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CHINA E-LOBBY UPDATE: SEPTEMBER 29, 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.
The next Summer Olympics, in 2008, will take place in Beijing. Will the U.S. take part in a Communist Chinese version of the Munich Nazi propaganda event of 1936? Sign the petition for an American boycott of the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games.
TOP STORY: PRC DEMAND FOR OIL SENDS PRICE OVER $50 PER BARREL
COMMUNISTS LIKELY TO SEEK OUT ANTI-AMERICAN MIDDLE EAST DESPOTS FOR OIL
The People�s Republic of China�s demand for oil has turned it into �one of the world's largest importers� (Voice of America via Epoch Times). The PRC thirst for oil has not only sent the price above $50 a barrel, it will, in the words of Institute for the Analysis of Global Security Director Gal Luft, lead the regime to �become more involved in Middle East politics.�
Luft described in chilling detail what she meant: �they will want to have access to oil by cutting deals with corrupt dictatorships in the region and perhaps providing components of weapons of mass destruction, ballistic missiles and other things they have been involved with and that could definitely put them on a collision course with the United States.�
Does she mean selling missile parts to Iran and helping it develop nukes (see 5/28/03, 7/9/03, 12/24/03, and 6/16 Update)? Or helping Saddam Hussein in several military areas (see 2/21/01, 2/28/01, 3/7/01, 3/14/01, 3/21/01, 12/18/02, 2/5/03, 3/19/03, 4/9/03, and 12/17/03 Updates)? Or reaching out to the Wahhabists of Saudi Arabia (see last Update)?
Make no mistake, Ms. Luft is one of the voices in the wilderness, and this quarter welcomes her acknowledgement of Communist China�s intentions. However, if she checked the Communist China and the Terrorist War page, or perhaps picked up Dragon in the Dark, she would realize that the dangerous future she describes is already here.
COMMUNIST CHINA DEMANDS YUKOS RESUME OIL SHIPMENTS
PRC mouthpiece Kong Quan �expressed at a press conference on September 21 that China hopes Yukos Oil Company will obey and enforce the regulations laid out in the contract the company signed� (Radio Free Asia via Epoch Times). Yukos suspended the oil shipments due to the Russian government�s continuing prosecution against it (see last Update).
NEWS ON COMMUNIST CHINA, EAST TURKESTAN, AND THE TERRORIST WAR
Check out the latest on the Communist China and the Terrorist War page.
ANOTHER PRC ARMS SELLER TO IRAN HIT WITH U.S. SANCTIONS . . .
The Bush Administration threw China New Era out of the United States for �aiding the proliferation of missile technology� (Epoch Times). The firm, which �handles exports for Chinese military contractors,� was caught sending missile technology to � according to sources cited in the report � the mullahcracy of Iran.
. . . AS �ECSTATIC� IRAN INCORPORATES PRC GPS INTO ITS MISSILES
Meanwhile, Iran�s Shihab-3 missile is now accurate to 1,400 km, thanks to GPS technology courtesy of Communist China (World Net Daily). Iran, which can now target any installation in Israel or Iraq, was �ecstatic.� PRC aid to the mullahs also includes several boosts to their nuclear weapons program (see 6/16 Update). The Shihab-3 can carry nuclear warheads.
NORTHERN KOREA NEWS
Sign up for Monday�s Northern Korea Report.
OVER FORTY SCNK REFUGEES MAKE IT TO CANADIAN EMBASSY IN BEIJING
Forty-four refugees from Stalinist-controlled northern Korea (SCNK) used homemade ladders to climb the walls of Canada�s Embassy in Beijing. The refugees �were wearing hard-hats, apparently to disguise themselves as construction workers� (BBC). One refugee was seized by Communist police. Also reporting: CNN, VOA via Epoch Times
Communist China �treats North Koreans as illegal immigrants and deports them home,� despite the fact that SCNK imprisons and in many cases murders returned refugees. This has forced hundreds of thousands of refugees into nonperson status in the PRC. Communist police often rape and then sell � that�s right, sell � female refugees (see 1/14 Update).
Many have responded by entering the Beijing embassies of democratic nations or trying to reach third countries in the hope going from there to democratic Korea, with the PRC willing to do anything � including murder � to stop them (see 3/20/02, 5/8/02, 5/15/02, 5/22/02, 6/19/02, 7/31/02, 9/4/02, 9/11/02, 1/22/03, 7/14, 7/28 and 9/1 Updates).
SCNK TO STAY OUT OF TALKS; COMMUNIST CHINA STILL WANTS THEM
Meanwhile, SCNK explicitly stated that its 8,000 plutonium rods from the Yongbyon nuclear power plant have been �transformed . . . into arms� (BBC), the regime also ruled out any new six-way talks on its nuclear weapons program �until the Bush administration ends its �hostile policy� against Pyongyang� (Washington Post).
Communist China � host of the talks and SCNK�s closest ally � is still �remains hopeful six-party talks on the North Korean nuclear program can resolve the crisis on the peninsula� (United Press International via Washington Times), which is no real surprise given the softening of the Bush Administration�s position during these talks (see 6/30 Update).
OTHER AMERICAN-RELATED NEWS
AS U.S. GETS READY TO BUILD SUBS FOR TAIWAN, PRC AND PAN-BLUES OPPOSE ARMS
The United States is preparing to build the diesel submarines it offered to sell Taiwan three years ago (see 4/25/01 Update). The submarines are part of an arms deal that still has not won approval in Taiwan�s Parliament � due to opposition from �pan-blue� Nationalist and People First Parties, who together hold a legislative majority. Report: Washington Times
As one would expect, Communist China railed against America�s proposed arms sales to Taiwan (Cybercast News), throwing in charges that Taiwanese Premier Yu Shyi-kun was �clamouring (UK sp) for war� (BBC 9/29). Sadly, they were joined by members of the �pan-blue� parties, who �say the deal could spark an arms race� (BBC 9/25).
As such, the arms budget will likely be on hold until Parliamentary elections this December, when the anti-Communist �pan-green� coalition � made up of President Chen Shui-bian�s Democratic Progressive Party and ex-President Lee Teng-hui�s Taiwan Solidarity Union � hope to win a majority of seats between them. Also reporting: VOA via Epoch Times
For more news on Taiwan, see Republic of China (Taiwan) News
TWO-THIRDS OF COUNTERFEIT GOODS COME FROM PRC; COMMUNISTS DON�T CARE
Communist China is the source of �66 percent of counterfeit items seized in the past year� (Central News Agency, Taiwan via Epoch Times), in large part due to the fact �that the counterfeiters have a close relationship with the local authorities.� Meanwhile, the PRC �doesn�t intend to put effort into preventing illegal exports and imports.�
U.S. BACKS DEMOCRACY FOR HONG KONG; PRC SAYS BUTT OUT
Randall Schriver, Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs, called for Communist China to allow full democracy in Hong Kong. The PRC took time out from hinting it would impose its police state laws on the city (see The Velvet Crackdown) to blast �foreign interference in Hong Kong affairs� (Voice of America via Epoch Times).
TREASURY SECRETARY SAYS CURRENCY �PRESSURE� WILL CONTINUE
U.S. Treasury Secretary John Snow insisted that the Bush Administration �trying its best to convince China to change its currency exchange rate with the U.S. dollar� (VOA via Epoch Times). Snow also said such �pressure� � which has included no threats of punitive measures and, as such, has gone nowhere � �will continue.�
Communist China has pegged its currency to the dollar for a decade, at a rate of 12 cents. The actual value is projected to be about 16 cents. The deliberate devaluation of the PRC currency has made PRC goods cheaper than they otherwise would be, badly damaging American manufacturing, and crippling the exporters of our Asian allies.
MORE ARTISTS HOLD CONCERT IN COMMUNIST CHINA
Alicia Keys, Cyndi Lauper, and Boyz II Men starred in a Communist propaganda event � ahem, concert at the Great Wall � last month. Report: BBC
INTERNATIONAL NEWS
SPANISH PROTEST AGAINST COMMUNIST CHINESE SHOES
Several hundred Spanish have taken to the streets in Elche, �the capital of Spain's footwear industry� (BBC), to protest the avalanche of shoe imports from Communist China. Part of the problem is that �A significant proportion of Chinese-imported goods in Spain is untaxed and sold on black markets, making it impossible . . . for legal businesses to compete.�
NEWS ON THE FALUN GONG WAR
MOVEMENT HOLDS RALLY AT UN
Over 1,000 Falun Gong practitioners came to New York � specifically the United Nations � �to call for an end to the persecution of Falun Gong in China� (Epoch Times). The event included a number of exhibits graphically detailing the torture practitioners have suffered under the brutal Communist crackdown, now five years and four months old.
PRO-FALUN GONG SIGNS POP UP ALL OVER BEIJING
Meanwhile, the Communist capital has seen several signs defending Falun Gong and criticizing the author of the crackdown against the movement � former Central Military Commission Chairman Jiang Zemin. Report: Epoch Times
OTHER HUMAN RIGHTS AND FREEDOMS NEWS
ELECTED VILLAGE CHIEF UNDER ARREST
Remember all the happy tales of village �elections� in Communist China? Well, one of the most outspoken village leaders � artist and Yuanmingyuan village chief Yan Zhengxue � is now under arrest after trying to sue the regime for its refusal to protect him from corrupt local cadres who threatened his life in an attempt to run him out of town (Epoch Times).
�ONE CHILD� NOT WORKING
Economic Information Daily, a PRC newspaper cited by Taiwan�s CNA (via Epoch Times) admitted that the Communists� hideous �one child� policy was not working. There goes the justification � as if there could ever be one � for the forced abortions, forced sterilizations, and infanticide (see 8/30/00, 8/8/01, 7/24/02, and 8/5 Updates).
SHANGHAI TO SET UP SECURITY CAMERAS; IMPOSE INTERNET MONITORING SOFTWARE
The city of Shanghai �plans to install more than 200,000 surveillance cameras by 2010� (Epoch Times 1). Once in place, the cameras will outnumber streetlights in the city. The cadres say the purpose of these cameras is �to prevent crime.� The city is also demanding �that all internet caf�s install updated monitoring software� (Epoch Times 2).
Lest anyone forget, �crime� includes the Communist catch-alls of �subversion� and �stealing state secrets.� Furthermore, the internet software in particular is so intrusive it would wipe out protection for credit card and bank account information.
GOOGLE CENSORS ITS SEARCH ENGINE IN COMMUNIST CHINA
Communist China is not censoring Google�s search engine for web users in the PRC. The Communists have Google to do it for them (World Net Daily). This is the perfect example of the nexus between �engagement,� foreign investment in Communist China, and how the cadres use the profit motive to turn foreign firms into willing lackeys.
One of Google�s victims was none other than the Epoch Times, which is now off the firm�s PRC search engine. This likely means this newsletter, and probably the China e-Lobby as a whole, is now off-limits in Communist China�s version of Google.
CORRUPTION NEWS
COLLEGE ADMISSION KICKBACK SCANDAL EXPOSED IN XI�AN
Cadres in the city of Xi�an have some egg on their faces after their college extortion scheme was exposed in the press. According to the Epoch Times, would-be students to the city�s Institute of Finance and Economics and its Conservatory of Music had to pay a 30,000-yuan (about $3,600) bribe to get into the schools.
PARTY SAYS CORRUPTION COULD THREATEN LEAD TO FALL OF REGIME
Communist China once again warned that the rampant corruption infesting the Party �could threaten its hold on power� (BBC). The Party�s Central Committee made the latest statement demanding the regime clean itself up. PRC President Hu Jintao is pushing this especially hard, but only to ensure the Chinese Communist Party remains in power.
OTHER MAINLAND NEWS
PRC BANS TEXT MESSAGING CONTESTS FROM TV AFTER BRESLAN LOTTERY
In the wake of international outrage over a contest on Communist-run television to guess the death toll from the Beslan hostage crisis (see 9/15 Update), the PRC has now �ordered television networks not to run unauthorized (Aus sp) contests using mobile phone text messaging� (Sydney Daily Telegraph).
FALSE COMMUNIST UNEMPLOYMENT RATE DERIDED
Communist China�s much-ballyhooed 4.3% unemployment rate, as the Epoch Times put it, �has little to do with reality.� The rate, which is already limited only to cities, further �does not include those who have been laid off from state-owned enterprises but who still receive a basic stipend for three years after losing their jobs.� Real unemployment is near 10%.
MIGRANTS IN PRC CITIES TO PASS 300 MILLION IN 2020, MAY REACH HALF A BILLION
By 2020, migrant workers coming from the PRC rural interior into urban areas �will exceed 300 million, or even 500 million,� according to experts cited by the Epoch Times. Migrant workers live and work on the margins of PRC society, working long hours for pay that in many cases is often promised but never delivered.
CADRE ADMITS ENVIRONMENTAL PROBLEMS
Pan Yue, number two cadre in the Communist State Environmental Protection Administration, �told the BBC the country's environmental problems have reached crisis levels.� However, Pan�s explanation was a little off: �Mr. Pan said that China could no longer afford to follow the West's resources-hungry model of development.�
If by the �West,� hr means the free market, Mr. Pan might want to remember that the free market would never have led to monstrosities like the Three Gorges Dam, to say nothing of the massive �Sinicization� policies in occupied East Turkestan and Tibet that have led to ecological disaster in both.
REAL ESTATE SPECULATION AT �HEATWAVE� LEVELS
Guozhong Xie, a board member of Morgan Stanley, warned the Communist China�s real estate market is �overstated� (Liberty Times via Epoch Times) and could lead to �a large scale economic adjustment,� i.e., a bubble collapse. Xie did not mention the land seizures, house demolitions, and bribery schemes cadres routinely commit to build the new housing.
BABY SMUGGLER EXECUTED
Li Guoju, a Henan farmer who led a ring of baby-sellers, was put to death by Communist police. Report: BBC
OLYMPIC GOLD MEDALIST FORCED TO SKIP EVENTS FOR COMMUNIST PROPAGANDA
Liu Xiang who won the gold for Communist China in the 110 meter hurdles this year, will has missed at least two races this past month due to �a series of social obligations, which is keeping him away from resuming regular training� (Epoch Times). Liu says the PRC propaganda trips have left him �more tired than training.�
REPUBLIC OF CHINA (TAIWAN) NEWS
TAIWAN�S FOREIGN MINISTER WHACKS SINGAPORE
Angrily responding to comments from George Yeo � Foreign Minister of Singapore who spoke against international recognition for Taiwan � Taiwan FM Chen Tan-sun referred to Yeo�s country as �the size of a piece of snot� (BBC). He was even more graphic in describing how Yeo�s comments pleased Communist China.
NEWS ON THE VELVET CRACKDOWN (HONG KONG)
COULD �ANTI-SUBVERSION LAW� BE IMPOSED BY FIAT?
Under a hitherto obscure piece of Hong Kong�s Basic Law � which supposedly guarantees the city�s autonomy � Communist China has the right to �to enforce the state�s law in Hong Kong SAR� (CNA via Epoch Times), i.e., impose the proposed �anti-subversion� law by fiat.
While the imposition of the law remains a long shot, the possibility was raised by the Communists themselves. The proposed law � which would bring to Hong Kong the PRC catch-all crime of �stealing state secrets� � brought over half a million into the streets last summer to oppose it (see 7/2/03, 7/9/03, and 7/16/03 Updates) before being shelved.
OCTOBER 1 CELEBRATION OPEN TO SOME, BUT NOT ALL, PRO-DEMOCRACY FIGURES
Communist China is playing divide and conquer with the pro-democracy forces of Hong Kong. The PRC is using the upcoming anniversary of its founding to invite some of the pro-democracy politicians to the Beijing commemoration. One analyst called the move �psychological games� (VOA via Epoch Times) designed to split the movement.
TIBET NEWS
WILL THE DALAI LAMA RETURN TO TIBET?
The presence of Lodi Gyari � emissary for the Dalai Lama � in Beijing for talks is leading many to speculate of a possible deal that would allow Tibet�s spiritual leader to return from exile (The Independent, UK). Much emphasis is given to the fact that PRC President Hu Jintao was once the party chief in Tibet.
They might want to remember that Hu � who ran Tibet from 1988 to 1992 � was arguably the most brutal and repressive Communist ruler the occupied nation ever suffered.
PRC-TAPPED �PANCHEN LAMA� PRAISES CCP
Gyaincain Norbu, the fourteen year old boy chosen by Communist China to be Tibet�s Panchen Lama �praised the Communist Party in his first interview� (BBC) and �said Tibet's Buddhists enjoyed freedom of worship.� That would be news to Gedhun Choekyi Nyima, the Dalai Lama�s choice for Panchen Lama; he �has not been seen since his arrest in 1995.�
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