In one of the country's most high-profile lawsuits, lawyer Qiao Zhanxiang from North China's Hebei Province lost another appeal yesterday against the Ministry of Railways, which jacked up the price of train travel during last year's Spring Festival.

The Beijing Higher People's Court ruled that the price hikes enacted during last year's Spring Festival did not violate the 1998 Pricing Law of the People's Republic of China even though the hikes were set without any public hearings.

Such pricing activity was approved by the State Council and the State Development Planning Commission - the country's top pricing authority, the court said.

Qiao filed an appeal in November alleging that the ministry's price increase had violated the Pricing Law because no public hearings were held before it made the decision.

The court ruled that the Pricing Law does require hearings before setting government-guided prices on key public utilities.

But detailed rules for such hearings were not worked out by the State Development Planning Commission until August 2001, almost a half-year after the price hike, said Wang Zhenqing, chief judge of the court.

In China, a State Council regulation is often a prerequisite for carrying out a statute.

Although he lost the case, Qiao said he was not all that bothered.

"What I care about most is that the case encourages people to become more aware about the importance of safeguarding their interests through legal channels, even against the government," Qiao said.

Court officials said Qiao should take heart that the central government listened to his quibble and held public hearings regarding this year's price hikes.

Qiao filed his first indictment against the ministry in March before the Beijing No.1 Intermediate People's Court. When the court rejected his accusation last November, he filed it with the Beijing Higher People's Court.

(China Daily February 28, 2002)