To receive this publication via e-mail, click here.
CHINA E-LOBBY UPDATE: MAY 5, 2004
Dragon in the Dark: How and Why Communist China Helps Our Enemies in the War on Terror is now available: here, at Amazon, or call 1-888-280-7715.
TOP STORY: AL QAEDA USING PRC INTELLIGENCE TO RAISE AND LAUNDER MONEY
DRUG PROFITS INVESTED IN STOCK MARKETS WITH COMMUNISTS� HELP
Al Qaeda �is financing its worldwide terror operations by investing in blue-chip Australian stocks with the assistance of Beijing's powerful Secret Intelligence Service� (World Net Daily). The intelligence group from the People�s Republic is also involved in drug deals with Osama bin Laden�s terrorist group; which is the original source of the money.
Brian McAdam, a Canadian investigator who helped the FBI find thousands of Communist front organizations in North America, (see 8/20/03 Update) said of the money involved, �We are talking of billions of dollars.� The fronts he found include �major players on Wall Street� (The News, Australia), and some �are linked to al-Qaeda through its investments.�
Also fingering Communist China is Xu Junping, a former PRC Colonel who �for five years oversaw all secret CSIS operations against the West,� before defecting to the U.S. in 2000 (see 3/28/01 Update). Xu �has described Beijing meetings with Osama bin Laden in 2000, during which the investment plan was discussed.�
Communist China�s links to al Qaeda, while not very well known, go back to at least the 1990s, when the PRC paid up to $10 million for unexploded American cruise missiles the terrorist group recovered in Afghanistan. Communist China has also allowed a piece of Pakistan it controls to be an al Qaeda haven (see 10/24/01 and 8/14/02 Updates).
OTHER NEWS ON THE PRC, EAST TURKESTAN, AND THE TERRORIST WAR
Check out the Communist China and the Terrorist War page.
EXPLOSION IN PAKISTAN KILLS THREE PRC WORKERS; UIGHURS TARRED AGAIN . . .
Three workers from the PRC died in an explosion in Gwadar, where Communist China is helping Pakistan build a major seaport. The culprits are not known, but it didn�t take long for the smear campaign to begin against the Uighurs, who supposedly linked up with �Pakistani jihadists� (Washington Post) on this one.
The Uighurs, the Muslim ethnic group from occupied East Turkestan (the Communists call it �Xinjiang�) have been accused of being bin Ladenites for years. Numerous reports have shown them, in fact, to be the most pro-American Muslims on Earth (see 10/17/01, 12/21/01, 7/10/02, 10/23/02, and 11/5/03 Updates).
. . . BEFORE PAKISTANIS ADMIT IT WAS LIKELY A LOCAL ANTI-FOREIGN ELEMENT
Sure enough, after the �Uighur-terrorist-al Qaeda� line had spread �round the world, Pakistani authorities admitted �the possibility of involvement by nationalists in Baluchistan who are opposed to the Chinese-funded port project in Gwadar� (Voice of America). By this afternoon, the local anti-foreigner theory was the prevailing one (BBC).
NORTH KOREA NEWS
Sign up for the North Korea Report to get the next edition on Monday.
NK NUCLEAR ENABLER PAKISTAN TO GET PRC HELP ON ANOTHER NUKE PLANT
Communist China will �help Pakistan build a new nuclear power plant in the north of the country� (BBC). It will be the second nuclear plant that the PRC will help build for its longtime ally, who was caught providing aid to North Korea�s nuclear weapons development.
AMERICAN-RELATED NEWS
Sign the petition for an American boycott of the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games.
U.S. TO TAKE NO ACTION AGAINST COMMUNIST CHINA ON PRISON LABOR, CURRENCY
The Bush Administration, eerily sounding like its predecessor, �rejected petitions by labor and manufacturing groups� (Washington Times) to act against Communist China�s use of prison labor and its deliberately devalued currency. U.S. Trade Representative Robert Zoellick called the petitions �a path of economic isolationism.�
The AFL-CIO sent a petition calling for tariffs against PRC goods to counter the use of prison labor, which was greatly depression wages inside Communist China (see 3/17 Update).
A coalition of unions and manufactures had planned a petition of their own for a corrective tariff against the PRC for its deliberately devalued currency, which has damaged American manufacturers and non-PRC exporters to the U.S.
CRANER BLASTS COMMUNIST HUMAN RIGHTS ABUSES IN SENATE TESTIMONY
In testimony to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Assistant Secretary of State for Democracy, Human Rights and Labor Lorne Craner ripped Communist China�s treatment of its own people. Craner told the committee that �The Chinese Government's mistreatment of its citizens is manifest� (Epoch Times, HK), and proceeded to list the evidence in detail.
Craner spoke of �increased surveillance of the Internet and detention of those who express opinions about democracy.� Meanwhile, �Democracy activists and some spiritual or religious adherents, including Tibetan Buddhists, Uighur Muslims and the Falun Gong practitioners, continue to suffer harsh treatment.�
INTERNATIONAL NEWS
WEN JIABAO VISITS EUROPE, OUT TO GET EU ARMS EMBARGO SCRAPPED
Communist Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao has begun a week-and-a-half tour of Europe, during which his top priority will be �Getting the European Union to lift its 15-year-old arms embargo� (Willy Wo-Lap Lam, CNN). The EU deflected an attempt by France in last month to lift the embargo (see 11/12/03, 12/10/03, 1/28, 2/4, 3/17, 3/24, and 3/31 Updates).
CHINESE DISSIDENTS FROM AROUND THE WORLD MEET IN FRANCE
France was the host of the fifth Congress of the Overseas Chinese Democracy Coalition last month. The meeting, hosted and led by Wei Jingsheng, discussed, among other things, the state of the movement, Tibet and Taiwan, the situation in Communist China. Report: Wei Jingsheng Foundation via China Support Network
JAPAN, CITING PRC AND NK, LOOKS TO ADD MILITARY ACTION TO CONSTITUTION
Japan�s ruling Liberal Democrats are �on the most audacious effort ever to recast the country's constitution� (Washington Times). The LDP is hoping to nix the clauses in the document that bans military deployments beyond self-defense and war. The move is spurred by threats from North Korea and Communist China.
KAZAKHSTAN TO BUILD RAILWAY TO COMMUNIST CHINA
Kazakhstan is planning a railway to Communist China that would be part of a railway to �speed up transit between China and Europe� (BBC). The Kazakh part of the railway will be financed by �international and Chinese banks.�
NEWS FROM THE FALUN GONG WAR
ANOTHER PRACTITIONER KILLED BY COMMUNIST POLICE
Li Yinglin, a Falun Gong practitioner from Shandong Province, was arrested and tortured by Communist police for six days � �His mouth was blackened from repeated shocks from an electric cattle prod and his body was black and blue all over� (Epoch Times). Not eager to have him die in custody, the police let him go after the beatings; he died nine days later.
The number of Falun Gong practitioners killed by the Communists since the movement was banned in July 1999 is anywhere from one to ten thousand.
OTHER HUMAN RIGHTS AND FREEDOMS NEWS
COMMUNIST CRACKDOWN ON FREE SPEECH INTENSIFYING
Intellectuals and others in the PRC are feeling the heat from Communist repression of the kind �after the 1989 Tiananmen Square crackdown� (Newsmax). As for supposed reformer Hu Jintao, �Any hope that the arrival on the scene of new president and party chief Hu Jintao would bring forth a new era of more open debate has been dashed.�
The intellectuals are now accepting the fact �that Hu is not as forward-looking as they had once hoped.� Additionally, Hu �must still defer to Jiang Zemin,� who has maintained ultimate power as Chairman of the Central Military Commission.
PEASANTS IN HEBEI AND FUJIAN THROWN IN JAIL FOR PETITIONING BEIJING
Peasants in two provinces tried to petition Beijing for redress of grievances against local cadres. In Fujian, it was to protest the uncompensated seizure of farmland; in Hebei, the refusal to pay relocation fees for those forced to move (see 3/31 Update). The Communist reaction was to throw petition leaders in jail. Report: Radio Free Asia via Epoch Times
WUSHAN SCHOOL FORCES CHILDREN INTO FIELDS TO PICK TEA LEAVES
Dongwan Central Elementary School in Wushan is in �national tea-picking season� (Epoch Times). Classes have stopped; the school now sends the children out to pick tea leaves. The harvest �is then sold to the tea company by the school. The students and parents do not receive any of the money.� Students who don�t make the quota are �reprimanded.�
COMMUNIST CHINA CRACKING DOWN ON SATELLITE TELEVISION
The Communists, in particular the �public security, industry and commerce bureaus,� (Epoch Times) are moving to �tighten control on the unauthorized distribution and installation of satellite receivers.� The Communists are naturally edgy about satellite television, from which the people can receive news outside the PRC purview.
NO COMMUNIST REACTION TO ANNIVERSARY OF HU YAOBANG�S DEATH
Fifteen years ago last month, Hu Yaobang died. The death of one of the few real reformers in the PRC led millions into the streets in cities all over Communist China, to which the Communists reacted with the Tiananmen massacre. As one would expect, the PRC �kept silent� (RFA via Epoch Times) about the anniversary of Hu�s passing.
CORRUPTION NEWS
NOW COMMUNIST CHINA PROBING CHINA LIFE . . .
China Life, the Communist-owned insurance firm already under investigation from the U.S. (see last Update), is now facing probes on the mainland and in Hong Kong. The probes involve �friends and relatives of senior China Life executives who may have profited from preferential share allocations� (BBC).
. . . AND SEVERAL OTHER COMMUNIST-OWNED FIRMS
The shenanigans at China Life have pushed the Communists to �investigate the accounts of nine key Chinese companies owned by the government� (BBC). The firms include �businesses in technology, manufacturing and petro-chemicals.�
BANK OF CHINA OFFICIAL GETS LIFE IN PRISON
Liang Xiaoting, a former vice-chair of what is now Bank of China International, received life imprisonment for taking nearly $400,000 �for his part in a swindle costing the bank US $483 million� (Epoch Times). The PRC-owned bank has been plagued by rampant corruption (see 1/23/02, 3/20/02, 7/10/02, 11/6/02, 6/4/03, 9/10/03, 12/10/03, and 2/25 Updates).
COMMUNIST ANTI-CORRUPTION OFFICE GETS MORE POWER
Communist China�s Central Discipline Inspection Commission, the national anti-corruption office, �stated it would take over the direct running of discipline inspection units at municipal, provincial, and ministerial levels� (RFA via Epoch Times). However, the commission itself is still controlled by the Party, and as such still has little credibility.
The situation is so bad that even a Communist �academic� felt comfortable enough to rip the idea. Meanwhile, Wang Lixiong, an outside analyst (as in outside party control), said �a change in the source of power� is the only real way to fight corruption.
EPIDEMIC NEWS
COMMUNISTS ADMIT TO SARS DEATH
Communist China has admitted that a woman in Anhui Province died from severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS). The woman died �after contracting the illness from her daughter� (CNN), as reported in the last Update. This brings the number of confirmed SARS cases in Communist China to nine.
SARS first hit the PRC in late 2002; but the Communists kept quiet about it for months as it spread throughout Asia and around the world (see 3/19/03, 3/26/03, 4/2/03, 4/9/03, 4/16/03, and 4/23/03 Updates).
COMMUNIST CHINA TURNING RECYCLED WASTE INTO ANTI-SARS PROTECTIVE GEAR
According the Epoch Times, �the special protective clothing used during the outbreak of SARS was made of plastic and was recycled from all of the medical waste from hospitals.� The waste was �rinsed with water, and was then washed and bleached with detergent and industrial bleach� before it was converted. Note the absence of the word �disinfected.�
HEPATITS B INFECTS 690 MILLION IN COMMUNIST CHINA
That number is correct. According to the Epoch Times, �A recent study showed that about 2 billion people in the world are infected with hepatitis B; 690 million of them live in China.� That means a majority of the population is infected.
AIDS PATIENTS TURNED INTO GUINEA PIGS; SEVEN DIE
A hospital in Hunan province is under scrutiny for �testing� an unapproved AIDS drug on its patients. Seven of those patients have since died, and relatives of the victims, or �testers,� are livid. Report: Epoch Times
OTHER MAINLAND NEWS
COMMUNISTS ADMIT TO 10,000 CASES OF BLACK LUNG
An official in the All-China Federation of Trade Unions has admitted that 10,000 of its workers have black lung. Half of those cases are fatal. ACFTU, the only legal labor union in Communist China, is controlled by the very Communists who run the firms or profit from sweetheart deals with �private� businesses. Report: Central News Agency via Epoch Times
GRAIN SHORTAGE RAISES PRICES, BUT IT DOESN�T COVER HIGHER FARM COSTS
Grain production has fallen dramatically due in part to rampant overdevelopment. As a result �the nation�s grain storage ran out� (Epoch Times), and a shortage has ensued. Meanwhile, peasant farmers remain impoverished because �the prices of fertilizers, seeds, farm machinery, pesticides and other farm production materials jumped even higher.�
BAD BABY MILK POPS UP IN GUANGDONG
A case of an infant suffering under consequences of fake baby milk has been reported in Guangdong province. The milk came �from a dairy product factory in Heilongjiang Province� (Epoch Times), which greatly increases the chance that it was a Communist-owned factory. At least one PRC town has been sitting on this information for a year (see last Update).
COMMUNIST PM SAYS ECONOMY WILL BE SLOWED; CURRENCY NOT A PRIORITY
Communist Premier Wen Jiabao told Reuters that �forceful� (BBC) steps are on the way to slowdown the PRC economy. Wen said plans to prevent supposed �overheating� and fixing the debt-laden banking system would be �the top priority.� In other words, all the PRC talk about ending its deliberately devalued peg to the dollar was just that, talk.
MOUNT QIN BADLY POLLUTED . . .
Mount Qin, a climate divider in Communist China, is getting badly polluted, as are 20 rivers whose sources are in the immediate area. The PRC policy of rampant overdevelopment � the kind a free-market would never allow � was blamed for the ecological deterioration. Report: CNA via Epoch Times
. . . AND SO IS BEIJING
The capital of Communist China is suffering under terrible air quality. The air pollution, caused in part by Communist-driven overdevelopment, has become a �gray haze� (CNA via Epoch Times) that blanket the city.
COMMUNIST CHINA SOON TO GET VERY OLD
Communist China�s over-60 population is currently 11%, but it will rise to nearly one-third in less than a generation, putting an enormous strain on �one child (who) will be expected to support two aged parents and four grandparents� (Sydney Morning Herald). The PRC�s hideous �one child� policy will lead to widespread occurrences of this �4-2-1 problem.�
REPUBLIC OF CHINA (TAIWAN) NEWS
EMBASSIES IN TAIWAN THREATENED, WARNED NOT TO ATTEND CHEN�S INAUGURAL
At least six embassies in Taiwan �have been warned not to attend the inauguration of President Chen Shui-bian in threatening phone calls� (BBC). In response, Taiwan will increase security. Chen won re-election by a narrow margin (see 3/24 and 3/31 Updates).
TAIWAN BUSINESSMEN THREATENED IN COMMUNIST CHINA
Since 1997, over 100 Taiwanese businessmen in Communist China �have turned up missing or killed� (Epoch Times). It is just the latest of reports revealing the travails of Taiwanese businessmen in the PRC (see 2/25 Update).
HONG KONG NEWS
CONVOY OF PRC NAVAL VESSELS VISITS HONG KONG; COMMANDER WARNS TAIWAN
A convoy of eight naval vessels from Communist China came to Hong Kong to �send a signal to Taiwan and pro-independence groups on the island� (BBC). In case anyone missed the hint, the group�s commander, Vice admiral Yao Xingyuan, threw in this line, �If necessary, we have the ability to preserve the stability of the Taiwanese political situation.�
HK PRO-DEMOCRACY ACTIVISTS ARRESTED IN SHENZHEN
Three pro-democracy activists from Hong Kong were arrested in Shenzhen city for doing �anything more than to pass through the territory� (Epoch Times). In this case, it was giving a letter to high-ranking cadre Wu Bangguo and showing pro-democracy banners in Shenzhen. Reporters interviewing the activists were also arrested.
HK CATHOLIC BISHOP VISITS SHANGHAI
Hong Kong Catholic Bishop Joseph Zen visited Shanghai for talks with Communist-approved Catholic leaders there. Zen, an outspoken critic of the PRC (see 10/4/00, 9/25/02, 12/4/02, and 7/30/03 Updates), said he hoped �this is the first step towards more communication� (BBC), but also insisted, �I am not going to be silenced.�
RESIDENTS OF MORE CITIES ALLOWED TO VISIT HONG KONG
Hong Kong is now open to individual visitors from seven Guangdong cities, and nine more coastal cities are on the way to approval of individual trips. In PRC, no one is allowed to move from one city to another without the Communists� permission. Report: Epoch Times
TIBET NEWS
TIBETAN ABBOT BOOTED FROM MONASTERY FOR PRAYING FOR DALAI LAMA
Although this occurred in October 2002, it just reached Epoch Times last week: Communist China kicked Abbot Luosangquzha out of the Sera Monastery in Tibet. His crime was praying for the Dalai Lama.
Miss an Update, Weekly Links, or a North Korea Report? Find it via our home page.
Feel free to forward this to anyone you think might be interested in receiving it Anyonewho 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.