first year turned out to be former US President Jimmy Carter, who undoubtedly has lots of good karma from years of human rights activism.   But the phrase “positive energy” isn’t just a New Age thing. In fact, the Chinese catch phrase was co-opted by President Xi Jinping in 2012 during a meeting with...Jimmy Carter.    Since then, it’s often been used by officialdom to describe nearly anything in line with their policies or ideology. By contrast, “negative energy” is used to describe views not in line with official views.   The “positive” versus “negative” energy debate has been trending on Chinese social media this week. A top pro-government journalist and critic has slammed an acclaimed Chinese auteur’s latest gritty gangster drama, calling it “stinky tofu” for its “negative energy” and drawing the ire of many online commentators.    Check out our fourth story today for all the details 1. Free at last?   Poet Liu Xia was never an activist herself. But she was put under house arrest for eight years in Beijing, simply for loving the wrong guy: Nobel Peace Prize laureate Liu Xiaobo.   After her husband died last year, Liu’s friends and family thought she’d finally be able to leave China. She was suffering from severe depression, and urgently needed medical treatment.   The world cheered when she was finally allowed to leave in July for a new life in Germany. And on Wednesday, she made her first official public appearance in New York. She smiled a lot and looked great. Check out this story from Eileen Guo in New York.   READ 2. Foreign influence   The United Nations General Assembly in New York (often called ‘Un-ga’) has been Donald Trump’s show. He has repeatedly accused China of meddling in the upcoming midterm elections.   He hasn’t presented any evidence, but he says he will soon. Check out our video for more.   READ 3. Trust me, I’m the pope   After Pope Francis announced he has said a provisional agreement with the Communist Party, many in the Catholic community are not pleased.   Beijing has imposed strict controls on religion. And rights advocates worry that by recognizing the state-appointed archbishops in China, the Vatican is validating the country’s crackdown on underground Catholic churches. The pope responded to the concerns in his first address to Chinese Catholics since the deal was signed. Read this story to find out what he said to the faithful and state leaders in China. READ 4. Stinky cinema   China has the world’s biggest box office, but it often gives a cold shoulder to art films.   Ash Is Purest White, acclaimed director Jia Zhangke’s new film, has impressed international critics at the 2018 Cannes Film Festival. But for the editor of state media tabloid Global Times, the film has too much “negative energy.” He even compares it to “stinky tofu.” It triggered an uproar online defending art films that seek to capture the soul of modern China, warts and all, and a widely-applauded response by the director himself. READ 5. Phallic architecture   This is definitely one of those weird China stories. Who knew there was such an obviously phallic-shaped skyscraper in southwest China? With a viral video of fireworks coming out of the erect shaft? Well, it turns out the video was fake. Some may argue that any skyscraper looks phallic. But this particular building in Guangxi, and several others in China, are just too close to the real. Read this story by Grace Tsoi and look at the photos to judge for yourself. READ 6. Wrecked and found   An imperial warship has finally been found off the northeast coast of China, more than 100 years after it sank during a battle with Japan. The German-built cruiser, the Jingyan, sank during the First Sino-Japanese War.   China’s Qing empire and the empire of Japan were fighting for influence over Korea. Divers told CCTV in this video by Janet Sun that the ship was in remarkably good condition.   READ If you've got time How China Systematically Pries Technology From U.S. Companies​   China is using a variety of measures to pry technology from US firms operating in China, sometimes coercively, reports the Wall Street Journal. China’s Tiangong-2 space lab will fall to earth in 2019   China’s second space lab will return to Earth next year in a controlled descent, writes CNN. The roof of the world It’s sparsely populated, and a region of stunning beauty. Find out more Get more Inkstone Inkstone is a daily digest of 6 China-focused stories providing unvarnished insight into a rising potential superpower. NEWSLETTER SUBSCRIBE NOW MOBILE APP   © 2018 South China Morning Post Publishers Ltd. All rights reserved.

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