Inside the mind of a man who killed his four daughters for 'honour'
scmp - Friday, December 30, 2005
ASSOCIATED PRESS in Multan
Nazir Ahmed appears calm and unrepentant as he recounts how he slit the throats of his three young daughters and their 25-year old stepsister to salvage his family's "honour".
The 40-year old labourer, speaking as he was being transferred to jail, has just one regret - that he didn't murder his married stepdaughter's alleged lover too.
Hundreds of women are murdered by male relatives each year in Pakistan, and rights groups say such "honour killings" will only stop when authorities get serious about punishing perpetrators.
The independent Human Rights Commission of Pakistan says that, while more than half of such cases make it to court, most are settled with cash paid by relatives to the victims' families, although under a law passed last year, the minimum penalty is 10 years in prison and the maximum death by hanging.
Ahmed's killings - witnessed by his wife Rehmat Bibi as she cradled their three-month-old son - happened last Friday night at their home in the cotton-growing village of Gago Mandi in eastern Punjab province.
It is the latest of more than 260 such honour killings documented by the rights commission, mostly from media reports, so far this year.
Rehmat Bibi recounted how she was woken by a shriek as Ahmed put his hand to the mouth of his stepdaughter Muqadas and struck her in the throat with a machete. Rehmat Bibi looked helplessly on from the corner of the room as he then killed the three girls - Bano, eight, Sumaira, seven, and Humaira, four - pausing between the slayings to brandish the bloodstained knife at his wife, warning her not to intervene.
"I was shivering with fear. I did not know how to save my daughters," says Rehmat Bibi, sobbing. "I begged my husband to spare my daughters but he said: `If you make a noise, I will kill you'.
"The whole night the bodies of my daughters lay in front of me."
The next morning, Ahmed was arrested. Speaking from the back of a police vehicle before being taken to a prison in the city of Multan, he shows no remorse. Appearing dishevelled but composed, he says he killed Muqadas because she had committed adultery, and his daughters because he didn't want them to do the same when they grew up.
He says he bought a butcher's knife and a machete after midday prayers on Friday and hid them in the house.
"I thought the younger girls would do what their eldest sister had done, so they should be eliminated," he says. "We are poor people and we have nothing else to protect but our honour."
Despite Ahmed's contention that Muqadas had committed adultery, the rights commission reported that according to local people, Muqadas had fled her husband because he had abused her.
Muqadas was Rehmat Bibi's daughter by her first marriage to Ahmed's brother, who died 14 years ago. Ahmed married his brother's widow, which is customary under Islamic tradition.
The rights commission's director, Kamla Hyat, says: "Women are treated as property and those committing crimes against them do not get punished. The steps taken by our government have made no real difference."
Activists accuse President Pervez Musharraf, a self-styled moderate Muslim, of reluctance to reform outdated laws that make it difficult to secure convictions in cases of violence against women. They say police are often reluctant to prosecute, regarding such crimes as family disputes.
Statistics on honour killings are confused and imprecise, but figures from the rights commission's website show a marked reduction in cases this year: 267 in the first 11 months, compared with 579 during all of last year. The Ministry of Women's Development said it had no reliable figures.
Ijaz Elahi, one of two secretaries at the ministry, says violence is decreasing and more victims are reporting incidents. Laws, including one passed last year to beef up penalties for honour killings, had been toughened, she says.
Police will complete their investigation into Ahmed's case in the next two weeks. If convicted, he faces the death sentence.
Ahmed, who did not resist arrest, is unrepentant.
"I am an honourable father and I slaughtered my dishonoured daughter and the three other girls," he says. "I wish that I get a chance to eliminate the boy she ran away with and set his home on fire."
ASSOCIATED PRESS in Multan
Nazir Ahmed appears calm and unrepentant as he recounts how he slit the throats of his three young daughters and their 25-year old stepsister to salvage his family's "honour".
The 40-year old labourer, speaking as he was being transferred to jail, has just one regret - that he didn't murder his married stepdaughter's alleged lover too.
Hundreds of women are murdered by male relatives each year in Pakistan, and rights groups say such "honour killings" will only stop when authorities get serious about punishing perpetrators.
The independent Human Rights Commission of Pakistan says that, while more than half of such cases make it to court, most are settled with cash paid by relatives to the victims' families, although under a law passed last year, the minimum penalty is 10 years in prison and the maximum death by hanging.
Ahmed's killings - witnessed by his wife Rehmat Bibi as she cradled their three-month-old son - happened last Friday night at their home in the cotton-growing village of Gago Mandi in eastern Punjab province.
It is the latest of more than 260 such honour killings documented by the rights commission, mostly from media reports, so far this year.
Rehmat Bibi recounted how she was woken by a shriek as Ahmed put his hand to the mouth of his stepdaughter Muqadas and struck her in the throat with a machete. Rehmat Bibi looked helplessly on from the corner of the room as he then killed the three girls - Bano, eight, Sumaira, seven, and Humaira, four - pausing between the slayings to brandish the bloodstained knife at his wife, warning her not to intervene.
"I was shivering with fear. I did not know how to save my daughters," says Rehmat Bibi, sobbing. "I begged my husband to spare my daughters but he said: `If you make a noise, I will kill you'.
"The whole night the bodies of my daughters lay in front of me."
The next morning, Ahmed was arrested. Speaking from the back of a police vehicle before being taken to a prison in the city of Multan, he shows no remorse. Appearing dishevelled but composed, he says he killed Muqadas because she had committed adultery, and his daughters because he didn't want them to do the same when they grew up.
He says he bought a butcher's knife and a machete after midday prayers on Friday and hid them in the house.
"I thought the younger girls would do what their eldest sister had done, so they should be eliminated," he says. "We are poor people and we have nothing else to protect but our honour."
Despite Ahmed's contention that Muqadas had committed adultery, the rights commission reported that according to local people, Muqadas had fled her husband because he had abused her.
Muqadas was Rehmat Bibi's daughter by her first marriage to Ahmed's brother, who died 14 years ago. Ahmed married his brother's widow, which is customary under Islamic tradition.
The rights commission's director, Kamla Hyat, says: "Women are treated as property and those committing crimes against them do not get punished. The steps taken by our government have made no real difference."
Activists accuse President Pervez Musharraf, a self-styled moderate Muslim, of reluctance to reform outdated laws that make it difficult to secure convictions in cases of violence against women. They say police are often reluctant to prosecute, regarding such crimes as family disputes.
Statistics on honour killings are confused and imprecise, but figures from the rights commission's website show a marked reduction in cases this year: 267 in the first 11 months, compared with 579 during all of last year. The Ministry of Women's Development said it had no reliable figures.
Ijaz Elahi, one of two secretaries at the ministry, says violence is decreasing and more victims are reporting incidents. Laws, including one passed last year to beef up penalties for honour killings, had been toughened, she says.
Police will complete their investigation into Ahmed's case in the next two weeks. If convicted, he faces the death sentence.
Ahmed, who did not resist arrest, is unrepentant.
"I am an honourable father and I slaughtered my dishonoured daughter and the three other girls," he says. "I wish that I get a chance to eliminate the boy she ran away with and set his home on fire."
Interfaith group to hold candlelight vigil
MalaysiaKini - Dec 29, 05 3:36pm
A group representing four major religions in the country will be holding a candlelight vigil tonight in front of the Kuala Lumpur High Court.
The vigil, organised by the Malaysian Consultative Council of Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism and Sikhism (MCCBCHS), is to express the non-Muslim community’s concern over having no legal recourse to challenge Syariah Court decisions.
Reverend Wong Kim Kong, who was appointed by the MCCBCHS to lead the candlelight vigil, said that there is an apparent “confusion over the supremacy” of the Syariah Court over the High Court.
“We want to express to the government, especially the prime minister, that they should take heed of the sentiments of the minority in regards to their religious conviction,” said Wong when contacted.
The vigil will be the latest action taken by the council since a High Court decision yesterday which ruled that the civil court has no jurisdiction over decisions meted out by the Syariah Court.
Yesterday, the MCCBCHS held an emergency meeting and called for amendments into Article 121 (1A) of the Federal Constitution to deny the Syariah Courts any jurisdiction over non-Muslim affairs.
Seeds of disunity
On Dec 22, the Syariah Court ruled that deceased Everest hero M Moorthy was a Muslim and should be buried according to Muslim rites. His wife, S Kaliammal has disputed the Syariah Court’s decision and sought the High Court to overturn it.
Moorthy, a former army commando, was buried yesterday at a Muslim cemetery in Setapak. Kaliammal has vowed to appeal the High Court decision.
The inability for non-Muslims to be represented at the Syariah Court and the inability for Moorthy’s family to seek legal recourse over the matter has sparked outrage nationwide.
MCCBCHS president Dr K Sri Dhammananda said yesterday that the court decision was “sowing seeds of disunity”.
Meanwhile, Bar Council representative who attended Kaliammal’s court proceedings said that a landmark case in 1988 showed that the civil court had the power to rule over the Syariah Court, but it was not practiced at yesterday’s proceedings.
“The issue of no remedy that was brought to attention by the senior federal counsel yesterday was scary, as a remedy should have been found in a civilised legal society,” he told New Straits Times.
Moorthy, who died last Tuesday at the age of 36 from serious head injuries, was one of the 10 individuals in the Malaysia Everest team - two of whom reached the peak of the world's tallest mountain on May 23, 1997, the first Malaysians to achieve the feat.
A group representing four major religions in the country will be holding a candlelight vigil tonight in front of the Kuala Lumpur High Court.
The vigil, organised by the Malaysian Consultative Council of Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism and Sikhism (MCCBCHS), is to express the non-Muslim community’s concern over having no legal recourse to challenge Syariah Court decisions.
Reverend Wong Kim Kong, who was appointed by the MCCBCHS to lead the candlelight vigil, said that there is an apparent “confusion over the supremacy” of the Syariah Court over the High Court.
“We want to express to the government, especially the prime minister, that they should take heed of the sentiments of the minority in regards to their religious conviction,” said Wong when contacted.
The vigil will be the latest action taken by the council since a High Court decision yesterday which ruled that the civil court has no jurisdiction over decisions meted out by the Syariah Court.
Yesterday, the MCCBCHS held an emergency meeting and called for amendments into Article 121 (1A) of the Federal Constitution to deny the Syariah Courts any jurisdiction over non-Muslim affairs.
Seeds of disunity
On Dec 22, the Syariah Court ruled that deceased Everest hero M Moorthy was a Muslim and should be buried according to Muslim rites. His wife, S Kaliammal has disputed the Syariah Court’s decision and sought the High Court to overturn it.
Moorthy, a former army commando, was buried yesterday at a Muslim cemetery in Setapak. Kaliammal has vowed to appeal the High Court decision.
The inability for non-Muslims to be represented at the Syariah Court and the inability for Moorthy’s family to seek legal recourse over the matter has sparked outrage nationwide.
MCCBCHS president Dr K Sri Dhammananda said yesterday that the court decision was “sowing seeds of disunity”.
Meanwhile, Bar Council representative who attended Kaliammal’s court proceedings said that a landmark case in 1988 showed that the civil court had the power to rule over the Syariah Court, but it was not practiced at yesterday’s proceedings.
“The issue of no remedy that was brought to attention by the senior federal counsel yesterday was scary, as a remedy should have been found in a civilised legal society,” he told New Straits Times.
Moorthy, who died last Tuesday at the age of 36 from serious head injuries, was one of the 10 individuals in the Malaysia Everest team - two of whom reached the peak of the world's tallest mountain on May 23, 1997, the first Malaysians to achieve the feat.
Changes to Criminal Law under NPC review
scmp - Monday, December 26, 2005
JOSIE LIU
The National People's Congress Standing Committee is reviewing amendments to the Criminal Law that would allow courts to hand down sentences of up to three years in jail and a fine to anyone who provides equipment used in sex-selective abortions.
According to Xinhua, the amendments were among a number of legislative issues being examined by the committee in its current session, which began on Saturday and ends on Thursday.
Committee members would also discuss harsher punishment for commercial crimes, especially those involving publicly listed companies and investor interests.
Other issues discussed included a motion to abolish a regulation that allows local authorities to impose agricultural tax, the first draft of a law on passports, and a draft to restrict the power of officials in carrying out duties such as the confiscation of private property and searches of private premises.
An Jian , deputy director of the Legislative Affairs Commission under the Standing Committee, said gender selection was threatening social stability.
"The artificial gender selection can jeopardise China's population structure and greatly incur social instability," he said.
The session, lead by NPC Chairman Wu Bangguo , also discussed the motion to abolish the agricultural tax.
Xinhua said last night that committee members had agreed to submit the motion for voting at the end of the session.
Liu Jibin , a vice-director of Financial and Economic Committee, said that since last year, when more provinces began to waive the agricultural tax, Chinese farmers had saved a total of 50 billion yuan. Abolishing the tax altogether would help narrow the wealth gap between urban and rural China.
"In a bid to narrow the income divide between urban citizens and rural citizens, it is necessary to root out agricultural tax. Moreover, abolishing agricultural tax is conducive to building up a unified tax system for urban citizens and rural residents," Mr Liu was quoted by Xinhua as saying.
The committee also reviewed a draft law on the power of executive departments in carrying out their duties. Parts of the draft stated officials could cut water, heat or gas supplies to force evictions only in extreme situations.
The draft also bans officials from seizing citizens' property in lieu of tax payments and spells out procedures and conditions for freezing citizens' bank accounts.
China Youth Daily quoted Legislative Affairs Commission vice-director Xin Chunying as saying the mainland simply lacked the relevant laws.
The legislature must act to fill the vacuum, he said. However, it was only the first review of the draft law, meaning it would unlikely be passed at the end of the session.
The Passport Law is essentially an update of a 1980 State Council regulation to address loopholes in areas such as issuance procedures and standardise application process across the country.
The new legislation will also specify legal consequences of passport forgery and other related crimes.
JOSIE LIU
The National People's Congress Standing Committee is reviewing amendments to the Criminal Law that would allow courts to hand down sentences of up to three years in jail and a fine to anyone who provides equipment used in sex-selective abortions.
According to Xinhua, the amendments were among a number of legislative issues being examined by the committee in its current session, which began on Saturday and ends on Thursday.
Committee members would also discuss harsher punishment for commercial crimes, especially those involving publicly listed companies and investor interests.
Other issues discussed included a motion to abolish a regulation that allows local authorities to impose agricultural tax, the first draft of a law on passports, and a draft to restrict the power of officials in carrying out duties such as the confiscation of private property and searches of private premises.
An Jian , deputy director of the Legislative Affairs Commission under the Standing Committee, said gender selection was threatening social stability.
"The artificial gender selection can jeopardise China's population structure and greatly incur social instability," he said.
The session, lead by NPC Chairman Wu Bangguo , also discussed the motion to abolish the agricultural tax.
Xinhua said last night that committee members had agreed to submit the motion for voting at the end of the session.
Liu Jibin , a vice-director of Financial and Economic Committee, said that since last year, when more provinces began to waive the agricultural tax, Chinese farmers had saved a total of 50 billion yuan. Abolishing the tax altogether would help narrow the wealth gap between urban and rural China.
"In a bid to narrow the income divide between urban citizens and rural citizens, it is necessary to root out agricultural tax. Moreover, abolishing agricultural tax is conducive to building up a unified tax system for urban citizens and rural residents," Mr Liu was quoted by Xinhua as saying.
The committee also reviewed a draft law on the power of executive departments in carrying out their duties. Parts of the draft stated officials could cut water, heat or gas supplies to force evictions only in extreme situations.
The draft also bans officials from seizing citizens' property in lieu of tax payments and spells out procedures and conditions for freezing citizens' bank accounts.
China Youth Daily quoted Legislative Affairs Commission vice-director Xin Chunying as saying the mainland simply lacked the relevant laws.
The legislature must act to fill the vacuum, he said. However, it was only the first review of the draft law, meaning it would unlikely be passed at the end of the session.
The Passport Law is essentially an update of a 1980 State Council regulation to address loopholes in areas such as issuance procedures and standardise application process across the country.
The new legislation will also specify legal consequences of passport forgery and other related crimes.
China promotes its Panchen Lama as new Tibetan leader
scmp - Monday, December 19, 2005
AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE in Beijing
Updated at 5.54pm:
China is raising the profile of a teenage boy it selected as the 11th Panchen Lama, allowing him to perform a ceremony attended by thousands of worshippers, state media reports revealed on Monday.
Beijing chose Gyaincain Norbu when he was six years old to be the 11th Panchen Lama, the second highest spiritual leader in Tibet, after rejecting another boy picked by the exiled spiritual leader the Dalai Lama.
Now 15, Gyaincain Norbu, who was rarely seen in public before, was shown on China’s state television earlier this month blessing worshippers in a ceremony marking his enthronement at the Panchen Lama’s residence.
On Sunday, just 10 days after the enthronement ceremony, Gyaincain Norbu held another “head-touching” ritual to bless lamas and other Buddhists in the residence, the Tashilhunpo Monastery in Shigatse city, the Xinhua news agency said.
The ceremony lasted four hours and was attended by more than 10,000 Tibetans and other Buddhists from neighbouring provinces, it said.
“This was the first time the 16-year-old Panchen Lama has blessed such a large number of people at one time at his residence over the past decade,” Xinhua said.
“The past decade witnessed Gyaincain Norbu grow up from a child to the leader of Tibetan Buddhism.”
In further indication Beijing is trying to strengthen the legitimacy of the youngster, Xinhua said the ceremony was attended by devoted Tibetans, including mothers with babies and young men carrying their elderly fathers or mothers on their backs, who viewed Gyaincain Norbu as their new spiritual leader.
Xinhua quoted Dianzin, an 84-year-old man who once was blessed by the ninth and the 10th Panchen Lamas, as recognizing Gyaincain Norbu as the legitimate Panchen Lama.
“It is my great honour to receive the blessing from a third Panchen Lama today,” said Dianzin, according to Xinhua.
China appears to consider the boy, who has been under Beijing’s tutelage, as ready to play a more high-profile role.
The Dalai Lama, exiled in India, is considered by Tibetans as the highest spiritual leader.
Beijing however considers him a dangerous separatist and views him with deep suspicion.
The Dalai Lama has frequently angered Beijing by meeting with other countries’ leaders in his efforts to fight for more autonomy for Tibetans, who have been ruled by the Chinese for about half a century.
Gedhun Choekyi Nyima, a boy chosen by the Dalai Lama to be the Panchen Lama, is believed to have been under house arrest by China since 1995.
AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE in Beijing
Updated at 5.54pm:
China is raising the profile of a teenage boy it selected as the 11th Panchen Lama, allowing him to perform a ceremony attended by thousands of worshippers, state media reports revealed on Monday.
Beijing chose Gyaincain Norbu when he was six years old to be the 11th Panchen Lama, the second highest spiritual leader in Tibet, after rejecting another boy picked by the exiled spiritual leader the Dalai Lama.
Now 15, Gyaincain Norbu, who was rarely seen in public before, was shown on China’s state television earlier this month blessing worshippers in a ceremony marking his enthronement at the Panchen Lama’s residence.
On Sunday, just 10 days after the enthronement ceremony, Gyaincain Norbu held another “head-touching” ritual to bless lamas and other Buddhists in the residence, the Tashilhunpo Monastery in Shigatse city, the Xinhua news agency said.
The ceremony lasted four hours and was attended by more than 10,000 Tibetans and other Buddhists from neighbouring provinces, it said.
“This was the first time the 16-year-old Panchen Lama has blessed such a large number of people at one time at his residence over the past decade,” Xinhua said.
“The past decade witnessed Gyaincain Norbu grow up from a child to the leader of Tibetan Buddhism.”
In further indication Beijing is trying to strengthen the legitimacy of the youngster, Xinhua said the ceremony was attended by devoted Tibetans, including mothers with babies and young men carrying their elderly fathers or mothers on their backs, who viewed Gyaincain Norbu as their new spiritual leader.
Xinhua quoted Dianzin, an 84-year-old man who once was blessed by the ninth and the 10th Panchen Lamas, as recognizing Gyaincain Norbu as the legitimate Panchen Lama.
“It is my great honour to receive the blessing from a third Panchen Lama today,” said Dianzin, according to Xinhua.
China appears to consider the boy, who has been under Beijing’s tutelage, as ready to play a more high-profile role.
The Dalai Lama, exiled in India, is considered by Tibetans as the highest spiritual leader.
Beijing however considers him a dangerous separatist and views him with deep suspicion.
The Dalai Lama has frequently angered Beijing by meeting with other countries’ leaders in his efforts to fight for more autonomy for Tibetans, who have been ruled by the Chinese for about half a century.
Gedhun Choekyi Nyima, a boy chosen by the Dalai Lama to be the Panchen Lama, is believed to have been under house arrest by China since 1995.
Weekly newspaper with outspoken record shuts down
scmp - Monday, December 19, 2005
VIVIAN WU
A trend-setting weekly newspaper launched last year in Hunan has closed amid speculation of financial problems.
People in Focus Weekly examined personalities in politics, current affairs, finance and culture, but attracted attention in recent months for running profiles of outspoken people, such as former vice-minister of education Zhang Baoqing , who criticised corruption in the school system, and Auditor-General Li Jinhua , whose report revealed the extent of graft in government departments.
A section carrying readers' letters was equally provocative. One letter by the veteran editor of the China Youth Daily attacked the paper's controversial plan to tie government and party approval to reporters' pay.
Management of People in Focus Weekly did not officially announce the paper's closure but said early this month it would shut for a month. Industry insiders say the closure is permanent.
The announcement follows the departure a month ago of its political editor, Li Nan , and its finance editor, Chen Dong , although high-profile editor Liu Feng , who once worked for China News Week, remained.
The publisher, Hunan TV & Broadcasting Intermediary, or TIK, ploughed an estimated 15 million yuan into the newspaper.
Some of the weekly's former reporters said TIK's unwillingness to put up additional funds was the reason the paper was closing.
Unsigned message postings on popular websites said TIK had interfered excessively with the newspaper's operation.
Media analyst and an independent TIK director Yu Guoming said several controversial articles marked the start of the newspaper's downfall.
"It cannot be that money problems led to the closure because if it's the case, I, as an independent director, should have been informed," Professor Yu said.
"The newspaper was still an emerging media source whose operation in the past year was not so good but could not be described as bad. It's no reason for the investors to pull out.
"Maybe some of its recent articles were sensitive and irritated some parties."
Liu told the South China Morning Post he was not authorised to explain the suspension
A former colleague said Liu was joining the New Times Weekly magazine, but Liu said "it's my private decision and I have not made it yet".
Liu said a decision about whether to reopen would be announced in a month, but he hinted that if staff wanted to leave for other jobs, they could do as they wanted.
The closure is not an isolated case. Several newspapers have closed this year either under political or financial pressures.
The aborted publications include the Shenzhen Legal News which closed in early November as a result of its poor earnings and outspoken tone, the poorly managed Nanfang Sport which shut down in August and the Xinzhoubao, which also had a direct approach.
VIVIAN WU
A trend-setting weekly newspaper launched last year in Hunan has closed amid speculation of financial problems.
People in Focus Weekly examined personalities in politics, current affairs, finance and culture, but attracted attention in recent months for running profiles of outspoken people, such as former vice-minister of education Zhang Baoqing , who criticised corruption in the school system, and Auditor-General Li Jinhua , whose report revealed the extent of graft in government departments.
A section carrying readers' letters was equally provocative. One letter by the veteran editor of the China Youth Daily attacked the paper's controversial plan to tie government and party approval to reporters' pay.
Management of People in Focus Weekly did not officially announce the paper's closure but said early this month it would shut for a month. Industry insiders say the closure is permanent.
The announcement follows the departure a month ago of its political editor, Li Nan , and its finance editor, Chen Dong , although high-profile editor Liu Feng , who once worked for China News Week, remained.
The publisher, Hunan TV & Broadcasting Intermediary, or TIK, ploughed an estimated 15 million yuan into the newspaper.
Some of the weekly's former reporters said TIK's unwillingness to put up additional funds was the reason the paper was closing.
Unsigned message postings on popular websites said TIK had interfered excessively with the newspaper's operation.
Media analyst and an independent TIK director Yu Guoming said several controversial articles marked the start of the newspaper's downfall.
"It cannot be that money problems led to the closure because if it's the case, I, as an independent director, should have been informed," Professor Yu said.
"The newspaper was still an emerging media source whose operation in the past year was not so good but could not be described as bad. It's no reason for the investors to pull out.
"Maybe some of its recent articles were sensitive and irritated some parties."
Liu told the South China Morning Post he was not authorised to explain the suspension
A former colleague said Liu was joining the New Times Weekly magazine, but Liu said "it's my private decision and I have not made it yet".
Liu said a decision about whether to reopen would be announced in a month, but he hinted that if staff wanted to leave for other jobs, they could do as they wanted.
The closure is not an isolated case. Several newspapers have closed this year either under political or financial pressures.
The aborted publications include the Shenzhen Legal News which closed in early November as a result of its poor earnings and outspoken tone, the poorly managed Nanfang Sport which shut down in August and the Xinzhoubao, which also had a direct approach.
