| Sign the Boycott Petition: In reaction to the 2008 Olympic Games being awarded to Beijing, the China e-Lobby has begun a petition for an American boycott of those games. Miss an Update, Weekly Links, or a North Korea Report? Find it on our web site. CHINA E-LOBBY UPDATE: JULY 3, 2002 TOP STORY: COMMUNIST CHINA TEST-FIRES RUSSIAN-MADE AIR-TO-AIR MISSILE DEPLOYMENT OF AA-12 MISSILES WILL LIKELY MEAN U.S.-MADE AIM-120S GOING TO ROC ISRAELI ANTI-RADAR WEAPONS ALSO PART OF COMMUNIST ARSENAL Communist China test-fired a new, high-tech air-to-air missile last week: the Russian-made AA-12. This new missile symbolizes �a big ramp-up in the threat,� according to an unnamed American official who talked to Bill Gertz of the Washington Times. The missiles are part of Russia�s burgeoning arms trade with the so-called People�s Republic, its biggest weapons customer. The U.S. may respond by transferring about 100 AIM-120 missiles to the Taiwan to maintain the military balance between the Communist dictatorship and the island democracy. The ROC already bought the weapons last year, but the U.S. refused to deliver them on the grounds that it �would not be the first nation to introduce a new missile capability into Asia.� That is no longer a concern here. In a later piece, Gertz reported that the Communists are also employed anti-radar �Harpy� drone weapons � manufactured in Israel � as part of its Taiwan Straits arsenal. Richard Fisher, a specialist on the PRC military from the Jamestown Foundation, called the Harpy �offensive weapon, and on the Taiwan Strait it is a particularly threatening device.� SPECIAL FEATURE: THE HONG KONG HANDOVER�S FIFTH ANNIVERSARY ANTI-SUBVERSION LAW, POLICE ACTION AGAINST DISSIDENTS WORRY MANY TUNG�S APPROVAL RATING FALLS TO 33%; DISAPPROVAL RATING AT 58% Communist China celebrated the fifth anniversary of the handover of Hong Kong from the United Kingdom, but not everyone was celebrating. Pro-democracy activists angry at the selection of Chief Executive Tung Chee-hwa for another term staged protests during the anniversary (BBC 1). A panel appointed by the PRC, ignoring the will of the people of Hong Kong, gave Tung his second term. Communist President Jiang Zemin celebrated Tung�s administration on Monday, and pledged to �help Hong Kong in its economic recovery and development� (CNN�s Willy Wo-Lap Lam). He also had this line for the people of Hong Kong angry at the erosion of their freedom: �I hope the people of all circles in Hong Kong will do still a better job in adapting themselves to the new Hong Kong after 1997� (CNN 1). As if that line wasn�t enough, Lam noted in an earlier piece that American professor Perry Link � the co-author of Tiananmen Papers � warned of the Communists �inducing fear of self-censorship� and an �anti-subversion� law to tighten their grip on the city. Link noted that the PRC�s deliberate lack of detail about what it will and will not accept �pressures an individual to curtail a wider range of activities.� It should be noted that the Communists detained Link for nearly an hour before even allowing him to enter the supposedly autonomous city. Plans for the �anti-subversion� law, in which HK officials were deliberately vague on its contents and probable targets, came after public prodding from PRC Vice Premier Qian Qichen. Reports: BBC 2, Cybercast News Finally, in a move that should surprise no one, the city herded a group of Falun Gong practitioners into a �protest zone� well out of sight from the notoriously thin-skinned Jiang (CNN 1). As for Tung, Lam reported that the people of HK are deeply unhappy with his �weak� leadership: 58% disapprove of his performance (Lam, BBC 3). OTHER HONG KONG NEWS AUSTRALIA DENIES ASYLUM TO HONG KONG REFUGEE One of the thousands of children to Hong Kong parents slated for deportation to the mainland was denied asylum by Australia last week. Cheng Chiu-leung, who was born in Guangdong province, was one of nearly 4,000 who won the right to stay in Hong Kong in a local court, only to have Beijing overrule the court at the �request� of Communist-appointed Chief Executive Tung Chee-hwa. Report: BBC FOLLOW UP: CHRISTIAN MISSIONARIES ARRESTED FOR HELPING REFUGEES . . . Communist China arrested three Christian missionaries for helping refugees from North Korea hide from PRC authorities. The Stalinist regime has been an ally of Communist China�s for over 50 years, which is one of the reasons why the PRC sends back any refugee from the North it finds. Report: Cybercast News . . . AS ONE MORE REFUGEE MAKES IT INSIDE SOUTH KOREAN EMBASSY IN BEIJING . . . Over 60 refugees have used diplomatic compounds of democratic nations to escape the PRC. The last group of two dozen left last week, and one more refugee enter South Korea�s Beijing embassy that same day. A massive famine has killed 2 million North Koreans, and the Stalinist regime�s practice of stealing international food aid from its own people has made matters much worse (see above link). . . . AND FLOOD OF NORTH KOREA REFUGEES INTO COMMUNIST CHINA CONTINUES Communist China is still taking in � much to the Communists� chagrin � waves of refugees from Stalinist North Korea. Professor W. W. Lee told the Hudson Institute that the Communist policy of returning any refugee it finds leads to horrifying treatment of the escapees, which number roughly 300,000 every year. The North is suffering from a massive, Communist-induced famine. Report: Cybercast News The North Korea Report has the latest on the Stalinist ally of Communist China. Sign up now to receive it every Monday. Check out the latest on Communist China and the Terrorist War. OTHER AMERICAN RELATED NEWS COMMUNIST CHINESE JET FIGHTERS FLYING CLOSE TO U.S. EP-3S AGAIN Just over a year after the Hainan outrage (see April 5, 2001 and April 11, 2001 updates), Communist Chinese jet fighters are �getting closer to our planes� again (Bill Gertz, Washington Times). The PRC fighters came within 150 feet of an American EP-3, the same aircraft forced to crash-land on Hainan. Link Courtesy Ron Vogel, Member since 2000. UN POPULATION FUND MONEY MAY BE CUT OFF DUE TO PRC�S �ONE CHILD� POLICY As the State Department investigates just how involved the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) it with Communist China�s hideous �one child� policy, the Bush Administration has asked it for a roadmap to kill the $34 million slated for the fund. The bill to spend the money gave Bush the power to block it from going to the UNFPA. Report: Washington Post PRO-TAIWAN DEFENSE OFFICIAL ON HIS WAY OUT Peter Brooks, called �one of Taiwan's most steadfast supporters in the George W. Bush administration� by the Taipei Times, will leave his post this summer. Possible replacements for Brooks run the gamut from a Clinton holdover to a confidant of Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld. MORE TALKS ON MILITARY EXCHANGES IN THE WORKS The U.S. and Communist China will have another round of talks this month on resuming military exchanges. The latest round of talks left a number of issues unresolved. Military exchanges, some of which included officials ranking as high as PRC Defense Minister Chi Haotian, were frozen last year after the Hainan outrage. Report: CNN�s Willy Wo-Lap Lam BANK OF CHINA PREPARING FOP IPO The PRC-owned Bank of China, despite reeling from bad loans and �a series of scandals� (CNN), is still planning an initial public offering of stock to the public. The Communist-owned financial institution is hoping to pocket roughly $3 billion from the IPO. HUMAN RIGHTS AND FREEDOMS NEWS YANG JIANLI FORMALLY ARRESTED Communist China formally arrested anti-Communist activist Yang Jianli, an exile who returned to the PRC to aid labor protests that have rocked the northeastern part of Communist China in recent months (see March 13 and March 20 updates). Despite his arrest, the Communists will not say where Yang is, which allows them to keep Yang �in isolation without access to an attorney� (Washington Post). COMMITTEE TO PROTECT JOURNALISTS WHACKS COMMUNIST CENSORSHIP OF MEDIA Kavita Menon, from the Committee to Protect Journalists, ripped into Communist China�s treatment of journalists and control over the media in remarks to the Congressional Executive Commission on China. He Qingliang, former editor of the Shenzhen Daily, told the commission about incidents when the Communists ordered him to �censor news.� Report: Washington Times OTHER MAINLAND NEWS JIANG MANEUVERING TO KEEP POWER, CENTRAL MILITARY COMMISSION CHAIR CNN�s Willy Wo-Lap Lam reports that PRC President Jiang Zemin has moving beyond simply keeping the powerful-yet-secretive Chair of the Central Military Commission and into using the division among his successors to �remain the ultimate arbiter of politics even after retirement.� Jiang is looking to prot�g� Zeng Qinghong to hold Communist General Secretary-to-be Hu Jintao from acquiring too much power. COMMUNIST CHINA �ON THE VERGE OF CATASTROPHE� WITH AIDS The spread of AIDS in Communist China � thanks in large part to Communist-run blood drives with hygiene practices that made them a nationwide medical superhighway for the virus � is now �on the verge of catastrophe,� according to the UN report. The Communists officially put the AIDS toll at less than 31,000. The UN put the figure at 1.5 million. Reports: CNN, BBC The UN report also repeated its projection that as many as 10 million may be infected by 2010, and seared the Communists for their lack of action against the spread of the disease. The PRC has previously tried to battle AIDS by cutting of whole villages where infection rates were high � due to those blood drives � arresting anyone who demanded to be treated for their illness. Also reporting: Washington Post, MSNBC (MSNBC Link Courtesy Ron Vogel, Member since 2000) PRC LOOSENS AIRLINE INVESTMENT RULES � A LITTLE The Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) has changed airline investment rules to allow outside investors to buy larger shares in airlines in Communist China. However, the PRC will keep a �controlling interest,� i.e., majority control, of all airlines. Report: CNN INTERNATIONAL NEWS LAI CHANGXING RELEASED PENDING APPEAL OF DEPORTATION ORDER Lai Changxing, the man reputed to be at the center of the multi-billion dollar Xiamen smuggling scandal, was released by a Canadian immigration court over the weekend. Lai, appealing an order to be sent back to Communist China, allegedly bribed hundreds of officials in a web that may reach as high as friends of PRC President Jiang Zemin. Lai believes he will be executed in Communist China. Report: National Post PETROCHINA AGREES TO GAS PIPELINE DEAL WITH SHELL Shell and PRC-run PetroChina have agreed to build a gas pipeline to run from Shanghai to East Turkestan, according to CNN. The Communist-run firm will own 55% of the venture, giving them majority control. Shell will have the remaining 45%. As part of the deal allowing the PRC into the World Trade Organization, �domestic� (i.e. Communist) firms hold at least 50% of all major ventures. REPUBLIC OF CHINA (TAIWAN) NEWS SOUTH AFRICA BANS PRESIDENT CHEN FROM ITS TERRITORY South Africa, looking to avoid ticking off the PRC, has �refused to let the Taiwanese President, Chen Shui-bian, land on its territory� (BBC). South Africa switched diplomatic recognition from the island democracy to the Communist dictatorship in 1998. There�s still time to contact the President and tell him not to appoint pro-PRC Doug Paal as de facto ambassador to Taiwan. EAST TURKESTAN (�XINJIANG�) NEWS PRC CONSUL IN KYRGYZSTAN SHOT; UIGHURS SUSPECTED This one hurts to write. The consul from Communist China to Kyrgyzstan was murdered in the Kyrgyz capital of Bishkek. A spokesman for the Kyrgyz regime � which has been rocked by protests against an agreement to handover 90,000 hectares to the PRC � speculated that the murder could have been the act of Muslim Uighurs, but would not rule out organized crime (BBC 1, UPI via Washington Times). According to UPI (see above link) and CNN�s Willy Wo-Lap Lam, Russian and Communist Chinese news sources have fingered a group called Free Turkestan as responsible for the killing, though Lam cites �diplomatic sources� who call the group �relatively small.� UPI was more circumspect, saying that the police �were looking into other possibilities.� Other Uighur groups condemned the murder (BBC 2). Communist China conquered the independent state of East Turkestan in the 1940s, and renamed it Xinjiang. Their brutal treatment of the native Muslim Uighurs � arguably the most pro-American Muslims on the planet (see October 17, 2001, November 21, 2001, and December 12, 2001 updates) � has spawned an independence movement there, but very few, if any, promote their cause violently. No news was reported from Tibet this week. Feel free to forward this to anyone you think might be interested in receiving it. Anyone who wishes to join can send his/her name and e-mail address to [email protected]. Please feel free to send any news on Communist China you happen to find to the same address. |