Posted on 03/07/2012 10:56:26 PM PST by Olog-hai
China's parliament unveiled legislation on Thursday solidifying police powers to hold dissidents in secret criminal detention, prompting an outcry from artist Ai Weiwei and rights advocates caught in a surge of clandestine detentions last year.
Others said, however, the ruling Communist Party had retreated from the most draconian part of new rules for another kind of secretive detention, called "residential surveillance", which were proposed last year.
Police powers to hold suspects facing subversion and other state security charges are set out in revisions to China's Criminal Procedure Law sent to the annual parliament, the National People's Congress, for approval.
"Detainees' families should be notified within 24 hours, except when impossible, or when they are involved in crimes concerning state security or terrorism, and notification could obstruct investigations," the government said in a provision on detention in legal amendments issued to delegates and reporters.
The secret detention powers drew criticism of the Communist Party's sweeping controls to stifle dissent. The party-controlled parliament more or less automatically approves legislation proposed by the government.
"I think this shows the present political mentality of lack of confidence and of fear," said Ai Weiwei, an internationally renowned artist who was secretively detained last year, when asked about the amendments concerning secret criminal detention.
"This is a massive threat to the judicial system and to citizens' security," said Ai, who became the most prominent face among hundreds held in the crackdown on dissent. He was eventually released, fined for tax charges he has challenged as unfounded.
In China, "state security crimes" include subversion and other broadly defined charges often used to punish dissidents who challenge the Communist Party. Terrorism accusations have been leveled against Tibetan and Uighur people in western China accused of using violence to pursue independence. …
(Excerpt) Read more at reuters.com ...
We’re trying hard to catch up! whoo-hoo
The White House is signing off on a controversial new law that would authorize the U.S. military to arrest and indefinitely detain alleged al Qaeda members or other terrorist operatives captured on American soil.
http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-250_162-57343287/wh-oks-military-detention-of-terrorism-suspects/
The Communist Party is doing this because they are losing their grip on power.
Last year there was a huge wave of demonstrations coinciding with the Arab Spring.
In 13 cities, ten’s of thousands protested in the streets. They were shouting slogans like, “Long live democracy. Long live freedom.”, “We want fairness. We want justice.”, and “We want reform. End one-party rule.”
This result in heavy crack down and arrests but dissent is still there.
People now openly voice their demand that the government end corruption.
In December, the entire village of Wukan exploded in protest when corrupt officials tried to steal villagers land.
The residents threw out the police and government officials after a village representative was killed by the authorities.
The situation was only resolved by negotiation and concessions by the government.
And labor strikes occur at greater and greater numbers.
Just last month, 2,000 workers at a Suzuki auto plant walked out.
One of the signs said,
“Everyone come for a strike! … Everyone come for an insurrection! Overthrow the dictatorship of the Chinese Communist Party! Overthrow the bureaucratic and privileged clique!”
Also, last month, workers at Foxconn, maker of iphone and ipad, walked off their jobs demanding higher wages and safer condition. It’s so bad, Foxconn workers have declared they will commit suicide if their demands are not met.
If the situation doesn’t change and real reforms are intitated, China will explode.
The Communist Party is no closer to “losing its grip on power” than in 1950. Continued trade with them has made them more entrenched than even when Mao was in power. Besides, “counterrevolutionary” bogeymen have always been a constant in such communist states, from Trotsky to Teng Hsiao-p’ing (who eventually took power himself) to the fictional Emmanuel Goldstein . . .
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