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.

Wednesday, March 02, 2005

March 2, 2005

Top news of the day

Law - Legal profession
Guo Guoting demands public hearing over unreasonable treatments of the authority
郭国汀律师要求举行听证会
Dajiyuan.com, March 2, 2005
Guo Guoting (郭國汀), a renowned lawyer for defending cases of political dissidents, demanded a public hearing over maltreatment by the Shanghai authority, who took away his computer and lawyer license and threatened of giving him administrative punishment.
http://www.epochtimes.com/gb/5/3/2/n832952.htm


Politics - NPC
Petitioners taken away as Beijing tightens security for NPC meetings
北京加强戒备 大客车带走上访者
Radio Free Asia, March 1, 2005
Witnesses reported that at least 100 petitioners in Beijing, most of whom women, were taken away by police early this week as the government tightened security for the NPC and CPPCC meetings.
http://www.rfa.org/mandarin/xinwen/2005/03/01/shangfangzhe/




News

Corruption
Communist Party Leaders Struggle to Contain Rising Corruption in China
Voice of America, March 1, 2005
http://www.voanews.com/english/2005-03-01-voa7.cfm

Education - compulsory
Education Ministry Reports Progress in 2004
Xinhua News Agency March 2, 2005
By the end of 2004, 93.6 percent of children were enrolled in the nation's nine-year compulsory education program, said the Ministry of Education's Han Jin at a press conference on Tuesday.
http://china.org.cn/english/2005/Mar/121511.htm

Human rights – bilateral ties
US attacks China's record on civil rights
SCMP, March 2, 2005
http://china.scmp.com/chimain/ZZZP6RK985E.html

Asian Nations Respond Angrily to Annual US Human Rights Report
VOA, 01 March 2005
Leading the criticism was China, which accused the United States of implementing a double standard on human rights, and interfering in its internal affairs.
http://www.voanews.com/english/2005-03-01-voa9.cfm

China to issue human rights record of the United States
People's Daily, March 2, 2005
The Information Office of the State Council will issue on March 3 the Human Rights Record of the United States in 2004.
http://english.peopledaily.com.cn/200503/02/eng20050302_175
185.html

June 4th – prisoners – Zhao Ziyang
Rehabilitate Zhao, urge Tiananmen relatives
SCMP, March 2, 2005
http://china.scmp.com/chitoday/ZZZALJJ985E.html

June 4th – EU arms ban
Rights group urges EU not to lift arms ban
人权组织吁欧盟勿解除军售禁令
Voice of America, March 1, 2005
http://www.voanews.com/chinese/W2005-03-01-voa75.cfm

Taiwan raps EU over plans to lift China arms ban
SCMP, March 2, 2005
http://china.scmp.com/chimain/ZZZC0SK985E.html

China's Tiananmen families seek parliament redress
Reuters, March 1, 2005
http://www.deepikaglobal.com/ENG4_sub.asp?ccode=ENG4&new
scode=94358

Law – legal profession
Lawyers take high risk in defending social justice
中国律师维护社会正义风险大
Voice of America, March 1, 2005
http://www.voanews.com/chinese/2005-03-01-voa62.cfm

Media - internet
Internet curbs tightened
SCMP, March 2, 2005
http://china.scmp.com/chitech/ZZZGG0A585E.html

Featured article: commercialization and freedom of speech of internet media in China
萧强：中国网络媒体高度商业化与言论自由
Chinesenewsnet.com, March 2, 2005
http://www1.chinesenewsnet.com/gb/MainNews/Opinion/2005_
3_1_20_10_35_7.html

Police – crime
China Confronts Rising Crime in a Fast-track Economy
Voice of America, February 28, 2005
http://www.voanews.com/english/2005-02-28-voa9.cfm

Politics
Small reforms could change whole society
Xinhuanet.com, March 1, 2005
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2005-03/02/content_263
6918.htm

Politics – NPC
Walking the nationalist tightrope
SCMP, March 2, 2005
http://china.scmp.com/chimain/ZZZ842A585E.html

China tightens Internet security during imminent plenary NPC meeting
People’s Daily, March 2, 2005
http://english.peopledaily.com.cn/200503/01/eng20050301_
175140.html

Protests and petitions
China to reshuffle petition system to meet new regulation
Xinhuanet.com, March 1, 2005
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2005-03/01/content_263
5625.htm

Public health
Over 65% Chinese people not covered by medical insurance and a quarter do not take medical treatment when they are sick
中国65.7%居民无医疗保险 1/4的人有病不去就医
EastDay.com, March 2, 2005
http://china.eastday.com/eastday/news/node37955/node37957/
node37979/node51862/userobject1ai904456.html

Public health - HIV/AIDS
China detects 539 HIV positive cases in border check-up in 2004:
World News, March 1, 2005
http://story.chinanationalnews.com/p.x/ct/9/id/3cf018ff74df23
a7/cid/9366300fc9319e9b/

Chinese HIV sufferers must tell spouses
Big News Network, 1st March, 2005 (UPI)
Anyone from Southwest China's Yunnan Province who tests positive for HIV must inform their spouse, the official China Daily said Monday.
http://story.chinanationalnews.com/p.x/ct/9/id/48abfcd4046f89
e1/cid/9366300fc9319e9b/

Society - divorce
China tries to stem soaring divorce rate
The Guardian, March 2, 2005
Chinese authorities are sending "think again" letters to couples applying for divorce after the number of people ending their marriages surged by 21% last year.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/china/story/0,7369,1428224,00.html
?gusrc=rss

Hong Kong
Reports: Hong Kong's Leader Plans to Quit
AP via YahooNews.com, March 2, 2005
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=516&a
mp;amp;ncid= 731&e=10&u=/ap/20050302/ap_on_re_as/hong
_kong_politics

Democracy death-knell: Martin Lee
The Standard, March 2, 2005
http://www.thestandard.com.hk/stdn/std/Front_Page/GC02
Aa02.html