IN BRIEF

Policy

Biometric passports introduced

Biometric passports, or e-passports, to be issued by China will better protect citizens' personal data and national security, customs officials said on May 8, as authorities geared up for the nationwide introduction of the new high-tech system.

The 48-page travel document, which will be issued from May 15, contains an electronic chip on the last page, and anti-forgery labels on the other pages.

Only police and customs authorities will be able to access the information on the chip, which includes name, photograph and fingerprint details.

"In this way, no one can copy or use an e-passport that is lost or stolen," said Tang Lei, head of e-passport management for Beijing Public Security Bureau's exit-entry administration.

So far, more than 100 fingerprint recorders have been installed at the exit-entry administrations that process applications across the capital.

Safety

Gang had new take on gutter oil

Police have rounded up a 20-member gang on suspicion of manufacturing and selling "gutter oil" in East China's Zhejiang province, prosecutors said on May 5.

According to a statement issued by the Wucheng district procuratorate, the gang, led by Li Weijian and his wife Xu Xiaoqing, had invented a new kind of "gutter oil", or illegal cooking oil. They replaced the usual ingredients, like kitchen waste, with decomposed animal fat and organs from slaughterhouses. The gang had been selling this as cooking oil since 2005.

Traffic

Wedding cars in the line of fire

Police in Beijing have vowed to stop wedding cars from violating city ordinances after receiving a series of complaints from motorists during the recent May Day holiday.

The most common violations, according to an official notice, included covering license plates with message boards, illegally parking on trunk roads and emergency areas, randomly cutting into lanes and running red lights.

These actions increase the risk of accidents, greatly affect other vehicles and hamper traffic flow, according to the notice by the Beijing Traffic Management Bureau, which added that some drivers leave the message board covers on their plates long after the wedding ceremony.

IPR

Apple offers deal on trademark

Tech giant Apple has offered compensation to settle a dispute over ownership of the iPad trademark in China, said a lawyer connected with the case.

"Right now, there is still a big gap between the two sides on the settlement amount," said Xie Xianghui, a lawyer for Proview Technology (Shenzhen) Co, which claims ownership of the iPad trademark on the Chinese mainland. Xie declined to disclose the amount or when Apple made the offer.

The Guangdong High People's Court is trying to mediate the dispute, and both parties are trying to negotiate and come to a settlement, Xie said.

China Daily