The incident that happened a few days ago in a restaurant in Tangshan, northern China, is horrific and despicable: A group of Chinese men savagely attacked several women. The incident has sparked yet another debate about violence against women in China – as far as censorship permits. And yet this report is just the latest in a series of cruel acts of violence against women: The woman found chained up in Xuzhou last year, domestic violence in Xi’an in January, or the almost daily reports of men attacking their wives in the streets.
Fabian Peltsch spoke with Shanghai feminist Eloise Fan. She explains what lies behind the brutality of Chinese men, which social structures encourage such behavior – and what role the authoritarian regime of the Communist Party plays in all this.
Our second piece is dedicated to the state of the solar industry. It was German Minister of Finance Christian Lindner who, in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, called renewable energies “freedom energies” to great media effect. But at least for the solar industry, that is simply a misleading label: The dependence on China, which dominates the entire solar supply chain, is far too significant in this sector. And Beijing has set massive expansion targets for the coming years.
So today’s look is on the current state of the solar sector and whether the current supply difficulties are a result of China’s own demand.
The brutal assault in a Tangshan restaurant once again casts a spotlight on sexually motivated violence against women in China – and far beyond the country’s borders. How did you feel when you saw the footage?
Honestly, I didn’t watch the video because I already knew what to expect. Such events are nothing new in China. Violent attacks happen here every day in masses. Things won’t change. That’s why I don’t need to click on the video and watch another incident. I’m still in lockdown and trying to avoid all the negative feelings, I know that would make me suffer. I need to keep living in this hard situation.
Could the massive outrage that the incident is now stirring change anything?
Unfortunately, people have a bad memory when it comes to such incidents. At first, they react angry and shocked. But the truth is: these news do not stop. Take the case of the chained woman in Xuzhou last year, the domestic violence in Xi’an in January, and all the reports of men attacking and even killing their wives on the streets. One reason why people forget so quickly might be that they are traumatized by these news stories on the one hand, but at the same time, they feel powerless because they can’t do anything about the conditions. So they choose to forget, pretend nothing happened. Until the next violent assault happens.
Would you say that it is a social problem or also a political problem?
I think this incident does not primarily highlight the problem of lack of women’s rights. It rather highlights the privilege of Chinese men. Most of them have never been taught to respect women or life itself. Men who behave this way have been spoiled all their lives. They should be punished to finally feel something, like fear. I would say gender violence and sexual harassment are both very common. When I see a man beating a woman on the street, I would always intervene. But I’m tall and strong, so I’m more likely to have courage than other women. No one intervenes in most situations like this in China. People assume that it is a private matter, a relationship issue or a family dispute. They don’t want to get involved.
Can politics or a movement like “Metoo” help provide more safety?
There is a MeToo movement in China, but it’s not bringing better change. For example, there was an activist who went to Xuzhou at the time to stand up for the chained woman. Contact with her has broken off for the past three months. That is the elephant in the room. That’s why it’s impossible to make real change. And I don’t want to pretend that I’m living in a place where there’s any room for these changes. Also, because I have been through a lot in Shanghai this year. If a government treats its citizens with violence and does whatever it wants to them, that will definitely encourage those other small and bigger bullies in the country. That’s the ultimate cause – this is a country full of toxic masculinity.
Eloise Fan has been working as a creative director in the advertising industry in Shanghai for eight years. On the side, the 29-year-old runs the music label Scandal, which aims to provide a platform for feminist Chinese artists.
Shipping disruptions continue to have an impact on global goods traffic. They are also being felt in the solar power sector. Like other goods, solar modules are affected by the Covid-related closures of Chinese ports, confirms a spokeswoman for the German Solar Industry Association. This hurts the sector enormously. The entire European industry is heavily dependent on supplies from other countries – especially China.
For solar modules, the EU’s import dependency is 65 to 80 percent. Almost two-thirds of these imports originated from the People’s Republic, as a Commission report on strategic dependencies noted in February. And nearly two and a half years after the pandemic began, there are still snags. In Shanghai and the neighboring Zhejiang province, however, the proportion of waiting cargo ships relative to global capacity rose again in May, according to the Kiel Trade Indicator published by the IfW on June 7.
Meanwhile, the shipping delays in China have also led to longer waiting times in European ports. “For the first time since the outbreak of the pandemic, ships are jammed off the ports of Germany, Holland and Belgium. Almost two percent of the global freight capacity is currently stuck here and can neither be loaded nor unloaded,” writes the IfW.
But do the shipping delays also jeopardize achieving the ambitious goals of the European solar strategy? By 2025, the Commission wants to more than double the installed PV capacity to over 320 gigawatts (GW) compared to 2020, and by 2030 it is supposed to be 600 GW.
China, too, has set some ambitious goals. In 2021, the country has installed nearly 55 GW of capacity. Authorities expect that number to nearly double this year, with 108 GW added. By 2025, more than 550 gigawatts of wind and solar power plants are to be built – many of them as gigantic power plants in the deserts (China.Table reported).
Will this even leave enough solar modules for export to the EU and Germany? The high prices for modules are likely to continue for a while, expects the umbrella organization SolarPower Europe. “Shipping delays are due to high demand and high freight costs,” says analyst Christophe Lits of SolarPower Europe, a Brussels-based lobby group that acts as a link to policymakers and the industry’s interests. However, according to a spokeswoman, the German Solar Industry Association expects the container backlog to be cleared by the end of the year.
The spot price of monocrystalline modules in Europe has jumped from $240 to $280 per kilowatt in one year, as data from consulting firm InfoLink shows. According to SolarPower Europe, some commercial solar investors have put their projects on hold till prices fall.
Last year, 20 to 25 percent of all PV projects in the EU were postponed or canceled altogether, the Commission’s report says. Aside from high shipping costs, increased raw material prices and shutdowns of Chinese factories also played a role. A lack of installers is also a significant factor, says industry representative Lits.
However, experts do not yet believe there will be production capacity bottlenecks. “Global – and China-dominated – production capacities for wafers, solar cells and modules clearly exceed even the high demand,” Johannes Bernreuter, supply chain expert at Bernreuter Research, tells Table.Media.
Presently, however, there is a bottleneck in the production of polysilicon. “The expansion of capacities is not keeping up with the rapidly growing demand,” says Bernreuter. But China is pursuing “gigantic expansion plans”. Within the next two years, the situation will ease, the expert predicts. Analyst Lits even expects new production capacities by the beginning of 2023.
In the long-term, the Commission and the European solar industry also aim to create new capacities. The industry wants to almost double the domestic production of polysilicon to have sufficient material for modules of 54 GW. Module production itself is to be quadrupled from 9 to 35.6 GW.
Yet at present, there is still fierce competition for solar components across the continent. In Slovakia, for example, there is a shortage of modules because buyers in other EU countries are able to pay higher prices, European consumer protection organizations report. In collaboration with Nico Beckert
Although one-third of the panel discussions on the main stage were related to climate change, the aspect of energy security created new priorities. While the use of fossil fuels should be halted, reducing energy dependence on Russia is even more urgent.
There is a risk that international cooperation on climate change will fall by the wayside. And a rush toward energy security may undermine international standards, agreements, and institutions in a way that a more orderly transition would not. Inevitably, the focus also shifts to China, where the fight against climate change has become an increasingly central component of its own policies in recent years.
The country has come under economic pressure due to its strict zero-covid policy. Lockdowns in many parts of the country have caused regular economic activity to be put on hold. Long-term economic prosperity and the energy transition have abruptly taken a secondary role in the past few months. Does this mean that China has given up its endeavors or will stop international cooperation on issues of climate change? The answer is no.
However, the electricity crisis which hit many parts of China last September was a reality check. The question is not whether China takes climate change seriously, but rather has it perhaps been too ambitious to the point where the state has to reconsider its measures to avoid more power shortages. The most urgent problem now for China is striking a balance between its ambitious climate goals, whilst maintaining a scientific approach and maintaining normal economic activity.
For decades, Davos has been renowned for making visions become reality by engaging multiple stakeholders in dialogue, and providing a platform for connection, fostering the generation of new ideas and innovations. Over the past few years, many ideas born at the forum have been put into action in areas such as digital technology, Industry 4.0, ESG and stakeholder capitalism, which have provided solutions to global problems and created fairer economies and more equal societies.
China has benefited greatly from these discussions. For example, Environment, Social, Governance (ESG) has now become an important part of the corporate management of more and more Chinese companies. And at most business schools, ESG has become a key topic in curriculums.
After two years of pandemic-related restrictions, Davos had a chance to lead the world out of the turmoil. We expected leaders to step up to the challenge by creating opportunities for everyone to act on climate issues with urgency and in new and innovative ways. However, we found that the world is losing ground in the race to meet agreed goals for 2030 because the desire for greater energy security has taken center stage. And this is certainly not in China’s interests, because the People’s Republic itself would be among the big losers.
But without a clear mandate for implementing climate programs, without significant private sector involvement and, without proper financial structural support, this energy transition may take several lengthy detours – and end up going in the wrong direction on the road to net-zero.
If we consider the fight against climate change as a marathon, the pandemic in the background and the Russian aggression at the forefront this year are both like a cramp at the halfway mark. But we have to keep running. So the key now is to ease the pain and prevent health or security challenges from causing new cramps in the future. China has a great interest in addressing both symptoms and causes simultaneously and sees global solutions in a scientific, cooperative, and step-by-step approach.
Klaus Schwab, founder and chairman of the World Economic Forum, pointed out two conditions to improve the state of the world. First: States must consider themselves stakeholders in a larger community and put self-interest aside. Second: cooperation. But this will not be easy in the face of strained international relations. Russia was no longer even part of the stakeholder community. And China’s relations with the US are increasingly deteriorating. But if the Biden administration simply follows the Trump administration in viewing China as a threat to be suppressed and defeated, then what should this “enemy” do, to avoid being defeated, whilst being cooperative at the same time?
Take electromobility, for example: China has called for the integration of the entire industry chain among automakers, battery producers, used-car dealers, and scrap companies in battery recycling systems, in an attempt to contribute more to the international market. However, the response from the West has been lukewarm at best, taking a position that some EV-related technologies are strategic assets and they are reluctant to place reliance on China in their supply chains for such endeavors.
If the 2023 Davos meeting is scheduled in its usual January slot, in just eight months, people will gather again in the familiar snow. By that time, to tackle simultaneous global shocks collectively, we need to see concrete, high-profile achievements in place by then, and serious announcements for future plans. We also require two conditions. The first is that Davos maintains an open approach to diverse and different voices. And the second is the private sector can be further empowered. With ongoing geopolitical tensions, the voice of states and governments have been heard louder than before and their sound has greatly influenced global business and supply chains.
Dr. Yuan Ding is Vice President and Dean, Cathay Capital Chair Professor in Accounting at CEIBS. Prior to joining CEIBS, he was a tenured faculty member of HEC School of Management, Paris, France. He is member of European Accounting Association, French Accounting Association and American Accounting Association. Dr. Ding has acted as editor and editorial board member for many international academic journals in accounting and auditing.
When you hear the name Mongolia, you usually think of vast steppes and flat pastures. But there is much more, as the Mordaga National Park in Inner Mongolia shows. It is a popular destination for Chinese tourists. Dense forest covers 95 percent of its nearly 1,500 square kilometers.
The incident that happened a few days ago in a restaurant in Tangshan, northern China, is horrific and despicable: A group of Chinese men savagely attacked several women. The incident has sparked yet another debate about violence against women in China – as far as censorship permits. And yet this report is just the latest in a series of cruel acts of violence against women: The woman found chained up in Xuzhou last year, domestic violence in Xi’an in January, or the almost daily reports of men attacking their wives in the streets.
Fabian Peltsch spoke with Shanghai feminist Eloise Fan. She explains what lies behind the brutality of Chinese men, which social structures encourage such behavior – and what role the authoritarian regime of the Communist Party plays in all this.
Our second piece is dedicated to the state of the solar industry. It was German Minister of Finance Christian Lindner who, in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, called renewable energies “freedom energies” to great media effect. But at least for the solar industry, that is simply a misleading label: The dependence on China, which dominates the entire solar supply chain, is far too significant in this sector. And Beijing has set massive expansion targets for the coming years.
So today’s look is on the current state of the solar sector and whether the current supply difficulties are a result of China’s own demand.
The brutal assault in a Tangshan restaurant once again casts a spotlight on sexually motivated violence against women in China – and far beyond the country’s borders. How did you feel when you saw the footage?
Honestly, I didn’t watch the video because I already knew what to expect. Such events are nothing new in China. Violent attacks happen here every day in masses. Things won’t change. That’s why I don’t need to click on the video and watch another incident. I’m still in lockdown and trying to avoid all the negative feelings, I know that would make me suffer. I need to keep living in this hard situation.
Could the massive outrage that the incident is now stirring change anything?
Unfortunately, people have a bad memory when it comes to such incidents. At first, they react angry and shocked. But the truth is: these news do not stop. Take the case of the chained woman in Xuzhou last year, the domestic violence in Xi’an in January, and all the reports of men attacking and even killing their wives on the streets. One reason why people forget so quickly might be that they are traumatized by these news stories on the one hand, but at the same time, they feel powerless because they can’t do anything about the conditions. So they choose to forget, pretend nothing happened. Until the next violent assault happens.
Would you say that it is a social problem or also a political problem?
I think this incident does not primarily highlight the problem of lack of women’s rights. It rather highlights the privilege of Chinese men. Most of them have never been taught to respect women or life itself. Men who behave this way have been spoiled all their lives. They should be punished to finally feel something, like fear. I would say gender violence and sexual harassment are both very common. When I see a man beating a woman on the street, I would always intervene. But I’m tall and strong, so I’m more likely to have courage than other women. No one intervenes in most situations like this in China. People assume that it is a private matter, a relationship issue or a family dispute. They don’t want to get involved.
Can politics or a movement like “Metoo” help provide more safety?
There is a MeToo movement in China, but it’s not bringing better change. For example, there was an activist who went to Xuzhou at the time to stand up for the chained woman. Contact with her has broken off for the past three months. That is the elephant in the room. That’s why it’s impossible to make real change. And I don’t want to pretend that I’m living in a place where there’s any room for these changes. Also, because I have been through a lot in Shanghai this year. If a government treats its citizens with violence and does whatever it wants to them, that will definitely encourage those other small and bigger bullies in the country. That’s the ultimate cause – this is a country full of toxic masculinity.
Eloise Fan has been working as a creative director in the advertising industry in Shanghai for eight years. On the side, the 29-year-old runs the music label Scandal, which aims to provide a platform for feminist Chinese artists.
Shipping disruptions continue to have an impact on global goods traffic. They are also being felt in the solar power sector. Like other goods, solar modules are affected by the Covid-related closures of Chinese ports, confirms a spokeswoman for the German Solar Industry Association. This hurts the sector enormously. The entire European industry is heavily dependent on supplies from other countries – especially China.
For solar modules, the EU’s import dependency is 65 to 80 percent. Almost two-thirds of these imports originated from the People’s Republic, as a Commission report on strategic dependencies noted in February. And nearly two and a half years after the pandemic began, there are still snags. In Shanghai and the neighboring Zhejiang province, however, the proportion of waiting cargo ships relative to global capacity rose again in May, according to the Kiel Trade Indicator published by the IfW on June 7.
Meanwhile, the shipping delays in China have also led to longer waiting times in European ports. “For the first time since the outbreak of the pandemic, ships are jammed off the ports of Germany, Holland and Belgium. Almost two percent of the global freight capacity is currently stuck here and can neither be loaded nor unloaded,” writes the IfW.
But do the shipping delays also jeopardize achieving the ambitious goals of the European solar strategy? By 2025, the Commission wants to more than double the installed PV capacity to over 320 gigawatts (GW) compared to 2020, and by 2030 it is supposed to be 600 GW.
China, too, has set some ambitious goals. In 2021, the country has installed nearly 55 GW of capacity. Authorities expect that number to nearly double this year, with 108 GW added. By 2025, more than 550 gigawatts of wind and solar power plants are to be built – many of them as gigantic power plants in the deserts (China.Table reported).
Will this even leave enough solar modules for export to the EU and Germany? The high prices for modules are likely to continue for a while, expects the umbrella organization SolarPower Europe. “Shipping delays are due to high demand and high freight costs,” says analyst Christophe Lits of SolarPower Europe, a Brussels-based lobby group that acts as a link to policymakers and the industry’s interests. However, according to a spokeswoman, the German Solar Industry Association expects the container backlog to be cleared by the end of the year.
The spot price of monocrystalline modules in Europe has jumped from $240 to $280 per kilowatt in one year, as data from consulting firm InfoLink shows. According to SolarPower Europe, some commercial solar investors have put their projects on hold till prices fall.
Last year, 20 to 25 percent of all PV projects in the EU were postponed or canceled altogether, the Commission’s report says. Aside from high shipping costs, increased raw material prices and shutdowns of Chinese factories also played a role. A lack of installers is also a significant factor, says industry representative Lits.
However, experts do not yet believe there will be production capacity bottlenecks. “Global – and China-dominated – production capacities for wafers, solar cells and modules clearly exceed even the high demand,” Johannes Bernreuter, supply chain expert at Bernreuter Research, tells Table.Media.
Presently, however, there is a bottleneck in the production of polysilicon. “The expansion of capacities is not keeping up with the rapidly growing demand,” says Bernreuter. But China is pursuing “gigantic expansion plans”. Within the next two years, the situation will ease, the expert predicts. Analyst Lits even expects new production capacities by the beginning of 2023.
In the long-term, the Commission and the European solar industry also aim to create new capacities. The industry wants to almost double the domestic production of polysilicon to have sufficient material for modules of 54 GW. Module production itself is to be quadrupled from 9 to 35.6 GW.
Yet at present, there is still fierce competition for solar components across the continent. In Slovakia, for example, there is a shortage of modules because buyers in other EU countries are able to pay higher prices, European consumer protection organizations report. In collaboration with Nico Beckert
Although one-third of the panel discussions on the main stage were related to climate change, the aspect of energy security created new priorities. While the use of fossil fuels should be halted, reducing energy dependence on Russia is even more urgent.
There is a risk that international cooperation on climate change will fall by the wayside. And a rush toward energy security may undermine international standards, agreements, and institutions in a way that a more orderly transition would not. Inevitably, the focus also shifts to China, where the fight against climate change has become an increasingly central component of its own policies in recent years.
The country has come under economic pressure due to its strict zero-covid policy. Lockdowns in many parts of the country have caused regular economic activity to be put on hold. Long-term economic prosperity and the energy transition have abruptly taken a secondary role in the past few months. Does this mean that China has given up its endeavors or will stop international cooperation on issues of climate change? The answer is no.
However, the electricity crisis which hit many parts of China last September was a reality check. The question is not whether China takes climate change seriously, but rather has it perhaps been too ambitious to the point where the state has to reconsider its measures to avoid more power shortages. The most urgent problem now for China is striking a balance between its ambitious climate goals, whilst maintaining a scientific approach and maintaining normal economic activity.
For decades, Davos has been renowned for making visions become reality by engaging multiple stakeholders in dialogue, and providing a platform for connection, fostering the generation of new ideas and innovations. Over the past few years, many ideas born at the forum have been put into action in areas such as digital technology, Industry 4.0, ESG and stakeholder capitalism, which have provided solutions to global problems and created fairer economies and more equal societies.
China has benefited greatly from these discussions. For example, Environment, Social, Governance (ESG) has now become an important part of the corporate management of more and more Chinese companies. And at most business schools, ESG has become a key topic in curriculums.
After two years of pandemic-related restrictions, Davos had a chance to lead the world out of the turmoil. We expected leaders to step up to the challenge by creating opportunities for everyone to act on climate issues with urgency and in new and innovative ways. However, we found that the world is losing ground in the race to meet agreed goals for 2030 because the desire for greater energy security has taken center stage. And this is certainly not in China’s interests, because the People’s Republic itself would be among the big losers.
But without a clear mandate for implementing climate programs, without significant private sector involvement and, without proper financial structural support, this energy transition may take several lengthy detours – and end up going in the wrong direction on the road to net-zero.
If we consider the fight against climate change as a marathon, the pandemic in the background and the Russian aggression at the forefront this year are both like a cramp at the halfway mark. But we have to keep running. So the key now is to ease the pain and prevent health or security challenges from causing new cramps in the future. China has a great interest in addressing both symptoms and causes simultaneously and sees global solutions in a scientific, cooperative, and step-by-step approach.
Klaus Schwab, founder and chairman of the World Economic Forum, pointed out two conditions to improve the state of the world. First: States must consider themselves stakeholders in a larger community and put self-interest aside. Second: cooperation. But this will not be easy in the face of strained international relations. Russia was no longer even part of the stakeholder community. And China’s relations with the US are increasingly deteriorating. But if the Biden administration simply follows the Trump administration in viewing China as a threat to be suppressed and defeated, then what should this “enemy” do, to avoid being defeated, whilst being cooperative at the same time?
Take electromobility, for example: China has called for the integration of the entire industry chain among automakers, battery producers, used-car dealers, and scrap companies in battery recycling systems, in an attempt to contribute more to the international market. However, the response from the West has been lukewarm at best, taking a position that some EV-related technologies are strategic assets and they are reluctant to place reliance on China in their supply chains for such endeavors.
If the 2023 Davos meeting is scheduled in its usual January slot, in just eight months, people will gather again in the familiar snow. By that time, to tackle simultaneous global shocks collectively, we need to see concrete, high-profile achievements in place by then, and serious announcements for future plans. We also require two conditions. The first is that Davos maintains an open approach to diverse and different voices. And the second is the private sector can be further empowered. With ongoing geopolitical tensions, the voice of states and governments have been heard louder than before and their sound has greatly influenced global business and supply chains.
Dr. Yuan Ding is Vice President and Dean, Cathay Capital Chair Professor in Accounting at CEIBS. Prior to joining CEIBS, he was a tenured faculty member of HEC School of Management, Paris, France. He is member of European Accounting Association, French Accounting Association and American Accounting Association. Dr. Ding has acted as editor and editorial board member for many international academic journals in accounting and auditing.
When you hear the name Mongolia, you usually think of vast steppes and flat pastures. But there is much more, as the Mordaga National Park in Inner Mongolia shows. It is a popular destination for Chinese tourists. Dense forest covers 95 percent of its nearly 1,500 square kilometers.
