The following is the official English translation of the Chinese government's reply to the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention

Receipt is hereby acknowledged of communication G/SO 218/2 of 11 July 2002 from the Working Group on Arbitrary Detentions of the United Nations Commission on Human Rights. The Chinese Government has conducted a thorough investigation into the circumstances relating to the communication and submits the following response.

I. RELEVANT CIRCUMSTANCES

Yao Fuxin, male, born September 1950, originally employed at the rolled steel plant (note: not, as stated, the Liaoyang city ferroalloy factory) in Liaoyang city, Liaoning province.

Because of operating losses sustained over several years, in October 2001 the general meeting of employees' representatives of the Liaoyang city ferroalloy factory, following consultations, decided to file for bankruptcy of the enterprise and in November bankruptcy proceedings were officially instituted. From 11 to 21 March 2002, more than 500 employees and retirees of the Liaoyang city ferroalloy factory applied to the city government for an increase in their relocation subsidies and economic compensation rates, and demanded that the corrupt managers and other staff at the enterprise should be punished. The Liaoyang city government gave extremely careful attention to their demands and promptly set up a board of inquiry to conduct a thorough and detailed investigation into the issues raised by the employees, and adopted the following measures to resolve the issue:

-- Punishment, in accordance with the law, of the corrupt officials: The judicial authorities investigated the unlawful and criminal activities conducted by the corrupt officials and took the following action: one person has been convicted; one person is being prosecuted; one person has been taken into criminal detention; three people are out on bail awaiting trial; and cases have been opened against a further seven people;

-- All possible means are being deployed to raise funds to maintain the basic living conditions of the factory employees;

-- Assistance is being mobilized to redeploy the staff laid off to other jobs. Thanks to efforts by the local government, the situation was quickly calmed.

Yao Fuxin is not in fact an employee of the Liaoyang city ferroalloy factory. In the course of the events alluded to above, however, Yao colluded with employees of the Liaoyang city ferroalloy factory, taking advantage of their discontent to plan, instigate and carry out a number of destructive activities. Yao and his accomplices burst into the local government building, throwing the offices into turmoil, smashing public vehicles, blocking traffic and disrupting public order. The unlawful activities conducted by Yao and his accomplices seriously disrupted production activities in the city, as well as the inhabitants' daily lives and work routine, endangered public safety and property and provoked the strong disapproval of the general public. As Yao's conduct was in breach of relevant provisions of the Chinese regulations on the organization of assemblies and marches, on 27 March the public security authorities, acting in accordance with the provisions of article 296 of the Chinese Criminal Code, took him into criminal detention on suspicion of the crime of organizing an unlawful assembly, march or demonstration. Since Yao has been taken into detention, all his rights and interests have been fully protected, his state of health remains good and he has not been subjected to any form of torture.

As is evident from the circumstances described above, Yao was arrested because his activities breached the country's criminal law. Faced with criminal activities of this kind, no country governed by the rule of law will stand idly by and do nothing. The measures taken by the judicial authorities against Yao are entirely consistent with the law and do not in any way constitute arbitrary detention.

The Chinese Government respectfully request that the content of the above reply be included in full in a relevant document of the United Nations.

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Online: 2002-11-25