Inside China Today

Inside China Today – Sunday 18th July

- CNC World network a propaganda tool

- Zhang Kai barred from leaving China

- Proposed landfill causes major stink among Guilin residents

- Disease devastates pig population in Guangxi village

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CNC World network a propaganda tool

The newly launched CNC World network has been accused of being mere propaganda. On July 1st, China’s state-owned Xinhua News Agency officially launched its ‘CNC World’ program. A 24 hour a day English language news channel set to broadcast in the Asia Pacific, Europe, and North America.

Cheng Xiaonong, the Chief Editor of ‘Modern China Studies’ a US based magazine, has accused the network of being part of the government’s propaganda efforts. The station is alleged to be part of the Chinese Propaganda Department’s ‘Grand Foreign Propaganda’ project. A policy aimed at pushing and extending the reach of Chinese media into Western countries.

Cheng Xiaonong spoke to SOH about the media situation in China and the role of CNC World (recording):
“Xinhua is the mouthpiece of the Chinese Communist Party, intending to spread propaganda abroad with viewpoints from a communist angle. There is no independent media in China, all media is under direct control of the Chinese authorities. This project intends to establish media glorifying the CCP in different countries. They want to use the local language and its people to write articles to glorify the regime, thinking this will improve the bad image they have portrayed in other countries.”

Mr Cheng spoke on the differences between free media and controlled media (recording):
“We all know the difference between mouthpiece media and free media. One has its own thinking and viewpoints, without influence or control. The other is told what to say. There is a saying amongst reporters describing mouthpiece media; ‘I am a dog of the party who stays at the gate of party headquarters. I will bite on whoever I am asked to bite and bite as many times I’m ordered to.’ This saying describes the Xinhua News Agency correctly.”

Mr Cheng believes the Chinese authorities have a long battle ahead before CNC World can win over Western viewers. He claims the Chinese Propaganda Department has misunderstood the average Western media consumer, compared with Chinese audiences who have grown accustomed to the programming styles of the state-owned CCTV (recording):
“American audiences grew up in an environment of freedom of the press. When they see the propaganda reported by Chinese or Americans, their tone and style will be a major turn off for viewers. There are two types of Chinese people living abroad; one group enjoys CCTV, and the other dislikes it. For those who don’t watch CCTV, they are clear about one thing, they will not be deceived.”

Yu Shan and Ming Wei of SOH Radio Network.

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Zhang Kai barred from leaving China

While millions celebrated freedom and liberty in the United States, a human rights lawyer has been barred from leaving China. On July 4th, Zhang Kai was on his way to attend a legal conference in the United States when border security at Beijing International Airport stopped him from getting on his flight. Airport staff told him the orders had come from higher authorities. Not happy with the situation, Zhang demanded to see the written instructions so he could apply for government review of the ban. His request was denied.

The China Human Rights Lawyers Support Group has expressed concern about the matter, calling on the Communist regime to stop suppressing human rights lawyers.

When interviewed by SOH Zhang Kai said his basic human rights were violated. He said he would hand the case over to a lawyer to investigate the real reasons he was prevented from leaving the country. Zhang is intent on making the relevant departments accountable. He said (recording):
“I will ask a lawyer to handle my case. I will sue them, because it is extremely serious defamation. In other words, you believe that by leaving the country, I will cause great harm to the nation. I work tirelessly for China’s legal system. I love my country so much. And they have the guts to label me as someone who may do a great deal of harm to the country. This is libel.”

Zhang condemned the illegitimacy of the modern-day Chinese authorities. He said the totalitarian system currently in power is the fundamental roadblock in the journey towards actual rule of law in his beloved homeland (recording):
“Therefore, in other words, an aspect of a country that is not ruled by law is that you don’t know what determines your actions. You don’t know the nature of your actions or the legal consequences they bring. I believe this is a hindrance in such a totalitarian country not under the rule of law. In a legal society you can predict the result of your actions, because the legal rules are clearly set out. But in such non-legal countries, you don’t know the consequences of your actions. Check out their laws and regulations. ‘Relevant departments’ of the States Council – which departments exactly? Right? What are your standards? At the time they said that people from relevant security departments would talk to me. But till now they haven’t gotten in touch.”

Zhang’s lawyer Li Xiongbin said there is no legal basis for restricting Zhang from leaving China. He said (recording):
“To disallow him from exiting the country, according to legal procedures, the security department should provide Zhang with a notice, i.e. he has violated the law. But Zhang has not violated any law. They said he would pose a security risk and therefore he was disallowed from leaving. Relevant departments – which departments exactly? No one knows. Such actions do not meet the standards of the law.”

When reporters contacted Beijing Border Control, the man on duty said (recording):
“At Beijing Border Control, we received orders from relevant senior departments. We just acted on orders from above. We don’t know about anything else.”

This incident is not the first time Zhang has suffered retribution for championing the rights of the persecuted. In 2009, Zhang represented a member of the persecuted spiritual practice known as Falun Dafa. Zhang’s client, Falun Dafa practitioner Jiang Xiqing, had been cremated at one of China’s infamous “Re-Eduction Through Labour” camps, while he was still breathing.

While conducting an interview with relatives of his deceased client, Zhang was beaten up by local police. He was handcuffed and taken to the police station for interrogation. The incident attracted attention from mainland legal professionals.

This incident is not isolated. On the 17th of May, human rights lawyer Tang Jitian tried to leave Hong Kong but was denied. Tang Jitian also represented a practitioner of Falun Dafa in court.

The United Nations Special Rapporteur on Human Rights Defenders, Margaret Sekaggya, released a report about the persecution of lawyers in China. In her report, the Special Rapporteur explained that she had sent a request to the Chinese government for an explanation regarding allegations that lawyers defending Falun Gong practitioners in court have been pressured and persecuted by authorities.

According to UN regulations, as a member of the UN Human Rights council, the Chinese government is required to reply to all official UN communications and requests.

As reported by the Special Rapporteur, Chinese authorities indeed often warn lawyers not to speak in defense of Falun Gong practitioners, house church Christians and other “dissidents”. Lawyers who do not heed such warnings frequently have their license to practice law revoked, are taken into custody and even tortured. Wang Yonghang, a lawyer who previously defended Falun Gong practitioners, is now in prison with a sentence of 7 years. His right leg was broken by police. Gao Zhisheng, who similarly defended Falun Gong, described in an open letter how he had suffered severe torture at the hands of authorities. There have been numerous documented similar cases, such as Guo Guoting, Chen Guangcheng, Zheng Enchong, Guo Feixiong, Xu Zhiyong, and so the list goes on.

Li Yifei and Yi Fan of the SOH Radio Network.

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Proposed landfill causes major stink among Guilin residents

Nearly one thousand Guilin City residents have appealed against the construction of a giant garbage landfill, which they say is too close to their homes and businesses.

In Guangxi Province, hundreds of appellants lined up outside the Linchuan County City Hall at 8am on July 3rd. Then shortly after midday they held a second appeal at the Guilin City Hall. State-run media reported only 800 appellants at the scene, but sources on the ground say the number was closer to 1,000.

Zhuan Xi is the manager of local business, Hong-Shing Rice Flour Mill. He told SOH all villages in the area oppose the proposed landfill. He said they don’t want it so close to nearby communities with high density populations, such as Bei Shan and Shao Tien.

He had this to say about the landfill (recording):
“It is not a good idea to build a landfill for two reasons- one, it is too close to high density residential areas; two, the landfill will definitely influence manufacturers’ businesses. Farmers are also against the closely built landfills. It is recommended to re-locate the landfills to a remote area.”

SOH reporters called the Lichuan County City Hall and spoke with Mr Li, a staff member on duty. He said he is under a gag order and is not allowed to speak to any media.

Mr Li said (recording):
“I don’t know anything at all. However, there is a policy in this office that all the comments will be publicly announced by the superiors.”

City Hall clerk Mr Yi said Party officials are currently investigating environmental pollution issues, but have nothing yet to report. He told reporters (recording):
“Both the city halls at City level and County level are investigating the environmental pollution caused by the landfills. As you may have known, the results from the investigation would take a long time to complete.”

Wu Jiachi and Wan Chin for Inside China Today on SOH Radio Network.

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Disease devastates pig population in Guangxi village

Several pigs have been found dead along the banks of a river near one of China’s largest pig-raising villages. The pigs began dropping off one by one a couple of months ago. Since then the number of dead pigs has quickly swelled. The cause of the disease has stumped local farmers who’ve suffered devastating economic losses. Dodgy traders meanwhile are making a pretty penny selling the diseased meats to foreign markets.

There are also fears the disease will spread in the impending flood about to hit the region.
Laibin city is home to Dongxiang village, where this tragedy is occurring. According to news reports, Dongxiang village is an expansive pig-raising base in Wuxuan County (pron. woo-shwan). Over 40,000 pigs are bred annually in the area, which is home to about 40 pig farms holding over a hundred pigs each.

The owner of a local store that supplies feed to the farms had this to say about the situation, (recording):
“This disease is different in every household. At the beginning some had diarrhoea, some were short of breath, and some had fevers. Many people say it is a nameless high fever. I have been in the feed business for eighteen years and up until now I have not seen this kind of disease. The infected [pigs] can be very violent. This kind of disease may be a mix of infection and disease, or may be many kinds of diseases combined together.”

The store owner says the epidemic has been devastating for the pig farms. The locals won’t dare eat pork. Some have expressed concerns diseased livestock is making its way to foreign markets. According to local sources, dodgy traders continue buying dead pigs at a low price from local markets. They are then secretly transported to Liuzhou for sale.

The feed shop owner said (recording):
“About one third of the pigs survived. Many pigs farmers were at a loss after the pigs died, and the dead pigs were thrown everywhere. Some illegal traders will gain a profit of 100 to 200 Yuan, or more, if they sell the dead pigs. At the time, there are none in the market, but it may be traded in foreign markets. There is no pork in other markets, chicken and duck are the most bought.”

Dongxiang Village resident Mr. Li said he fears the disease will be carried to other regions by flood waters, which have battered several counties in China’s south for the last several weeks.

Mr Li said (recording):
“It [the disease] is still extending now from Dongxiang to the mountains. And the coming of the flood will make it more severe. A few months ago, there were many of these dead and smelly pigs piling up at the riverbank, gradually becoming more and more contagious. Now, no one dares to go to the riverbank, because the water is very dirty, and many of the pigs died of the disease, and they still have yet to clear out. The government does not have any policies regarding this. I heard that some people were digging pits until they cried, because there are too many.”

Yang Zheng and Yu Lian for Inside China Today on SOH Radio Network.

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