By M.E. Dodge
Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia

BEIJING, China – After being missing for over a year, any presumed dead by many, China’s well known rights lawyer, Gao Zhisheng, appears to be alive.

After defending members of China’s banned Falun Gong spiritual organization, and writing openly about China’s public leaders and their “brutal and illegal persecution of Falun Gong members,” Gao disappeared on February 4, 2009. He was abducted by an unknown group from a relative’s home in Shanxi province. At the time of Gao’s disappearance, his wife and children had already escaped from their home, and were en route to Bangkok where they applied for asylum in the United States.

Initially, Gao’s family had feared he was dead, after a cryptic comment from police that he had “lost his way and gone missing” in September. China’s government has been under international pressure to say where Gao Zhisheng is and whether he is alive and well. Despite repeated requests, Chinese authorities have provided little information about his fate.

Gao gave a telephone interview with Reuters and another dissident lawyer, and he stated that he was released about sixth months ago after his initial disappearance. He confirmed that he had survived difficult circumstances, and that he was living near Wutai mountain, a sacred Buddhist landmark in coal-rich Shanxi province.

Reuters reported that another human rights lawyer, Li Heping, who had a lot of contact with Gao before he was jailed, confirmed that he spoke with Gao, and that the voice was in fact his. Gao’s brother, Gao Zhiyi also claimed to have spoken to his brother on the telephone within the past three weeks and said:, “I know that he’s fine.” Gao Zhiyi said the conversation was brief, and his brother did not say where he was. He claimed to have had three or four such calls since Gao Zhisheng vanished.

Gao’s account of surviving the harsh conditions and torture imposed on him is in stark contrast with a recent public press conference given just one week ago. When asked about the whereabouts of Gao, Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi said, “Gao Zhisheng was sentenced for subverting state power. His personal rights have been protected according to Chinese law. There is no so-called torture upon him.”

Conflicting statements and murky accounts of the past year make it clear that there remains a large amount of uncertainty and mysteriousness about the events surrounding Gao Zhisheng disappearance and recent resurface.

For more information, please see:

Reuters – Well-known missing Chinese rights lawyer alive – 27 March 2010

The Associated Press – Missing lawyer says he is living in northern China – 27 March 2010

BBC World News – Missing Chinese lawyer Gao Zhisheng ‘is fine’ – brother – 17 March 2010

By Hyo-Jin Paik
Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia

TOKYO, Japan – After spending seventeen years in jail for murder of a four-year-old girl, a Japanese man who was serving a life sentence was acquitted at a re-trial.

Toshikazu Sugaya, a former kindergarten bus driver now in his 60’s, was placed behind bars back in 1991 for kidnap, sexual assault and murder.  Sugaya did confess to the murder, but the court found that the false confession was made under duress and that the DNA evidence found at the murder scene does not match that of Sugaya.

The judges bowed in apology to Sugaya and the presiding judge, Masanobu Sato, said, “As a judge, I sincerely apologi[z]e that the court failed to listen to Mr[.] Sugaya’s real voice, which resulted in depriving him of his freedom for 17 . . . years.”

Judge Sato added, “I strongly hope something like this will never happen again.”

Sugaya’s acquittal was only the sixth one in Japanese history since World War II where a defendant who was serving a life sentence was acquitted at a re-trial.

Japan has 99% conviction rate for criminal cases, and human rights activists have long been critical of Japanese authorities for relying on confessions instead of building cases based on solid evidence.  Rights group have pointed out that such practice by the Japanese authorities led to police extracting false confessions from suspects and convictions of innocent people.

In addition, activists have criticized Japan’s interrogation system where suspects can be detained for up to twenty-three days and be questioned without a lawyer present.

During the initial investigations, prosecutors in fact neglected to inform Sugaya that he can consult with a defense attorney and that he has the right to remain silent.

After Sugaya’s verdict, Japan’s Justice Minister Keiko Chiba did say that the government will into whether or not interrogations should be taped.

Chiba said, “It is necessary to systematically and legally review evidence examination while considering [the appropriateness of introducing] videotaping of the interrogation process.”

Sugaya left the court in tears and said, “I feel completely different today from yesterday.  I feel refreshed by the verdict of complete innocence.”

The four-year old girl’s real murder is still at large.
For more information, please see:

BBC – Reform call after Japanese man acquitted of murder – 26 March 2010

Gulf Times – Man cleared after 17 years in Japan jail – 26 March 2010

NYT – In Rare Reversal, Japan Clears Man Convicted of Murder – 26 March 2010

By Alok Bhatt
Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia

DELHI, India – As India prepares to host the 2010 Commonwealth games, a multi-sport, multi-national event consisting of over 5,000 athletes and competitions ranging from table-tennis to wrestling, there have been reports stating that the construction workers building the venue for the events endure unconscionably poor working and living conditions.  The a committee of five members of the Delhi High Court has been established to investigate the matter and report on the alleged exploitation of workers.

Construction workers in India generally live and work under derisory conditions.  Employers often fail to reasonably compensate individuals for their work, nor are construction workers provided with adequate amenities.  However, unclean conditions and below minimum wages are among the least of the worries for Indian construction workers.  Construction workers often perform their jobs without proper safety equipment, regardless of the magnitude of the project.

The poor conditions for builders in such a public development reinforces the disregard employers have for the people they assigned to the Common Games venue.   Studies have revealed that numerous workers have been temporarily and permanently disabled due to the haphazard safety precautions and dearth of proper apparatuses.

Furthermore, many employers have arbitrary hired impoverished people from various Indian states to work on the Commonwealth Games stadium.  This creates myriad additional safety issues, as inexperienced and scarcely protected lay people are constantly placing themselves and others, including the more experienced construction workers, at significant risk.  .

Here have also been reports of discrimination and other issue in the payment of the construction workers and others working towards the completion of the Commonwealth Games venue.  It seems women workers have been paid lesser wages than the male workers.  Also, those who have quit working before their time was up have failed to receive timely payment for the work they did complete.

No single entity has been identified as fully liable for the poor conditions of workers in such a significant project.  Although, some have found it appropriate to impose responsibility upon the contractors charged with hiring workers for the project.  The contractors hire migrant workers on contractual terms which deprive the workers from various welfare benefits during the time they work.

Independent reports have revealed over seventy workers have died in the course of the venue construction.  However, reports have not yet revealed how and when remedies will be pursued.

By Michael E. Sanchez
Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia

By M.E. Dodge
Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia

BEIJING, China – Four men in China were charged with the criminal offense of paying living people for their organs with the intent to resell them to citizens in need of organ transplants. For the first time, a Chinese trial is scheduled to take place in April to hear the suspects on the laws governing organ transplants.

The four charged awaiting trial are believed to be part of a criminal ring that sells organs on the black market.  The group is led by a former organ donor surnamed Liu. The named suspects suspects allegedly organized four liver and kidney donations. China Daily reported that their new business foundered, however, when the suspects were taken to court in December by a “donor” claiming back pay, according to the Haidian District Procuratorate in Beijing, which is handling the case. 

If the four men are found guilty, they would be sentenced to at least five years in prison according to current laws regulating organ transplants.  Present regulations on human organ transplants ban organ trade. This was set forth by law in May 2007, and restricted living organ donations to spouses, blood relatives or people sharing family bonds through mutual support.

Despite these legal limitations to organ donations, there has been a recent increase in the illegal businesses of organ trade has become a rampant enterprise. Over the last few years, the number of illicit sales of organs in China has skyrocketed. This is especially true with the rise in living organ transplants, which are transplants which use organs that are donated by living individuals, predominantly by those in dire need of money immediately. Li Ning, president of Beijing Youan Hospital and a liver transplant surgeon, added, “Driven by a huge demand for the life-saving procedure, the lack of a proper and sustainable organ donation system and poor law enforcement, the black market became huge.”

According to China Daily, about a third of 10,000 organ transplants in China involved living donors last year – a figure almost six times the number in 2008. Vice health minister Huang Jiefu, who is also a leading liver transplant expert, stated, “A considerable number of them were done with fake identities from hired donors.”  Jiefu also expressed the concern that, “Without intervention, China will become the biggest black market for living human organs, which will seriously affect the country’s reputation and threaten patients’ health.”

For more information, please see:

New York Times – China: 4 Face Trial on Organ Trafficking Charges – 22 March 2010

China Daily – Four face a minimum of five years in jail if convicted – 22 March 2010

People’s Daily – Organ trafficking ring to go on trial – 22 March 2010