<F SCMP37.TXT>
<U 2697> 
<D 92:09:01> 
<P 11> 
{headline} American rights record under fire {byline} From 
GEOFFREY CROTHALL in Beijing {article} CHINA yesterday 
launched another attack on the United States' human rights 
record, criticising the US Government's persistent refusal to 
sign the International Convention on Human Rights. {para} A 
signed commentary in the People's Daily accused the US of 
trying to enforce its own standards on the convention and 
refusing to sign when it did not get its own way. {para} The 
author Liu Xinghan said: ``It is clear that the US took a 
leading role early on in drafting international human rights 
legislation in a bid to enforce its own standards on the rest 
of the world. {para} ``Once it became apparent the convention 
would reflect the views of under developed and socialist 
countries, the US resolutely opposed it,'' he said. {para} 
Following the promulgation of the convention in 1976, Liu 
claimed the US pursued its own human rights policy based on 
its own laws as a means of interfering in other countries 
internal affairs without being bound by the United Nations 
charter or the International Human Rights Convention. {para} 
``How pleasant this must be for the United States,'' Liu said.
{para} The author further accused the US and other western 
countries of trying to maintain their ``colonial interests'' 
in the Third World by blocking international human rights 
legislation which would protect the economic interests of 
developing countries. {para} The US feared that giving Third 
World countries the right of self determination over their 
natural resources and assets would harm the interests of 
individual American businesses, Liu said. {para} The US 
Government argues it has not signed the convention because it 
does not conform with its domestic legislation but Liu claimed
``quite a few American scholars say the convention is 
basically in line with western standards''. {para} Analysts 
said the commentary was a continuation of China's ``aggressive
defence'' of its own human rights record and an attempt to 
discredit its critics. {para} China has, over the last year, 
published two ``white papers'' on human rights and criminal 
reform as well as numerous commentaries in official newspapers
designed to explain its concepts of human rights and deflect 
accusations in the West of human rights abuses. {para} A 
western diplomat said: ``The constant stream of attacks on its
human rights record has clearly got China on the defensive. 
{para} ``Its response has been to on the one hand lambaste its
main critic, the US, while on the other hand churn out endless
reams of propaganda about how human rights are safeguarded in 
China and how well prisoners are treated,'' he said. {para} 
``However, while this goes some way to establishing a human 
rights dialogue, very little has actually been done to improve
human rights on the ground in China,'' he added. {para} 
Analysts were generally sceptical about the impact China's 
propaganda would have on the international community. 
{/article} 
<U 2698> 
<D 92:08:22> 
<P 8> 
{headline} Eight more years for jailed Tibetan {byline} By 
ROBBIE BARNETT {article} A TIBETAN prisoner serving a 19-year 
sentence for shouting pro-independence slogans has received an
additional eight-year sentence for shouting out more slogans, 
unofficial reports from Tibet said. {para} The prisoner, 
63-year-old primary school teacher Jigme Zangpo, spent 15 
years in prison from 1960 for not punishing a child who had 
written ``Down with Chairman Mao'' on the wall of a school 
toilet. {para} The prisoner, also known as Tanak Jigme Zangpo 
or Jigsang, has had his current sentence increased to 27 years
because he shouted support for the Dalai Lama while three 
Swiss diplomats were inspecting the prison last year. {para} 
The delegation, which included Switzerland's ambassador to 
China, visited Drapchi prison in Lhasa last December. {para} 
The diplomats later admitted they had heard shouting from a 
small group of prisoners who were apparently trying to attract
their attention. {para} News of the long sentence handed down 
to Jigsang will probably cause considerable embarrassment to 
the Swiss Government. {para} Mr Chris Meuwly, a spokesman for 
the Swiss Foreign Affairs Department, said: ``We are perfectly
aware of the significance of such a sentence.'' {/article} 
<U 2699> 
<D 92:09:04> 
<P 12> 
{headline} Shen `engaged in illegal activities' {byline} From 
GEOFFREY CROTHALL in Beijing {article} THE Chinese Government 
yesterday broke its silence on its arrest of student leader 
Shen Tong, accusing him of engaging in illegal activities 
after his return. {para} In its first report on the incident, 
the New China News Agency yesterday said Shen was arrested 
because he had never stopped his ``anti-Chinese Government 
activities which are against the constitution and laws''. 
{para} It accused him of attempting to set up an ``illegal 
organisation'', namely, the ``Fund for Democracy in China 
Beijing Office''. {para} A Foreign Ministry spokesman Mr Wu 
Jianmin said: ``Shen Tong is a Chinese citizen who engaged in 
illegal activities after returning to China. The relevant 
authorities are investigating his case according to law.'' 
{para} He dismissed United States and French government 
protests over Shen's detention as ``unreasonable''. {para} 
When asked what illegal activities Shen was supposed to have 
engaged in, Mr Wu replied: ``It's pretty obvious, isn't it?'' 
{para} Quoting from a prepared statement by Shen, the NCNA 
report said it showed that he had wanted to ``end the old 
regime'' and ``establish a new political power'' in China. 
{para} ``This shows that Shen Tong had never stopped his 
anti-Chinese Government activities. This is not permissible,''
it said. {para} The report also claimed that China's policy 
towards overseas students would not be affected by the 
incident. {para} ``The Chinese Government has made clear that 
we welcome all students to return after their studies 
regardless of their political stance,'' NCNA quoted an unnamed
official as saying. {para} ``It does not matter what their 
political views are and whether they have joined any 
anti-Chinese Government organisations. As long as they 
withdraw from these organisations and stop their anti-Chinese 
Government and Chinese constitution activities, they are 
welcome back.'' {para} The report also accused Shen's 
``one-month-long tour'' of China as a ``premeditated scheme'' 
and the publication of Shen's prepared statement in the New 
York Times on Wednesday when he was arrested was part of the 
scheme. {para} But neither Mr Wu nor the NCNA report mentioned
the whereabouts of Shen's colleagues, Qian Liyun and Qi 
Dafang, who were arrested with Shen in the early hours of 
Tuesday morning. {para} A Public Security official reiterated 
the Government's claim to Shen's mother, Ms Li Yixian, when 
she visited a local police station to protest against her 
son's detention yesterday morning. {para} ``They told her we 
could not see him because he had done something illegal and 
was under investigation,'' Shen's grandmother, Ms Guang Rubin,
said. {para} But the police did say that Shen had been moved 
to an ``assigned living location''. {para} Ms Guang strongly 
denied that her grandson had done anything illegal. {para} 
``His activities were concerned with democracy and human 
rights, what's illegal about that?'' she asked. {para} Earlier
yesterday, the US State Department said it would continue to 
pursue the case with the Chinese authorities. {para} ``We will
continue to raise these points with the Chinese Government at 
every opportunity,'' spokesman Mr Richard Boucher said. 
{/article} 
<U 2700> 
<D 92:08:29> 
<P 2> 
{headline} Shekou to report on `piracies' {byline} By K. K. 
CHADHA and PAUL TYRRELL {article} THE New China News Agency 
(NCNA) is expecting a report from Shekou authorities about 
recent ``official piracy'' incidents in which ships sailing 
from Hongkong to Vietnam were detained in the mainland port. 
{para} The report will then be forwarded to the Political 
Adviser's Office, which yesterday changed from its previous 
position and asked the Hongkong branch of the NCNA to provide 
details of the incidents. There is no word on when the report 
will be ready. {para} Previously, the Government had refused 
to become involved in the controversy because no Hongkong 
registered vessels or citizens from the territory had been on 
board the ships which had their cargo confiscated under 
allegations of smuggling. {para} A Security Branch spokesman 
said the request to the NCNA was low-key and Beijing had not 
been approached directly. {para} He said: ``We have asked the 
New China News Agency to provide us with any background 
information about the series of incidents. {para} ``It was 
decided to make the official approach because although the 
ships and their crew are not from Hongkong, they were sailing 
from the territory and we are concerned about their safety and
well-being.'' {para} According to shipping industry sources, 
five more vessels were intercepted by the Chinese yesterday, 
taking the number to 14 since the incidents began five weeks 
ago. {para} The five are: Song Tien 02, Bato, Bac Long Ve, 
Vietho 02 and Cuulong Giang 02, which were all Vietnamese. 
{para} Yesterday, the Marine Department received a message 
from the master of Vietnamese-registered Song Tien 02 at 8.12 
am saying that mainland police had boarded the vessel as it 
entered Chinese waters. {para} A Marine Department official 
then informed the agent, Junlick Shipping Co. {para} The 
1,600-tonne ship had sailed from Yau Ma Tei about two hours 
earlier and was not heard from again. {para} Its cargo 
included 25 luxury cars, TVs, VCRs, and 40 tonnes of goods for
China's diplomatic mission in Cambodia. {para} According to 
information reaching Hongkong, the Chinese authorities had 
started unloading the 7,000- tonne East Wood, which was 
detained on Tuesday. {para} Industry sources said the East 
Wood was on its first voyage to Vietnam when intercepted and 
could not be suspected of smuggling. {para} Meanwhile, the 
Vietnamese ship Rach Gia 04, which was expected to arrive in 
Hongkong yesterday minus its cargo, sailed for Vietnam 
instead. {para} According to the ship's agent, Welltrade Cargo
Services, the Chinese authorities had confiscated the ship's 
registration and trading papers although they were in order, 
leaving the master no choice but to sail to a home port. 
{para} The master claimed the ship's crew were detained in the
hold for five days with guns to their heads. {para} A possible
reason for detaining the cargo could be that the mainland 
authorities were trying to curb smuggling as well as the 
lucrative trade carried out under unofficial ``negotiated 
contracts'' between China and Vietnam through border posts. 
{/article} 
<U 2701> 
<D 92:09:07> 
<P 8> 
{headline} Authorities silent on fate of activist {byline} 
From GEOFFREY CROTHALL in Beijing and FIONA CHAN {article} THE
Chinese authorities have yet to inform the family of Qi 
Dafang, one of the two people arrested at the same time as 
student leader Shen Tong, of his detention. {para} Qi's wife, 
who lives in the eastern province of Anhui, said she only 
heard about her husband's detention through friends, but had 
received no information from the public security bureau. 
{para} ``I don't know where he is being held or if he has been
charged with any crime,'' she said. {para} ``There is nothing 
I can do. I have no way of getting to Beijing, all I can do is
wait here and hope someone can find out what has happened to 
him.'' {para} The family of Qian Liyun, who was also arrested 
with Shen at his mother's house early last Tuesday morning, 
have apparently been informed that she is being held for 
questioning at an undisclosed location in Beijing. {para} It 
has been claimed by American scholar Mr Ross Terrill that Qi 
and Qian were colleagues of Shen during the 1989 student 
movement but other intellectuals in Beijing say they only met 
him for the first time a few weeks ago after Shen returned 
from three years in exile in the United States. {para} Qian is
married to Xiong Yan, listed as one of Beijing's most wanted 
suspects in what it terms the 1989 ``counter-revolutionary 
rebellion''. But it is understood she was not directly 
involved in the student movement at that time. {para} Qi is 
said to have spent 20 months in detention after the June 4 
massacre in Beijing, but again is understood not to have 
worked with Shen prior to last month. {para} Shen is said by 
some intellectuals to have sought out Qian and Qi after he 
arrived in Beijing and ``conned'' them into joining his 
organisation, the Democracy for China Fund. {para} ``He went 
to see a lot of people, but most were not interested in what 
he was doing,'' one academic said. {para} ``It is unfortunate 
these two people got involved.'' {para} The Chinese 
authorities are still refusing to say where Shen, Qi and Qian 
are being held or whether they will be charged with a specific
crime. All that has been said so far is that Shen ``engaged in
illegal activities'' after returning to China. {para} Despite 
rumours that Shen was about to be deported, analysts say it 
now appears he will be held in detention for at least a few 
weeks. {para} ``The initial international outcry over his 
detention appears to have died down already and so there is 
considerably less pressure on China to let him go,'' a 
diplomat in Beijing said yesterday. {para} In Hongkong, the 
pro-democracy April 5th Action Group yesterday staged a 
demonstration outside the branch of the New China News Agency 
to demand the immediate release of Shen. {para} Holding 
banners and placards, 10 members of the April 5th chanted 
slogans and sang the Internationale for about 20 minutes 
outside China's de facto embassy. {para} Group spokesman Ms 
Lai Siu-chun said they would approach other human rights 
groups to find out the whereabouts of ``activists'' who were 
said to have been arrested by police after meeting Shen. 
{para} In addition, the radical group said it would organise 
more protests in tandem with other local groups such as the 
Hongkong Federation of Students to put pressure on China to 
release Shen and other activists. {/article} 
<P 1> 
{headline} Videos of prisoners to be released main head for pg
1 {headline} Beijing to release videos of prisoners {byline} 
From GEOFFREY CROTHALL in Beijing {article} THE Chinese 
Government will release videotapes of three well-known 
political prisoners to the United Nations Human Rights 
Commission next week to demonstrate they are in good health 
and being well treated, it was revealed yesterday. {para} 
Tapes of 1989 student leader, Wang Dan, and Democracy Wall 
activists, Xu Wenli and Ren Wanding, are a direct response to 
Western press reports of their mistreatment, according to 
human rights campaigner Mr John Kamm. {para} ``They 
emphatically deny they are ill-treated.'' {para} The 
authorities also provided Mr Kamm with two photographs, 
allegedly showing Xu, who has served 11 years of a 15-year 
sentence in Beijing No 1 prison. {para} The photographs show a
slightly built middle-aged man with several teeth missing 
playing badminton in the prison courtyard, but Mr Kamm said he
had not yet been able to verify their authenticity. {para} The
man in the pictures has dark hair but according to Mr Robin 
Munro of the New York-based human rights group Asia Watch, who
knows him personally, Xu has white hair. {para} The badminton 
tournament, at which the authorities say Xu won second prize, 
was the first activity he had been allowed to participate in 
for 11 years, Mr Munro claimed. {para} ``Xu has been kept in 
solitary confinement for 11 years, he is not allowed to do any
work or activity, he sits in a cell all day and reads, only 
being allowed out for occasional exercise,'' he said. {para} 
``He is not even allowed to have a pen except for one monthly 
letter to his family and is not permitted any pictures or 
family photographs in his cell. {para} ``That is what has 
happened to Xu Wenli. The fact he has remained sane throughout
this period is a miracle and a testimony to his strength of 
character.'' {para} But Mr Kamm said the authorities had told 
him Xu now strongly supports paramount leader Mr Deng 
Xiaoping's policy of opening up to the outside world but 
refuses to write a statement to that effect. {para} Mr Munro 
says however, Xu is a Marxist who has always supported Mr 
Deng. ``He is a moderate, you can't find anything in his 
writings that could be termed counter-revolutionary.'' {para} 
Mr Kamm, who has been in Beijing for five days of talks with 
judicial authorities, says he has detected a trend towards a 
greater openness on human rights cases. {para} The authorities
have been concerned at Western press reports of mistreatment 
of prisoners and think that by releasing more information on 
their conditions will deflect some of the negative publicity 
on China's human rights record, Mr Kamm said. {para} ``I get 
the impression that certain ministries feel that the release 
of information on these cases is as good as actually releasing
the people concerned,'' he said. {para} Analysts note however 
that photographic and video evidence can easily be tampered 
with and is unlikely to convince seasoned observers that 
actual conditions concur with those being displayed. {para} 
Meanwhile, according to Mr Kamm, two Shanghai activists, Gu 
Bin and Yang Zhou, who were arrested in April last year for 
founding the underground Study Group on Human Rights Issues in
China, have been freed. {para} In addition, Zhu Jianbin, a 
writer from Wuhan, has been freed after he completed his 
11-year sentence for taking part in the 1978 Democracy Wall 
movement. An elderly evangelist, Xie Moshan, was also believed
to have been set free too, Mr Kamm said. {para} However, Chen 
Lantao, a 27-year-old marine biologist, has apparently been 
denied any leniency and was still serving an 18-year sentence 
in a prison in Qingdao of Shandong province. {para} ``I was 
told by officials of the Justice Ministry that they would 
consider his case if he submits a petition,'' Mr Kamm said. 
{/article} 
<U 2702> 
<D 92:09:03> 
<P 1> 
{headline} Expelled scholar fears for US ties {byline} By KENT
CHEN {article} AMERICAN scholar, Mr Ross Terrill, who was 
expelled by China yesterday for ``activities incompatible with
his status as a tourist'', said the arrest of dissident Shen 
Tong and the subsequent expulsion of foreigners would upset 
relations between China and the United States. {para} 
``Expulsion is a small thing in itself but it reminds people 
of some larger problem,'' Mr Terrill said in Hongkong. {para} 
If Chinese authorities did not release Shen soon, they risked 
bringing complications to American-Chinese relations, warned 
the American author who wrote a biography of Chairman Mao 
Zedong's wife Jiang Qing. {para} ``If the Shen Tong thing goes
on and on and on, combined with how they treated me, the 
American-Sino knot will be upset because I am someone who has 
been going there since 1964 and to suddenly say I don't 
respect Chinese laws is not something people would find 
believable,'' he said. {para} Mr Terrill had been helping Shen
in his quest to return to China and resume attempts to meet 
and organise pro-democracy activists. {para} He said some of 
the Chinese communist leaders were still behaving as if they 
were still living in the days of triangular politics between 
the Soviet Union, China and the US, believing China was 
absolutely necessary as balance. {para} ``Of course those days
are gone, and the fact is that human rights and democratic 
values have come into American foreign policy,'' he said. 
{para} Mr Terrill said that Public Security officers went to 
his hotel shortly after midnight on Tuesday and made him sign 
a confession admitting he had distributed Shen's statements to
reporters. {para} ``I signed a statement acknowledging that in
the unfortunate absence of Shen Tong from his own press 
conference, when the press arrived I distributed some of the 
statements that he had prepared to journalists, so that became
the gist of my offence,'' he said. {para} He said he was not 
allowed to telephone the US Embassy or pay his hotel bill 
before he was hustled to the airport and put on a flight to 
Hongkong. {para} Mr Terrill said he would continue to 
encourage those who were working for a different China after 
returning to the US. {para} ``Don't believe that Ross Terrill 
will not ever go to China again and that the Chinese will be 
able to shut up Shen Tong. China will change,'' he said. 
{para} Mr Terrill admitted that the arrest of Shen indicated 
that the people he met, including students and underground 
activists, were in danger. {para} He disclosed that Shen had 
met a former university president, a famous playwright, and a 
retired journalist. {para} Meanwhile, the National Committee 
on US-China Relations yesterday said it was disappointed by 
the action of the Chinese authorities against Shen. {para} 
Noting that such an incident would have a substantive impact 
on relations between China and the US, the group warned 
Beijing either to control its security apparatus, or be held 
accountable for the impact of the incident. {para} Chairman of
the non-profit organisation, Mr Barber Conable, said at a time
when the Chinese authorities were trying to encourage students
to return, ``the negative impact by this kind of action is 
extremely unfortunate''. {para} Even if Shen might not be 
detained for long, the intimidation of his arrest had an 
impact on American attitudes towards China, he said. {para} 
The president of the organisation, Mr David Lampton, also said
the action came at a very sensitive time as American foreign 
policy and foreign trade were under debate during the election
campaign. {/article} 
<U 2703> 
<D 92:08:20> 
<P 1> 
{headline} Lawyers challenge Bao's `state secret' {byline} By 
DANIEL KWAN {article} LAWYERS for Bao Tong, the former 
personal aide of disgraced Chinese Communist Party boss Mr 
Zhao Ziyang, were denied the right to call witnesses to court 
to testify on an alleged ``state secret'' which the court had 
used to convict Bao. {para} In a written defence submitted in 
Bao's appeal, the lawyers claimed he was wrongfully sentenced 
to seven years' jail for hinting to one of his staff that Mr 
Zhao had tendered his resignation, and expressing his 
disapproval of the Government and the imposition of martial 
law in Beijing in the summer of 1989. {para} The lawyers 
contended that it was wrong for the court not to specify what 
state secret Bao had allegedly disclosed because Mr Zhao was 
no longer the party secretary. {para} In the defence - a copy 
of which has been obtained by the South China Morning Post - 
they also claimed this constituted a violation of Bao's right 
to defend himself. {para} According to the defence, the 
prosecution based its arguments on evidence given by an 
assistant of Bao, Gao Shan, and claimed that Bao had revealed 
to Gao ``the scope of knowledge of [Mr Zhao] Ziyang's stepping
down''. {para} The prosecution alleged that in a conversation 
with Mr Chen Yizhi, a former director of the Economic System 
Reform Institute, Bao had expressed disapproval of the 
Government and the imposition of martial law in Beijing. 
{para} Based on the evidence given by another witness, Mr Liu 
Xiaofeng, who was an assistant of Mr Chen, the prosecution 
claimed Bao was guilty of the charge of ``making 
counter-revolutionary propaganda and incitement''. {para} The 
prosecution said that according to Mr Liu, Bao ``appeared to 
have approved'' an idea by Mr Chen to print and distribute 
leaflets in Beijing ``to attack the Government and the 
imposition of martial law''. {para} ``The prosecution has 
based its claim that in a meeting on May 20, 1989, Bao 
attacked the Government and martial law in a conservation with
Chen,'' the defence read. ``But in the evidence given by Liu, 
he only said that Bao seemed to have approved [a suggestion to
print the leaflets].'' {para} Mr Liu was detained by police 
after the military crackdown and was released in late 1989. 
{para} The defence, which was prepared by Bao's two lawyers, 
Mr Zhang Sizhi and Mr Yang Dunxian, also revealed for the 
first time that Mr Zhao had tendered his resignation before 
the imposition of martial law. {para} It said Mr Zhao had 
written a resignation letter on the night of May 17, 1989. 
{para} According to a December 1991 document prepared by the 
Chinese Communist Party Secretarial Office, the resignation 
was then classified as a ``top state secret'', the defence 
said. {para} Previous reports said that Bao was arrested and 
sentenced because he had revealed the imposition of martial 
law to pro-democracy students in Tiananmen Square. {para} In 
addition, the defence also revealed that despite the 
significance of Gao's evidence, he was in fact absent from the
May 17 meeting at which Bao was accused of hinting that Mr 
Zhao was stepping down. {para} According to the defence, Gao 
only learned about the meeting through Ms Yan Jun, a 
researcher for Bao's office. {para} ``But as Yan's evidence 
showed, she had not mentioned the stepping down of Zhao in her
conservation with Gao,'' the defence read. {para} ``Since Yan 
had never revealed to Gao about the stepping down of Zhao, 
this meant that the allegation of Bao disclosing the 
resignation of Zhao to Gao is without any base,'' it said. 
{/article} 
<U 2704> 
<D 92:08:25> 
<P 1> 
{headline} Four decades of hostility overcome as Seoul and 
Beijing hail agreement {headline} Pact lifts Cold War barrier 
{byline} From GEOFFREY CROTHALL in Beijing and agencies 
{article} CHINA and South Korea yesterday put four decades of 
hostility behind them and signed a pact opening diplomatic 
relations, punching through one of the last Cold War barriers 
in Asia. {para} Chinese Prime Minister Mr Li Peng hailed the 
new agreement as having great significance for the future 
development of Asia, while South Korean President Mr Roh 
Tae-woo said the pact marked a turning point for Seoul. {para}
``This is a very important event in relations between China 
and Korea and has great significance for peace and development
in Asia and the world,'' Mr Li told visiting South Korean 
Foreign Minister Mr Lee Sang- ock. {para} But Taiwan, which 
lost its last ally in Asia after South Korea switched its 
recognition to Beijing yesterday, condemned the move, saying 
Seoul would be ``held in contempt by all lovers of freedom''. 
{para} ``The South Korean government of Roh Tae-woo violated 
our trust and trampled on international justice,'' a foreign 
ministry spokesman said, quoted by the semi-official Central 
News Agency. {para} North Korea, China's long time military 
and ideological ally in Asia, has yet to react to the tying of
knots between Beijing and Seoul and the national media 
remained silent over the news yesterday. {para} While Beijing 
insisted there would be no change, the Korean Central News 
Agency reported a meeting between North Korean People's Armed 
Forces Minister Mr O Jin-u and a ``friendship visiting group''
from the Chinese People's Liberation Army led by Mr Song 
Qingwei, the political commissar of the Jinan military 
district. {para} In his meeting with Mr Lee, Chinese premier 
Mr Li said economic and trade relations between China and 
South Korea had developed rapidly over the last few years and 
expressed the hope that development would accelerate further 
with the establishment of diplomatic ties. {para} South Korean
companies were most welcome to invest in China, he said. 
{para} China's trade with South Korea is expected to surpass 
US$10 billion (HK$77.27 billion) this year. Direct South 
Korean investment in China is now US$170 million, and an 
official newspaper in Beijing said yesterday it could grow to 
US$500 million this year. {para} Mr Lee earlier signed the 
diplomatic communique with his Chinese counterpart, Mr Qian 
Qichen, before an audience of beaming officials at Beijing's 
Diaoyutai State Guest House. {para} Mr Lee later met Chinese 
President Mr Yang Shangkun, who formally invited Mr Roh to 
visit Beijing soon. {para} In Seoul, Mr Roh announced he would
travel to Beijing ``in the near future'' for a summit meeting 
officials said was expected in early October. {para} Calling 
the normalisation ``a significant turning point in world 
history'', Mr Roh said: ``The last external constraint for a 
peaceful unification of the Korean peninsula is now removed.''
{para} The development ``heralds the beginning of the end of 
the Cold War in East Asia, which remains as the last legacy of
the Cold War era'', he said in a nationally televised speech. 
{para} Trying to salvage relations with an ally of four 
decades, he said recognition of China was ``extremely painful 
and distressing in view of the long and friendly relations we 
have had with Taiwan''. {para} But his China visit would be a 
slap in the face for Taiwan which closed down its embassy in 
Seoul yesterday. Taiwan Economic Minister Mr Vincent Siew 
announced last Saturday that it would cut direct air links 
with South Korea in mid-September. {para} Taiwan officials 
estimated the suspension of air links would cost South Korean 
airlines about US$100 million in annual revenue, and Taiwan 
airlines will lose about US$25 million. {para} In other 
retaliatory moves, Mr Siew also scrapped all preferential 
trade agreements with Seoul and cancelled plans to import 
11,424 vehicles from South Korea. {para} South Korea also shut
its embassy in Taipei. Ambassador Mr Park Noh-young would 
return to South Korea today, the CNA said. {para} Taiwanese 
protesters hurled eggs at the embassy and trampled on South 
Korean flags over the weekend, but the scene was quiet 
yesterday. Some store owners in Taipei covered up signs 
advertising Korean goods outside their shops. {para} In 
Beijing, Mr Lee yesterday was quick to play down the rift with
Taiwan however, saying Seoul would maintain good economic and 
trade relations with its former ally. {para} Mr Wu Jianmin, 
spokesman of the Chinese Foreign Ministry, also offered a 
conciliatory note yesterday saying Beijing did not object to 
South Korea maintaining its economic, scientific and cultural 
links with Taiwan. {para} Mr Wu also stressed that China's 
relationship with North Korea would remain unchanged. {para} 
Diplomatic links to help boost HK trade - Page 8 Editorial - 
Page 16 {/article} 
<U 2705> 
<D 92:08:22> 
<P 8> 
{headline} Last big June 4 trial set to start {byline} From 
GEOFFREY CROTHALL in Beijing {article} THE last prominent 
political prisoner to be charged in connection with the 1989 
pro-democracy demonstrations in Beijing will stand trial on 
Tuesday. {para} Wu Jiaxiang, a senior aide to deposed 
Communist Party general secretary Mr Zhao Ziyang, would appear
before the Beijing Intermediate Court charged with 
``counter-revolutionary incitement and propaganda'', a source 
close to his family said yesterday. {para} His wife, Ms Li 
Manying, would be allowed to attend the trial, the first time 
she would have been able to see her husband since his arrest 
in 1989, the source said. {para} Wu, 37, is being held in 
Beijing's maximum security Qincheng prison where he is said to
be in good health and living in relatively comfortable 
conditions. {para} Many observers expect Wu, a prominent 
political scientist in the 1980s, to be sentenced to a term of
five years in prison. The three years he has already spent in 
jail will be included in the sentence. {para} The former 
personal secretary to Mr Zhao, Bao Tong, was sentenced last 
month to five years in prison for the same offence. {para} The
trials of Wu and Bao, together with another key Zhao aide, Gao
Shan, earlier this month, mark the final chapter in China's 
three-year-long crackdown on the alleged ``black hands'' 
behind the 1989 democracy movement. {para} All three men were 
accused of aiding the student movement by providing sensitive 
information about the Communist Party and instigating 
anti-government propaganda. {para} Their trials are being seen
by many observers as means of providing scapegoats for the 
alleged mistakes of Mr Zhao Ziyang and thereby clearing the 
path for Mr Zhao's rehabilitation. {para} Wu worked closely 
with Mr Zhao as a senior researcher in the central office of 
the Communist Party and was one of the chief architects of 
``neo-authoritarianism,'' a theory used by the liberal wing of
the party to try to bolster Mr Zhao's position while he was 
under attack from the conservatives. {para} He was one of the 
first few officials to be targeted by the party's hardliners 
after Mr Zhao's fall from grace and the crackdown by the 
People's Liberation Army in Beijing on the night of June 3, 
1989. {/article} 
<U 2706> 
<D 92:09:01> 
<P 1> 
{headline} Yeltsin set to visit Beijing in December {byline} 
By WILLY WO-LAP LAM and agencies {article} RUSSIAN President 
Mr Boris Yeltsin will make a historic visit to China in 
December, the Chinese Foreign Ministry has confirmed. {para} 
Quoting a ministry spokesman, the semi-official China News 
Service reported yesterday that Mr Yeltsin was going to China 
at the invitation of President Mr Yang Shangkun. {para} 
Diplomatic sources in Beijing and Moscow said the visit, which
was discussed during the trip to Beijing last May by 
Vice-Premier Mr Alexander Shokhin, was originally set for 
November. {para} But because of concern about domestic issues,
Mr Yeltsin had requested a postponement. {para} The exact 
dates have not been fixed. {para} Diplomats said Mr Yeltsin's 
trip would have more than the symbolic significance attached 
to the first visit to China by a Russian head of state. {para}
``In spite of the Chinese Communist Party's long-standing 
reservations about the Westernised ideology of Yeltsin, the 
Russian leader could achieve concrete results in China in 
areas like trade and military co-operation,'' a Western 
diplomat said. {para} Given Washington's ban on the export of 
high-technology to China, Beijing is eager to procure 
sophisticated defence know-how from Russia. {para} The two 
countries are also keen to promote border trade as well as 
open up more of their economies. {para} Mr Yeltsin's tour 
could also provide the impetus for the speedy conclusion of 
talks on the demilitarisation of borders and the definition of
boundaries between China and the Commonwealth of Independent 
States. {para} The tone for Mr Yeltsin's trip has been set by 
the tour to Moscow last month of Vice-Premier Mr Tian Jiyun 
and the current visit by Defence Minister General Qin Jiwei. 
{para} As the Chinese representative to the bilateral economic
commission, Mr Tian reached agreements with his hosts on 
stepped-up trading and other links. {para} Political observers
in Moscow said the Russians' welcome for General Qin, whose 
trip ends on Monday, was even more effusive. {para} They said 
General Qin raised the possibility of the purchase of more 
Russian military hardware, including MiG-27 fighters. {para} 
The Itar-Tass news agency yesterday quoted Acting Premier Mr 
Yegor Gaidar as telling General Qin that arm sales to China 
could help keep Russia's stagnating military industry afloat. 
{/article} 
<U 2707> 
<D 92:09:15> 
<P 11> 
{headline} Emperor spared public apology {byline} By WILLY 
WO-LAP LAM {article} BEIJING has made its clearest indication 
to date that it will not demand that Emperor Akihito make an 
apology for war- time atrocities committed by the Japanese 
imperial army. {para} In a meeting yesterday with a delegation
from Japan's Jiji Press, a member of the politburo Standing 
Committee, Mr Li Ruihuan, also hinted that the emperor might 
meet patriarch Mr Deng Xiaoping. {para} Asked about Chinese 
concern for a major speech that Emperor Akihito was scheduled 
to make soon after his arrival in Beijing on October 23, Mr Li
said: ``We will not make difficult requests on His Majesty''. 
{para} Mr Li's statement has confirmed reports that the 
Japanese Government had agreed to the emperor's visit only 
after reassurances from Beijing that he would not have to make
a formal apology for the atrocities. {para} The politburo 
member, who is a protege of Mr Deng, also gave hints about a 
meeting between the emperor and the patriarch. {para} 
``Comrade Xiaoping has seldom met visitors since his 
retirement,'' Jiji Press quoted Mr Li as saying. {para} 
``Whether he will meet a foreign dignitary depends on various 
factors. However, I am not saying that the meeting will 
[definitely] not take place.'' {para} Diplomats in Beijing 
said the Japanese had not formally requested such a meeting. 
{para} But in the tradition of Chinese diplomatic language, Mr
Li's comments augured well for such an historic tete-a-tete, 
they said. {para} Of the forthcoming 14th Communist Party 
congress, Mr Li said its main task was to ``substantiate the 
spirit of Deng Xiaoping's tour to southern China'', during 
which he made a call for fast- paced reform. {para} The 
politburo heavyweight said the date for the commencement of 
the conclave had still not been decided. {para} ``You'll know 
for certain two months from now,'' he said, implying that the 
meeting might be postponed until November. {para} Turning to 
Sino-American relations, Mr Li said he hoped bilateral ties 
would not worsen as a result of the United States' sale of 
F-16 jets to Taiwan. {para} But he said Washington's decision 
was detrimental to regional stability as well as to Chinese 
reunification. {para} ``China and the US are far apart, being 
on both sides of the Pacific Ocean,'' Mr Li said. ``There is 
no fundamental conflict of interests between the two.'' {para}
He added that he hoped the crisis that had arisen over the 
F-16 deal could be resolved through friendly and peaceful 
negotiation. {para} Of Tokyo's recent decision to send 
``peace-keeping forces'' abroad, Mr Li said ``Japan is still a
long way from being a strong military power.'' {para} The 
senior cadre added that Beijing did not wish to see Japan 
becoming such a power. {para} Mr Tong Zeng, the Beijing-based 
activist campaigning for Japanese compensation for war-time 
atrocities, has vowed to join hands with like-minded groups in
Korea, Taiwan, Hongkong and other Asian countries and 
districts. {para} Mr Tong said yesterday that the Japanese 
Embassy in Beijing had already handed over to the Japanese 
Government data he had collected on war victims, including 
``comfort women'' serving Japanese soldiers. {para} He said he
and other volunteers were trying to locate more ``comfort 
women'', who would be encouraged to seek reparations from 
Tokyo. {/article} 
<U 2708> 
<D 92:09:11> 
<P 10> 
{headline} Bid to calm fears over jet deal row {byline} From 
GEOFFREY CROTHALL in Beijing {article} CHINA has sought to 
calm fears that its dispute with the United States over the 
sale of F-16 fighter planes to Taiwan could lead to new arms 
proliferation in the Middle East and other regions. {para} 
Beijing has also reiterated the nuclear facility it plans to 
sell Iran is for peaceful purposes only. {para} In his weekly 
press conference yesterday, foreign ministry spokesman, Mr Wu 
Jianmin, said China would continue to adopt a ``responsible'' 
attitude towards arms sales. ``China has always adopted a 
prudent and responsible attitude towards its arms exports. 
This position remains unchanged,'' Mr Wu said. {para} He said 
the issue of arms sales would not be discussed with Iranian 
President Mr Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, who is on his first
official visit as president to China. {para} At a press 
conference last night, Mr Rafsanjani also stressed that 
military co-operation was not on the agenda during his visit 
to Beijing. {para} ``I am here as the guest of the President 
and Prime Minister of China to discuss several bilateral 
issues but there is no military contract to be signed,'' he 
said. {para} But Mr Rafsanjani did confirm Iran had agreed to 
buy a 300-megawatt nuclear power station from China to be used
for civilian purposes. {para} Agreements on the supply of 
subway trains, other technical transfers and political, 
educational and cultural agreements were also signed, he said.
{para} While meeting Mr Rafsanjani yesterday, premier Mr Li 
Peng said China would co-operate with Iran in the peaceful use
of nuclear energy if the latter would accept inspection and 
supervision by the International Atomic Energy Agency. {para} 
Meanwhile, Mr Wu yesterday denied that China's recent purchase
of Su-27 fighters from the former Soviet Union represented a 
threat to regional stability. {para} ``China has one of the 
lowest per capita defence budgets in the world and its 
military capabilities are entirely for self defence. China is 
committed to the maintenance of peace in Asia and the world,''
he said. {para} ``As a sovereign nation, China is entitled to 
conduct normal military co-operation and arms trade with other
countries for the purpose of self-defence.'' {para} Mr Wu said
it was the US decision sell the F-16s that was the real threat
to regional stability. {para} ``By blatantly deciding to sell 
F-16 fighters to Taiwan, the US has infringed on China's 
sovereignty and interfered in China's internal affairs and 
created tension in the region, he said. {para} ``We strongly 
demand that the US Government revoke its decision otherwise it
will be held wholly responsible for the serious consequences 
arising there from.'' {/article} 
<U 2709> 
<D 92:09:25> 
<P 12> 
{headline} Three new faces for Standing Committee {article} 
The following are the brief biographies of the three likely 
new members of the Chinese Communist Party politburo Standing 
Committee. ZHU RONGJI KNOWN in the West as ``China's 
Gorbachev'', the 64-year-old Vice-Premier Mr Zhu Rongji, was 
supreme leader Mr Deng Xiaoping's handpicked successor to 
oversee the second stage of his reform plan. {para} Born in 
Changsha City, Hunan province in 1928, Mr Zhu joined the 
Chinese Communist Party in 1949 and graduated from the 
Electric Motor Engineering Department of the elite Qinghua 
University in 1951. {para} After graduating, Mr Zhu spent more
than 30 years with various economic planning bodies under the 
State Council, gaining experience in national economic 
planning and policy making. {para} He served as deputy chief 
of the production planning section of the Planning Office of 
the Industrial Department under the Northeast China People's 
Government from 1951 to 1952 and was deputy division chief of 
the powerful State Planning Commission under the State Council
from 1952 to 1957. {para} He was made deputy chief engineer of
Electric Power Communications Company of the Pipe Bureau under
the Ministry of Petroleum Industry from 1975 to 1978 and 
director of Industrial Economics Institute attached to the 
Chinese Academy of Social Sciences from 1978 to 1979. {para} 
In 1979, Mr Zhu was posted to the State Economic Commission 
under the State Council and became the commission's deputy 
director in 1983. {para} In 1984, he was appointed president 
and professor of the Economics Management Institute affiliated
to Qinghua University. {para} Mr Zhu became deputy party 
secretary of the populous and industrialised city, Shanghai, 
in 1987 and was made Shanghai mayor the following year. {para}
During the 1989 pro-democracy movement in Beijing, Mr Zhu 
managed to keep Shanghai under control by affirming the 
patriotic spirit of the students in Beijing and refusing to 
accuse Shanghai students of disruption and turmoil. {para} In 
August 1989, Mr Zhu was named Shanghai party chief when his 
predecessor Mr Jiang Zemin was elevated to Beijing to replace 
reformist leader Mr Zhao Ziyang as the CPC's general 
secretary. {para} He is regarded as a favourite candidate to 
succeed Prime Minister Mr Li Peng and a sign of his growing 
clout are the vastly expanded powers given to the newly 
created super agency in the State Council, the Economic and 
Trade Office (ETO) of which he directs. {para} The ETO has 
direct control over production, foreign trade, resources, 
energy, high technology, as well as state enterprises, joint 
ventures and the mushrooming private sector. {para} Analysts 
say that even if Mr Li gets a second term as premier, his 
influence in economic affairs will be taken over by Mr Zhu. 
{para} LIU HUAQING ONE of the few existing Long March 
veterans, General Liu Huaqing is identified as an ally of 
senior leader Mr Deng Xiaoping and their relationship could be
traced back to as early as the 1940s. {para} His elevation to 
the Standing Committee of the politburo is seen by analysts as
a move by Mr Deng to balance the influence of President Mr 
Yang Shangkun and his younger brother General Yang Baibing in 
the Army. {para} After Mr Deng's southern tour, General Liu 
and other generals pledged to provide an escort for Mr Deng's 
reform and open door policy. {para} Born in Hubei province in 
1916, General Liu joined the Communist Youth League of China 
in 1929 and the Red Army in 1931. It was not until 1935 that 
he become a party member. {para} General Liu took part in the 
Long March, the War of Resistance Against Japan and the War of
Liberation. {para} From 1930 to 1931, General Liu was a 
section chief in East Hubei Guerilla Force headquarters, and 
from 1932 to 1934, he was section chief in the Political 
Department of the 25th Army. {para} During the War of 
Resistance Against Japan, General Liu was made chief of the 
Propaganda and Education Section in the 129th division of the 
Eight Route Army from 1937 to 1939. {para} Towards the end of 
the war, he had already been promoted to military sub-area 
deputy political commissar of Hebei-Shandong-Henan Military 
Command. {para} During the War of Liberation, General Liu 
served as brigade political commissar of 
Shanxi-Hebei-Shandong-Henan Military Area Command, which was 
headed by Mr Deng. {para} After the founding of the People's 
Republic, General Liu was sent to the Voroshilov Naval Academy
in the former Soviet Union in 1951, and he returned to China 
in 1958 to become a naval base deputy commander. {para} During
the 1960s and the 1970s, the posts General Liu held included 
vice-minister of the 6th Ministry of Machine-Building 
Industry, vice-minister of the Commission of Science and 
Technology for National Defence, and deputy chief of staff of 
the Navy. {para} From 1980 to 1982, he was made deputy chief 
of general staff of the People's Liberation Army. In 1982, he 
returned to the Navy and became its commander. {para} General 
Liu became deputy secretary-general of the Chinese Communist 
Party's powerful Central Military Commission in 1987 and made 
a member of the State Central Military Commission in 1988. 
{para} China watchers noted that General Liu also had close 
links with former party boss Mr Hu Yaobang. HU JINTAO 
CONSIDERED a dark horse, the 50-year-old Mr Hu Jintao, is said
to have the backing of conservative leader Mr Song Ping and 
the reformist camp. {para} A native of Anhui province, Mr Hu 
graduated from the Water Conservancy Department of the 
prestigeous Qinghua University in 1965. {para} After 
graduation, he served as office secretary at the Ministry of 
Water Conservancy and Power from 1968 to 1973. {para} From 
1974, he was appointed deputy division chief and then deputy 
director of the Gansu Provincial Capital Construction 
Commission. {para} In 1984, Mr Hu served briefly as the 
secretary of the Communist Youth League Gansu Committee. 
{para} It was during this period in Gansu that he got to know 
Mr Song, who was then the secretary of CPC Gansu Provincial 
Committee. {para} In a bid to groom Mr Hu for higher 
positions, Mr Song reportedly sent him to the Central Party 
School in Beijing for more training. {para} Later he was 
recruited by Mr Hu Yaobang as the first secretary of the 
Communist Youth League of China (CYLC) in 1984, starting his 
high-flying political career. {para} The CYLC was then the 
stronghold of Mr Hu Yaobang which had produced a number of 
``third tier'' leaders, including Mr Hu Qili and Mr Wang 
Shaoguo. {para} It was rumoured that Mr Hu took the initiative
himself to defuse criticism of his rapid promotion, by 
requesting another assignment outside Beijing. {para} In 1985,
he was made secretary of CPC Guizhou Provincial Committee, a 
post he held for four years. {para} In 1988, he was 
transferred to Tibet to become the secretary of CPC Tibet 
Autonomous Regional Committee. {para} Mr Hu joined the Chinese
Communist Party in 1964, but he was already a member of the 
CPC's 12th and 13th central committees. {para} In the past 
year, Mr Hu has been resting in Beijing. A Tibetan official 
said earlier this year that Mr Hu suffered from altitude 
sickness and was physically and mentally unfit to work in the 
oxygen-thin highland. {para} Analysts said the two assignments
outside Beijing not only increased his political assets, but 
also enabled him to keep out of the two political struggles 
which led to the downfall of Mr Hu Yaobang and Mr Zhao Ziyang.
{para} It is reported that Mr Song intended to groom Mr Hu to 
take over the party's Organisation Department, which oversees 
crucial personnel affairs. Chinese sources said Mr Hu had 
started working in the department. {/article} 
<U 2710> 
<D 92:09:21> 
<P 11> 
{headline} `Comfort women' Koreans {article} A SIZEABLE number
of the ``comfort women'' who were forced to provide sexual 
services to Japanese soldiers in China were Koreans, according
to a leading campaigner for war-time reparations from Japan. 
{para} Mr Tong Zeng, who heads a private committee to press 
for damages from Tokyo, said yesterday 28 among the 40 
``comfort women'' his organisation had located were Koreans 
abducted by the Imperial Army. {para} ``These women, most of 
whom are now in Hubei province, have documents and other 
evidence showing they are Koreans and that they were forced to
become `comfort women','' Mr Tong said. {para} He was liaising
with the newly-opened South Korean Embassy in Beijing with a 
view to finding the relatives of these women. {para} ``The 28 
are now in their 70s, but most still have vivid recollections 
of their life in various places in South Korea,'' Mr Tong 
said. {para} These ``comfort women'' have written to his 
committee and asked Mr Tong to negotiate with the Japanese 
Government for compensation. {para} Mr Tong said volunteers 
were visiting other provinces, searching for surviving 
``comfort women'' or their relatives. {/article} 
<U 2711> 
<D 92:09:15> 
<P 1> 
{headline} Senators vote on conditions for MFN {byline} From 
MICHAEL CHUGANI in Washington {article} AMERICAN senators were
early this morning heading for a vote on imposing tough 
conditions on the renewal of China's Most Favoured Nation 
(MFN) trade benefits. {para} It was widely expected that the 
Senate would pass the measure, following the lead of the House
of Representatives which approved a similar bill by a lopsided
339-62 vote two months ago. {para} With Congress due to 
adjourn early next month for the general elections, once the 
Senate approves the MFN bill, the two houses of Congress will 
have less than three weeks to iron out their differences in 
order to present an identical bill for President Mr George 
Bush's signature. {para} Mr Bush has already made it clear he 
will again veto the bill if it reaches his desk. {para} In a 
stark departure from previous practice, senators were early 
this morning expected to cast a voice vote rather than a 
roll-call vote which would identify which way each voted on 
the MFN issue. {para} Congressional sources said Republican 
senators who were under pressure from the Bush administration 
to support the President's renewal of China MFN had pressed 
for a voice vote so they would not be seen in an election year
to have supported trade benefits for the hardline Beijing 
regime. {/article} 
<U 2712> 
<D 92:09:22> 
<P 10> 
{headline} Senior bishop hails progress {byline} By KENT CHEN 
{article} THE Catholic Church in China has made great progress
in the past five years in its organisation and missionary 
work, according to a senior Chinese religious official. {para}
The remarks were made by Bishop Zong Huaide, chairman of the 
Chinese Catholic Patriotic Association and the acting director
of the Administrative Commission of the Catholic Church in 
China. {para} Religious affairs watchers in Hongkong confirmed
the achievements. But they also pointed out that there was 
much to be done to achieve religious freedom. {para} Speaking 
at a recent national conference of China's Catholic Church in 
Beijing, Bishop Zong noted that China now had about 3,900 
churches and places of worship open to Catholics. {para} More 
than 30 dioceses across the country had elected bishops or 
assistant bishops, he added. {para} Bishop Zong was quoted by 
the New China News Agency yesterday as saying that since 1986,
Catholic seminaries in China had trained more than 300 
priests, some of whom were sent abroad to study. {para} 
Seminaries have been set up in Beijing, Shanghai, Shenyang, 
Wuhan, Chengdu, Xian and Shijiazhuang. {para} A local expert 
in China's religious affairs, who asked not to be named, said 
religious control in many parts of China had been relaxed 
during the past five years thanks to the reform and open door 
policies. {para} But in some areas, especially in northern 
Hebei, Shaanxi and Gansu provinces, the underground Catholic 
community was faced with greater hostility from local 
officials because it usually developed into a cohesive force. 
{para} In the past five years, at least 30 underground church 
officials had been jailed for refusing to accept the 
leadership of the official Catholic Church. {para} Mr Anthony 
Lam Sui-ki, researcher and executive secretary of the Holy 
Spirit Study Centre, a Hongkong- based diocesan institute 
monitoring church activities in China, noted that there had 
been a significant growth in the number of Catholics in the 
past decade. {para} Mr Lam estimated there were as many as 10 
million Catholics in the country, including those registered 
with official churches and those affiliated with underground 
churches. {para} In 1988, the official figure was 3.3 million.
{/article} 
<U 2713> 
<D 92:09:25> 
<P 13> 
{headline} A eulogy for the reform architect {byline} By 
DANIEL KWAN {article} WHEN the 1,991 Chinese Communist Party 
representatives take their seats in the Great Hall of the 
People in Beijing on October 12, they will be presented with 
an agenda that reads like a eulogy to reform architect Mr Deng
Xiaoping. {para} Together with the agenda, delegates will be 
asked to endorse a new line-up in the party leadership. {para}
Specifically, they will be asked to vote on membership of the 
party's Central Committee, with a considerable number of new 
members expected to be delegates from the coastal areas. 
{para} In addition, the delegates will formally endorse a new 
policy-making party politburo, which will be dominated by 
reformists and moderates who have Mr Deng's blessing. {para} 
The agenda will elevate the ``Dengist line of reform'' to the 
same pedestal as the revolutionary theories of the late Mao 
Zedong, held as the cornerstone of the party since the 
founding of the People's Republic. {para} But unlike the Mao 
theories, Mr Deng's reform dictums concentrate on the merits 
of the market economy and its advantages for China. {para} In 
addition, it will conclude that the old ``Stalinist model'' of
communism is a failure, using the former Soviet Union and the 
communist bloc as examples. {para} The agenda will also 
suggest streamlining the bureaucracy. In earlier drafts, the 
agenda suggested that government ministries be dissolved and 
specialised enterprises formed to take over their functions. 
{para} Redundant cadres would be absorbed by the enterprises 
or forced to look for jobs in the free market. {para} The 
agenda will also address the question of leftism or remnant 
Maoism but the final document is likely to focus on the 
importance of an ideological balance. {para} This means that 
instead of calling for a leftist witch- hunt, it will stress 
that ideological purity would not be sacrificed to save the 
economy. {para} Absent from the agenda will be the issue of 
the disgraced party boss Mr Zhao Ziyang, sacked three years 
ago for failing to contain the pro-democracy movement. 
{/article} 
<U 2714> 
<D 92:09:12> 
<P 8> 
{headline} Uranium mine blamed for deaths {article} A HIGH 
proportion of Tibetan villagers living near what is believed 
to be a uranium mine have died after drinking water polluted 
by waste from the mine, according to detailed reports from 
Tibetans in the village. {para} In the past three years at 
least 35 of the approximately 500 people in the village have 
died within a few hours of developing a fever, followed by a 
distinctive form of diarrhoea. Six of the victims died within 
three days of each other. {para} Doctors have said they are 
unable to help and have not described the deaths as due to an 
epidemic or infections disease. {para} ``First they get acute 
thirst, then indigestion - the stool is black,'' a villager 
interviewed on several occasions by the London-based, 
pro-independence Tibet Information Network, said. {para} 
Locals say many cattle in the area around the mine have also 
died suddenly, but only after rainstorms, suggesting they are 
poisoned by a water-borne toxin. {para} ``Animals who drink 
water coming from the mining area or who inhale the dust die 
immediately,'' the villager said. {para} ``They seem to have 
internal burns.'' {para} The evidence suggests the rains wash 
lethal waste from the mine works into the water supply and 
locals say they have been told by some Chinese officials not 
to drink the water from streams flowing from the mining area. 
{para} The village is in the eastern part of the Tibetan 
plateau, which is traditionally known as Amdo and now 
administered under Sichuan province. Reports on the deaths did
not give its name. {/article} 
<U 2715> 
<D 92:09:17> 
<P 10> 
{headline} Third stock exchange put on hold {byline} By WILLY 
WO-LAP LAM {article} CHINA has shelved the setting up of a 
third stock exchange and put off the issuing of new stocks in 
Shenzhen, according to a report by the semi-official Hongkong 
China News Agency (HKCNA). {para} However, sources in Beijing 
said the leadership was riven with a fierce debate on the pace
with which the ``stocks system'' should be developed. {para} 
They said in spite of the central Government's efforts to slow
down the opening of additional exchanges and the issuing of 
new shares, Beijing faced ``overwhelming pressure'' from the 
regions to go in the opposite direction. {para} Quoting 
``authoritative figures'' in Beijing, the HKCNA reported last 
night Beijing had taken steps to cool down the ``stocks 
fever'' because of rioting in Shenzhen on August 10 and the 
bear run on the Shanghai and Shenzhen bourses. {para} The 
agency said new stocks which originally had been scheduled to 
go on the Shenzhen market this year had been postponed. {para}
And plans to open China's third bourse, probably in Tianjin, 
had been scuppered at least for the near future. {para} 
Quoting experts in the field, the HKCNA reported that 
Beijing's main concern was that the downturn in transactions 
would affect the future of the ``B'' shares - which are meant 
for foreigners - and hence the business confidence of overseas
investors in general. {para} HKCNA and the pro-Beijing 
Hongkong daily, Ta Kung Pao, confirmed yesterday that a 
securities management committee under the State Council would 
be set up to ensure the steady and balanced development of the
stocks system. {para} The committee would pay special 
attention to ensuring that operations on the Shenzhen and 
Shanghai stock exchanges would be ``internationalised'' and 
``standardised''. {para} Vice-Premier Mr Zhu Rongji, who 
played a key role in the development of the exchanges, will 
become head of the committee. {para} Analysts in China said 
after the Shenzhen riots, even Mr Zhu, a key advocate of 
fast-paced reforms, had agreed to the need to adopt a cautious
attitude towards the stocks system. {para} They said Mr Zhu 
and other reformist leaders, including patriarch Mr Deng 
Xiaoping, were worried that conservatives in the party might 
seize upon the setbacks as a pretext to jettison the 
experiment with stocks and shares. {para} However, the central
Government faces formidable opposition from several cities 
along the coast which desperately want to set up their own 
exchanges. {para} Guangzhou, Haikou, Tianjin and Shenyang have
gone to great lengths in lobbying Beijing. {para} The 
Chinese-run Hongkong daily Wen Wei Po reported yesterday that 
Guangzhou had already informed Beijing that 13 enterprises in 
the city were about to issue shares to the public. {para} The 
bold move was part of elaborate preparations now underway for 
the inauguration of the Guangzhou stock exchange. {para} In 
its dispatch, the HKCNA indicated the mishap in Shenzhen and 
the drastic drop in share prices would not affect the 
leadership's determination to pursue ``bold experiments''. 
{para} Analysts said if the Deng faction could push through a 
radical, market-oriented platform at the upcoming 14th party 
congress, one or more new exchanges could be set up early next
year. {/article} 
<U 2716> 
<D 92:09:14> 
<P 11> 
{headline} Open press urged to protect reform {byline} By 
WILLY WO-LAP LAM {article} LEADING journalists have called for
a more open press so that popular opinion can be reflected and
reform safeguarded. {para} In a conference on media 
supervision and reform held in Beijing at the weekend, 
participants urged that the Government be subjected to the 
supervision of the press. {para} They also blasted ``leftist 
thinking'' or remnant Maoism as the ``major obstacle'' to the 
freedom of expression. {para} ``[The authorities] must not 
consider critical reports as `negative reporting', nor should 
they confuse media supervision [of the Government] with 
`exposing the dark side of society','' the official New China 
News Agency (NCNA) quoted the journalists as saying. {para} 
``Further boosting press supervision is a major means to 
safeguard and provide an escort for reform.'' {para} The 
conference, which was sponsored by the ombudsman's office of 
the party newspaper People's Daily, was the first official 
conclave after the 1989 Beijing massacre which called for 
press freedom. {para} Neither the NCNA nor the People's Daily,
however, gave the names of the participants, who included top 
editors in the Beijing media as well as party and government 
cadres. {para} The journalists accused certain departments and
districts of failing to co-operate with newsmen and trying to 
suppress critical reports. {para} They said some officials 
even tried to take revenge on people who had given information
to reporters. {para} ``At the moment, `leftist' thinking is 
the chief obstacle to allowing public opinion to assume its 
proper supervisory role,'' NCNA quoted the participants as 
saying. {para} ``Only by truly reflecting the calls, requests,
opinions and suggestions of the broad mass of people can we 
create a tolerant and harmonious social atmosphere for 
reform.'' {para} Journalists attending the session added that 
aside from media supervision, the executive branch of the 
Government should also be supervised by the law courts and the
masses. {para} They urged the speeding up of media-related 
legislations to guarantee the rights of newsmen and to raise 
their professional standards. {para} Political analysts said 
in the wake of patriarch Mr Deng Xiaoping's call for no- 
holds-barred economic reform, more journalists and social 
scientists had appealed for greater press freedoms. {para} 
They pointed out, however, that in the conference last 
weekend, participants did not openly challenge the leadership 
of the Chinese Communist Party in the propagation of a freer 
media. {para} ``At this stage, press freedom can only be 
developed under the auspices and guidance of the party,'' a 
Chinese editor said. {para} ``The goal of press freedom is to 
facilitate economic reform, not to develop a free political 
system that may undermine party supremacy.'' {para} Many 
leftist journalists, including the director of the People's 
Daily Mr Gao Di, have remained in power despite their having 
been criticised by Mr Deng. {para} Analysts said it was 
significant that the Chinese media yesterday failed to report 
in detail on the speeches made by individual participants. 
{/article} 
<U 2717> 
<D 92:09:15> 
<P 11>  
{headline} Order to seize illegal firearms {byline} By KENT 
CHEN {article} PUBLIC security authorities have issued an 
administrative order for the confiscation of illegal firearms,
warning their proliferation has seriously undermined social 
order. {para} The Ministry of Public Security has admitted 
that the problem of illegal manufacturing, trafficking and 
possession of firearms has become increasingly serious. {para}
Just a week ago, an official from the ministry's crime 
investigation department insisted that most firearms were 
brought into China by criminals from both the mainland and 
overseas, including Hongkong and Taiwan. {para} The official 
noted that since 1988, 1,082 military firearms, 16,700 
ammunition and grenades have been seized. {para} However, the 
content of the circular issued by the Ministry of Public 
Security suggested that the problem of illegal firearms was 
more of an internal one. {para} Insiders noted that many of 
the illegal military firearms came from the warehouses of 
munitions factories which had switched their production lines 
to manufacturing consumer products under recent years of 
economic reform. {para} According to the semi-official China 
News Service, the circular forbids any units and individuals 
from illegally manufacturing, trafficking, trading and 
possessing of military, sport or hunting firearms. {para} It 
warns that those who steal or seize firearms from the Army, 
police or the militia would be dealt with in accordance to 
law. {para} A grace period of 30 days is given for those who 
breach the regulation to surrender themselves to nearby public
security authorities. {para} ``But those who refuse to abide 
by the regulation would be handled severely in accordance to 
law,'' the circular states. {para} The circular urges the 
public to report suspects, with rewards for informants. 
{/article} 
<U 2718> 
<D 92:09:16> 
<P 14> 
{headline} Hainan keen on air links with Taiwan {byline} By 
KENT CHEN {article} HAINAN province, China's largest special 
economic zone, is anxious to become the first mainland region 
to establish direct aviation links with Taiwan. {para} 
Provincial Governor, Mr Liu Jianfeng, said yesterday the idea 
had been conveyed to the Taiwanese authorities through various
channels. {para} But Mr Liu admitted that the success of the 
bid depended on political breakthroughs between the two old 
adversaries. {para} Earlier this week, Taiwan's Mainland 
Affairs Council released a paper which, among other things, 
said Beijing must first recognise Taipei as an equal political
entity before direct transport, postal and business links 
could be discussed. {para} Some 277,500 foreigners are 
visiting Hainan every year, including many Taiwanese who go 
there via Hongkong. {para} ``We are aware that there are a 
number of similarities between Taiwan and Hainan. Both are 
resourceful islands and both have similar climate and 
tradition,'' said Mr Liu. {para} ``As the first region in 
China which has been granted the power to issue visas to 
foreign visitors upon their arrival, it is natural for us to 
go faster in promoting direct aviation links with Taiwan.'' 
{para} He said establishing direct aviation links between 
Hainan and Taiwan would be a lot simpler than for other 
cities. {para} ``It only needs the approval from both sides 
without having to establish additional organisations to handle
the procedural matters,'' he said. {para} Asked if Hainan was 
competing with other coastal cities, including Xiamen, Fuzhou 
and Shanghai, for being the first port to open direct 
transport links with Taiwan, Mr Liu said: ``The central 
authorities will support whoever is able to build up direct 
links with Taiwan.'' {para} Mr Liu, who is paying an official 
visit to Hongkong, said Hainan's development would be given 
another boost after the conclusion of the 14th party congress.
{para} He said the province would further develop its market 
economy after the line was officially adopted at the party 
congress, to be convened next month. {para} As one of the 21 
Hainan delegates to the congress, Mr Liu, a Soviet-trained 
engineer, was expected to be elected to the central committee.
{para} Mr Liu yesterday disclosed that the Hongkong Governor, 
Mr Chris Patten, had accepted an invitation to visit Hainan. 
{para} The two governors had a 45-minute meeting on Monday and
Mr Liu briefed Mr Patten on the economic development of the 
island. {/article} 
<U 2719> 
<D 92:09:18> 
<P 1> 
{headline} Activist to visit Europe, Australia {byline} By 
KENT CHEN {article} CHINESE dissident Mr Han Dongfang is 
planning to tour Europe and Australia to exchange experiences 
with other labour activists after receiving medical treatment 
in the United States. {para} Mr Han, with his pregnant wife, 
Ms Chen Jingyun, left Hongkong for the US for treatment of 
tuberculosis which he had contracted in a Chinese prison. 
{para} The 29-year old Mr Han, referred to as China's Lech 
Walesa for his role in the country's fledging free trade union
movement, was jailed for two years after the 1989 Beijing 
crackdown. {para} Mr Han was allowed to leave the country on 
September 1, when he entered Hongkong for medical checkups. 
{para} Speaking before leaving for New York, Mr Han said 
doctors concluded that his tuberculosis was not as serious as 
assessed by mainland doctors. {para} He said his health was 
expected to recover in about six to eight months and he would 
meet dissidents living overseas before he returned to China. 
{para} He said that apart from the US, he was planning to 
visit Western and Eastern Europe, and Australia if possible, 
to share experiences in promoting free trade unions. {para} Mr
Han is expected to give a press conference at the headquarters
of Asia Watch, the human rights watchdog, in New York next 
Tuesday. {para} Speaking of his impressions of Hongkong, Mr 
Han said it was a prosperous place with a fast-paced 
lifestyle. {para} He also expressed confidence on the 
development of democracy in Hongkong, but urged residents to 
fight for it. {para} Although he had spoken openly in 
Hongkong, criticising the Chinese Government, Mr Han said he 
did not fear further persecution after returning to China. 
{para} ``Compared with what I had in Beijing, my remarks in 
Hongkong were much milder'', he said. {/article} 
<U 2720> 
<D 92:09:16> 
<P 14> 
{headline} 120 held in illegal church meeting {article} AN 
underground church meeting in central Henan province was 
raided by Public Security Bureau (PSB) officials, who 
reportedly arrested up to 120 local Christians and three 
foreigners. {para} Quoting Chinese eyewitnesses, the religious
news service News Network International reported yesterday 
that some 40 PSB officers broke up a house church meeting in 
the southern village of Guo Fa, Wuyan district, detaining 
virtually the entire congregation. {para} Three foreigners - a
Chinese-American man, a Singaporean woman and a Malaysian 
woman, were also taken into police custody and are reportedly 
still in detention. {para} The foreigners are allegedly 
accused of ``taking part in illegal religious activities'' and
are under police investigation. Their names have not been 
released. {para} While there have been no reports of serious 
injuries from the raid, the source claimed both the local 
Christians and the foreigners were ``roughly handled'' during 
the incident. {para} According to the source, PSB officials 
later released some 40 local church members. However, it is 
believed around 120 others arrested are still being held in a 
PSB detention centre in Wuyang. {para} It is not yet known if 
the police action is an isolated incident or part of a wider 
campaign against religious gatherings. {para} According to 
informed sources in Hongkong, US Embassy officials in China 
have faced difficulties in obtaining information from the 
Chinese Government regarding the status of the American 
arrested in the raid. {/article} 
<U 2721> 
<D 92:09:23> 
<P 10> 
{headline} Protests likely by victims of war {byline} By WILLY
WO-LAP LAM {article} SMALL groups of individuals will more 
than likely stage demonstrations and other protest actions 
during the visit of Emperor Akihito, according to a college 
activist in Beijing. {para} And a just-completed survey by the
National Affairs Research Centre of Beijing University shows 
the bulk of students demand war reparations, and that they are
fearful of Japan's ``resurgent militarism''. {para} The 
student activist, who asks not to be named, said yesterday 
informal groups of the victims of the war as well as their 
descendants, had plans to hold small-scale, peaceful protest 
actions. {para} These actions might include demonstrations, 
assemblies, as well as open letters to be delivered to the 
emperor or his aides. {para} However, the activist ruled out 
large-scale demonstrations, because, he said, the students 
wanted to retain good relations with school authorities. 
{para} ``Students do not want to upset the political 
atmosphere in the run-up to the 14th party congress,'' the 
activist said. {para} ``They will only organise symbolic 
protest actions as individuals, not as groupings.'' {para} The
Heilongjiang province branch of the rapidly-growing nationwide
movement the Preparatory Chinese Popular Committee for 
Compensation met in a church in the provincial capital Harbin 
yesterday to demand war reparations from Tokyo. {para} 
Organiser Mr Feng Wanjun told the United Press International 
news agency the conference, a ``patriotic lecture meeting'', 
was planned in advance and had no interference from the 
Government. {para} The meeting coincided with Chinese 
Vice-Premier Mr Wu Xueqian's visit to Tokyo, where he came out
in support of the group's aims. {para} Mr Wu asked Japanese 
officials on Monday to ``appropriately settle'' the non- 
governmental group's demands, the first time a government 
leader had spoken out on the sensitive issue. {para} 
Meanwhile, the research centre will officially release today 
the results of last week's survey on Chinese attitude on 
Emperor Akihito's trip and on bilateral ties. {para} Nearly 
2,000 questionnaires were distributed to students and young 
teachers at Beijing University, People's University and 
Beijing Normal University. {para} According to an advanced 
copy of the results, 89.1 per cent of the 2,000 students and 
faculty surveyed wanted Tokyo to make full reparations to war 
victims. {para} Another 67.6 per cent of the respondents said 
Emperor Akihito should make a formal xiezui, or ``apology for 
grave sins'', while 20.1 per cent said it was not necessary 
and 12.3 per cent indicated ``it did not matter''. {para} 
Organisers of the poll said yesterday more students would have
answered in the affirmative if the questionnaire had put down 
daoqian, or a simple apology, as against the harsher xiezui. 
{para} They added the authorities would be pleased to find 
that 6 1/2 per cent of the respondents said they ``very much 
welcomed'' the imperial visit, 43.1 per cent said they 
``welcomed'' the trip, while 15.4 per cent indicated 
opposition. {para} However, most students and teachers decried
a resurgent militarism in Japan. {para} See also Page 23 
{/article} 
<U 2722> 
<D 92:09:15> 
<P 10> 
{headline} Military ties with Iran strengthened {byline} By 
WILLY WO-LAP LAM {article} CHINA and Iran have cemented 
military ties despite Washington's warnings that Beijing scale
down its arms sales in the Middle East. {para} The visiting 
chief of staff of the Iranian Army, General Ali Shahbazi, held
talks yesterday with the Chinese top brass on military 
co-operation, including the sale of Chinese weapons and 
co-production of hardware. {para} The official visit, which 
began on Sunday, followed the just-ended China tours of 
President Mr Hashemi Rafsanjani and logistics chief General 
Alastu Tuhidi. {para} The official China News Service 
yesterday quoted Central Military Commission vice-chairman 
General Liu Huaqing as telling General Shahbazi that the 
relationship between the two armies had ``stood the test of 
time''. {para} ``China and Iran have the same or similar views
on many international questions,'' General Liu said. {para} 
``There is a very good foundation for the development of 
relations between the two countries and the two armies. China 
is willing to ceaselessly develop friendly ties between the 
two armies.'' {para} General Shahbazi replied that because the
Iranian people found China ``trustworthy'', they were willing 
to boost co-operation with the country. {para} Western 
diplomats said the visit of the general, who is the first 
Iranian chief of staff to call on Beijing, marked a high tide 
in the Sino-Iranian military alliance. {para} They said that 
by rolling out the red carpet for three top Iranian leaders in
a week, Beijing wanted to tell Washington the latter could not
interfere with its policies on the Middle East and on arms 
exports. {para} After Washington's announcement of the sale of
150 F-16 jets to Taiwan, American officials have warned 
Beijing not to retaliate by expanding its shipment of weapons 
to the developing world. {para} Chinese and Iranian officials 
have been tight-lipped about what types of weapons and defence
systems Teheran is looking for. {para} They have only 
announced that Beijing is selling the Iranians a 300 megawatt 
nuclear power plant. {para} In an article slamming 
Washington's criticism of the transaction, the semi-official 
Teheran Times said yesterday its government was committed to 
the ``peaceful use of nuclear technology''. {para} However, 
Western military experts said it was probable the three top 
Iranian leaders had discussed defence co-operation that went 
much further than the transfer of non-military nuclear 
technology. {para} They said it was no coincidence that two 
senior Pakistani officials were due in Beijing next month. 
{para} The Pakistani media has announced that Prime Minister 
Mr Nawaz Sharif will be in China from October 6 to 11, and 
Defence Minister Mr Ghous Ali Shah will also visit Beijing 
next month. {para} Analysts have described close military 
links between Beijing, Teheran and Islamabad as the ``iron 
triangle''. {/article} 
<U 2723> 
<D 92:09:11> 
<P 1> 
{headline} Go-ahead for Mirage sale to Taiwan {byline} By 
WILLY WO-LAP LAM and agencies {article} THE French Government 
has approved the sale of Mirage fighters to Taiwan, 
authoritative French and Taiwanese sources said yesterday. 
{para} The deal will be finalised after talks between Dassault
Aviation, the main manufacturer, and Taiwan officials, 
according to reports from French ministries involved in the 
decision. {para} Representatives from Dassault and three other
French companies, which produce the ignition and weapons 
systems as well as aviation electronics and radars, are in 
Taipei for last-minute negotiations with Taiwanese officials 
over issues including prices, specifications and delivery 
dates. {para} However, political sources in Taiwan said Taipei
might postpone the announcement of the deal because of 
eleventh-hour haggling over specifications and because of the 
need to mollify Washington. {para} They said the Taiwan 
government had earlier planned to sign the commercial 
agreement with the French companies as early as yesterday or 
today. {para} The sources said after Washington relented and 
decided F-16 jets could be sold to Taipei, Taiwan officials 
had been much more aggressive in demanding that more 
sophisticated weapons and avionics be installed on the French 
warplanes. {para} And Taipei officials thought a symbolic 
postponement of the announcement might pacify Washington, 
which had asked Taiwan to scrap the Mirage transaction after 
already having clinched the F-16 deal. {para} Citing officials
in the Taiwan Air Force, the Taipei-based Broadcasting 
Corporation of China reported the Mirage agreement would be 
signed within two weeks. {para} In a press conference 
yesterday, French Industry and Foreign Trade Minister Mr 
Dominique Strauss-Kahn said his government could not formally 
announce its decision on the sale of 60 Mirage 2000-5 jets 
until a commercial agreement was concluded between Taiwan and 
Dassault Aviation, and until Dassault had applied for an 
export licence. {para} ``But such a decision . . . would not 
be considered by the French Government as an act of aggression
against the People's Republic of China,'' he said. {para} Mr 
Strass-Kahn also said his government was prepared against any 
retaliatory measures from Beijing. {para} When asked how 
France would react if China took trade measures to protest 
against the sale, Mr Strauss-Kahn said: ``If there was 
retaliation, the commercial consequences could lead us to do 
away with [development] projects which we are currently 
financing.'' {para} Diplomatic analysts said Paris had made up
its mind about the transaction after US President Mr George 
Bush's decision on the Taiwan deal. {para} An Asian diplomat 
said: ``Chinese diplomats have threatened tough retaliatory 
measures against France, including the recall of Beijing's 
ambassador to Paris and a cut in the import of French 
products. {para} ``However, after the Bush decision, Paris has
decided to call Beijing's bluff.'' {para} French sources said 
if the deal went through, it would be worth about US$2.6 
billion (HK$20.08 billion) for 60 Mirage 2000-5s - a 20 per 
cent reduction on the planes' original price. {para} French 
weapons sales abroad are, even under normal conditions, a 
complicated process. {para} Initial permission must be 
obtained from the inter- ministerial commission for the study 
of the export of war materiel - known under its French acronym
of CIEEMG - followed by a government permission to negotiate, 
followed by final official approval once the negotiations are 
concluded. {para} The sources said that the first two green 
lights having been obtained, there was no question as far as 
the Government was concerned that the sale would go through if
an agreement was reached. {para} They said the French decision
is the result of economic considerations taking the upper hand
over political ones. {para} An eventual cash deal with Taiwan,
which has the world's biggest foreign exchange reserves, will 
be a boost for Dassault, which has failed to export any 
warplanes over the past four years, losing out on major 
contracts with Finland, Greece and Switzerland. {para} It 
could also signify a foothold for other French firms, which 
hope to get a share of Taiwan's US$310 billion 1990-1996 
reconstruction plan. {para} France, competing with Japan and 
Germany, hopes to sell Taiwan its TGV high- speed train for a 
possible US$20 billion and is in line for the construction of 
a 1,000-megawatt nuclear power station. {para} This compares 
with French investors' disappointment with the mainland 
Chinese market, which, despite a population of 1.2 billion, 
has so far failed to live up to its promise. {para} China has 
already demonstrated its unhappiness with French advances 
towards Taiwan by delaying finalisation of a contract for 12 
Airbus A300-600 passenger planes. {para} Analysts say it is 
unlikely Beijing can take any economic countermeasures, as 
France's trade deficit with China was already at 10 billion 
francs (HK$16.15 billion) last year. {/article}  
<U 2724> 
<D 92:09:25> 
<P ?> 
{headline} Politburo line-up owes loyalty to Deng {article} 
WITH the pivotal 14th Congress of the Chinese Communist Party 
three weeks away, it is beyond doubt that patriarch Mr Deng 
Xiaoping will set the pace for his vision of capitalist 
reforms for China for the next five years. To reflect this, 
the new politburo line- up is likely to be dominated by 
reformists and pragmatists who can now be expected to put 
economic development before ideology. {para} While Mr Li Peng 
will likely stay on as Premier, Vice-Premier Mr Zhu Rongji, Mr
Deng's latest handpicked successor, has been given the 
authority to overhaul the economy and introduce market 
mechanisms. The elevation of Mr Zhu to the politburo could be 
the clearest signal to the outside world that the party 
realises reforms are the only way forward. And, despite having
sanctioned the removal of disgraced leaders Hu Yaobang and 
Zhao Ziyang, Mr Deng seems prepared to elevate former 
associates of the disgraced pair into the policy-making body. 
{para} Observers in Beijing, however, agree that no matter how
rosy the post-Congress brave new world may sound, there are 
dark clouds on the horizon. Mr Deng, the former chief of the 
Central Military Commission (CMC), the country's most powerful
organ, must still rely on the backing of the army to push 
through his reforms. This could be why General Liu Huaqing, 
the CMC vice-chairman, is a serious contender for the 
politburo even though, at 76, he should be retired. There are 
doubts too whether the CCP, while committed to a market 
economy and delegating authority to the regions, can reconcile
itself to the fact that the country can no longer be run 
effectively by a centralised and unwieldy bureaucracy. {para} 
More importantly is whether Mr Deng can fulfil his promise of 
bringing on a new generation of younger and more reform-minded
cadres who can exert a more liberal influence on politics and 
prise open the time-honoured one party dictatorship and the 
police-state apparatus. The hope must be that there will be a 
more liberalising influence on politics as economic reforms 
get a firmer grip on the country. {para} However, as Mr Deng 
presides over the behind-the-scenes horse trading now taking 
place in Beijing ahead of the Congress, he may be less 
concerned about the way forward over the long term. Mr Deng 
knows that in spite of Tiananmen Square, his place in history 
is secure and he is too bound by his near-feudalistic loyalty 
to the party and obsession with holding on to the reins of 
power than to attempt one last great leap forward. {para} > 
{headline} Thailand on right path FOR the first time in years,
Thais can look forward to a stable period of government free 
of the murky self-interest that has clouded the political 
horizon and undermined overseas business confidence in one of 
Asia's most promising economies. The formal proclamation of 
Democrats leader Mr Chuan Leekpai as Thailand's next Prime 
Minister effectively shuts out the corrupt corporate and 
military factions that have traditionally divided the 
political spoils among themselves with almost total disregard 
for the welfare of their people. {para} By casting a vote for 
the ``angel'' alliance of pro-democracy parties in the general
election earlier this month, Thais rejected the boardroom 
generals and their provincial cohorts in favour of a new 
generation of educated administrators with a genuine desire to
prepare the country for industrialisation. For their part, the
Democrats head a slightly unwieldy coalition that will have to
work hard to maintain the trust displayed by a cynical 
electorate. Mr Chuan's promise of a free parliamentary vote on
overturning an amnesty decree that currently protects those 
responsible for the bloodshed will require deft footwork if he
is to avoid provoking a tough military response. Yet, with the
right backing from more moderate officers, he will have a rare
opportunity to streamline the armed forces into a professional
fighting force that has no need of political rewards and will 
cease to threaten the development of democracy. {para} 
Watching closely will be the business community, which has 
already applauded Mr Chuan's pledge to continue the economic 
reforms set in motion by interim Prime Minister Mr Anand 
Panyarachun. Thailand has a long way to go before it can lay 
claim to the right formula for stable and progressive 
government, but Mr Chuan's administration, the 53rd to rule 
since the absolute monarchy was ended in 1932, suggests it is 
finally on the right path. {/article} 
<U 2725> 
<D 92:09:21> 
<P 11> 
{headline} Pro-market talks `signal consensus' {byline} By 
WILLY WO-LAP LAM {article} LIBERAL intellectuals have lectured
senior cadres on the market economy, a sign that a consensus 
has been reached within the leadership in the run- up to the 
14th party congress. {para} The rising clout of the pro-market
academics is also an indication that the proteges of patriarch
Mr Deng Xiaoping have made progress in purging the ideological
and propaganda establishment of leftist elements. {para} The 
New China News Agency (NCNA) said at the weekend that a group 
of ``experts and scholars'' had given a series of lectures to 
the leadership on ``reform and the open door, making use of 
capitalism, the socialist market economy, intellectual 
property rights, the share- holding system and the stock 
market''. {para} Liberal politburo member Mr Li Ruihuan and 
1,000 party, government and army leaders heard the talks at 
the Zhongnanhai party headquarters. {para} The lectures were 
organised by the Propaganda Department and three other units. 
{para} Lecturers included such liberal economists as Beijing 
University's Professor Li Yining and senior State Council 
economist Mr Liu Guoguang. {para} Nicknamed ``stocks guru'', 
Professor Li had advised former party chief Mr Zhao Ziyang on 
the setting up of stock exchanges. {para} The agency reported 
that the lectures were suffused with the spirit of fast-paced 
reform that Mr Deng imparted during his trip to southern China
early this year. {para} ``It is important to understand and 
fully implement the spirit of Deng Xiaoping's speeches'', NCNA
quoted Mr Xu Weicheng, vice-director of the Propaganda 
Department, as saying. {para} Sources in Beijing said it was 
significant that the lectures did not touch upon such 
traditional concerns as ``waging class struggles''. {para} 
Long a bastion of Maoism, the Propaganda Department had until 
early summer held countless sessions promoting campaigns 
against ``bourgeois liberalisation''. {para} ``The momentum is
going the way of the Deng faction, and such avant-garde 
economists as Li Yining can openly promote their pro-market 
theories in Zhongnanhai'', said a source. {para} ``It is clear
the 14th congress will concentrate on ways to promote market 
mechanisms while ideological concerns will be de-emphasised''.
{para} He added, however, that it was still not certain 
whether Mr Deng and his proteges could successfully rid the 
ideological and propaganda units of leftists. {para} Mr Xu, an
ally of the Gang of Four radicals, would be likely to keep his
job once he had professed allegiance to the Deng line. {para} 
Western diplomats said it was strange that news about the 
lectures only came on the English-language NCNA wire, which 
was not normally available to Chinese media units. {/article} 
<U 2726> 
<D 92:09:25> 
<P 13> 
{headline} ANALYSIS {byline} By DANIEL KWAN {headline} Few 
surprises for the media {article} THERE will be few surprises 
when the foreign press corps descends on the Great Hall of 
People to take pictures of the new faces of the Chinese 
Communist Party politburo after the conclusion of the 14th 
party congress. {para} Notably absent from their pictures will
be the military strongman, General Yang Baibing, who has lost 
his seat to General Liu Huaqing, a confidante of patriarch Mr 
Deng Xiaoping. {para} A half-brother of state President Mr 
Yang Shangkun and currently the secretary-general of the 
Central Military Commission, the younger Yang was considered a
fast moving political star after the Tiananmen Square 
crackdown. {para} But instead of a promotion to the Standing 
Committee, he will remain a member of the politburo. {para} 
His supporters will also be disappointed because, instead of 
him, it is believed that General Liu will succeed Mr Yang 
Shangkun as the First Vice-Chairman of the CMC. {para} 
Although both General Liu and the Yang brothers are vocal 
supporters of the patriarch, there was strong opposition 
within the Army to the younger Yang's fast- track promotion. 
{para} Another couple who will also be under the media 
spotlight will be the Party General Secretary, Mr Jiang Zemin,
and premier Mr Li Peng. {para} While the patriarch has 
reportedly criticised the pair for failing to push reform 
strongly enough, they have apparently managed to win back Mr 
Deng's trust before the congress, and consequently, a second 
term in office. {para} But all eyes will focus on the ``dark 
horse'', Mr Hu Jintao, former party secretary of Tibet, and 
the First Vice-Premier Mr Zhu Rongji, who will become the two 
youngest members of the politburo Standing Committee. {para} 
It is thought that Mr Hu's promotion was confirmed soon after 
the patriarch made his much-publicised tour of southern China 
early this year, and he was chosen to assist Mr Song Ping, the
organisation chief, to prepare for the selection of 
representatives for the crucial congress. {para} Although 
conservatives have objected to Mr Hu's promotion, citing his 
relative youth, it is thought that both the patriarch and Mr 
Song have spoken out in favour of him. {para} However, the 
dominance of reformist and moderate forces in the politburo 
does not necessarily mean a total victory for the patriarch. 
{para} While the 88-year-old leader has succeeded in 
introducing a few new young faces to the top echelon, his 
opponents, headed by conservative elder Mr Chen Yun, have 
managed to promote a generation of successors who will 
continue to propagate their hardline message. {para} These new
``leftists'' include Mr Sha Jiansun, a vice- chief of the 
party Central Committee's research office on party history, 
and Mr Zhang Yunsheng, a vice-chief editor of the 
leftist-controlled People Daily. {/article} 
<U 2727> 
<D 92:09:26> 
<P 8> 
{headline} Students in Australia accused of ingratitude 
{byline} From SUE GREEN in Melbourne and MICHAEL CHUGANI in 
Washington {article} CHINESE students who took refuge in 
Australia after the 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre have been 
accused of insulting and offending Australians for protesting 
against a report recommending their deportation. {para} The 
conflict between the Chinese students and the Australian 
Government is in contrast to news that American President Mr 
George Bush is likely to sign into law a bill that grants 
permanent refuge for thousands of Chinese nationals in the 
United States. {para} West Australian Labor Senator Jim 
McKiernan has told the students that Australia gave them 
sanctuary in their hour of need, yet they were now ungrateful.
{para} Senator McKiernan's attack was made in a letter to the 
Special Committee for Chinese Students, representing 20 
Chinese community organisations, which wrote to members of 
parliament protesting at the report. {para} The report of the 
federal parliament's Joint Standing Committee on Migration 
Relations, of which the senator is a member, says the Chinese 
students should lose their special status and face the same 
permanent residence criteria as all other applicants. {para} 
Senator McKiernan told the students that their complaints 
about the report were insulting and offending to the 
committee, the Government and the people of Australia. {para} 
``If, after three years of sanctuary and refuge, an important 
organisation gives thanks by offending and insulting the 
nation who protected them and gave them refuge, through a 
letter to members of parliament, then this is a gratitude and 
repayment we can do without,'' he said. {para} There are 
17,000 students in Australia on special four-year visas which 
expire in June 1994. If the federal Government accepts the 
committee's recommendations, up to 10,000 of them could be 
deported to China - a stance the committee's letter to MPs 
said was ``morally repugnant''. {para} The report, backed by 
the federal opposition and which has split the Labor Party, is
still with the Immigration Minister, Mr Gerry Hand. {para} In 
Washington, US legislators who guided the refuge bill through 
Congress have said that Mr Bush was not opposed to it. {para} 
About 60,000 Chinese students and scholars who arrived in the 
US soon after the Tiananmen Square crackdown and who now fear 
returning home can apply for permanent residency under the 
bill. {/article} 
<U 2728> 
<D 92:09:12> 
<P 8> 
{headline} Young to be promoted in reshuffle {byline} By 
DANIEL KWAN and agencies {article} MORE young technocrats are 
expected to be promoted to the senior echelon of the Chinese 
leadership after the 14th Party Congress, it was reported 
yesterday. {para} The reshuffle was reported by the 
pro-Beijing newspaper Ta Kung Pao, which said as many as 
one-third of provincial government and party positions would 
be filled by young technocrats after the crucial congress. 
{para} ``This time - from year end to early next year - will 
be a critical period as both the central Government and the 
regional leadership will have a major reshuffle,'' the 
newspaper said. {para} The scale of change would be most 
obvious at the provincial level because more than half of the 
local legislators were too old for re-election and would be 
replaced by young delegates, the report said. {para} It said 
that based on the requirements set by central authorities, 
about 80 cadres aged under 50 would be needed to join the 
provincial leadership across the country. {para} Ta Kung Pao 
also quoted from a meeting of the Organisation Department held
last month saying the criteria for selection would be a 
cadre's ``dedication to economic construction''. {para} 
``Members of the leadership, regardless of their 
responsibilities, must understand and care about the overall 
importance of economic construction and reform and open 
policy,'' it said. {para} Quotas based on age have been set in
order to bring in younger officials. Three leading members of 
provincial Communist Party committees must be aged under 50. 
{para} The same age ceiling was applied to provincial 
governments. But instead of three, two of the leading 
positions - governor and vice- governor - must be filled by 
people below 50. {para} The report said in order to achieve 
these goals, the selection must be open-minded. {para} ``We 
should make full use of cadres who are courageous in reform 
and dare to explore . . . as well as people who have made 
mistakes in reform because of their lack of experience,'' it 
said. {para} Meanwhile, the Minister of the State Commission 
for Restructuring the Economy, Mr Chen Jinhua, was quoted as 
saying China would continue to push price reform as part of 
its drive to implement free market policies. {para} The state 
would raise the state purchasing prices of the main farm 
products, he said, and allow regional governments to 
liberalise prices for grain and farm produce. {para} Mr Chen 
said the aim was to move China from a two-tiered price system 
to a market economy. {para} Commenting on overall economic 
reform, Mr Chen said about 10,000 enterprises had merged and 
46 had gone bankrupt since the start of this year. {para} 
``The implementation of the reform and opening policy is 
developing in a healthy direction, but some problems remain,''
he said. {para} Government departments were still intervening 
in business operations. {para} Price reform has been one of 
the main battles fought between reformers and conservatives. 
{para} Reforms to allow markets to set prices were raised at 
the 13th Party Congress in 1987, but conservatives blocked any
concrete steps from being taken. {/article} 
<U 2729> 
<D 92:09:18> 
<P 12> 
{headline} Economists berate leftist ideologues {byline} By 
WILLY WO-LAP LAM {article} LIBERAL economists have openly 
berated leftist ideologues and central planners for opposing 
the development of the market economy. {para} The pro-market 
intellectuals have also warned that while reform is 
irreversible, imprudent steps taken by reformists might retard
economic liberalisation. {para} In a bold article, the 
Guangzhou-based Nanfang Daily pointed out that, as early as 
1988, theorists in Guangdong argued that a socialist country 
must implement a market economy. {para} The editors of 
Nanfang, who report to the provincial party committee, 
revealed that during a conference in late 1988, local social 
scientists mapped out plans for ``a march towards a market 
economy''. {para} Their viewpoints were gathered in a 
classified report that the New China News Agency produced for 
the top leadership in November that year. {para} 
``Regrettably, that conference was later subjected to 
unwarranted criticism and attack,'' the editors said. {para} 
The gist of the Nanfang article was reproduced yesterday by 
the semi-official China News Service. {para} Chinese analysts 
said the unusual step taken by Nanfang and the CNS was an 
attempt to discredit remnant Maoists who still held sway in 
many ideological and propaganda departments in the capital. 
{para} They said it was the same group of ideologues who had 
criticised the Guangdong economists in 1988. {para} Moreover, 
politicians, economists and journalists in Guangdong are eager
to rehabilitate policies undertaken in 1987 and 1988 by 
deposed party chief Mr Zhao Ziyang. {para} However, while the 
liberal theorists are confidant that the move towards a 
``socialist market economy'' will be endorsed by the 14th 
party congress, they have warned that the battle is the 
reformists' to lose. {para} In an address carried yesterday by
the semi-official Hongkong China News Agency, former Zhao 
adviser and senior economist Mr Wu Jinglian indicated ``no 
forces could block the advance of market economists''. {para} 
However, Mr Wu warned that ``the main danger is reformists 
themselves'' in view of the mistakes they might make. {para} 
The economists pointed to danger signals in the areas of the 
stock market, price reform, and the cessation of life tenure 
for workers. {para} For example, he said, the prices of many 
shares did not reflect the viability of the companies 
concerned, and a collapse in the market might predispose stock
owners against further reform. {para} Meanwhile, the 
vice-governor of Guangdong, Mr Liu Weiming, yesterday unveiled
a plan to regularise the stocks system in the province. {para}
Companies in cities other than Guangzhou and Shenzhen will 
have to seek the approval of a Joint Provincial Adjudication 
Committee before they can issue shares, while companies who 
want their shares to be sold on the open market must get the 
permission of central authorities. {/article} 
<U 2730> 
<D 92:09:21> 
<P 10> 
{headline} Inner Mongolia cadre gets top Tibetan job {byline} 
By ROBERT BARNETT {article} A CHINESE cadre from Inner 
Mongolia has been transferred to Lhasa to take over the 
running of Tibet, replacing a Tibetan who briefly held the 
post last year. {para} The new acting party secretary of Tibet
is Mr Chen Kuiyuan, Vice-Governor of Inner Mongolia before his
appointment to Tibet. {para} Mr Chen was made a member of the 
Party Committee in Inner Mongolia with responsibility for 
higher education in 1990, but details of his earlier career 
are sketchy. {para} The appointment suggests that in spite of 
its apparent commitment to ``localisation'', Beijing is not 
yet ready to appoint a Tibetan to the highest position of the 
autonomous region. {para} Chinese sources said Mr Chen, whose 
star is rising, was well-placed to be appointed party 
secretary. The incumbent, Mr Hu Jintao, returned to Beijing in
early 1991 for health reasons. {para} A former chief of the 
Communist Youth League and protege of the late party 
general-secretary Mr Hu Yaobang, Mr Hu Jintao is tipped to be 
promoted to head of the party's Organisation Department at the
14th party congress. {para} Mr Chen has been officially 
described as one of several deputy secretaries in the Tibet 
Regional Party Committee, but in official documents his name 
appears before Mr Gyaltsen Norbu, the Tibet Governor. {para} 
Mr Norbu, a Tibetan who was appointed Governor in May 1990, 
has been a deputy party secretary since 1985 and, until Mr 
Chen's arrival, was named ahead of the other deputy 
secretaries. {para} Now both Mr Chen and Mr Raidi, another 
deputy secretary, are listed before Mr Norbu, who appears to 
be losing status. {para} Mr Chen has given several speeches on
the need to speed up economic reform in Tibet but has also 
emphasised ``stability'', a euphemism for repression of 
dissent. {para} In one speech Mr Chen called on the party to 
be ``tough'' in the fight against ``sinful attempts . . . to 
split the motherland''. {para} Mr Chen was first introduced to
top Chinese cadres as the new leader in Tibet at a closed 
meeting in Lhasa on March 3, according to unofficial sources 
in the Tibetan capital, who said that the meeting was timed to
take place while Tibetan cadres were absent during 
preparations for Tibetan New Year. {para} On July 5, 1991, 
deputy secretary Mr Raidi was described by Tibet Television as
``executive deputy secretary'' of the Regional Party 
Committee, indicating that he had become the first- ever 
Tibetan to run the party in Tibet, but he seems to have kept 
his position for only a few weeks. {para} Mr Raidi, who comes 
from a family of nomads in Nagchu, 300 kilometres north of 
Lhasa, is regarded as a leftist. He joined the Party Committee
in 1971, during the Cultural Revolution, and became a member 
of the party's Central Committee in 1982. {/article} 
<U 2731> 
<D 92:09:25> 
<P 1> 
{headline} Reformers tipped to dominate politburo {byline} By 
a Staff Reporter {article} PATRIARCH Mr Deng Xiaoping has put 
together a new politburo where reformist and moderate cadres 
have a clear-cut majority. {para} But the leftists, or remnant
Maoists, are expected to continue to dominate the crucial 
ideological and propaganda departments. {para} Authoritative 
sources said yesterday that, barring last-minute 
horse-trading, three cadres would be inducted into the supreme
politburo Standing Committee during the forthcoming 14th 
congress of the Chinese Communist Party. {para} They are 
Vice-Premier Mr Zhu Rongji, Vice-Chairman of the Central 
Military Commission (CMC) General Liu Huaqing, and the former 
party secretary of Tibet, Mr Hu Jintao. {para} The trio will 
replace hard-liners; Vice-Premier Mr Yao Yilin and chief of 
organisation and personnel Mr Song Ping. {para} A charismatic 
reformist, Mr Zhu, 64, is Mr Deng's handpicked successor, on 
whose shoulders falls the task of ushering in a ``socialist 
market economy''. {para} General Liu, who will later this year
replace President Mr Yang Shangkun as the CMC's First 
Vice-Chairman, has been a close follower of Mr Deng since the 
1940s. {para} The formal naval chief will probably be foremost
in reaching the Army's much- publicised goal of ``protecting 
the emperor [Deng] and providing an escort for his voyage''. 
{para} In ideological terms, however, General Liu, 76, is 
deemed a moderate who does not have clear-cut positions on 
matters such as market reforms and political liberalisation. 
{para} The surprising elevation of Mr Hu, 50, is considered a 
result of a compromise between Mr Deng and the conservative 
party elders. {para} A former chief of the Communist Youth 
League, Mr Hu is a protege of the late party general secretary
Mr Hu Yaobang, one of the most liberal leaders of the party. 
{para} But Mr Hu is also acceptable to the hard-liners. He 
served under Mr Song in Gansu province, where the former Tibet
chief was head of the local youth league. {para} And after Mr 
Hu Yaobang was ousted in a palace coup in January 1987, Mr Hu 
Jintao, then party boss of Guizhou province, was the first to 
signal his support for the dismissal of his mentor. {para} The
promotion of Mr Hu, who will probably take over the powerful 
organisation portfolio, is believed to have the endorsement of
Mr Song and other conservative party elders. {para} While Mr 
Hu has usually been classified a ``liberal'' by sinologists, 
he has since early this year disappointed many followers of Mr
Deng by failing to push either radical reform or the fight 
against leftism. {para} Four incumbents on the politburo 
Standing Committee will be given a second five-year term. 
{para} They are General Secretary Mr Jiang Zemin, a moderate; 
Prime Minister Mr Li Peng, a conservative; security chief Mr 
Qiao Shi, a reformist; and ideology and propaganda chief Mr Li
Ruihuan, a reformist. {para} Political sources in Beijing said
many were disappointed that because of opposition from 
hardline elders, Vice-Premier Mr Tian Jiyun had apparently 
failed to be elevated to the politburo Standing Committee. 
{para} A radical reformist and the nemesis of leftists, Mr 
Tian is instead slated for a prominent position, perhaps the 
chairmanship, of the National People's Congress. {para} The 
sources added, however, that even without Mr Tian, the 
politburo Standing Committee would be dominated by cadres who 
would second Mr Deng's economic reforms while at the same time
maintaining tight political control over the populace. {para} 
Eleventh-hour give-and-take is believed to be taking place 
regarding who will be elevated to the politburo. {para} 
Insiders say that as well as Mr Zhu, Mr Hu and General Liu, 
six other heavyweights are almost sure to be promoted. {para} 
They include Vice-Premier Mr Zou Jiahua; secretary-general of 
the CMC General Yang Baibing; United Front chief Mr Ding 
Guan'gen; head of the Central Committee General Office Mr Wen 
Jiabao; party boss of Shanghai Mr Wu Bangguo; and Foreign 
Minister Mr Qian Qichen. {para} A moderate technocrat, Mr Zou,
66, is also head of the State Planning Commission. {para} 
Because of his military background, Mr Zou, a former ordnance 
minister, will function as the ``intermediary'' between the 
central Government and the powerful military establishment. 
{para} General Yang Baibing, 72, who is also a moderate, is 
expected to play a similar role to that of General Liu. {para}
A bridge partner of Mr Deng, Mr Ding, 63, a solid reformist, 
will take over the portfolio of persuading the Kuomintang in 
Taiwan to come to the negotiating table with the Communist 
Party. {para} Mr Zhu's successor as party boss of Shanghai, Mr
Wu, 51, is not credited with either the flair or vision of his
predecessor. {para} However, the moderate technocrat is 
expected to toe Beijing's line on the ambitious development of
Shanghai and Pudong. {para} Mr Qian, 64, one of China's best 
diplomats, is deemed a moderate on political and ideological 
issues. {para} Mr Wen, 50, who is rumoured to be a candidate 
to succeed Maoist Mr Li Ximing as party secretary of Beijing, 
is a solid reformist and protege of former party boss Mr Zhao 
Ziyang. {para} Aside from Mr Yao and Mr Song, at least six 
incumbents will leave the politburo. {para} They are Mr Yang 
Shangkun, a moderate; Vice-Premier Mr Wu Xueqian, a moderate; 
Defence Minister General Qin Jiwei, a reformist; National 
People's Congress chairman Mr Wan Li, a reformist; Sichuan 
party chief Mr Yang Rudai, a reformist, and Beijing party boss
Mr Li Ximing, a conservative. {para} Incumbents who will stay 
on include Mr Tian and education chief Mr Li Tieying, a 
moderate. {para} A major disappointment for the partisans of 
reform, however, is that Mr Deng does not seem to have been 
able to pick reformist or at least moderate leaders to run the
leftist-dominated ideological and propaganda establishment. 
{para} At or after the 14th party congress, three die-hard 
conservatives who have been criticised by Mr Deng will be 
forced to resign. {para} They are the head of the Propaganda 
Department, Mr Wang Renzhi; director of People's Daily Mr Gao 
Di; and the Acting Culture Minister Mr He Jingzhi. {para} 
Sources said a ``fierce battle'' was being waged over who 
would succeed Mr Wang. {para} The liberal faction is pushing 
the vice-president of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences 
Mr Zheng Bijian, who had been a personal secretary of Mr Hu 
Yaobang. {para} However, insiders said one of Mr Wang's 
deputies, leftist ideologue Mr Liu Zhongde, now had the edge 
over Mr Zheng. {para} Mr Liu, who is a protege of both 
conservative patriarch Mr Deng Liqun and Mr Li Peng, has been 
asked to look after propaganda and public-relations matters 
for the 14th congress. {para} Mr Liu, who is currently a 
deputy secretary-general of the State Council and had been a 
vice-minister at the State Education Commission, is also 
considered a candidate to succeed Mr He as Culture Minister. 
{para} Sources in the People's Daily said chief editor Mr Shao
Huaze had emerged as a front-runner to succeed Mr Gao. {para} 
Deemed a ``moderate conservative'', Mr Shao had previously 
worked for newspapers and army propaganda units. {para} Two 
proteges of Mr Deng Liqun - Mr Sha Jiansun and Mr Zhang 
Yunsheng - have a good chance of becoming the chief editor of 
the conservative party mouthpiece. {para} A rising star among 
leftists, Mr Sha is a vice-chief of the Central Committee's 
research office on party history and a former vice-president 
of Beijing University. {para} Also considered a candidate to 
take over the Propaganda Department, Mr Sha has had a high 
profile since the spring. {para} Appointed vice-chief editor 
of the People's Daily after the June 4 crackdown, Mr Zhang had
worked with Mr Deng Liqun at the research office of the 
Central Committee Secretariat. {para} Analysts said the 
continued dominance of the conservatives in ideology and 
propaganda meant tight censorship on liberal ideas and works 
of art would persist in the near future. {para} They also said
that despite much speculation, Mr Deng Xiaoping had finally 
agreed to keep the so-called ``Jiang-Li system'' although Mr 
Jiang and Mr Li Peng would have to share much of their work 
with other members of the politburo Standing Committee. {para}
They said that although Mr Deng was unhappy about the 
performance of Mr Jiang and Mr Li, he believed it would be 
inappropriate to replace his third hand-picked successor, Mr 
Jiang, who took over from the disgraced party boss Mr Zhao 
three years ago. {/article} 
<U 2732> 
<D 92:09:10> 
<P 10> 
{headline} `Surrender' a lie, says Han {article} LABOUR leader
Mr Han Dongfang has accused the Chinese police and judicial 
authorities of telling lies and breaking their own laws. 
{para} Speaking at a press conference in Hongkong, Mr Han said
that to break the will of the dissident community, the 
authorities had fabricated a story that he had surrendered to 
police. {para} The dissident said he had walked into the 
Public Security Bureau on June 19, 1989, to confront the 
authorities with the truth about the democracy movement. 
{para} ``Beijing had called the democracy crusade a 
counter-revolutionary rebellion and I wanted to set the record
straight,'' Mr Han said. {para} ``I wanted to challenge the 
authorities and tell them that democracy activists can pursue 
their goals in an open manner.'' {para} According to the 
labour leader, the officers laughed at his naivete and told 
him that ``the police station is not a place for telling right
from wrong''. {para} Despite his protests, the Chinese media 
reported that he had surrendered, in a bid to weaken the 
morale of dissidents on the run, Mr Han said. {para} Last 
November, he was told he was being released because the 
authorities had decided not to prosecute him on the grounds 
that ``he had turned himself in and had behaved himself well 
during detention''. {para} ``I told them I actually wanted a 
harsher treatment as I never surrendered to the police and I 
could not have behaved well because I had exposed their 
fabrications,'' Mr Han said. {para} The police had told him 
they had never come across a detainee seeking harsh, rather 
than lenient, treatment. {para} The labour leader also said 
the court of the Dongcheng District in Beijing had tried to 
delay his departure from China by postponing deliberation of a
case in which a government unit accused him of illegal 
occupation of a flat. {para} ``On the grounds that a citizen 
with a pending lawsuit cannot leave the country, the Dongcheng
court was deliberately erecting roadblocks to my departure,'' 
he said. {para} Mr Han said that on the advice of the police, 
he made a declaration disowning possession of the property in 
the flat. {para} ``The police admitted that the Dongcheng 
court was breaking the law,'' he said. ``And I made it clear 
in my statement that I retain the right to live in that 
flat.'' {byline} - WILLY WO-LAP LAM {/article} 
<U 2733> 
<D 92:09:19> 
<P 12> 
{headline} Students to mark Japan's invasion {article} 
STUDENTS at Beijing University will hold a gathering on campus
today to commemorate the 61st anniversary of the September 18 
Incident, which marked Japan's incursion into northeast China.
{para} It is the first time since the mid-1980s that the 
authorities have allowed students to organise public functions
that could be construed as ``anti-Japanese''. {para} Coming 
ahead of the October 23 to 29 visit to China by Emperor 
Akihito, the event is expected to galvanise widespread 
sentiments in the capital and elsewhere for seeking war 
reparations from Tokyo. {para} Sources on campus said about a 
dozen top historians, social scientists and witnesses of the 
war had been invited to speak at the gathering, which would be
held in a lecture hall. {para} Among the speakers are a few 
retired generals who will talk about their personal experience
of atrocities committed by the Imperial Army. {para} ``The 
meeting, which is organised by several graduate students, is 
an entirely spontaneous act reflecting the intelligentsia's 
feelings about Japan,'' an informed source said. {para} 
``Obviously, the students could go from remembering the 
September 18 Incident to demanding that Akihito deliver a 
formal apology and promise to make compensations''. {para} 
War-related commemorative activities by college students in 
the mid-1980s led to small-scale street demonstrations which 
called for, among other things, an end to Tokyo's ``economic 
invasion'' of China. {para} The students were also aware that 
conservatives within the leadership might accuse them of using
the Japan issue as a pretext to re-launch a pro-democracy 
movement. {byline} - WILLY WO-LAP LAM {/article} 
<U 2734> 
<D 92:09:12> 
<P 4> 
{headline} 20 million tune in to hear top pop stars {byline} 
From BELINDA WALLIS in Guangzhou {article} ONE of the biggest 
pop extravaganzas ever staged in China took place last night 
with more than a little help from Hongkong. {para} An 
estimated 20 million people caught the live radio broadcast of
the Guangzhou- Hongkong Mid-Autumn Festival benefit concert. 
{para} Seven of Hongkong's leading pop stars performed in the 
Radio GuangdongRadio Television Hongkong co-production, which 
went out on five channels on both sides of the border. {para} 
Superstar Andy Lau, who was performing for the first time in 
mainland China, was joined by pop stars Jacky Cheung, Sandy 
Lam, Lui Fong, Alex To, Hacken Lee and Shirley Kwan. {para} 
Also featured were local singing stars and RTHK disc jockeys. 
{para} The 8,000 tickets for the benefit concert were snapped 
up within two hours of going on sale and ticket scalpers were 
reportedly asking 800 yuan (HK$1,130) each - 10 times their 
face value. {para} It was not just teen Canto-pop fans who 
queued up for the tickets - top government officials and high 
ranking Army personnel were among the audience. {para} Even 
the Governor of Guangdong province, Mr Zhou Shenglin, made 
sure he had a prized ticket. {para} It was the third 
co-broadcast between RTHK and Radio Guangdong in the past 18 
months and by far the most ambitious. {para} A staff of 400 
from Guangzhou and Hongkong was mobilised and hi-tech 
equipment was brought in from Hongkong to make sure the show 
at the Tian He Gymnasium was visually spectacular. {para} It 
is hoped that as much as six million yuan was raised from the 
concert. {para} Proceeds will go to the non-government 
Guangdong Education Advancement Fund, which takes education to
isolated rural areas in China. {para} Highlights of the 
three-hour concert, which started at 8 pm, will be screened 
tomorrow night on TVB Jade and ATV Home. {/article} 
<U 2735> 
<D 92:09:16> 
<P 2> 
{headline} Viet captain `targeted' by authorities {byline} By 
GREG TORODE and agencies {article} CHINESE authorities 
targeted a ship intercepted off Hongkong this week because its
captain had spoken out against earlier treatment at the hands 
of the Shekou Public Security Bureau, agents said yesterday. 
{para} Konwa Shipping managing director, Mr Tang Chan- pui, 
said the Chinese were employing ``bullying tactics'' on Monday
by firing on and intercepting the East Wood just inside 
Chinese waters off Waglan Island. {para} The ship and crew had
earlier spent 10 days under armed guard in Shekou after it was
seized making its way to Hon Gai in north Vietnam. Its $15 
million worth of cargo, including 50 new cars, remains 
confiscated. {para} On his return to Hongkong, Captain Cheng 
Wan- chun said he and his crew had been forced to sign 
statements saying the goods had been smuggled. {para} This 
time the 7,000-tonne ship was loaded with construction steel 
bound for Shanghai. {para} Mr Tang said: ``Clearly, it had a 
cargo that was not suspicious and it was not bound for 
Vietnam. {para} ``They just wanted to scare the master, they 
seem to know all about the movements of the ships.'' {para} It
was the third ship in a week to be intercepted off Waglan 
Island, an area which lies near restricted waters surrounding 
a sensitive Chinese naval base on Lema Island. {para} A patrol
boat appeared to be waiting for the ship as it crossed the 
border at about 10.30 pm, Mr Tang said. {para} One warning 
shot was fired and seven armed officers boarded the East Wood 
and demanded to check papers and cargo. {para} They left seven
minutes later and the ship continued north. None of the crew 
was injured. {para} Government sources said yesterday that 
they also feared the ship was targeted for no other reason 
than it had been previously under detention. {para} ``The 
sooner we are in a position to explain to the shipping 
industry what is going on, the better for everyone,'' a source
said. {para} ``But until the Chinese tell us why these ships 
are being targeted, we cannot do anything.'' {para} China has 
acknowledged it mistakenly entered Hongkong waters during one 
of two recent incursions, but there have been no replies to 
government and Foreign Office demands for explanations on why 
coastal freighters are being stopped. {para} China explained 
the latest incursion by saying it was on anti-smuggling 
patrols but sailors and Hongkong shipping agents say all their
cargoes are fully manifested. {para} However, a report 
yesterday from a Vietnamese newspaper says traders have 
discovered they can dodge Chinese import tariffs by shipping 
cars, trucks and other merchandise to northeast Vietnam and 
truck it into China. {para} The Liberated Saigon newspaper 
said Hon Gai had earned a reputation as a ``hot spot'' for car
trafficking, with local authorities collaborating with 
smugglers in the lucrative trade. {para} The network was 
sophisticated, with Chinese companies ordering cars from 
Hongkong firms and then hiring a firm in Quang Ninh province 
to transport them into China. {para} Evidence of the thriving 
``transit'' business could be easily seen in Hon Gai, where 
parking lots were full of late-model cars, small trucks and 
vans, the newspaper said. {para} According to Hon Gai Customs,
1,832 cars were shipped into the port in the three months 
ending August 20 by the 15 Quang Ninh companies licensed for 
``transit'' trade. {para} In other cases, Vietnamese shippers 
skipped north Vietnam altogether and delivered their Hongkong 
cargos directly to a secluded southern Chinese port. {para} A 
sailor was quoted as saying that shipping companies based all 
over Vietnam were rushing to Hon Gai to transport contraband 
merchandise. {para} Transport companies usually charged about 
10 to 15 per cent of the car's price. After paying ``taxes'' 
to various local authorities, the companies could net about 
US$1,000 (HK$7,730) profit per car, the newspaper said. {para}
The Hongkong Government believes trade between Hongkong and 
Hon Gai is legitimate. {/article} 
<U 2736> 
<D 92:09:22> 
<P 11> 
{headline} Sichuan leading way on cutbacks {byline} By WILLY 
WO-LAP LAM {article} SICHUAN province has led the country in 
reaching the goal of ``small government, big society'', deemed
the key to the reform of China's administrative structure. 
{para} The leadership of Sichuan, China's largest province, 
has announced bold plans to trim the bureaucracy, cut down on 
fiats and quotas, and render government units into ``service- 
oriented entities''. {para} According to a report in the 
Economic Daily yesterday, the thrust of the just-announced 
measures was to ``delegate the Government's management powers 
to enterprises and to return powers to the enterprises''. 
{para} ``Let the Government do governmental work, and 
enterprises do what they should do,'' the Daily quoted 
instructions from provincial authorities. {para} In accordance
with the principle of the separation of government and 
business, enterprises will have ``expanded powers'' in areas 
including personnel, investment, income distribution, imports 
and exports and the fixing of prices. {para} In most 
instances, government departments will no longer issue direct 
orders to business units. {para} For example, the total number
of mandatory targets in the industrial sector will shrink from
32 in 1992 to 16 next year. {para} Non-obligatory, 
for-guidance-only targets will also be cut from 67 this year 
to 30 in 1993. {para} The function of the Government will be 
shifted from ``control and management'' to providing services 
for the gradual formation of a ``socialist market economy''. 
{para} Government units, especially those dealing with 
specialist areas like production, trading or technology, will 
be converted into corporations which will no longer have 
executive authority. {para} Other departments will have their 
staff drastically trimmed. {para} So far, only the leaders of 
Sichuan and Hainan provinces, who have enjoyed the patronage 
of former party chief Mr Zhao Ziyang, have announced detailed 
plans for the reform of administration. {para} Similar goals, 
which will be enshrined in the forthcoming 14th party 
Congress, have been laid down for the central Government. 
{para} However, analysts doubt whether such radical steps 
would be adopted in the conservative heartland and northeast 
provinces, which have taken over the Stalinist structure of 
government and industrial management. {para} In a talk carried
by the China News Service yesterday, liberal economist Mr Wu 
Mingyu expressed worries that the implementation of the 
socialist market economy would ``involve [taking away] the 
powers and vested interests of many departments''. {para} Mr 
Wu, who thinks that the teachings of patriarch Mr Deng 
Xiaoping this year represented a ``second ideological 
liberation'', said the country must jettison ``the ossified, 
highly centralised system of central planning''. {para} While 
the economist fully acknowledged that those who stand to lose 
from reform would put up resistance, he urged the authorities 
``not to make compromises and accommodations''. {para} ``I 
trust the politicians can adequately handle these thorny 
problems,'' Mr Wu said. {/article} 
<U 2737> 
<D 92:09:25> 
<P 15> 
{headline} Planning body set for revamp {byline} By KENT CHEN 
{article} THE State Planning Commission under the State 
Council, which formulates strategic goals for the national 
economy and social development, is facing a major revamp which
will result in a drastic reduction in its power. {para} A 
senior official said yesterday that the commission, as the top
think-tank of the State Council, should take the lead in the 
reform of government functions and be an example to other 
departments. {para} ``It is also necessary for the commission 
to adapt to the new situation in the development of a 
socialist market economy, under which traditional central 
planning is replaced by a market mechanism,'' the official 
said. {para} The China News Service quoted the official as 
saying that a new macro economic control system should be 
established to provide guidance for the market. {para} The 
revamp was seen as a response to the inception of an Economic 
and Trade Office (ETO), headed by Vice-Premier Mr Zhu Rongji. 
{para} The ETO, branded a ``super agency'' in the State 
Council, has taken over the control of areas such as 
production, foreign trade, resources and high technology, in 
addition to state enterprises, joint ventures and the private 
sector. {para} The head of the commission, Mr Zou Jiahua, and 
Mr Zhu are both considered candidates to succeed Premier Mr Li
Peng. {para} The latest development could lead to a loss of 
power for Mr Zou. {para} According to the official, a key 
responsibility of the revamped commission will be to gather 
economic information and make predictions to provide guidance 
for the market. {para} Its second responsibility is to monitor
the performance of the economy, to detect any irregularities, 
and provide constructive suggestions, rather than issuing 
administrative orders. {para} In line with the shift in its 
duties, the commission would reform its thinking and 
administrative structure, the official said. {/article} 
<U 2738> 
<D 92:09:25> 
<P 13> 
{headline} `Last chance' for patriarch {byline} By KENT CHEN 
{article} THE 14th congress will be the last chance for senior
leader Mr Deng Xiaoping to put his own men in leading 
positions, according to prominent sinologist Dr Thomas Chan 
Man-hung. {para} Dr Chan, the co-ordinator of Hongkong 
Polytechnic's China Business Centre, said personnel issues 
would take precedence during the congress, because many other 
issues hinged on the distribution of power. {para} ``Without a
definitive settlement on the distribution of power, the 
leadership will have to devote much of their energy to 
internal struggles,'' he said. {para} While official media 
stressed that the shift to a so-called ``socialist market 
economy'' was a main theme of the congress, Dr Chan said the 
slogan was meaningless because polices already in place would 
not change. {para} On the leadership changes, Dr Chan said a 
lot of new faces could be expected on the Central Committee as
young provincial and municipal heads were promoted to replace 
ageing leaders. {para} Eventually, these members would be 
elevated to higher positions. {para} Dr Chan believed there 
would be no major surprises in the line-up of the Standing 
Committee of the powerful politburo. {para} Commenting on the 
possible elevation of Vice-Premier Mr Zhu Rongji, army leader 
Mr Liu Huaqing and Tibetan party head Mr Hu Jintao, Dr Chan 
said Mr Zhu was not doing as well as reported by the media. 
{para} He said Mr Liu was too old and Mr Hu's association with
former party chief Mr Hu Yaobang was not enough for his 
elevation. {/article} 
<U 2739> 
<D 92:09:21> 
<P 1> 
{headline} Beijing attacked for military build-up {headline} 
US attacks Beijing for massive arms build-up {byline} By WILLY
WO-LAP LAM {article} A SENIOR American official has accused 
Beijing of engaging in a massive military build-up which has 
caused alarm among its neighbours. {para} Assistant Secretary 
of Defence for International Security Affairs, Mr James 
Lilley, also hinted that one reason for Washington's decision 
to sell F-16 fighters to Taiwan was to counter-balance 
Beijing's purchase of SU-27 aircraft from Russia. {para} Mr 
Lilley, who passed through Hongkong over the weekend, said 
countries in the region were concerned by the Chinese Army's 
aggressive programme of weapons acquisition, which had been 
accomplished partly through the procurement of Russian 
hardware. {para} ``China has sovereign rights to buy weapons 
from various countries,'' Mr Lilley said in an interview with 
the South China Morning Post. {para} ``But when a country like
China is increasing its military budget and is out on a 
shopping tour of Russia and the other [former Soviet] 
republics, it is a cause for concern for the US and China's 
neighbours.'' {para} A former ambassador to China, Mr Lilley, 
64, said Beijing's military acquisitions from Russia had begun
in 1989 and the weapons Beijing had set its eyes on or 
acquired ``involved power projection capabilities''. {para} He
confirmed widespread reports that Beijing was actively engaged
in talks with the Ukraine Government over the purchase of an 
aircraft carrier. {para} ``There seems to be some activity in 
attempts to procure an aircraft carrier even though, as far as
we can tell, it has not been consummated yet,'' the defence 
official said. {para} Mr Lilley said Beijing's recent 
acquisition of SU-27 jet fighters from Russia had been 
particularly disquieting. {para} ``The SU-27s have certainly 
added a new capability to the Chinese Air Force which was not 
there before,'' he said. {para} ``These fighters are a 
first-class aircraft. They have a good performance record, and
I do not see there is anything to match it among China's 
neighbouring countries. {para} ``In terms of sheer number, the
Chinese Air Force, with 4,000 to 5,000 aircraft, is by far the
dominant military force in the region. What the SU-27s do is 
to give it a major quality edge.'' {para} Mr Lilley indicated 
the dramatic upgrading of the Chinese Air Force was a factor 
behind the decision by President Mr George Bush to sell 150 
F-16 fighters to Taiwan. {para} He said the pros and cons for 
the F-16 deal had been ``carefully analysed'' by various 
branches of the US Government for some time. {para} ``Numerous
factors go into a decision like that, one of which was the 
disintegration of the Taiwan Air Force,'' the Assistant 
Secretary said. {para} ``One would be the effect on the US 
economy, including the aircraft industry.'' {para} However, Mr
Lilley said another factor was ``the maintenance of 
equilibrium in the area, where you will not have great 
differences in force levels''. {para} ``When there are great 
differences in force levels, this often is an invitation for 
adventurous activities. {para} ``Experience in Asia and other 
areas has shown that a balance of forces is more contributive 
to stability and tranquillity than an imbalance.'' {para} 
Turning to the post-Cold War world order, the senior official 
said the world trend was towards military cut-backs and the 
reduction of armies. {para} ``Some countries have expressed 
concern about the increased budget of the Chinese military,'' 
he said. {para} ``This is in the face of decreasing budgets in
most countries, certainly in my country and Russia.'' {para} 
Mr Lilley said Washington had expressed regrets over Beijing's
recent decision to at least temporarily withdraw from Middle 
East- related arms control talks in retaliation for the F-16 
transaction. {para} ``Bilateral relations should not be 
confused with international obligations,'' he said. ``There 
may be differences between ourselves and China but arms 
control in the Middle East is a major international initiative
that involves the Permanent Five members of the United 
Nations. {para} ``It is very important that China join the 
arms control talks,'' he said, adding Washington would welcome
China back into the process. {para} Mr Lilley added, however, 
that even if Beijing remained outside of the initiative, 
Washington hoped it would abide by the principle that the 
Permanent Five members would report to each other their 
weapons exports to the Middle East. {para} ``The Chinese have 
submitted one list of weapons they have sold to the Middle 
East arms control initiative,'' he said. {para} ``People feel 
that perhaps it was not a complete list and they have urged 
China to continue to report these sorts of things. We hope 
China will do that.'' {para} Mr Lilley acknowledged that 
Beijing had exercised restraint in its arms sales to the 
Middle East since signing in late 1991 the Nuclear 
Non-proliferation Treaty and the Missile Technology Control 
Regime. {para} He hinted, however, that Beijing had not cut 
off all shipments of arms even after acceding to the two 
agreements. {para} ``Since China signed [the two protocols], 
there is evidence it has curtailed some of its activities [in 
shipment of weapons to the Middle East],'' he said. ``I cannot
say whether it is complete or not.'' {para} Concerning the 
recent controversy among several Asian countries over the 
sovereignty of the Spratly Islands, the Assistant Secretary 
said he welcomed multilateral talks among the claimants. 
{para} ``I think regional powers in the South China Sea area 
have sought to engage China in multilateral talks on the 
Spratlys, which seems to be one way to deal with the problem. 
{para} ``The Chinese prefer bilateral talks. The [other] 
countries feel a great disadvantage [in this approach] because
of China's overwhelming powers and size.'' {/article} 
<U 2740> 
<D 92:09:19> 
<P 11> 
{headline} Tight security measures as students mark invasion 
{byline} By WILLY WO-LAP LAM and DANIEL KWAN {article} BEIJING
University officials imposed tight security measures for a 
gathering organised by Chinese students to commemorate the 
September 18 incident which marked Japan's invasion of 
northeast China 61 years ago. {para} All ``uninvited'' people 
were barred by university officials from the three-hour 
meeting, which was attended by about 40 historians, students 
and social scientists. {para} Sources said that in addition to
the scholars and students, a few former government officials, 
several senior Chinese Communist Party leaders and senior 
Beijing University representatives had attended the meeting. 
{para} To accommodate the ``important'' guests, university 
officials moved the meeting from the originally scheduled 
cultural centre to a small conference room in the university 
executive building, the sources said. {para} It is the first 
time since the mid-1980s that the Chinese authorities have 
allowed students to organise public functions that could be 
construed as ``anti-Japanese''. {para} Among those invited to 
the gathering were the Vice-Chairman of the Chinese People's 
Political Consultative Conference, General Lu Zhengchao, now 
retired, and Mr Chen Haosu, a vice-president of the Chinese 
People's Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries. 
{para} Other guests included Professor Yuan Hongbing, Mr Tong 
Zeng, a social activist, Mr Sha Jiansun, deputy director of 
the Central Party History Research Centre of the Chinese 
Communist Party, and Professor Chen Ku-ying. {para} According 
to Chinese sources, yesterday's meeting focused on the 
Sino-Japanese war, and General Lu reportedly gave a personal 
account of the war atrocities committed by Japanese soldiers. 
{para} Mr Tong, who has campaigned for an official apology and
war reparations from the Japanese Government, said the Chinese
Government should allow dissenting voices because many Chinese
still felt deeply about the tragedy. {para} Professor Chen 
reportedly said that history should be respected, although it 
was important to maintain good Sino-Japanese relations. {para}
He pointed out that while the Japanese often remembered 
themselves as victims of the atomic bombs, there was little 
mention of the 300,000 Chinese massacred by Japanese troops in
Nanjing, near Shanghai, during the invasion. {para} He 
compared the Nanjing massacre to the Holocaust in Nazi Germany
during World War II, but said that while the Jews had 
succeeded in drawing world attention to their plight, China 
had made little effort to record the Nanjing massacre, which 
was ignored in Japanese history textbooks. {/article} 
<U 2741> 
<D 92:09:16> 
<P 12> 
{headline} Private bid for war reparations {byline} From 
GEOFFREY CROTHALL in Beijing and WILLY WO-LAP LAM {article} A 
FAST-GROWING private organisation has called on ethnic Chinese
all over the world to demand that Japanese Emperor Akihito 
make compensation for war victims in China and apologise for 
atrocities. {para} Mr Tong Zeng, the head of the China 
Non-Governmental Committee to Claim Compensation from Japan, 
also disclosed he had found at least 12 ``comfort women'' who 
were forced to serve Japanese soldiers in China. {para} Mr 
Tong, a researcher at China's Centre for Gerentological 
Research, yesterday sent an open letter to Chinese groups in 
Hongkong and around the world asking them to sign a petition 
demanding damages from Tokyo. {para} Mr Tong claimed his 
committee, which encompasses more than 20 local groupings, had
collected 300,000 signatures demanding reparations. {para} He 
also indicated that it had the support of more than 100 
members of the National People's Congress. {para} Mr Tong and 
his group hope to extract an apology from the emperor during 
his visit late next month, but senior Chinese officials have 
already indicated that Beijing will not be applying any 
pressure for a formal apology. {para} Mr Tong did not specify 
what action his committee planned during the imperial visit, 
but observers said it was unlikely members would be given 
permission to demonstrate. {para} ``I do not want to say 
whether there will be demonstrations,'' he said yesterday. ``I
hope the emperor will promise to deliver an apology before he 
arrives.'' {para} Mr Tong said he planned to formally register
his grassroots organisation with the Government as soon as 
possible. {para} However, analysts said the authorities were 
unlikely to approve the committee until well after Emperor 
Akihito's visit to avoid diplomatic upsets. {para} Mr Tong 
said the 1,000- odd volunteers working for the committee had 
found at least 12 ``comfort women'' in the provinces of Hubei,
Shanxi, Shandong, and Hebei. {para} ``Several in Hubei are 
ethnic Koreans who were kidnapped by Japanese soldiers and 
brought into China,'' he said. {para} ``They have lived and 
worked in China since the war, and they want compensations 
from the Japanese Government.'' {para} The activist said the 
``comfort women'' and their relatives had demanded damages 
ranging from US$40,000 (HK$309,080) to US$120,000 per person. 
{para} Preliminary research showed 2,000 to 4,000 Chinese 
women were forced to serve as sex slaves for the imperial 
army. {para} Mr Tong said the activities of the volunteers had
received ``neither obstruction nor encouragement'' from the 
Government. {para} In his petition, he says that only through 
adequate compensation ``can the souls of the dead be 
consoled'' and ``ruthless militarism punished''. {para} 
``Although there are many reasons why Japan has played the 
role of a fierce neighbour so many times, an important one is 
that it has not received due punishment,'' the petition says. 
{para} ``Who can guarantee that Japan will not invade our 
country on an even larger scale next century. Who can 
guarantee that our descendants won't suffer even greater 
killing and insult in the future.'' {/article} 
<U 2742> 
<D 92:09:11> 
<P 1> 
{headline} Congress to endorse Deng line {byline} By WILLY 
WO-LAP LAM {article} DELEGATES to the Chinese Communist 
Party's 14th Congress, set to convene on or around October 15,
will endorse Mr Deng Xiaoping's line of fast-paced market 
reforms. {para} Chinese sources said the patriarch had secured
the support of the majority of the 1,991 delegates, whose 
elections were completed by early summer. {para} The sources 
added Mr Deng had been able to stick to the original 
commencement date of around October 15. {para} This is despite
efforts by the conservative camp to postpone it to late 
November or December in an apparent bid to blunt the momentum 
that Mr Deng initiated in his trip to southern China earlier 
this year. {para} In a dispatch yesterday, the New China News 
Agency said the delegates had ``strengthened their 
conscientiousness in implementing the party's basic line and 
made up their minds to accelerate reform and economic 
development''. {para} The NCNA added that the delegates had 
also ``made great efforts to study and carry out comrade Deng 
Xiaoping's theory on building socialism with Chinese 
characteristics.'' {para} The delegates, who represent the 
country's 51 million members, will endorse a fresh party 
platform and pick a new Central Committee and Politburo. 
{para} Sources in Beijing said the patriarch was ``by and 
large satisfied'' with the Political Report to the Congress, 
which had gone through at least five drafts. {para} The report
would focus on the fact that the party would implement the 
``theory of Deng Xiaoping'' for at least 100 years. {para} 
Moreover, the report would also commit the country to bringing
about a ``socialist market economy'' where state planning 
would be phased out in the course of the decade. {para} The 
sources said, however, that wrangling over who would be 
elected to the policy-setting Central Committee as well as the
supreme Politburo and its Standing Committee would go on until
the eve of the opening ceremony. {para} But they said the 
composition of the 1,991 delegates, part of which was revealed
by the NCNA yesterday, showed beyond doubt that most would 
cast their ballots for reformist-orientated candidates. {para}
Seventy-eight per cent of the delegates are cadres of various 
levels, with the rest being professionals, soldiers, advanced 
workers and ``proletarian models'' in fields including 
industry, agriculture, defence, politics, technology and 
education. {para} More than half - 58.9 per cent - of the 
representatives are below 55; 70.7 per cent have college 
educations, which is 11 per cent more than for the 13th Party 
Congress in 1987. {para} Party sources said of most 
significance was the fact that 40 per cent of the delegates 
hailed from the provinces and localities, while around 10 per 
cent were military representatives. {para} ``Being 
beneficiaries of the open door policy, representatives from 
the regions will lobby for more radical economic reforms, 
while the Army is the bastion of Deng Xiaoping,'' a source 
said. {para} That Mr Deng cannot win a total victory, however,
is evident from the fact that a minority of the delegates are 
well-known leftists, including Maoists who have been 
criticised by the patriarch by name. {para} Western diplomats 
say Mr Deng has returned to the capital and will personally 
oversee the preparations for the Congress. {/article} 
<U 2743> 
<D 92:09:26> 
<P 5> 
{headline} Trade in rare animals rampant {byline} By LUISA TAM
in Guangzhou {article} THE illegal sale of endangered species 
is still flourishing in Guangzhou, catering for local and 
Hongkong customers despite new laws aimed at stamping it out. 
{para} The Guangzhou government recently announced new 
measures to tighten protection of exotic animals such as 
pangolins, owls and wild cats. But black-market trading in 
these animals continues, although customers are screened more 
carefully. {para} The South China Morning Post yesterday 
visited the notorious Qing Ping market in Guangzhou city and 
we were offered live pangolins by two stall owners at prices 
ranging from 60 to 100 yuan (HK$84 to HK$140) per catty. A 
small pangolin weighs about four to five catties. {para} We 
were not shown the animal because the hawkers wanted us to pay
immediately. It was like buying fake Rolex watches in Yau Ma 
Tei's Temple Street, where money has to change hands before 
the goods can be delivered. {para} A local resident told the 
South China Morning Post: ``If you know the right places and 
the right people you can buy all kinds of endangered species 
you want here, but they conduct their business quietly.'' 
{para} Pangolins are code-named ``little rats'' to avoid 
police detection. {para} When approached by the Post, the 
first hawker wanted to sell us a pangolin, but later became 
suspicious and tried to push us away. {para} The second hawker
was enthusiastic but also insisted on payment first. He quoted
a cheaper price of 60 yuan per catty. {para} There are about 
100 stalls, each operated by several men, lining the 
250-metre-long Qing Ping market. {para} Although owls and 
other precious creatures such as giant lizards and wild cats 
are also protected under Chinese laws, pangolins are the most 
popular. {para} Pangolins are believed to be the ``most 
useful'' of all game food. The Chinese believe pangolin meat 
can help cure certain types of cancer, and its blood and 
scale-like skin can be used as medicine. {para} Local 
residents eat pangolins every winter and some Hongkong people 
still travel to Guangzhou to make secret purchases. Overseas 
tourists flock to the market out of curiosity. {para} An 
American tourist, Mr Christopher Edel, told the Post he learnt
about the market from a travellers' guide book published by 
Lonely Planet. {para} Some Hongkong animal welfare activists 
believe endangered species are still being smuggled into 
Hongkong in large numbers to be served up as winter delicacies
for wealthy Hongkong people. {para} Hongkong demand for these 
protected animals is believed to be a major factor that keeps 
the illicit trade alive. {para} The infamous Qing Ping market 
is operated like a take-away zoo, featuring all kinds of game 
food and some rare wildlife species. There are chickens, ducks
and pigeons, cats, wild pigs and the rare muntjac - a member 
of the deer family. {para} Although the sale of these animals 
is legal, the cruel treatment of them by stall owners drew 
anger from tourists and some local passers-by. {para} At one 
stall, about 50 cats were locked up in a tiny cage. The cats 
had to lie on top of each other because there was not enough 
space. There was no water bowl inside the cage. {para} At a 
nearby stall, a muntjac was being put into a plastic bag to 
prevent it from running away. The hawker gave it a couple of 
hard kicks to subdue it. {para} There were dead animals dumped
at the side of the road and many of the animals in cages 
looked sick. {/article} 
<U 2744> 
<D 92:09:17> 
<P 10> 
{headline} Increase in crime `under control' {byline} By KENT 
CHEN and agencies {article} A SENIOR public security official 
claimed China's social order was stable although more than 
125,000 serious criminal cases were uncovered and 61,000 gangs
broken up in the first half of this year. {para} A 
vice-minister of the Ministry of Public Security, Mr Jiang 
Xianjin, said the increase in criminal cases was kept under 
control and remained at a stable level. {para} Mr Jiang also 
disclosed that 1,859 police officers were involved in 1,546 
cases of violations of disciplines and regulations in the 
second quarter of the year, a drop of 2.3 per cent compared 
with the same period last year. {para} As part of the effort 
to clean up the force, more than 9,000 officers were dismissed
in recent years and the campaign is expected to be concluded 
before the end of this year, said Mr Jiang. {para} ``In 
general, the police force in China is good. But because of 
various reasons, there are some unqualified officers who 
seriously undermine the image of the force,'' he said. {para} 
The senior official said four separate documents aiming to 
rectify the discipline within the force had been issued. 
{para} Meanwhile, Chinese authorities uncovered more than 
90,000 cases of economic crime in the first half of the year, 
with a rapid rise in freewheeling in coastal areas, the 
Economic Daily reported yesterday. {para} The total was a 
slight drop from the corresponding period last year, but the 
number of big cases rose 9.15 per cent to 7,315 and 335 
million yuan (HK$473.68 million) was recovered in fines or 
confiscated money, up 11.6 per cent. {para} Guangdong and 
Fujian provinces, the pioneers of China's capitalist-style 
experiment in economic reform, accounted for one half of the 
total amount of money recovered. {para} The general trend saw 
an increase in economic crimes in coastal and border regions, 
the newspaper said. {/article} 
<U 2745> 
<D 92:09:26> 
<P 9> 
{headline} Boom in rural enterprise predicted {byline} By KENT
CHEN {article} RURAL and township enterprises will become the 
backbone of China's commodity economy following rapid 
development in recent years, renowned sociologist Professor 
Fei Xiaotong said yesterday. {para} ``China is relatively 
stable compared with the former Soviet Union, because farmers,
who make up the majority of China's population, are contented 
with their current living standard,'' he said. {para} 
Professor Fei, 82, was speaking at an academic conference to 
commemorate his late teacher, Mr Pan Guangdan, a pioneer in 
genetics, sociology and anthropology in China at the beginning
of this century. {para} Professor Fei is known in the West for
his best-selling book, Economic Situation of a Riparian 
Village - a Portrayal of the Life of Chinese Farmers, written 
when he was studying in Britain in the 1930s. {para} ``Farmers
in China have found a way out of their century-old poverty 
with its own characteristics. I am convinced that their living
standard will be much higher in a few years,'' he said 
yesterday. {para} ``The main reasons for the prolonged poverty
in the countryside were imbalanced distribution of land and a 
huge population.'' {para} A series of land reforms after the 
founding of the People's Republic of China in 1949 had failed 
to solve the problem because farmers were not allowed to 
engage in other businesses until the early 1980s, Professor 
Fei said. {para} With the implementation of rural reform, 
farmers were enthusiastically entering sideline businesses and
establishing their own factories. {/article} 
<U 2746> 
<D 92:09:17> 
<P 11> 
{headline} Tourists offered sex services at hair salons 
{byline} By KENT CHEN {article} HAIR salons in Guangdong's 
Yangjiang city are offering sex-related services despite 
repeated campaigns launched by the Government to combat 
prostitution, it was reported yesterday. {para} The hair 
salons in the coastal city are offering young women as 
``swimming partners'' for clients. {para} The women also 
provide massage services and in some instances, sex, according
to the semi-official Hongkong China News Agency. {para} The 
agency quoted tourists who recently returned from the city as 
saying that the ``swimming partners'' were mostly unemployed 
young women from Sichuan province who were willing to do 
anything for a price. {para} The tourists said although hair 
salons operated vice businesses openly, such activities were 
not stopped by government departments. {para} ``The services 
provided by these hair saloons actually have nothing to do 
with hair. The main attractions are young women from other 
provinces dressing in sexy swimming suits,'' reported a 
tourist. {para} If a male tourist is impressed by a girl, he 
can pay 40 yuan (HK$56.50) to hire the girl for one hour to 
swim together in the sea. {para} The young women, aged between
15 and 20, are recruited by local businessmen who provide food
and accommodation, but do not pay the girls a salary. Their 
income comes from providing vice services to customers. {para}
In April, Guangdong launched a massive clampdown on 
prostitution in hotels and massage parlours. {/article} 
<U 2747> 
<D 92:09:19> 
<P 10> 
{headline} Liu and Lin in a dream after nightmare ordeal 
{byline} From SHIRLEY YAM in Vancouver {article} WALKING in 
the autumn breeze on sunbeamed Vancouver streets, Chinese 
dissidents Ms Liu Yijung and Ms Lin Lin were still wondering 
how their dream had come true. {para} Ms Liu said Canada never
came up in their struggle for political asylum until the last 
minute. {para} ``But I dreamed of wandering around nice houses
like these when I was in Victoria Prison in Hongkong - life is
so strange,'' she said. {para} ``[I was] too excited to sleep 
last night, I hit my hand to see if it's a dream. {para} ``It 
is such a peaceful and orderly place. Why can't my country be 
the same?'' {para} The pair was granted political asylum by 
the Canadian Government after a nine- month ordeal in Hongkong
after they were arrested as illegal immigrants. Their pleas 
for refuge were repeatedly rejected by the Hongkong and 
British authorities. {para} Looking pale but cheerful, the 
pair yesterday spent their first day in Canada ``experiencing 
the freedom of deciding where to go''. {para} Ms Liu, a 
29-year-old journalist, said she had completed the first part 
of her book, A Hare on the Barren, which gives a vivid account
of her life, especially the three years she spent in hiding. 
{para} She was planning to submit the draft to a publisher in 
Hongkong just a day before the pair left for Canada. {para} 
``It looks more like deportation,'' she said of her departure 
from Hongkong. {para} ``[We were) woken up at seven and taken 
out from jail with nobody telling us where we were going.'' 
{para} Ms Liu and Ms Lin were kept in separate rooms at Kai 
Tak airport for five hours and at one point both thought they 
had lost their battle for freedom until they were met by 
Canadian officials. {para} Ms Lin hopes to work as a computer 
programmer in Canada and Ms Liu plans to continue her book. 
{para} ``After all this, I don't think anything in Canada will
be a real difficulty for us,'' Ms Liu said. {para} Pledging to
strive for democracy in China, the pair said they needed time 
to decide whether to join dissident groups in Canada. {para} 
``My role has never been slogan chanting - I will do it with 
my pen,'' Ms Liu said. {/article} 
<U 2748> 
<D 92:09:11> 
<P 10> 
{headline} Leader's son in trip to Taipei {byline} By KENT 
CHEN {article} A PROMINENT member of the so-called Gang of 
Princelings, or offspring of China's top leaders, is believed 
to be paying a secret visit to Taiwan. {para} Mr Larry Yung 
Chi-kin, son of vice-chairman of the National People's 
Congress Mr Yong Yiren, is the chairman of the China 
International Trust and Investment Corporation (Hongkong). 
{para} The company, which is under the State Council, recently
bought into Hongkong's key industries, including aviation, 
telecommunications and the cross-harbour tunnel. {para} The 
Entry and Exit Administration Bureau under Taiwan's Interior 
Ministry yesterday confirmed that Mr Yung's application to 
visit the island had been approved. {para} But an official 
said it was not known if Mr Yung, who also holds a US 
passport, had entered Taiwan. {para} Taiwan newspapers 
yesterday reported that Mr Yung had a meeting with two leading
businessmen, Mr Gu Zhenpu and Mr Gu Liansong last Saturday. 
{para} Mr Gu Zhenpu is also the chairman of the semi-official 
Straits Exchange Foundation (SEF), which handles bilateral 
affairs with the mainland on behalf of the Taiwan authorities.
{para} Mr Yung's father is honorary chairman of the SEF's 
corresponding body on the mainland, the Association for 
Relations Across the Taiwan Straits. {para} But analysts 
believed business matters, rather than politics, were the 
focus of the meeting. {para} Another member of the Gang of 
Princelings to have visited Taiwan was Mr Liu Yazhou, the 
son-in-law of communist elder and former state president Mr Li
Xiannian. {/article} 
<U 2749> 
<D 92:09:10> 
<P 11> 
{headline} Zhu warning on `runaway' economies {byline} By 
WILLY WO-LAP LAM {article} VICE-PREMIER Mr Zhu Rongji has 
taken steps to cool down the economy amid signs that Beijing 
has lost control over efforts by departments and localities to
aim for high-speed development. {para} This is despite claims 
by the State Statistical Bureau yesterday that industrial 
production, which jumped 19.2 per cent in the first eight 
months of the year, was still ``on track''. {para} In a 
meeting this month with senior officials, Mr Zhu, who has been
empowered by patriarch Mr Deng Xiaoping to oversee economic 
reform, warned against unrealistic and over- ambitious growth 
targets. {para} The Vice-Premier said while Mr Deng had 
advocated a high-speed model, growth must take place ``on the 
basis of good efficiency, high qualify [of products] and [an 
adequate] export orientation''. {para} Mr Zhu, who has assumed
day-to-day administration over the economy, said the growth 
rate this year had already exceeded the targets by huge 
margins. {para} ``No major problems have yet been 
discovered,'' he said. ``Yet problems may arise if the trend 
continues.'' {para} The Vice-Premier also warned against 
excessive speculation in the securities and real-estate 
markets. {para} Economists in the capital said Mr Zhu was 
worried that the momentum for reform would be blunted by such 
signs of dislocations as inflation and excessive capital 
construction. {para} In the past decade, conservatives, 
including central planners, have slowed down reform on the 
pretext of forestalling inflation and runaway investments. 
{para} Moreover, they said, since Mr Deng issued his call for 
market reforms, localities and government departments had 
upwardly revised their targets without adequate consultation 
with the central Government. {para} The Beijing-run Wen Wei Po
newspaper in Hongkong yesterday reported that various regional
administrations and government departments had recently 
revised their development plans. {para} For example, the 
Beijing municipality had revised its plans so that targets for
the year 2000 could be reached three years earlier. {para} The
Wen Wei Po reported that some provinces and cities had 
submitted their new plans to the State Planning Commission of 
the central Government. {para} However, sources said the 
senior leadership was worried that Beijing had lost control 
over the development of localities, which were no longer 
dependent on central funds to finance expansion plans. {para} 
The State Statistical Bureau yesterday reported that 
industrial production in the first eight months of the year 
had jumped 19.2 per cent, with the August figure of 232.1 
billion yuan (HK$328.18 billion) 21.2 per cent over the same 
month last year. {para} Officials from the bureau ascribed the
high growth to faster economic development along the southeast
coast, with some provinces registering a growth rate of above 
20 per cent in August. {para} The New China News Agency quoted
the officials as saying that China's economic performance was 
``still on track''. {para} However, sources said, after Mr 
Zhu's directives, the central Government had taken steps to 
restrict credit and to oblige local governments to scale down 
``over- ambitious projects''. 
<U 2750> 
<D 92:08:31> 
<P 1> 
{headline} Fifteen feared dead after lightning triggers blast 
{article} THE death toll from a blast at a construction site 
near Shenzhen which was struck by lightning could rise to 15, 
it was revealed yesterday. {para} Rescue workers had found 
nine bodies and were still searching for six missing people, 
according to Shenzhen reporters quoted by Reuter yesterday. 
{para} Shenzhen Party Secretary Mr Li Hao and Mayor Zheng 
Liangyu have reportedly visited the site to supervise the 
rescue operation. {para} According to one news report, the 
accident happened on Thursday when lightning struck the site 
at Jiujingkou in Yantian Bay, about 20 kilometres from 
Shenzhen. {para} The report said lightning struck a 
30-cubic-metre cache filled with about 10 tonnes of 
explosives. {para} The 15 workers who died were believed to 
have been buried in the blast. {para} The report said the 
bodies of nine workers had been identified and several injured
workers have been treated at nearby hospitals. But rescue work
was apparently hampered because at least 20 tonnes of 
explosives remained at the site. {para} Several ad hoc groups 
have been set up by the Shenzhen Government to look into the 
accident, it was reported. {para} According to a report by the
Yancheng Evening News, workers were planning to use the 
dynamite to blast a road through the hills. {/article} 
<U 2751> 
<D 92:10:16> 
<P 13> 
{headline} Political club for elders to stay in force 
{article} THE Chinese Communist Party has decided against 
replacing the decade-old Central Advisory Commission (CAC), a 
political club for elderly revolutionary leaders, with a 
smaller advisory committee. {para} The decision was announced 
by senior party leaders at small group discussions with 
delegates attending the ongoing 14th congress, according to 
the pro-Beijing Wen Wei Po. {para} Although the 199-member 
commission does not have executive authority, it is considered
a stronghold of the conservatives who are opposed to reform. 
{para} It is currently chaired by conservative economist Mr 
Chen Yun, who is considered a key opponent to senior leader Mr
Deng Xiaoping. {para} Mr Deng was said to be in favour of 
disbanding the 10-year-old CAC as a step towards political 
reform. {para} The party leadership also ruled against setting
up another advisory body, the Central Advisory Committee which
would comprise far less members. {para} After securing the 
backing of President Mr Yang Shangkun, Mr Deng managed to have
the proposal for an advisory committee killed at the 
preparatory meeting of the 14th congress even before it was 
openly discussed. {para} Meanwhile, it was reported yesterday 
that the party has also decided not to establish the new 
position of deputy secretary- general. {para} The proposal was
said to go against the principle of streamlining the 
organisation and collective leadership within the politburo. 
{para} - KENT CHEN {/article} 
<U 2752> 
<D 92:10:15> 
<P 11> 
{headline} Committee candidates rejected {article} THE 
presidium of the 14th congress yesterday put together a new 
list of candidates for its ruling Central Committee after a 
previous version had been rejected for containing too many 
conservative cadres. {para} The new list of candidates will be
referred to various delegations for deliberation. {para} Five 
per cent of the candidates will be eliminated by way of a 
``differential voting system'' at a plenary session of the 
congress to be held tomorrow. {para} However, this tentative 
line-up for the new Central Committee will still have to be 
vetted by the presidium. {para} A final list, with the number 
of candidates equalling the number of vacancies, will then be 
rubber-stamped by the 1,989 congress delegates at the closing 
session on Sunday. {para} At a preparatory meeting before the 
14th Party Congress, Central Committee members had expressed 
reservations about the initial list of names, which was 
compiled by the politburo. {para} It is understood that as 
many as 30 per cent of the candidates were considered too 
conservative to be charged with the responsibility of carrying
forward senior leader Mr Deng Xiaoping's reform crusade into 
the next century. {para} At the presidium yesterday, party 
leaders also adopted draft resolutions on the Political Report
to the congress, and the reports of the Central Advisory 
Commission and the Central Commission for Disciplinary 
Inspection. {para} They also vetted amendments to be made to 
the party charter. {para} The presidium decided to refer these
documents to the 34 delegations for deliberation, according to
the official New China News Agency. {/article} 
<U 2753> 
<D 92:10:16> 
<P 9> 
{headline} Akihito looks to the future {headline} `We must 
build lasting relations' {byline} From JEREMY LAU in Tokyo 
{article} LASTING relations and friendship between China and 
Japan must be built with a grasp of the unfortunate past, 
Japan's Emperor Akihito said yesterday. {para} ``The 
relationship between Japan and China has long been one of 
peaceful exchanges,'' he said. {para} ``However, there was a 
period of unfortunate history between our nations. {para} ``I 
think that, with a grasp of such history, we must, from now 
on, build lasting relations of friendship for the future.'' 
{para} Emperor Akihito, who is due to arrive in Beijing next 
Friday with his wife, Empress Michiko, and a 34-member 
encourage for a state visit, fell short of apologising for 
wartime atrocities. {para} An estimated 20 million Chinese 
people were killed and injured during Japan's invasion of 
China from 1931 to 1945. {para} Nor did he indicate the 
possibility of making a formal apology to the Chinese people. 
{para} Right-wing extremists have been staging demonstrations,
voicing fears that the trip could be used politically by 
China's hard-line communist Government. {para} They dread the 
idea of the emperor being forced to apologise for Japan's 
aggression towards China during World War II, as Akihito and 
his father, the late Emperor Hirohito, had to do on important 
diplomatic missions in the past. {para} When Emperor Akihito 
toured Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia a year ago on his 
first overseas trip since his enthronement in January 1989, he
vowed that Japan would never repeat the ``horrors of that most
unfortunate war.'' {para} ``I understand there are various 
opinions,'' he said, in reference to criticisms against his 
trip to China. {para} ``Freedom of speech is a principle of 
democratic society. {para} ``The Government has taken this 
into consideration as it discussed the matter seriously and 
made the decision''. {para} He conceded yesterday that Japan 
had learned a great deal from China - but in ancient periods. 
{para} He cited examples of the dispatches of envoys during 
China's Sui and Tang dynasties - one of China's brightest 
historical periods. {para} The culture and social systems of 
that period had been copied by Japan, he said. {para} He said 
he would be happy if the ``present attitude of Japan, aspiring
for world peace and endeavouring to contribute to the 
international community hand-in-hand with neighbouring 
countries, would be understood'' during his trip to China. 
{para} The emperor, whose role is limited by the post-war 
pacifist constitution as a ``symbol of state'', hoped that 
Sino-Japanese relations would be improved ``on the basis of 
mutual trust''. {para} An invitation by the South Korean 
Government for the emperor to make an unprecedented visit to 
Seoul is still being examined by the Japanese Government. 
{para} ``Visits that I make abroad are decided upon by the 
Government. I have heard that the Government made the decision
regarding this visit after giving it serious consideration,'' 
he said. {para} The emperor reckoned that mutual exchanges 
between Japan and China and between Japan and Hongkong in a 
wide range of areas had to be continued. {para} The royal 
couple will visit Xian and Shanghai during their stay in 
China. {/article} 
<U 2754> 
<D 92:10:16> 
<P 14> 
{headline} UN arms list `needs Beijing' {byline} From DAVID 
WALLEN in London {article} UK Foreign Secretary Mr Douglas 
Hurd has appealed for China to rejoin United Nations efforts 
to set up a full register of all arms sales. {para} The 
European Community and Japan, at Britain's suggestion, 
recently sponsored work on a United Nations Register of Arms 
Transfers. {para} It was designed to monitor the build-up of 
weaponry in unstable parts of the world following the Gulf War
which was caused in part by Iraq's huge stockpile of 
conventional forces. {para} The five members of the UN 
Security Council, including China, began talks last year and 
agreed on a set of guidelines meant to restrain arms sales. 
Some 85 per cent of all arms sales are controlled by the five 
- China, the US, Russia, France and Britain. {para} But now 
China, a principal supplier of missile equipment to the Middle
East, has pulled out. {para} Mr Hurd told an audience of 
diplomats and senior military figures at the Royal United 
Services Institute in London that China needed to come back 
into the talks. {para} ``No one is suggesting a moratorium on 
arms sales,'' he said. ``Countries are entitled to defend 
themselves. There will still be opportunities for 
manufacturers to sell abroad. {para} ``When the Chinese come 
back there will be a chance to negotiate further steps for 
clarification and consultation on significant sales,'' he 
said. {/article} 
<U 2755> 
<D 92:08:31> 
<P 6> 
{headline} Shenzhen arrests pair over share riots {byline} By 
DANIEL KWAN {article} SHENZHEN police have arrested two people
and detained 10 others for stirring up street riots during the
Shenzhen stock market crisis two weeks ago. {para} A report by
the Hongkong China News Agency said yesterday five 
``hooligans'' from Jiexi County between Guangdong and Fujian, 
led by a man identified as Wang Xiaoyan, were found to be 
responsible for the August 10 riots. {para} The report said 
the five men damaged three vehicles and turned over a mini-van
before they went over to a McDonald restaurant where they 
caused havoc. {para} ``They crashed the [shops'] windows, 
turned over a police watchpost and set up barricades on the 
road,'' it said. {para} ``They were reported to the police by 
citizens and later arrested. They have admitted their crime,''
it added. {para} The HKCNA said another gang led by a man 
identified as Yang Yawang from Dianbai County and a Shenzhen 
worker, Wu Xianbiao, were also responsible. {para} It said the
two had used a motorcycle to set up a road barricade turn over
a goods van and a police vehicle. {para} A total of five 
vehicles and three motorcycles were destroyed, the report 
said. {para} But it did not mention the Government's 
investigation of corruption, said to be the main cause of the 
Shenzhen riots. {/article} 
<U 2756> 
<D 92:10:06> 
<P 1> 
{headline} Market reforms to be stepped up by leaders 
{headline} China to free reins on reform {byline} By WILLY 
WO-LAP LAM {article} THE 14th congress of the Chinese 
Communist Party has committed the nation to market reforms 
unprecedented in any socialist country. {para} In outlining 
the contours of a ``socialist market economy'', the Political 
Report to the congress points out that while ``macro-level 
adjustments and control'' by the state will be retained, 
market forces will have untrammelled development. {para} 
However, the final draft of the report, a copy of which has 
been obtained by the South China Morning Post, also warns 
against ``corrupt bourgeois thoughts'' and the plot to turn 
China capitalist through ``peaceful evolution''. {para} The 
27,000-character document of the party's Central Committee is 
entitled ``Speed up the Pace of Reform, the Open Door and 
Modernisation Construction in order to Accomplish Greater 
Triumphs for Socialism with Chinese Characteristics''. {para} 
It will be presented by General Secretary Mr Jiang Zemin to 
the congress, which opens in Beijing next Monday. {para} The 
manifesto says that the ``strategic thoughts and theories of 
comrade Deng Xiaoping'' will be upheld as the party's guiding 
philosophy. {para} Repeating verbatim speeches made by the 
88-year-old patriarch in southern China early this year, the 
report has for the first time in communist China's history 
heaped praise on the forces of supply and demand. {para} 
``Practice has shown that wherever the functions of the market
have been given a relatively free rein, economic vitality will
be relatively strong and the development posture relatively 
good,'' the document says. {para} Quoting Mr Deng, it adds: 
``The market economy is not equivalent to capitalism; 
socialism also has markets. Both planning and the market are 
means [for managing] the economy. {para} ``To rationalise the 
economic structure, raise productivity, speed up development 
and join in global competition, we must continue to strengthen
the functions of market mechanisms''. {para} The report 
suggests four ways to establish the ``system of the socialist 
market economy''. {para} Business corporations will be 
separated from government, which must change from being an 
omnipresent ``mother-in-law'' to a humble provider of 
services. {para} Government companies, which still account for
at least 55 per cent of the economy, will be rendered into 
financially self-sufficient units that respond to market 
signals instead of state fiats. {para} The manifesto highly 
recommends the stocks system, which it describes as 
``beneficial to the separation of government and business, 
transforming the management mechanism of enterprises and 
accumulating funds in society''. {para} Markets, including 
those for raw materials, securities, stocks, technology, 
labour, information and real estate, will be speedily 
propagated. {para} The distribution of economic gains among 
the state, enterprises and individuals will be rejigged to 
reflect the forces of supply and demand. {para} Tax bases will
be re-divided between the central Government and localities, 
and a social insurance scheme will be created, primarily to 
help laid-off workers. {para} The functions of the Government 
will be restricted to ``overall planning, the grasping of 
policies, organisation and co-ordination, the rendering of 
services, and inspection and supervision''. {para} On 
attracting foreign capital, the report says the open door 
policy will be extended from the coast to border areas, as 
well as inland regions, particularly the Yangtze River Delta, 
whose ``dragon head'' is Shanghai and Pudong. {para} It 
discloses that overseas investment will be guided towards the 
transformation of the knowhow of key industries, as well as 
capital- and technological-intensive enterprises. {para} Again
echoing Mr Deng, the Central Committee recommends a fast-paced
development model. {para} The manifesto suggests an annual 
growth rate of eight to nine per cent, as against the six per 
cent suggested by Prime Minister Mr Li Peng as late as April. 
{para} However, the clip falls short of the ideal of ``10 per 
cent or more'' originally lobbied for by the patriarch. {para}
And the document issues a severe warning against an overheated
economy, pointing out that localities and enterprises must 
avoid the ``old road'' of blind expansionism that was marred 
by redundancy and low efficiency. {para} In an apparent bid to
reassure the conservative wing of the party, the report makes 
it clear that the country will remain on the socialist road. 
{para} Thus, new experiments with the market merely amount to 
``the self-perfection and development of socialism'', and the 
publicly- owned sector will remain predominant. {para} ``The 
market also has its innate weaknesses and negative aspects,'' 
the document warns. ``We should not neglect the macro-level 
regulation and control which the state will exercise.'' {para}
On ideological matters, the manifesto cleaves to Mr Deng's 
dictum that while the party must guard against ``rightism'', 
``its major task is fighting leftism'', or remnant Maoism. 
{para} However, it follows the arguments of leftists that the 
pro-democracy movement of 1989 was a ``counter-revolutionary 
turmoil''. {para} The Central Committee claims that the 
crushing of the ``rebellion'' has ``defended the socialist 
administration and safeguarded the people's fundamental 
interests''. {para} The report makes no reference to ousted 
party chief Mr Zhao Ziyang, a sign that the Central Committee 
still finds the Zhao question too divisive to handle. {para} 
Informed sources in Beijing said that while a high- level 
investigation committee had failed to find incriminating 
evidence, Mr Zhao's name would not be cleared in public. 
{para} Again using the language of leftist ideologues, the 
report says that the party, especially senior cadres, must 
never lower its guard against the plots of ``peaceful 
evolution'', which it says will persist over a long period. 
{para} About 30 per cent of the report is devoted to the 
reform of the political structure and the ``construction'' of 
the Communist Party. {para} However, the Central Committee 
makes it clear it will ``never implement the multi-party 
system and the parliamentary system of the West''. {para} It 
vows to use any means, including dictatorship enforced by the 
Army, to crush efforts to ``cast doubt on, curtail, or negate 
the ruling and leadership functions of the party''. {para} 
Perhaps the only ground broken by the manifesto concerns an 
iron-clad commitment to trim the government bureaucracy. 
{para} The Central Committee pledges to restructure party and 
government departments and to drastically slash personnel 
within three years. {para} A key recommendation for party 
construction is the promotion of cadres who are 
``revolutionary, young, knowledgeable and professionalised''. 
{para} However, it seems clear the Central Committee has 
abandoned the goal, set at the 13th congress, of the promotion
of the separation of party and government. {para} It 
recommends instead the strengthening of party cells in units 
including government departments, schools and factories. 
{para} See also Page 11 {/article} 
<U 2757> 
<D 92:10:15> 
<P 11> 
{headline} Liberals defy leadership on economy {byline} By 
WILLY WO-LAP LAM {article} LIBERAL economists have openly 
defied conservative leaders by calling for the creation of a 
full- fledged market economy, instead of the ``socialist 
market economy'' as laid down by the 14th congress. {para} In 
interviews with the Chinese media yesterday, the social 
scientists also blasted remnant Maoists for sabotaging market 
reforms while paying lip service to patriarch Mr Deng 
Xiaoping's offensive. {para} While talking about the way ahead
for reform, senior State Council economists Mr Wu Jinglian, Mr
Wu Mingyu and Mr Ma Hong all extolled the virtues of an 
untrammelled market. {para} In his Political Report to the 
Congress on Monday, however, party chief Mr Jiang Zemin had 
bowed to the wishes of the conservatives and instead advocated
a ``socialist market economy'' where the public sector would 
remain predominant. {para} Apparently disagreeing with Mr 
Jiang, Mr Wu Jinglian said: ``The goal of reform is the market
economy, meaning the distribution of resources will be guided 
by the market, not by government orders.'' {para} He added: 
``Some economic `theorists' in the mainland used to oppose the
market economy. While they are now waxing eloquent on the 
market economy, they are in reality reviving the old argument 
about the `surnames'.'' {para} Mr Wu was referring to the 
favourite argument of leftists that a reform policy should 
only be adopted if it is surnamed ``socialist'', not surnamed 
``capitalist''. {para} The economist also blasted as 
``anti-reformists'' officials who wanted to return to central 
planning in order to cure economic problems such as inflation 
and discrepancy in income levels. {para} Mr Wu's assertions 
were endorsed by his colleague Mr Wu Mingyu, who pointed out 
that in spite of the advances made by the 14th congress, 
``obstacles erected by `leftist' thinking have been far from 
eradicated''. {para} He said: ``Some people who are opposed to
the market economy have not really or thoroughly given up 
their viewpoints. {para} ``It is only that given the general 
trend, they have ceased to publicly oppose [the market 
economy].'' {para} Meanwhile, Mr Ma, a moderate economist who 
heads the State Council's major think-tank, has also sung the 
praises of a market economy. {para} ``Only when products are 
traded on the market can supply meets demand,'' Mr Ma was 
quoted by the China News Service as saying. {para} 
``Enterprises can only become energetic when they unreservedly
go to the marketplace and take up the risk of competition. 
Social resources can only be effectively disposed of under the
conditions of a wholesome market system.'' {para} The liberal 
views of the three economists were seconded by the Communist 
Party secretary of northeastern Jilin province, Mr He Zhukang.
{para} ``The new system of a socialist market economy means 
market adjustments will become a direct means for the 
distribution of social resources,'' Mr He said. {para} ``And 
planning must be built upon the foundation of the economic 
laws of the market.'' {/article} 
<U 2758> 
<D 92:10:12> 
<P 1> 
{article} PARAMOUNT leader Mr Deng Xiaoping has accepted an 
invitation to attend the 14th Party Congress although it is 
not certain whether Mr Deng would make an appearance at 
today's opening ceremony. {para} Congress spokesman Mr Liu 
Zhongde yesterday said Mr Deng was one of 46 specially invited
delegates. {para} Mr Deng was elected as a special delegate to
the Congress, the week-long conclave which will emphatically 
endorse his reform policies, writes Geoffrey Crothall from 
Beijing. {para} The only other special delegate named by Mr 
Liu was the 90-year-old former chairman of the National 
People's Congress, Mr Peng Zhen. {para} The China News Service
reported that Mr Deng was also elected a member of the 
Congress Presidium as well as one of its 31 executive members.
{para} Mr Deng's chief rival, Mr Chen Yun, was an official 
delegate to the Congress, Mr Liu said, although he refused to 
specify if the 87-year-old conservative would be attending. 
{/article} 
<U 2759> 
<D 92:10:13> 
<P 1> 
{headline} Clinton attacked on MFN policy {byline} From 
MICHAEL CHUGANI in Washington {article} AMERICAN President Mr 
George Bush has accused challenger Mr Bill Clinton of pursuing
a China policy that would undermine Hongkong. {para} Mr Bush 
launched his broadside during the first televised debate. 
{para} He sharply criticised Mr Clinton and the Democrat- 
controlled Congress for threatening to cut China's Most 
Favoured Nation (MFN) trade status unless Beijing improved 
human rights. {para} ``To do what the Congress and Mr Clinton 
is suggesting, you'd isolate and ruin Hongkong,'' Mr Bush 
said. {para} Mr Bush said imposing human rights conditions on 
trade with China to ``humiliate'' Beijing ``is not the way you
make the kind of progress we are getting''. {para} He conceded
there had been limited progress in changing China's behaviour 
on human rights and other areas despite his lenient policy but
warned that it would be ``a tremendous mistake'' to isolate 
Beijing. {para} ``I'm not going to do it,'' said Mr Bush who 
last month successfully vetoed for the third time an MFN 
conditions bill passed by Congress. {para} Mr Clinton who has 
accused Mr Bush of ``coddling tyrants'' said during the debate
that he did not want to isolate China which he said was an 
important country. {para} But he claimed it was only after 
pressure from Congress that Beijing agreed to end prison 
labour exports and sign an agreement last week to open up its 
markets to US goods. {para} Mr Clinton said that as president 
he would be firm with China on the MFN issue by telling 
Beijing to ``observe human rights, open your society''. {para}
Mr Bush countered that it was his policy that resulted in 
China making the concessions. {para} ``We're the ones that 
worked out the prison labour deal. We're the ones that have 
lowered the barriers to products,'' he said. {para} The other 
candidate, Mr Ross Perot, said the US had a ``delicate 
tightrope to walk'' regarding China policy because ``Asia will
be our largest trading partner in the future''. {para} He said
capitalism was ``growing and thriving'' across large parts of 
China. {para} But he made it clear the US had to make sure 
``we do not cosy up to tyrants, to make sure they don't get 
the impression that they can suppress their people''. 
{/article} 
<U 2760> 
<D 92:10:06> 
<P 11> 
{headline} Deng compromises with conservatives {article} THE 
Political Report of the 14th party congress, which will lay 
down the nation's path well into the 21st century, is a 
product of compromise between the Deng Xiaoping Faction and 
the conservative wing of the Chinese Communist Party. {para} 
On the surface, the patriarch has been given full rein in 
pushing market reforms, but the 88-year-old leader has to 
offer reassurances to central planners led by his long-time 
opponent, conservative elder Mr Chen Yun. {para} In the 
crucial arena of political reform, the report represents a 
retreat from the achievements scored by ousted party chief Mr 
Zhao Ziyang at the 13th congress in October 1987. {para} 
Intellectuals and businessmen in Beijing welcome the fact that
the party has finally enshrined in its most authoritative 
document the need for pushing market economics. {para} As the 
document points out, in the past, the party insisted that 
market forces would be subordinate to state planning. {para} 
At the 13th congress, Mr Zhao merely raised the goal of a 
``planned commodity economy'', where ``the state regulates the
market and the market provides guidance to enterprises''. 
{para} While presenting his report to the Congress next week, 
General Secretary Mr Jiang Zemin will argue that the sky is 
the limit for the marketplace in areas including finances, 
labour, raw materials and real estate. {para} However, 
intellectuals in Beijing are disappointed that the party is 
endorsing a ``socialist market economy'' instead of a simple 
and forthright market economy. {para} When Mr Deng kicked off 
his counter-offensive in southern China early this year, he 
pointed out that ``whether it is surnamed socialist or 
capitalist, a policy is worth pursuing so long as it promotes 
the economy''. {para} Very clearly, the ideal of a ``socialist
market economy'' goes against Mr Deng's eminently pragmatic 
credo. {para} Maoists and other ideological purists can now 
say that there are ``socialist'' as well as ``capitalistic'' 
ways of building up a market economy - and that only the 
former should be adopted. {para} Moreover, the report falls 
short of saying market forces will reign supreme. {para} ``The
perimeters, extent and format for the synthesis of planning 
and the market can be different for different periods, areas 
and districts'', it says. {para} The report also highlights 
the need for ``macro- level regulation and control'' to 
correct the ``innate weaknesses'' of the market. {para} 
Economists in Beijing fear that should the economy go on 
overheating - or should the stock and real-estate markets 
collapse - central planners could again try to roll back 
reform in the name of ``curing and restructuring'' the 
economy. {para} On the political front, the report is 
heartening in that it repeats Mr Deng's dictum that ``while we
must be on guard against the right, the major task is to 
counter the left''. {para} And while pro forma references are 
made to fighting ``bourgeois liberalisation'' as well as 
``peaceful evolution'', space devoted to these concerns of the
leftists is relatively small. {para} However, while an entire 
section of the report is devoted to the reform of the 
political structure, the document represents a retrogression 
in this vital pursuit. {para} A key thrust of Mr Zhao's report
in 1987 is the separation of party and government, which will 
be accomplished through the curtailment of party units and 
their authority. {para} The 14th congress report, however, 
makes it doubly clear the party's elite is committed to 
maintaining absolute power through means including the 
military. {para} ``Any viewpoints or actions that cast into 
doubt, curtail, or negate the ruling and leadership status of 
the party are fundamentally wrong and very harmful'', it says.
{para} It reiterates that the Army is a ``steel Great Wall'' 
for maintaining ``people's democratic dictatorship'', a 
euphemism for the party's monopoly on power. {para} 
Contravening the spirit of the last congress, the document 
says party committees in state enterprises must further 
develop their functions as the ``political core''. {/article} 
<U 2761> 
<D 92:10:14> 
<P 11> 
{headline} Jiang report dashes hopes {byline} By DANIEL KWAN 
{article} THE political report delivered by Communist Party 
General Secretary Mr Jiang Zemin has dashed hopes that the 
leadership would reverse its verdict on the 1989 pro-democracy
movement. {para} The report also reflected his determination 
to maintain tight political control. {para} Divided in four 
sections, Mr Jiang's report focused on the importance of party
leadership, supremacy of Mr Deng Xiaoping's reformist 
teachings and set priorities of future party work. {para} But 
a comparison with its earlier drafts revealed Mr Jiang had 
made last-minute changes to reinforce the message of control 
and made it clear that there would be no mercy for people who 
defied the party's rule. {para} For instance, both the terms 
``political turmoil'' and ``counter-revolutionary rebellion'' 
were used to describe the 1989 pro-democracy movement. {para} 
Mr Jiang also hailed the military crackdown which had killed 
hundreds of pro- democracy demonstrators saying it ``defended 
the socialist state and fundamental interests of the people''.
{para} He said China's 14-year- old reform enterprise would 
have crumbled had the party failed to suppress the rebellion. 
{para} In addition, changes were also made in other parts of 
his text to emphasise the importance of party leadership. 
{para} For example, the party boss stressed that Chinese 
leaders must never deviate from the ``basic party line'' in 
the course of the economic construction and deleted clauses 
which extolled the virtue of capitalism. {para} In fact, a 
paragraph which explained the complementary nature of 
capitalism and socialism was removed from his speech. {para} 
Mr Jiang's report also appeared to be a major step backward 
compared with the political report delivered by his 
predecessor Mr Zhao Ziyang especially in areas such as 
political reform. {para} Although Mr Jiang said China would 
give up central planning and the party must heighten its guard
against ``leftism'' or remnant Maoism, he strongly indicated 
that Western-style democracy would not be suitable for China. 
{para} Mr Zhao who was sacked for his handling of the pro- 
democracy movement had called for greater democracy in his 
13th party congress report and said it was important for the 
authorities to consult the people in formulating policies. 
{para} However, Mr Jiang stressed that the leadership would 
not give up on Marxism and the party would never stop its 
struggle against ``bourgeoise liberalisation'' - a phrase 
referring to Western ideas and value. {/article}