September 28, 2008
The highlight of the Shenzhou VII mission, a space walk, was carried out yesterday by Zhai Zhigang, one of the three astronauts on board of the spacecraft. Today, newspapers across the nation featured a photo showing the Chinese space walker waving the national flag.
Also on the front page of the Information Times: Supermarkets in Chongqing took some chocolates of Gabriel and Le Conte (金帝) brands off shelves due to the suspicion of containing melamine. There have not yet been any official test results confirming that the chocolates are melamine-tainted, but one of the supermarkets said that they pulled the products out of caution. Other newspapers reported that Wal-Mart in Shanghai has also stopped selling the suspect chocolates.
Zhou Zhenglong, the farmer who forged photos to support his claim of discovering an endangered South China Tiger in Shaanxi, was found guilty of fraud and illegal possession of a firearm yesterday. The Xunyang County sentenced him to two and half years in jail plus a 2,000-yuan fine. He also has to return the 20,000 yuan prize he received for his photos from the local government.
Hao Jinsong, the lawyer who sued Zhou last year for “depriving his right to know” was kept out of court during yesterday’s trial. A photo showing Hao holding up an umbrella reading “Zhou Zhenglong=Scapegoat” appears in the newspaper.The court also denied the request of Zhou’s wife to observe the trial.
Although Zhou testified that he concocted the fake photos on his own, Internet opinion doubts that a farmer who doesn’t even know how to use a computer could have created a photo professional enough to fool the experts.
- Information Times(Chinese): Two brands of chocolates are suspected tainted by melamine
- Information Times(Chinese): Zhou Zhenglong was sentenced two and half a year in jail