Jailed Chinese dissident Hu Jia (and maybe also his brave wife Zeng Jinyan who is also under house arrest and who is bringing up their young daughter alone) is/are being tipped for the Nobel Peace Prize. This is very welcome news in light of the Communist Government's blatant failure to uphold human rights as promised around the time of the Beijing Olympics.
Hu was jailed in April apprently for 5 articles he wrote and 2 interviews he gave criticising the Communist Government in China for failing to uphold human rights. How pathetic is that?
Hu has actively campaigned on behalf of AIDS/HIV sufferers and other dissidents such as Chen Guangcheng over a number of years.
There is a moral dimension to this ongoing oppression which ought to give the Chinese Government pause for thought. Governments that lock up people who don't agree with them (we are not talking terrorism here for goodness sake!) tend to have limited shelf-lives, never achieve the moral authority and acceptance in the eyes of the international community that they crave and ultimately implode on themselves when the final vestiges of their legitimacy disappear. It may not happen today, it may not happen tomorrow or in 20 years, but one day it shall if they carry on like this.
Hu would be a worthy winner and it would be interesting to see how and if the Communist authorities would react. I think it would be highly embarrassing for them that Hu is currently in prison on a pretty flimsy pretext. Perhaps they ought to think about releasing him PDQ?
Showing posts with label Chinese Communist Party. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Chinese Communist Party. Show all posts
Wednesday, 24 September 2008
Friday, 7 September 2007
Titan Rain - Oh Really?
Strange claims are surfacing that elements of the Chinese "Peoples Liberation Army" (an Oxymoron if ever there was one given the PLA's performance around Tiananmen Square in 1989) have targeted British Government computers.
There has been wide speculation for years that certain ultra-nationalist elements of the PLA have wanted to engage in "asymmetric warfare" against the US. Indeed, the military approach of the PLA has always contained a guerilla approach to combat against a larger enemy. This was deployed effectively during both the Chinese Civil War, against the Japanese (although a recent biog of Mao has cast doubt that the Red Army did much fighting against the Japanese during the occupation of China from 1937-1945) and would have been deployed as part of a "People's War" strategy against both the US during the Korean War and the Soviets in 1969 had there been an invasion.
I agree with those who comment that the claims appearing in the media appear to have little credibility. Had they been credible then at the very least I would have expected to see the Chinese Ambassador getting a pretty big and public flea in his ear from the British Government and the Chinese Military Attaches being sent on a plane back to Beijing.
I would also have expected the British Government to have imposed economic sanctions against the Communist regime as well.
None of these events has happened so I can only be truly sceptical of the claims.
That said, there are some serious headbangers amongst the Chinese military, some in high positions and we should be vigilant that they do not gain the upper hand when the Chinese Communist Party loses its absolute grip on power as certain elements of the Red Army tried to do with the collapse of Soviet Communism.
My analysis is that this is good old fashioned right-wing anti-communist propaganda which deflects from the core problem in China. That core problem is that the human rights record of China is not matching the promises made to the IOC in 2001 and that pressure and potentially sanctions should be applied to encourage Beijing to both ratify the Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and release all political prisoners.
There has been wide speculation for years that certain ultra-nationalist elements of the PLA have wanted to engage in "asymmetric warfare" against the US. Indeed, the military approach of the PLA has always contained a guerilla approach to combat against a larger enemy. This was deployed effectively during both the Chinese Civil War, against the Japanese (although a recent biog of Mao has cast doubt that the Red Army did much fighting against the Japanese during the occupation of China from 1937-1945) and would have been deployed as part of a "People's War" strategy against both the US during the Korean War and the Soviets in 1969 had there been an invasion.
I agree with those who comment that the claims appearing in the media appear to have little credibility. Had they been credible then at the very least I would have expected to see the Chinese Ambassador getting a pretty big and public flea in his ear from the British Government and the Chinese Military Attaches being sent on a plane back to Beijing.
I would also have expected the British Government to have imposed economic sanctions against the Communist regime as well.
None of these events has happened so I can only be truly sceptical of the claims.
That said, there are some serious headbangers amongst the Chinese military, some in high positions and we should be vigilant that they do not gain the upper hand when the Chinese Communist Party loses its absolute grip on power as certain elements of the Red Army tried to do with the collapse of Soviet Communism.
My analysis is that this is good old fashioned right-wing anti-communist propaganda which deflects from the core problem in China. That core problem is that the human rights record of China is not matching the promises made to the IOC in 2001 and that pressure and potentially sanctions should be applied to encourage Beijing to both ratify the Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and release all political prisoners.
Wednesday, 29 August 2007
Beware the Ides of October
Yesterday saw the announcment that the 17th National Congress of the beloved Chinese Communist Party will begin on 15th October.
I'm sure that the next 6 and a half weeks are going to be an absolute barrel of laughs for Chinese dissidents, journalists and foreign reporters whilst the paranoid apparatus of the State tries to keep the lid on simmering unrest related to rising food prices and corruption (both petty and serious) by local government officials.
Like the 16th National Congress, this one is going to be a very interesting one to watch. I expect Hu Jintao to strenghthen his grip on the Communist leadership at the expense of the remnants of the Shanghai Faction. I predict that Vice-President Zeng Qinghong amongst others is set for a fall.
Hu Jintao has disappointed all of us who thought that Jiang Zemin was illiberal and that somehow he would prove to be a breath of fresh air. He is even more stifling on the human rights front than Jiang and even less charismatic.
The most important outcome of the Congress will, of course, be who is going to replace Hu Jintao in five years time. We should see the next generation of Chinese leaders emerge. Let us hope that they are more colourful and more liberal than their predecessors.
I'm sure that the next 6 and a half weeks are going to be an absolute barrel of laughs for Chinese dissidents, journalists and foreign reporters whilst the paranoid apparatus of the State tries to keep the lid on simmering unrest related to rising food prices and corruption (both petty and serious) by local government officials.
Like the 16th National Congress, this one is going to be a very interesting one to watch. I expect Hu Jintao to strenghthen his grip on the Communist leadership at the expense of the remnants of the Shanghai Faction. I predict that Vice-President Zeng Qinghong amongst others is set for a fall.
Hu Jintao has disappointed all of us who thought that Jiang Zemin was illiberal and that somehow he would prove to be a breath of fresh air. He is even more stifling on the human rights front than Jiang and even less charismatic.
The most important outcome of the Congress will, of course, be who is going to replace Hu Jintao in five years time. We should see the next generation of Chinese leaders emerge. Let us hope that they are more colourful and more liberal than their predecessors.
Nanny Knows Best in China
When I studied Chinese Language, Business and International Relations with Sheffield University (by distance learning as I was in China at the time) we started with a fascinating course on China and Society. One of our main coursebooks was by Tony Saich "Governance and Politics of China" which is an excellent introduction to Chinese politics (if perhaps a little bit in need of revision now post-Jiang Zemin).
One of the themes which sprang out at me and frankly angered me was how Chinese Government officials always somehow presume to know best (does that seem familiar fellow Liberals?). In putting this thesis to the test on a number of occasions in my discussions related to Small and Medium Enterprise Development policy in Jiangxi Province I often found that rarely did Government officials speak to their own local businesses and find out what they needed when framing policy, they would prefer to import solutions from overseas. They treated local businesses with comtempt.
In effect, Government Officials in China would treat the very people they are supposed to serve (so much for "为人民服务") as children. This is what Saich describes as the "infantisation" of the population. This comtempt for the intelligence of the ordinary Chinese citizen has its roots in the Republican era. Even Sun Yat-Sen was prone to it.
Unfortunately this infantisation process continues today and relates to the internet. People in China are incapable, it seems, of working out what is "good" for them, so they have to have an internet police to protect them from evil influences on the internet such as (sharp intake of breath):
"Websites that incite secession, promote superstition, gambling and fraud".
Presumably that means any website that supports Taiwan's, Tibet or Xinjiang's independence, Falun Gong (which has been ruthlessly suppressed) and probably a range of non-approved Christian sites, bookmakers and online poker and other sites etc.
Apparently Chinese citizens lack the maturity and intelligence that we Westerners have to determine for themselves what they can and can't see.
The BBC has more information on this here which is just as well really since Chinese citizens are also not allowed to read the news sections of the BBC website.
The Chinese Government is continually trying to keep the freedom of information that the internet brings under control to maintain it's weakening grip on power. It is our responsibility to see to it that they ultimately fail and the Chinese people learn the truth surrounding 64, corruption and other human rights abuses going on in their country.
One of the themes which sprang out at me and frankly angered me was how Chinese Government officials always somehow presume to know best (does that seem familiar fellow Liberals?). In putting this thesis to the test on a number of occasions in my discussions related to Small and Medium Enterprise Development policy in Jiangxi Province I often found that rarely did Government officials speak to their own local businesses and find out what they needed when framing policy, they would prefer to import solutions from overseas. They treated local businesses with comtempt.
In effect, Government Officials in China would treat the very people they are supposed to serve (so much for "为人民服务") as children. This is what Saich describes as the "infantisation" of the population. This comtempt for the intelligence of the ordinary Chinese citizen has its roots in the Republican era. Even Sun Yat-Sen was prone to it.
Unfortunately this infantisation process continues today and relates to the internet. People in China are incapable, it seems, of working out what is "good" for them, so they have to have an internet police to protect them from evil influences on the internet such as (sharp intake of breath):
"Websites that incite secession, promote superstition, gambling and fraud".
Presumably that means any website that supports Taiwan's, Tibet or Xinjiang's independence, Falun Gong (which has been ruthlessly suppressed) and probably a range of non-approved Christian sites, bookmakers and online poker and other sites etc.
Apparently Chinese citizens lack the maturity and intelligence that we Westerners have to determine for themselves what they can and can't see.
The BBC has more information on this here which is just as well really since Chinese citizens are also not allowed to read the news sections of the BBC website.
The Chinese Government is continually trying to keep the freedom of information that the internet brings under control to maintain it's weakening grip on power. It is our responsibility to see to it that they ultimately fail and the Chinese people learn the truth surrounding 64, corruption and other human rights abuses going on in their country.
Friday, 24 August 2007
Yet Another Chinese Communist Human Rights Outrage
Jonathan Watts has reported today that Yuan Weijing was detained at Beijing Airport and her passport revoked when she attempted to travel to the Philippines to collect a human rights award on behalf of her husband, Prisoner of Conscience, Chen Guangcheng. Further information here. The report suggests that her mobile phone was also confiscated.
I'm delighted to see that the British Embassy are on the case and are raising these cases of human rights activist and journalist harassment by local police and turning out to give moral support.
The way this is all going sanctions of some kind are going to have to be applied to get Beijing to sit up and realise that they can't go on treating people like this. Yuan Weijing has committed no crime for which she has been tried and convicted. This is not Rule of Law this is Rule by Law at best and arbitrary detention at worst.
I'm delighted to see that the British Embassy are on the case and are raising these cases of human rights activist and journalist harassment by local police and turning out to give moral support.
The way this is all going sanctions of some kind are going to have to be applied to get Beijing to sit up and realise that they can't go on treating people like this. Yuan Weijing has committed no crime for which she has been tried and convicted. This is not Rule of Law this is Rule by Law at best and arbitrary detention at worst.
Amnesty International Up the Pressure on Beijing
I had an e-mail today from Amnesty International highlighting their campaign to improve the human rights situation in China. Put simply, their campaign intends to hold the Beijing regime to the promises that were made in 2001.
Amnesty have published a twelve point plan which can be downloaded here.
The highlights of this plan are:
1. Putting in place measures to significantly reduce the use of the
death penalty as steps towards full abolition of the death
penalty in China (I think similar pressure should be brought to bear on the United States as well).
2. Take concrete steps to bring all forms of detention in China
into line with international human rights law and standards,
including measures to uphold the rights to fair trial and
prevent torture.
3. Ensure that human rights defenders are free to carry out their
peaceful activities in line with the UN Declaration on Human
Rights.
4. End all censorship of the Internet in China which constitutes a
violation of the fundamental human rights to freedom of
expression and information.
There is also a more detailed report on human rights in China which can be downloaded here.
I have to admit to myself (at the risk of becoming VERY unpopular in my own home) that unless things start to improve over there on the human rights front I'm going to have to start agreeing with those who would call for a boycott of the Games. I would then lobby our leadership and front-bench to back similar calls.
I don't want to go down that road but given the propaganda misuse that is being made of the Games by the Chinese Communist Party and their clear failure to honour the commmitments on human rights that were made in 2001 I'm getting closer to that tripping point. It's up to the Communists to start realising that they now live in a global village and metaphorical "wife beating" isn't acceptable anymore. There is already enough anger over their conduct regarding Sudan. The treatment of their own people is far from acceptable as well.
Beijing can make a positive start by releasing all Prisoners of Conscience including:
I wish that my Liberal Democrat friends would start taking the human rights in China issue more seriously. It should discomfort us all as Liberals that a huge number of our fellow citizens in the world are daily denied basic human rights. This should be seen as an affront to our international vision of human rights for all.
Amnesty have published a twelve point plan which can be downloaded here.
The highlights of this plan are:
1. Putting in place measures to significantly reduce the use of the
death penalty as steps towards full abolition of the death
penalty in China (I think similar pressure should be brought to bear on the United States as well).
2. Take concrete steps to bring all forms of detention in China
into line with international human rights law and standards,
including measures to uphold the rights to fair trial and
prevent torture.
3. Ensure that human rights defenders are free to carry out their
peaceful activities in line with the UN Declaration on Human
Rights.
4. End all censorship of the Internet in China which constitutes a
violation of the fundamental human rights to freedom of
expression and information.
There is also a more detailed report on human rights in China which can be downloaded here.
I have to admit to myself (at the risk of becoming VERY unpopular in my own home) that unless things start to improve over there on the human rights front I'm going to have to start agreeing with those who would call for a boycott of the Games. I would then lobby our leadership and front-bench to back similar calls.
I don't want to go down that road but given the propaganda misuse that is being made of the Games by the Chinese Communist Party and their clear failure to honour the commmitments on human rights that were made in 2001 I'm getting closer to that tripping point. It's up to the Communists to start realising that they now live in a global village and metaphorical "wife beating" isn't acceptable anymore. There is already enough anger over their conduct regarding Sudan. The treatment of their own people is far from acceptable as well.
Beijing can make a positive start by releasing all Prisoners of Conscience including:
- Bu Dongwei
- Ye Guozhu
- Chen Guangcheng
- Huang Jinqiu
- Shi Tao
- Yang Tongyan
I wish that my Liberal Democrat friends would start taking the human rights in China issue more seriously. It should discomfort us all as Liberals that a huge number of our fellow citizens in the world are daily denied basic human rights. This should be seen as an affront to our international vision of human rights for all.
Saturday, 18 August 2007
The Crackdown in China Begins
As I predicted when I reviewed the recent article written about China by Ming Campbell (but I suspect mainly ghost written) the widely expected crackdown before the 17th National Congress of the Communist Party of China has begun. Jonathan Watts has again written one of his great articles for the Guardian linked here.
The core of the article is:
"Chinese journalists privately say the current atmosphere is stifling. International civil rights groups say the rules are a new threat to press freedom.
"This crackdown is a legal gun to the head to responsible journalists who want to report on the basis of facts," said Sophie Richardson, deputy Asia director at Human Rights Watch. "China has a long track record of using similar campaigns to weed out news that the authorities find objectionable because it exposes social and political problems."
"In recent decades, China has gone through cycles of media opening and repression. Since president Hu came to power five years ago, there have been steps backward - such as the jailings of several prominent journalists - and steps forward, including the easing of restrictions on foreign correspondents at the start of this year.
"But as was the case ahead of the last party congress in 2002, the leadership has reverted to bunker mode". (Sounds familiar).
Hopeful now Ming? I'm not.
There is also a clampdown on NGOs such as those supporting the rights of Chinese citizens with HIV.
The human rights situation in China is going exactly as predicted. There are no grounds for optimism at the moment unless increased pressure is brought to bear from the West.
It is time that the Liberal Democrat leadership stopped trying to appease Beijing and stood up for what we are supposed to believe in. True freedom and human rights for all the world's citizens.
Yes, the way to influence Beijing is through constructive engagement but someone should be putting a flea in the ear of the Chinese Ambassador.
The Liberal Democrat Front Bench needs to show some leadership here. This is what our core supporters expect from us. This is our mission and the Olympics should not deflect us from campaigning internationally on our core values.
I'd normally spend some time looking at the People Daily articles and critiquing them but apart from one allusion to the fact that not everyone is happy about the commissioning of a new nuclear power station near Dalian, Liaoning Province, the press coverage is so deadly dull that you would think China had gone to sleep for August (which it actually doesn't do). The only coverage is postive "spin" on trying to control the air pollution in Beijing. I frankly don't think that they've got a prayer at the moment.
Wednesday, 8 August 2007
It's Time to Get Tough on the Chinese Communist Party's Human Rights Record Ming
I've noticed that Jonathan Calder at Liberal England has criticised at least the ghost writer for this article on the Comment Is Free part of the Guardian Website.
Here's my commentary on the article for what it is worth.
"In a year's time the Olympic torch will enter the newly constructed Beijing National Stadium to the roars of 80,000 excited onlookers and the 2008 games will be underway.
"In the so-called Bird Nest arena, one of a staggering 31 Olympic venues in Beijing alone, the world will watch the world's best sportsmen and women and cheer on their own teams, but also get a unique opportunity to see China in its modern garb; 21st century China, an economic superpower, comfortable with staging the world's greatest sporting event".
LL2 - China has an appalling construction health and safety record and I wonder how many workers have been killed and injured building the stadium and what, if any, compensation the families of the killed and injured have received?
"Like millions of others next year, I shall be glued to the television screen soaking up these weeks of sporting excellence. It's a mouth-watering prospect. How is the British team going to perform? Who will be the great world stars of 2008 that we can expect to see back here in London in 2012? Whatever my work commitments I won't be able to resist setting aside some time to watch the athletics in Beijing, particularly the sprints. I myself competed in the Tokyo Olympics in 1964 and it was a totally unforgettable experience. Medals, world records, personal bests, the sense of representing your country but appearing on the world stage, all of these things come together at the Olympics. It is simply the most amazing sporting occasion the world has ever created. But, it's also more than that".
LL2 - Good to remind people of your Olympic past Ming but perhaps you are missing the point abit here.
"When, back in 2001, Liu Jingmin, the vice-president of China's Olympic bid committee, argued that the games should go to Beijing - and not Toronto, Paris, Istanbul or Osaka - he vowed that "by allowing Beijing to host the games you will help the development of human rights."
"There, in simple terms, is a pointer to what the Olympics can also encapsulate. An opportunity for countries to take important strides toward ideals of equality, freedom and human rights".
LL2 - Given that China's human rights record has worsened under Hu Jintao perhaps we've all been conned? There are NO measures I can think of where freedom and human rights have improved for Chinese citizens. The Chinese Communist Party (CPC) point to improvements in the living standards of many but this should not cloud the core issue here. Basic human rights are denied to over one billion of our fellow world citizens. This flies in the face of the Olympic ideals.
"Let's not mince words. China's record on human rights is poor. Whether it's the persecution of Falun Gong practitioners, the harassing and imprisoning of lawyers and local activists, censorship of the media including the internet, the use of "evidence" extracted by torture, secret trials and wide-scale use of the death penalty, the situation is dire".
LL2- "Poor"?!? It is abysmal, nay shocking. "Poor" is being nice. Jonathan Calder is absolutely right when he accuses the ghost writer or Ming of mincing their words.
"According to Amnesty International, the situation is currently getting worse, not better, as the Olympics countdown continues apace. In fact there's even evidence of the targeting of the very activists who have tried to draw attention to the plight of those evicted from their homes as a result of Olympics-related construction projects".
LL2 - Now, that is more like it and this should set the tone for the rest of the article....
"China would win no medals for human rights. But things are still fluid, and there are hopeful signs in a mixed picture. China has promised to be more open and to put in place greater safeguards over its use of the death penalty. It has promised to reform its use of "re-education through labour" camps, a process of administrative detention used on a massive scale".
LL2 - The ghost writer then kicks the ball over the crossbar (groan). It promised this in 2001 and NO progress has been made. The Communist regime promises one thing and does another year after year.
"And on the world stage, last week's United Nations resolution over a peacekeeping force for Sudan's conflict-ridden Darfur region saw the Chinese supporting the international community's efforts in a constructive move forward".
LL2 - After blocking resolutions for a long time and allowing the situation to get dire beyond belief in the interests of "protecting the national sovereignty of Sudan". The Communist regime has frequently blocked international action to prevent genocide because it is frightened that it will one day be used as justification for intervention in Tibet and Xinjiang Province.
"Another example is the welcome decision by the Chinese authorities to lift reporting restrictions on international journalists who will cover the games next year. But, the easing of restrictions only applies until 17 October 2008. Why should it not stay that way after the games? And why are domestic reporters to be censored in their reporting, both during and after the games"?
LL2 - The fact that there are restictions at all should be seen as an odious disgrace. The BBC News part of the website still continues to be blocked in China.
"Some argue that sport and politics should never mix, but I think this misses the point. I for one welcomed the news that China would host the games precisely because I hoped and believed that this, among other influences, could lead to an opening up, a strengthening and modernising of this great nation. It still can".
LL2 - Time is running out (364 days no less). More pressure has to be exerted on Beijing to mend it's ways by the IOC and Western Governments. Ming is too optimistic. In fact, with the 17th National Congress of the Communist Party due this year human rights abuses will worsen, not improve in the name of "security" around this event.
"If hosting a major sporting event helps accelerate China's movement toward the mainstream international community, then that has got to be a further reason to celebrate the power of the Olympics. This is not about "bringing politics into sport" but recognising that no international sporting event operates in a politics-free vacuum".
LL2 - The right sentiments. The big question is, has the Olympics made that much difference in bringing China into the mainsteam? Has China taken a more Liberal Internationalist approach to international relations as a result of winning the Olympic Games? I don't think so.
"More fundamentally, Beijing 2008 is a once-in-a-life opportunity for China to clear the bar that it has itself raised to a higher level".
LL2 - Nice use of metaphor but the real conclusion here should be that so far it has knocked the bar off every single time (if indeed, it has been bothered to jump).
"On top of world-class facilities in the capital city and beyond, a legacy for the Beijing games should be a freer, fairer China".
"Let's enjoy this countdown to next year's Olympics, but let's keep our eyes on that other goal. The goal of a China that respects freedom, equality and human rights".
LL2 - Warm words. Very nice, now WHAT ARE WE GOING TO DO ABOUT IT?
I'm very concerned that the Liberal Democrats really don't have a coherent and strong policy towards the Chinese regime on it's human rights record if this article is anything to go by.
Softly, softly, isn't making a damn of difference and Hu Jintao and his colleagues must be quietly laughing themselves silly that they have got the international prestige of hosting the Olympic Games without having to pay the price of implementing political change in China. The great danger is that the Olympics finish and everything continues for Chinese citizens as it has since Tiananmen.
I also wonder what Hong Kong Democrat Martin Lee (an individual member of Liberal International due to the law in Hong Kong which forbids political parties from affiliating to international political organisations) would have to say about this article? I would love to know.
Here's my commentary on the article for what it is worth.
"In a year's time the Olympic torch will enter the newly constructed Beijing National Stadium to the roars of 80,000 excited onlookers and the 2008 games will be underway.
"In the so-called Bird Nest arena, one of a staggering 31 Olympic venues in Beijing alone, the world will watch the world's best sportsmen and women and cheer on their own teams, but also get a unique opportunity to see China in its modern garb; 21st century China, an economic superpower, comfortable with staging the world's greatest sporting event".
LL2 - China has an appalling construction health and safety record and I wonder how many workers have been killed and injured building the stadium and what, if any, compensation the families of the killed and injured have received?
"Like millions of others next year, I shall be glued to the television screen soaking up these weeks of sporting excellence. It's a mouth-watering prospect. How is the British team going to perform? Who will be the great world stars of 2008 that we can expect to see back here in London in 2012? Whatever my work commitments I won't be able to resist setting aside some time to watch the athletics in Beijing, particularly the sprints. I myself competed in the Tokyo Olympics in 1964 and it was a totally unforgettable experience. Medals, world records, personal bests, the sense of representing your country but appearing on the world stage, all of these things come together at the Olympics. It is simply the most amazing sporting occasion the world has ever created. But, it's also more than that".
LL2 - Good to remind people of your Olympic past Ming but perhaps you are missing the point abit here.
"When, back in 2001, Liu Jingmin, the vice-president of China's Olympic bid committee, argued that the games should go to Beijing - and not Toronto, Paris, Istanbul or Osaka - he vowed that "by allowing Beijing to host the games you will help the development of human rights."
"There, in simple terms, is a pointer to what the Olympics can also encapsulate. An opportunity for countries to take important strides toward ideals of equality, freedom and human rights".
LL2 - Given that China's human rights record has worsened under Hu Jintao perhaps we've all been conned? There are NO measures I can think of where freedom and human rights have improved for Chinese citizens. The Chinese Communist Party (CPC) point to improvements in the living standards of many but this should not cloud the core issue here. Basic human rights are denied to over one billion of our fellow world citizens. This flies in the face of the Olympic ideals.
"Let's not mince words. China's record on human rights is poor. Whether it's the persecution of Falun Gong practitioners, the harassing and imprisoning of lawyers and local activists, censorship of the media including the internet, the use of "evidence" extracted by torture, secret trials and wide-scale use of the death penalty, the situation is dire".
LL2- "Poor"?!? It is abysmal, nay shocking. "Poor" is being nice. Jonathan Calder is absolutely right when he accuses the ghost writer or Ming of mincing their words.
"According to Amnesty International, the situation is currently getting worse, not better, as the Olympics countdown continues apace. In fact there's even evidence of the targeting of the very activists who have tried to draw attention to the plight of those evicted from their homes as a result of Olympics-related construction projects".
LL2 - Now, that is more like it and this should set the tone for the rest of the article....
"China would win no medals for human rights. But things are still fluid, and there are hopeful signs in a mixed picture. China has promised to be more open and to put in place greater safeguards over its use of the death penalty. It has promised to reform its use of "re-education through labour" camps, a process of administrative detention used on a massive scale".
LL2 - The ghost writer then kicks the ball over the crossbar (groan). It promised this in 2001 and NO progress has been made. The Communist regime promises one thing and does another year after year.
"And on the world stage, last week's United Nations resolution over a peacekeeping force for Sudan's conflict-ridden Darfur region saw the Chinese supporting the international community's efforts in a constructive move forward".
LL2 - After blocking resolutions for a long time and allowing the situation to get dire beyond belief in the interests of "protecting the national sovereignty of Sudan". The Communist regime has frequently blocked international action to prevent genocide because it is frightened that it will one day be used as justification for intervention in Tibet and Xinjiang Province.
"Another example is the welcome decision by the Chinese authorities to lift reporting restrictions on international journalists who will cover the games next year. But, the easing of restrictions only applies until 17 October 2008. Why should it not stay that way after the games? And why are domestic reporters to be censored in their reporting, both during and after the games"?
LL2 - The fact that there are restictions at all should be seen as an odious disgrace. The BBC News part of the website still continues to be blocked in China.
"Some argue that sport and politics should never mix, but I think this misses the point. I for one welcomed the news that China would host the games precisely because I hoped and believed that this, among other influences, could lead to an opening up, a strengthening and modernising of this great nation. It still can".
LL2 - Time is running out (364 days no less). More pressure has to be exerted on Beijing to mend it's ways by the IOC and Western Governments. Ming is too optimistic. In fact, with the 17th National Congress of the Communist Party due this year human rights abuses will worsen, not improve in the name of "security" around this event.
"If hosting a major sporting event helps accelerate China's movement toward the mainstream international community, then that has got to be a further reason to celebrate the power of the Olympics. This is not about "bringing politics into sport" but recognising that no international sporting event operates in a politics-free vacuum".
LL2 - The right sentiments. The big question is, has the Olympics made that much difference in bringing China into the mainsteam? Has China taken a more Liberal Internationalist approach to international relations as a result of winning the Olympic Games? I don't think so.
"More fundamentally, Beijing 2008 is a once-in-a-life opportunity for China to clear the bar that it has itself raised to a higher level".
LL2 - Nice use of metaphor but the real conclusion here should be that so far it has knocked the bar off every single time (if indeed, it has been bothered to jump).
"On top of world-class facilities in the capital city and beyond, a legacy for the Beijing games should be a freer, fairer China".
"Let's enjoy this countdown to next year's Olympics, but let's keep our eyes on that other goal. The goal of a China that respects freedom, equality and human rights".
LL2 - Warm words. Very nice, now WHAT ARE WE GOING TO DO ABOUT IT?
I'm very concerned that the Liberal Democrats really don't have a coherent and strong policy towards the Chinese regime on it's human rights record if this article is anything to go by.
Softly, softly, isn't making a damn of difference and Hu Jintao and his colleagues must be quietly laughing themselves silly that they have got the international prestige of hosting the Olympic Games without having to pay the price of implementing political change in China. The great danger is that the Olympics finish and everything continues for Chinese citizens as it has since Tiananmen.
I also wonder what Hong Kong Democrat Martin Lee (an individual member of Liberal International due to the law in Hong Kong which forbids political parties from affiliating to international political organisations) would have to say about this article? I would love to know.
The Chinese Communist Party Can't Regulate Itself and Never Could
The Chinese Communist Party somehow have this strange notion that thousands of corrupt officials turning themselves in somehow inspires confidence amongst the Chinese people and the world as a whole. This bizarre article on the Renmin Ribao (人民日报） website somehow is supposed to impress everyone that the CPC is keeping it's house in order.
The reality is though that this is only the tip of a very long iceberg and frankly corruption of this magnitude leaves the CPC open to charges that it is unable to regulate itself. It is yet more evidence that it should begin the process of opening up the political system in China and implementing the "Fifth Modernisation" (民主).
China needs the equivalent of the Guomindang's former leader Zhang Qingguo who had the wisdom to realise that authoritarianism was not sustainable and committed his party to sharing power with others on the island. Sadly Hu Jintao seems to understand this even less than his predecessor Jiang Zemin. He is also likely to surround himself with more "yes men" this year at the 17th Congress of the CPC.
The reality is though that this is only the tip of a very long iceberg and frankly corruption of this magnitude leaves the CPC open to charges that it is unable to regulate itself. It is yet more evidence that it should begin the process of opening up the political system in China and implementing the "Fifth Modernisation" (民主).
China needs the equivalent of the Guomindang's former leader Zhang Qingguo who had the wisdom to realise that authoritarianism was not sustainable and committed his party to sharing power with others on the island. Sadly Hu Jintao seems to understand this even less than his predecessor Jiang Zemin. He is also likely to surround himself with more "yes men" this year at the 17th Congress of the CPC.
Is the Chinese Communist Party Discovering Democracy? Hmm....
I sometimes have a look at the website of the fantastically objective Chinese Communist Party mouthpiece Renmin Ribao (人民日报） to keep an eye on what the wonderful ruling elite are up to.
They seem very pleased with themselves today if this report is anything to go by. Under the banner CPC promotes democracy by open elections the CPC are preening themselves.
Lots of elections it seems and maybe they are starting to discover the merits of OMOV. They've even been letting non-Party members "have a say", whatever that means (not much). However, in case we got the strange idea that China was some kind of utopia the report mentions the following:
"With China's rapid economic development, the Party is facing problems such as corruption, low efficiency and bureaucracy, prompting measure for improvement."
The killer quote for me is:
"Experts point out that developing democracy within the Party is an important part of political restructuring and building of political civilization in China".
This expert suggests that perhaps, Comrades, you should try democracy in China, full stop. Allow properly contested elections with proper independent alternatives to the CPC. Then, at least you might find that corruption is a more manageable affair and you might even get back some of the credibility you so desperately crave.
They seem very pleased with themselves today if this report is anything to go by. Under the banner CPC promotes democracy by open elections the CPC are preening themselves.
Lots of elections it seems and maybe they are starting to discover the merits of OMOV. They've even been letting non-Party members "have a say", whatever that means (not much). However, in case we got the strange idea that China was some kind of utopia the report mentions the following:
"With China's rapid economic development, the Party is facing problems such as corruption, low efficiency and bureaucracy, prompting measure for improvement."
The killer quote for me is:
"Experts point out that developing democracy within the Party is an important part of political restructuring and building of political civilization in China".
This expert suggests that perhaps, Comrades, you should try democracy in China, full stop. Allow properly contested elections with proper independent alternatives to the CPC. Then, at least you might find that corruption is a more manageable affair and you might even get back some of the credibility you so desperately crave.
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