| Photo: Camouflage, by Christopher Cherry Posted: 19 Jun 2012 10:27 PM PDT |
| Ai Weiwei Prevented from Attending Hearing Posted: 19 Jun 2012 10:14 PM PDT The court hearing of artist and activist Ai Weiwei's case against tax authorities is scheduled for Wednesday in Beijing. In an unexpected move, a Beijing court earlier accepted Ai's case against tax authorities who filed tax evasion charges against Ai's art studio. But hours before it was due to open, police warned Ai Weiwei not to attend the hearing, while his legal advisor Liu Xiaoyuan was reportedly missing after being called in for questioning by police. Reuters reports: His supporters say the tax case, due to be heard later on Wednesday, is part of the government's drive to muzzle the outspoken social critic. Despite the courts' acceptance of his lawsuit, Ai told Reuters that police called him repeatedly on Tuesday afternoon, warning him not to turn up at the courthouse. "'You can never make it. Don't even try,'" Ai, 55, said police told him. He said police gave no reason. "This nation can have anything, they can have a satellite that goes to the sky and the moon, but they can never give you a clear reason why," he said. "This is ridiculous, right? There's no conversation, no discussion. Maybe they don't even know the reason. It's a really mysterious nation."
An avid Twitter user, Ai has been tweeting updates to his followers, including a call for the release of Liu Xiaoyuan, who is assumed to be under police detention: 我可以不去法院，请放回刘晓原。 — 艾未未Ai Weiwei (@aiww) June 20, 2012
[I cannot go to the court; please return Liu Xiaoyuan.] Ai also tweeted photos of police cars stationed outside his studio; staff members were reportedly assaulted by the officers they were filming: RT @jenwyng: TT @aiww Ai Weiwei Studio was assaulted when filming 30 police cars outside. Video camera damaged, staff injured. — 艾未未Ai Weiwei (@aiww) June 20, 2012
A photo of Ai taken today is also making the rounds of Twitter: 这个是谁？嘿嘿@aiww twitter.com/qizhuochine/st… — 大盆儿 (@qizhuochine) June 20, 2012
Last week, Ai Weiwei recorded a message for the Cinema for Peace Foundation in Basel, Switzerland, which screened the documentary about him, Ai Weiwei: Never Sorry:
Read more about Ai Weiwei and his detention on tax evasion charges last year.
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| Frenchman With Ties to Bo Arrested in Cambodia Posted: 19 Jun 2012 07:02 PM PDT The French foreign ministry confirmed on Tuesday that Cambodian police have arrested Patrick Henri Devillers, the architect who has become linked to the Bo Xilai scandal due to his alleged business ties to Gu Kailai. From The New York Times' Keith Bradsher, who tracked down Devillers in Cambodia last month: Bernard Valero, the spokesman for the French foreign ministry, said at the ministry's daily news conference in Paris on Tuesday that the architect, Patrick Devillers, had been detained in Cambodia. "We of course will offer our consular protection, and we are in direct contact with the Cambodian authorities regarding the ins and outs of this arrest," he said. "We are obviously following the ongoing investigation very closely." … Mr. Devillers had remained in Cambodia despite being warned strongly and repeatedly by friends that he was in danger there, in part because of the Cambodian government's close connections to the Chinese government, which is its largest creditor and aid donor. Mr. Devillers may have stayed because he began living with a Cambodian woman soon after moving to Phnom Penh nearly six years ago and has a kindergarten-aged child with her, said a friend who insisted on anonymity because of the diplomatic tussle over Mr. Devillers.
The South China Morning Post reports that the arrest of Devillers was carried out with the cooperation of Beijing, which is seeking his extradition, though Phnom Penh police have not decided whether to send him to China or France. While French officials probe the cause of the arrest, The Telegraph's Malcolm Moore connected with Devillers' father for his reaction to the news: "I spoke to my son 10 days ago and he appeared perfectly calm," said the semi-retired property developer at his home in Rainans, Burgundy. "He had no idea he was in danger of being arrested, as he had intended to come to France for a trip over the summer. My aim is to have him repatriated to France. I will be speaking with a French consular contact in Cambodia tomorrow, and I intend to fly to Cambodia as soon as possible." He said he believed his son was attracted to Mrs Gu and had wanted a romantic relationship with her. "My opinion is that he was ensnared in a web of manipulation by this woman," he said, without providing more details.
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Post tags: Bo Xilai, cambodia, extradition, France, gu kailai, murder, Neil Heywood, Patrick Henri Devillers, scandal
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| Safety Scandals Give Foreign Dairies a Boost Posted: 19 Jun 2012 02:27 PM PDT With the safety of dairy products, especially infant formula, constantly under question in China, foreign brands are finding an opening into the China market. From Reuters: The latest foreign bet comes from Danish-Swedish dairy group Arla, which said on Friday it would buy what amounts to a 6 percent stake in Yili's main competitor, China Mengniu Dairy Co, from private equity fund Hopu for 1.7 billion Danish crowns ($289 million). The deal lifted Mengniu shares by 7 percent on Monday. "If you have an international brand, then there's a premium in the market, because food safety is a concern," said Kevin Bellamy, dairy analyst at Rabobank in the Netherlands. For some global milk producers, finding new markets is also crucial as they consolidate and expand production faster than their traditional, and mature, milk markets can grow. Milk and formula safety became a deep concern for Chinese parents after a 2008 scandal in which at least six babies died and 300,000 were sickened from drinking milk formula contaminated with melamine, a chemical used in fertilizer and plastic.
Earlier this year, Nestle bought out two infant formula brands which are popular in China. Read more about milk contamination and food safety in China, via CDT.
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| Lhasa Under Lockdown, June 2-14 Posted: 19 Jun 2012 02:16 PM PDT Most foreigners, with some notable exceptions, will be allowed back in Tibet starting tomorrow. Foreigners were banned from visiting following two self-immolations in the capital, Lhasa, on May 27. What did Tibet look like during the ban? Tibetan poet and activist Woeser compiled reports and photos from Lhasa and beyond via Weibo on her blog. One of the original signatories of Charter 08, Woeser is currently under police surveillance in Beijing. She wrote an appeal to her fellow Tibetans this spring to "stay alive to struggle and push forward," rather than end their lives in protest. More comments and photos are available from CDT Chinese. WeaselPauper: The train arrived on schedule in Lhasa. The most outstanding thing was that they didn't check our tickets as we left the station, but instead our ID cards. The riot police carrying guns and the hoards of city police make you feel nervous, hinting at the lack of peace. (June 2)
黄狼财尽：列车准点抵达拉萨，出站不查车票只查身份证可能是其最大的特色。荷枪的武警与大量的警察给人一种紧张的感觉，预示着这个城市的不平静。（6月2日） Desert-WolfKing: Lhasa is crawling with riot police. In gas stations, temples, power stations, intersections—everywhere there are riot police carrying guns. There are even armored cars in the pedestrian walkways. There are lots of places where you can't take photos! (June 5)
沙漠-狼王：拉萨什么情况满街都是武警，加油站，寺庙，电力公司，十字路口都是带枪的武警。连步行街都有装甲车。很多地方都不让拍照！（6月5日） ChenMengshengTravels: When taking pictures in front of the Potala Palace, you can't sit or lie down on the ground. Otherwise Uncle Riot Police will come get you. (June 7)
陈梦生京粤行：在布达拉宫附近拍照，不能坐地上或是趴地上。不然武警叔叔会找你。（6月7日） CoolSummerBreeze: The Lhasa police all drive Infinitis. They sure do have money. (June 12)
夏天小凉风：拉萨武警当官的开私家车牌的INFINITI上班，真有钱啊 。（6月12日） TuoZhenguo: When traveling in certain places in Ti_bet—Mount Everest, Ngari, Shannan, Yadong, Medog—you need a border pass in addition to your ID card in order to get past the border police. In Lhasa you can find a travel agency to get the pass for you, which will allow you one month of travel in up to four different locations. The situation is really tense now. Whether or not you get your pass in Lhasa depends on how you present yourself. (June 14)
脱镇国： 在西_藏旅行，除了必须带好身份证，珠峰、阿里、山南、亚东、墨脱等一些地区还必须办边境证，否_则通不过边防武警的关卡。在拉萨可以找旅行社代办，有效期一个月，可填4个地方。最近局势紧张，在拉萨办不办得出来要看人品。（6月14日） LiMumuStudent: I'm here #PotalaPalace I touched the Potala Palace!! It feels so holy… The square [in front of the palace] is heavily guarded. There are riot police, and there's a security check… (June 14)
黎木木同学：我在這裡：#布达拉宫广场#摸得着的布宫啊！！感觉到很神圣……广场守卫深严，有武警，还要过安检…（6月14日）
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Post tags: lhasa, Potala Palace, self-immolation, self-immolations, Tibet, Woeser
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| Foreigners in Guangzhou Protest Death of Expat Posted: 19 Jun 2012 12:11 PM PDT Foreigners living in China have been in the spotlight recently as the behavior of a few has inspired the government to crack down on the group as a whole. In Guangzhou, tensions have flared between expats and authorities when a foreigner was found dead after being detained following a dispute with a electric bicycle driver. The Guardian reports: Guangzhou police said via its microblog account it had opened an investigation into the death of a foreign national on Monday. It said officers in Yuexiu district had been called because of a fight between a foreigner and an electric bicycle driver over a fare dispute. Police took both men back to the police station to investigate, it said. But hours later the foreigner suddenly became unconscious and died despite officers summoning medical help. In a separate post, the police said foreigners had blocked traffic on Guangyuan West Road – where the fight broke out – on Tuesday afternoon but were dispersed by officers. They appealed to expatriates living in China to "abide by Chinese laws, not harm public interests or disrupt public order" and said police would investigate the death in strict accordance with the law.
Reports have said the victim is Nigerian. Deutsche Welle recently looked at the growing number of African immigrants in China, many of whom settle in Guangzhou: Life is not always easy for Africans living in China. "Chinese people hate blacks," Toyin says. "Very few taxis stop for me, for example. "It is also difficult to get through the red tape and to get papers for extended stays. Many Africans in China register as students as this is simpler and cheaper. There are also specialized agencies which charge up to $3,000 for visas, but these are often issued for six months only and do not allow multiple entries. Many foreigners end up in jail when their visas expire and recently the Chinese government announced it was going to step up checks even more. Toyin and Kabir refuse to have their photos taken even though their papers are in order. They do not want to draw any unnecessary attention to themselves. Nevertheless, they say they like living in China. Kabir has married a Chinese woman and Toyin says she feels safer in China than in Nigeria. "There are so many attacks and so much violence in my country. Here I can go home at 3 in the morning. I love China because of that."
Read more about foreigners in China and about Africa immigrants living there.
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Post tags: Africa trade, Africans in China, foreigners in China, Guangzhou, police violence
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| China Blasts into Space Posted: 19 Jun 2012 11:18 AM PDT As China launched and successfully docked it's first manned spaceship since 2008, the country's first female astronaut, Liu Yang, joined two other astronauts to carry out their first manned docking mission. The New York Times reports: The successful launching of the Shenzhou 9 spacecraft, powered by a Long March 2F rocket, was shown live on state television from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in the Gobi Desert in western China. The crew is expected to spend up to 20 days in space and dock with the orbiting Tiangong 1 space lab module, a kind of miniature space station, which China launched in September 2011. The crew will conduct experiments and live for a time in the space module. China has spent billions in the past decade to build a space program to compete with the United States and Russia, and it plans to eventually put a Chinese astronaut on the moon, perhaps by 2016. The launching put China's first woman into space, a 33-year-old air force pilot named Liu Yang.
Along with reports on the launch, the BBC also ran a profile of Liu. State TV, which has aired documentaries about her, says she trained to fly transport planes and was cool under pressure after a multiple bird strike disabled one engine on her plane. Hailing from the central province of Henan, she is also described as an eloquent speaker, an avid reader and a lover of cooking. "From day one I have been told I am no different from the male astronauts," she told state media. "As a pilot, I flew in the sky. Now that I am an astronaut, I will fly in space. This flight will be much higher and further away."
Aside from reports about China's first female astronaut, analysts are also claiming that space missions could have implications beyond scientific advancement, according to the New Yorker: There are arguments for space programs, of course: They rally national pride, attract talent to science, and throw off inventions with valuable new military and civilian uses. But watching China hurl one object after another into orbit, one can't help but wonder if it says less about China's dynamism in technology than about the obstacles it faces in becoming a true world leader. As the Wall Street Journal notes today, When Chinese leaders approved the plan for a space station in 1992, "Chinese space professionals believed they would be latecomers to an expanding human presence in low Earth orbit," Gregory Kulacki, a senior analyst for the Union of Concerned Scientists, wrote in a recent research note. "Ironically, by the time they finish their space station in the early 2020s, the Chinese might be the only people left up there." Over the last decade, China has moved with purpose, putting its first person into space, completing an inaugural spacewalk, and launching two lunar orbiters. But it is not doing anything rash; the pace, four missions in four years, is a stately one. "China's careful, sustainable approach cannot be compared to some early Soviet 'firsts,' which took safety shortcuts in order to achieve politically-timed space spectaculars," according to Andrew Erickson, of the U.S. Naval War College. "By working on its own terms, on its own time, Beijing is building for the future." The caution also reflects the risk that when a project becomes so closely identified with national pride, its success or failure becomes doubly significant.
This mission is the first step to build a Chinese space station by 2020, but there are also reports about further developing China's space program. The Wall Street Journal adds: Now that docking technology has been achieved, analysts say, other significant hurdles to establishing a space station include the logistics of keeping humans alive in space for extended periods. A Chinese space station's launch will also rely in part on the successful development of the Long March-5 rocket, which officials have said will make its maiden flight in 2014. Additionally, according to defense analysts, China is developing optical imaging technologies and near-real-time data-communication systems that will allow it to monitor U.S. naval activity in the Asia-Pacific region. Beijing also is seeking to cut its reliance on the U.S. Global Positioning System, which the U.S. could in theory deny access to in the event of a conflict.
While the launch was successful, Global Times editor Hu Xijin's post on the success of the launch garnered criticism, and he responded to critics telling them to get their 'heads checked.' From The Shanghaiist: Global Times editor Hu Xijin (胡锡进) rallies the troops over the successful launch of Shenzhou 9 in a post on Sina Weibo that has attracted 6,000 retweets and 3,000 comments: With the successful launch of Shenzhou 9, yet another great step has been made by Chinese space research. This progress has created conditions for China's overall advancement and China should wisely use opportunities like this to do good for all the people. If China can do space well, it shows that as long as we put our mind to it and work hard, we can solve all of the most complex problems. Let us make that determination! May our astronauts complete their mission and come back safely. When his remarks ignited an avalanche of criticism and debate, he followed up with a word of advice to critics: If you're happy for the successful launch of Shenzhou 9, you're a normal Chinese person. If you have not the slightest care for it, you are also a normal Chinese person. But if it has made you unhappy, or even angry, my advice to you is to get your heads checked. Because you're probably very special, often depressed, and seldom happy. This can't be good for your health.
Read more about developments in China's space program, via CDT.
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Post tags: astronauts, manned spacecraft, Shenzhou 9, space exploration, space program, women
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| Beijing Eases Tensions with Manila Posted: 19 Jun 2012 11:10 AM PDT As the Philippines removes their ships from the disputed Scarborough shoal, China has welcomed their withdrawal. The BBC reports: China has welcomed the Philippines' decision to pull out from a disputed part of the South China Sea, saying it hopes that this will ease tensions. "The Chinese side has been urging the Philippine side to take measures to de-escalate the situation," Chinese embassy spokesman, Zhang Hua, was quoted by local media as saying. "We have noticed the withdrawal of government vessels by the Philippine side, and hope this action will help ease the tension."
Initially, China had kept their ships in the shoal, but due to weather conditions they had to withdraw their ships as well. The Wall Street Journal adds: Inclement weather appears to have achieved what diplomacy couldn't in the South China Sea as Beijing announced it was withdrawing its fishing vessels from the disputed Scarborough Shoal due to storms and rough seas, following a similar announcement by Manila over the weekend. Nonetheless, Beijing indicated its ships could soon return to Scarborough, known as Huangyan Island in China. Neither side appeared to be budging on the underlying issue of how to resolve the dispute over the resource-rich area, analysts said.
Deeper concerns regarding territorial disputes in the South China Sea remain unresolved. The sea is thought to hold vast oil and gas reserves, and includes some of the world's busiest shipping lanes. In addition to China and the Philippines, Other South China Sea claimants include Malaysia, Vietnam, Brunei and Taiwan.
Despite both countries pulling their ships from the South China Sea, there seemed to be continuing tensions due to the territorial dispute over the shoal. Amid this dispute, Beijing has expressed interest in easing tensions with Manila. According to the New York Times: The underlying antagonism between China and the Philippines over disputed islands in the South China Sea remained unresolved, but diplomats said they hoped the absence of the vessels would lead to a cooling-off period. "We hope there will continue to be an easing in the situation, and hope bilateral cooperation will recover and be safeguarded," a Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman, Hong Lei, said Monday at a regular news briefing. It was expected that China would follow suit, Philippine officials said, in what appeared to be a carefully choreographed withdrawal. "When weather improves, a re-evaluation will be made," said Albert del Rosario, the Philippine foreign secretary. At the core of the dispute are sovereignty claims by the Philippines and China, highlighting increasing concerns about the freedom of navigation and territorial rights in one of the world's busiest waterways. Complicating the situation is a 1951 mutual defense treatybetween the United States and the Philippines that Manila interprets as meaning that Washington would defend the Philippines in case of any conflict.
Read more about the conflict in the South China Sea, via CDT.
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| Xiong Peiyun on Land and Revolt Posted: 19 Jun 2012 08:45 AM PDT Europe correspondent for Window on the South (南风窗) Xiong Peiyun shared his thoughts on land ownership and stability in a June 12 Weibo post: XiongPeiyun: Only if the land is returned to the people will the people feel a true sense of belonging to the country. Those with land won't take it with them when they die; those without will struggle to acquire it. There is hope for such a society. The significance of private land ownership lies not only in the decentralisation of power, but in encouraging people to better arrange their lives, to persevere in their work, to make long-term plans for the future. Only if the people have their own land will the risk of social upheaval be averted. 熊培云：把土地还给人民，人民对国家才会有真正的归属感。有土地的人，死后不会将土地带走；没土地的人，通过奋斗会拥有自己的土地。这样的社会是有希望 的。土地私有的意义，不仅在于分权，还在于它可以让人更好地安排人生，更有恒心地创造，为未来作更长远的打算。人民有了自己的土地，社会才不至于被颠覆。
Under Chinese property law, no land is privately owned; private property is leased by the state for a 70-year period, while land for cultivation is collectively owned and leased for 30 years. But local governments frequently seize property in both urban and rural areas to sell for real estate development. Residents are illegally evicted, often without adequate compensation. The villagers of Wukan, Guangdong fought government land grabs, eventually leading them to seize control from local authorities and successfully negotiate with the provincial authorities for elections. Via SneezeBloid. Translated by Samuel Wade.
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Post tags: farmers, forced evictions, land grab, land rights, nailhouse, rural development, Samuel Wade, Wukan, Xiong Peiyun
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| Congress Apologies for Anti-Chinese Immigration Laws Posted: 19 Jun 2012 08:02 AM PDT Following a similar motion passed by the Senate last year, the U.S. House of Representatives has issued an apology for discriminatory laws which targeted Chinese immigrants in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. From The Los Angeles Times: The rare apology came on a resolution sponsored by Rep. Judy Chu (D-Calif.), the first Chinese American woman elected to Congress. "This is a proud moment for all Americans who treasure justice and equality,'' said Carolyn Hong Chan, national president of the Chinese American Citizens Alliance. Chu, whose grandfather was forced to register and carry a certificate of residence for about 40 years because of the laws, told House colleagues Monday: "It is for my grandfather and for all Chinese Americans who were told for six decades by the U.S. government that the land of the free wasn't open to them that we must pass this resolution. "We must finally and formally acknowledge these ugly laws that were incompatible with America's founding principles," she added. "By doing so, we will acknowledge that discrimination has no place in our society."
Xinhua News has more on the legislation at the center of the apology: The Chinese Exclusion Act, approved in 1882 in Congress and lasted for 60 years, was the first and the only federal law in U.S. history that excluded a single group of people from immigration on no basis other than their race. It explicitly banned Chinese workers from immigration and existing residents from naturalization and voting. The Act was later expanded several times to apply to all persons of Chinese descent, each time imposing increasingly severe restrictions on immigration and naturalization. The resolution was applauded by Congressional leaders. House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi said the resolution "reiterates our commitment to equal rights for all Americans, regardless of race, now and in the future." Congressman Mike Honda, chair emeritus of Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus, said the passage of the resolution is an "opportunity to learn from our mistakes."
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Post tags: Chinese Exclusion Act, discrimination, immigration, racism, Sino-U.S. Relations, U.S. Congress
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| The Daily Twit (@chinahearsay links) – 6/19/12 Posted: 19 Jun 2012 05:10 AM PDT I was surprised at how much chatter was generated by the announcement that Stan Lee was working on a Chinese superhero movie. The Google Machine has more, and of course you can start with my post: Epic Fail Watch: Stan Lee Developing a Chinese Superhero. Other news bits of the day: Bloomberg: China to Encourage Local Private Investment in Energy Projects — Is China changing its thinking when it comes to the economic role of State-owned companies? That's one way to look at this announcement about the energy sector. On the other hand, the country has serious energy supply problems, and this is one way to get new sources online quickly. If you ask me, I think this is more about pragmatic energy policy and less about economic philosophy. Financial Times: China's labour shortage: getting worse — China's economy is slowing, exports are down, and factories are hurting. At the same time, there's still a labor shortage in the manufacturing sector, particularly in Guangdong, due to labor policies and demographics. Ministry of Tofu: Astronauts' special food supply angers Chinese netizens – yet more evidence that the income gap and food safety are causing a serious disconnect between the population and the government. Even the goodwill folks feel towards the latest national heroes, China's astronauts, is limited in the face of food-related issues. Diplomat: U.S., China Butt Cyber Heads — Adam Segal with updates from the Cyber Cold War. Good news: both sides are talking. Bad news: they don't trust each other and don't know how to fix the underlying problems. Michael Pettis: Debating growth in China — one of China's top economic analysts weighs in on where things stand right now with slowing growth and the policy response. Pettis has been a skeptic on rebalancing and the sustainability policies such as interest rate controls for quite a while now. Guardian: Witnessing the birth of a superpower — Beijing correspondent Jonathan Watts' final column before moving on to a new assignment. Reuters: China rounds off push for bigger IMF war chest — China pledged $43 billion, but what everyone wants to know is whether this was tied into institutional reforms that have been tabled at the IMF for the last couple of years. China and other developing nations want representation commensurate with their economic clout, but some members have balked. AP: New Asian immigrants to US now surpass Hispanics — Not exactly important news for today, but potentially big news for tomorrow. What sort of an effect will Asian groups have on U.S. politics in the future, and will this effect US-China policy? The answer may depend on common issues, ability to mobilize and come together around issues/candidates, and population density (particularly in specific Congressional districts — think Cubans in South Florida). Shanghaiist: "Mystery mushroom" which leaves Xi'an villagers befuddled turns out to be artificial vajayjay — No way am I commenting on this one. Go read this bizarrity by Kenneth Tan, but maybe not right after you've eaten.
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| How Many Fetuses Killed in 40 Years? Posted: 19 Jun 2012 04:57 AM PDT Yang Zhizhu, associate professor of law at China Youth University of Political Science, published this brief essay on his blog last Friday. Dr. Yang lost his university post two years ago after his second child was born. His "black child" was finally given a household registration (hukou 户口) on June 6, and Dr. Yang has returned to work. His essay, which comes on the tail of the story of a Shaanxi woman whose seven-month pregnancy was forcibly aborted, has over 42,100 views on his blog. Translated by Harriet Xu. How Many Fetuses Have Been Killed in the Past 40 Years? According to statistics from the Ministry of Health's 2010 Yearbook, the record for number of abortions in one year was set in 1983, with 14.37 million procedures. Since 2000, the number of surgical abortions has stabilized around 7 million annually. This number peaked in 2008, with 9.17 million abortions. The data includes procedures performed at standard hospitals as well as voluntary, mandated and forced procedures at family planning centers. This does not include procedures at private clinics (often in conservative areas where abortions are sex-selective or performed on unmarried women) or the 1.5 million medical [i.e. pharmaceutically induced] abortions. Mandated abortion began as a pilot in 1971 and was promoted nationally in 1973. The number of voluntary surgical abortions in the early 1970s was far below the number performed today. Just like rape, mandated abortions employ violence and coercion. There are "population schools" that illegally detain the parents, grandparents and husband of the pregnant woman, or even the woman herself, in order to force them into "willingness." Neighbors, too, will scare the pregnant woman into "willingness," and there are even damages incurred to residences in order to scare one into "willingness" (a residence is not only property, it is a person's "skin" of physical, health and personal rights). These tactics undoubtedly fall within the scope of mandated abortion. However, because people fear the cost of penalty fines, and because family planning inevitably leads to sex-selective abortions performed by family planning staff, these should not really be called mandated abortions, but forced abortions. Many people may agree with this definition, but have no way of altering it. We will never fully know how many abortions are mandated, how many forced and how many voluntary.
© Anne.Henochowicz for China Digital Times (CDT), 2012. | Permalink | No comment | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: abortion, forced abortion, forced abortions, Harriet Xu, household registration, hukou, one-child policy, sex-selective abortion
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