The HRIC Daily Brief is a daily selection of news stories and commentary related to human rights in China, drawn from Chinese- and English-language news and online media sources that we monitor daily. In addition to headlines and source links, HRIC also provides English translation of Chinese headlines.

Thursday, January 20, 2005

January 20, 2005

Top news of the day

June 4th – Prisoners – Zhao Ziyang (趙紫陽)
China to hold funeral for deposed leader Zhao Ziyang
AFP via YahooNews.com, January 20, 2005
Beijing is to hold a funeral for the purged leader Zhao for opposing the Tiananmen crackdown in 1989, but it is yet to announce whether top officials would be allowed to attend.
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story2&u=/afp/20050120/
wl_asia_afp/chinatiananmenpolitics





News
Bilaterals-China/Canada
Canada and China agree to expand annual dialogues on human rights issues
By ALEXA OLESEN, AP, 20 January 2005
BEIJING (AP) - Canadian Prime Minister Paul Martin and Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao agreed to expand their annual dialogues on human rights issues during talks Thursday which also included overseeing the signing of a broad energy cooperation pact.
China launches crackdown on power plant polluters.
www.ap.org

Children – abuse (trafficking)
The crackdown of child trafficking gangs in Yunnan
云南:艰难反击贩童黑帮
Nanfang Daily, January 20, 2005
Child trafficking gangs in Yunnan take all forms of tactics to kidnap children, which effectively undermines efforts in hunting down the gangs.
http://www.nanfangdaily.com.cn/southnews/jwxy/200501200024
.asp

Corruption
Officials stand trial over 5.9m yuan corruption case
SCMP, January 20, 2005
Gong Jiquan, former deputy secretary-general of Chengdu, Sichuan, has been put on trial for corruption yesterday.
http://china.scmp.com/chimain/ZZZW076HJ3E.html

Death penalty
Murderer of nine students in Henan executed
汝州砍杀九学生案主犯伏法
BeijingNews.com, January 20, 2005
Yan Yanming, 21-year-old, has been executed in Henan for murderer charges of 9 high-school students in last November.
http://www.thebeijingnews.com/news/2005-1-20/200512054419.
html

Detention – Li Baiguang (李栢光)
Featured article: the setup of the detention of rights defender Li Baiguang
俞梅荪：维权博士李柏光被捕案的台前幕后
Chinesenewsnet.com, January 20, 2005
Rights defender Li Baiquang is detained for his persistence efforts in helping farmers defending their rights over government land deals.
http://www1.chinesenewsnet.com/gb/MainNews/Opinion/2005_1_
19_15_22_44_19.html

Education
35% of student unable to pay school fee, but poverty not the main reason
35％的学生欠交学费　贫困并非主要原因
People’s Daily, January 20, 2005
An investigation reveals that many high school students are unable to pay school fee due to many reasons, with poverty playing a small role.
http://society.people.com.cn/GB/1063/3132273.html

Environment
Watchdog faced huge pressure to allow dams
SCMP, January 20, 2005
Environment bureau has called for a halt to 30 large industrial projects despite strong oppositions.
http://china.scmp.com/chimain/ZZZ9FN8HJ3E.html


Government – governance and accountability
China to institute a responsibility system for major decision-making errors
People’s Daily, January 20, 2005
Beijing has stepped up effort in advancing efficiency of SOEs by institutionalizing a responsibility system for management’s wrongful decisions.
http://english.peopledaily.com.cn/200501/19/eng20050119_1711
74.html

June 4th – arms ban
EU policy on China set to create tensions with US
Financial Times, January 20, 2005
EU’s plans to life the arms embargo on China would create tensions with the US.
http://news.ft.com/cms/s/fef3cde4-698e-11d9-81e7-00000e2511
c8.html

Don't Let China Off The Hook
The Washington Post, 20 January 2005
The European Union should pause in its determined march to lift the arms embargo that it imposed against China for the Tiananmen Square killings of 1989. Europe is set to prove the wrong guys right about the world's willingness to put aside outrage over human rights atrocities when business beckons.
www.washingtonpost.com

Japan urges Britain not to lift EU arms embargo on China
AP, 20 January 2005
TOKYO (AP) - British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw faced opposition from Tokyo Thursday to lifting the European Union's arms embargo on China as he headed for a visit to discuss the matter with officials in Beijing.
www.ap.org


June 4th – prisoners – Zhao Ziyang
HK media monitored lest it set off unrest
SCMP, January 20, 2005
http://hongkong.scmp.com/hknews/ZZZPEN8HJ3E.html

With heavy heart, hundreds in HK remember Zhao Ziyang
SCMP, January 20, 2005
http://hongkong.scmp.com/hknews/ZZZLOFCHJ3E.html

Featured article: mourning of the death of Zhao a violation of the Basic Law?
汤家骅：悼念赵紫阳违《基本法》？
Chinesenewsnet.com, January 20, 2005
http://www1.chinesenewsnet.com/gb/MainNews/Opinion/2005_1_
19_16_5_59_727.html

Featured article: Zhao and the ruling of the Chinese Constitutions
趙紫陽問題和依憲治國
Asia Times Online, January 19, 2005
http://www.atchinese.com/2005/01/0119rep.htm

June 4th dissidents closely monitored
北京严密监控六四异议人士
Voice of America, January 19, 2005
http://www1.voanews.com/Chinese/article.cfm?objectID=43AE7E4
A-2D85-4535-87E109FBF5173543&title=%B1%B1%BE%A9%D1%C
F%C3%DC%BC%E0%BF%D8%C1%F9%CB%C4%D2%EC%D2%E9%
C8%CB%CA%BF%2805%C4%EA1%D4%C219%C8%D5%29&catOID
=C283D8A3-4AB3-11D5-8EC2009027ACC5C2&categoryname=Nat
ional%20News

Dissident among few allowed to pay respects
SCMP, January 20, 2005
http://china.scmp.com/chitoday/ZZZ8076HJ3E.html

Labour – industrial accidents / Government – governance and accountability
High-ranking provincial official penalized for grim coal mine blast
People’s Daily, January 20, 2005
Shi Jichun, deputy governor of Henan Province, was given an administrative warning for his mishandling in a cola mine blast last October, which caused 148 death.
http://english.peopledaily.com.cn/200501/20/eng20050120_17
1219.html

Law-Legal Reform
China disciplines 719 lawyers, vows stricter rules on law firms
Xinhua's China Economic Information Service, 20 January 2005
BEIJING, January 20 (CEIS) -- China disciplined 719 lawyers in 2004 and vowed to enforce stricter rules on law firms to head off malpractice in 2005, according to the Ministry of Justice.
www.factiva.com

Political dissidents – imprisonment - Yang Jiangli (楊建利)
US senators urge Beijing to release Yang Jiangli
美议员吁北京放杨建利
Voice of America, January 19, 2005
US Senators calls for the release of Yang Jiangli on his 1000th day of arrest.
http://www1.voanews.com/Chinese/article.cfm?objectID=910D65A0
-B2C3-49D4-9117BBC712A5BEC5&title=%C3%C0%D2%E9%D4%B1
%D3%F5%B1%B1%BE%A9%B7%C5%D1%EE%BD%A8%C0%FB%280
5%C4%EA1%D4%C219%C8%D5%29

Wife of Boston-based dissident jailed in China allowed to see him for first time since arrest
AP, 20 January 2005
Associated Press Newswires
BEIJING (AP) - The wife of a Boston-based democracy activist (Yang Jianli)
jailed in China said on Thursday she plans to seek medical parole for her husband after seeing him for the first time since he was detained in 2002.
www.ap.org

Public health – HIV aids
School fee exemption for young aids patients in Guangdong
青少年艾滋病感染者可免学费
People’s Daily, January 20, 2005
Guangdong government announced that young aids patients and children of HIV patients are entitled to school fee exemption and dismissals of aids student from schools are illegal.
http://society.people.com.cn/GB/1062/3132432.html

Rural issues
Villager beat to death after suggesting public accounting in village meeting
村民一建议竟遭村官雇凶当街打死
Dajiyuan.com, January 20, 2005
A villager in Shunyang is beaten to death by a group of people employed by the village officials after he had suggested the disclosure of village accounts in a village meeting.
http://www.epochtimes.com/gb/5/1/20/n786629.htm