Mid-Week Links: 119 dead in poultry plant fire were locked in, 66-year-old man finds out he’s a woman, and Chinese media punked again

Hong Kong Tiananmen vigil
Victoria Park vigil in Hong Kong, via AFP

Big links edition today, so with no further ado…

Horrifying. “A fire breaks out in a Chinese factory, and panicked workers discover one exit after another is locked. That describes not only the poultry plant fire that killed 119 people this week, but a toy-factory blaze that left 87 workers dead 20 years earlier. // The similarities between the two worst factory fires in China’s history suggest that little has changed for industrial workers even as the country has transformed its economy. // The bolted doors, clearly a violation of Chinese law, are emblematic of the often callous approach to worker safety in China that leads to frequent industrial disasters and an annual death toll in the tens of thousands.” (AP)

Corollary: “People of his generation were taught to avoid politics. Keep focussed on work, or on getting a job, and you’ll be fine. But what happens when, instead of looking for politics, politics finds them?” (Evan Osnos, The New Yorker)

Oh, look at all the terms that were censored yesterday. “Today. Tonight. June 4. Big Yellow Duck.” (Rendezvous, IHT)

Corollary: The list. (China Digital Times and Blocked on Weibo)

Corollary: Sina Weibo disabled the candle emoticon. Not like people will notice or anything. (Offbeat China)

Oh dear. “A 66-year-old apparently male patient made a stunning discovery when he sought treatment for swelling in his abdomen. The swelling was a cyst on his ovary and he was in fact a woman. // …The 66-year-old Vietnam-born Chinese man is an orphan. He has a beard, small penis and no testes. Just 1.37 metres tall, he has decided to continue perceiving himself as a male and may receive male hormone treatment, the report said.” (SCMP)

Not smart. “A 65 year-old foreign man whose first name is Noel has been taken into custody under suspicion of smuggling cocaine into Beijing in his underwear. At around 5:00 on May 25, Noel arrived at terminal 3 of Beijing’s Capital Airport. When he was going through customs, officers noticed that he was behaving abnormally, and proceeded to carry out an inspection.” (eChinacities)

Chinese media punked again. “China’s official media Global Post posted an article criticize Japan Adult Video actress Aoi Sola’s recent ‘image,’ which made fun of the recent school principal scandal. But turns out, the image was being photoshoped by China Internet users.” (Free More News)

Horray for competitive eating. “This Saturday, June 8 at 8pm, 3sums is hosting Beijing’s First Annual Miniburger Eat-a-thon. Despite calling it an “eat-a-thon,” this is far more like a 100-meter dash. The premise? Eat 16 mini-burgers in 16 minutes or less.” (the Beijinger)

For those of you who might have accidentally worn black yesterday… “Activists in China are taking to social media to urge the public to wear black on the 24th anniversary of the bloody military crackdown on protesters who had camped out for weeks on Tiananmen Square.” (AP)

It’s gaokao season. “Jilin Province will implement a security check that bans any goods containing metal, including bras with metal clasps, from the upcoming national college entrance examinations (gaokao) to avoid cheating.” (Global Times)

Something different. “Thousands of people armed with plastic water guns and buckets battled on the streets of a southwestern Chinese city Monday, drenching each other as part of an annual Buddhist-inspired festival. // A record of around 100,000 people were expected to take part in the event in Jinghong, a few hours drive from China’s border with Myanmar.” (AFP)

INTRO in Beijing interlude:

Finally…

Hong Kong commemorates June 4. (AP and SCMP)

Introducing: (China Change)

dazeFEAST 2013! (Beijing Daze)

Jing A in the Big Smoke for you Beijing beer lovers. (Beijing Boyce)

Hospitals in Beijing. (The BJ Reviewer)

Jaywalking punished? Huh. (Quartz)

No more free music downloads? (Global Times)

Finally, finally…

Via Hong Wrong:
Protest vigil turnout in Hong Kong for Tiananmen

One more…

“The Night of Muxidi, Beijing, by Achiu,” via China Digital Times
The Night of Muxidi, Beijing, by Achiu

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