Blogs » Politics » Outrage Brews in China Over Hong Kong Milk Powder Regulation

• Outrage Brews in China Over Hong Kong Milk Powder Regulation
• There Was a Baby in that Stolen Car
• China Executes Burmese Drug Lord on Live TV
• Chinese Report Warns of Android Invasion
• Wen Jiabao Steps Down to Uncertain Legacy
• Tibetan Writer Honored by U.S. State Department
• CCTV Finds Toys Still Made from Medical Waste
• Mainland Chinese Web Users React to Hong Kong’s Message in a (Baby) Bottle
• Baby in Stolen Car Killed; Government Puts Strict Limits on Media Coverage
• Elections, Illiberal Politics & Sectarianism in Pakistan: Pogroms against Hazara Shia
• China’s Black Jail Industry
• Sensitive Words: NPC Shockers and Disappointments
• Hopes Fade Over Sino-Japan Summit
• In Barcelona, Huawei Tells its Story
• Postcards from the National People's Congress
• Labor Camps Under Scrutiny as NPC Opens

Outrage Brews in China Over Hong Kong Milk Powder Regulation Posted: 05 Mar 2013 06:38 PM PST On the first day of a new restriction that limits travelers from taking more than 1.8 kg of infant milk formula out of Hong Kong, border authorities arrested 10 people in violation of the new law. The new regulations were implemented on March 1, 2013. A 47-year-old man was prosecuted March 2, and fined 5000 HKD [zh] (approximately 650 USD). The maximum penalty for smuggling milk powder out of Hong Kong would be a 500,000 HKD fine and 2-year imprisonment. Mainland Chinese media outlets are divided in their opinion on the policy. Commentators in the newspaper Global Times criticize [zh] the policy as a de facto embargo that violates the principle of free trade. On the other hand, CCTV and the China Daily point out in their micro-blog comments [zh] that the mainland Chinese milk industry is to be blamed for the current situation. As most of the mainland Chinese do not understand that the policy is targeting smugglers rather than normal visitors, many are outraged, in particular by the 2-year imprisonment penalty. Famous mainland Chinese property developer Pan Shiyi [zh] describes the policy as a modern version of Les Miserables: 刚看完电影《悲惨世界》，电影不错。法国大革命前夕，冉阿让给妹妹的孩子偷了一块面包，被判了五年刑。今天，2013年为给三岁以下孩子多买二罐奶粉，要判二年徒刑。@香港立法会所有成员 。 Just watched the movie Les Miserables. It is a great movie. Before the French revolution, Jean Valjean stole a piece of bread for his sister and was sentenced to 5 years in prison. Today, in 2013, people are sentenced to 2 years in prison for buying more than 2 cans of milk powder for their 3-year-old infant. @Hong Kong Legislative Council Members. Former CEO of Google China Lee Kai-fu points out [zh] that both the Chinese government and Hong Kong government should be blamed for the ridiculous situation: 香港奶粉事件的谬论和回应：1）"应批评内地而非香港"：批评为何要二选一？毒奶粉、过高关税、荒谬徒刑我们都应批评，2）"挑拨香港内地人感情" ：批评的是法律不是人，请勿乱扣帽子，3）"香港人买不到奶粉，所以法律合理"：请勿偷换概念：保护、限制两罐，甚至罚款都可以理解，离谱的是两年徒刑！ Comment on the fallacies concerning the Hong Kong milk powder incident: 1. Fallacy: We should criticize mainland China rather than Hong Kong – Why do we have to choose between the two? We should criticize the poisonous milk, the expensive taxation on foreign milk and the ridiculous penalty. 2. Fallacy: The criticism will create antagonism between Hong Kong and mainland Chinese – We are criticizing the law, not Hong Kong people. Do not label the discussion. 3. Fallacy: As Hong Kong people are facing milk powder shortage, the regulation is thus justified – Don't mix up the concepts: We can understand protection, restriction and fine, but a 2-year prison term is outrageous! Ah Qiang, the director of PFLAG China, curses Hong Kong [zh]: 如果在港买3罐奶粉不但要罚50万，还要判监两年，我只能说：香港，我草你妈的法治和自由！这跟带把水果刀被牢教两年有毛的区别！我们要批评毒奶粉和内地当局的不作为，不代表就要原谅香港政府对法制的亵渎。当民粹替代法治，香港精神只剩意淫。 If buying three cans of milk powder results in a 500,000 HKD fine and 2 years in prison, my reaction is: Hong Kong, fuck your rule of law and freedom! It is like a 2-year forced labour education sentence when [the Chinese police] find people holding a small knife. Of course we have to criticize the mainland Chinese government for its inability [to maintain food security], and the poisonous milk scandal. However, we cannot forgive the Hong Kong government's abuse of the law. It is replacing rule of law with populist sentiment and the eventual erosion of Hong Kong spirit. As more and more countries have imposed restriction on the export of infant milk powder, Chinese parents are desperate to find safe milk for their children. Children's book writer Zhen Yuanji also laments [zh]: 卖坏奶粉的不坐牢买好奶粉的坐牢童话都不敢这么写儿童安全是国家的头等大事。值此政府换届两会召开政府机构改革之际，呼吁组建国务院奶粉部，由副总理兼任奶粉部长。奶粉直接关系到国家的未来。 Those who sell the poisonous milk stay out of jail. Those who try to buy good milk powder are put into prison. The reality is crazier than fiction. Children's security should be prioritized in national policy. I urge that in the process of government transition, the state council should set up a milk powder office headed by the deputy premier to handle the situation. Milk powder security will affect the future of the country. Micro-blogger Silly Child reminds [zh] those who are unhappy about the Hong Kong policy about the story of Zhao Lianhai, an activist in the 2008 Chinese milk scandal who was sentenced to 2.5 in prison for his part in the backlash against the government. Zhao Lianhai was sentenced to 2.5 years in prison for "disturbing social order." Photo from Boxun. Non-commercial use. As Zhao's name is still unsearchable in Chinese social media, the micro-blogger uploaded his post in image format: Silly Child's post in image format. We only have one Zhao Lianhai, that's why he is in jail. If we have 10 Zhaos, they will censor your voices; if we have 100 Zhaos, they can't do anything; if we have 1000 Zhaos, they will be frightened; if we have 10,000 Zhaos, the Chinese milk problem can be solved. China only has one Zhao Lianhai, though we have 10,000 people cursing the Hong Kong milk powder policy. Indeed, while anger abounds, signs of any strong public movement are absent in the outrage. Written by Oiwan Lam · comments (0) Share: Donate · facebook · twitter · reddit · StumbleUpon · delicious · Instapaper

There Was a Baby in that Stolen Car Posted: 05 Mar 2013 08:00 AM PST Changchun, March 4, 2013, a silver Toyota RAV-4 was stolen around 7 o'clock while the driver left the car idling to a roadside convenience store. There was a two month old baby named Haobo Xu in that car. One day later, the carjacker turned himself in after learning police had been looking for the car. According to the guy, his target was the car. He headed off to Shuangliao Highway after taking the car. When he saw there was a baby in the back seat on his way, he took a detour to a remote route where he killed little Haobo with his bare hands. He then hid the small body in the snow before resumed his trip to Gongzhuling. Police recovered the baby's body at the location told by the carjacker. While we mourn for the baby's death, we are deeply troubled by the former senior army officer's thought that killing a two month old baby was a less crime than stealing a $30,000 car. How was this person made? Zhou Xijun, born 1964, is in police custody. Zhou was a Major in the PLA army. Zhou was originally from Gongzhuling, but holds Changchun residence (hukou). If mass killing of infants and babies by family planning officials went unpunished (on the contrary, they have been rewarded with salary, promotion and national honors), how should anyone be surprised? This is a time, when every Chinese in mainland and abroad must reflect on the political hierarchy, national policies, judicial practice, and, our own culture. At the moment, The Seagull is ashamed of being a Chinese for the incomprehensible crime committed by another Chinese and also for living under such an inhumane system without putting up a fight. A carjacking took place in Bronx of New York City last month under a similar circumstance, but ended with the safe return of the baby and the car as reported by the New York Post. A still at-large car thief sneaked in the car when the father stepped outside to talk to the mother. Having realized there was a baby on board, the perp called police from a roadside payphone before fled on foot into the darkness. In a normal society, having a baby on board would be the worst nightmare for a carjacker, other than getting caught. That is the way it should have been. Update: The Communist Party's Central Propaganda Department just issued a directive to all media outlets, which limited further reporting on this criminal case. The ordinance read: ...... media should not question police's inaction; should not demand using the system monitoring political dissidents on missing children; should not display sorrow or sadness; should not interview the victim's family and authorities regarding this case; ...... We could only speculate the Party did not want distraction from the annual Congressional session in Beijing which would last two weeks from yesterday. The Party did not kill little Haobo, but the message conveyed has been consistent. Was anyone surprised? It is the system. It is 'the firm'. With the gag order on media coverage, the Communist Party pointed out who had manufactured beasts like Zhou Xijun. Do we choose to live under their ruling, or put up a fight? Do we still present asleep and not seeing a thing?

China Executes Burmese Drug Lord on Live TV Posted: 05 Mar 2013 04:05 PM PST Naw Kham, the Burmese leader of a major drug trafficking gang in the infamous 'Golden Triangle' area in mainland Southeast Asia, was executed through lethal injection in Kunming, China last March 1, 2013. Although he was not well-known before his death, his life instantly became a trending topic in Myanmar after his execution. A number of Myanmar Facebook users were frustrated to learn that Chinese media networks aired the execution on live TV [viewer discretion advised]. Khin Khin Oo writes[my] her frustration: Broadcast the execution? What an inhumane thing! Naw Kham before execution. Screenshot from CCTV News video. Than Thar Win, a well known local singer, also criticized[my] the live broadcast of the execution: It's acceptable to punish a criminal. But I think broadcasting the execution process live by some Chinese channels should not have happened. Khin Zarny Htut added[my]: Being guilty is being guilty. But as a human being.,I feel a bit sad for such lethal execution. There are also those who blamed the Myanmar government for not requesting a prisoner swap arrangement with China. La Yeik Cho said[my]: Our government should ask for criminal transfer. Why did they leave Naw Kham's fate in China's hand? Another Facebook user, Nay Min Kha, compared[my] the situation of foreign criminals in Myanmar and Myanmar prisoners in other countries: We have been releasing those (foreigners) who committed crimes in Myanmar easily. I do not hear any similar treatment for Myanmar citizens who are detained abroad. In fact, even if Naw Kham committed crimes, he should be sentenced to death only in Myanmar. [...] Nay Tar Gay thinks[my] Chinese citizens who are found guilty of committing high crimes in Myanmar would be transferred to China: Regardless of the type of charges, the criminals should be transferred to mother nation and charged against law in one's own country. It is very sure that Myanmar government would transfer him (to China) if he were a Chinese national. On the other hand, some netizens pointed out that there is no difference between execution in Myanmar and China. Ei Maung posted a short note explaining why the Myanmar government was correct in its decision not to request a prisoner transfer deal in the case of Naw Kham: It's true that a nation must protect its citizens. And yes, Vienna convention suggested nations to transfer prisoners as showing respect. But, it's crazy to say Myanmar government should request the transfer of a drug king. Are those people out of their mind? [...] Not transferring a mass murderer or drug king is nowhere near disrespecting. They have their "national security" to concern over respect in those cases.[...] "Don't make ridiculous conclusion" just because you don't like the government. Even if Myanmar government makes such request, China is unlikely to agree and, such rejection would "unnecessarily affect the relationship". Government is doing the right thing… Winston Compunuts mentioned that there is no extradition agreement between the Chinese and Myanmar governments: In order for prisoner exchange or extradition to take effect, there needs to have agreements for it between such nations. Geneva convention only guarantees humane treatment and access to fair representation (even that definition widely varies in different countries). Extradition treaties must first exist before the arrest occurred. As far as I know, there is no such agreement between China and Burma. I think the Burmese government was right NOT to pursue it since it's highly unlikely to be successful and why waste tax dollars on something unwarranted. There are cases when even a superpower like the United States couldn't even save their citizens or bring them home to serve their prison sentence. Hkam Awng's brief clarification[my] about the status of Naw Kham went viral: He is someone who became a wanted person in Myanmar, Laos and Thailand after he implemented his drug route from Myanmar to Laos, then to Thailand, Vietnam, Hong Kong and China. [...] Finally, it reached over the limit of patience of four countries (Myanmar, Laos, Thailand and China) after he hijacked a Chinese ship, killed the sailors and threw the dead bodies into the river. [...] To be able to cooperate for drug trafficking, such countries signed the 1988 UN Convention Against Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drug and Psychotropic Substances but Myanmar did it with exception for the article of criminal exchange. That is why Myanmar government never transferred Khun Sa and other 'Wa' leaders who had been charged by US. [...] Anyway, I'm also against the capital punishment and death penalty. [...] On March 2, 2013, Myanmar netizens flooded the Facebook page of Chinese Embassy in Myanmar by posting R.I.P messages for Naw Kham. Written by Chan Myae Khine · comments (0) Share: Donate · facebook · twitter · reddit · StumbleUpon · delicious · Instapaper

Chinese Report Warns of Android Invasion Posted: 05 Mar 2013 02:54 PM PST A white paper (PDF) by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology's China Academy of Telecommunication Research has warned of excessive dependence on the Android mobile operating system, and accused its developer Google of discriminating against Chinese companies. While Google's share of the search market in China has dropped to 15%, Android now powers over 80% of all mobile devices sold in China. From Reuters: "Our country's mobile operating system research and development is too dependent on Android," the paper, posted online on Friday but carried by local media on Tuesday, said. "While the Android system is open source, the core technology and technology roadmap is strictly controlled by Google." […] Analysts said the white paper, which lauded Chinese companies such as Baidu Inc, Alibaba Group and Huawei Technologies for creating their own systems, could be a signal to the industry that regulations against Android are on the horizon. "In China, regulators regulate regularly especially where they can position the regulations as helping out domestic companies," Duncan Clark, chairman of technology consultancy BDA, said in an email to Reuters. At The Wall Street Journal, Paul Mozur examined the complaints' possible roots: The stronger language used in the most recent report could indicate that the research institute believes that Google had violated one of the conditions laid out by China's Ministry of Commerce when it approved Google's $12.5 billion acquisition of Motorola Mobility Holdings Inc. in May. As part of the approval, the ministry said Google couldn't use its Android operating system to discriminate against manufacturers. […] In September Google forced the delay of a planned release of an Acer Inc. 2353.TW +4.06% smartphone that was set to run Aliyun, an operating system developed by Alibaba. Google said the operating system was a "non-compatible" version of Android, meaning that Alibaba allegedly created its operating system by taking Google's Android software and making changes to it. […] Alibaba denied Google's claims. "Aliyun OS is not a part of the Android ecosystem so of course Aliyun OS is not and does not have to be compatible with Android," it said in a statement. © Samuel Wade for China Digital Times (CDT), 2013. | Permalink | No comment | Add to del.icio.us Post tags: alibaba, Google, Google Android, Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, mobile phones, mobile technology, Motorola, smartphone, software Download Tools to Circumvent the Great Firewall

Wen Jiabao Steps Down to Uncertain Legacy Posted: 05 Mar 2013 02:39 PM PST Premier Wen Jiabao, who will give up his post to Li Keqiang during the current National People's Congress session, has delivered his final work report to congress delegates. In the speech, he set economic goals for China over the next five years, including a growth rate of 7.5%, and called for more attention to environmental problems (read the full report here). He also acknowledged additional problems that had not been effectively resolved during his tenure. From Bloomberg: "We are keenly aware that we still face many difficulties and problems," Wen told almost 3,000 delegates in his final report to the National People's Congress in Beijing today. He set an economic growth target of 7.5 percent for this year, unchanged from 2012, and an inflation goal of 3.5 percent. Those achievements have come at the cost of surging inequality, environmental degradation and growing financial risks, challenges that he leaves for incoming Premier Li Keqiang. "There are also many problems Wen left behind, and the new leaders are to face and tackle," said Zhang Zhiwei, chief China economist at Nomura Holdings Inc. in Hong Kong. They include "the risk of a property bubble, significantly increased local government debt, income equality and worsening pollution," said Zhang, who previously worked for the International Monetary Fund. Wen has promoted an image of a grandfatherly figure who is in touch with the people's problems. In his final months in office, he has expressed regret for not accomplishing more while in office, and has also spoken out in favor of political reform and against corruption – even while being the subject of an investigative probe by U.S. media. From the New York Times: Prime Minister Wen Jiabao of China, well known for baring his emotions in public, has displayed a blend of defeatism and defensiveness as he winds down his decade in office. During a visit last month to a Muslim neighborhood here, Mr. Wen lamented that he "fell short in some tasks" to improve people's livelihoods. "In my heart I feel guilty and constantly blame myself," he said. But his most intriguing comments have touched on corruption. During a cabinet meeting last month, he said that even among top officials, "abuse of power, trading power for cash, and collusion between officialdom and commerce continue unabated." And in a vague mea culpa before a group of overseas Chinese in Thailand late last year, Mr. Wen admitted to unidentified failings but defended his integrity by paraphrasing an ancient Chinese statesman said to have taken his own life to protest imperial corruption. "In the pursuit of truth, I would die nine times without regret," he said. With his retirement looming at the end of the annual meeting of China's legislature that begins Tuesday, Mr. Wen, 70, has been struggling to push through economic changes and to shore up his image as a frugal populist and one of the few Communist Party leaders to champion political reform, even if that push has come to naught. But he has also been pressing hard to clear his name, particularly in the months since The New York Times published accounts of the way his immediate family had become extraordinarily rich during his time in high office. But Wen has also been called "China's greatest actor" by critics. The South China Morning Post looks at these two sides of Wen's legacy: Professor Liu Kang, a China-watcher and director of Duke University's China study programme, said Wen had been working hard to cement two legacies – as "a political reformer" and "a people's premier". Wen called for political reform in a series of speeches in recent years, mostly during trips overseas, appearing more like a dissident or a human rights campaigner than a communist leader by saying that "democracy, rule of law, freedom and human rights are shared values pursued by humanity over the long course of history, the products of a common civilisation". Critics accuse him of using his last two years in office to cultivate his public image before retirement – or deliberately playing the role of an outspoken reformer in an effort to balance the communist leadership's conservative image. But sympathisers say Wen has really represented a dissenting voice within the top leadership because many other members of the Politburo and its Standing Committee have argued the opposite on countless occasions. His final work report also received mixed reviews on Chinese social media, according to the BBC: Wu Tianzheng says on Sina Weibo: "Premier Wen's last report made it clear that urbanisation is part of the modernisation drive, and that it would help the reform of the registration card system. It's a good proposal, but it was not implemented during his last five years in government; Now that he is retiring, who will carry it through?" On Tencent Weibo, Hu Zhihai posts that economic increases have "only benefitted the corrupt officials; ordinary people are still poor, some dying in garbage bins, or under the bridge; many can't afford to go to school or buy houses. Please save these people." Liu Jianqiang, a magazine editor, is pleased that the speech referred to pollution issues. "He [Wen Jiabao] says let people see hope from our actions – very impressive; but I feel that hope is fading, now even soil has become a state secret. People know nothing." Read more about Wen Jiabao, via CDT. © Sophie Beach for China Digital Times (CDT), 2013. | Permalink | No comment | Add to del.icio.us Post tags: economic growth rates, NPC 2013, political reform, Wen Jiabao Download Tools to Circumvent the Great Firewall

Tibetan Writer Honored by U.S. State Department Posted: 05 Mar 2013 01:34 PM PST Tibetan writer Tsering Woeser is one of ten recipients of the U.S. Secretary of State's 2013 International Women of Courage Award. The award "recognizes women around the globe who have shown exceptional courage and leadership in advocating for women's rights and empowerment, often at great personal risk." From the State Department's biographies of the award winners: In a period marked by increasing self-immolations and protests in Tibetan areas of China, Tsering Woeser has emerged as the most prominent Mainland activist speaking out publicly about human rights conditions for China's Tibetan citizens. Born in Lhasa, Tsering Woeser's website, Invisible Tibet, together with her poetry and non-fiction and her embrace of social media platforms like Twitter, have given voice to millions of ethnic Tibetans who are prevented from expressing themselves to the outside world due to government efforts to curtail the flow of information. Despite the constant surveillance of security agents and routinely being placed under house arrest during periods deemed to be politically sensitive, Tsering Woeser bravely persists in documenting the situation for Tibetans, noting that "to bear witness is to give voice to," and asserting that "the more than 100 Tibetans who have expressed their desire to resist the forces of oppression by bathing their bodies in fire are the reason why I will not give up, and why I will not compromise." Woeser has dedicated her award to the Tibetan self-immolators, and expressed disappointment that she will be unable to travel to the United States to accept it personally. From Dharamsala-based Phayul.com: "I am grateful to the US State Department for granting me the International Women's Courage Award," Woeser told Phayul. "I would like to think this goes to show their concern over the self-immolations on the Tibetan plateau." "I want to dedicate this award to the more than one hundred people, who have bathed their bodies in fire and their families," the Tibetan writer added. […] "Unfortunately, I can not accept the award in person. In fact, at the moment, I will not only fail to accept the award, but I have been put under house arrest," the fearless writer said. […] This is not the first time that Woeser will be barred from receiving her award in person. Last year, she was barred from collecting the Prince Claus Award, presented annually by the Netherlands-based Prince Claus Fund for outstanding achievements in the field of culture and development. She also couldn't receive the Norwegian Author's Union's 2007 Freedom of Expression Prize in Oslo and the International Women's Media foundation's 2010 'Courage in Journalism award' in New York. Woeser tweets as @degewa, and her writing is regularly translated into English at High Peaks Pure Earth. See more about and by her via CDT. © Samuel Wade for China Digital Times (CDT), 2013. | Permalink | No comment | Add to del.icio.us Post tags: house arrest, self-immolations, Tibet, Woeser, writers Download Tools to Circumvent the Great Firewall

CCTV Finds Toys Still Made from Medical Waste Posted: 05 Mar 2013 01:34 PM PST While baby milk powder is smuggled into China from Hong Kong and around the world due to fears of tainted domestic products, a recent CCTV investigation showed another health hazard for children both in China and abroad. At Global Times, Chen Tian reports a lack of progress in the year since CCTV exposed use of toxic materials in Shantou's toy industry, whose exports reached $1.6 billion last year: In March 2012, CCTV reported that Shantou's toy manufacturing industry was habitually using toxic materials to make its products. After a public outcry, the city's deputy mayor apologized, and vowed to make fundamental quality improvements in the industry. However, any improvement sparked by the television report was short-lived. A revisit from CCTV reporters found that local processing workshops are still providing toxic materials, such as medical waste made from plastics, to toy manufacturers. […] At the processing workshops, plastic materials and used medical devices, which are often found in garbage cans, are simply smashed, rinsed and dried, and then sold to toy producers. Sometimes the workshops even added ground-up stone in the materials to make it heavier, with the hope of making more money, CCTV reported Sunday. […] Toy retailers at a Chenghai district plastics city, a marketplace for the city's retailers, told CCTV that quality certification can be easily printed on the toys without any inspection by governmental supervisory body. Xinhua reported last month that students at 21 Shanghai schools had been warned not to wear their uniforms after one batch was found to contain carcinogenic dye. © Samuel Wade for China Digital Times (CDT), 2013. | Permalink | No comment | Add to del.icio.us Post tags: manufacturing, public health, public safety, Shantou, toxic, toymaker, toys Download Tools to Circumvent the Great Firewall

Mainland Chinese Web Users React to Hong Kong’s Message in a (Baby) Bottle Posted: 05 Mar 2013 11:03 AM PST (iStock photo) Launched in February, an emergency two-can limit on exports of baby milk formula was made permanent Hong Kong law last Friday. The South China Morning Post reported that by Saturday last week, customs officials in Hong Kong arrested 26 Hong Kong residents and 19 Mainland Chinese for attempting to smuggle baby milk powder across the border into Mainland China. Anyone convicted of breaking the milk powder export limit faces a penalty of up to US$64,500 and no more than two years in prison. According to an interview with Legislative Council official Tien Michael, the new law was designed to attack parallel trading activities and to prevent the prices of Hong Kong milk powder from rising. Parallel trading occurs when traders buy goods tax-free in Hong Kong, then sell them into the Mainland at a markup. Given the increasing concerns about domestic food safety, many Mainland Chinese often choose to buy goods imported from Hong Kong, where safety standards are more rigorous. The high demand of Hong Kong produced goods lead to increasing parallel trading, which ultimately raises prices and harms the welfare of Hong Kong consumers and taxpayers. Ever since the news about the new law was released, it has been widely discussed by Web users on Sina Weibo, a Chinese micro-blogging platform. Some have inveighed against the law and reprimanded Hong Kong government. For example, Pan Shiyi (@潘石屹), Chairman of SOHO, China's largest real estate developer, wrote: "When Mainland children are suffering from hunger, Hong Kong should have felt obliged to send milk formula to the Mainland. It is ridiculous to issue such regulations and to stipulate a two-year sentence for those arrested. I suggest the Legislative Council reconsider this immoral law." Wang Shuo (@王烁),the editor of caixin.com, expressed similar anger, arguing that such regulation will not only harm China, but also jeopardize Hong Kong: " It is heartless and stupid for Hong Kong's government to threaten milk formula consumers by issuing the regulation. The influx of Mainland consumers will indeed put short-term pressure on Hong Kong's milk power supply, but it will soon be soothed as international milk powder firms start to reassess the market demands. Hong Kong's vitality is based on the fact that it bridges China and the world, but policy makers are losing their advantages and abandoning Hong Kong's traditions and by setting barriers to milk powder exports." Some expressed their distaste for the law in a more entertaining way. For example, @六间房刘磊, Chief Editor of 6.cn, a video sharing website, posted an absurd joke: Hong Kong customs officer: 'Please stop, what is this large can of white powder?!' 'I'm sorry sir, this is heroin.' Customs officer: 'Okay, you can go. I thought it was milk formula.' However, most Web users focused on the problems associated with domestic food safety. Liu Chun (@刘春) ,Vice President of Web portal sohu.com, wrote: "Hong Kong's actions in limiting the exports of milk powder astonished the whole nation. But how come China, a great nation, cannot solve such a minor problem? It should not be hard to improve the quality of domestic baby milk formula if we raise the standards and the prices of domestic goods … and provide strict product inspection through the process of production. In doing so, both producers and consumers will be benefitted. Isn't 'pooling resource to address major problems' the superiority of our socialism system?" Well-known online wit "Pretending to be in New York" (@假装在纽约) rebuked the Chinese government for its inability to ensure domestic food safety: "Many people blame the Hong Kong government for the cruel rule associated with curbing on milk formula exports. Nevertheless, people should not forget that there is nothing wrong with the Hong Kong government protecting their taxpayers' interests. …. What you really should blame is the government that collects your taxes, first for failing to ensure the safety of milk powder; second, for not increasing the imports [of milk powder]; and third, for not putting any pressure on the Hong Kong government but [instead] acquiescing." When China's new leader, Xi Jinping, ascended to power last November, a post by Liu Shengjun (@刘胜军改革) that listed his ten major wishes for the next ten years was shared more than 100,000 times. Liu's first wish: "[People] won't have to buy reliable infant milk powder abroad." After several months, the new Hong Kong law has brought the topic of food safety to the table again. How can China's government make sure its peoples' quality of life is synonymous with the country's economic growth? Sometimes, it starts with something as small as the contents of a baby's bottle.

Baby in Stolen Car Killed; Government Puts Strict Limits on Media Coverage Posted: 05 Mar 2013 09:48 AM PST China's social media is mourning the death of Baby Haobo, a two-month old boy, after a day of heart-wrenching search in the snow-covered city of Changchun for him ended in tragedy. On the morning of March 4, Haobo's father left him in a SUV, with the engine running, while he went to turn on the heat in his shop. The SUV was stolen along with the baby. Changchun mobilized more than 3,500 police in search of the baby and the car. Unfortunately, the Changchun police announced late on March 5 that the man who stole the car turned himself in and confessed to killing the baby. The terrible news saddened tens of thousands of Internet users, who had posted messages on China's social media platforms praying for the child's safe return. Many outraged Internet users called for death penalty for Zhou Xijun, the alleged murderer. In the midst of widespread outcry and heightened public interest in the case, some Chinese journalists posted a screenshot on Sina Weibo, China's Twitter, of the order from the local propaganda department on how to cover the event on traditional media in Changchun. While the authenticity of the order cannot be verified, tweets with the screenshot were quickly censored. The alleged order is translated in part below, 1. Control the total amount of coverage. No front page coverage allowed. Reports must be kept within half a page, with no big fonts. No special reports allowed on radio and television. 2. Refer to press releases from the government for facts of the case. Guide the public to realize that the child's ordeal was horrible and the crime was heinous, but in the process of investigating the case the police showed their deep care for the people's life and property, and thus spread love around our society and generated positive energy. Radio and TV hosts or editorial writers can discuss the case in this vein, provided that total coverage of this event is still strictly limited. 3. All media outlets must keep the message positive. There shall be no questioning of the police's work or the Skynet Project or any accusations of shortcomings. There shall be no further interviews of the victim's family or other related parties. [Ed: The Skynet Project is a comprehensive surveillance program deployed in many Chinese cities.] 4. Without further orders from the top to coordinate coverage, there shall be no more reporting of this case after tomorrow's newspaper had been printed and the morning news on television and radio had been aired. The Communist Party's paper of record, Peole's Daily (@人民日报), tweeted a sentimental message after Baby Haobo's death that may serve as a model to China's other media outlets struggling to cover the event while toeing the Party line: After 36 hours, we got word, but it was the bad news that we did not want to hear. You did not have a chance to grow up, not even to see your first spring. Many cared for you, but they were not strong enough to protect you. Little Haobo, go to sleep, don't be scared anymore. The bad people who hurt you will be punished. We will also try our best to make this world, the world that you had no chance to know, a little better.

Elections, Illiberal Politics & Sectarianism in Pakistan: Pogroms against Hazara Shia Posted: 05 Mar 2013 09:50 AM PST Memo #206 By Nausheen H. Anwar – nha3383 [at] gmail.com Pakistan will hold national elections in May 2013, marking the first time a civilian government completes a full five-year legal term. No small achievement for a nation that since 1947 has been marked by military coups and weak civilian rule. There are reasons to feel encouraged: constitutional reform promoting more balanced center-provincial institutional and political architectures, a media operating with fewer restrictions, and an increasingly independent judiciary all point toward the possibility of genuine consolidation of democracy. But the path ahead is challenging. The resurgence of sectarian violence and an electoral alliance between a key national party and sectarian militants points to a new dynamic. Sectarian conflict in Pakistan is linked to two factors:  General Zia's efforts to make Pakistan an Islamic state (1977-1988) empowered the Sunni clergy when Pakistan was a staging ground for the anti-Soviet jihad in Afghanistan. Many Mujahidin who fought under the banner of Islamist ideology later reinvented themselves as anti-Shia militants. Second, the Iranian Revolution further politicized Shia-Sunni relations. Shias represent about 20% of Pakistan's population. So far in 2013 nearly 200 Hazara Shias have been killed in bomb explosions in Baluchistan, and others have been gunned down in major urban centers. The Baluchistan government estimates that 758 Shias were killed between 2008 and 2012. The group claiming responsibility for the recent pogrom is Lashkar-e-Jhangvi (LeJ), linked with the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan and an offshoot of the anti-Shia Deobandi (Islamic revivalist) group Sipah-e-Sahaba or SSP (Pakistan Army of the Prophet's Companions) patronized by General Zia in the 1980s to stem Shia influence. As the countdown to elections begins, the national Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz has formed an alliance with the SSP's avatar, the Ahl-e-Sunnat-Wal-Jamaat. This electoral alliance will field candidates in about 10-15 constituencies in Punjab, suggesting the mainstreaming of militant groups in a new phase of electoral politics in Pakistan. Thus far it is unclear what position other mainstream political parties such as the Pakistan People's Party, Pakistan Tehreeq-e-Insaaf and the Awami National Party will take to reclaim a political space opposed to sectarian strife, a grave threat to a stable and democratic Pakistan. Nausheen H. Anwar is currently a Research Fellow with the Asian Urbanisms Cluster, Asia Research Institute at the National University Singapore. If you enjoyed this memo, subscribe to our e-newsletter for free and receive new memos 2+ times per week via email. Registered voters in Pakistan Protests against Shia Killings Links: 'A Step Towards Inclusive Federalism in Pakistan? The Politics of the 18th Amendment', 2012 Aitzaz Ahsan: Pakistani judiciary 'is too powerful', BBC, 2012 "Weeding Out the Heretics": Sectarianism in Pakistan, Hudson Institute, 2006 Shia Doctor, son gunned down in Lahore in apparent sectarian hit, 2013 Related Memos: See out other memos on  Pakistan  and elections.

China’s Black Jail Industry Posted: 05 Mar 2013 08:01 AM PST While there have been promising signs of change for those who travel to Beijing to present their grievances, there are still cases of petitioners being detained in China's unofficial black jails. Chinese state media report on the black jail industry, focusing on a recent case where ten people were imprisoned for illegally detaining petitioners. Some argue that the chief conspirators are still at large, from The Global Times: The recent Spring Festival holiday was the gloomiest ever for 70-year-old Yuzhou villager Wang Yuzhu. At a time when most Chinese return home for family reunions, his son, Wang Gaowei, was sent to jail by the Chaoyang district court on February 5, just five days before the start of Spring Festival. Song Xuefang said she appeared at Wang's trial last November, and "remembers clearly Wang admitted to the judge that a man named Bai Zhongxing hired him." This matches Wang's father's words, who recalled his son was hired by a man surnamed Bai. Bai Zhongxing, the official from Yuzhou Bureau of Letters and Calls who hired Wang Gaowei, is a well-known figure to Yuzhou petitioners as many of them know of Bai's connections to the black jail. That liaison officials and local letters and calls bureaus are profiting through illegal detention centers has become an open secret now. According to Yu Jianrong, a professor at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, there are two major modes of cooperation between letters and calls bureaus and black jails. Read more about black jails, via CDT. © Melissa M. Chan for China Digital Times (CDT), 2013. | Permalink | No comment | Add to del.icio.us Post tags: black jails, illegal dententions, petitioners Download Tools to Circumvent the Great Firewall

Sensitive Words: NPC Shockers and Disappointments Posted: 05 Mar 2013 07:54 AM PST As of March 4, the following search terms are blocked on Sina Weibo (not including the "search for user" function). "Representation by unelected delegates is rape." National People's Congress: - sand c**t + Beijing (沙逼+北京): Beijing was battered by a sandstorm last week, earning a nickname that plays on the curse "stupid c**t" (傻逼 shǎ bī): "sand c**t" (沙逼 shā bī). - Two Sessions + shock (两会+雷人): "Shocking" images from the National People's Congress are making the rounds online. See these photo galleries (1, 2) from CDT Chinese [zh]. (Together with the People's Consultative Congress, these annual gatherings are known as the "Two Sessions.") - Five Do-Nots (五不搞): Do not make a system in which multiple parties govern in turn; do not diversify guiding ideologies; do not "separate the three powers" and create a bicameral system; do not federalize; do not privatize. - Three Above-Alls (三个至上): Service to the Party above all; the interests of the people above all; constitution and laws above all. - movie star + take a curtain call (影帝+谢幕): After delivering his "government work report" yesterday, outgoing prime minister Wen Jiabao bowed three times and took a "curtain call" in response to applause. Exiled writer Yu Jie described Wen as a movie star in his 2010 book China's Best Actor: Wen Jiabao. - three bows (三鞠躬) - movie star + wen (影帝+wen) - Wen Jiabao + housing prices (温家宝+房价): People are grumbling about the 20% tax recently added to the sale of previously owned homes. A number of netizens attribute the ever-rising price of housing to the failure Wen's policies over the past decade. Other: - defend freedom of the press (捍卫新闻自由) - suppression of public opinion (舆论钳制) All Chinese-language words are tested using simplified characters. The same terms in traditional characters occasionally return different results. Browse all of CDT's collected sensitive words in this bilingual Google spreadsheet. CDT Chinese runs a project that crowd-sources filtered keywords on Sina Weibo search. CDT independently tests the keywords before posting them, but some searches later become accessible again. We welcome readers to contribute to this project so that we can include the most up-to-date information. To add words, check out the form at the bottom of CDT Chinese's latest sensitive words post. © Anne.Henochowicz for China Digital Times (CDT), 2013. | Permalink | No comment | Add to del.icio.us Post tags: censorship, Internet censorship, Ministry of Truth, NPC 2013, Sensitive Words Series, weibo, Wen Jiabao Download Tools to Circumvent the Great Firewall

Hopes Fade Over Sino-Japan Summit Posted: 05 Mar 2013 07:51 AM PST Amid claims that China is attempting to keep the peace at sea, a former defense ministry official has dampened speculation about a war between China and Japan over the Diaoyu Islands. From Xinhua: Tension behind China and Japan may currently be high amid some speculation of armed conflict between the nations, but Qian Lihua, a member of the 12th National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, said in an interview with Xinhua, "It is not rational or true that China and Japan are doomed to fight a war. "A military solution is the last resort to settle problems. We should not talk about war and military actions in such a careless way when the two countries just have problems." China values its relations with Japan and has always targeted settling disputes peacefully through dialogue, said Qian, who used to head the foreign affairs office under the Ministry of National Defense. "Once we sit down and talk, there will always be a way out," the official added. Despite these claims, tensions continue as Japanese automakers post lower sales in China. Another Xinhua article reports that National People's Congress spokesperson, Fu Ying, blames Japan for the current dispute: However, "one hand alone can't clap," Fu said, quoting a Chinese proverb to indicate that Japan has failed to engage in negotiations. She said the Japanese government's move to "purchase" part of the Diaoyu Islands last year went against the consensus reached by the two countries, which in turn shook China's basis for maintaining restraint. "If the other party chooses to take tougher measures and abandon consensus, 'it is impolite not to reciprocate,' as another Chinese proverb says," she said. "We wish Japanese society and all sides could listen attentively to the voice of the Chinese people and put what happened in the past and what is happening now in perspective, so the two countries find a basis for the dialogue," said Fu. While the dispute remains unsolved, China's envoy to Japan, Cheng Yonghua, said that a high-level summit between the top leaders of the two nations is unlikely. From The South China Morning Post: "The atmosphere facing bilateral ties between the two countries is at a very critical point now," Cheng said on the sidelines of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference annual session on Sunday. "There are no plans now to hold a high-level bilateral summit between leaders of the two nations." Mainland observers said the island dispute's impact on bilateral exchanges was wide-ranging, so a high-level summit was unlikely in the coming months. "Some academics have also refused to attend conferences hosted by Japan," said Professor Da Zhigang , an expert in Japanese affairs at the Heilongjiang Academy of Social Sciences. "There is no official order banning us from participating in the events, but the atmosphere between the two nations has made it difficult for us. It is embarrassing if we criticise Japan, but it is also out of the question for us to support Japan." Anti-Japanese sentiment has also escalated due to the territorial dispute. According to the China Policy Institute Blog, China has handled these outbursts of anti-Japanese sentiment through appeasement and repression: Based on its foreign policy and domestic considerations, Beijing has adopted three different types of approach to public expressions of anti-Japanese sentiment and opinion: 1) tolerance or leniency, 2) tight control or suppression and 3) a two-pronged approach. When the political leadership had more incentive to burnish its nationalist credentials and appeared to lack internal consensus concerning the conduct of its relations with Japan, the authorities displayed a greater tolerance of or a more lenient attitude towards public anti-Japanese outbursts. However, when the leadership pursued a moderate and cooperative approach to Japan and had greater concerns about social stability, it sought to suppress or control anti-Japan public sentiment, voices and actions to avoid jeopardizing its efforts to maintain good relations with Japan as well as social stability. By contrast, when the leadership sought a tougher stance in the handling of dispute with Japan, it adopted a two-pronged approach to nationalist outpourings by selectively allowing (or tolerating) some mass anti-Japanese protests to increase pressure on Japan whilst simultaneously making efforts to avoid such outbursts from spiraling out of control. The authorities' suppression and tight control of nationalist sentiment has led to a narrowing of political opportunity for the nationalistic public to make their voices heard. However, Beijing's tolerance or selective allowance of anti-Japanese popular protests for its domestic and/or international gains caused the Chinese government itself to face a dilemma by leading to a widening of political opportunity for the public to affect the government's policy towards Japan. Anti-Japanese popular nationalism was able to play a greater role in China's approach towards Japan when the public took advantage of the political opportunity created by the authorities' tolerance to express their nationalist feelings and opinions in a collective way and to push Beijing into displaying a more assertive stance in the handling of relations with Japan. Dispite efforts by the Chinese authorities to ease them, anti-Japanese sentiment in China still remains quite strong, which significantly limits Beijing's available options to ease tensions over the territorial row. By appearing too keen to re-engage with Japan, Beijing may suffer a backlash from an angry public. There are few signs of the mounting tensions being defused so far. The diplomatic tit-for-tat between Beijing and Tokyo seems likely to continue until the two sides find a mutually acceptable resolution of the dispute which would save their faces in front of their peoples. Read more about the Diaoyu Islands dispute, via CDT. © Melissa M. Chan for China Digital Times (CDT), 2013. | Permalink | No comment | Add to del.icio.us Post tags: cheng yonghua, diaoyu islands, Fu Ying, Japan, maritime dispute, senkaku islands, territorial disputes Download Tools to Circumvent the Great Firewall

In Barcelona, Huawei Tells its Story Posted: 05 Mar 2013 03:11 AM PST Kevin O'Brien of The New York Times checks in from the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, where Huawei executive Ryan Ding has offered the press something the telecom giant has often avoided – access to its decision makers: "We hope that the more people know about Huawei, the more it will help us," Mr. Ding said through an interpreter in Huawei's crowded exhibition stand. "It is certainly a positive influence and help with our global business when we are open towards the government, media, customers and the general public." For Mr. Ding, a spry, 43-year-old, for Huawei and perhaps for China, now is the time to tell the company's story, instead of letting others do it for them. That is a priority for Huawei, which has been virtually shut out of the U.S. market, the world's biggest for telecommunications equipment, because lawmakers are concerned about its links to the Chinese government and military. A recent spate of hacking incidents tied to the military has not helped its cause. Huawei denies that it is subsidized by the Chinese government and that its equipment poses a threat. The company says the U.S. blockade, encouraged last year by a congressional committee, is trade protectionism. © Scott Greene for China Digital Times (CDT), 2013. | Permalink | No comment | Add to del.icio.us Post tags: Barcelona, huawei, media access, telecommunications Download Tools to Circumvent the Great Firewall

Postcards from the National People's Congress Posted: 05 Mar 2013 01:44 AM PST

Labor Camps Under Scrutiny as NPC Opens Posted: 05 Mar 2013 12:38 AM PST While state media reports in January indicated that China's re-education through labor (laojiao) system would be reformed or even abolished, The Washington Post's William Wan observes that government officials have backtracked in recent weeks as the obstacles to reform have grown more evident: A big hurdle, legal experts say, is that authorities have grown dependent on labor camps as an expedient way to silence critics. Police can send people to the camps for up to four years with no judicial process. Citizens have been punished for crimes as trivial as writing an unflattering blog post about a local official. Some prisoners are there because of their religious practice or because they have tried to raise complaints about local injustices to central authorities. The camps provide what is essentially free labor to state ventures. But critics say the practice has also undermined the government's claim to abide by rule of law. "They know it's bad for China's soft power abroad and for legitimacy at home," said Jerome Cohen, a Chinese law expert at New York University. Even if reality has caught up with reform rhetoric, Didi Kirsten Tatlow of The New York Times reported Monday that delegates to this month's National People's Congress were issuing strong calls to end the laojiao system: "The reeducation-through-labor system to a certain extent makes citizens live in fear," said Dai Zhongchuan, a delegate and law professor from Huaqiao University in Fujian Province, in a report by china.com.cn, the news portal of the State Council Information Office and the National Internet Information Office. "Not to go through the courts to decide on a crime is to deprive and limit personal freedoms. Not to take steps to restrict and monitor this can very easily lead to the abuse of power," said Mr. Dai. Xinhua News also claimed that lawmakers still recognize the need for reform: The labor camp system, known as laojiao, was "a disgrace to China's national image and required urgent reform," as it runs against the principles of lawful governance and justice which the country pursues, said Yang Weicheng, who is a deputy to the National People's Congress (NPC) and lawyer from Shandong Province. Deng Hui, an NPC deputy and law school dean from Jiangxi Province, said the labor camp system violated various laws, including the Law on Legislation and the Administrative Penalty Law. It's also a deviation from a human rights convention the Chinese government had signed, he added. "The reform of laojiao is imminent and inescapable," Deng said. See also previous CDT coverage of China's re-education through labor system. © Scott Greene for China Digital Times (CDT), 2013.