China: Foxconn Chairman Responds to Recent Suicides

Foxconn Chairman Terri Guo travelled to his electronics factory in Shenzhen on Wednesday. There he faced the media after 11 of his employees attempted suicide this year. Nine of them died and were all under 25 years of age.

Guo expressed sympathy over the deaths, and says the company is looking closely into the matter. He denied charges of harsh treatment to his company’s employees.

[Terri Guo, Foxconn Chairman]: (male, Chinese)
„I think that you should look closely into both the Chinese and international rates and statistics. According to experts, once a regional GDP per capita reaches 3,000 U.S. dollars a year, then these incidents tend to happen. We have 540,000 employees in our company, and according to experts, the suicidal rate is within the normal range.“

Outside, grieving families gathered in front the company’s industrial complex. They want answers to what caused their relatives to commit suicide.

Ma Hui’s brother committed suicide in January last year. She pleads Guo to thoroughly investigate the death.

[Ma Hui, Sister of Victim Ma Xiangqian]: (female, Chinese)
„Our whole family will kneel down. I hope that Chairman Mr. Guo will publicly apologize for my brother and find out the truth.”

Professor Hu Donxing is from the Beijing Institute of Technology. He’s calling for a high level, independent investigation into the deaths, and criticizes the response of Foxconn and Shenzhen labor authorities.

[Hu Donxing, Professor of Economics, Beijing Institute of Technology]: (male, Chinese)
„Foxconn is denying responsibility, Shenzhen city government is denying responsibility— even higher-level government and labor management departments are all denying responsibility. They blame these eleven consecutive suicide-jumps simply and completely on psychological issues, mental issues, or even individual issues. And they don’t want to begin to redress— dealing with the lower management’s actions, managerial violence and these kinds of problems.“

Foxconn Technology is the world’s largest contract electronics manufacturer. Its clients include Apple and Sony Ericsson. Employees in its Shenzhen plant have complained of isolated working conditions and long shifts.

Foto: NTDTV