Section 2 Respect for Civil Liberties, Including:

a. Freedom of Speech and Press

Although the Constitution states that freedom of speech and freedom of the press are fundamental rights enjoyed by all citizens, the Government interprets the Communist Party's "leading role" as circumscribing these rights. It does not permit citizens to publisher broadcast criticism of senior leaders or opinions that contradict basic Communist Party doctrine providing for a Socialist state under the party's leadership. During the year the Government and party further intensified control over expression of unauthorized political views. The formal charges brought against dissident and prodemocracy advocate Wang Dan were based on public criticisms of the Government. These criticisms together with his publication of articles and his activities 'in support of democracy advocates resulted 'in his November conviction and sentence to I I years 'in prison, a much harsher sentence than he received for his prodemocracy activities in 1989. The case was not reported in the Chinese language press. Liu Nianchun, who

was denied permission in 1994 to register the Association for Protection of Labor Rights, was sentenced in July to 3 years' reeducation through labor after having been held in detention since his 1995 arrest for involvement with a prodemocracy petition drive (see Section I.d.).

The party and the Government continue to control print and broadcast media and compel them to propagate the current ideological line. All media employees are under explicit, public orders to follow CCP directives, and to "guide public opinion" as directed by political authorities. This greatly restricts the freedom of newspapers and broadcast journalists to report the news. Both formal and informal press guidelines continued to require reporters to avoid coverage of sensitive subjects and to protect ??state secrets." Under the State Security Law, state secrets are broadly defined, and interpretation of the law is left to the Ministries of State Security and Public Security.

In June authorities fired the director of the Beijing Youth Daily after the newspaper printed a factual story about the poisoning deaths of three children who drank "Wahaha," a popular beverage produced by a state-owned enterprise. The Party Propaganda Department also forced all those involved with publishing the article to engage in self-criticism, a move that highlighted the absence of laws protecting journalists and consumers. After the fall Communist Party plenum the Propaganda Department reportedly issued a directive forbidding the publication of negative stories, including any major cases of corruption and unrest. It also censored several authors and called for strict supervision over articles on the reversion of Hong Kong. Shanghai customs officials impounded the May 21 editions of the International Herald Tribune imp

and the Asian Wall Street Journal because they carried reports and pictures of the Lee Teng-hui 'inauguration 'in Taiwan. Shanghai officials also expurgated foreign English-language newspapers and clamped down on "Hong Kong" style political magazines. Government regulators pen-nit transmission of Hong Kong television broadcasts to Guangzhou but occasionally censor program content.

A Western press report stated that 38 newspapers have been shut down since 1994 either due to poor management or "political problems." According to reports other papers and magazines have been shut down for publishing sensitive articles on the plight of state farms, the cultural resolution, and debates on Deng Xiaoping's reform program-

Articles published by foreign journalists are monitored. The Government has withheld visas from journalists who have written stories critical of China. Foreign journalists working in China have also been subjected to surveillance and, on occasion, harassment. French journalist Christine Ockrent, who visited China in July, was prevented from meeting with any Chinese dissidents and was under surveillance by a team of more than 10 plainclothes officials.

Despite these government controls, uncontrolled information about the nation is flowing into China at an 'increasing rate. Residents in Guangdong and other parts of southern

China have access to Hong Kong television programs and newspapers. Throughout China, a lively tabloid sector continues to flourish. Radio talk shows remain popular, and, while generally avoiding politically sensitive subjects, they provide opportunities for citizens to air grievances about public issues. Despite licensing requirements, a small but rapidly growing segment of the population has access to satellite television broadcasts and most sites on the Internet. Most citizens have the means to own and use shortwave radios, and the Government does not place any restrictions on their use.

Fierce competition and dwindling government subsidies have increased opportunities for private publishers and booksellers, but the Government moved to tighten its control over the production and dissemination of publications during the year. In 1995 the China Press and Publications Administration announced that it would limit the number of books published by controlling book registration numbers issued to officially approved publishing houses. Despite this effort, books continued to be published through unsanctioned channels.

Fear of government retaliation limited artistic freedom of expression. Security personnel have effectively eliminated an artist community near Beijing University at Yuanmingyuan through harassment and arrests. The crackdown, which began 'in 1995, appeared to be the result of official irritation over the artists' antigovernment views.

The Government has continued to impose heavy ideological controls on political imp

discourse at colleges, universities, and research institutes. In September, for example, authorities closed computer bulletin boards at universities 'in Beijing when students began us' the Internet to urge government action 'in defense of Chinese sovereignty claims over the Diaoyu/Senkaku islands. As a result of official controls, many intellectuals and scholars, fearing that books or papers on political topics would be deemed too sensitive to be published, feel compelled to exercise self-censorship. In areas such as economic policy or legal reform, there was far greater official tolerance for comment and debate.

b. Freedom of Peaceful Assembly and Association

While the Constitution has provisions for freedom of peaceful assembly and association, the Government severely restricts these rights 'in practice. The Constitution provides, for example, that such activities may not infringe upon the "interests of the State." Protests against the political system or its leaders are prohibited.

Authorities deny pen-nits and quickly move to suppress demonstrations involving expression of dissident political views. On the June 4 anniversary of the 1989 Tiananmen crackdown, police arrested a woman who attempted to commemorate the event by leaving flowers at the Memorial to People's Heroes in Tiananmen Square. In June authorities in Shanghai prevented a Greenpeace ship on an antinuclear mission from calling at the port. In September a group of students from several Beijing universities were detained for attempting to stage a demonstration outside the Japanese Embassy. The Government tolerates some small-scale demonstrations about nonpolitical grievances, and unauthorized protests on nonpolitical subjects are not automatically disrupted. In July some 200 Beijing residents protested in front of the Beijing Municipal Office the Government's failure to provide promised housing and to pay owed factory wages. Police did not interfere with the protest, but no government officials agreed to the group's r

equest for a meeting to discuss its concerns. Such incidents were not uncommon in Beijing and other areas during the year.

The Communist Party organizes and controls most professional and social associations. Regulations require all organizations to be officially registered and approved. Authorities can detain violators for up to 15 days and impose fines up to $23 (RUB200). Ostensibly aimed at secret societies and criminal gangs, the regulations also deter the formation of unauthorized political, religious, or labor organizations. Political activists 'including Liu Nianchun and Yang Zhou, were denied permission to register their labor and human rights associations.

In March the Government cited the organizers' failure to preregister with authorities to justify a Beijing police raid of a charity banquet to raise funds for Chinese orphans. The police initially demanded that the event be canceled but relented when the organizers agreed to separate guests into subgroups, to cancel speeches by scheduled speakers, remove banners, and do no fundraising. The 447 guests 'in attendance 'included Chinese officials, foreign ambassadors, and foreign business leaders, journalists, and teachers.

c. Freedom of Religion

Although the Constitution affirms toleration of religious beliefs, the Government seeks to restrict all religious practice to closely controlled and government-sanctioned religious organizations and registered places of worship. At the annual national religious affairs conference in January religious policy was "readjusted" to emphasize harder line aspects. During the year many religious groups were subjected to 'increased restrictions although the degree of restriction varied significantly in different regions of China. Despite these 'increased restrictions, the number of religious adherents continues to grow.

The annual conference gave special attention to appointing a new generation of party loyalists to lead the work of official religious bodies and to the issue of registering

unofficial religious groups. Although there is no legislation governing religious affairs,

State Council regulations require all religious groups to register with government

religious affairs bureaus and come under the supervision of official "patriotic" religious

organizations. In 1996 some groups registered while others were refused registration.

Many, however, have been reluctant to comply out of principled opposition to state control of religion or for fear of adverse consequences if they reveal, as required, the names and addresses of members and details about leadership activities, finances, and contacts in China or abroad. The campaign to shut down unauthorized groups is in the hands of the police and religious affairs officials and is being conducted concurrently with other police actions against criminals and underground separatists, prodemocracy, and labor groups. The national goal for 1996 was to regisster or close down all 91

unregistered religious groups.

In 1996 police closed dozens of "underground" mosques, temples, and seminaries and hundreds of Protestant "house church" groups, many with significant memberships, properties, financial resources, and networks. Leaders of such groups, including itinerant teachers and evangelists, increasingly have been detained for lengthy investigation. There are NGO reports of deaths of detainees by beating. Some congregations have been hit with heavy fines. In Shanghai, home of the patriotic Protestant headquarters, authorities have been particularly tough.

Official Chinese media carried warnings of the "threat of religious infiltration." In August the Communist Party newspaper People's Daily said that "hostile international forces resort to ethnic and religious issues to 'Westernize' and 'split' Socialist countries and step up religious infiltration." The publication also quoted a senior Communist official as saying that religion had "interfered in government administration, 'udicial matters, education, and marriages."

The State Council's Religious Affairs Bureau and the CCP United Front Work Department, which are staffed by officials who rarely are religious adherents, provide "guidance and supervision" over implementation of government regulations on religion and on the role of foreigners in religious activity. Communist Party officials state that party membership and religious belief are incompatible. This places a serious limitation on religious believers, since party membership is required for almost all high-level positions in government and state-owned businesses. According to a 1995 government survey, 20 percent of Communist Party members engage in some form of religious activity. In January 1995, the CCP circulated a document to party organizations at the provincial level ordering expulsion of party members belonging to open or clandestine religious organizations. In November the People's Liberation Army Daily's report on military spiritual civilization" stated that "it is necessary to conduct education in at

heism so that they (the military) believe in science and oppose superstition. Participation in religious activities is forbidden."

After forcefully suppressing all religious observances and closing all seminaries during the 1966-76 Cultural Revolution, the Government began in the late 1970's to restore or replace damaged or confiscated churches, temples, mosques, and monasteries and allowed seminaries to reopen. According to the Government, there are now 68,000 religious sites in China and 48 religious colleges. The Government also adopted a policy of returning confiscated church property. implementation of this policy has varied from locality to locality. The official religious organizations administer local Bible schools, more than a dozen Catholic and Protestant seminaries, nine institutes to train imams and Islamic scholars, and institutes to train Buddhist monks. Students who attend these 'institutes must demonstrate "political reliability," and all graduates must pass an examination on their theological and political knowledge to quality for the clergy. The Government permitted some Catholic seminarians, Muslim clerics, and B

uddhist clergy to go abroad for additional religious studies in 1996. Unofficial churches, however, have significant problems training clergy.

The authorities permit officially sanctioned religious organizations to maintain international contacts as long as these do not entail foreign control. The January 1994 regulations codified many existing rules involving foreigners, including a ban on proselytizing by foreigners, but allow foreign nationals to preach to foreigners, bring in religious materials for their own use, and preach to Chinese at churches, mosques, and temples at the invitation of registered religious organizations. Chinese authorities strictly enforced the 1994 regulations in several cities. Some regularly scheduled expatriate religious services were shut down by police, who asserted that the meetings did not comply with regulations that require registration of religious gatherings. Meetings were subsequently allowed to resume in some cases.

Buddhists make up the largest body of religious believers in China. The Government estimates that there are 100 million Buddhists, most of whom are from the dominant Han ethnic group. The Government says that there are 9,500 Buddhist temples and monasteries 'in China and more than 170,000 nuns and monks. Some local authorities have called for controls on Buddhist places of worship, especially newly established sites. The Zhejiang provincial government, for example, said that from April to June, 17,900 shrines and churches, which had been illegally erected, had been "rectified" which can mean destroyed, registered, or transferred to another group. Religious shrines in other areas of China were also destroyed. In November the Guangming Daily reported that 1,600 "pagan shrines" were destroyed in Hubei province 'in a nationwl',u4 crackdown on superstition. The newspaper reported that the shrines covered approximately 35 acres of land and cost approximately $700,000 to construct. The Guan ' Daily reported

that in November nine temples were closed 'in Guizhou province. In December Beijing Central Television reported that farmers had destroyed 400 temples and ancestral halls 'in Jiangxi province. The report stated that 200 new schools would be built on the land previously occupied by the temples. (A discussion of government restrictions on Tibetan Buddhism can be found in the addendum to this report.)

According to government figures, there are 17 million Muslims. In some areas with large Muslim populations, officials continue to restrict the building of mosques and the religious education of youths under the age of 18. Following unrest in 1990 'in Xinjiang, which has a large Muslim population, the authorities issued regulations further restricting religious activities and teaching. There were several reports of unrest 'in Xinjiang, prompting the leadership to issue statements on the need to control religion there. During a trip to Xinjiang on September I 1, Premier Li Peng said that relevant Chinese departments should "step up the control of religious affairs." Li also stated that China upholds freedom of religious belief, but added that religion "should serve the aims of socialism."

Authorities 'in Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, another province with a large Muslim population, issued regulations in July 1994, forbidding religious bodies from interfering in administrative affairs, 'including education, marriage, and family planning. China permits Muslim citizens to make the hajj to Mecca, and the number of those making the pilgrimage has 'increased significantly 'in recent years.

The number of Christians continues to grow rapidly. However, the Government permits only those Christian churches affiliated with either the Catholic Patriotic Association or the (Protestant) Three Self Patriotic Movement to operate openly. The Government established both organizations in the 1950's to eliminate perceived foreign domination of local Christian groups.

In some areas there is tacit cooperation between official and unofficial churches, but active, unofficial religious movements are viewed as posing a challenge as well as an alternative to the state-regulated churches. The unofficial, Vatican-affiliated Catholic Church claims a membership far larger than the 4 million persons registered with the official Catholic Church, although actual figures are unknown.. While government officials estimate that there are about 15 million Protestant worshipers in China, other estimates indicate that there are at least 10 million people who belong to the official Protestant church, while perhaps 30 million worship privately in house churches that are independent of government control. As a result of the increase 'in Protestant worshipers, there has been a corresponding demand for Bibles. This year, the Government supervised the publication of about 3 million Bibles--a two-fold increase over 1995.

There was evidence that authorities in some areas, guided by national policy, made strong efforts to crack down on the activities of the unapproved Catholic and Protestant movements. Local authorities have used threats, demolition of unregistered property, extortion of "fines," interrogation, detention, and reform-through-education sentences. Unofficial religious groups have been hard hit 'in Beijing and nearby provinces of Henan, where there are rapidly . g numbers of unregistered Protestants, and house churches that were part of a nationwide network claiming 10 million members affiliated with Xu Yongzhe, a religious leader who has been subjected to decades of persecution, 'including detention and imprisonment. In Hebei repression focused on the location of an annual spring pilgrimage to Donglu that was banned this year after attracting 10,000 unofficial Catholics in 1995. Hebel's underground church seminary was also closed down.

In Jiangxi, Zhejiang, and Fujian, police reportedly raided underground masses, destroyed altars, confiscated books, roughed up congregations, and detained some worshipers. During November, according to credible reports, approximately 80 underground Catholics from Linchuan, Jiangxi province, were arrested without warrants, beaten, and 'ailed. One source reported that several unofficial priests "disappeared" in Shanghai and Hebei.

A Western news report said that Chinese authorities 'in Fujian refused in August to provide medical care for 76-year-old Catholic Bishop Zeng Jingmu, who had contracted pneumonia. Zeng has been detained since March for holding illegal church services 'in his home. In May Beijing police detained Fu Xiqiu and his wife, Cai Bochun, for their work 'in establishing a Christian training center near Beijing. The couple were released in July, apparently after police could not find any evidence against them, but they were kept under close surveillance and lost their employment and housing.

Nonmainstream sects are often singled out for particularly heavy-handed treatment. In 1996 police continued to put pressure on an underground evangelical sect called the " Shouters. " The Shouters sect has been deemed counterrevolutionary by the Government, and its members have been repeatedly detained, fined, and imprisoned since its establishment over 16 years ago. In August authorities arrested well-known writer Bei Cun, along with 39 others in Fujian Province, for seeking converts to the outlawed sect. In February Public Security Bureau officers 'in Fujian detained Zhang Ruiyu, a member of the New Testament Church, and in March arrested church member Cai Lifen.

d. Freedom of Movement Within the Country, Foreign Travel, Emigration, and Repatriation

The effectiveness of the Government's identification card system, used to control and restrict the location of individual residences within China, continued to erode. Estimates of the "floating population" of economic migrants leaving their home areas to seek work elsewhere in China range from tens of millions to as many as 100 million. This itinerant population enjoys 'increased economic opportunities but lacks official residence status which provides full access to social services and education. Unless they obtain resident status, they must pay a premium for these services.

Authorities have denied some former inmates permission, under the "staying at prison employment" system, to return to their homes, a provision applicable to recidivists incarcerated in reform-through-labor camps. Those inmates sentenced to more than 5 years in reeducation-through-labor camps also may lose their legal right to return home. For those assigned to camps far from their residences, this constitutes a form of internal exile. The number of prisoners subject to this restriction is unknown. Authorities have reportedly forced others to accept jobs in state enterprises where they can be more closely supervised after their release from prison or detention.

Other released or paroled prisoners returned home but were not permitted freedom of movement. Chen Ziming, who was paroled on medical grounds 'in November, is confined to his home except for police-escorted visits to doctors. Bao Tong has been held in custody at a government facilitv in Beijing since his May release from Qimcheng prison upon completion of his sentence (see also Sections I.c. and I.e.).

The Government routinely permits legal emigration and most foreign travel. In November the Government announced streamlined and standardized procedures for Chinese citizens to obtain exit permits. In September dissident Zhang Xianliang departed China after his release from 'son earlier 'in the year. In the same month, authorities issued a passport to the father of Tiananmen activist Chai L'mg but reportedly denied the passport application of Guangzhou dissident Wang Xizhe. Wang fled China in October (see Section I.d.). Some have reported that their passports have been held by the Ministry of State Security.

Students wishing to go abroad still routinely were able to obtain passports. Permission for couples to travel abroad was sometimes conditioned on agreement to delay childbirth; noncompliance triggered fines for the couple or their work unit. The Government continued to use political attitudes as a major criterion 'in select' people for government-sponsored study abroad, but it did not similarly control privately sponsored students, who currently constitute the majority of students studying abroad. The Government continued efforts to attract persons who have studied overseas back to China. Official media have said that people who have joined foreign organizations hostile to China should quit them before returning home and refrain while abroad from activities that violate Chinese law.

In June a Xinhua News Agency official told a journalist that Chinese border control stations generally kept background records of certain citizens so that officials could decide whether to admit them to China. The following month, a Foreign Ministry owing spokesman dismissed reports that China "blacklists" political activists as "sheer rumor." International observers reported in 1995 that they had documents that substantiated their claims that such lists exist. Perhaps the most prominent case of a dissident refused reentry is labor activist Han Dongfang, whose passport was revoked in 1993 because he allegedly engaged 'in activities hostile to China while overseas. He remains in Hong Kong. The were instances during 1996 when the authorities refused visas or entry to China on apparent political grounds. In July eight Hong Kong members of the United Front Against the Provisional Legislature, who had hoped to hand a protest petition to the authorities, were denied entry at the Beijing airport.

The Government continued to accept the repatriation of citizens who had entered other countries or territories illegally. In 1996, in addition to the routine return of Chinese illegal immigrants found in Hong Kong, the Government continued accepting the return of several groups of illegal emigrants from other countries. Citizens illegally smuggled to other countries were often detained upon their return for a short time to determine identity and any past criminal record or involvement in smuggling activities. As a deterrent and to recover local costs 'incurred during the repatriation, the authorities in some areas levied fines of varying amounts up to a maximum of $1,000 on returnees. Exact amounts depended upon the extent to which returnees actively cooperated with the smugglers. Leaders of the alien smuggling rings are sometimes fined more than $1,000 and also face prison sentences.

Since the late 1980's, China has adopted a de facto policy of tolerance toward the small number of persons--fewer than I 00 annually--from other nations who have registered with the Beijing office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) as asylum seekers. China has permitted these persons to stay 'in China while the UNHCR makes determinations as to their status and--if the UNHCR determines that they are bona fide refugees--while they await resettlement in third countries. Treatment of asylum seekers who present themselves initially to Chinese authorities is unknown. As yet China has no law or regulations that authorize the authorities to grant refugee status, but the Government is reportedly drafting working rules on granting such status.

The Government provided local resettlement to almost 300,000 asylum seekers, overwhelmingly ethnic Chinese, who left Indochina for China during the late 1970's and the 1980's. The authorities have accepted the return to China of would-be illegal emigrants to Hong Kong and Australia from among these individuals, provided that China can verify their identity and willingness to return Voluntarily. China has successfully worked with Laos and Cambodia to facilitate the return of resettled individuals who have decided to return to their home countries, and it is now using the UNHCR's good offices to negotiate Vietnamese agreement to accept 9,000 persons seeking to repatriate to Vietnam. The Government denies having tightened its policy on accepting Vietnamese asylum seekers. In recent years very few such asylum seekers have found resettlement in China.