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Masters of kiln forced laborers go on trial in Shanxi (3) |
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08:20, July 05, 2007 |
One worker, tentatively identified as Liu Bao from Gansu Province, received blows to the head with an iron shovel because he worked slowly. The mentally handicapped Liu died in November 2006 and was buried in the barren hills behind Wang''s brick kiln.
"This is a complicated case involving many people so I doubt there will be a verdict today," said a man surnamed Hu with the court research office.
The use of forced laborers hit the headlines after more than 400 parents in Henan Province posted a call-for-help letter on theinternet last month, saying their missing children had been sold to small brick kilns in Shanxi and Henan as forced laborers.
The forced labor scandal sparked a nationwide outcry and the central government ordered immediate investigation.
So far, 359 people, including 12 children, have been rescued from illegal brick kilns in Shanxi and police had arrested 38 people by June 22. They include the widely reported rescue by police on May 27 of 31 people in Wang''s brick kiln in Hongtong, a county about 240 km south of Taiyuan, the provincial capital of Shanxi.
Police in Henan Province rescued 217 people, including 29 children, and arrested 120 people in a four-day crackdown involving more than 35,000 police checking 7,500 kilns.
Some Chinese netizens have launched a campaign entitled "Blue Ribbon" in a bid to provide clues for those families looking for their children who might have been kidnapped and forced to work inthe brick kilns.
So far, at least three forced laborers have returned home with the help of the campaign.
Source: Xinhua
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