Previous shows

On the spectrum: China's mental health

The National People's Congress just finished collecting public opinions on passing China's first Mental Health Law. How is China's mental health in general? And how the legislation might impact you and me?

Should China "rescue" Europe?

Europe is experiencing a financial crisis. Many people have turned their eyes to China, but what does this crisis have to do with China? What role is China playing? For this week's Digest China, we come to Brussels to meet two guests.

Digest China: Powerful kids - Part 2

Last week we visited a Chinese elementary school in Beijing and talked to a few 9- to 10-year-old children about taking power as student leaders at school. For this week, we visit an international school and see what children do differently.

Powerful kids - Part 1

Having a system of a class monitor and some little ministers in charge of different aspects of school life is common in China. The host Feng Xin and her producer come to one school in Beijing and talk to some powerful kids.

"Micro-charity" serves up free lunch

Nearly 10,000 children who live in China's poor countryside will no longer have to starve when they go to school, thanks to one man's micro-blogging, which turned into a nationwide charity program in just a few days.

The Chinese worship of "foreign brands"

A Chinese high-end furniture brand named Da Vinci marketed its products as being foreign-made, but quality issues suggested its furniture was made in China. Why are Chinese people keen on foreign products?

The Chinese "naked marriage"

While some Chinese couples spend tens of thousands of yuan to get married, others choose to spend only 9 yuan ($1.5) – all that’s needed to get a marriage certificate. Digest China invites three couples to tell their naked marriage stories.

How heavy are our tax burdens?

Starting Sept 1, 60 million people in China will no longer have to pay personal income tax. How meaningful is this change to individuals? How heavy are our tax burdens? Digest China finds them out.

Background

November 30 was the final day for the National People's Congress to collect public opinions on passing China's first Mental Health Law. Rather than getting into the technical details of the drafted law, in our next two shows we will be talking about mental health among the Chinese population and how the legislation might impact you and me. Our discussion all began from some online cartoons.

Poll

Guest profile

Xu Kaiwen (left): Deputy director of the Counseling and Psychotherapy Center of the Peking University.

Wang Shaoli (right): Vice director of Beijing Huilongguan Hospital

Photo

Next show

Although a large portion of the drafted Mental Health Law is related to people with mental illnesses, our two guests said the severity of people's mental health varies in degree, and the drafted law also includes the general public. How do psychiatrists keep themselves happy when all they deal with every day are people who are not happy? For our next show on December 15, we will begin with this question and then find out what they think of the draft Mental Health Law, a draft that's been discussed for 26 years.

The host

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