BEIJING: As China’s Communist Party congress got under way, nervous garment factory owners were on high alert, running lookouts to evade inspectors as they continued to produce coats, jackets and button-down shirts in defiance of official orders to close. Apparel producers were ordered to suspend work for the month out of fire safety concerns, but in Dahongmen, one of Beijing’s last clothing manufacturing hubs, some factory owners simply took their work underground. Each factory had staff keeping an eye out for inspectors weeks before the meeting kicked off, Yue recalled. In Dahongmen’s muddy, unpaved streets, garment industry workers lounged on damp sofas next to laundry hanging out to dry in the smoggy air, killing time. Stacking unshipped packages higher and higher, Chen said: “What does the party congress even have to do with me?” AFPAFP/CC

Source: Manila Times October 23, 2017 10:07 UTC