Expect conservatives eager to limit Zhu's influence before a key 2002 party congress to use those words against him. Hong Kong Show Against Sect Pro-Beijing community groups were mobilized to ensure attendance at a recent exhibition in Hong Kong denouncing the Falun Gong religious group. The Hong Kong government's information coordinator, Stephen Lam, visited the show, although Chief Executive Tung Chee-hwa stayed away on the grounds that he was too busy preparing for a trip to Japan. Falun Gong is banned on the mainland but is still legal, though under surveillance, in Hong Kong. Hanoi's Store Wars Shoppers beware at Intimex, Hanoi's newest state-owned supermarket.
Employees roam the aisles to spot any tell-tale pens.
The puzzling phenomenon can be explained by Vietnam's copycat world of retailing. Intimex employees say they wish to prevent other shopkeepers from entering the supermarket and scribbling down a list of stocked items and prices, which could help competitors undercut Intimex. As for consumers who simply wish to write down prices to compare with those down the block, they're out of luck. Looks as if pens are not the only lethal weapons in Hanoi's trade wars. They are now being assembled in the United States for delivery at the end of the year.