VAMAN
12-09-2008, 01:01 AM
China petitioners end up in loony bins
9 Dec 2008, 0006 hrs IST, AFP
BEIJING: The government of an eastern Chinese city is abducting citizens who complain to higher authorities over local injustices and holding them in mental asylums, state media reported.
At least 18 people were believed to have been detained in the city of Xintai, with some being administered debilitating drugs when they objected, according to an investigative report by the Beijing News. The report said victims were released only when they vowed to drop their complaints.
Under a system dating from imperial days, Chinese people who suffer injustices can petition central authorities in Beijing for help. The tradition has survived into the Communist era but has become a perilous undertaking for petitioners, who are often intercepted by local officials to prevent their complaints being aired in Beijing.
The abductions have been occurring in Xintai city since at least 2006, the report said.
The head of the Xintai Mental Health Centre, Wu Yuzhu, was quoted admitting that the centre had “many” such petitioners in its care, paid for by the local government.
The report focused on the case of Sun Fashi, 57, who for years had sought compensation for himself and fellow villagers over land subsidence, caused by excessive coal mining.
Source - http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/ (http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/World/China_petitioners_end_up_in_loony_bins/articleshow/3810597.cms)
9 Dec 2008, 0006 hrs IST, AFP
BEIJING: The government of an eastern Chinese city is abducting citizens who complain to higher authorities over local injustices and holding them in mental asylums, state media reported.
At least 18 people were believed to have been detained in the city of Xintai, with some being administered debilitating drugs when they objected, according to an investigative report by the Beijing News. The report said victims were released only when they vowed to drop their complaints.
Under a system dating from imperial days, Chinese people who suffer injustices can petition central authorities in Beijing for help. The tradition has survived into the Communist era but has become a perilous undertaking for petitioners, who are often intercepted by local officials to prevent their complaints being aired in Beijing.
The abductions have been occurring in Xintai city since at least 2006, the report said.
The head of the Xintai Mental Health Centre, Wu Yuzhu, was quoted admitting that the centre had “many” such petitioners in its care, paid for by the local government.
The report focused on the case of Sun Fashi, 57, who for years had sought compensation for himself and fellow villagers over land subsidence, caused by excessive coal mining.
Source - http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/ (http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/World/China_petitioners_end_up_in_loony_bins/articleshow/3810597.cms)