Pope Benedict XVI, in an open letter to Chinese Catholics, suggests that it is time for underground (and Vatican loyal) and state-sponsored Catholic churches in China to reconcile: “The misunderstanding and incomprehension weighs heavily, serving neither the Chinese authorities nor the Catholic Church in China.”
Liu Jimin, high court judge, on the one death sentence and multiple jail sentences awarded to those involved in June’s brick kiln slavery scandals: “These cases have had a vile effect both domestically and overseas and can only be handled… in the most severe fashion… Only with a fast verdict can we deter these crimes.”
The China Banking Regulatory Commission on the fining of eight banks banks for illegally making loans that were used to invest in the stock market: “The banks’ chief problem is their failure to do proper due diligence before making a loan, failure to be cautious in their assessment at the time of lending, and a failure of supervision and control after making the loan.”
Yan Jiangying, a State Food and Drugs Administration (SFDA) spokeswoman, on the execution of former SFDA head Zheng Xiaoyu, who took bribes to license drugs: “China is a developing country and our supervision of food and drugs started late and our foundation for this work is weak…The government [is] rotating officials in key posts to prevent them from becoming too close to companies.”