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Major Scandal Unfolds: Illegal Corpse Trade and Bone Harvesting Operation Exposed in China

On August 8, Beijing attorney Yi Shenghua made an online disclosure of case materials related to the theft, insult, and intentional destruction of human corpses, triggering a media frenzy in China. The alleged company involved in such activity is Shanxi Aorui Biological Materials Co., Ltd. (Shanxi Aorui), established in 1999 as a subsidiary of the state-owned China Radiation Protection Research Institute. The company’s business scope consists of research, development, production, and sale of “allogeneic bone implantation materials.” The company is accused of illegally purchasing corpses and limbs and then engaging in brutal dissection, removal of flesh, cleaning, irradiation, etc., of these bodies and bones, to produce “allogeneic bone implantation materials” during the time period from January 2015 through July 2023. The company had a total revenue of 380 million yuan (US$ 53 million) from the period 2015 through 2023.

Allogeneic bones (from humans) are a good source of material for bone transplantation and, per established international medical standards, should come from explicit donors. Shanxi Aorui’s sources generally did not sign up to be donors, and the family members of the deceased were not aware of the Shanxi Aorui activities.

There are currently 75 criminal suspects identified; all have confessed to criminal activities consistent with the allegations against Shanxi Aorui. The business conducted operations in Chongqing City and provinces of Sichuan, Guangxi, Shandong, Guizhou, and Yunnan.

Frighteningly, the case is linked to China’s live organ transplant industry. Qingdao University Affiliated Hospital is one of the hospitals designated by the Ministry of Health for performance of liver transplants. Between 2015 and 2021, the hospital’s Associate Chief Physician Li Zhiqiang at the Liver Disease Center dismembered organ donor corpses and stored them in a freezer before selling them to Shanxi Aorui, with each corpse fetching a price between 10,000 and 22,000 yuan. Shanxi Aorui picked up five deliveries from Li. The hospital’s website listed Li as the Deputy Director of the Organ Transplant Center and Director of the Intensive Care Unit. After the incident gained attention, the hospital removed Li’s resume from its website.

Source: Epoch Times, August 8, 2024
https://www.epochtimes.com/gb/24/8/8/n14307307.htm

Briefings | | |   @CS Government/Politics Social Stability

CCP’s Dark Operations: County Party Secretary’s Sexual Assault of Subordinate Township Party Secretary

Recently, a Chinese case of sexual assault within the CCP has generated significant discussion online. The case involves Mao Qi, the CCP Party Secretary of Wannian County, Shangrao City, Jiangxi Province, who is accused of sexually assaulting Li Peixia, the party secretary of a subordinate local township.

On July 25, Li Peixia’s father reported online that Mao Qi had continuously molested and sexually assaulted his daughter. Li’s father stated that, on May 23, Li Peixia had a dispute with Mao Qi and declared that she would report him to the disciplinary inspection commission. However, three days later, the Wannian County disciplinary inspection and supervision commission took Li Peixia away. She has been out of contact and has not been seen in public ever since.

Li’s father traveled to a different province (to avoid being blocked by the local authorities) and then posted three audio recordings online; the recordings were evidence of Mao’s sexual assault against Li. Li Peixia had left her family a USB drive with eight recordings and said that, if something were to happen to her, this USB drive could save her life. The following day, a joint investigation team from Shangrao City met with Li’s father. He handed over the evidence and requested to see his daughter. So far his request has not been honored.

On the evening of July 26, the Jiangxi authorities announced that Mao Qi had voluntarily confessed and was under disciplinary review and supervisory investigation. Netizens, reviewing Mao Qi’s resume online, noted that he has gone through rapid promotions over the years, suggesting that he is likely to have backing by CCP members at higher ranks.

On July 29, Internet commentator Cai Shenkun revealed on the X platform that Lan Yun, the Secretary of the Wannian County Discipline Inspection Commission, confessed to the higher-level disciplinary inspection commission that Mao Qi called her into his office at 7 PM on May 25 and said that Li Peixia had been disobedient and was incapable. Lan said that Mao told her that Li had threatened to report Mao to higher authorities. Mao ordered Lan to take several actions immediately: 1. Issue a document ordering removal of Li Peixia from all of her positions on the grounds of serious violations; 2. Arrest Li on that evening and interrogate her regarding her corruption; 3. Seize all of Li’s phones and computers to prevent her from disseminating information; 4. Detain her for a few months, even if no problems are found, in order that there would be sufficient time to find some issues with her; 5. Monitor Li’s family movements and control them if they attempt to petition on Li’s behalf.

The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has silenced discussion of these topics on the Internet. Li’s whereabouts, and whether she is still alive, are currently unknown.

This case exposes the internal corruption and dark operations within the CCP:

  1. Mao’s orders to the disciplinary inspection commission to take a comprehensive actions against Li Peixia shows that, within the CCP system, higher-ups can act with impunity and order opaque operations, leaving individuals with no security.
  2. Shangrao City joint investigation team promised Li’s father a “fair and thorough investigation,” took his evidence from him, and requested that he delete the audio recordings that he posted online. They said they would report his request to see his daughter to higher authorities, but they have since been unresponsive. Their actions may simply be a result of following the CCP’s “stability maintenance” strategy, which means protecting the image of the government and officials by quickly blocking dissemination of information and “calming” public opinion online.
  3. The fact that Mao was able to order the disciplinary inspection commission to arrest Li Peixia reveals that the disciplinary inspection commission is not an independent oversight body but rather a tool of the CCP used for internal purges.
  4. Li Peixia was clearly aware of the risks posed by going against Mao. She knew that, once she had a falling out with higher-level officials, Mao and the CCP system could go to any lengths to silence her, including potentially killing her. Thus, her only hope was to go to the internet and to hope that public opinion might be able to save her life. It seems that publicly airing evidence of her plight was not sufficient to save her, however.

Source: Epoch Times, August 3, 2024
https://www.epochtimes.com/gb/24/8/3/n14304155.htm

Briefings | | |   @CS Government/Politics

Lianhe Zaobao: China Plans to Issue Unified Internet IDs to Netizens

Singapore’s primary Chinese language newspaper Lianhe Zaobao recently reported that the Chinese government plans to issue unified internet ID numbers and certificates to members of the Chinese public in order to verify the true identity of users. This raised concerns over control of speech.

China’s Ministry of Public Security and the Chinese Cyberspace Administration just released a document titled “National Internet Identity Authentication Public Service Management Measures (Draft for Comments).” According to the document, the purpose of the internet ID is “to strengthen the protection of people’s personal information.”

Some scholars said that the implementation of internet identification numbers and certificates will help avoid information leakage, reduce network violence, and combat telecommunications fraud. Skeptics expressed the belief that this is yet another way for the authorities to tighten control over speech. Some netizens commented that “in the future, if the government wants to block anyone, it only needs to block an online ID to ban the user across the entire network. Isn’t it scary?”

China has fully implemented an online real-name system since 2017. There have been many suspected database leaks. Some people found that their real personal information registered with Chinese social media platforms had been leaked to the dark web.

Source: Lianhe Zaobao, July 29, 2024
https://www.zaobao.com.sg/news/china/story20240729-4389461

Briefings | | |   Government/Politics Information/Technology Social Stability

Beijing Further Boosts Rare Earth Metal Production with Quotas, Hurts Producers’ Bottom Line

On June 29, China announced “Rare Earth Management Regulations” which stipulate comprehensive state supervision and control over the production and sales of rare earth products. China is currently the world’s leading manufacturer of rare earth metals, holding about 70 percent of the global reserves.

Beijing issued a production quota for Chinese companies – 135,000 tons in the first half of 2024, a 12.5 percent year-on-year increase. Market demand for rare earths did not go up as Beijing expected, however, and price dropped dramatically as a result of the government-mandated increase in rare earth production. The rare earth price index published by the China Rare Earth Industry Association on July 18 dropped by about 20 percent compared to late July 2023.

As a result of oversupply in the rare earth markets, all major Chinese rare earth producers saw significant declines in their profits, in the first quarter of this year. Northern Rare Earth’s net profit fell by 94 percent year-on-year, China Rare Earth reported a loss of approximately 289 million yuan (US$ 40 million), Guangdong Rising Nonferrous Metals a loss of 304 million yuan, and Shenghe Resources a loss of 216 million yuan.

Nikkei Asia pointed out that, in recent years, the CCP has continuously increased the production quotas for rare earth metals. In 2023, Beijing increased the quotas threefold, bringing the annual total to 255,000 tons, a 21 percent increase compared to 2022. Many believe this year’s quotas will go even higher. It seems that Beijing wants to use such increasing quotes to maintain its dominant position in rare earth production and export volume so that it can use rare earths as a bargaining chip in diplomatic negotiations.

Meanwhile, other countries are trying to reduce the reliance on China’s production of rare earths. The United States has expanded domestic rare earth production, and many countries have intensified local efforts to identify domestic rare earth deposits.

Source: Epoch Times, July 19, 2024
https://www.epochtimes.com/gb/24/7/19/n14293824.htm

Briefings | | |   @CS Economy/Resources Geo-Strategic Trend Government/Politics

Insider Explains Why Long Article Praising Xi Was Removed

During the Third Plenary Session of the 20th Chinese Communist Party (CCP) Congress, Xinhua News Agency published an article titled “Reformer Xi Jinping.” The article was over ten thousand words in length. After publication, the article was quickly taken down, even before the end of the plenary session (see Chinascope’s briefing on the matter here). There are some unofficial reports suggesting that the article was seen as subtly critical of Xi Jinping and that Li Shulei, the Minister of the CCP Central Propaganda Department, had ordered its removal. Insiders said that the article referenced Deng Xiaoping throughout, portraying Xi as following in Deng’s path to further deepen Deng’s reforms. Critics said that the article’s author was subtly promoting Deng as the “sole legitimate” figure who drove China’s “reform and opening up,” with Xi being merely a follower. Xi, however, views himself as a great leader, with stature similar to that of Mao Zedong and higher than that of any other CCP leader.

Articles praising Xi or promoting “Xi Jinping thought” still dominate the top spots on CCP-controlled state media platforms.

Source: Epoch Times, July 26, 2024
https://www.epochtimes.com/gb/24/7/26/n14299045.htm

Briefings | | |   Government/Politics

CCTV: Singapore Diplomat – The Era of Western Domination of the World Is Coming to An End

Recently, many Chinese news websites published a video clip said to be an excerpt of a speech delivered by Kishore Mahbubani at Harvard University. Mahbubani was a Singaporean diplomat and geopolitical consultant once serving as Singapore’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations. In the video, Mr. Mahbubani said:

“I can tell you this, as someone who travels to 30 or 40 countries a year, when I come to the United States and I go to my hotel room in Charles Hotel and turn on the television, I feel that I’ve been cut off from the rest of the world. And literally, the insularity of the American discourse is actually frightening. This is true of the New York Times, this is true of the Washington Post, (and) this is true of the Wall Street Journal. There is an incestuous self-referential discourse among these newspaper journalists and so on so forth. And they reference each other’s perspectives and end up misunderstanding the world.

Because you know the one key point I emphasize is that the era of Western domination of world history was a 200-year aberration. It’s coming to an end. And as a result of it you’ve got to learn to understand non-Western perspectives in the world. And it’s actually quite frightening that in many ways I find American intellectuals behind intellectuals including in Serbia where I just was or Greece or Istanbul. They are much more aware of what’s happening in the world than most American intellectuals are. I don’t know how to solve that problem.”

Source: CCTV, July 20, 2024
https://news.cctv.com/2024/07/20/ARTIIP93CxffUaK0xnqkwwi7240720.shtml

Briefings | | |   Government/Politics

China Facilitates Reconciliation of Fatah, Hamas, and Other Palestinian Factions in Beijing

At the invitation of China, senior representatives from 14 Palestinian factions held reconciliation talks in Beijing from July 21 to 23. They signed the “Beijing Declaration on Ending Division and Strengthening Palestinian National Unity.” Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi attended the closing ceremony. Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning stated that “The most significant consensus from the talks was achieving major reconciliation and unity among all 14 factions. The most core outcome was the reaffirmation that the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) is the sole legitimate representative of the Palestinian people.”

Wang Yi met Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh and Fatah Deputy Chairman Mahmud Alul on July 21 and July 23, respectively.

Commentaries pointed out that Beijing has once again intervened to save Hamas, allowing it to survive and to continue to play a significant role in the future Palestinian government, posing a long-term threat to Israel.

The U.S. State Department reiterated that the United States has designated Hamas as a terrorist organization and that it believes Hamas should not be involved in Gaza’s post-war governance.

Israel’s Foreign Minister Yisrael Katz made a post on the X platform saying “Hamas and Fatah signed an agreement in China for joint control of Gaza after the war. Instead of rejecting terrorism, Mahmoud Abbas embraces the murderers and rapists of Hamas, revealing his true face. In reality, this won’t happen because Hamas’s rule will be crushed, and Abbas will be watching Gaza from afar. Israel’s security will remain solely in Israel’s hands.”

Sources:
1. Xinhua, July 24, 2024
http://www.news.cn/mrdx/2024-07/24/c_1310782573.htm
2. Aboluo, July 24, 2024
https://www.aboluowang.com/2024/0724/2083006.html
3. X Platform, Yisrael Katz’s account @Israel_katz,
https://x.com/Israel_katz/status/1815670709378560503

Briefings | | |   @CS Geo-Strategic Trend Government/Politics

Xinhua Removes Article Praising Xi Jinping as a Reformer Amid Speculation and Rumors

On 7/15, the first day of the Third Plenary Session of the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP’s) 20th Party Congress, Xinhua News Agency released a special feature titled “Reformer Xi Jinping.” Many media outlets highlighted this title in their coverage, noting that it was the first time the official media referred to Xi Jinping as “reformer (改革家).” The nearly 10,000-word article praises Xi’s commitment to reform, likening him to Deng Xiaoping, who is known as the chief architect of China’s reform and opening-up. It claims that Xi will “lead the entire party and nation on a new journey of further comprehensive deepening of reforms.”

However, starting on the 7/16 (the day after publication), this lengthy “Reformer” article was no longer available on the Xinhua website. Other media linking to or quoting the “Reformer” article have been changed to refer to another article instead. Meanwhile, Ta Kung Pao, a CCP-affiliated media outlet operating in Hong Kong, still has its front-page report on the “Reformer” article.

China observers pointed out that for Xinhua to publish such a lengthy feature, it must have been under the instructions of the General Office of the CCP’s Central Committee; and the designation of “reformer” was clearly meant to position Xi Jinping in a specific light. Now that the article is unavailable, it can only be said that it has been deleted. The reason for the deletion is unclear.

At the same time, there are rumors spreading online that Xi Jinping suffered a stroke during the Third Plenary Session meeting.

Sources:
1. Radio France International, July 17, 2024
https://www.rfi.fr/cn/中国/20240717-官媒捧文-改革家习近平-突下架-有评论忧三中全会出状况
2. Wenxue City, July 16, 2024
https://app.xinhuanet.com/news/article.html?articleId=d1b63946dc0ec93f9132f654cf97be27

Briefings | | |   Government/Politics