国产热热热精品,亚洲视频久久】日韩,三级婷婷在线久久,99人妻精品视频,精品九热人人肉肉在线,AV东京热一区二区,91po在线视频观看,久久激情宗合,青青草黄色手机视频

National

Regional

Taiwan, HK, Macao

Special Coverage

Focus

Society

Profiles

Premier says golf courses out of bounds

(AP)
Updated: 2007-03-05 14:10

Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao took a swipe at golf on Monday, saying the government would enforce a ban on golf course development on agricultural land.

Wen singled out golf courses in a speech to the national legislature's annual opening session, saying they wasted land that should be kept for growing crops. The session sets out the government's priorities for the upcoming year.

China's central government has attempted to ban golf course development on agricultural land, but orders have often been ignored.

"We will resolutely control the amount of land used for construction ... in particular, land will not be allowed to be used to build individual houses, golf courses and new training centers for party and government organs," Wen said.

The brief mention of golf in a speech mainly devoted to education and health care reform underscores the sport's elitist image in China.

Despite the government's disapproval, the country holds a half-dozen major tournaments annually that draw top players including No. 1-ranked Tiger Woods.

Late last year, one of China's most prominent universities - Peking University - shelved plans to build a practice green after widespread criticism.

The university and several other Chinese schools have been promoting golf lessons for business students to prepare them for a commercial world where deals are often made on the links.

In a country of 1.3 billion, China has only 300,000 golfers who play at least once a week. By comparison, the United States has an estimated 37 million golfers among a population of 300 million.