{"id":13794,"date":"2007-07-19T18:21:59","date_gmt":"2007-07-20T01:21:59","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/chinadigitaltimes.net\/2007\/07\/19\/safety-falters-as-chinese-quiet-those-who-cry-foul-ariana-eunjung-cha\/"},"modified":"2007-07-19T18:21:59","modified_gmt":"2007-07-20T01:21:59","slug":"safety-falters-as-chinese-quiet-those-who-cry-foul-ariana-eunjung-cha","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/chinadigitaltimes.net\/2007\/07\/safety-falters-as-chinese-quiet-those-who-cry-foul-ariana-eunjung-cha\/","title":{"rendered":"Safety Falters As Chinese Quiet Those Who Cry Foul – Ariana Eunjung Cha"},"content":{"rendered":"
\nThe Washington Post writes about Zhang Zhijian, who was detained in 2006 after reposting an essay outlining collusion between food and drug regulators and pharmaceutical companies:\n<\/p>\n
\nThe case of Zhang and other would-be whistleblowers opens a window into the weaknesses of China’s regulatory system, which in recent months has come under global criticism after a string of recalls of unsafe pet food, toothpaste, toys, tires and seafood.<\/p>\n
It is a setup that suffers from infighting among the five main agencies charged with food and drug safety, a lack of enough personnel and a legal code that is still being written. But its most challenging problem may be that it allows officials to silence voices that are trying to expose trouble. [Full text]<\/a>
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