10-01-07

日本私營化郵政系統 (Japan Privatizes Postal System)

日本開始郵政系統私營化，並由此產生了全球最大的商業銀行。這是重新整頓日本銀行領域的努力。

日本郵政星期一拆分為4個公司，分別從事銀行、保險、郵遞以及郵局管理業務。這些公司將在2017年前獨立經營並上市。銀行部門擁有4億個帳戶、3萬億美元資產，超過世界任何銀行的規模。

日本政府希望這項改革可以增進金融服務行業的競爭。

這項計劃是前首相小泉純一郎2005年提出的改革的結果。

Japan has begun privatizing its postal system, creating the world's largest commercial bank in an effort to reshape the country's banking sector.

Japan Post is being split Monday into four companies that will run its banking and insurance operations, handle mail delivery and manage post offices. The companies will be made independent by 2017, and listed on the stock exchange. The banking unit has 400 million accounts and three trillion dollars in assets - more than any other bank in the world.

The government hopes the reform will increase competition in the financial services sector.

The plan is the result of reforms initiated in 2005 by former Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi. 

澳門示威群眾抗議非法勞工和腐敗 (Macau Demonstrators Protest Illegal Workers, Corruption)

澳門將近1000人舉行了示威遊行，抗議政府腐敗和在澳門繁榮的賭博業中謀生的非法移民。

示威者說，他們並沒有從新一波注入澳門賭博業的外國投資中獲得任何好處，因為非法移民佔走了工作機會。示威者指控政府腐敗，因為政府沒能加以制止這種狀況。

抗議者在星期一中國國慶節的時候舉行示威。遊行在和平的氣氛下進行，但是防暴警察仍然手持警棍和盾牌在旁邊警戒，以防爆發類似今年五一期間曾經發生的動亂事件。

公眾抗議事件在基本自治的澳門很少發生。澳門在葡萄牙殖民統治400多年之後，于1999年回歸中國大陸。

Nearly one-thousand people in Macau have demonstrated against government corruption and illegal immigrant workers in the city's booming casino industry.

The demonstrators say they are not benefitting from the flood of new foreign investment in Macau's gaming industry because jobs are going to illegal workers. The protesters blame government corruption for the authorities' failure to stop the practice.

Monday's march marking China's National Day was peaceful. But riot police with shields and batons were standing by in case there was a repeat of the disturbance that broke out in a May Day protest earlier this year. 

Public protests in the largely autonomous southern Chinese territory are rare. Macau returned to Chinese authority in 1999 after 400 years of Portuguese colonial rule.