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Criticism a no-no

With the Olympics looming in August, one might have thought that the Chinese Government would try and put a good face out there in its attitude to any of its critics. Not so! To the contrary, the authorities are relentlessly cracking down, in many ways, on any dissent or indeed anything which might be seen as showing the Chinese, or its cities, in a bad light.

The Independent reports:

"A Chinese activist who dared to criticise the Olympics while lobbying for farmers' rights goes on trial tomorrow for subversion, a sign of growing official intolerance of any dissent over the Games.

Yang Chunlin, an unemployed factory worker from Jiamusi city in the northeastern province of Heilongjiang, faces charges of subverting state power for his activism, which has involved petitions, denouncing government corruption and seeking democratic reform of the one-party state.

Last year he helped organise a petition, which was signed by 10,000 villagers, over a land dispute. It declared: "We don't want the Olympics, we want human rights."

Mr Yang's timing couldn't be worse, as sensitivities about the Games are high. He could face several years in jail for criticising the Olympics, which are seen as a crucial way for the government to highlight China's economic prosperity, social cohesion and the economic fruits of its 30 years of opening up and reforms."

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