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Produced by the Eastern Turkistan Information Center No: 74 24 February 1998 In this issue: (1) CHINA DENIES TRADE IN HUMAN ORGANS 2 ARRESTED IN U.S. IN ALLEGED PLOT
(2) THE STANDOFF WITH IRAQ
(3) WORLD UYGHUR NEWS NETWORK
(4) CHINESE AIRLINER CRASHES IN TAIWAN
(5) TURKISH CUMURIYET NEWSPAPER REPORT
(6) THREE U.S. CLERICS ARE VISITING CHINA TO DISCUSS RELIGIOUS TOLERANCE
*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*= (1) CHINA DENIES TRADE IN HUMAN ORGANS 2 ARRESTED IN U.S. IN ALLEGED PLOT
BEIJING (CNN) -- Chinese authorities on Tuesday said they knew nothing about two men charged in the United States with allegedly trying to sell organs from executed Chinese prisoners, and said such trafficking would not be tolerated. "The relevant departments of the People's Republic of China have repeatedly indicated clearly that such incidents would never happen in China. Should it occur, the Chinese law will punish the culprits," said Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhu Bangzao. Two Chinese were arrested in the United States on charges that they planned to sell organs of prisoners executed in China. A claim that such activity takes place has also been repeatedly raised against China by the human rights organization Amnesty International. The men -- Cheng Yong Wang, 41, and Xingqi Fu, 35, both living in Flushing, New York -- were arrested Friday. The complaints alleged they tried to sell corneas, kidneys, livers, skin, pancreases and lungs for transplant. Prosecutors said an informant showed them papers indicating that Wang had been a prosecutor in southern China's island province of Hainan and that he participated in the execution of Chinese prisoners. Wang and Fu were caught when an FBI agent posed as a board member of a dialysis center in a meeting Friday, the complaint said. Wang allegedly discussed with the agent the methods by which Chinese prisoners are executed, and described how he and Fu would sell the dialysis center two corneas from executed prisoners for $5,000. According to the complaint, Fu asked the agent how old skin could be to be sold, and promised that lungs would come from nonsmokers. Wang signed a contract February 13 with the informant -- identified in court papers only as "Person A" -- saying he coordinated with Chinese government agencies and hospitals to get organs for transplant, prosecutors said. The transplants would be performed in China for non-Chinese, the complaint said. In 1993, Amnesty International called on the Chinese government to ban the harvesting of organs from executed prisoners but said it found that the practice continued. In a May 1995 Senate hearing, Amnesty International reported that the percentage of transplanted kidneys in China estimated to come from executed prisoners was as high as 90 percent. (2) THE STANDOFF WITH IRAQ
(CNN) -- World leaders gave a guarded response Monday to the weapons inspection deal brokered by U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan with Saddam Hussein, while they wait to hear word from the United States and consider the continued possibility of military strikes against Iraq by a U.S.-led force. Britain, the ally which has most strongly supported the United States' position, welcomed the deal, but withheld judgment until details become available. "I very much hope that it is the deal we are looking for," said British Foreign Secretary Robin Cook. "What he is saying is encouraging ... If he has got the kind of deal that appears to be emerging, he has moved Saddam a long way." Yeltsin: 'Hussein has given his word' Russian President Boris Yeltsin praised the work of U.N. Secretary General Kofi Annan in Baghdad, saying a diplomatic solution is practically resolved. Russia, along with France and China, was among the Security Council members opposed to using force against Iraq. "Hussein has given his word," Yeltsin told the Russian news agency Interfax. "Tuesday the U.N. Security Council will convene. We will await its results". The Russian President is also quoted as praising the work of Russian diplomats in trying to reach a peaceful solution to the crisis, adding that Russian Foreign Minister Yevgeny Primakov has been working constantly on this. And he repeated warnings about the danger of solving the stand-off with force: "Who knows what this conflict would have led to, what countries would have been dragged into it. Perhaps in Iraq there are some chemical weapons." China hopes 'war cloud' dispersed China expressed the hope that the deal would ease recent tensions. "We hope this agreement will disperse the war cloud gathering over the Gulf region," a foreign ministry spokesman told reporters. Who's Who. Key players in the Iraq-U.N. drama Elsewhere in Asia, the reaction was wary. A Japanese Foreign Ministry spokesman said there would be no official government comment until Annan announces the deal at the U.N. Security Council. Thailand welcomed an agreement on weapons inspections but said implementing the deal was vital. "The initial reports of the settlement are good news, which will lead to the next stage of implementation on what has been agreed on," Foreign Minister Surin Pitsuwan told reporters. Australian Prime Minister John Howard expressed some doubts. "Saddam Hussein is capable of saying one thing and doing another," Howard said, "and it may well be that his commitment and that agreement has to be tested by an inspection before people can be completely satisfied that he's as good as his word." (3) WORLD UYGHUR NEWS NETWORK
According to Xinjiang Daily, on January 20 Ghulje Court sentenced many young Uyghurs in connection to the last year February 5-6 Ghulje event. These Uyghurs were convicted in causing social disturbance and jeopardizing state safety. 11 of them received death sentences. 3 received suspended death sentences because they were under age.27 were sentenced to life imprisonment. On July 22 last year, Chinese authority ordered Ili Provice and Ghulje City People's Courts to stage 'open' trails at Ghulje stadium. 27 young Uyghurs received various sentences: 7 Uyghurs were sentenced to death and executed immediately. They were Jappar Talet, Hesen Imin, Alim Yolvas, Sidik Rozi, Memetjan Murmemt, Abdulrehim Tudahun And Abdulrehim Memet. Halmemet Islam and two others received suspended death sentences. 7 of them were sentenced to life imprisonment. Sixteen year old Rehmetjan received 18 years imprisonment. The rest 9 young Uyghurs received 15 years imprisonment each. Chinese authority arbitrarily arresting Uyghurs in inland Chinese cities. In mid January this year they arrested 26 Uyghur intellectuals, university students and even businessmen as separatist suspect. At the same time, Chinese authority also arrested 20 Uyghur farmers from Eastern Turkistan Hutan county Taiwak village who were selling raisin in Chinese cities. Numerous innocent Uyghur businessmen were arrested in inland China. On January 30 this year, while Uyghurs celebrating Ramazan Festival, Chinese troops and armed police scattered in streets of Urumqi and other Eastern Tukistan cities to stop Uyghurs from going to Mosque. (4) CHINESE AIRLINER CRASHES IN TAIWAN
TAIPEI, Taiwan (CNN) -- A China Airlines Airbus 300 crashed upon landing at Taipei's Chiang Kai-shek airport Monday and burst into flames. The A-300 aircraft was carrying 197 passengers and crew, airport officials told Reuters news agency. One child was reportedly recovered from the flaming wreckage and was listed in critical condition, officials at Taipei's international airport said. "The plane first crashed into a civilian building," a witness told a live television broadcast from the airport. The aircraft -- China Airlines Flight CI-676 -- was en route from the island of Bali in Indonesia, local officials said. Conditions were said to be foggy at the time of the crash, which ocurred around 8 p.m. (5) TURKISH CUMURIYET NEWSPAPER REPORT
A bomb planted on a bus exploded, killing 50 people. [ETIC 14/2/98] The explosion happened on February 14 in China's Hebei Province near to central city of Wuhan. The bomb went off at about 13.00 hours Beijing time. The explosion injured bystanders. The nearby buildings also experienced the shock wave. According to eye witnesses, immediately after the blast, 4-5 people were running for their lives with fire still burninig on their clothes. The bus was heading for Hanyang County. It was 20 kilometer away from the destiny went the blast happened. The explosion also damaged other vehicles nearby. There was no more traffic allowed on this route until late that night. Wuhan police refused to answer questions related to the death toll and the number of people injured in this event. They only said that troops were sent to this area. Hong Kong Da Gong newspaper said Beijing police arrested 10 suspects related to this explosion. According to this report most of them were Uyghur Muslims who claims they are the major population in Xinjiang. Xinjiang is the region where large amount of explosives were seized in the past. [ETIC 14/2/98] ETIC journalist Abdul Pamir reported on February 15: five policemen were killed in Eastern Turkistan Kara Mai region near Jeren Lake on February 14. Among them one was Uyghur, the other four were Chinese. Nobody claimed responsibility.On February 14, a two storeys Chinese restaurant at Istanbul Teksem Square was blew up by planted bomb. Nobody claimed responsibility. Turkish authorities blocked the passage of information about this explosion, because it coincided with Turkish Foreign Minister's visit to China. All the events above happened on the same day Turkish Foreingn Minister visited China could not be just by coincidence. [ETIC 5/2/98] ETIC journalist Abdul Pamir reported a blood shed on January 26 at Eastern Turkistan Pishan county Karatas state farm: Three masked gun men suddenly opened fire to Chinese, killed 27 and injured many. After this event Chinese troops and armed police, aided by three militry helicopters, started a large scale hunting, but was in vain. This gave Chinese authorities an excuse to seal all the passages, ports in Eastern Turkistan. Apart from government officials, nobody was allowed to enter or leave Eastern Turkistan. (6) THREE U.S. CLERICS ARE VISITING CHINA TO DISCUSS RELIGIOUS TOLERANCE
BEIJING (CNN) -- A U.S. government-appointed team of clergymen said Wednesday its visit to China was an important way to open a dialogue on religion, even if Chinese authorities try to exploit it for propaganda. "Of course there's always a possibility that people would want to use a delegation for the wrong purposes ... but it's a good risk to run," said Roman Catholic Archbishop Theodore McCarrick. McCarrick was speaking during a visit to a Tibetan Buddhist temple in Beijing. He was accompanied by his fellow clerics, Rabbi Arthur Schneier of New York and Rev. Don Argue, President of the National Association of Evangelicals. U.S. President Bill Clinton appointed the team after Chinese President Jiang Zemin, during a state visit to Washington last year, invited the U.S. administration to send a religious delegation to China as part of measures to improve bilateral relations. China officially puts the number of Protestants at 10 million and Catholics at 4 million, but church leaders say double that number meet underground. 1962 report by Tibetan leader tells of mass beatings Observers say that millions of Chinese religious believers risk police harassment by gathering in "home churches" since China cracks down on worship outside officially sanctioned religious establishments. "It's important that we share with our brothers and sisters in China how much religion means to people in the United States. I think that's a great message," McCarrick said on this second day of the 18-day trip. And Argue added that "we are willing to take the risk (of being used for propaganda purposes) to open dialogue and have the opportunity to advance our mission." Schneier. The U.S. team is being escorted by officials of the Chinese People's Institute of Foreign Affairs, who have arranged meetings exclusively with members of state-approved "patriotic" religious organizations. Schneier insisted the delegation would meet a broad range of believers. "We are in touch with a spectrum of religious communities," Schneier said. "We have plenty of time to do many things." China's Communist leaders have long been wary of religious groups, fearing they could challenge party power. But China is in the midst of a religious revival, as ordinary Chinese seek to balance surging consumerism and replace discredited Marxist dogma. "There is a basic place in everybody's life where they want to know if there's transcendence, if there's a God who's interested in them," Argue said in response to a question by a Chinese reporter. "I don't think Chinese people are any different than Western people." The clerics expected to meet Chinese leaders representing the Buddhist, Catholic, Protestant, Muslim, Taoist and Jewish faiths. The team was due to head to Nanjing on Sunday, followed by Shanghai, Chengdu, Tibet and Hong Kong before returning to the United States on March 1. Prepared by: *=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*= The World Uyghur Network News electronic newsletter is produced by the Eastern Turkistan Information Center (ETIC) in cooperation with the Taklamakan Uighur Human Rights Association (USA), and is devoted to the current political, cultural and economic developments in Eastern Turkistan and to the Uyghur people related issues. Eastern Turkistan (Sherqiy Turkistan in Uyghur) is a name used by the indigenous people of the region for their motherland located in what is at present the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region of the People's Republic China. The World Uyghur Network News brings information on situation in Eastern Turkistan from the Uyghur and other sources to the attention of the international community. *=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*= EASTERN TURKISTAN INFORMATION CENTER |