The Trap Works

Remember the story about the protest permit process being "cost effective law-enforcement"?

Instead of having to go out there and hunt down protesters, the Beijing police invite them to come to their office (the trap) for a protest application (the carrot) that is never given. And if you insist too much, get ready for labor re-education camp.

That's what happened to the two elderly ladies below, according to this Washington Post article. They, encouraged by the promise of being allowed to vent their grievances, went not once but five times to the police station to push for their permit to protest against their 2001 eviction from their homes.

(Associated Press photo)

The fourth time Wu Dianyuan, 79 (right in the photo), and Wang Xiuying, 77, went to check the status of their application, they were sentenced to a year of labor re-education camp, according to the son of one of them. But perhaps the advanced age of the two suspects was what extracted a little mercy from the authorities.

"They will not have to go to a re-education camp -- at least for now -- the order stated. But their movement will be restricted and they are likely to face other requirements. If they violate any provisions of the order or other regulations, however, they could be sent to a labor camp," the article says.

The two ladies and their families are obviously outraged at the bullying by the authorities. It turns out this kind of punishment is reserved for "prostitutes and thieves," the son of one of the suspects said.

The lack of any allowed protests during the Games has been characterized by the Olympic organizers as "a good thing." And the International Olympic Committee, in true fashion, has washed their hands again by referring any questions about this issue to the Beijing government.