ANOTHER CHARGED IN GUANGXI

HONG KONG -- A second top official in southern China's Guangxi province
has been charged with corruption.

Liu Zhibing, vice-chairman of the Guangxi autonomous region people's
government, has also been accused of protecting his children, other
relatives and colleagues who were involved in smuggling, tax evasion
and drug trafficking, the independent Chinese-language Ming Pao Daily
News said.

While serving as mayor and later as party secretary in Liuzhou city
over the past 10 years, Liu was reported to have given approval for
several public works which later turned out to be substandard.

These included the collapse of one bridge and a wall which resulted in
the deaths of five people last year.

His two sons and a son-in-law were being held for smuggling, drug
trafficking and tax evasion, using their property development and
entertainment firms as a front, the Chinese-language daily said.