News of the Day (October 5)

Chen Guangcheng beaten by thugs: Chen Guangcheng, the blind activist who helped expose the hidoues implementation of the “one child” policy in Linyi (tenth, second, ninth, ninth, and thirteenth items), “was attacked on Tuesday by a group of men” (BBC) that, according to residents, were in fact a bunch of local cadres. Chen “has been detained since August” under house arrest after exposing the mass forced abortion and sterilizations in Linyi under “one child,” which has also led to multiple murders.

Christian father and son arrested in Henan: Henan cadres jailed Ma Yinzhou, a pastor in an underground Christian “house church,” and his son, Ma Shulei. The Mas and their fellow churchgoers are like tens of millions of Catholics and Protestants who refuse to worship in cadre-controlled “Patriotic” churches, and as such risk jail and torture to keep the Communist Party from polluting their faith (China Aid Association via Boxun).

Web site detailing conflict in Taishi is shut down: The Yannan bulletin board system was shut down ostenibly for “cleanup and rectification.” In reality, the site “was closed after providing coverage and debate on the turbulent recall campaign in a village in Guangdong Province” (Committee to Protect Journalists via Boxun). That village is, of course, Taishi, where the villagers’ attempt to investigate and remove corrupt cadres through village elections has led to a crackdown (fifth, tenth, sixth, lead, and third items).

Case against Zhao Yan, backed by Hu Jintao, is based on New York Times memo: The Communist prosecution against jailed New York Times researcher Zhao Yan – previously forced out of China Reform by the cadres (eighteenth item) – for “leaking state secrets” is based “almost entirely on a copy of an internal Times memo obtained by the State Security Ministry” (Washington Post). The Times insists they gave the memo to no one, leaving open the possibility “that state security agents searched the office and photocopied it.” Meanwhile, the Post also reported that Communist leader Hu Jintao “approved the investigation and has continued to issue instructions concerning it.”

Yet another corruption-stained, Communist-owned bank offers shares: China Construction Bank plans to trick investors out of over $7.6 billion through a stock sale (Bloomberg). Prospective investors might want to review the Communist-owned bank’s history of corruption (sixteenth and seventh items), its bad loans (twenty-first item), and its need for tens of billions in bailout money (seventeenth and twenty-fourth items).

Another lament for “National Day”: A 75-year-old exile and victim of Communist persecution tells her tale to the Epoch Times as she attended an anti-Communist rally in San Francisco on October 1st, the anniversary of the founding of the “People’s Republic.”

On freedom (i.e., the lack thereof) in Communist China: Kathleen Hwang (United Press Int’l via Washington Times) summarizes a forum on the state of civil society in Communist China, Hong Kong, and Taiwan, and makes an excellent observation about the Taiwanese speakers at the Hong Kong conference: “Neither speaker mentioned pressure from Beijing as a destabilizing factor in Taiwanese society, perhaps in deference to their mainland co-panelist. The omission has become a trend in Hong Kong – it is no longer politically correct to criticize Beijing in a public forum, and self-censorship is the norm.” Meahwhile, the editors of the Epoch Times note the same thing on the mainland – albeit more ruthlessly enforced by the cadres – and lament the results.

On Communist China and the rest of the world: The Heritage Foundation examined the recent joint military exercises between Russia and Communist China (fourth item), and what they mean for America (UPI via Washington Times). Sandra Keaton, Epoch Times, laments the use of Mao symbolism in Australia.

U.S. looking to flesh out SNK nuclear deal, but GOP Senator warns against it: As U.S. officials dropped hints about how they plan to turn the surrender, ahem, agreement on Stalinist North Korea’s nuclear weapons “into a more concrete set of obligations” and “tangible actions by Pyongyang” (Washington Post), Alaska Republican Senator Lisa Murkowski – the Chair of the Senate Foreign Relations subcommittee on East Asia – actually recommended going softer, saying the above move, as weak as it is, “may be a bit too much . . . We need to remember how tenuous this agreement really is.” Murkowski holds her post at the pleasure of the Republican majority. If there is a better advertisement for Democratic Senate candidates in 2006, I know not of it.

More On Stalinist North Korea: The Friendly Blog One Free Korea relays the account of a Korean who escaped SNK after the 1990’s famine – an excellent warning of things to come – and deservedly praises United Nations Special Rapporteur Vitit Muntarbhorn. Meanwhile, rumors abound that Stalinist-in-chief Kim Jong-il will announce an heir, ahem, successor, “before the end of the year” (UPI via Washington Times).