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A few cases, in which the owners of private firms were killed, has
drawn attention of the affluent people's personal safety, which has
become a heated topic during panel discussions of the on-going
First Session of the 10th National People's Congress.
These are only a tiny number of individual cases, said Lou Zhongfu,
a deputy to the on-going First Session of the 10th NPC, or the top
legislature, on Friday, noting there have been quite a few people
who envy and are jealous of them but there was a drastic trend in
the number of cases involving blackmail, extortion and other
threats of their personal safety.
Lou, a successful entrepreneur from east China's Zhejiang province,
who had made fortune from building industry, said "I no longer
worry about my personal safety."
Nevertheless, Lou's home was looted 12 years ago, and he owned this
occurrence to the less-developed economic growth and the level of
people's understanding at that time, he said, adding that" the
status and social position of private firm owners as well as their
wealth had not won recognition though the people then were decently
clothed."
The National Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC) held in
November 1922 explicitly referred owners of private enterprises to
builders of socialism with Chinese characteristics and
representatives of the advanced production forces, he said, all the
lawful income of labor and non-labor had to be protected and a
related law for the protection of private property was yet to be
further improved.
Lou appealed for Chinese private entrepreneurs, who are among the
"first group of people to become rich" to respond to the call of
late leader Deng Xiaoping, to "remain modest, keep low-profile,
behave as other ordinary people, and respect others" and devoted
themselves to charitable well-beings.
Yet, deputies and delegates attending the First Sessions of the
10th NPC and 10th CPPCC National Committee held in this national
capital called for the attention for the personal safety of the new
wealthy business people in the country.
On
January 22, 2003, Li Haicang, a noted private entrepreneur and
vice-chairman of the All-China Federation of Industry and Commerce,
was shot in his hometown, Yuncheng city in Shanxi Province, north
China. A few individuals mentioned that his death had something to
do with the Forbes listing of him as China's 27 richest.
Three weeks later, on February 12, some outlaws stabbed to death
Zhou Zubao, a billionaire in Wenzhou City, in eastern Zhejiang
Province, in front of his residence. some people also attributed
his death to the hatred against the rich, a "legacy" which has
passed down from history.
However, most lawmakers from private sectors cited these individual
incidents as a very few "specific cases".
Steve K. W. Chan, a Hong Kong CPPCC member and board chairman of
the Coca-Cola, China, Ltd., said he did not encounter any risks in
his frequent trips to many places on the Chinese mainland, and felt
at ease with his personal experiences that the people's attitudes
towards the affluent people are quite good and healthy.
"In China, your legitimate rights are protected well, if you abide
by the law," he noted.
Nan Cunhui, another billionaire and owner of Zhengtai Group, the
country's largest manufacturer of low-watts electric equipment,
acknowledged that the personal safety of private business owners
hinges on social environment, education and people's
understanding.
"People in China are no longer jealous about the riches, and this
is the case in Wenzhou at least," said Yang Fangshan, a local taxi
drive, "Those who have made their fortune by their own honest work
have even become our models and we take pride in them."
Meanwhile, private business people have contributed with donations
to build clinics and hospitals, roads, bridges, and spacious homes
for the senior citizens.
So
far, the Zhengtai Group Corp. donated more than 50 million yuan
(about US$6 million) for charitable projects. "You'll be respected
and esteemed, when you repay to society with what you have got with
support and nurturing of people at large," Nan said.
(Xinhua News Agency March 14, 2003)
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