Inside China Today – Friday 19th February
- Liaoning authorities search for organizers of ‘Petitioners New Year
- Regime blocking the rights of lawyers
- Chinese Communist Party sues victims of toxic milk
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Liaoning authorities search for organizers of ‘Petitioners New Year’
Over 60 homeless petitioners held the Inaugural Petitioners’ Chinese New Year Gala on February 5th. The gala was held at a simple location in Beijing and was broadcast over the internet. During the 90 minute performance, petitioners from different provinces poured their grievances and heart-felt feelings through singing. The gala was uploaded online soon after. Chinese Communist authorities have begun a massive search for the organizers and participants.
Liu Chunbao was an organiser of the Chinese New Year Gala. On February 14th, Liaoning police came to arrest him at his Shoubao Village home in Beijing at around 11am. Fortunately, Liu was not home. Continue reading »
Inside China Today – Sunday 14th February
Tan Zuoren has recently been sentenced to five years imprisonment for his opinions on the 1989 Tiananmen Square Massacre. There are suspicions however the arrests are designed to silence his call for an investigation into the 2008 Sichuan Earthquake.
- Investigator into ‘tofu – buildings’ convicted
- Thousands of bird flu patients left undiagnosed in Daqing
- Workers protest in Suizhou, Hubei over wages
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Investigator into ‘tofu – buildings’ convicted
Tan Zuoren, author and famous environmentalist of Sichuan Province, has been sentenced to five years imprisonment. He was convicted of inciting subversion of state power, allegedly for criticizing the Chinese Communist Party over it’s handling of the 1989 Tiananmen Square Massacre. Tan Zuoren’s wife and lawyer said they would appeal the decision.
The sentence was handed down at the Chengdu Intermediate People’s Court, after just five minutes deliberation. Tan’s wife and two daughters weren’t allowed in the court. Police dispersed a crowd of 200 supporters outside. Tan’s lawyer, Pu Zhiqiang said he was ‘heart broken and shattered’ about the trial. Continue reading »
Inside China Today – Sunday 7th February
Chinese authorities have issued new regulations to stem the problem of illegal land evictions. These regulations however have been heavily scrutinised.
- Canton train tickets run sparse, ID ticketing ineffective
- Beijing Judicial Bureau monitors Falun Gong lawyers
- New property regulations widely condemned
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Canton train tickets run sparse, ID ticketing ineffective
It is allegedly the largest annual migration in human history. It sets a new record year after year after year. An estimated more than 2.5 billion journeys, more than 2.5 billion destinations; all in the 30 days before Chinese New Year. Every year in the month leading up to February 14th, Chinese nationals across the entire country go home for the holidays. As the record number of travellers continues to increase, tickets home become scarce, driving up ticket prices, as well security measures.
Recently, China began checking ID cards for the sale of train tickets. Passengers’ names are printed on the tickets in an effort to prevent ticket scalpers. However, travellers say it is still hard to get a ticket from Canton to Beijing. Ticket scalping still exists and bus fares have risen as well, making it difficult for many peasants working in the city to return to their countryside homes for Chinese New Year.
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Inside China Today – Friday 29th January
Banner reads: "Strong Protest. HK Govt and CCP harming Shen Yun Performing Arts."
- Hong Kong public condemns disruption of Shen Yun
- Politicians rebuke Hong Kong government for defying cultural freedom
- Government corruption leads to poverty in China
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Hong Kong public condemns disruption of Shen Yun
The New York based Shen Yun Performing Arts has been forced to cancel shows in Hong Kong due to interference from the Hong Kong government. The news has disappointed and outraged people in Hong Kong, who’ve condemned the government for yielding under the pressures of the Chinese Communist regime.
Many supporters and patrons of Shen Yun who had already purchased tickets arrived outside the Immigration Department’s Immigration Tower, awaiting news of the situation. When local presenters announced the Shen Yun performances in Hong Kong were forced to cancel, many expressed anger and resentment. Continue reading »
Inside China Today – Thursday 21st January
Google's withdrawal from China has drawn a vast response worldwide. Sun Weiguang praises their decision.
- Chinese dissidents condemn cyber attacks on Google
- Sun Weiguang praises Google’s decision
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Chinese dissidents condemn cyber attacks on Google
Chinese dissidents have come out to condemn the recent cyber attacks on Google, calling it a block on human rights. Since Google’s revelations, many dissidents have stepped forward admitting to similar attacks on their email accounts.
Guizhou-based democratic activist Mo Jiangang said his email accounts had been tapped. Here’s what he had to say to reporters (recording):
“Around June 4th each year, and also when we organised a human rights forum on December 10th, our emails, including G-mail, would either be inaccessible, or read by unknown parties.” Continue reading »
