by Luisetta Mudie
BEIJING, Jan 17 (AFP)
Sixteen million Chinese will be unable to find work this year as the labour market is
flooded with laid-off workers, fresh graduates
and demobilised soldiers, according to an official estimate reported Sunday.
The projection comes as China is hit by an apparent wave of social unrest, despite
warnings from the leadership that it will crack
down hard on any form of �instability� during the coming year.
�China�s experience in the last two years clearly shows that the fight against
unemployment is a more arduous task than controlling
inflation,� Ministry of Labour and Social Security expert Mo Rong told the China Daily
Business Weekly.
Mo said the number of people seeking jobs is expected to hit 30 million in 1999, but with
economic growth slowing, only around 14
million new positions would be created. �This leaves almost 16 million people who will be
unable to find a position through the
labour market,� Mo told the paper, adding concerted efforts were needed to create jobs
and provide training programmes for the
unemployed.
The government�s attempts to throw off the burden of a cradle-to-grave welfare system
and reform ailing state-owned enterprises has
led to millions of redundancies every year and sparked fears of growing social unrest.
Retired and laid-off workers frequently stage protests in major Chinese cities, sometimes
blocking roads and railways, or sitting in at
their places of work in protest at their employers� failure to pay them.
China does not allow any trade unions or labour organisations other than those sanctioned
by the Communist Party and regularly
throws unofficial labour organisers into prison.
The government has already laid off more than 10 million workers from loss-making state
enterprises and plans to cut six million
more jobs in 1999.
Authorities in the northern province of Gansu on Tuesday detained a worker who tried to
set up a �China Labour Watchdog� to
safeguard labour rights and expose corruption.
And in December, labour activist Zhang Shanguang was sentenced to 10 years� imprisonment
for �endangering state security� in
the southern province of Hunan.
Zhang had set up an organisation to protect the rights and interests of laid-off workers,
and gave an interview to US-based Radio
Free Asia on rural unrest in Hunan, touching a sore point with the authorities.
Reports of furious protests in rural areas have increased in recent months, with China�s
leaders placing the welfare of farmers at the
top of their political agenda.
Around 5,000 villagers clashed with 1,000 police in a protest over taxes and official
corruption in Hunan, near the provincial capital
of Changsha Friday, leaving at least one person dead.
China�s leadership began a crackdown on all forms of political dissent late last year,
handing down heavy prison terms to three
activists who tried to set up an opposition party as the country approached the 20th
anniversary of economic reforms.
President Jiang Zemin vowed in a speech to the nation to �nip in the bud� any form of
social unrest as China entered 1999, a year of
politically sensitive anniversaries.
Jiang highlighted unemployment as the problem most likely to lead to social unrest. Ailing
state-owned companies, dwindling rural
incomes, rising crime rates and official corruption were also cited.
China�s Communist Party is preparing to celebrate 50 years in power on October 1, but
the 10th anniversary of the Tiananmen
Square massacre also falls this year, on June 4.
RIYADH (AFP )
The Saudi media yesterday urged the people of Iraq to rise up against the President,
Saddam Hussein, to put an end to years of
suffering.
The Okaz newspaper thundered:
�The Iraqi people have no other choice but to revolt against the tyrant of Baghdad.
�We are astonished by his calls for people to revolt against their Governments, from him
(Saddam) who has made his people suffer,
sold off its wealth and heightened the division of the Arab nation. He has impoverished
the Iraqis and put their children in the
streets. His people hate him and await the end of his regime.�
The official SPA news agency said that exiled Iraqis should join those living in the
country to act against Saddam.
Its political commentator said: �It�s time for the Iraqis who have fled the country
and those who are still struggling at home to say
their last word and put an end to years of suffering.�
The Al-Yaum newspaper said: �Any attempt to deal with this bloodthirsty regime or with
its gang is futile.
�The Iraqi regime is not credible and it would be useless to try to bring it into the
Arab bosom or to allow it to participate in a
limited or large Arab summit.�