Mixed picture on human rights

Caress with one hand, squeeze with the other.

That traditional Chinese tactic is in full bloom on the human rights front in the run-up to the Olympic Games in August.

The latest news is the sudden parole of Jude Shao, a naturalized U.S. citizen and Stanford Graduate School of Business alum who had served more than 10 years of a 16-year sentence for fraud and tax evasion. His trial was widely seen, including among Peking University law professors, as irregular.

Shao, 45, walked out of  Shanghai’s Qingpu Prison yesterday. The release came a day after Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice left China. The Bush administration had taken up Shao’s case consistently, and Ambassador Clark Randt occasionally spoke of visiting Shao in prison.

Click here for the Los Angeles Times story on Shao’s release. The Dui Hua Foundation in San Francisco also lauded the parole:

"Jude Shao's release reflects the hard work over many years of his Stanford Business School classmates (www.freejudeshao.com) and the US government—in particular President Bush, who repeatedly raised his case with Chinese President Hu Jintao, and American diplomats, who visited Jude more than 100 times during his incarceration. His parole comes days after Secretary Condoleezza Rice's visit to Beijing and six weeks after the resumption of the US-China dialogue on human rights," noted John Kamm, Dui Hua's founder …

Now for the squeeze: Security agents rounded up several human rights advocates over the weekend who were to meet with Reps. Frank Wolf and Chris Smith, both Republicans, during a brief visit to Beijing. Colleagues at the New York Times and Washington Post wrote about it.

Comments

[Netizen]

I recalled reading about Jude Shao's case years ago. I believe the Shanghai justice system is more or less functioning fine. But I don't know the details of his case, I don't want to comment too much.

In terms of the two Congressmen, if I were the Chinese, I would send them packing. They are the anti-China type anyway, goodbye and good riddence.

[A B]

When is Ambassador Zhou Wenzhong going to Guantanamo Bay to visit with Prisoners of War being illegally held by the United States in violation of the Geneva Convention?

When the Chinese Ambassador to the United States is too lazy or busy to make such an effort to further the cause of human dignity and international law, China have nothing to complain about when visiting Foreigners try to raise human rights issues with the Chinese government.

[Netizen]

The Angry Chinese Youth always consider the Chinese government weak in foreign relations. This is a case in point. The normal reaction to these two US Congressmen behavior was to expel them to where they came from, which is of course the US.

[A B]

Why expel them?

Just ignore them.

Congressmen are cheap and inexpensive, and in the US, they can be bought for a pittance by American citizens making political contributions.

[jeff]

I know several guys are preparing rotten eggs for French president Sarkozi. A mix of Freedom fry and "chou tofu" works just fine.

[A B]

@jeff

That is not nice.

It would be much better if the crowds all gather to see Carla Bruni and Nicolas Sarkozy is just ignored.

[jeff]

A B

Everyone wave the almost naked picture of Carla Bruni?

[A B]

@jeff

You got Carla's pic????

Oh post, post....

[kim]

Human rights defenders in China pay dearly for their courage.

Liu Jingmin, vice-president of the Beijing Olympic Bid Committee said, in April 2001: “By allowing Beijing to host the Games you will help in the development of human rights.”

What happened to the promises China made in its bid for the Olympic Games? Who will hold them to account?

Check out Amnesty International site - http://uncensor.com.au/uncensor/

[A B]

Got to hold China for account for human dignity violations!

Start by demanding that Beijing demand from the USA access to Guantanamo Bay Prisoners immediately and secure the release of as many of the unlawfully held prisoners as possible prior to the August 8 Olympics.

Then China need to take steps to free political prisoners in the United States, including making access to Chinese visas for Americans contingent on concrete steps taken by Americans in improving human rights for African Americans.

Then there is the issue of encouraging American fiscal responsibility. China should insist that the IMF audit of the US Banking system must be initiated prior to the Olympics, and the inspection team report no later than October 1, 2008. Any hindrance of the audit should be met by a suspension of the purchase of American T-bills or other financial instruments by the Central Bank of China.

China must live up to its promise to encourage the development of human rights and dignity worldwide as it promised the IOC.

[bemis]

@AB: Absolutely Great Post!

[A B]

@bemis

< Bowing >

[Junhui]

@AB
Your a revolutionary.

[Mainlander]

Human Rights adherence? Of course we Chinese will gladly obliged, albeit it is human rights with Chinese narratives/interpretations. Also, Human Rights must be gotten rid of Western politicisation; meaning all these so-called Human Rights Watch, Free Asia this-&-that & other politically-motivated NGOs must be manned/constituted with fair representstions from a wide spectrum of developing countries, & of course sanctioned by the Human Rights Committee of the UN.

Other than meeting the above conditions, all Human Rights proddings are mere garbage & should be treated with a pinch of salt as far as we are concerned.

[A B]

@Mainlander

What salt do you want a pinch of to feed these bothersome people (activist)?

NaCl? NH4Cl? MgSO4? NaCN? KCN?

I do think your suggestion would have much more "weight" if the human rights or dignity dialog is extended to cover all countries.

There isn't really a single place in the world that is "free" of problems.

Being sanctioned or not sanctioned by the UN doesn't have much to do with its validity.

Including developing (what a term) countries is certainly a must, but that does not mean including just their governments, but their people broadly speaking.

Such a dialog between all peoples of the world need no official sanction because it speaks to a truth that is universal.

Even if the truth is only spoken of and believed by one person in 6.6 billion, it is still the truth.

[carryanne]

I have come across an article that can help people see China more accurately. I think everyone should read it because it exposes certain facets of the communist party’s ways of censoring reality and justice. If we do not hear about this from dissidents willing to risk everything, then the CCP would effectively have repressed all knowledge of it’s crimes and would get away with it’s absolute abuse of power over China and people of the world.

The article is titled: The Last Hero of Tiananmen
by Philip P. Pan
How an aging doctor became the conscience of China.

As linked to on my blog, http://nomoreccp.wordpress.com/

Actually this story if from Philip Pans new book: OUT OF MAO’S SHADOW, The Struggle for the Soul of a New China

[WC]

I have not read Mr. Pans's new book. I am pretty sure that it was 100% written for the West. Needless to say it was written by a author who probably has been brought up in the Western values.
The Chinese people are not stupid, they know what is good for them for the short term and long term. If a poll was conducted today in China, I would say 9 of 10, especially those twenty something, would prefer under the current authoritarian regime than under the wagging fingers of the West. With the pychological burden, aka humiliation of a proud people, and deep physical scars, aka millions if not tens of million deaths of its citizen within 150 to 200 years between 19th and mid 20th century, mostly inflicted by the West and Japan (I suggest people read a good history book on China before making inflammatory comments and statements, especially those in power), the "peaciful rise" directed by the current "human right abusing" government but in fact carried out by its industrial, hard-working people is the foundation of legitimacy of the CCP government.
The change of direction an individual is easier than a an automobile which obviously more agile than a ship. Turning a old nation with 1.3 billion population and 5000 year history would take decades of evolution. Gentle quiet pushes would do a better job than using a "moral high" "ground"(do a "Iraq" on China?)forces for a change in China. Let them take time and do it in their own way with dignity. Look for progress not intant result. China will never politically be another Japan or a "copy cat" of the West. The best the world can get would be another mega "Singapore".

[Stan]

To WC...Great leap forward..10 million plus starve to death...this is the fault of the west? Stop mouthing the communist party line and step into the 21st century unless you are one of those paid bloggers..if that is the case take your money and run. China had a terrible 20th century and if it produces more shallow drones such as yourself then it is line for more suffering. The Chinese people have been voting with their feet for a 100 years. Tally that statistic up and then wonder why this is still the case today. China is a mean spirted corrupt nation that oppresses many of it's citizens. Wake up little man!

[WC]

Stan: The "Great Leap Forward" was inflicted by the Chinese themselves in a sense (by Mao, or the people in power then). This is not the point that I made in my comment. Since you brought it up. I would like to ask why there were no Western boycotts, asolutely nothing being done to the Chinese government during that time period, if West and the people like you care so much about 200,000 deaths in Darfur and not the 10 million plus deaths in China. You tell me why there was absolutely nothing being done from the West. 10 millions deaths vs. 200,000. Were there any discrimation or racism in the West keeping silence and not pushing for any boycotts because of they are Chinese?
The Chinese leaving their country mostly for economic reason, just like the Irish, the Italians, the Japanese, Korian, the Philippinoes, and so on.
Why would anyone being labelled "mouthing the communist line" and suspected of being a paid blogger for expressing a different opinion from the main stream West? Should I label you "mouthing for the Dalai Lama", or did you get paid from his exile government or CIA(which has a history of covert operations to topple foreign government)? You are so angry and bias that it is lucky a guy like you is not in power. May be if you do have the "button" and boycotts don't work, you might want to do a "Iraq" on China, or even "nuke" China to became a "Bush, the Third", and start a WW III. It is fortunate that China has a few nuclear warheads to defend itself, and guys like you are not in power.

[flyingsparkle]

To carryanne and WC,
There is little doubt about what happened in TianAnMen. While a lot of people didn't know what they are doing ("Innocent-bystanders" quote from "The Last Hero of TianAnMen", including my father and friends of my father). The successful cover-up of this massecre is, on the other hand, not because of the party, but because of those leaders of the demonstration or movement did not die for their cause. Their successful escape to the US, Japan, other western countries and Taiwan enabled the Communist Party to propagandanize this incident (myself included, for a period of time, confusion mostly). They called for political asylum, or human rights abuse and stayed outside China. These reasons later are being abused by corrupted Officials to stay in US. (I would call these people the true enemy of the people, the true Anti-China clique, Oppressor of Freedom, you name it) According to Chinese Official report, there are over 4000 corrupted officials abscond overseas. AND more than half of them use exactly the same reasons to stay in US. See the connection? Well, I believe the very least thing that the Western World could do to improve human rights in China is to stop harboring corrupted-officials-overseas. (I have many successful debates with my classmates and collegues on this issue, using exactly this point). If so, the Western Countries can say whatever they want and at least would shut me up.