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 3, 2005


Top news of the day

Children – child labour
Hebei textile factory owner covers up child labour death with the help of police
河北老板将童工活着送去火葬闷死，警察庇护凶嫌
Boxun.com, March 3, 2005
Human rights group reported that an owner of a textile factory in a rural village in Hebei covered-up the death of 5 female child labour aged from 14 to 17 who inhaled charcoal fumes in the factory.
http://www.peacehall.com/news/gb/yuanqing/2005/03/2005
03031134.shtml



Death penalty
Death penalty review to return to Supreme Court next year
最高人民法院有望明年收回死刑复核权
EastDay.com, March 3, 2005
Sources close to the People’s Supreme Court revealed that death penalty review would likely to return to the Supreme Court next year, marking a crucial move in the death penalty reform.
http://china.eastday.com/eastday/news/node37955/node37957/
node37979/node51950/userobject1ai905641.html

Disaster / Labour - industrial accidents
20 children killed in China blast
Reuters via YahooNews.com, March 3, 2005
A cache of explosives at the home of a coal mine manager blew up in a town in Shanxi, killing him and at least 20 children at a nearby grade school.
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story2&u=/nm/2005
0303/wl_nm/china_explosion_dc



News

Bilaterals - US/China
China fires back at U.S. rights criticisms, accuses Washington of violations
AP, Thursday March 3, 2005
http://asia.news.yahoo.com/050303/ap/d88jcr8o0.html

Gender
Gender equality hits mainstream
China Daily, March 3, 2005
http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/english/doc/2005-03/03/content
_421158.htm

Gender – marriage
Marriage Law most familiar among women
Xinhuanet.com, March 3, 2005
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2005-03/03/content_26417
97.htm

Hukou
New law to guarantee free migration
Xinhuanet.com, March 3, 2005
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2005-03/03/content_26427
93.htm

June 4th – EU arms ban
EU may be penalised over plan to lift arms sales ban
SCMP, March 3, 2005
http://china.scmp.com/chimain/ZZZSHMJ985E.html

Labour – industrial accidents
Guangdong senior officials required to resign for industrial accidents killing more than 50 people, according new regulation
广东规定事故一次死亡50人以上地市领导须辞职
EastDay.com, March 3, 2005
http://china.eastday.com/eastday/news/node37955/node37957/
node37979/node51950/userobject1ai906053.html

Resources rolled out to prevent mining disasters
SCMP, March 3, 2005
http://china.scmp.com/chitoday/ZZZU45A585E.html

Owners forced to fund mine safety upgrading
Xinhuanet.com, March 3, 2005
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2005-03/03/content_264
1565.htm

Law – legal reform / re-education through labour
NPC set to discard re-education through labour (RTL)
中国人大今年将立法废除劳教
Dajiyuan.com, March 3, 2005
http://www.epochtimes.com/gb/5/3/3/n834008.htm

Migrant workers
China offers more jobs to migrant millions
Xinhuanet.com, March 3, 2005
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2005-03/03/content_2642
200.htm

South China Feels Acute Labor Shortage
Xinhua News Agency March 3, 2005
Thousands of local enterprises in Guangdong report a combined need for at least 2 million workers if they want to operate at full capacity, according to an official with the provincial government.
http://china.org.cn/english/2005/Mar/121578.htm

Politics – NPC
NPC progress in processing bills
Xinhuanet.com, March 3, 2005
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2005-03/03/content_2642
537.htm

Politics - Political reforms / NPC
Hopes for political reform dashed as party cements power
SCMP, March 3, 2005
http://china.scmp.com/chitoday/ZZZIA7A585E.html

Population – one-child policy / Law
Criminalized illegal sex-identification to revive sex-ratio
我国男女性别比例失衡 非法鉴定胎儿性别应负刑责
Legal Daily, March 3, 2005
http://www.legaldaily.com.cn/bm/2005-03/03/content_191
922.htm

Protests and petitions
Thousands of Petitioners Converge on Beijing Ahead of NPC, Hundreds Detained
Radio Free Asia, March 2, 2005
http://www.rfa.org/english/news/politics/2005/03/02/china_
NPC_petitioners/

Resettlement – forceful eviction
Displaced villagers to miss out on profits from land auction
SCMP, March 3, 2005
http://china.scmp.com/chitoday/ZZZ1IMJ985E.html

Religion
Rights group announces UN judgment on China’s arbitrary detention of church leader Zhang Yinan (張義南)
对华援助协会公布联合国就张义南被任意拘禁作出的裁定
Boxun.com, March 2, 2005
http://www.peacehall.com/news/gb/religion/2005/03/20050
3020722.shtml

Rural issues / NPC
Problems lurk behind contented farmers
SCMP, March 3, 2005
http://china.scmp.com/chimain/ZZZOJUK985E.html

China to Subsidize Farmers with 5.5b Yuan
Xinhua News Agency March 3, 2005
http://china.org.cn/english/China/121660.htm#

Hong Kong – Basic Law
HK deputies may revive move to review Basic Law
SCMP, March 3, 2005
http://china.scmp.com/chitoday/ZZZXHMJ985E.html

Taiwan
China Plans to Pass Anti-Secession Law
AP, Mar 3, 2005
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story2&u=/ap/20050303/ap_on_re_as/china_tough_on_taiwan

Tibet
"White Paper of distorted facts and figures"
TYC, March 03, 2005
http://www.phayul.com/news/article.aspx?article=%22White+Paper+of+distorted+facts+and+figures%22+TYC&id=9150