THT OnlineGorkha, July 22
The Chinese government's decision to seal its border with Nepal earlier this year has affected thousands of families in Chhekapar and Samagaun VDCs of Gorkha district who have been traditionally using the routes of Bhuila and Ghyala passes located on Nepal-China border to reach the markets of Jonga and Kongdang in District Kirong of the Tibet Autonomous region of China to carry out trans-border business and trade.These Nepalis have been fulfilling their daily needs such as clothes, foodgrains, oil and salt through this traditional trans border business and trade. However in February this year the Chinese government sealed its border by deploying army and police personnel in that area and restricted the entry of Nepalese nationals.According to the locals owing to decision they have been facing severe shortage of various goods thereby affecting their normal life. Though Nepal's government has taken up the issue with Beijing for allowing the Nepalese nationals residing along the Nepal-China border to move freely, nothing has been done fo far, the locals claimed.At the same time the Chinese government has been unusually harsh in pressurising the Nepalese to crush any perceived signs of Tibetan resistance in Nepal. This is despite the fact that the Nepal Baudha Mahasangha has appealed to the government of Nepal to allow the Buddhists in Nepal to freely practice their religion and not link them unnecessarily with the ongoing protests by the Tibetan community.Meanwhile, the Nepalese Supreme Court directed (July 7) the government to free three detained Tibetan protesters, viz Tashi Dolma, Nawang Sangmo and Kalsan Chung who had been arrested earlier on charges of indulging in anti-China activities. Reacting to the development, the Chinese Ambassador to Nepal has lodged a strongly-worded protest with the Nepalese Foreign Secretary.
Showing posts with label detainees. Show all posts
Showing posts with label detainees. Show all posts
Wednesday, 23 July 2008
Migrant Workers Riot in China
SHANGHAI, China) — Hundreds of migrant workers angry over mistreatment of a fellow worker rioted for three days in eastern China, surrounding a police station and smashing cars and motorbikes, a Hong Kong-based human rights organization said Monday.
The riot began Thursday in Kanmen town in coastal Zhejiang province, said the Information Center for Human Rights and Democracy. Three hundred military police arrived Sunday and 30 migrant workers have been detained, the group said. No injuries were reported.
A woman who answered the telephone at Kanmen's public security bureau denied that workers broke into the police station or burned vehicles, saying they only gathered in the streets and shouted in protest. The woman did not give her name as is common with officials in China.
The Hong Kong-based rights group said the unrest in Kanmen was centered around a migrant worker who was beaten by a security guard while trying to get a temporary residence permit.
The violence comes just weeks after a crowd of 30,000 people in southwest China set fire to a police station, angry over what many believed was a cover-up of the death of a teenage girl by local authorities.
Such incidents are an embarrassment to officials, especially in the run-up to the Aug. 8 Beijing Olympics.
According to the rights group, when the worker went to police with a group of other workers to complain about the man who beat him, he was detained, triggering the protest in which hundreds of workers converged outside the police station, burning police cars and motorcycles and later throwing stones.
The report did not give any other details about the incident, including why the worker was beaten.
A notice posted on the Web site of Yuhuan County, which oversees Kanmen, said the July 10 "incident" was being investigated but did not describe what the incident was.
It "has caused a strong backlash by society, and the public is very concerned about the truth, and about how it was dealt with, and how the local offices have recovered," the notice said.
Thousands of migrant workers have flocked to the area and the situation has put pressure on the government, it said.
Also Monday, the official Xinhua News Agency said police in Guizhou province detained 100 people, including 39 members of local gangs, for involvement in last month's protest over the death of the student.
It quoted Peng Dequan, vice director of provincial public security, as saying they were still looking for other "gangsters" who were in hiding.
Authorities accused local gangs of fomenting the unrest and have urged offenders to surrender, Xinhua said.
The riot began Thursday in Kanmen town in coastal Zhejiang province, said the Information Center for Human Rights and Democracy. Three hundred military police arrived Sunday and 30 migrant workers have been detained, the group said. No injuries were reported.
A woman who answered the telephone at Kanmen's public security bureau denied that workers broke into the police station or burned vehicles, saying they only gathered in the streets and shouted in protest. The woman did not give her name as is common with officials in China.
The Hong Kong-based rights group said the unrest in Kanmen was centered around a migrant worker who was beaten by a security guard while trying to get a temporary residence permit.
The violence comes just weeks after a crowd of 30,000 people in southwest China set fire to a police station, angry over what many believed was a cover-up of the death of a teenage girl by local authorities.
Such incidents are an embarrassment to officials, especially in the run-up to the Aug. 8 Beijing Olympics.
According to the rights group, when the worker went to police with a group of other workers to complain about the man who beat him, he was detained, triggering the protest in which hundreds of workers converged outside the police station, burning police cars and motorcycles and later throwing stones.
The report did not give any other details about the incident, including why the worker was beaten.
A notice posted on the Web site of Yuhuan County, which oversees Kanmen, said the July 10 "incident" was being investigated but did not describe what the incident was.
It "has caused a strong backlash by society, and the public is very concerned about the truth, and about how it was dealt with, and how the local offices have recovered," the notice said.
Thousands of migrant workers have flocked to the area and the situation has put pressure on the government, it said.
Also Monday, the official Xinhua News Agency said police in Guizhou province detained 100 people, including 39 members of local gangs, for involvement in last month's protest over the death of the student.
It quoted Peng Dequan, vice director of provincial public security, as saying they were still looking for other "gangsters" who were in hiding.
Authorities accused local gangs of fomenting the unrest and have urged offenders to surrender, Xinhua said.
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