Henan Case Underscores Depth Of China's Slavery Problem

blogs.wsj.com:

Police in central China’s Henan province said they have rescued 30 mentally handicapped people who had been enslaved at illegal brick kilns, in the latest case of slavery in China, a problem that continues in the country despite government pledges to eradicate it.

Zhang Xiaolei, director of the province’s propaganda office, said three people were in police custody in connection with the operation of the brick kilns, while several others remained at large. He said authorities learned of the brick kilns through recent local media reports.

Mr. Zhang and state-run media said the workers had severe mental illnesses and had been unable to provide police with their identities or where they were from.

Read the whole story: blogs.wsj.com

Comments

[mamacat]

07:34 AM on 09/13/2011

What a sad story.
To think that a Republican Congress passed tax breaks for companies to disassemble factories and export them overseas, to places like China.

[exile]

04:01 AM on 09/08/2011

ok
new koch party idea ...
ready for this ????
The Unemployed Work For NO Wages... !!!!!

[Mausinn]

12:51 AM on 09/08/2011

This is exactly what the GOTPer's want for America when they say they want to make our wages competitive with the rest of the world market. Nothing would make them happier. We deserve better than this for our communities.

[Jessica Ustaszewski]

10:45 PM on 09/07/2011

Odd, I clicked on 'Good News' and it sent me here.
"Good news, everyone! Slave labor's still rampant!"

[Larsami1]

11:13 PM on 09/07/2011

Yeah I did too looking for some good news. I guess the only thing good about the story is 30 of the captives are now free.

[AnimalLover6]

09:52 PM on 09/07/2011

I'm still stunned that American businesses have offshored manufacturing and jobs to China. Since when has it been okay for Americans to go into business with a brutal dictatorship??? And yet American consumers still flock to WalMart, supporting this unholy alliance, all the while screaming that Obama is not creating jobs.

[brooklyncitizen]

10:03 PM on 09/07/2011

I'm still stunned that American businesses have offshored manufactur­ing and jobs to China. Since when has it been okay for Americans to go into business with a brutal dictatorsh­ip???
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I am stunned that you are stunned or naive.SInce when....? since time immemorial. All our wars are fought with a corporatist agenda,,,,if it means installing a despot then The USA will do it regardless of the consequences to the people of the particular nation.If it means doing business with a "sworn enemy Communist china" well the US does that too.

[AnimalLover6]

12:12 AM on 09/08/2011

I'm not naive. Just stupidly hopeful.

[Zhuubaajie]

08:14 PM on 09/07/2011

It's all a question of degree. In America there are Elois and Morlocks.

Also, when the perpetrators are caught in China, they are severely punished, some with capital punishment. Yes there are bad sickos in all societies, and it is tough to fathom the depravities of these operators. But a few isolated incidents do not a whole nation condemn. Keep in mind that America had 30% of its population as slaves.

[Mandy Ann Osipchuk]

04:59 PM on 09/07/2011

Get used to this America we are next!

[saintjule]

03:14 PM on 09/07/2011

Slave labor in the second largest economy in the world. Canada will not import prison labor goods, do we? They pay 300.00 a month up from 120.00 while we gobble up their trinkets like all the Apple stuff.

[Lou Allin]

11:34 PM on 09/07/2011

I'm hard pressed to find anything in Canada that's not made in China, even canned mushrooms. I need new snowshoes, and guess what?