Social Stability - 107. page

On Wednesday, December 9, 2015, hundreds of people from Jingui Village located in Pingshan New District, Shenzhen City, protested against the authorities because they plan to build a large garbage incineration plant inside their village. Villagers went to the Civic Center to sit-in quietly. The police violently dispersed the protesters, arrested over a dozen people, and wounded one elderly woman. Mainland Chinese media refused to interview villagers or report the incident.

On November 24, 2015, the Shenzhen City government had demanded that the villagers agree to the government’s proposal to build the world’s largest garbage incineration plant in their village; the plant will burn 5,000 tons of garbage each day. The government only gave the villagers one day to respond; otherwise the government would assume that the villagers agreed unconditionally with their proposal.

In order to protect their water sources and land from becoming polluted, Jingui villagers started protesting on November 24, 2015. The sit-in on December 9 was the fourth large-scale protest. On the previous day, the villagers held a demonstration by marching on the street. For many days, they held a sit-in in front of the Dapeng District government building. The government officials, however, have refused to respond to the villagers’ requests. No media in China are willing to report on the incident.   

Source: Radio Free Asia, December 9, 2015
http://www.rfa.org/cantonese/news/shenzhen-12092015073938.html

On November 23, 2015, more than one thousand workers from Tangshan Songting Iron and Steel Co., LTD. protested once again over their wages being seven months in arrears. The workers marched on the road in the center of Qian’an City, which is located in Tangshan City, Hebei Province. They gathered together later in front of the Qian’an City government building, holding banners such as “Shame on the Company: [Worker’s] Wages in Arrears; Who Will Look after the Workers’ Interests?” A large number of police stood on guard at the site.

On November 14, 2015, Tangshan Songting Iron and Steel Co., LTD. had announced a companywide shutdown. The company owes thousands of workers seven months of unpaid wages. On November 14, the workers protested by collectively jumping down out of the company building. On November 16, the workers surrounded and blocked the Qian’an City government and did not leave until the city government promised them something.

Since the beginning of this year, many private iron and steel companies in the Tangshan region, including Xinhai and Songting, have been announcing shutdowns due to their continued losses. 

Source: RFA, November 23, 2015
http://www.rfa.org/mandarin/Xinwen/7-11232015112821.html

Guangming Daily reported that the National Senior Council published an estimate that, from 2015 to 2035, the senior population will increase by 10 million people each year. Currently 70 percent of the seniors in the middle to large cities are empty nesters. The statistics from the Council also indicated that China will enter into a period in which the growth in the number in China’s aging population will accelerate. The estimated growth from 2015 to 2035 was from 212 million to 418 million.

Source: Guangming Daily, November 9, 2015
http://politics.gmw.cn/2015-11/09/content_17653952.htm

Guangming Daily recently published an article on the results of a survey that was reported in the 2015 Beijing Society Bluebook. According to the statistics in the Blue Book, the social and population structure in Beijing still needs to be improved. The results showed that, in 2010, the middle class accounted for 35.85 percent of the population and the lower class accounted for 61.17 percent. The Blue Book estimated that, in 2015, the middle class grew to 40 percent of the population and could reach 50 percent by 2025. As to the quality of the population, Beijing still sees a shortage in the area of finding and keeping talent in the city. The population also sees an imbalance between the sexes. The Blue Book noted that 60 percent of the college graduates who took the survey, but who have resident status outside of Beijing, indicated that they plan to leave Beijing in the future due to the high cost of living or the lack of professional growth and financial improvement opportunities.

Source: Guangming Daily, November 6, 2015
http://economy.gmw.cn/2015-11/06/content_17627403.htm

On November 1, China will start its National Population Survey which will cover one percent of the population. This is the 6th survey of its kind since 2010. The survey will cover 60,000 districts, 14 million people, and over 5 million families. The length of time for the survey is from November 1 through 15.

Source: People’s Daily, November 2, 2015
http://politics.people.com.cn/n/2015/1102/c1001-27763541.html

Voice of America reported that, starting on November 1, China will launch a set of new laws. One new law states that those who spread Internet “rumors” could serve up to seven years in jail. The article said that the move could use the law as a tool for the current authorities to maintain stability while suppressing freedom of expression and the rights movement. A concern was also expressed as to whether the official media and local governments would be subject to legal actions if they were the ones to spread rumors. The article quoted comments from several rights activities. One activist said that the reason that any rumor would spread on the Internet was that there is a lack of freedom of expression, information, and the press in China, while the authorities are simply using legal measures to target those who wish to voice their opinions. Another activist said that the guideline for defining rumors was set by the authorities who try every means to trap those who criticize the government. The article also quoted people who questioned whether the official media would be charged with spreading rumors if they were the ones to make false reports about accidents or disasters.

Source: Voice of America, November 1, 2015
http://www.voachinese.com/content/china-new-law-20151101/3031717.html