News of the Day (January 24)

From the China Freedom Blog Alliance: Between Heaven and Earth highlights a petition calling on the San Francisco Chamber of Commerce to allow Falun Gong to participate in the city's Chinese New Year parade (yours truly signed). Meanwhile, in BHaE's home country (Canada), our friends carried the day (CBC).

Communist China labeled sixth-worst dictatorship in the world: The next five items make clear why the regime made the list (Newsmax); the would-be colony of Stalinist North Korea was number two.

Communists arrest over 18,000 Uighurs in occupied East Turkestan last year: Communist China "arrested 18,227 Uygurs for 'threatening national security'" (Asia News) in occupied East Turkestan during 2005 alone. As usual, anyone who speaks out against the brutal Communist occupation is dubbed a "terrorist." Moreover, "Beijing . . . arrests all those who speak with foreign press accusing them of revealing state secrets." In fact, East Turkestanis are among the most pro-American Muslims on the face of the earth (third, third, second, and second items).

Charles Lee speaks out: American citizen and Communist torture victim Charles Lee (sixth and third items) made his first remarks about the abuse he suffered: "Talking about his experience in the prison, Lee said that eight to ten prisoners watched him in turn. They were forbidden to talk to him. If he practiced the Falun Gong exercises, these people would immediately pounced on to stop him. The CCP tried to torture him to death. At one point he developed an acute heart condition." Report: Epoch Times

Police beat petitioner and send her to a mental hospital against her will: Liu Xinjuan, a Shanghai resident petitioning Zhongnanhai to rectify a decision made by a hometown cadre judge on her divorce settlement, was "badly beaten by police as they detained her in Qibao township and she was admitted to the Beiqiao Psychiatric Hospital in Mingxing district" (Asia News). Her son was never given any documentation about his mother's supposed mental illness; in fact, the cadres "never informed him of his mother's admission to a hospital."

Protestors in Chengdu injured by "baton-wielding police": That's how the Washington Post (third item) described the force sent by the cadres to disperse a group who had gathered to protest the sale of military factory number 354 in Chengdu.

Communists order magazine to shut down: Freezing Point was the victim (Boxun).

On Communist China, Hong Kong, democracy, and the United States: Daniel McKivergan, on the Weekly Standard's blog, reprints Apple Daily columnist Kin-ming Liu's call for the U.S. to help the pro-democracy movement in Hong Kong as one-country, one-and-a-half systems continues in the city.

Communists admit over 100 chemical plants risking water supply: While that may sound like an admission of a serious problem in light of recent chemical disasters (seventh, fourth, ninth, fourth, fourth, fifth, fourth, fifth, third, seventh, tenth, and eighth items), one has to wonder about what they won't reveal: "a total of 21,000 chemical factories had been found to be located along China's rivers and coastline" (BBC). Meanwhile, Melinda Liu, Newsweek, examines Communist China's efforts to clean up its ecological mess, and how the regime repeatedly gets in its own way on the subject.

Communist China volunteers to slow down textile exports to South Africa: The Communists have turned their massive crowding out of developing nations' textile sectors (fifth and second items) into a geopolitical advantage in South Africa, where the regime will "voluntarily reduce its clothing and textile exports" (Business Day, SA).

Communist China "on the hunt for oil": Carl Limbacher (Newsmax) provides the turn-of-phrase, and the details behind it.