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December 2, 2008 3:47:05 AM CST

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China Executes Ex-Food and Drug Czar

Posted Jul 10, 07 11:44 AM CDT in World 

(Newser) – China carried out a swift death sentence against the former head of its food and drug administration today, in an apparent reaction to concerns about the safety of its exports. Zheng Xiaoyu was killed just over 2 weeks after the supreme court rejected his appeal on a May conviction for accepting bribes while head of the watchdog government arm.

China accounts for more than half of the world's executions, but justice against Zheng was severe and expeditious even for the autocratic superpower. The Times reports that the move was meant as a display both of China's sincerity in combating the tainted food scandal that has rocked trade markets recently and, paradoxically, of its increasingly meticulous review of executions.

Source New York Times

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Zheng Xiaoyu, the former director of China's State Food and Drug Administration, is seen in a meeting of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) in Beijing in this March 4, 2003...   (Associated Press)
Chinese State Food and Drug Administration spokeswoman Yan Jiangyang speaks at a press conference in Beijing Tuesday July 10, 2007. Yan said that corrupt officials in the SFDA are the "shame of the whole...   (Associated Press)
Zheng Xiaoyu, the former director of China's State Food and Drug Administration, is seen in a meeting of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) in Beijing in this March 4, 2003...   (Associated Press)
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