OPINION> Commentary
Consumers' rights
(China Daily)
Updated: 2008-12-04 07:53

The perseverance and tenacity Huang Jing displayed to protect her right as an ordinary consumer has a bigger message for the society.

It all started with a V6800V model ASUS laptop she had bought from a Beijing retailer in February 2006. When the problematic laptop's CPU was changed during repairs, it turned out to be an Intel "engineer sample" that was not supposed to be sold.

For the trouble the computer had caused her, she asked for $5 million in compensation, with which she wanted to set up a consumer right protection fund. Unless the company - ASUStek Computer Inc - paid the compensation, she threatened to take it to court.

Had Huang compromised and accepted a handsome sum of money in compensation from the computer giant, she would not have been arrested and detained for 295 days.

Had she admitted defeat in her battle against a computer giant, she would not have continued her odyssey today.

She was arrested for extortion and detained for almost 10 months until she was finally released and paid more than 29,000 yuan in compensation for being illegally detained for such a long time.

Huang and her lawyer insist that the computer giant must be duly punished for infringing on consumers' right by using the wrong CPU in its laptop.

It might have been inappropriate for Huang to ask for as much as $5 million in compensation. But however unreasonable the demand was, it could in no way amount to a crime.

How did the company make the police believe that Huang and her agent were committing a crime of extorting money? Why was she detained for 10 months without being tried?

Both questions remain to be answered although the fact that Huang was released and compensated by the government is enough evidence that her arrest and detention was wrong.

The prosecution owes not only Huang but the general public an answer as to who - the police or the company - was responsible for the mistake.

But her physical and psychological sufferings have not deterred this woman still in her 20s from continuing her crusade. She is determined to obtain the compensation and an apology from ASUS. And she has already filed a lawsuit against the company for framing her up. The other two charges she brought up against the company involve infringement on her right as a consumer and manufacturing of fake products.

We cannot tell how long it will take for this woman to get justice. Whatever the result of her lawsuit, the implication of her case goes far beyond her story or the possible loss of the company's sales and reputation.

Huang's case can encourage more consumers to fight for their consumer rights. And more people will realize that such individual actions are in the interest of all consumers.

(China Daily 12/04/2008 page8)