Events in the year 2009 in China.
Incumbents General Secretary of the Chinese Communist Party - Hu Jintao President – Hu Jintao Premier – Wen Jiabao Vice President - Xi Jinping Vice Premier - Li Keqiang Congress Chairman - Wu Bangguo Conference Chairman - Jia Qinglin
Governors Governor of Anhui Province – Wang Sanyun Governor of Fujian Province – Huang Xiaojing Governor of Gansu Province – Xu Shousheng (until July), Xu Shousheng (starting July) Governor of Guangdong Province – Huang Huahua Governor of Guizhou Province – Lin Shusen (until August), Zhao Kezhi (starting August) Governor of Hainan Province – Luo Baoming Governor of Hebei Province – Hu Chunhua (until November), Chen Quanguo (starting November) Governor of Heilongjiang Province – Li Zhanshu Governor of Henan Province – Guo Gengmao Governor of Hubei Province – Luo Qingquan Governor of Hunan Province – Zhou Qiang Governor of Jiangsu Province – Luo Zhijun Governor of Jiangxi Province – Wu Xinxiong Governor of Jilin Province – Wang Rulin Governor of Liaoning Province – Chen Zhenggao Governor of Qinghai Province – Song Xiuyan Governor of Shaanxi Province – Yuan Chunqing Governor of Shandong Province – Jiang Daming Governor of Shanxi Province – Wang Jun Governor of Sichuan Province – Jiang Jufeng Governor of Yunnan Province – Qin Guangrong Governor of Zhejiang Province – Lü Zushan
Events
January January 1 – Tongyong pinyin will no longer be official in the Republic of China, due to the ROC's Ministry of Education's approval of Hanyu pinyin in 2008. January 2 – The border demarcation with markers was officially completed between China and Vietnam, signed by Deputy Foreign Minister Vu Dung on the Vietnamese side and his Chinese counterpart, Wu Dawei, on the Chinese side.Thanh Nien News | Politics | Vietnam, China complete historic border demarcation January 5 – Strict enforcements of internet keyword filters in China introduced, leading to mass protests online against internet censorship by Chinese netizens.国新办等七部委开展整治互联网低俗之风专项行动 对传播低俗内容网站的曝光与谴责(第5号) January 7 – Ministry of IT China issues the first 3G network TD-SCDMA for China Mobile. January 9 – Nationwide alert throughout China regarding a large number of mass-produced, counterfeit renminbi 100 yuan notes;Nationwide alert on fake RMB notes January 13 – People's Liberation Army Navy escorted a Taiwanese merchant ship and three other vessels in the Gulf of Aden near Somalia.Chinese Naval Force Protects Taiwanese Ship From Somali Pirates January 15 – China surpasses Germany to become the third largest economy, based on revised 2007 GDP figures. Chinese officials published the revised figures for 2007 financial year in which growth happened at 13 percent instead of 11.9 percent (provisional figures). China's gross domestic product stood at US$3.4 trillion while Germany's GDP was US$3.3 trillion for 2007. Based on these figures, in 2007 China recorded its fastest growth since 1994 when the GDP grew by 13.1 percent. A Taiwanese government official and a legislator's aide have been arrested in Taipei for allegedly leaking state secrets to Mainland China. The information allegedly leaked included details on the process taken during the transition of power between Chen Shui-bian and Ma Ying-Jeou.Taiwanese official arrested for leaking secret to China January 25 – 2009 Xinjiang earthquake
February February 2 – Wen Jiabao shoe-throwing incident February 8 – Yunnan hide-and-seek incident February 9 – The Television Cultural Center in Beijing, China, adjacent to the CCTV Headquarters, burned in a spectacular fire started by fireworks on Lantern Festival day.Crowds watch hotel destroyed by fire beside Beijing's new CCTV headquarters - XINHUA February 10–17 – Chinese President Hu Jintao visits a series of African and Asian countries,President Hu visits five Asian, African nations (Portal) - XINHUA including Saudi Arabia,Chinese president continues visit in Saudi Arabia - XINHUA Mali,Chinese, Malian presidents meet on bilateral ties - XINHUA Senegal,Chinese, Senegalese leaders meet on bilateral ties - XINHUA Tanzania, and Mauritius. February 15 – New Star ship incident February 17 – The personal details of a large number of Chinese celebrities, which included ID card photos, personal identification numbers and phone numbers, were leaked onto the Internet. This is not the first time such an incident has occurred, with prior minor events occurring throughout 2003 to 2008. February 18 – 2009 Winter Universiade February 20–22 – United States Secretary of State Hillary Clinton visits Beijing, China.U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to visit China_English_Xinhua February 21 – 2009 Shanxi mine blast February 23 – Haiyantang rat and rabbit piece up for sale (see 2009 Auction of Old Summer Palace bronze heads) February 25 – Three people attempt self-immolation at Tiananmen SquareTimesofIndia February 28 – PRC naming laws Early February - Chinese netizens create what is now known as the Baidu 10 Mythical Creatures over a period throughout the first weeks of February, as a sign of protest against increased censorship on Chinese websites.
March March 1 – Chang'e 1 retires, following its planned crash landing on the Moon. March 5 – 2009 National People's Congress March 8 – US Impeccable south china sea incident March 11 – Minor incident near the Diaoyu Islands as a JSDF patrol boat moved close to the islands. Some sources indicate that both sides scrambled aircraft, involving PLAAF Su-30MKK and Japanese F-15 aircraft, however the situation did not escalate. March 17 – China's largest fishery patrol China Yuzheng 311 (中国渔政311船) arrives in Yongxing Island, Xisha Islands, asserting control over the disputed islands in the South China Sea. The territory is disputed with Vietnam. March 19 – Japan 2012 visa permit consider listing Taiwanese people living in Japan as coming from Taiwan (independent state), not China.Taiwan news agency. "CNA ." 日媒：在日台灣人居留證國籍欄可望正名. Retrieved on 2009-03-20. March 20 – Chongqing soldier shot.Chinapost. "Chinapost.com.tw." Chinese soldier shot dead. Retrieved on 2009-03-23. March 28 – Serf liberation day March 29 – Researchers from the University of Toronto discover GhostNet, a China-based electronic spying operation which has infiltrated at least 1,295 computers in 103 countries.
April April 8 – 2009 Xishui sex trial: The close-door trial started at the People's Court of Xishui County. April 9 – Launch of Beidou-2B satellite on a Long March 3A rocket from Xichang Satellite Launch Center. April 13 – National Human Rights Action Plan 2009-2010 April 16 – The government of the People's Republic of China releases economic data for Q1 2009, showing a rise in GDP by 6.1%, fall in CPI by 1.2% during March, PPI down 4.6%, industrial output by 5.1%, retail sales up 15%, and fixed asset investment up 28.8%.China releases economic data for Q1 2009 - XINHHUA April 22 – Chinese researchers conclude that the Great Wall of China is 2,851.8 km longer than previously estimated, after analysing data obtained from satellite imagery. Chinese hackers accused of stealing data from the United States Department of Defense regarding the F-35 Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter. April 23 – 60th Anniversary of Navy, international fleet review off Qingdao.Int'l fleet review off Qingdao concludes, Xinhua. April 24 – CBHD goes on salepcworld CBHD April 27 – ForeUI software is released by EaSynth Solutions.
May May 1 – The Republic of China allows financial investment from the People's Republic of China for the first time since 1949. May 6 – Straits Exchange Foundation chairman Chiang Pin-kung declared his retirement, then withdrew from retirement. May 10 – Deng Yujiao incident May 12 – China commemorates the first anniversary of the 2008 Sichuan earthquake. May 16 – A large ship transporting sand capsizes off the Liaoning coast. May 17 – 517 Protest May 18 – Head of Guangdong, Man Hing-leong (萬慶良), meets Jasper Tsang and 25 HK Legco member.Takungpao. "Takungpao.com ." 萬慶良: 粵港合作求務實突破. Retrieved on 2009-05-18. May 19 – Taiwan permitted to send representatives to a World Health Organization conference in Geneva under observer status for the first time under the name Chinese Taipei, with authorization from the People's Republic of China. Launch of the Huan Jing 1C satellite on a Long March 2C rocket from Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center. May 30 – 2009 Chongqing mine blast May 31 – 2009 Shaanxi dog-free zone
June June 2 – As a part of the General Motors bankruptcy crisis, General Motors announces the sale of the Hummer brand of off-road vehicles to Sichuan Tengzhong Heavy Industrial Machinery Company, a machinery company in western China, in which the transaction is expected to close in the third quarter of 2009. June 5 – Australian mining company Rio Tinto breaks a deal for Chinese state-owned Chinalco to purchase a larger stake the company, with support by rival Australian mining company BHP Billiton. Rio Tinto is expected to pay a US$195 million breaking fee according to the contract signed earlier by the two parties. Rio Tinto controls large Iron ore reserves in Australia. Since early 2008, Chinalco holds 9% of ownership of Rio Tinto. June 5 – Fang Jing spy accusation incident June 5 – 2009 Chengdu bus fire June 7–13 – Shanghai Pride, the first gay pride festival ever held in the People's Republic of China, takes place in Shanghai. June 18 – US, Japan, South Korea assist Asian Development Bank funding to Arunachal Pradesh, old India and China territorial disputeTimes of Indiaindianexpress.com June 19 – 2009 Shishou riot 2009 Music king award (勁歌王頒獎禮) with large C-pop star gathering at Chengduhkheadline 2009 music kingsina.com 2009 music king June 23 – Liu Xiaobo arrested for Charter 08 democratic reform June 25 – Republic of China President Ma Ying-jeou expresses his bid for Kuomintang leadership, as he registered as the sole candidate for the election of the KMT chairmanship. The election is scheduled for July 26, where the new chairman would take office on September 12. If his bid succeeds, he would become the leader of the KMT, as well as the head-of-state of the Republic of China; in effect, this would officially allow Ma to be able to meet with People's Republic of China President Hu Jintao (who is also the General Secretary of the Chinese Communist Party) and other PRC delegates, as he would be able to represent the KMT as leader of a Chinese political party, rather than as head-of-state of a political entity unrecognized by the PRC.Taiwan President Ma Ying-jeou registers for KMT leadership race - eTaiwan News Shaoguan incident June 27 - Collapse of Lotus Riverside Block 7, at the Lotus Riverside Complex, Shanghai June 29 – Hunan train collision
July
July 5 – 2009 Ürümqi riots South China floodNews.xinhuanet.com South China flood July 9 – 2009 Yunnan earthquake July 10 – Four Rio Tinto employees, including one Australian citizen, arrested in Shanghai for corruption and espionage. One of the arrested, Australian citizen Stern Hu is suspected of stealing Chinese state secrets. July 12 – Ürümqi oil tank explosion July 16 – Sun Danyong, a Chinese factory worker employed by Apple's manufacturing partner Foxconn, committed suicide after reporting to have lost a prototype model for a fourth generation iPhone.Worker commits suicide over misplaced iPhone - Yahoo!7 News July 21 – 2009 Nuctech corruption case, company formerly run by Hu Jintao's son Hu Haifeng July 23 – The birth of the world's first giant panda conceived using frozen sperm is announced in Sichuan. July 24 – First publication of a breakthrough in stem cell research, where Chinese researchers from the Shanghai Stem Cell Institute successfully reprogrammed adult stem cells to be able to differentiate into any body cell. - Australian Broadcasting Corporation Tonghua Iron and Steel Group riot