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Human Rights and Rule of Law - News and
Analysis
Earthquakes Expose China's Urgent Need for NGO Legal Reform
The NGO Sichuan Union Relief Office (Relief Office) announced on May 31 that it would discontinue its earthquake relief work after 17 days of operation because it was unable to register with the government as an NGO, according to a June 2 Radio Free Asia report. The Relief Office was coordinating the work of over 100 NGOs in Southwestern China in the aftermath of the May 12 Sichuan earthquake. (See CECC's other earthquake related analyses: China's Earthquake Coverage More Open But Not Uncensored, and Officials To Watch for "Negative Content" in Supplements About Earthquake.) While the Relief Office said that its decision to close was not the result of government pressure, a volunteer noted that police raided the office after receiving reports that it was "illegally soliciting donations."
This case highlights the challenges that civil society organizations face when trying to address social issues, even in urgent crisis. It also underscores the need for legal reform in the governance of NGOs and charities in China. So far, the 2004 Regulations on the Management of Foundations, the 1998 Regulations on the Registration and Management of Social Organizations, as well as the 1998 Temporary Regulations on the Registration and Management of Non-Governmental and Non-Commercial Enterprises are the latest government regulations managing NGOs and their registration in China. All three regulations require: a sponsor organization, i.e. a government or a Communist Party organization, to support the initial registration; and a government department, i.e., the State Council's Ministry of Civil Affairs (MOCA) or a local civil affairs department, to review and approve the registration.
The restrictive requirements for NGO registration are inconsistent with the right to freedom of association as defined by art. 22 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), of which China is a signatory. They also lead many organizations to operate without formal legal status, as noted in 2007 CECC's Annual Report, Section III--Civil Society. Many NGOs encounter difficulty in securing a sponsor organization and have to struggle for legitimacy, as detailed in a January 2003 Report by the U.S. Embassy in Beijing entitled Chinese NGOs--Carving a Niche within Constraints.
The Ministry of Civil Affairs is considering legal reforms to regulate the non-profit sector, according to Vice Minister Li Liguo's interview with People's Daily on May 25, 2007. A proposal to reform the dual-management of NGOs was also submitted to the National People's Congress in March 2007, according to China Law Digest. However, an October 2007 analysis by China Development Brief, an independent publication to report on social development and civil society in China, reports that the State Council and the National People's Congress have yet put the proposal on their legislative agenda.
For more information about China's civil society and NGO development, please see 2007 CECC's Annual Report, Section III--Civil Society, and 2006 CECC Annual Report, Section VII(a) Development of Civil Society.
| Source: -See Summary (2008-07-21 / English) |
Posted on: 2008-07-21 |
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| Link directly to this item with: http://www.cecc.gov/pages/virtualAcad/index.phpd?showsingle=106931 |
Hu Jintao Speech Stresses Media's Role To Serve Party
Chinese President and Communist Party General Secretary Hu Jintao's June 20 speech (via People's Daily) on the press in China highlighted the increasingly important role journalists play in maintaining the Party's ideological and political control. The speech gave little indication that China plans to grant its media greater freedom of the press. The setting and timing of the speech were significant, taking place at the offices of the People's Daily on the occasion of the Communist Party's flagship newspaper's 60th anniversary.
Hu said journalists' "first priority" is to "correctly guide public opinion." With information traveling faster today, journalism's effect on public opinion has increased. The Party's work and the country's long-term stability depend on journalists doing good "news propaganda work." He said journalists must play an active role in "consolidating a common ideological foundation for the whole Party and the people of every ethnic group in the whole country to unite in struggle," "disseminating socialism's core value system," and providing motivation and impetus to "promote the development of the causes of the Party and the state." "Comrades on the news battle line must fully recognize the great responsibility they bear," he said. Hu also emphasized the importance of political loyalty in the selection of editors, journalists, and news managers.
During his speech, Hu offered a number of justifications for why and how journalists should serve the ideological and political needs of the Party:
A Common Foe. Hu noted that one of the current challenges "especially worthy of attention" is that international public opinion still reflects a "West is strong, we are weak" pattern. He called on journalists to adopt a vigilant stance in meeting this challenge. Over the past year, China's media have attacked "Western" press coverage of the Tibetan protests and Chinese propaganda officials have ordered domestic media to issue "positive" Olympic stories to counter "negative" foreign reports.
The Earthquake and the Olympics. Hu said journalists should pay particular attention to making positive contributions in their coverage of the aftermath of the Sichuan earthquake that struck in May and China's preparations for the Olympics. Following the earthquake, officials ordered China's media to play up the rescue efforts of the Party and government and sought to prevent them from covering controversial stories about shoddy construction of schools where thousands of children are estimated to have died.
Co-opting the Internet and More Assertive Print Media Outlets. Hu described "metropolitan media" and "online media" as potential resources for propaganda that needed to be integrated into a "new setup for public opinion guidance." He did not specify what "metropolitan media" meant, but the term appears to refer to city newspapers whose reporting is sometimes critical, such as Southern Metropolitan Daily. Hu said the Internet had become a significant source of information and said "we" must fully understand its influence and manage it better so that it becomes "a forward position for disseminating socialist advanced culture." In January 2007, Hu also made significant comments regarding the Internet, calling for its purification and saying the stability of the state depended on the Party successfully controlling the Internet.
There is little in the speech to suggest that Hu supports greater press freedom. Language in the speech urging journalists to "ensure the people's right to know, right to participate, right to express, and right to supervise" are consistent with government initiatives to improve transparency and encourage the press to monitor the activities of local officials so long as it does not threaten the Party.
A July 10 Open Source Center (OSC) analysis (subscription required) also noted the significance of Hu's speech. At the People's Daily's previous two decennials, in 1988 and 1998, the Party General Secretary had sent in his congratulations instead of giving an on-site address. The analysis also noted that Hu emphasized the media's propaganda role in guiding public opinion and subordination to politics more than his predecessor Jiang Zemin did in 1996, the last time a top party leader had visited the People's Daily. OSC said this suggested "heightened concern about the party's influence in the current media environment."
For more information on how the Party uses the Chinese media to serve its own interests, see "Roles the Media Is Expected to Play" in Section II--Freedom of Expression of the Congressional-Executive Commission on China's 2007 Annual Report.
| Source: -See Summary (2008-07-16 ) |
Posted on: 2008-07-21 |
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| Link directly to this item with: http://www.cecc.gov/pages/virtualAcad/index.phpd?showsingle=108644 |
Officials Report Release of More Than 3,000 of the More Than 4,400 Detained Tibetan "Rioters"
Chinese officials have disclosed information that, if accurate, shows that authorities have released more than 3,000 of more than 4,400 persons (nearly all Tibetan) whom security officials detained in connection with rioting in March, or who allegedly surrendered to authorities. The reports provide information only about persons whom authorities suspected of participating in rioting during a period of six days in nine county-level Tibetan areas.
Chinese officials have provided no information, however, about a large but unknown number of Tibetans whom security forces detained in connection with peaceful protests over a period of several weeks beginning on March 10. The protests spanned more than 40 additional county-level areas in the Tibetan autonomous areas of China.
Chinese authorities released by June 21 a total of 3,072 of the 4,434 persons whom officials characterized as "rioters" and who had surrendered or been detained by April 9, based on Congressional-Executive Commission on China (CECC) analysis of a June 21 China Daily report and previous reports. China's state-run media provided information (summarized in the Table below) about rioting in:- Lhasa city, Lhasa municipality, Tibet Autonomous Region (TAR) on March 14 (Xinhua, 9 April 08);
- Xiahe (Sangchu), Maqu (Machu), Luqu (Luchu), Zhuoni (Chone), and Diebu (Thewo) counties, and Hezuo (Tsoe) city located in Gannan (Kanlho) Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture (TAP), Gansu province from March 14 to March 19 (an additional Xinhua report, 9 April 08);
- Linzhou (Lhundrub) county, Lhasa municipality on March 14 (Tibet Daily, reprinted in China Tibet News, 19 March 08, translated in OSC, 19 March 08);
- Aba (Ngaba) county, Aba Tibetan and Qiang Autonomous Prefecture, Sichuan province on March 18 (Xinhua, reprinted in People¡¯s Daily, 25 March 08.
Official Chinese Sources: Detention, Surrender, and Release of Alleged "Rioters"
. | Lhasa city
March 14 rioting
Xinhua, April 9
| Gannan TAP
March 14-19 rioting
Xinhua, April 9
| Linzhou county
March 14 rioting
Tibet Daily, March 19
| Aba county
March 18 rioting
Xinhua, March 25 | TOTAL | | Surrender: total | 362
| 2204 (incl. 519 monks)
| 94 | 381 | 3041 | | Surrender: released
| 328 | 1870 (incl. 413 monks)
| . | . | . | | surrender: formal arrest
| . | . | . | . | . | | Surrender: remain detained
| 34 | 334 (incl. 106 monks)
| . | . | . | | Police detention: total
| 953 | 440 (incl. 170 monks)
| . | . | 1393 | | Police detention: released
| . | . | . | . | . | | Police detention: formal arrest
| 403 | 8 | . | . | . | | Police detention: remain detained
| . | . | . | . | . | | TOTAL: surrendered or detained
| 1315 | 2644 | 94 | 381 | 4434 | | TOTAL: remain detained
(reports as of June)
| 116
China Daily, June 21
| . | . | . | 116 | | TOTAL: sentenced
(reports as of June)
| 42
China Daily, June 21
| . | . | . | 42 | | TOTAL: released
(reports as of June)
| 1157
China Daily, June 21
| 1870
Xinhua, April 9
| . | . | 3027 | | TOTAL: status unknown
(reports as of June)
| 0 | 774 | 94 | 381 | 1249 |
The Table shows that Chinese officials have so far acknowledged that a court has sentenced only 42 persons for alleged criminal activity linked to rioting. The largest disclosure of such information was on the Lhasa Intermediate People's Court April 29 sentencing of 30 Tibetans to imprisonment for periods ranging from three years to life (Xinhua, 29 April 08, translated in OSC, 30 April 08). The court convicted the defendants for crimes described in the report as "arson, looting, picking quarrels and provoking troubles, assembling a crowd to storm state organs, disrupting public service, and theft." The current status of more than 1,200 alleged rioters remains unknown, based on information summarized in the Table.
The Table reveals a statistical discrepancy that may indicate either additional releases or the use of administrative instead of judicial sentencing. By June 21, authorities reportedly released 1,157 of the 1,315 persons who surrendered or were detained in connection with the March 14 Lhasa riot -- but Xinhua reported on April 9 that 403 of the 1,315 persons had been formally arrested on a criminal charge. If 1,157 persons were released, then the maximum number of persons who could have been formally arrested and faced trial would have been 158. It is unclear whether the report of 403 formal arrests was an error, or if 245 of the 403 arrests resulted in an outcome other than trial and sentencing. For example, if formal arrest on a criminal charge did not result in a procuratorate indicting a detainee on the charge, or if a procuratorate indicted a detainee but a court did not accept the case for trial, then public security officials may have released the detainee. Alternately, if either a procuratorate or a court decided not to proceed with prosecution, then public security officials could have referred the case to a reeducation through labor (RTL) committee. A RTL committee could order a detainee (without trial) to serve a period of administrative detention of up to three years, with the possibility of a one-year extension. Even though the Chinese government continues to punish large numbers of citizens administratively,the CECC has not seen reports in China's state-run media of public security agencies using administrative punishment for Tibetan rioters or peaceful protesters.
Tibetan rioting that resulted in the detention and criminal prosecution of Tibetans also took place in Duilongdeqing (Toelung Dechen) and Dazi (Tagtse) counties on March 14 and 15 respectively, based on additional official reports (Xinhua, 29 April 08 (translated in OSC, 30 April 08); Xinhua, 29 April 08; Xinhua, reprinted in China Daily, 24 March 08; Xinhua, 5 April 08). Both counties are adjacent to Lhasa city and are under Lhasa municipality administration. It is unclear, however, whether or not the detention and criminal prosecution of Tibetans for participation in alleged rioting in Duilongdeqing and Dazi are reflected in the Xinhua April 9 statistics summarized in the Table because neither county is mentioned in the April 9 report.
Eighteen civilians and one police officer died as a result of the March 14 rioting, according to the June 21 China Daily report, but Chinese officials have not provided information about criminal charges and prosecution linked to the deaths. Following an amendment of China's Organic Law of the People's Courts that took effect on January 1, 2007, if a court sentences a defendant to death, the Supreme People's Court must review and approve the sentence before an execution can be carried out. Prior to the amendment, the same court that would hear an appeal against the verdict (the TAR High People's Court, in this case) also had the authority to issue final approval of the sentence.
| Source: -See Summary (2008-07-09 / English / Free) |
Posted on: 2008-07-09 |
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| Link directly to this item with: http://www.cecc.gov/pages/virtualAcad/index.phpd?showsingle=107985 |
Harassment of Beijing-based Activists During the U.S.-China Human Rights Dialogue
According to a May 26 Chinese Human Rights Defenders (CHRD) article and a May 28 Associated Press (AP) article, Beijing activists reported they were harassed, subjected to surveillance, and warned not to meet with the U.S. officials present in Beijing for the U.S.-China bilateral human rights dialogue. - On May 24, AIDS activist Wan Yanhai was contacted by the Beijing Public Security Bureau's National Security Unit and was told that he would be subjected to heightened surveillance over the next several days, according to the CHRD article. On May 25, Wan reported, in an essay circulated online (a Chinese version has been reprinted on the U.S.-based Secret China Web site; a blogger in Canada also posted an English version), that a police car was parked in front of his door and followed him wherever he went. Wan wrote: "If it were not for the police visit, I would not have known there was going to be a Sino-U.S. human rights dialogue. My neighbors heard from police that some international VIPs are coming."
- On May 23 and 24, Zeng Jinyan, human rights activist and wife of Hu Jia, was reportedly told by the National Security police that they were watching her more closely and would prevent her from leaving her home because "a U.S. delegation wants to meet you," according to the CHRD article.
- Human rights lawyer Zhang Xingshui declined an invitation to a May 27 working lunch with Assistant Secretary of State David Kramer after police visited his home on May 25 as reported in a May 27 USA Today article. According to the article, Zhang said: "They persuaded me not to meet the U.S. visitors. They did not say what would happen, but maybe they will give pressure to my work. . . . I am afraid, so I have to give up this opportunity."
- Well-known rights defense lawyer Mo Shaoping was also warned not to accept an invitation to the May 27 lunch. According to the AP report, Mo said he went anyway.
- Many other Beijing activists were also placed under surveillance in connection with the U.S.-China human rights dialogue, including a member of the China Democracy Party, religious rights activists, and veterans of the 1989 Tiananmen protests, as reported by the CHRD article.
| Source: -See Summary (2008-06-25 / English / Free) |
Posted on: 2008-07-08 |
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| Link directly to this item with: http://www.cecc.gov/pages/virtualAcad/index.phpd?showsingle=107159 |
Mongolian Rights Advocate Released From Detention, Placed Under House Arrest
Authorities in the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region (IMAR) have placed Mongolian rights activist and journalist Naranbilig under house arrest after detaining him for 20 days in March and April, according to reports from the U.S.-based Southern Mongolian Human Rights Information Center (SMHRIC). Naranbilig had planned to attend the United Nations (UN) Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues in New York when authorities intercepted his invitation letter and detained him on March 23, according to an April 28 report from SMHRIC. Authorities prevented Naranbilig from consulting with a lawyer while he was detained, and his family members were not informed of the grounds for his detention or of his whereabouts. Authorities released Naranbilig on bail on April 23 and placed him under house arrest for one year, according to the report. They also confiscated his passport.
The SMHRIC connected Naranbilig's detention not only to his plan to attend the Permanent Forum but also to his attendance in 2007 at other international forums promoting the rights of pastoralists and mobile indigenous people, according to a statement delivered by the SMHRIC at the Permanent Forum. The Chinese government does not recognize any populations within its borders as "indigenous peoples" as defined under international law. (For an example of Chinese policy on this matter, see. e.g., a 1997 statement by the Chinese delegation to the 53rd session of the UN Commission on Human Rights, via the Web site of the Embassy of the People's Republic of China in Switzerland.) Naranbilig's detention also stemmed from his broader activities writing articles advocating ethnic minority rights and criticizing Chinese policies toward ethnic Mongols, according to the SMHRIC statement. (For more information on government policy toward Mongols, see Christopher P. Atwood's statement at the 2005 CECC roundtable on China's Ethnic Regional Autonomy Law: Does it Protect Minority Rights?, as well as the Special Focus section on ethnic minorities in the Congressional-Executive Commission on China 2005 Annual Report.) Authorities also have detained and imprisoned other ethnic Mongols who have promoted ethnic minority rights. In March, authorities detained, and later placed under house arrest, activist Tsebegjab for his interaction with overseas Mongolian activists, according to the April 28 report. Bookstore owner Hada continues to serve a 15-year sentence for "splittism" and "espionage" after he organized peaceful protests for ethnic rights in the IMAR capital of Hohhot.
Naranbilig's detention came at a period of increased government repression of citizen activism, especially by ethnic minorities, in the run-up to the Olympic Games and amid protests in Tibetan and Uighur areas of China. His detention also came amid the recent detention and imprisonment of several other fellow writers. (See, for example, CECC analyses on Lu Gengsong and Wang Dejia (1,2).) For more information on conditions in the IMAR, see Section II--Ethnic Minority Rights, in the CECC 2007 Annual Report (via the Government Printing Office Web site). For more information on restrictions against writers, see Section II--Freedom of Expression in the 2007 Annual Report.
| Source: -See Summary (2008-06-03 / English) |
Posted on: 2008-06-28 |
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| Link directly to this item with: http://www.cecc.gov/pages/virtualAcad/index.phpd?showsingle=106800 |
China's Earthquake Coverage More Open But Not Uncensored
Numerous reports in foreign media of China's initial response to the May 12 Sichuan earthquake described unusual media openness and government candor when compared to previous disasters. From the beginning, however, Communist Party and government officials directed Chinese media to emphasize the government's proactive response to the disaster and to focus on positive stories that promoted national unity and stability. Furthermore, China has quickly sought to rein in press coverage of topics that could taint the public's view of China's response, including allegations of official malfeasance leading to the collapse of a large number of schools. After parents of some of the thousands of children killed in the collapses began protests, officials reportedly ordered Chinese media to curb reporting on the issue, forcibly removed parents from protest sites, and briefly held foreign reporters trying to cover the protests in custody.
In the days following the quake, the New York Times (NYT) (May 14), Wall Street Journal (WSJ) (May 14), Associated Press (AP) (May 14, May 26), and Los Angeles Times (LAT) (May 23), among other media outlets, reported that Chinese television aired extensive and graphic live coverage from disaster areas, foreign reporters had largely unfettered access to disaster areas, and Xinhua, the central government's news agency, initially issued updates by the minute. The May 14 NYT article said "the rescue effort playing nonstop on Chinese television is remarkable for a country that has a history of concealing the scope of natural calamities," and according to the May 26 AP article, "[n]ever before have the nation's leaders allowed foreign reporters so much freedom to cover a major disaster." The reports noted that China's response following the Sichuan earthquake compared favorably to the devastating 1976 Tangshan earthquake, the 2003 SARS outbreak, Tibetan protests that began in March, and a major train collision in April - instances where officials sought to conceal casualty totals or severely limit media coverage.
Nevertheless, both Chinese and foreign media reports have indicated that since the disaster struck, Chinese officials have used their control over the media to shape post-quake coverage to their advantage. Hours after the quake, the Party's Central Propaganda Department issued a directive prohibiting media from sending reporters to the disaster areas and ordering them to only run reports from the central television station and news agency, according to a May 18 NYT article and the May 23 LAT article. Li Changchun, a high-ranking member of the Politburo, called on China's press to propagandize the government's rescue efforts and emphasize positive propaganda, unity, and stability, according to May 14 and May 17 Xinhua articles. As a result, China's domestic media have largely shied away from "negative reports," according to a May 24 article in The Age (Australia). There are indications, however, that Chinese journalists are testing the boundaries. So many journalists ignored the original order not to travel to the quake zones that it was later rescinded, according to the May 18 NYT article. And progressive Chinese media have reported on protests by angry parents seeking official accountability for poorly constructed schools (Southern Metropolitan Daily, May 26), and called for better earthquake-resistance standards for schools and enhanced supervision in the construction process (Caijing, May 22).
It is unclear why China has allowed this limited openness and more recent signs indicate that China has already begun to pull back. China has sought to play up what it calls "unprecedented transparency" following the earthquake as being the result of reforms that have taken place gradually in recent years, culminating most recently in open government regulations that went into effect on May 1, according to a May 26 Xinhua special report. Other observers have argued, however, that factors outside of China's control may have played a more important role. One media observer noted in a May 23 Washington Times (WT) article that censors may have been hampered because "news was spreading too quickly through online channels and the impact of the tragedy ran too deep." Others have noted that the nature of the event made it easier for China to respond with openness. "It is important to note that this was a natural disaster. People are united behind the government rescue effort so allowing a freer flow of information is politically beneficial for the censors," said Xiao Qiang, director of the China Internet Project and professor of journalism at the University of California at Berkeley, according to the WT article. China's rapid and extensive lockdown on information following the recent Tibetan protests (see previous CECC analyses: 1, |
