| (Beijing)
-- Eighteen factory managers were executed for poor product
quality at Chien Bien Refrigerator Factory on the outskirts
of the Chinese capital. The managers - 12 men and 6 women -
were taken to a rice paddy outside the factory and unceremoniously
shot to death as 500 plant workers looked on. Minister of Economics
Reform spokesman, Xi Ten Haun, said the action was required
for committing unpardonable crimes against the people of China.
He blamed the managers for ignoring quality and forcing shoddy
work, saying the factory's output of refrigerators had a reputation
for failure. For years, factory workers complained that many
component parts did not meet |
specification
and the end product did not function as required. Complaining
workers quoted the plant manager as saying "Ship it." Refrigerators
are among the most sought-after consumer items in China. Customers,
who waited up to five years for their appliances, were outraged.
"It is understandable our citizens would express shock and outrage
when managers are careless in their attitudes toward the welfare
of others," Haun says. "Our soldiers are justified in wishing
to bring proper justice to these errant managers." The executed
included the plant manager, the quality control manager, the
engineering managers and their top staff. |
