Global Scholars Appeal
for Release of Labor Activists in China President Xi
Jinping, Opposing
the abuse of state power On December 3,
authorities detained 20 labor activists in Guangdong Province. Four have been
placed under criminal charge, several are unaccounted for, and the rest have
been questioned and released. All of these activists are associated with four
grass-roots labor NGOs in the Pearl River Delta. This campaign of unprovoked
suppression has once again put into profound question the abuse of government
authority in China. A "sweep" such as this is intended to terrorize
and intimidate, not enforce a system of judicious rules; it is the use of
government power to bully. We, the undersigned
scholars - including experts on China, labor relations, and related fields -
join with many others to decry this abuse of power. We stand in support of
these activists who have willingly taken on personal risk to educate and
organize workers seeking their legal entitlement to, most critically, salary,
social insurance, and severance compensation. To those of us who know some of
these activists personally or through research, the charges of "creating
public disorder" are ludicrous. On the contrary, they are committed to an
orderly system of labor relations – a goal which the government claims to
share. The implications of
the government’s actions go beyond the individuals and organisations affected
and the invaluable work they do. As scholars and researchers, we are also
concerned for the future of labor-related research in China. The climate
created by this latest crackdown will serve as a barrier to research
partnerships and exchanges between academic institutions in and outside China;
it will impact negatively on research funding bids; and it will constrain
all-important cooperation between civil society actors and academics. As a
consequence, the quality of research may well decline and this will, sooner or
later, generate lower standards of policy- and law-making. The Chinese government
is certainly not alone among governments in its failure to enforce the legal
rights of workers; many states carry out - or tolerate - extra-legal
suppression of workers and unions. However, China is singular in its
position of rising dominance among nations. As such, its failure to find the
discipline to govern by the rule of law is a stunning failure. It cannot be
tolerated by those who live under this rule, or by those who observe it from
without. We join many others in
China and around the world who call for the immediate release of these
colleagues, and full reinstatement to their freedom, work, and property: * Zeng Feiyang 曾飞洋 of Guangzhou’s Panyu Da Gong Zu Service Center
(番禺打工族服务中心) * He Xiaobo 何晓波 of Foshan’s Nan Fei Yan Social Work Service
Organization (南飞雁社 会工作服务中心) * Zhu
Xiaomei 朱小梅of Guangzhou’s Panyu
Da Gong Zu Service Center (番禺打工族服务中心) * Deng Xiaoming 邓小明 of Guangzhou Hai Ge Workers’ Services Center (广州海哥劳工服务部) We ask you to sign the
petition and join the growing campaign for the release of the detainees and an
end to the repression of legitimate labour rights organisations in China. Co-signed by: Dr. Tim Pringle, SOAS,
University of London Dr. Lee Chun-yee,
Nottingham University Dr. Eli Friedman,
Cornell University Mr. Manfred Elfstrom,
Cornell University Dr. Elaine Hui, Penn
State University Mr. Kevin Lin,
University of Techno logy, Sydney Dr. Chiu Yu Bin,
National Pingtung University, Taiwan Dr. Chris Chan, City
University of Hong Kong Dr. Ho Wing Chung,
City University of Hong Kong Dr. Jacky Qiu, Chinese
University of Hong Kong Dr. Chan Yun Chung.
Linnan University, Hong Kong Dr. Lee Chun Wing,
Hong Kong Community College Dr. Kaxton Siu, Hong
Kong Polytechnic University |
E_mail: [email protected]
2010-2011http://redchinacn.net
