At the opening of the Fifth Session of the Tenth National People's Congress on March 5, 2007, Premier Wen Jiabao's issued calls to strengthen China's petitioning system through active involvements of local officials to address disputes. However, these official statements are undermined by intense crackdowns against petitioners, with reports of systematic targeting and harassment from various localities during the NPC session.
The Chinese authorities always take steps to avoid protests and other instances of social unrest during sensitive periods, such as around the NPC sessions, and use a variety of hard-line tactics to deter petitioners from reaching Beijing to exercise their constitutional right to lodge a complaint against the government. Methods reported this year include:
- Severe beating of petitioners by local officials, including one
case in Tiantaixian, Zhejiang Province, in which petitioner Xu
Jiangjiao (徐江娇) was struck on the head with a glass bottle and then beaten
until she lost three teeth;[1]
- Placing petitioners under house arrest in their home towns, as in
the case of a group of Shanghai petitioners held in their homes or at guest
houses.[2] One petitioner, Ni Yulan (倪玉兰), was reportedly detained at a
police station and deprived of food for two days.[3]
Crackdowns against petitioners to deter them from reaching Beijing run counter to official statements proclaiming that "protecting the lawful interests of the people should be the government's fundamental starting point and entry point for promoting social stability and harmony."[7] The effects of this crackdown are also extended to foreign journalists, who are prohibited by the authorities from interviewing petitioners, in direct contravention of new Regulations allowing foreign journalists greater reporting freedom in the run-up to the Olympics.[8]
//
SOURCES
[1] "全国人大会开幕 访民遭虐待民权何在？ (Petitioners Harassed During NPC and CPPCC Sessions)", Radio Free Asia, March 05, 2007, http://www.rfa.org/mandarin/shenrubaodao/2007/03/05/fangmin/; "两会期间访民遭严控 不同群体发出呼声 (Different Petitioning Groups Speak Out During NPC and CPPCC Sessions)", Radio Free Asia, March 06, 2007, http://www.rfa.org/mandarin/shenrubaodao/2007/03/06/lianghui/.
[2] "大批上海访民被软禁 责两会是纸上谈兵 (Many Shanghai Petitioners Put Under House Arrest During NPC and CPPCC Sessions)", Radio Free Asia, March 6, 2007, http://www.rfa.org/mandarin/shenrubaodao/2007/03/06/shanghai/.
[3] "全国人大会开幕 访民遭虐待民权何在？ (Petitioners Harassed During NPC and CPPCC Sessions)", Radio Free Asia, March 05, 2007, http://www.rfa.org/mandarin/shenrubaodao/2007/03/05/fangmin.
[4] "大批上海访民被软禁 责两会是纸上谈兵 (Many Shanghai Petitioners Put Under House Arrest During NPC and CPPCC Sessions)", Radio Free Asia, March 6, 2007, http://www.rfa.org/mandarin/shenrubaodao/2007/03/06/shanghai/; James Reynolds, "Lost Voices of China's Petitioners," BBC, March 5, 2007, http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/6420417.stm.
[5] "Cat-and-Mouse Game Begins for Petitioners" South China Morning Post, March 02, 2007.
[6] "北京一百多上访人被带走 (Over 100 Beijing Petitioners Taken Away by Police)", Radio Free Asia, March 07, 2007, http://www.rfa.org/mandarin/shenrubaodao/2007/03/07/beijing/.
[7] "Premier Wen Jiabao's Government Work Report (2007)", CCTV, March 05, 2007, http://big5.cctv.com/gate/big5/news.cctv.com/china/20070305/104530_3.shtml. Original text in Chinese: “要把維護人民群眾的合法權益，作為正確處理新時期社會矛盾、促進社會安定和諧的出發點和落腳點。健全利益協調機制、訴求表達機制、矛盾排查調處機 制和權益保障機制。認真落實涉及群眾利益的各項政策，依照法律和政策及時解決群眾反映的問題，堅決糾正土地徵收徵用、房屋拆遷、企業改制、環境保護中損害 群眾利益的行為。 各級政府工作人員特別是領導幹部要深入基層，主動為群眾排憂解難。加強社區建設，完善基層服務和管理網路。加強信訪工作，健全信訪工作責任制。加強社會治安防控體系建設，大力整治突出治安問題和治安混亂地區。依法打擊刑事犯罪活動，維護國家安全和社會穩定.”
[8] "北京两会前夕再度扫荡上访村 (Beijing Authorities Sweep Petitioning Village Again Ahead of NPC and CPPCC Sessions)", Radio Free Asia, March 05, 2007, http://www.rfa.org/mandarin/shenrubaodao/2007/03/02/beijing/.
