Being a consumer is about choosing, buying, using and
enjoying... or not.
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In a bid to beef up consumer protection, the China Consumers
Association called for a greater focus on consumer education during
an international forum yesterday in Beijing.
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Mu Jianhua, standing vice-president and secretary-general of the
association, said education should be comprehensive and should
emphasize building an advanced consumer culture. As there is a huge
difference between cities and the countryside, education needs to
be adapted to best suit local environments.
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"There are a great number of Chinese consumers, most of them are
not well-educated and lack knowledge of the law," said Teng Jiacai,
director of the consumers right protection bureau of the State
Administration for Industry and Commerce.
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According to Teng, since the establishment of the 12315 hotline for
customers in 1999, his administration has received more than 2.24
million appeals and helped save more than 4.4 billion yuan
(US$483.7 million) for customers through mediation. A total of 1.29
million cases were investigated.
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Marilena Lazzarini, president of Consumers International, said an
unenlightened consumer base is a common phenomenon in developing
countries. She said her organization is fighting to include
consumer education as a basic of educational systems.
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She emphasized that schools and parents need to recognize their
responsibility to teach children to become wise consumers and
realize that kids are being bombarded with advertising messages
from an early age.
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Consumers International, which has a membership of more than 250
organizations in 115 countries, concluded its 2004 council meeting
on Monday, the first time it was held in the Chinese mainland since
the organization was founded in 1960.
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Lazzarini said she is trying to have meetings not only in places
where the organization is based but also in member countries. "We
chose Beijing this time because we are greatly impressed by the
achievements made by the China Consumers' Association," she said.
"We want to show our appreciation to them and this is also a good
learning trip."
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She said more than one fifth of the world's 6 billion consumers are
in China and, due to economic development, consumer protection has
become increasingly important.
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She was amazed by the country's huge annual celebration of
International Consumer Rights Day, which falls on March 15. Since
1991 government and media have launched a series of publicity
activities around it, publicizing fraudulent items and illegal
behavior that have seriously damaged the rights and interests of
customers.
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Lazzarini said other developing countries face new yet similar
challenges and China has set a good example for all its partners in
the third world.
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(China Daily October 27, 2004)