U.S. Will Seek Censure of China

The United States said Tuesday that it will introduce a resolution condemning China’s human rights record at the U.N. Commission on Human Rights in Geneva, a move certain to complicate Washington’s troubled relations with Beijing.

“The decision to go forward with this resolution at the commission is based on the fact that the government of China’s human rights record has continued to deteriorate,” State Department spokesman James P. Rubin said. He cited as evidence China’s crackdown on political dissent, a campaign to suppress the Falun Gong religious sect, intensified controls on unregistered church groups and a tightening of controls on minority groups, including Tibetans.

Tuesday’s move marks the ninth time since 1990 that the United States has tried to muster enough support within the 53-member commission to censure China. Only once, in 1995, did the effort come close to success, when the measure was defeated by a single vote.

Last year, the Clinton administration announced its intentions so late that the U.S. managed to find only one co-sponsor for its resolution--Poland--and the initiative was easily defeated.

The announcement comes as the administration tries to fend off criticism that it has forsaken its human rights agenda with China in favor of lucrative business opportunities and winning Beijing’s entry into the World Trade Organization.

A strong effort in Geneva would boost White House credibility on Capitol Hill as the administration lobbies for votes in Congress to win approval for the terms it negotiated for Beijing to join the global trade body.

The timeliness of Tuesday’s announcement was viewed by those who follow U.S.-China relations as an indicator of a renewed level of U.S. seriousness to push its resolution.

“It’s a good sign,” said Gay McDougall, executive director of the Washington-based International Human Rights Law Group. “A lot of planning and prior consultation is necessary if there is going to be any hope of getting a resolution through.”

With the U.N. Commission on Human Rights scheduled to meet in March, the administration has left itself two full months to build support for the resolution. The announcement also came just two days before a high-level European Union working group is scheduled to discuss the EU’s position on China’s human rights. Support from Western Europe is considered crucial if the resolution is to succeed.

“If the [EU] working group recommends support, then we’ll know it’s a serious effort,” said Mike Jendrzejczyk, Asia director at the Washington office of Human Rights Watch. “This is very encouraging, but what needs to happen now is that [President] Clinton and [Vice President] Al Gore get on the phone to ensure EU support as soon as possible.”

Foreign ministers from the EU’s 15 member states are likely to take up the issue at the political level when they meet later this month.

Although the EU backed the U.S.-sponsored 1995 resolution that nearly passed, America’s closest allies have tended to be lukewarm toward the idea of condemning China in Geneva, opting instead to engage in what they term a “constructive dialogue” to coax Beijing toward liberalization.

At a news conference last month in Brussels, EU External Relations Commissioner Chris Patton referred to human rights excesses in China, including the repression of the Falun Gong, but defended the dialogue, claiming the EU was engaging in “practical steps and not just rhetorical flourishes.”

One Washington-based European diplomat dismissed the tactic of condemning China in Geneva as “not our cup of tea,” although he noted that the EU had backed a resolution previously and might do so again. This diplomat claimed the EU-China human rights dialogue had helped encourage the Chinese to move toward local government elections.

“There has been progress,” the diplomat said.