Chinese labour activists ‘increasingly targets of violent attacks, intimidation’
As China prepares to mark International Workers' Day, activists fear assaults likely to increase as number of industrial disputes rises
Labour activists in China say they are increasingly the target of violent attacks and the intimidation is likely to get worse as the country’s economy slows and they get involved in more industrial disputes to fight for workers rights.
There have been at least five incidents of labour activists being assaulted or facing harassment this month alone, they say.
As the country prepares to mark the Labour Day holiday this weekend, activists said they were steeling themselves for a tough year ahead.
“May 1 is the day when workers celebrate the rights they have fought for, but our work is increasingly challenging,” said Zeng Feiyang, the director of the Guangdong Panyu Migrant Worker Centre in Guangzhou.
“The nature of the assaults and oppression has got more severe and the violence is of a kind we’ve never experienced before in terms of its intensity and frequency. I think I might be locked up sooner or later within the year," he said.
One of the assaults this month involved the former worker turned collective bargaining adviser Peng Jiayong.