Concerted plea for First Minister not to duck the issues
By Paul Hutcheon, Scottish Political Editor
A coalition of political leaders, trade unionists, religious groups and aid agencies has urged Jack McConnell to add discussion on human rights to his itinerary when he visits China next month.
The call came after it emerged that the itinerary for the First Minister’s trip to the totalitarian state does not include any meetings with Chinese officials to discuss their government’s abuse of basic freedoms.
Scotland’s Labour leader will arrive in Beijing on October 11 for a six-day visit to strengthen business links and promote Scotland as an attractive place to study.
McConnell plans to meet Chinese ministers, tour universities and talk to Scottish business people. He also intends to speak at two Scotland In China receptions that will be attended by officials from the communist regime.
Asked if human rights would be central to the trip, a source close to the First Minister said: “Not really. The focus is primarily business and educational.”
The revelation has provoked an angry response across Scotland because of China’s record on labour relations, the environment, women’s rights and free speech.
In its Report 2003 on China, Amnesty International said that human rights abuses continued and were even deteriorating. It noted that “tens of thousands of people” were being “arbitrarily detained or imprisoned for peacefully exercising their rights to freedom of expression”.
Women are also regularly subject to degrading treatment with forced sterilisations and abortions not uncommon. The One Child policy still exists.
The treatment of Tibet is regarded as another blot on China’s human rights record. It has been estimated that the Chinese occupation has led to the deaths of 1.2 million Tibetans.
Tsering Tashi, the secretary of the Office of Tibet in London, has already called on the First Minister to ask questions of Chinese officials.
A spokesman for Amnesty said: “China’s appalling human rights record – including massive use of the death penalty, unfair trials, the imprisoning of thousands in ‘re-education through labour’ camps and even the jailing of internet users – is an affront to basic human rights values. Mr McConnell should speak out.”
The Scottish organiser of the National Union of Journalists, Paul Holleran, said he hoped McConnell was aware that China didn’t have a free press: “I’d hope our politicians would stand up for freedom of expression and democracy. We’d expect it to be raised.”
STUC general secretary Bill Speirs pointed to the lack of workers’ rights in China, saying: “I hope Jack will raise with the politicians the need for workers to be able to organise in free and genuinely independent trade unions.”
Yu Yu Williamson, a Glasgow-based member of the Falun Gong spiritual movement which was banned by the Chinese authorities, said McConnell should not just concentrate on business.
She said: “The First Minister should bring up the human rights issue and tell the Chinese government that what they are doing is unacceptable. It is wrong to just talk about business and not say anything about human rights.”
SNP leader Alex Salmond said: “Jack McConnell has a moral obligation to raise the issue of human rights with the Chinese government. If he does not, it would be an abdication of responsibility.
Scottish Conservative leader David McLetchie added: “I hope the First Minister will have the courage to question the Chinese government about the continued occupation of Tibet. ”
Tommy Sheridan, the Scottish Socialist leader, blasted McConnell for not sending out a clear message to Chinese authorities, adding: “It is an outrage that the promotion of human rights is not central to the trip . It would be a disgrace if the man who is supposed to be Scotland’s leader goes to China just to do the bidding of big business.”
McConnell’s visit will be the third time a Scottish minister has visited China. Lewis Macdonald, deputy minster for enterprise and lifelong learning, made the trip earlier this year, as did deputy first minister Jim Wallace before him.
