[Article from the largest German daily, Süddeutsche Zeitung, regarding the appearance of President Rau in China. Dechen Pemba in the ICT office in Berlin has kindly translated them into English.]
Johannes Rau is right: China’s rulers cannot ignore the topic of human rights.
By Kai Strittmatter, Beijing
16.9.2003 Süddeutsche Zeitung
President Johannes Rau surprised observers with a forthright speech in which he demanded that the Chinese government show respect for human rights. Actually Rau spoke of ordinary matters – it was the surprise of the public that was significant: in China, people are no longer used to such frank words from a European politician. Immediately, German entrepreneurs started to fear the repercussions for their business interests. The question arose: does the outside world have any influence on Beijing at all? In other words: is commitment worth it?
This question is of course rhetorical: Ultimately it concerns the ‘path to openness’ that Johannes Rau wishes for China’s citizens. How can someone help others to achieve this, if they themselves do not stand by their principles? In the long run it concerns representing the values for which the Germany stands.
Nevertheless, the question about the influence of the outside world on China is interesting. Rau spoke in front of students in Nanjing, practically in private. Germany is clearly not important enough for live transmission of its President onto state TV, as in the USA. Are such words thus sweet nothings? Only spoken for the homeland? Moral narcissism?
Aside from the fact that the German Embassy could place Rau’s speech on the internet in Chinese – one thing is certain: in Beijing such words will be studied. Do those in power care? Probably: yes. As China’s deceased patriarch Deng Xiaoping said triumphantly in 1986: “Didn’t we imprison Wei Jingsheng? We did not let him go again – nevertheless China’s image did not suffer.” The quotation shows two things: The West was always ready to let an emerging China get away with certain things – above all however: it is very important to China’s rulers, what the world thinks of them.
Would they otherwise fight so hard year after year not to be condemned at the UN Human Rights Commission in Geneva (where their continual success can be ascribed to the spinelessness of the Europeans)? The fact that China wishes for the world’s respect is more relevant today than ever: China is gradually merging itself into world events and does things which were, until recently, hardly conceivable, for example placing peacekeeping forces under UN command.
Perhaps now, therefore, is exactly the right time for plain speech. China has a new leadership. Where it will lead the country is not yet certain. There are several depressing reports of arrested attorneys and of progressives who are persecuted by China’s secret police. Besides, the situation is more complicated than in former times: once, the victims were those in whom the political system saw a threat. There has long been a new category: those who stand in the way of the new elite, the coalition of power and capital who want to earn money; citizens are evicted overnight from their homes, earmarked for demolition. Anyhow, it cannot hurt to support the efforts of those in the country who work for change. Finally there are also encouraging indications: most recently the state leaving citizens to marry in peace, the police may no longer arbitrarily put ‘vagrants’ into labour camps.
It is good that China and Germany have been carrying out a judicial dialogue for the past three years. The question of human rights should not, however, be posed in seminars and conferences alone. Frank words like Rau’s are equally necessary: China’s rulers must be convinced, they must be forced to respect justice, their arguments must be disproved. One must get on their nerves. That is exactly what the democrat does: he works above all with the power of words. More of this, please.
