Human Rights in China: A New Policy for the Bush Administration

Population Research Institute held its second annual conference on human rights in China on November 29 and 30. The conference, “A New US Policy for the Bush Administration” was co-sponsored by Family Research Council (FRC) and held at their downtown Washington, DC, office.

The conference presented policy recommendations to the new administration to help counter Chinese hegemony in the new millennium. It also highlighted the continuing human rights violations suffered by the Chinese people at the hands of their rulers. For two days conference attendees, congressional staffers and media listened to Chinese dissidents, human rights activists and foreign policy experts discuss human rights for minorities, religious believers, prisoners, and workers in China.

At a press conference held the second day of the event, PRI President Steve Mosher, FRC Vice President for National Security and Foreign Affairs Robert Maginnis, FRC Human Rights Council William Saunders and Chinese dissident Wei Jingsheng presented their proposals for US-China Policy. Media were present from a wide range of news organizations, including China Youth Daily, Voice of America, Radio Free Asia, Our Sunday Visitor, American Family Radio Network, The China Press, The World & I, and TAVBS Channel 1 in Taiwan.

The first panel of speakers addressed the rights of prisoners, women and workers. Dissident Wei Jingsheng explained that most Americans wrongly believe that Chinese citizens enjoy the same basic freedoms they do. Without experiencing persecution firsthand it is difficult to understand the nature of an inherently totalitarian regime. People in China are not evil, he explained, but the corrupt system “produces individuals who do not have any sense of morality.” Imprisoned for 18 years for speaking out for democracy in China, Wei suffered greatly in the Chinese prison system. Wei explained that “brainwashing” is an inaccurate term to describe what he was forced to undergo. The police in the prison system could not “re-educate” him because they were not themselves educated. Instead, they attempt to change the individual’s personal ideas about what is right and wrong, without giving anything to substitute for them. Man becomes like a dog, who takes orders blindly without thinking for himself. “Listening to their orders,” Wei said, “becomes your only reality.”

PRI president Steve Mosher addressed the audience on the ways China’s one-child policy violates the rights of women. Mosher was an eyewitness to the horrors of the one-child policy during its inception while doing research in China in 1980. The one-child policy is typical of the totalitarian system in China. Mosher stated that “No other government in history has tried to take over the reproductive systems of every one of its citizens the way the Chinese government has.” The PRC has an 83 million member state family planning commission used to enforce the one-child policy. Some claim that the one-child policy is no longer in force, but Mosher pointed out that the Technical Policy on Birth Control of 1983 has never been modified or rescinded. The Policy calls for contraception for couples with one child, sterilization for those with two, and “remedial measures” (abortion) for those pregnant with an illegal child. It is disingenuous, then, for the Chinese government to claim that theirs is a voluntary system, or that abuses, when they occur, are solely the actions of low-level government officials, and not the responsibility of the government itself. Rather, Mosher explained, “abuses are part and parcel of the system. If you have a system of targets and quotas, you can be certain that officials under pressure will in turn put heavy pressure on couples” who are pregnant without permission.

The United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) has been involved in the one-child policy from the beginning. In 1979 UNFPA gave a $50 million/five year grant to the PRC for their family planning program. This grant was renewed in 1984, despite “massive instances of forced abortion.” From 1985–1993, under the provisions of the Kemp-Kasten Amendment, UNFPA received no US funds because of their involvement in China’s population program. This was changed, however, when Bill Clinton became president in 1993 and resumed funding for UNFPA.

Shengde Lian, executive director of the Free China Movement, was a negotiator with the Chinese government on behalf of the democracy movement before the Tiananmen Square Massacre in 1989. After the crackdown, he was imprisoned for two years. Shengde Lian stated that China has the largest number of prisoners on earth, because all 1.3 billion Chinese people are in effect prisoners of the Communist regime. Lian, the father of a young son, stated that he must “work hard to end the Communist regime” so that his child does not have “to do the same thing 20 years later.”

Catherine Ho gave a moving personal testimony of the persecution she faced in China because of her religious beliefs. Ho converted to Catholicism at the age of 15 and was arrested four years later for being a member of the Legion of Mary, a lay Catholic organization dedicated to prayer and evangelization. Ho spoke of the hardships of the Chinese labor camps, including starvation, small cramped cells, the threat of torture and long hours of hard labor. Prisoners were also subjected to two hours of political propaganda every day. Amidst the suffering, however, there were moments of joy. Ho was able to marry while in prison and start her family. Ho was finally released after 21 years in the laogai system and currently resides with her family in the US.

Luncheon speaker Han Dongfang gave an eye-opening talk on labor unrest in China. Han is a popular radio show host for Radio Free Asia, whose programs reach all of China. Han was himself a worker in China until 1989 when he was arrested and imprisoned. Han explained that the situation for workers in China is actually worse than it was at the time of the Tiananmen Square demonstrations. There are a growing number of Chinese, presently between 30 and 40 million, who have lost their jobs at government-owned companies. Because they are still officially employees of the company, they are ineligible to receive unemployment money. Han said that not a day goes by in China that there is not a labor protest. Spontaneous gatherings of 10–20 workers are common.

In the afternoon, speakers T. Kumar, Bhuchung Tsering and Anwar Yusuf detailed the harsh persecution suffered by the Tibetan and Uyghur peoples. T. Kumar of Amnesty International pointed out that the Tibetans and Uyghurs prefer not to be designated as “minorities.” In their native lands, now controlled by the PRC, they make up the majority of people, although the PRC is attempting to reduce them to minorities in their own lands by resettling the area with Han Chinese. Kumar spoke of the forced abortions, and forced sterilizations that occur throughout China. Kumar explained that the policy shift that occurred under the Clinton Administration, culminating in the granting of PNTR to China, has, in effect, given a “blank check” to China to continue the persecution of its citizens, while profiting from trade with the United States.

Bhuchung Tsering of the International Campaign for Tibet spoke from personal experience about the persecution of the Tibetan population, especially the religious persecution suffered by Tibetan Buddhists. The Chinese regime has tried to destroy the Buddhist religion by demolishing monasteries, and to control it by choosing their own Panchen Lama. The whole identity of the Tibetan people is caught up in their culture and their religion. Their very existence, Tsering explained, is seen as at “political statement” by the Chinese government.

Anwar Yusuf spoke on behalf of the Uyghur people of Eastern Turkistan. Like Tibet, Eastern Turkistan lost its independence after the Communists came to power in 1949 and is now known as Xinjiang Province. The Uyghur people are primarily Moslem. The Chinese government puts great restrictions on their religion, including forbidding prayer and not allowing those under 18 to enter a mosque. The one-child policy in place throughout China is also enforced here. Anwar stated forcefully that this policy is “against our religion and against our will.”

William Saunders of Family Research Council ended the first day of the conference by drawing attention to the link between China and Sudan. Along with China, Sudan is the worst violator of human rights, especially religious freedom, in the world. Both nations, he stated, “reject the idea of universal human rights.” The attempts of the Chinese government “to control the family shows a regime that is the epitome of totalitarianism.” He further stated that he doesn’t “see how there can be freedom in China until this regime is replaced.”

The second day of the conference began with a panel on the rights of religious believers. Paul Marshall of the Center for Religious Freedom explained that religious persecution in China began in 1949 when Mao decided to separate Chinese churches from foreign influences. It has continued to the present day, with a marked increase in the level of persecution since 1988. Marshall explained that “Although the level of persecution has varied, the fact of repression has never changed.” The Chinese government claims that it allows the practice of Protestantism. Catholicism, Buddhism, Islam and Taoism. However, these religions may only be practiced in government-sanctioned institutions. Those Catholics who attend Mass in underground churches or Protestants who worship in house churches are persecuted by the government for their faith. The situation is complex, because in certain areas in China, there are few differences between the patriotic association and unregistered churches, while in other areas an antagonistic relationship exists between the two.

Marshall gave many examples of recent arrests and imprisonments in the underground Catholic Church, including the arrest of Bishop Thomas Yang, who, at 81, has already served 30 years in labor camps.

Jim Jacobson, president of Christian Freedom International and an experienced human rights advocate, contrasted the freedom of religion as stated in the US Constitution with Article 36 of the Constitution of the PRC. The PRC’s Constitution states that its citizens enjoy freedom of religious belief and cannot be compelled to believe or not believe in something. Article 36 protects “normal religious activities,” however, the government is the arbiter of what constitutes “normal religious activities.” The Chinese Constitution also states that religions are not “subject to foreign domination.” This effectively negates freedom of religion for any believers whose religion is seen as “foreign,” such as Catholics loyal to the Pope. It also hampers missionary efforts in China. The practical result of Article 36 has been the establishment of patriotic associations responsible for controlling religion. These patriotic associations guard against foreign influence, and appoint clergy, or “religious professionals.”

Erping Zhang is the US representative of the Falun Gong. The Falun Gong, also known as Falun Dafa, is a popular spiritual movement in China, which promotes the ideas of truth, compassion and forbearance. Its primary practice is a series of exercises and meditation. For the past several years, the practitioners of Falun Gong in China have been the victims of widespread persecution. They have been brutally tortured. They have been beaten, kicked, punched and had bamboo slivers stuck under their fingernails. Women have been sexually abused. Healthy people have been sent to mental institutions. Throughout, the members of Falun Gong have sustained peaceful resistance but continue to assert their right to practice their beliefs because, as Erping Zhang stated, “not to stand up to evil is to betray the good.”

Nina Shea concluded the panel on the rights of religious believers. Nina Shea is the director of the Center for Religious Freedom, and also serves on the US Commission on International Religious Freedom. China is a country of particular concern for the Commission because of its incessant persecution of religious believers. Within the past year there has been a “sharp deterioration of religious freedom in China.” The Commission came out unanimously against granting Permanent Normal Trade Relations (PNTR) to China, which Shea sees as a sign of “American indifference to religious freedom.” Although the issue of trade sanctions is now dead, Shea explained that there are other opportunities to put pressure on China regarding religious freedom, such as the Chinese bid to host the Olympics.

On November 30, a press conference was held to announce policy recommendations for the Bush Administration. PRI president Steve Mosher began the press conference by emphasizing that it is a mistake to think that granting PNTR to China will improve the human rights situation. “Foreign trade alone,” Mosher stated, “cannot change the way a government treats its people.” Mosher also warned of the danger of thinking that because China is becoming more open to certain aspects of western pop culture that it will also accept western notions of freedom.

The press conference participants presented a document entitled “Moving Beyond ‘Strategic Engagement’: A China Policy for the Next Administration.” This document, authored by FRC representatives Darren Logan, Robert Maginnis, William Saunders and Wei Jingsheng, proposes concrete recommendations for China policy under George W. Bush.

Wei Jingsheng stated that US policy towards China must stand firm on moral principles. He warned that “the Chinese Communist regime poses the greatest threat to world peace today. …The regime in Beijing does not really want families, faith and freedom to flourish in China.” Wei gave the example of the one-child policy which is “used to blackmail and ruthlessly condemn both parents and the unborn” to demonstrate the extent of control the Chinese government exercises over its citizens.

FRC Human Rights Council William Saunders introduced the topic of “defending the family and the sanctity of life in China.” Coercion, Saunders writes, is an important element of China’s population control policy. This includes “mandatory IUD insertion, mandatory sterilization, forced abortion, the monitoring of women’s menstrual cycles, harsh economic sanctions, physical punishment, and extreme psychological pressure.”

One of the most important steps the US government should take to counter China’s population control policy is to cease funding the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) until it ends cooperation with China’s coercive population control. Saunders lists several other steps the US government should take until China ends its war on its own people through population control. These include:

  • The government should oppose loans or grants to the PRC from international lending institutions, such as the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund.

  • Congress should establish a commission to monitor the population control policies of the PRC.

  • The State Department should ensure that USAID disburses funds in accordance with the Kemp-Kasten Amendment which forbids US funds from going to any country with a program of forced abortion or sterilization.

  • The US mission to the UN should raise this matter in all appropriate venues, and the State Department should sponsor the passage of resolutions at the UN Human Rights Commission condemning China’s population control.

In addition to the victims of the one-child policy who are forcibly aborted, there are many little girls abandoned in China every year. The US government should encourage more adoption of these children by US citizens, by streamlining the process and by opening additional visa processing centers in China.

The second section of “Moving Beyond Strategic Engagement” addresses the problem of human rights and religious freedom in China. Some of the suggestions for foreign policy in this area include: using PNTR and China’s probable entry into the World Trade Organization to hold China accountable for human rights reform, and holding annual congressional hearings on human rights in China.

Robert Maginnis addressed China’s growing drive for hegemony in Asia and the rest of the world and what can be done to counter this. The US must first protect its Asian Rim allies. We must also stop the transfer of American technology to China, which has enabled China to advance quickly in the development of ballistic missile and nuclear weapon technology. Necessary precautions include limiting non-immigration visas to Chinese workers, limiting military exchange programs and limiting Chinese access to high-tech university research programs. In addition, the United States must monitor China’s growing influence in Africa, Europe and the Middle East, as well as in Asia. China, Maginnis writes, “is not a benign power that should be welcomed as a strategic partner.”

Civil rights in China was the focus of a separate discussion, Professor Zhengyuan Fu, of the University of California, Irvine, and author of many books on China, explained that one of the dangers of socialism is that when you allow the government to do everything for you, then you enable them to do anything to you. Ben Tang, senior fellow of the Population Research Institute, stated that civil rights could be promoted in China by establishing a special political zone in China where democratic principles and the rule of law are respected.

By means of his e-mail magazine, VIP Reference, Richard Long has been able to penetrate the “great firewall of China.” The Chinese government controls the Internet by banning all static information sources. Long has gotten around this by providing his e-mail in a dynamic way. Rather than have his e-mail come from the same source every day, Long changes the source of his e-mail many times every day, making it difficult for the Chinese government to discover the origin and prevent the information from reaching Chinese citizens. Long is emphatic that technology alone will not guarantee the progress of China from a dictatorship to a democracy. It is necessary, however, to take advantage of technology to reach the persecuted people of China.

King-Ming Liu, editor of the Hong Kong newspaper Apple Daily, explained that there is not a great deal of overt censorship of the media in Hong Kong, but there is tremendous self-censorship. “It is better to do something before the master tells you to, because it will be too late when the master tells you.” One example of this is that the Tiananmen Square massacre is never called a massacre but is referred to as an “incident.”

The last speaker on civil rights in China was Liu Qing, the president of Human Rights in China and a former Chinese political prisoner. Liu emphasized the importance of the freedom of speech and the freedom of the press by referencing Thomas Jefferson’s statement that “were it left to me to decide whether we should have a government without newspapers or newspapers without a government, I should not hesitate a moment to prefer the latter.” Liu said that while under Mao Zedong, the Chinese government practiced total control of the press, in recent times it exercises selective control. By making an example of certain members of the media, the government is able to intimidate the others and prevent them from publishing information critical of the Chinese regime.

The conference concluded with a roundtable discussion on US-China Policy moderated by Steve Mosher. David Aikman, senior fellow at the Ethics and Public Policy Center, emphasized the need for a clear, unambiguous US foreign policy towards China. A weak or ambiguous policy cannot successfully defend the territorial integrity of a nation or defend relations with allies. A strong policy, however, does not mean an arrogant one. The US should maintain a spirit of humility in dealing with other nations. The policy should be applied peacefully and must be conducive to negotiation. But in order to be effective, it must be backed up by force when necessary.

Dr. Constantine Menges, senior fellow of the Hudson Institute, explained that China has taken a much more aggressive stance in recent years, as evidenced by the transfer of weapons of mass destruction to other countries, and the buildup of their own weapons. To counter this aggression, the United States should take several steps to improve its foreign policy, including establishing closer ties with allies in the region, having a regional missile defense, and allocating resources to peaceful activities to improve human rights. Although conference speakers presented extensive evidence that the human rights situation in China is not improving, conference attendees were cautiously hopeful that the new administration will strengthen the United States’ opposition to Chinese hegemony.

Never miss an update!

Get our Weekly Briefing! We send out a well-researched, in-depth article on a variety of topics once a week, to large and growing English-speaking and Spanish-speaking audiences.

Subscribe to our Weekly Briefing!

Receive expert analysis every Tuesday morning.
This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.