The human-rights situation in China in the past year has worsened, proving that the Chinese government is the most laggard administration in the world when it comes to taking care of its people's basic needs, the Taiwan Foundation for Democracy said yesterday.
The foundation examined China's human-rights situation during the period from July last year to June for its report, focusing on five aspects -- social, political, judicial, economical, and educational and cultural human rights.
Lin Wen-cheng (林文程), the foundation's vice president, said that its report tallied with the Annual Report on 2005 by the US Congressional-Executive Commission on China and the Country Report on Human Rights Practices -- China by the US State Department.
"The main reason of the regression lies in the brutal nature of the Chinese government and its strong desire to permanently retain power," Lin said, adding that "the government also has a careless attitude toward the lives of its people."
With regard to social rights in China, director of the Democratic Progressive Party's (DPP)Department of Chinese Affairs, Tung Li-Wen (董立文), said the most striking phenomenon over the past year has been the controversies over land compensation.
"As of last year, it was estimated that 70 million Chinese farmers were forced to abandon their land as part of the government's efforts to advance industrialization. Most people were not given proper compensation or help to resettle," Tung said.
Tung said 6,027 people had died in mine accidents during the period studied, accounting for 80 percent of the world's total mining fatalities, while a total of 137, 000 people died at work last year.
Fort Liao (
"Of all the countries in the world, China implements the death penalty the most frequently. While the exact number of executions is kept secret, it has been estimated that the death penalty was carried out at least 3,400 times last year, or 90 percent of the world's total," Liao said.
Tsai Chang-yen (蔡昌言), an assistant professor at National Chung Cheng University, said three book-banning orders announced last year demonstrated the repressiveness of China's cultural human rights.
"Access to diverse sources of information has not kept pace with its economic development. The Chinese government has sealed off information unfavorable to its rule," Tsai said.
The Chinese people are not allowed to access to the Web sites that reference democracy, Tibet, Taiwan independence, Falun Gong or the Tienanmen Massacre, Tsai said, noting that about 20,000 Web sites are blocked by the Chinese government.
The Taiwan Foundation for Democracy is partially funded by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
ROLLER-COASTER RIDE: More than five earthquakes ranging from magnitude 4.4 to 5.5 on the Richter scale shook eastern Taiwan in rapid succession yesterday afternoon Back-to-back weather fronts are forecast to hit Taiwan this week, resulting in rain across the nation in the coming days, the Central Weather Administration said yesterday, as it also warned residents in mountainous regions to be wary of landslides and rockfalls. As the first front approached, sporadic rainfall began in central and northern parts of Taiwan yesterday, the agency said, adding that rain is forecast to intensify in those regions today, while brief showers would also affect other parts of the nation. A second weather system is forecast to arrive on Thursday, bringing additional rain to the whole nation until Sunday, it
CONDITIONAL: The PRC imposes secret requirements that the funding it provides cannot be spent in states with diplomatic relations with Taiwan, Emma Reilly said China has been bribing UN officials to obtain “special benefits” and to block funding from countries that have diplomatic ties with Taiwan, a former UN employee told the British House of Commons on Tuesday. At a House of Commons Foreign Affairs Committee hearing into “international relations within the multilateral system,” former Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) employee Emma Reilly said in a written statement that “Beijing paid bribes to the two successive Presidents of the [UN] General Assembly” during the two-year negotiation of the Sustainable Development Goals. Another way China exercises influence within the UN Secretariat is
LANDSLIDES POSSIBLE: The agency advised the public to avoid visiting mountainous regions due to more expected aftershocks and rainfall from a series of weather fronts A series of earthquakes over the past few days were likely aftershocks of the April 3 earthquake in Hualien County, with further aftershocks to be expected for up to a year, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. Based on the nation’s experience after the quake on Sept. 21, 1999, more aftershocks are possible over the next six months to a year, the agency said. A total of 103 earthquakes of magnitude 4 on the local magnitude scale or higher hit Hualien County from 5:08pm on Monday to 10:27am yesterday, with 27 of them exceeding magnitude 5. They included two, of magnitude
Taiwan’s first drag queen to compete on the internationally acclaimed RuPaul’s Drag Race, Nymphia Wind (妮妃雅), was on Friday crowned the “Next Drag Superstar.” Dressed in a sparkling banana dress, Nymphia Wind swept onto the stage for the final, and stole the show. “Taiwan this is for you,” she said right after show host RuPaul announced her as the winner. “To those who feel like they don’t belong, just remember to live fearlessly and to live their truth,” she said on stage. One of the frontrunners for the past 15 episodes, the 28-year-old breezed through to the final after weeks of showcasing her unique