Social Stability - 134. page

China Review News (CRN) recently reported that China’s national flood season officially started  on June 1, 2012. All flood control headquarters for China’s river systems switched to full gear operations. According to the Bureau of National Weather Services, this year’s outlook is not optimistic. This year’s primary rainy season is expected to have a worse impact than last year’s. Based on national records, across the nation more than 40,000 small-scale reservoirs still experience different levels of safety risks. Chen Lei, the Minister of Water Resources and Deputy Chief of the National Flood Control Headquarter, recently required those who do flood control work to place a significant emphasis on preventing these reservoirs from collapsing. In Hubei Province alone, along the Yangtze River, the banks have already collapsed in 142 different places. The Yangtze River is the largest river in China.

Source: China Review News, June 1, 2012
http://www.zhgpl.com/doc/1021/2/8/2/102128278.html?coluid=45&kindid=0&docid=102128278&mdate=0601230650

Since the Hong Kong Government made the decision to stop giving permanent residency status to babies born to parents who are not local, more and more pregnant women from mainland China have been coming to the United States and Canada to give birth. Many of them are the mistresses of rich people.They pay as much as 200,000 RMB ($31,507 U.S. dollars) in fees to the maternity center. They can thus obtain citizenship in Canada or the U.S. for their children and eventually for themselves and avoid the heavy fines incurred in China for having more than one child or for having a baby out of wedlock.

According to Yang Haifeng, an immigration consultant in Toronto, because of the precarious political situation in China, many wealthy Chinese want to transfer their assets abroad through their wives, mistresses and children who have foreign residency status. One Chinese maternity center in Toronto is already fully booked for this year.

Source: Mingpao, May 24, 2012
http://www.mingpaotor.com/htm/News/20120522/taa1.htm

On the afternoon of May 28, 2012, dozens of people gathered in People’s Square in Guiyang City, Guizhou Province, to openly commemorate the June 4, 1989, Tiananmen Square Massacre. Participants shouted slogans: "Long live the people!" and "Down with Dictatorship!" This time, the Chinese authorities did not stop participants’ activities, like they usually do.  

Source: Epoch Times, May 30, 2012
http://www.epochtimes.com/gb/12/5/30/n3600316.htm敏感时期-贵州公开纪念六四–高呼“打倒独裁！

According to reports, on May 9, 2012, 16 senior Communist Party members from Shaotong City, Yunnan Province, published an open letter to Hu Jintao on the website canyu.org. In their letter, they denounced Mao Zedong, Deng Xiaoping, Bo Xilai, Wang Lijun, and Liu Yunshan. The letter demanded the removal of Zhou Yongkang and Liu Yunshan and appealed on behalf of the victims of past political movements, the students of the June 1989 Tiananmen Massacre, and Falun Gong. It was reported that the authorities immediately threatened them. “Zhou Yongkang was said to have ordered that these unstable elements must be brought under complete control and surveillance. If any similar incidents occur again, whoever is involved will be arrested immediately and may be executed.” The two drafters of the letter were placed under 24 hour surveillance and deprived of access to cell phones. The average age of the 16 senior Party members is over 80 years old. They were part of the underground Communist Party in Yunan prior to the Communist takeover of China.

Sources:
canyu.org, May 9, 2012
http://www.canyu.org/n48532c6.aspx
Boxun, May 23, 2012
http://boxun.com/news/gb/china/2012/05/201205232352.shtml

On May 17, 2012, a widow, trying to protect her home, stabbed Zhang Bo to death. Zhang Bo, a Land Resources Bureau of Law Enforcement Brigade Deputy Captain in Dejiang County, Guizhou Province, along with his staff members, had excavated the widow’s newly repaired house.

As the news spread on the Internet, Chinese Internet users posted comments to show their sympathy, support, and solidarity, praising the woman: “Good Killing. Well done!” “Kill corrupt officials. The ordinary people are so miserable. Rid the people of this scourge.”

Source: Epoch Times, May 22, 2012
http://www.epochtimes.com/gb/12/5/22/n3594570.htm

Li Weidong, former President of China Reform Magazine. announced on his miniblog (weibo) that three former senior Party officials had requested that he publish a letter they wrote in February to the Communist Party leaders. In the letter, the three officials stated that all candidates for the Party’s Eighteenth Congress and its committees should and must disclose their personal assets. “Those who dare not disclose their assets and the assets of their families should absolutely not be nominated. We sincerely hope that our Party does not try to dodge this very modest request. If a leader cannot even agree to this request, he should be sent home to sell sweet potatoes. …”

The letter concluded that if the Party leaders continue to hold that time is not ripe for public disclosure of their assets, the leaders would not be able to face and explain (their situation) to the Party members. The three former senior officials had served on the Party’s United Front Work Department and Organization Department. Their letter to the Party leaders was sent in February 2012. As they received no response whatsoever, the three requested Li Weidong to release their letter on his weibo site.

Source: Li Weidong 李伟东, May 16, 2012
http://weibo.taihainet.com/index.php/u/liweidongld

On May 4, 2012, Xinhua reported  that the Ministry of Health was sending out an emergency notice to require government health care units at all levels to cooperate with the police system to establish permanent police operation units in all level 2 hospitals and above. (Level 2 hospitals, as defined in a Chinese sense, are hospitals that provide medical treatment and care to residents in multiple communities and that conduct certain medical research. Generally speaking, hospitals at the county and city levels are all level 2 and above.) The emergency notice claimed that this order was to enhance safety for both doctors and patients and to maintain a “normal order of health care.” The notice also required all affected hospitals to install necessary equipment to enforce 24 hour security monitoring and to implement a 24 hour patrol duty system. The Ministry also required improvement in the training of health care workers, the standardization of service procedures, and the enhancement of the capability to handle emergencies.  

Source: Xinhua, May 4, 2012
http://news.xinhuanet.com/politics/2012-05/04/c_111891413.htm

Below is a latest statement that blind dissident Chen Guangcheng conveyed through his friend Guo Yushan. The statement was published through weibo.com in picture form and can be found on the overseas Chinese websites of epochtimes.com and boxun.com. The statement is based on the telephone conversation between the two which took place from 22:58 to 23:40 p.m. Beijing time on May 3. Guo Yushan rephrased the words and these are not Chen’s original words. Below is a translation of the statement.

1. Chen didn’t tell the media that he wanted to apply for political asylum in the United States. He only said that he wanted to go to the United States for a vacation for a couple of months (while the situation is dealt with). He received an invitation letter from New York University. As he is now free, he wants to travel to the U.S. for a period of time and then come back to China. Therefore, going to the U.S. has nothing to do with his changing his mind about seeking asylum. He appreciates the Sino-U.S. diplomatic efforts and understands the seriousness of the diplomacy between these two big countries. Since they reached an agreement they must have treated the issue very seriously.

2. He has never, directly or indirectly, criticized the U.S. embassy for “forcing” him or inducing him to leave the embassy. It was his own decision to leave the embassy. He appreciates the embassy’s help over the past week. He appreciates Secretary Hillary, Gary Locke, and other diplomats who have cared about and helped him. He never complained (about them), directly or indirectly.

3. On the first day of his being admitted to the hospital, something unpleasant indeed happened, causing him and his family inconvenience and suffering. Because of this, he was somewhat worried and nervous. Among all, he was particularly worried when he learned that the officials from his home Shandong had threatened his wife. He hopes that, with all the media attention from the world, the Chinese government will truly deal, based on the law, with the Shandong local officials’ different incidents of illegal persecution of himself and his family.

4. He appreciates the attention and concern that the media of the whole world has given him. He also hopes that the media can understand how complicated and delicate his situation is and have a complete understanding of how it is reflected in his expression and corresponding emotions. He hopes he will not bring trouble to all the friends who have helped him and are now helping him and cause any misunderstandings. For example, regarding the help U.S. Embassy has provided him, he never had any criticism; on the contrary, he has always been grateful.

Source: Epochtimes.com and Boxun.com, May 3, 2012
http://www.epochtimes.com/gb/12/5/4/n3580826.htm陈光诚委托郭玉闪发表的最新声明