China has achieved success in implementing birth control policy
The population of mainland China should not exceed 1.37 billion by 2010. As reported by the Xinhua news agency, this was stated by the head of the PRC State Committee for Family Planning, Zhang Guoqing, speaking at the All-China working conference on demographic policy and family planning.
According to him, China has achieved significant successes in implementing the birth control policy since the late 1970s and has managed to prevent a rapid increase in population.
The PRC is improving socio-economic measures aimed at limiting births, promoting a system of incentives for families that restrict childbearing, and actively promotes the slogan "have fewer children, get rich faster", Zhang added. In 2005, according to him, this campaign already covered 23 provinces and autonomous regions of China, primarily rural areas.
In the coming years, China intends to strengthen and improve the legislative framework for the birth control policy, strive to ensure the gender balance of the population, and work to reduce the number of newborns with disabilities, Zhang stated.
As of early 2005, China's population stood at 1.3 billion.
EU introduces visa-free transit
The European Union has developed principles for simplifying the procedure for issuing transit visas to citizens of non-EU countries. As ITAR-TASS reports, a single list of documents will be created for free transit through the Schengen area or the new EU countries among the Central and Eastern European states that have not yet joined the Schengen Agreement.
The basis for visa-free transit will be a visa or residence permit issued by a Schengen country, any of the states that joined the EU in 2004, as well as Switzerland and Liechtenstein, which are not members of either the EU or Schengen.
On September 15, the European Commission also approved recommendations for the EU Council to begin negotiations with Ukraine on easing the visa regime. This concerns short-term Schengen visas valid for no more than three months.
Germans not allowed to smile in new passports
Germany is introducing a new document verification standard - photographs will be read by scanners capable of recognizing a person by the minutest facial features. As Turist.ru reports, in order for the scanners to work correctly, Germans are officially forbidden to smile when being photographed.
Germany's Interior Minister ordered that passport offices accept from November 1 only face-on photographs of citizens with the most neutral facial expression. Scanners work best when a person is captured with a closed mouth and a serious expression. "A broad smile is, of course, a good thing, but in this case it is unacceptable," he stressed.
Another innovation is expected in 2007 - the fingerprints of two fingers will be applied to a special processor in the passport cover. The decision to complicate passports was made by Germany after the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001 in the United States. Biometric passports were introduced last year in Canada and the United States. The European Union agreed on common standards in December 2004.
Ukraine eases employment of foreigners
Work permits in Ukraine for foreigners in the category of "intra-corporate transferees" (senior personnel, managers and specialists) and the category of "persons providing services without a commercial presence in Ukraine" will be granted for the period of employment, rather than for a term of up to one year, as before.
As Interfax-Ukraine reports, the corresponding changes to the procedure for issuing work permits to foreigners and stateless persons in Ukraine, approved by the Cabinet of Ministers' resolution of November 1, 1999, were introduced by a government resolution of September 12, 2005.
Foreign citizens working in Ukraine in senior positions had previously repeatedly complained about the need to renew their work permits annually.
American students fail international education tests
The United States is losing its position in education. As a recent study showed, American schoolchildren as a whole lag behind their peers from Europe and Asia. The first five places were taken by students from Finland, South Korea, the Netherlands, Japan and Canada, CNN reports.
The study was conducted in December 2004. According to results published on September 13, the overall result of the tests offered to 15-year-old Americans can be assessed as "below average".
Among people aged 25 to 34 who have completed school, the United States ranks ninth among developed countries. The percentage of people of the same age who have received a college diploma puts the United States in seventh place in the world. Twenty years ago, the United States held first place in these categories, said Barry McGaw, director for education at the Organization for Cooperation and Development, located in Paris. This organization conducts annual studies in the field of education in various countries in order to evaluate the education system and issue its recommendations.
Given how much money is spent on education in the United States and how poorly American students performed on the proposed tests, it becomes clear, McGaw said, that the North American school system is "very inefficient".
On average, at all levels of education in the United States, $11,152 is spent per student. By this indicator, the States rank second after Switzerland, which spends $11,334 per student.
Red Cross and Crescent to be supplemented by Red Diamond
One more symbol may be added to the international symbols of the Red Cross and the Red Crescent. The image of a Red Diamond, as a symbol not associated with any religion or nationality, may be added to the registry of charitable organization signs at the request of Israel, writes the Washington Times newspaper.
A diplomatic conference with representatives of 192 countries that have signed the Geneva Conventions on the protection of war victims is to be held in late 2005 in the Swiss capital. One of the main issues on its agenda will be the discussion and adoption of a new international symbol. According to diplomats permanently accredited in Geneva, the new symbol will most likely be a red crystal in the shape of a diamond. This symbol is not associated with any religion or nationality and does not have any stable cultural associations. Therefore, it will not look offensive to representatives of different countries.
The reason for this conference is Israel's persistent requests. The humanitarian organization Magen David Adom is not part of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement because its symbol is the Red Star of David.
The Red Cross and the Red Crescent were chosen as symbols for organizations operating under the 1949 Geneva Convention. However, Israel refused to participate in the Movement because it bore symbols of another, non-Jewish, faith.
German Foreign Ministry warns of travel dangers
The German Foreign Ministry warns its citizens against traveling to a number of states due to the threat of terrorist acts. As noted in a message from the German foreign policy agency received by RIA Novosti, "the danger of terrorist attacks is particularly high in the Middle East, Afghanistan, Indonesia and, as recent events show, also in Russia."
"Furthermore, a recurring threat exists in regions where terrorist activities have already been carried out in the past, or where terrorist organizations have been uncovered, where terrorists enjoy the support of the local population, or where, due to insufficiently effective preventive measures, such acts can be carried out relatively easily," the document says. It also draws citizens' attention to the fact that "potential danger cannot be ruled out in other places, in particular in the United States or European Union countries."
The German Foreign Ministry recommends exercising special caution when visiting "symbolic objects" that are primary targets for terrorists, in particular religious institutions, government buildings, transport infrastructure facilities (especially airports, railway stations, ports), and tourist centers.
The foreign policy agency urges Germans traveling abroad to find out the situation in the countries on their route in advance, to remain vigilant during the trip, and to inform the local police about any suspicious people or incidents.