Call for calm
Edited by Shen Yang


Chinese Foreign Minister Li Zhaoxing (R) meets his Japanese counterpart Nobutaka Machimura (L) in Beijing April 17, 2005.

Chinese Government has called for calm and a "sober mind" among its nationals, after thousands of people staged a second-wave protest against Japan's Koizumi Government in Shanghai and several other cities on Saturday.

Meanwhile, a senior Chinese official said that China's relations with Japan are now at a "crossroad".

State Councillor Tang Jiaxuan, a former foreign minister, said Japanese leaders' visits to the Yasukuni Shrine honoring war dead including convicted war criminals were at the heart of the problems between the two Asian giants.

China's leading newspaper, People's Daily, carried a signed article on April 17 calling for Chinese nationals to maintain social stability for the building of a harmonious society.

"Today's world is not placid and there exist frictions and problems of various kinds; our endeavor to grow the economy is far from smooth sailing as we are faced with all sorts of difficulties," says the article.

"These contradictions and problems can only be settled in an orderly manner by abiding by the law and with a sober mind."

Chinese experts say that China's leaders do not want the protests venting Chinese anger at rising Japanese right-wing political trends to get out of control, jeopardizing China's rapid economic growth.

The People's Daily commentary attributes the country's rapid economic growth, progress in people's living standards and the rising prestige of China in the international arena in the past two decades to China's stable social order, which "should be cherished with redoubled efforts."

It quotes late leader Deng Xiaoping as saying that stability is of "overriding importance" in solving all of China's problems. "We should cherish and maintain social stability the same way we protect our eyes."

Vocabulary
friction 摩擦
endeavor 努力
placid 平静的
jeopardize 危害
commentary 评论
arena 舞台

World in Pictures
Photo source: ImagineChina

	Thai New Year Festival 泰国民众迎接传统新年 A Thai man is doused with water during Songkran Festival celebrations, the Thai traditional New Year Festival, also known as the Water Festival in Bangkok, Thailand, April 13. People throughout the country celebrated the Songkran Water Festival that marks the start of the lunar year in Thailand.
	Giant fish jumps 热带鱼一跃冲天 Alcibiades Barria watches a tropical fish jump at the Agricultural Development Ministry Center, April 10, in Los Santos Province, Panama. This species can reach 25 kilograms in weight.
	Dog show 斗牛犬跳火圈 A French bulldog jumps through a ring of fire during a dog show, April 17, in Chuanghua, 250 kilometers southwest of Taipei in China's Taiwan Province.
	Re－entering the Guinness Book 法少女徒步北极 French girl Hempleman Adams, 15, pulls a sledge through the snow in Iqaluit, Canada. She entered the Guinness Book of Records for the second time as she became the youngest person to complete the Baffin Island Traverse, April 14. Adams was accompanied by three others as she added to the world record that she achieved at the age of eight when she was flown to meet her father at the North Pole, becoming the youngest person to reach the Pole.
	Artistic glasses show 艺术眼镜亮相画展 An art work shaped as a pair of giant glasses at an art gallery in the northern West Bank settlement of Sanur, April 14.

World in Words
Collected & translated by Beverly

"I don't need the money. I need the job."
"我需要的不是钱, 而是工作. "
Mr O'Rourke, 65, a millionaire from business, real estate and insurance investments, chugs along as a conductor, earning a base salary of $52,000 a year.
--65岁的奥卢克先生身为商业、地产和保险等投资业的百万富翁却宁愿做一个平凡的检票员, 赚取微薄的5.2万美元的年薪.


"Last year's list was more about political power. This year's is more about moral influence."
"去年的榜单比较注重政治权力, 而今年更关注的是道德影响力. "
President Bush, filmmaker Michael Moore and lifestyle trendsetter Martha Stewart are among the world's most influential people on Time magazine's second annual "Time 100" list published last week.
--《时代》周刊于上周公布了第二期年度"全球百名最具影响力人物榜", 美国总统布什、电影导演迈克尔·摩尔和引领生活潮流的玛莎·斯图尔特均榜上有名.


"Drinking too much water or too many sports drinks will dilute the blood and may even cause death."
"喝太多水或运动饮料会稀释血液, 甚至可能引发死亡. "
After years of telling athletes to drink as much liquid as possible to avoid dehydration, some doctors now say drinking too much poses a greater risk.
--以前医生总是告诫运动员多喝水以防脱水, 但现在, 有些医生却认为喝太多水可能反给身体造成更大的伤害.


"No black artists, no gay artists, no world music, only one woman, no genre less than 25 years old, and no Beatles."
"没有黑人音乐家, 没有同性恋音乐家, 也没有流行音乐, 只有一位女歌手, 没有历史少于25年的音乐流派, 也没有甲壳虫乐队的歌. "
The music tastes of US President George W Bush have come under scrutiny after an aide revealed the playlist of his new iPod player.
--美国总统布什的新款iPod音乐播放器里的歌曲列表被一位助手"泄露"之后, 人们开始仔细研究他的音乐品味.