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.

Tuesday, October 14, 2014

Corruption (腐败)

陕西一镇政府建5800平米豪华办公楼 仅43名干部 (Shaanxi county gov’t builds luxurious 5,800-square-meters office building for 43 cadres)
China News, October 11, 2014
http://news.163.com/14/1011/23/A8AILUCR00014JB6.html

Related:
郴州村干部3年挥霍公款150万 泡脚、泡澡约4.3万 (Hunan village cadre misused 1.5 million in public funds in 3 years, spent RMB 43,000 on spa treatments)
Voice of China Online, October 13, 2014
http://hunan.voc.com.cn/article/201410/201410130842251477.html

全国首次集中查处6484名“走读干部” (China investigates and punishes 6484 cadres nationwide who live in urban homes while posted in grassroots units)
People’s Daily, October 13, 2014
http://politics.people.com.cn/n/2014/1013/c1001-25818296.html

Cyber security (网络安全)

Anonymous group of hackers release data from Chinese government sites
South China Morning Post, October 12, 2014
http://www.scmp.com/news/china-insider/article/1615102/chinese-websites-hacked-anonymous-action-support-hong-kong

Related:
“匿名者”声称攻陷52个中国政府网站 (Hacker group “Anonymous” claims to have attacked 52 Chinese gov’t sites)
British Broadcasting Corporation, October 12, 2014
http://www.bbc.co.uk/zhongwen/simp/science/2014/10/141012_hongkong_occupy_anonymous

Environment (环境)

Concern mounts in China over Yangtze diversion project
Financial Times, October 14, 2014
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/a39d9c7c-4fa2-11e4-a0a4-00144feab7de.html#axzz3G5RobMwC

Hong Kong (香港)

Ridicule proves an effective formula for Hong Kong protesters
The Wall Street Journal, October 14, 2014
http://online.wsj.com/articles/ridicule-proves-an-effective-formula-for-hong-kong-protesters-1413273989

Hong Kong police tear down barricades to clear way for cars
CNN, October 14, 2014
http://edition.cnn.com/2014/10/14/world/asia/china-hong-kong-protest/index.html

Related:
HK police use sledgehammers, chainsaws to clear protest barriers, open road
Reuters, October 13, 2014
http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/10/14/us-hongkong-china-idUSKCN0I202620141014

Scuffles as protest opponents try to tear down Hong Kong barricades
CNN, October 13, 2014
http://edition.cnn.com/2014/10/12/world/asia/china-hong-kong-protest/

香港占中:多处地方继续发生对峙场面 (Occupy Central: confrontation continues in multiple locations)
British Broadcasting Corporation, October 13, 2014
http://www.bbc.co.uk/zhongwen/simp/china/2014/10/141013_hk_occupy_latest

中国外交部回应德媒体在华“雇员”被捕:依法依规 (Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs: capture of German paper employee legal and lawful)
People’s Daily, October 14, 2014
http://politics.people.com.cn/n/2014/1014/c1001-25827773.html

Anti-Occupy protesters defy court order, block Apple Daily delivery
South China Morning Post, October 14, 2014
http://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1616027/anti-occupy-protesters-defy-court-order-block-apple-daily-delivery

Hong Kong's leader says protests will not sway China
British Broadcasting Corporation, October 12, 2014
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-china-29587490

China police hold activists over “Hong Kong interview”
The Economic Times, October 12, 2014
http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/international/world-news/china-police-hold-activists-over-hong-kong-interview/articleshow/44797657.cms

Human Rights Defenders (人权卫士)

Chinese scholar who helped in an escape is detained for “picking quarrels”
中国维权学者郭玉闪周四被拘
The New York Times, October 12, 2014
http://cn.nytimes.com/china/20141013/c13dissident/dual/

Information Control (信息控制)

China bans books by pro-Hong Kong protest author
ABC News, October 14, 2014
http://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/china-bans-books-pro-hong-kong-protest-author-26175516

Book ban rumors boost authors in China
The Wall Street Journal, October 13, 2014
http://blogs.wsj.com/chinarealtime/2014/10/13/rumors-of-book-ban-boosts-authors-in-china/

中国封杀多名中港台知名人士著作 (China bans books by some mainland, Hong Kong, and Taiwanese authors known to be critical of China)
Voice of America, October 13, 2014
http://www.voachinese.com/content/hk-book-20141012/2481003.html

Poverty (贫穷)

中国贫困人口超过8200万人 将继续向贫困宣战 (China continues to declare war on poverty as its poor population exceeds 82 million)
Eastday, October 14, 2014
http://news.eastday.com/c/20141014/u1a8390430.html

Rule of Law (法治)

全国法院3千名发言人电话公布 随机拨打6成接听 (China discloses phone numbers of 3,000 court spokespersons nationwide, 60% of calls were answered in a random sampling)
China News, October 13, 2014
http://www.chinanews.com/gn/2014/10-13/6669842.shtml

Rural Issues (农村)

Once a symbol of power, farming now an economic drag in China
The New York Times, October 12, 2014
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/10/13/world/asia/once-a-symbol-of-power-farming-now-an-economic-drag-in-china.html

XUAR (新疆维吾尔自治区)

China sentences 12 to death over deadly Xinjiang attack
The Wall Street Journal, October 13, 2014
http://online.wsj.com/articles/china-sentences-12-to-death-over-deadly-xinjiang-attack-1413208917

Related:
新疆莎车暴恐案宣判 12人死刑24人死缓或无期 (China sentences 12 to death and 24 to death with reprieve or life imprisonment over Xinjiang Shache county riot)
Eastday, October 14, 2014
http://news.eastday.com/c/20141014/u1a8389133.html

Opinion (观点)

China’s Right to Govern Hong Kong: Hong Kong’s Pan Democrats Must Accept China’s Constitutional Powers
The New York Times, October 14, 2014
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/10/14/opinion/hong-kongs-pan-democrats-must-accept-chinas-constitutional-powers.html

Young people of Taiwan and Hong Kong refusing to accept the unification of “Greater China”
The Canberra Times, October 11, 2014
http://www.canberratimes.com.au/comment/young-people-of-taiwan-and-hong-kong-refusing-to-accept-the-unification-of-greater-china-20141010-1147tq.html

To Hong Kong, with Love and Squalor
The New Yorker, October 11, 2014
http://www.newyorker.com/news/news-desk/mainland-china-hong-kong-love-squalor

Beijing and Hong Kong protesters poles apart on lessons to be draw
Financial Times, October 12, 2014
http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/1098f12a-50a0-11e4-b73e-00144feab7de.html?siteedition=intl#axzz3G2W6xrMd