By The TimesLedger
As a community newspaper, we are ardent defenders of freedom of the press. But along with freedom comes responsibility. We are alarmed by the very real possibility that the communist government of China may be using two newspapers published in New York City to harass members of a controversial Chinese religious movement living in Queens.
Last week former City Councilman Sheldon Leffler announced that his law firm is suing the two newspapers for libel. The suit claims that the Chinese-language papers printed false and damaging accusations about members of the sect.
70 members of the Falun Gong sect living in New York, including 27 from Queens, filed suit charging that the China Press and the Sing Tao Daily have engaged in character assassination. On Sept. 20, the Sing Tao Daily published the headline “Radical religions advocate destroying the world,” next to pictures of the attack on the World trade Center and photos of the Falun Gonbg practitioners.
In the same article, the paper reported that “Falun Gong allegedly lead people to superstition, delude people into setting themselves alight and self-mutilation in order to achieve the ‘consummation’ to ascend heaven.”
Is it possible that a government with no respect for freedom of religion or freedom of the press is using newspapers here to press its international campaign against the followers of this movement? The two newspapers involved have enormous influence in the Chinese-American community. If either paper has become a propaganda tool or a house organ for the Chinese dictatorship, the truth must be exposed.
At stake here is far more than the personal injuries that the people who hired Leffler may have suffered. Thousands of Chinese Americans rely on the Chinese-language papers for all of their news. If this news is being passed through a fascist filter, they have the right to know.
Editorial: On the brink of reform
At the writing of this editorial, it appears that Mayor Bloomberg is on the brink of winning the battle to abolish the Board of Education. All parties involved in the battle to reform the city’s beleaguered public education system may finally be ready to sign off on a plan that will give the mayor control of this system.
There is no question that the people of New York City want this reform. Mayor Bloomberg and Gov. Pataki want this as did Mayor Giuliani. It is not a question of mayoral control, but rather a matter of accountability. Until recently, however, the state Legislature stood in the path of meaningful reform.
Even now runaway egos and partisan petulance threaten to derail the reform. Sources in Albany said Friday that state Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver may withdraw his support for reform if it appears that someone else will get the credit. Silver should be more worried about who will get the blame if the reform dies in Albany.
Silver should know that New Yorkers don’t care who gets credit. They want the Board of Education abolished and they want the mayor to run the schools. They want their children to get a quality education and they want teachers to get fair pay. They are tired of the petty politics that have been delaying school reform.
Voters should let their representatives in the Assembly know that they will not tolerate more delays. The voters don’t care who gets the credit. If Silver cannot keep his ego in check, he should get out of the way.
