The egg was put it in an incubator, where the chick struggled to chip out at the weekend

– Reuters, Wellington. I DON’T know what to make of things just now Confusion reigns triumphant. Relatives and survivors of the 1968 My Lai massacre marked the anniversary of the slaughter of 500 civilians by US soldiers. Wreaths were placed at a monument to the victims and two US veterans who tried to halt the bloodbath urged that it never be forgotten. “Something terrible happened 30 years ago today,” ex-helicopter pilot Hugh Thompson said. But, as a man who has built his career on unquestioning belief in the absolute power of the Communist Party, his vision of how the NPC should evolve is unlikely to give cause for hope to those who want to see political reform in China..

Mr Qiao was unceremoniously ousted from his senior party positions last autumn, supposedly because of his age, but in reality because of a rift with Mr Jiang.Mr Li would not normally be thought of as the right man to further the development of China’s parliamentary system, though he will need to boost the NPC if it is to act as a power-base for him. This signals Mr Hu as the heir apparent to Mr Jiang, and designates him – for the time being – as the man to head the next generation of Chinese leaders. Mr Hu made his political name as party secretary of Tibet, a job in which he was seen as a conservative rather than a reformer.Analysts are weighing up how Mr Li’s appointment may affect the political development of the NPC, which under the outgoing Qiao Shi, 73, had begun to take on a more robust defence of the “rule of law”. He will retain his number two ranking in the Chinese leadership. Zhu Rongji, 69, will today be confirmed as China’s new prime minister.In a separate election, Hu Jintao, 55, was appointed China’s vice president. Unlike in recent years, foreign journalists were not allowed to watch the voting in the Great Hall of the People, but were provided with the results in a separate room.Under the constitution, Mr Li had to step down as prime minister after completing two full terms.

In recent years, the NPC has become more strident in voicing dissatisfaction. Support for one vote last year dropped as low as 60 per cent. It was thought the protest vote against the hardline Mr Li would be higher than it turned out.
The assembly this week is putting in place the government that will lead China into the 21st century. LI PENG, the man who imposed martial law on Peking during the spring 1989 pro-democracy demonstrations, was yesterday elected head of China’s Parliament, after an embarrassing 11 per cent of delegates failed to support his appointment. His election by the rubber-stamp National Party Congress (NPC) was no surprise – there was only one candidate. Although the vote for Li Peng, 69, was much less favourable than the resounding 98 per cent in favour of Jiang Zemin’s re-election as president, he may well have been relieved. He failed to prevent the deportation of Roman Jews, who had lived under the direct protection of the Pope for centuries.