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China executed a dairy farmer and a milk salesman Tuesday
for their roles in the sale of contaminated baby formula — severe
punishments that Beijing hopes will assuage public anger, reassure importers
and put to rest one of the country's worst food safety crises.
The men were the only people put to death in a scheme to boost profits by
lacing milk powder with the industrial chemical melamine; 19 other people
were convicted and received lesser sentences. At least six children died
after drinking the adulterated formula, and more than 300,000 were sickened.
Beijing is eager to show it has responded swiftly and comprehensively to
eliminate problems in its food production chain that have spawned protests
at home and threatened its export-reliant economy. The milk powder
contamination struck a nerve with the public because so many children were
affected, but was only one in a series of product recalls and embarrassing
disclosures of lax public health safeguards.
Melamine, which is used to make plastics and fertilizers, has also been
found added to pet food, eggs and fish feed, although not in levels
considered dangerous to humans. The chemical, which like protein is high in
nitrogen, fooled inspectors. It can cause kidney stones and kidney failure.
China has tightened regulations and increased inspections on producers and
exporters in cooperation with U.S. officials, who have noted a drop in the
number of product recalls on Chinese exports.
But Beijing continues to struggle to regulate small and illegally run
operations, often blamed for introducing chemicals and additives into the
food chain. The country has 450,000 registered food production and
processing enterprises, but many — about 350,000 — employ just 10 people or
fewer. The U.N. said in a report last year that the small enterprises
present many of China's greatest food safety challenges.
Zhang Yujun, the farmer, was executed for endangering public safety, and
Geng Jinping for producing and selling toxic food, according to the official
Xinhua News Agency.
Much of the phony protein powder that Zhang and Geng produced and sold ended
up at the defunct Sanlu Group Co., at the time one of China's biggest
dairies.
Xinhua said an announcement of the execution had been issued by the
Shijiazhuang Municipal Intermediate People's Court, although a court clerk
who answered the phone Tuesday said he was unable to confirm the sentences
had been carried out. Most executions in China are performed by firing
squad.
Of the others tried and sentenced in January in the scandal, Sanlu's general
manager, Tian Wenhua, was given a life sentence after pleading guilty to
charges of producing and selling fake or substandard products.
Three other former Sanlu executives were given between five years and 15
years in prison.
There was outrage after news spread of the doctored milk in September 2008,
both because of the extent of the contamination and allegations that the
government prevented the news from breaking until after the Olympic Games in
Beijing.
The cover-up accusations were never publicly investigated, and authorities
have since harassed and detained activist parents pushing lawsuits demanding
higher compensation and the punishment of government officials. Families
were offered a one-time payout — ranging from of 2,000 yuan ($293) to
200,000 yuan ($29,000), depending on the severity of the case — to not
pursue lawsuits.
Tuesday's executions brought some comfort to Li Xinquan, who lost one of her
8-month-old twin daughters who was fed with melamine-tainted formula from
Sanlu. Li has campaigned to force authorities to admit negligence and
provide fair compensation.
"They deserved it. This is the punishment they have received from the
government," said Li, whose other daughter survived because she was breast
fed.
Another parent, Wang Zhenping, also voiced satisfaction with the executions,
reflecting strong support for the death penalty in China, which executes
more people annually than the rest of the world combined.
Wang, who said his 2-year-old son appeared to have recovered from melamine
poisoning, rejected the compensation offer and said he was growing weary of
the struggle.
"I feel like it doesn't really matter now," he said.
U.S. Consumer Products Safety Commission Chairman Inez Tenenbaum said last
month that Beijing has made progress in increasing product safety.
The numbers of consumer recalls of toys imported from China had fallen from
more than 80 in fiscal 2008 to about 40 in fiscal 2009, Tenenbaum said.
"Chinese suppliers and U.S. importers are now on notice from both
governments that it is a mistake to depend on good intentions and a few
final inspections to ensure compliance with safety requirements," she told a
conference in Beijing. |
